Lebanese PM Hariri says he's free in Saudi Arabia

Agencies
November 13, 2017

Nov 13: Lebanese Prime Minister Sa’ad Hariri, in his first public comments since his surprise November 4 resignation, dismissed speculation that he was held against his will in Saudi Arabia and said he plans to return home within days.

“I am free in the kingdom,” the Lebanese leader said in an interview from his home in Riyadh, aired by his Future TV. Speaking with a Lebanese flag in the background, he again blamed Iran and Hezbollah for destabilizing his country and defended Saudi Arabia’s war of words against the Islamic Republic.

Speculation has been rife that Saudi Arabia summoned Hariri to Riyadh and broadsided him with a demand to resign because he wouldn’t confront Lebanon’s powerful Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group — a charge the kingdom has denied. The political turmoil has thrust Lebanon to the fore of the Saudi-Iranian rivalry after it managed to avoid the worst of the Syrian civil war next door, creating a potential new centre of conflict in the tumultuous Middle East.

In his resignation announcement, Hariri blamed Iran for meddling in Lebanon’s affairs through Hezbollah.

Hariri, a dual Lebanese and Saudi national whose family made a fortune in the kingdom, has made several official appearances since he stepped down, possibly in an attempt to dispel rumours his movements are restricted. Last week he received ambassadors accredited to the kingdom at his residence in Riyadh and made a brief trip to the UAE. He also met with King Salman shortly after his resignation and days later participated in a ceremony at the Riyadh international airport to welcome home the king from a trip.

NBN TV, owned by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, said it wouldn’t broadcast the Hariri interview, adopting President Michel Aoun’s position that given Hariri’s circumstances, “his words will not reflect the truth.” Both Berri and Aoun are allied with Hezbollah, whose forces are fighting alongside Iranian-backed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Hariri was propelled into politics by the assassination of his father, former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, in 2005. A UN-backed tribunal has charged Hezbollah members with the killing, which took place shortly before Syria’s military pull-out from Lebanon, but the group denies involvement.

Sa’ad Hariri was appointed prime minister in 2016 in a power-sharing deal that saw the election of Aoun as president and the end of a two-year political vacuum in Lebanon.

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News Network
May 8,2024

Mangaluru: The Mangaluru North police have apprehended a minor in connection with alleged voyeurism incident reported in a private medical college in Mangaluru. 

DCP (Law and order) Sidharth Goyal said that the minor was produced before JJ Board as per due procedure. The incident came to light when a mobile phone was found in women's washroom in the college. 

The mobile-phone was discovered as it was ringing even when no one was in the toilet by the security guard of the college. 

Investigations revealed that the mobile phone had been strategically placed in the restroom. As a result, a case has been registered under north police station.

Further scrutiny into the matter uncovered the identity of the accused, a minor male aged 17, who had gained access to the college premises under the guise of being a patient. Following his apprehension, the accused was presented before the Juvenile Justice (JJ) Board in adherence to legal protocols.

The phone has been seized and a case has been booked under IPC section 354 (C), said the DCP.

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News Network
May 10,2024

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Mangaluru, June 10: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested another prime accused in 2022 BJP Yuva Morcha worker Praveen Nettaru murder case. 

32-year-old Jilla BJP Yuva Morcha committee member Nettaru was hacked to death in front of his broiler shop in Bellare of Dakshina Kannada by bike-borne miscreants in July 2022. The case is being investigated by the NIA and several arrests have been made so far.

Mustafa Paichar, accused number four in the case, was absconding after the murder and the NIA had declared a Rs 5 lakh reward to catch him. 

He was arrested at Sakleshpur in Hassan district by the NIA team led by Inspector Shanmugam. 

According to officials Mustafa was reportedly a member of now banned Popular Front of India and a resident of Shantinagar in Sullia in Dakshina Kannada.

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News Network
May 14,2024

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Mangaluru, May 14: The Met department has sounded a yellow alert in 13 districts of Karnataka including the three coastal districts of Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada for next four days. 

The other districts are Belagavi, Dharwad, Haveri, Chikkamagalur, Chitradurga, Hassan, Kodagu, Mandya, Ramanagara, Shivamogga. These districts are expected to received 6-11 cm of rain, the department said.

On Monday Dakshina Kannada and Udupi experienced a monsoon-like atmosphere. Rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning, began in most parts on Sunday evening. In Udupi, rain showered in the early hours of Monday. While Kundapur and Udupi received moderate rains, Karkala experienced a heavy downpour.

The showers lowered the daytime temperature in both districts. Light rain fell in Mangaluru and its outskirts early Monday morning. Mangaluru city recorded a maximum temperature of 33.4°C and a minimum of 23.2°C on Monday. This is expected to decrease by two to four degrees in the next four days, according to the weather department. 

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