The city has been battered by more than six months of unrest with marches attended by millions, as well as confrontations in which police have fired tear gas and rubber bullets.

HONG KONG: Hong Kong police fired tear gas a few minutes into 2020 as pro-democracy protesters took their movement into the new year with midnight countdown rallies and a massive march planned for January 1.

The city has been battered by more than six months of unrest with marches attended by millions, as well as confrontations in which police have fired tear gas and rubber bullets — and protesters have responded with petrol bombs.

Before midnight on Tuesday, thousands of protesters gathered across the financial hub, including along the waterfront of Victoria Harbour and at nightlife hotspot Lan Kwai Fong.

Protesters at the harbourfront counted down chanting “Ten! Nine! Liberate Hong Kong, revolution now!” as they lit up their phones in a sea of lights.

Smaller crowds of protesters in the Mong Kok district set fire to barricades — and riot police unleashed 2020’s first volleys of tear gas in response.

Shortly before the final day of 2019 drew to a close, police used water cannon to disperse protesters in the same area while, in nearby Prince Edward neighbourhood, officers arrested several protesters staging a candlelight vigil.

Earlier in the evening, thousands of people linked arms in human chains that stretched for miles along busy shopping streets and through local neighbourhoods.

They chanted slogans, sang “Glory to Hong Kong” — a protest anthem — and held up posters calling for people to fight for democracy in 2020.

“Thanks to 2019, which tore off the ugly masks of the police and the government and let the people see the truth,” said protester Kris, a medic who joined the protest.

“The movement is kind of like at its bottleneck now. Hopefully, a huge turnout at tomorrow’s march could bring back people’s passion,” he added.

The city’s traditional New Year Eve’s bumper fireworks display was cancelled due to safety concerns, but a light show and smaller-scale fireworks took place instead.

In late November, the city’s pro-democracy camp scored a landslide victory in a municipal-level vote seen as a referendum on the Beijing-backed government’s handling of political unrest.

The protest movement has since become quieter but sporadic clashes have persisted.

In a New Year’s video message broadcast on state media, Chinese president Xi Jinping said Hong Kong’s recent upheaval was concerning and that the “people of our motherland” expected stability in the restive city.

But protesters have vowed to continue their effort to push for greater democratic freedoms and police accountability.

On Tuesday night, demonstrators also swarmed major shopping malls, which have become regular protest venues in an effort to cause economic disruption.

“2019 is a remarkable and special year for every single Hongkonger,” 25-year-old teacher Sam told AFP as he celebrated New Year’s Eve with his family at the harbourfront.

“People’s demands are loud and clear, but the government is not listening. In 2020, I really hope it will be a better year for all Hong Kong people.”

The Civil Human Rights Front, the chief organiser of marches, hopes for a huge turnout at Wednesday’s rally to urge the government to respond to the demands of the pro-democracy movement — which include an independent inquiry into the police, amnesty for arrestees and fully free elections.

Police have arrested nearly 6,500 people since June — nearly a third of them aged under 20.

“The youngsters have sacrificed a lot for justice. 2019 is a wake-up call,” a 63-year-old retiree, who gave his surname as Shiu, told AFP.

“People will be more determined in the new year. People know that the future of Hong Kong depends on whether we can achieve the five demands.”

The demonstrations were sparked by a now-abandoned bill to allow extraditions to the authoritarian mainland, but have since morphed into a popular revolt against Beijing’s control — the biggest crisis since the former British colony’s return to Chinese rule in 1997.

The December 18 report also said that for the first time in independent India’s history, a religious criterion has been added to the country’s naturalization process.

WASHINGTON: The amended Citizenship law along with a National Register of Citizens (NRC) being planned by the Narendra Modi government “may affect the status” of the Muslim minority in India, a report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) has said.

The December 18 report also said that for the first time in independent India’s history, a religious criterion has been added to the country’s naturalization process.

The CRS is an independent research wing of the US Congress which prepares reports periodically on issues of domestic and global importance for the lawmakers to take an informed decision.

These are not considered as official reports of the US Congress.

“In tandem with a National Register of Citizens (NRC) planned by the federal government, the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) may affect the status of India’s large Muslim minority of roughly 200 million,” said the CRS in its first-ever report on the amended Citizenship law.

According to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, non-Muslim refugees who came to India till December 31, 2014, to escape religious persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan will be given Indian citizenship.

Since both houses of Parliament approved amendments to the citizenship law earlier this month, protests – sometimes violent – have taken place across the country during which many protesters have died, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka.

“India’s Citizenship Act of 1955 prohibited illegal immigrants from becoming citizens.

Among numerous amendments to the act since 1955, none contained a religious aspect,” the CRS said in its two-page report.

The changes sparked significant controversy, including large-scale and sometimes violent protests.

Opponents of the CAA warn that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are pursuing a Hindu majoritarian, anti-Muslim agenda that threatens India’s status as an officially secular republic and violates international human rights norms, it said.

The CRS claims that the amendment’s key provisions “allowing immigrants of six religions from three countries a path to citizenship while excluding Muslims” may violate certain Articles of the Indian Constitution, in particular, Articles 14 and 15.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act was immediately challenged in the Supreme Court by scores of petitioners, but the court has refused to issue a stay on implementation and is deferring hearing petitions until January 22, it notes, adding that the government argues that the three specified countries have a state religion — Islam — resulting in persecution of religious minorities.

“Proponents say that Muslims do not face persecution in Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Afghanistan and that the CAA is constitutional because it addresses migrants rather than Indian citizens,” it said.

“Yet it is not clear why migrants from other neighbouring countries with state (or favoured) religions, such as Sri Lanka (where Buddhism is the official religion and Tamil Hindus face persecution) and Burma (where Buddhism enjoys primacy and Rohingya Muslims are persecuted), are excluded from a path to citizenship.

In addition, oppressed Muslim minority communities such as Pakistan’s Ahmadis and Shias enjoy no protection under the CAA,” the CRS said.

“The New Delhi government maintains that the NRC update is a fair and non-discriminatory process driven by the Supreme Court that does not impose a religious test or render any persons ‘stateless’,” it said adding that the United Nations, the US Commission for International Religious Freedom, and independent human rights groups have expressed concerns about NRC.

The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, had drawn international condemnation for the killing because several Saudi agents involved worked directly for him.

RIYADH: A court in Saudi Arabia on Monday sentenced five people to death for the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul last year by a team of Saudi agents.

Saudi Arabia’s state-run Al-Ekhbariya TV channel reported that three others were sentenced to prison. All can appeal the verdicts.

The Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, had drawn international condemnation for the killing because several Saudi agents involved worked directly for him. The kingdom denies that Prince Mohammed had any involvement or knowledge of the operation.

State TV also reported the Saudi attorney general’s investigation showed that the crown prince’s former top adviser, Saud al-Qahtani, had no proven involvement in the killing. Al-Qahtani, however, has been sanctioned by the United States for his alleged role in the operation.

The court also ruled that the Saudi consul-general in Istanbul at the time, Mohammed al-Otaibi, was not guilty. He was released from prison after the verdicts were announced, according to state TV.

After holding nine sessions, the trial concluded that there was no previous intent by those found guilty to murder, according to state TV.

The trials of the accused were carried out in near total secrecy, though a handful of diplomats, including from Turkey, as well as members of Khashoggi’s family were allowed to attend the sessions. In total, 11 people were on trial for Khashoggi’s death in the kingdom.

The verdicts were read by Shaalan al-Shaalan, a spokesperson from the attorney general’s office, and broadcast on state TV. No names were given for those found guilty. The attorney general’s office also said it is looking into the verdicts, which were issued by Riyadh’s criminal court, to see whether to move ahead in the appellate court.

The three suspects in eh case who face prison time were sentenced to a total of 24 years, but no individual breakdown for each person was given. Another three who were on trial were released after being found not guilty, and several others who were investigated were also released.

The killing had shocked the world and drawn condemnation from the international community, including the United Nations.

Khashoggi had walked into his country’s consulate in Istanbul on that morning in October 2018 to collect documents that would allow him to wed his Turkish fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, who waited for him outside.

He never walk out. Khashoggi’s body was never found.

Agnes Callamard, a U.N. special rapporteur who authored an inquiry into Khashoggi’s killing, later said the search for justice must not be left to the Saudi judicial system, which is “so vulnerable to political interference.”

President Donald Trump condemned the killing, and his administration sanctioned 17 Saudis suspected of being involved, though not the crown prince. Trump, however, has steadfastly resisted calls by members of his own party for a tougher response and has defended maintaining good relations with Saudi Arabia, framing its importance as a major buyer of U.S. military equipment and weapons and saying this creates American jobs.

Meanwhile, numerous critics of the Saudi crown prince remain imprisoned and face trial for their acts of dissent.

The protesters also passed a resolution requesting the Indian government to withdraw both the NRC and the CAA.

WASHINGTON: A large number of Indian-Americans gathered around the statue of Mahatma Gandhi installed in front of the Indian Embassy here and held a peaceful demonstration against the amended Citizenship Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC).

According to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014 following religious persecution there will get Indian citizenship.

“We are here for only a single purpose. That purpose is civil rights and religious freedom and nothing more than that,” Indian-American Mike Ghouse from the Washington-based non-governmental organisation Centre for Pluralism told the gathering, which included women, children and students.

Organised by American-Indian Muslims in association with over a dozen of similar bodies, peaceful protestors from in and around the Greater Washington Area on Sunday shouted slogans in favour of India’s unity and displayed posters and banners alleging that the country was headed in a direction that was not secular in nature and violated the ethos of the Constitution.

The protesters also passed a resolution requesting the Indian government to withdraw both the NRC and the CAA.

“All we want the (Indian government) is to repeal the laws that have been enacted recently, so that we all can be one India, one people and nation under god so that we can work together, live together and not worry and not have any tensions about who is who one people,” Ghouse said.

According to the resolution, both the CAA and the NRC are likely to push India backward as a nation.

“We therefore resolve that India’s BJP government should withdraw both of these legislations at the earliest,” said the resolution, a copy of which was submitted to the Indian Embassy.

“The possible implementation of both of these legislations is likely to cause huge conflicts between the majority and minority communities, reducing the citizenship status of Indian Muslims and causing conflagration between the ethnically and religiously diverse states and people of India.

As evidenced by the recent chaos in Assam and Kashmir, and elsewhere, these Acts are likely to cause much harm to the Indian nation and the Indian people,” it said.

According to the organisers more than 200 people joined the over two-hour protest at the Gandhi Statue in downtown Washington, in front of the Indian Embassy.

“At a time when India’s economy is in much decline, unemployment is rising, lawlessness is widespread, and public corruption is rife, the BJP government instead of working to resolve these serious issues, is coming up with strange policies that are forcing Indians to prove their being citizens,” said Kaleem Kawaja, from the American-Indian Muslims and coordinators, Rally Against NRC, CAA.

“The NRC that is being applied all over the country is forcing people to show their original government-issued birth certificate in a country where such certificates did not exist until a few decades ago, especially among the poor and illiterate communities who are about half of the country,” he said.

The NRC has been prepared to identify genuine Indian citizens living in Assam since March 24, 1971, or before, and identify illegal Bangladeshi migrants in the state.

Out of 3.3 crore applicants, over 19 lakh people were excluded from the final NRC published on August 30.

“The current government is destroying the social fabric of India gained in 70 years of our freedom. (PM) Modi and (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah have to take the policy back,” said one of the protestors.

While he was parking his car, a man came up to his cab and asked him for a lighter. Sidhu said he didn’t have one and the man left, but then he returned with another request.

NEW DELHI: A 57-year-old Indian-origin Sikh taxi driver has been brutally assaulted and hit with a with a barbeque grill cover in the head in front of his home in the US state of California, media reports said, second such attack in less than a fortnight.

Baljeet Singh Sidhu, who works as a mail carrier and an Uber driver, was attacked on Sunday while he was parking his car outside his home near Hilltop Mall, Richmond, California, after finishing his duties.

While he was parking his car, a man came up to his cab and asked him for a lighter. Sidhu said he didn’t have one and the man left, but then he returned with another request.

“He asked me and said he had USD 5 and he needed a ride. It looked suspicious,” Sidhu was quoted as saying by the KTVU television station.

He told the man his shift was over. Then the suspect came back a third time and attacked Sidhu and hit him in the head with a barbeque grill cover and then knocked down and choked.

“I was hit a number of times. Have so many wounds,” Sidhu said. There were cuts, bumps and bruises on him. His family believes the attack could be a hate crime, and he was assaulted because of his Sikh turban and appearance, the SFGate reported.

His daughter, Gaganjot Sidhu said, “His turban was off and blood all over his face. It was the most terrifying thing I’ve ever seen. Like no daughter wants to see her father in that condition.

No slurs were used, no money was robbed, but Gaganjot says her father was targeted because of how he looks.

On Wednesday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) expressed solidarity with the Sikh community of the San Francisco Bay Area, the report said.

“We condemn this attack and express our solidarity with the Sikh community,” said Zahra Billoo, executive director of the San Francisco Bay Area office of CAIR.

“Sidhu and his loved ones are in our prayers. We urge the Richmond Police Department to investigate a possible bias motive for this incident.” The attack is second such attack in a fortnight.

On December 5, An Indian-origin Sikh taxi driver was assaulted and racially abused in the US state of Washington in a suspected hate crime.

The head of Volkswagen’s local partner has been detained in Algeria since June in a corruption probe.

The Sovac-Volkswagen factory opened in 2017 at Relizane and assembles kits provided by the German parent.

Carmaker Volkswagen has suspended production in Algeria, where the head of its local partner has been detained since June in a corruption probe, a spokesman for the German auto giant said.

“Volkswagen is aware of a corruption investigation by Algerian authorities into Mourad Oulmi”, who heads Algerian partner Sovac, the spokesman told AFP.

“Production at the factory, operated in a co-venture with Sovac, is suspended, as are deliveries by Volkswagen” to Sovac, the spokesman added.

The Sovac-Volkswagen factory opened in 2017 at Relizane, some 250 kilometres (150 miles) southwest of Algiers, and assembles kits provided by the German parent.

In 2018, it produced around 50,000 Volkswagen, Audi, Seat and Skoda vehicles.

Contacted by AFP, a spokesman for Sovac refused to comment, but promised a statement later in the day.

Several Algerian news outlets reported that Sovac announced Sunday output at the factory stopped in October, effectively leaving 700 employees without work.

Several prominent politicians and businessmen linked to Abdelaziz Bouteflika have been detained or questioned in connection with corruption since the ailing president was forced to step down in the face of mass protests in early April.

The peaceful demonstration involved some sloganeering against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), which was signed into law earlier this week.

LONDON: People from different groups gathered outside the Indian High Commission here on Saturday to protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act and what they branded as Modi government’s “failures”.

A group of protesters from the British Assamese community, dressed in their traditional attire and accompanied by children, waved placards in Assamese as well as some in English that read: “Save Democracy, Stop CAB”.

The peaceful demonstration involved some sloganeering against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), which was signed into law earlier this week.

“Assam is united and CAB is divisive. Say no to division, yes to unity,” said one of the activists.

Alongside, the Indian Overseas Congress (IOC) UK chapter organised its “Bharat Bachao Rally” (Save India) to coincide with similar protests in New Delhi and around the world.

“The rally is against the Modi government’s failures, including the economic crisis, high unemployment, farmer distress and divisive politics,” said an IOC UK spokesperson.

The Congress protesters carried banners and placards reading: “Women against BJP” and “Farmers against BJP”.

IOC UK president Kamal Dhaliwal said: “All sections of our community are suffering today due to the wrong policies of the Modi government.

“The youth needs jobs, women need safety and security, farmers need reasonable prices for their crops. The promises Modi ji made during the elections are nowhere.”

In reference to the Citizenship Amendment Bill, the IOC UK spokesperson added: “CAB is unconstitutional, which has set fire in the North Eastern states.”

The new law, which amends the Citizenship Act of 1955, provides eligibility for minorities from neighbouring Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan to access Indian citizenship. It has come under severe criticism as non-secular, sparking widespread protests in the North East of India.

Military specialists on Friday recovered six bodies from the island in a carefully planned but risky operation.

WHAKATANE (NEW ZEALAND): Police divers working in near zero visibility in contaminated waters around New Zealand’s volcanic White Island tried on Saturday to find the remaining two victims of an eruption that left at least 16 dead and dozens severely burned.

Ash and other fallout from Monday’s eruption has made the sea near the island toxic and divers have to be washed clean after every completed dive. Police Deputy Commissioner John Tims called search conditions “unique and challenging.”

“Divers have reported seeing a number of dead fish and eels washed ashore and floating in the water. Conditions in the water today are not optimal with between zero and 2 meters visibility depending on location,” he said. Navy divers are expected to join the police search effort later Saturday.

Military specialists on Friday recovered six bodies from the island in a carefully planned but risky operation. Two more bodies of victims known to have been on the island could not be located during the four-hour operation, carried out by bomb disposal experts — six men and two women — wearing yellow hazmat suits and breathing apparatuses.

Police believe one of the missing bodies was sighted in the water close to the island by rescue teams on Tuesday, the day after the eruption. The location of the other body is not known. 

Divers began the search for the bodies on Friday but were forced to stop near evening when weather conditions deteriorated. An aerial search of the island was suspended at nightfall. The six bodies were transported to Auckland for identification.

In a statement, police said their own experts, forensic pathologists, scientists, odontologists and coroner’s officials were involved in the work of identification. Under New Zealand law, the coroner must confirm the victims’ identities.

Police said the process may take some time, though they are working as quickly as possible to return the bodies to their families.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern called on New Zealanders to observe a minute’s silence in memory of victims of the disaster at 2:11 pm on Monday, exactly a week from the eruption. Ardern and her Cabinet will pause in silence during their regular meeting at Parliament in Wellington.

“Wherever you are in New Zealand or around the world, this is a moment we can stand alongside those who have lost loved ones in this extraordinary tragedy. Together we can express our sorrow for those who have died and been hurt and our support for their grieving families and friends,” Ardern said.

The bodies recovered on Friday are thought to be of Australians, who were most of the visitors to the island when the volcano erupted. The two last victims are believed to be New Zealanders — a tour guide and a boat captain who had taken tourists to the island.

Scientists have warned that White Island, which is the exposed tip of a mostly undersea volcano, is highly volatile, and has been venting steam and mud regularly. The eruption Monday occurred as 47 tourists and their guides were exploring the island.

He said that of the 15 injured, 11 are in “very critical” condition. All 13 Australians who suffered burns have been returned to Australia.

Husband and wife Pratap and Mayuri Singh were confirmed Saturday to be among survivors. The Atlanta couple are recovering from burns in Auckland’s Middlemore Hospital where their conditions were listed as stable.

Specialist medical teams were heading to New Zealand from Australia, Britain and the United States. Skin banks were also sending tissue to New Zealand hospitals to use for grafts.

Authorities say 24 Australians, nine Americans, five New Zealanders, four Germans, two Britons, two Chinese and a Malaysian were on the island at the time. Many were from a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that had left Sydney two days earlier.

Each employee of St John Properties was given a red envelope at the Christmas dinner. It contained roughly 38,000 pounds (around Rs 35 lakh) each.

MARYLAND: The owner of a Maryland-based company left his 200 employees overwhelmed by announcing ten million pounds as Christmas bonus, a media report said.

The lucky workers were not expecting the gift from founder-chairman Edward St John, 81, as they celebrated company targets achievements on Saturday, The Sun reported.

Each employee of St John Properties was given a red envelope at the Christmas dinner. It contained roughly 38,000 pounds (around Rs 35 lakh) each. A video of the event showed surprised workers reacting with joy after the announcement.

Mr John said the company wanted to reward the employees in a big way to celebrate achievement of firm’s goals to make a significant impact on their lives.

“I am thankful for every one of our employees, for their hard work and dedication. I couldn’t think of a better way to show it. I may steer the boat, but they’re the ones that run the boat. They are the ones that make the boat go. Without the team, we are nothing,” he said.

“What happened tonight was magical. It’s life-changing,” said an employee.

The firm’s real estate investments are valued at $3.5 billion (2.6 billion pounds).

London: A consortium of Indian public sector banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) are back in the UK high court to seek a bankruptcy order against liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya over the alleged unpaid debt of around 1.145 billion pounds.

Judge Michael Briggs is presiding over a hearing in the insolvency division of the court in London this week in relation to a bankruptcy petition filed by the banks back in 2018 in their attempt to recoup unpaid debt accrued by the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.

A previous UK High Court ruling had refused to overturn a worldwide order freezing Mallya’s assets and upheld an Indian court’s ruling that the consortium of 13 Indian banks were entitled to recover funds amounting to nearly 1.145 billion pounds.

The banks then launched efforts to recover dues as part of the freezing order, with the bankruptcy petition aimed at seizing UK-based Mallya’s assets to recover the dues.

Besides SBI, the 13 Indian banks include Bank of Baroda, Corporation bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co. Pvt Ltd.

They have secured follow-on High Court orders to recover some of the funds owed to them as a result of Kingfisher Airlines’ unpaid loans.

In July, the banks had won a High Court battle to access documents they were after to establish the true ownership of assets they believed were linked with the embattled liquor tycoon.

Frankly, the answer needs to be known as to which assets are that of Mr Mallya, both for the purpose of the worldwide freezing order and enforcement of the judgment, Justice Robin Knowles had ruled.

Two superyachts, a game reserve in South Africa, numerous undeclared high-value and vintage cars, valuable paintings and a piano previously owned by famous British singer-songwriter Elton John were among some of the assets on their target list.

The true ownership of a plush home overlooking Regent’s Park in the heart of London also remains in contention.

Mallya’s legal team has argued that the petition for bankruptcy in the UK should be dismissed because the banks are pursuing the same debt through the Indian courts.

The lawyers have also sought a stay on proceedings until Mallya’s appeal against his extradition order, scheduled in the Royal Courts of Justice in London, is heard in February next year.

Meanwhile, Mallya remains on bail pending the appeal hearing in the extradition proceedings brought by India in relation to charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to an alleged Rs 9,000 crores.

He had been arrested on an extradition warrant back in April 2017 and has been fighting his extradition in the UK courts since then.