Thousands of displaced people have returned to Syria after negotiations brought about a pause in hostilities following a week-long government offensive aimed at regaining the territory from armed opposition, a UK-based watchdog said on Saturday.

Russian mediators acting on behalf of the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad negotiated a ceasefire with the armed militias in Daraa province, where the UN estimated that some 300,000 people were forced to leave their homes due to intense fighting involving heavy airstrike and artillery campaigns, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

However, the war monitor added that thousands of others whose towns and villages were captured by pro-government troops were reluctant to return for fear of reprisals, reports Efe news.

The SOHR said smoke columns could be seen rising from burning properties the town of Saida, located to the east of Daraa city and was re-captured by government forces this week.

For its part, the Free Syrian Army opposition central command in the region released a statement saying the protection of civilian life was imperative.

Around 159 civilians have been killed by clashes in Daraa since the start of the government offensive, the SOHR said.

Dozens of people were still missing and four in critical condition as torrential rain that has killed 20 people pounds western and central Japan, according to local officials.

Intense rainfall triggered huge landslides and flash floods in Hiroshima, Okayama, Kyoto and other regions, while hampering rescue operations.

Local authorities said on Saturday a total of 20 people were killed in rain-related accidents, while public broadcaster NHK said the death toll had risen to 38 with 50 others unaccounted for.

The broadcaster also said that more than 1.6 million people had been ordered to evacuate from their homes.

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told his ministers to “make an all-out effort” to rescue victims, saying: “The situation is extremely serious.”

Japan’s Meteorological Agency retained special weather warnings for three prefectures in the main island of Honshu, down from five, and urged vigilance against landslides, rising rivers and strong winds amid what it called “historic” rains.

More rain forecasted
Although a weather front had settled between western and eastern Japan, there was a risk that heavy rains would continue as warm air flowed towards the front with already-saturated areas facing more rain on Sunday, the agency said.

In Motoyama, a town on Shikoku island about 600 km from Tokyo, 583 millimetres of rain fell between Friday and Saturday mornings.

Minako Sakurai, an agency official, told reporters heavy rain was expected to continue until Sunday in western and eastern Japan.

Abe ordered his ministers to “make an all-out effort” to rescue victims [Kyodo via Reuters]
Some areas have been hit by more than a metre of rainfall, according to the government.

In Hiroshima, the body of a man in his 60s was found near a bridge early Saturday and another man was killed when a mudslide struck his house, a local government official said.

A 52-year-old woman in Kyoto was found dead by a river on Friday, while in neighbouring Hyogo prefecture a construction worker was swept away by flood waters and died.

Television footage showed a wooden bridge being washed away in Hiroshima by a rain-swollen muddy river.

Rescue workers dug into the dirt as landslides crushed houses in the same region, while several people evacuated to their rooftops as floods swamped entire residential areas in part of the Okayama region.

Yoshihide Suga, chief cabinet secretary, said that about 48,000 troops, police and firefighters have been deployed for rescue operations.

Although Japan is among the most modernised of Asian nations, rural areas are hit hard by the rainy season each year, often resulting in casualties and heavy damage.

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A trade war between US and China officially began on Friday as President Donald Trump’s administration imposed tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese products, with Beijing vowing to “fight back”.

The penalties went into effect at 12:01 a.m., reports The New York Times.

Minutes after the tariffs went into effect, a spokesperson for China’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement: “China promised not to fire the first shot, but in order to safeguard the country’s core interests as well as that of the people, it is forced to fight back.”

The statement did not however, provide details on its retaliation.

The administration’s 25 per cent tariffs are targeting Chinese products such as industrial machinery, medical devices and auto parts.

On Thursday, Trump showed no signs of backing down from his fight and suggested the possibility of tariffs on almost $500 billion more of Chinese goods.

“Thirty-four, and then you have another 16 in two weeks and then, as you know, we have 200 billion in abeyance and then after the 200 billion we have 300 billion in abeyance. OK?” Trump told reporters aboard the Air Force One.

“So we have 50 plus 200 plus almost 300.”

Following Friday’s development, rhe Shanghai Composite index fell 1.1 per cent, after reaching more than a two-year low this week, reports the Guardian.

Chinese manufacturers have already been hit by a strengthening yuan that has made exports more expensive.

Trump and his advisers argue the tariffs are necessary to pressure China into abandoning unfair practices such as stealing intellectual property and forcing American companies to hand over valuable technology, reports CNN.

In addition to the tariffs, the White House is placing restrictions on investment and on visas for Chinese nationals.

The clash with China comes as the Trump administration is also fighting over trade with American allies such as Canada and the European Union.

American tariffs on steel and aluminium imports have provoked retaliatory measures against billions of dollars of American exports.

The United Nations is “deeply alarmed” about the government offensive in southern Syria, which is forcing thousands of families to flee their homes and has caused civilian deaths.

About 270,000 have fled, the UN said, with tens of thousands currently stuck by the border with Jordan after the Russian-backed government offensive began to recapture rebel-held southwestern Deraa province.

According to the UN, nearly half of the displaced are children.

“This is the largest population displacement in southern Syria since the onset of the crisis,” Anders Pedersen, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Jordan, wrote in a statement on Wednesday.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said on Wednesday that dozens of trucks were waiting for Syrian permission to supply humanitarian aid from Jordan to Syria.

Safadi was speaking at a news conference following talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow.

After artillery strikes hit Jordanian territory from Syria, he said Jordan’s armed forces were ready to defend country’s interests.

Amman has kept its borders shut for the new wave of refugees from Deraa, as the country says it is unable to host additional Syrians.

Jordan currently hosts more than 650,000 of the 5.2 million Syrian refugees spread across the region, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).

However, the Jordanian government puts the number at 1.3 million, as the UNHCR only counts registered refugees, whereas Amman includes Syrians who have not received UN asylum.

The UN has dispatched humanitarian assistance over the past two months and has been helping to provide essential supplies such as food, water, soap and medical equipment with extra supplies prepared in case for further escalation in conflict.

Children are at particular risk of dehydration and diarrhoea, Pederson noted.

UN urges Jordan to admit some of refugees from Syria’s Deraa
“The United Nations reiterates its readiness to assist as much as needed but, at the same time, it also reminds all responsible parties that our effectiveness depends on facilitation of the provision of humanitarian aid and protection to people in need, in line with the parties’ obligations under international humanitarian law,” Pederson wrote.

“The United Nations reminds all states and parties involved in the conflict that a delay in responding to the worsening humanitarian crisis could only lead to catastrophic results.”

Since the war in Syria began in 2011, Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon have shouldered much of the responsibility in hosting Syrian refugees.

The UN’s concern comes as Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov met in Moscow on Wednesday to discuss the situation in Deraa, located near the Jordanian border.

Safadi said the situation in southern Syria was a cause for serious concern and needed to be resolved as soon as possible.

He said on Wednesday dozens of trucks are waiting for Syrian permission to supply humanitarian aid from Jordan to Syria.

After artillery strikes hit Jordanian territory from Syria, Safadi said Jordan’s armed forces were ready to defend country’s interests.

Pakistan and the US have agreed to remain engaged for peace in Afghanistan, a media report said on Wednesday.

The agreement came during a meeting between US Deputy Assistant Secretary at the State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs Ambassador Alice Wells and Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa here on Tuesday, reports Dawn news.

“Both reaffirmed the commitment towards the common goal of peace and stability in the region and discussed measures towards that end. Both also agreed on continued engagement at multiple levels,” the Inter-Services Public Relations said in a statement.

Wells was on a three-day visit to Pakistan to again seek Pakistani authorities’ help for the Afghan peace process.

She met Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar, Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua, Chief of the Army Staff Gen Qamar Bajwa and Chief of the General Staff Lt Gen Bilal Akbar.

During her visit to Kabul, which preceded the Islamabad trip, Wells said the Taliban’s refusal to join the political process was “unacceptable”.

According to the US Embassay in Pakistan, Wells’ discussion was consistent with President Donald Trump administration’s South Asia and Afghanistan strategy, reports Dawn.

The strategy announced last year signalled that Washington might take coercive steps to push Pakistan to crack down against the Taliban and Haqqani network.

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was arrested on Tuesday by anti-corruption authorities in relation to state development fund 1MDB graft scandal.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said in a statement that Najib was arrested at around 2.35 p.m. (local time) from his private house over investigation linked to SRC International, a former unit of 1MDB, the BBC reported.

Najib has been accused of pocketing $700 million from the fund, set up by him in 2009. Billions of dollars are unaccounted for from the fund, authorities say.

MACC said Najib will be charged at the Kuala Lumpur court on Wednesday.

He has been under investigation since his shock election loss in May to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. Najib denies wrongdoing.

Last week police said they had seized $225 million in luxury handbags, jewellery, cash and goods from six properties linked to the former leader as part of the investigation into the 1MDB scandal. He has been banned from leaving Malaysia.

The US State Department has spelled out a campaign of “maximum economic and diplomatic pressure” to drive Iran towards negotiating a “better” deal to replace the Iran nuclear deal.

State Department Director of Policy Planning Brian Hook told reporters on Monday that Iran is not a “normal” country and must meet 12 demands in order to be relieved of US sanctions.

“Normal countries don’t terrorize other nations, proliferate missiles and impoverish their own people,” Hook said.

“This new strategy is not about changing the regime, it is about changing the behavior of the leadership in Iran to comport with what the Iranian people really want them to do,” he said.

The State Department said new sanctions, which it described as “snap back” sanctions, will begin on August 4, targeting Iran’s automotive sector and its trade in gold and other key metals.

The second set of sanctions will snap back on November 6. This set will target Iran’s energy sector, focusing on petroleum-related transactions, plus transactions with the central bank of Iran.

The move comes two months after US President Donald Trump announced US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

International pressure
US officials called on countries to cut all imports of Iranian oil when it re-imposes sanctions on Tehran.

It called on allies in Europe, Asia and the Middle East to adhere to the sanctions with the aim of pressuring Iran into negotiating a new agreement.

Hook said he planned to meet with European allies Britain, France and Germany at the end of the week to discuss Iran. He also said he and senior Treasury Department officials would visit Gulf states “in the coming days.”

Hook told reporters that the goal of the United States was to get as many countries as possible down to zero Iranian oil imports.

“Our goal is to increase pressure on the Iranian regime by reducing to zero its revenue on crude oil sales,” Hook said.

“We are working to minimize disruptions to the global market but we are confident there is sufficient global spare oil capacity.”

Hook said more than 50 international firms have already announced their intention to leave the Iranian market, especially in the energy and financial sectors.

“We have been clear with countries and companies around the world that we are bringing severe economic pressure on Iran until the regime changes its destabilizing policies,” Hook said.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman promised Trump at the weekend that he would raise oil production if needed and that the country has 2 million barrels per day of spare capacity to boost output, the White House said.

In a tweet on Saturday, Trump said the extra Saudi oil would help offset a decline in supply from Iran.

He was not specific on whether the additional two million barrels was a per-day figure – but worldwide daily demand is nearing 100 million bpd.

Syrian opposition figures have begun negotiations with Russian officers about an agreement to restore state sovereignty over rebel-held parts of the southern Deraa province, rebel negotiators said.

Insurgent negotiators and a spokesman said on Saturday a six-member civilian and military committee of the southern rebels held a preliminary meeting along the administrative borders of neighboring Sweida province.

The government’s offensive this month in southwest Syria has taken much of the eastern part of Deraa province from rebels, backed by a bombardment that the United Nations says has pushed 160,000 people out of their homes.

“The committee held its first meeting with Russian officers who presented their demands,” said Ibrahim Jabawi, a spokesman of the central operations room set up by the main Free Syrian Army groups in southern Syria.

A second round of talks is expected later on Saturday.

The deal being discussed does not include rebel territory in adjacent Quneitra province, bordering the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, the spokesman said.

Jordan, which borders Deraa province, has been facilitating talks between rebel factions and Moscow over a deal that would end the violence in exchange for the return of state rule there.

Russian negotiators have demanded rebels accept terms like those agreed for eastern Ghouta, where insurgents either left for opposition territory in the northwest along with their families or accepted the return of state rule, Jabawi said.

The southwest rebels did not accept this, and were instead proposing the return of civilian state institutions in the opposition areas and the entry of Russian military police rather than Syrian government forces.

However, the army has already captured large parts of the eastern zone of rebel-held territory in Deraa province in less than two weeks of fighting, and several more towns still held by the insurgents have reportedly agreed to settle with Assad.

On Saturday, state television said the town of al-Ghariya al-Sharqiya had accepted a “reconciliation” agreement with the government, and the national flag had been raised there.

It said on Friday that four other towns nearby had agreed to surrender their arms and accept state rule. The army had gained control over the towns of al-Harak, Ibta and Rakham, it said, and a rebel said opposition lines in one area had collapsed.

UN condemnation
On Friday, Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein, the UN’s high Commissioner for human rights, said in a statement that there was a “grave risk that intensified fighting will see many civilians trapped”, condemning “[how] civilians in Syria continue to be used as pawns by the various parties”.

Launched on June 19, the Syrian government’s military push is intended to recapture the southern provinces of Deraa, Quneitra and parts of Sweida, still mostly held by opposition fighters.

UN warns of ‘catastrophe’ as 160,000 flee southern Syria push
With backing by Russian air support, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have retaken territory and continue to progress southwards where the last pockets of opposition remain.

Earlier on Friday, a temporary truce in Deraa between government forces and the rebel group Free Syrian Army (FSA), brokered by Russia and Jordan, ended at noon local time.

Later in the day, a Jordanian official told Reuters news agency that a new ceasefire had been agreed upon by the Syrian government and rebels, but did not offer further details.

However, a US Department of State official said Washington could neither confirm nor deny the truce report and described the situation in southern Syria as “grim”, with Syrian government forces and Russia continuing to bomb the area.

Golan Heights
Also on Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a new call for “an immediate cessation” to military operations in southwest Syria.

Guterres was “deeply alarmed by the military offensive in southwestern Syria and its devastating toll on civilians,” according to a statement from his spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

“The secretary-general recalls that the southwest area of Syria is part of a de-escalation agreement agreed between Jordan, Russia and the United States,” the statement said.

Guterres “calls on all parties to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and human rights law, protect civilians and facilitate safe, unimpeded and sustained humanitarian access”.

Meanwhile, the UN Security Council on Friday unanimously renewed for six months its mission to observe the ceasefire in the Golan Heights, calling for armed groups to leave the area separating Syrian and Israeli forces.

UNDOF, which comprises nearly a thousand personnel, was created in 1974 after an agreement on the departure of Israeli and Syrian forces from Golan.

In 1981, Israel annexed part of Golan in a move unrecognized by the international community, while a smaller part of the area is under Syrian control.

“There should be no military forces in the area of separation other than those of UNDOF,” reads the resolution drafted by the US and Russia.

The text condemns “the continued fighting in the area of separation” and calls on “all parties to the Syrian domestic conflict to cease military actions in the UNDOF area of operations”.

It “stresses the obligation on both parties to scrupulously and fully respect the terms of the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement”.

“There should be no military activity of any kind in the area of separation,” either by the Syrian military or opposition forces, it said.

Aljazeera

China on Friday said that Pakistan must not be vilified and pressured on the front of terror after a global watchdog put the country on “grey list” of countries that finance terrorism.

China calls Pakistan its “best friend” and resolutely backs the country whenever it is slammed for funding and sheltering terrorists.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said it won’t comment on the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) decision to put Pakistan on the “grey list” and counseled the world to see the efforts made by Islamabad in an “objective” way.

“We will not make comment on the decision of the task force. Pakistan has made enormous efforts for counterterrorism and made a great sacrifice. The international community should view this in an objective, just way and should give more support and recognition to Pakistan,” ministry’s spokesperson Lu Kang said.

“Pakistan efforts in the counter terrorism have not only won recognition from China but also from many countries around the world. In recent years, it has taken positive measures to enhance financial regulations to combat terrorism financing and made very important progress,” Lu said.

“We hope all the relevant parties can view the efforts made by Pakistan on counter-terrorism in an objective way instead of accusing and pressuring it. China and Pakistan are all-weather, strategic partners. China is willing to enhance counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan.”

The FATF on Thursday put Islamabad on “grey list” for failing to rein in terrorists and funding to outfits like Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jamaat-ud-Dawa and Jaish-e-Mohammed.

Paris-based FATF is an inter-governmental body established in 1989 to combat money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.

Chinese defence against its “all-weather” ally is not new. Beijing has invested over $50 billion in infrastructure projects in Pakistan, which are part of its ambitious Belt and Road programme.

Five people were killed and two others injured when a man armed with a shotgun and smoke grenades stormed into the newsroom of a community newspaper chain in the US state of Maryland, prompting law enforcement agencies to provide protection at the headquarters of all American media organisations.

The suspect, identified as Jarrod W. Ramos, 38, was taken into custody after the targeted attack on Thursday at the office of the Capital Gazette located in Annapolis, reports The New York Times.

The attack has been deemed as the deadliest day for journalism in America in several years.

Ramos had a long history of conflict with the daily, which produces a number of local newspapers along Maryland’s shore.

He lost a defamation case against the paper in 2015 over a 2011 column he contended defamed him. The column provided an account of Ramos’s guilty plea to criminal harassment of a woman over social media.

“This person was prepared today to come in, this person was prepared to shoot people,” The Washington Post quoted Anne Arundel County Deputy Police Chief William Krampf said.

“His intent was to cause harm.”

The police said all of the victims killed were Capital Gazette employees: Gerald Fischman, Rob Hiaasen, John McNamara, Rebecca Smith and Wendi Winters.

Fischman and Hiaasen were editors, McNamara was a reporter, Smith was a sales assistant and Winters worked for special publications, according to the newspaper’s website.

Four of the victims died on the spot while the fifth was pronounced dead at the University of Maryland Medical Centre.

The shooting began at about 3 p.m. in the office building just outside of downtown Annapolis, The Washington Post reported.

Ramos entered the building with a shotgun and looked for his victims, the police said.

The police, who arrived at the scene within a minute of the reported gunfire, apprehended Ramos found hiding under a desk in the newsroom.

Gazette reporter Phil Davis described the scene as a “war zone” and a situation that would be “hard to describe for a while”.

After his arrest, Ramos refused to cooperate with the authorities or provide his name. He was identified using facial recognition technology, a law enforcement official told The New York Times.

President Donald Trump tweeted: “My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families,” CNN reported.

House Speaker Paul Ryan said: “The senseless attack on a Maryland newspaper today is sickening. God bless these journalists. We pray for them and their families tonight.”

Joel Simon, Executive Director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, said that violence against journalists was unacceptable.

“Newspapers like the Gazette do vital work, and our thoughts are with them amid this unconscionable tragedy,” he added.

The Capital Gazette, which has an editorial staff of 31 people, had a daily circulation of about 29,000 and a Sunday circulation of 34,000 as of 2014.

Commonly referred to as the Capital, the paper was founded in 1884 as the Evening Gazette.

The paper promotes itself as one of the oldest publishers in the country, with roots dating to the Maryland Gazette in 1727.