Iran urges extraordinary OIC meeting over Israel’s bestial onslaught against Rafah

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday stated that speaking in favour of Pakistan is wrong and constitutes treason. However, he emphasized that an inquiry is ongoing in the case of an alleged mob lynching of a man accused of shouting "Pakistan Zindabad" in Mangaluru.

“If the slogan ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ was shouted, it is wrong, regardless of who said it. The inquiry is still underway, a case has been registered, and we will determine the appropriate action based on the report,” Siddaramaiah said in response to questions from reporters about the killing.

He reiterated, “If anyone speaks in favour of Pakistan, it is wrong. It amounts to treason.”

Home Minister G. Parameshwara confirmed that a person was “lynched” in Mangaluru and said that those arrested claimed the victim shouted "Pakistan Zindabad."

“This is under investigation. Only the arrested individuals have made this claim. Nearly 20 people have been arrested so far. The police are also verifying the identity and background of the deceased. We are taking the case very seriously,” he said, noting that several people present at the cricket match where the incident occurred are being questioned.

Responding to allegations that the police initially attempted to portray the incident as a suicide, the Home Minister said, “We have no such information. If any such discrepancies are found during the investigation, appropriate action will be taken.”

According to police, the deceased has been identified as Ashraf from Pulpalli village in Sultan Bathery Taluk, Wayanad district, Kerala.

The incident occurred during a local cricket match near the Bhatra Kallurti temple in Kudupu village, on the outskirts of Mangaluru, on April 27. Ashraf was allegedly beaten with sticks, resulting in multiple injuries that led to internal bleeding and shock. He was declared dead at the hospital.

Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has signed deals with the US worth more than $300 billion, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said at the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh on Tuesday. 

During an address at the event, Prince Mohammed said the Kingdom was looking at $600 billion of investment opportunities, adding that he hoped this would raise to $1 trillion.

He noted that the US was among the largest partners of the Saudi Vision 2030 reform agenda, adding that joint investments were one of the most important pillars of the economic relationship between the two countries.

“The US is a major destination for the Public Investment Fund, accounting for approximately 40 percent of the fund's global investments,” he said.

He also said that cooperation with Washington was not limited to economic cooperation, but also extended to “establishing peace in the region and the world.”

Also speaking at the event, US President Donald Trump praised the transformation underway in Saudi Arabia, as he attributed it to the leadership of King Salman and the crown prince.

Trump described the crown prince as a “very great man like no other” and “the greatest representative of his people,” and highlighted the role of Saudis in driving development in their own country and the region as a whole.

Trump pointed to Riyadh’s rise as a global business hub and noted that the Kingdom’s non-oil sector revenues had now surpassed those of the oil sector.

He said Saudi Arabia deserved praise for preserving its culture and tradition while also embracing its forward-looking, modern Vision 2030 reform agenda.

During his speech, Trump criticized the Biden administration for removing the Houthis from the US terrorist list, calling it a serious mistake.

He contrasted regional developments, stating: “Some (in the Gulf) have turned deserts into farms, while Iran has turned its farms into deserts,” and warned that if Iran rejected Washington’s outreach, the US would be forced to impose maximum pressure.

Condemning Hezbollah for “destabilizing the region and looting Lebanon”, Trump said: “The biggest and most destructive of these forces is the regime in Iran, which has caused unthinkable suffering in Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Iraq, Yemen and beyond.”

He described Lebanon as a victim of Hezbollah and Iran and expressed a desire to help the country.

Trump also praised Saudi Arabia’s role in Russia-Ukraine peace talks and affirmed US support for the Kingdom, saying it has “a great future.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the two leaders signed a strategic economic partnership agreement in Riyadh, the first leg of Trump’s regional visit.

The partnership included the signing of Memorandums of Understanding in the energy, mining, and defense sectors. 

Defense cooperation between the two countries centered on the modernization of the capabilities of the Saudi armed forces, along with an agreement between the Saudi Space Agency and NASA.

Other agreements included an MoU on mineral resources; an agreement with the Department of Justice; and cooperation on infectious diseases.

Trump arrived in Saudi Arabia Tuesday on what he called a “historic” tour of the Middle East that will mix urgent diplomacy on Gaza with huge business deals.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman warmly greeted Trump as he stepped off Air Force One at King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital and kicked off his Middle East tour.

The two leaders then retreated to a grand hall at the Riyadh airport, where Trump and his aides were served traditional Arabic coffee by waiting attendants wearing ceremonial gun-belts.

Royal Saudi Air Force F-15s provided an honorary escort for Air Force One as it approached the kingdom’s capital. Trump and Prince Mohammed also were taking part in a lunch at the Royal Court, gathering with guests and aides. 

Later, the crown prince will fete Trump with a formal dinner. Trump is also slated to take part Tuesday in a US-Saudi investment conference.

Air Force One took off on a journey that will include visits to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — and possibly talks in Turkiye on the Ukraine war.

At least 56 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip after the regime's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the military would enter the war-battered territory "with full force".

Medical sources said at least 50 people have been killed in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza since dawn Wednesday.

The heavy airstrikes have also left more than 100 people injured, with several houses being targeted and collapsed on their residents.

Another four people were killed in a strike on the southern city of Khan Yunis, civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal said.

The ferocious aggression came after the release of Israeli-American Edan Alexander, who had been in Hamas captivity since October 2023, offered a brief pause in the war on Gaza on Monday.

But the strikes resumed amid fierce new criticism of Israel's tactics in the war.

"In the very coming days, we are going in with full force to complete the operation," Netanyahu was quoted as saying in a statement released on Tuesday.

"There will be no situation where we stop the war. A temporary ceasefire might happen, but we are going all the way," he added.

His remarks came after UN relief chief Tom Fletcher called on the UN Security Council to take action "to prevent genocide" in Gaza as he gave a scathing account of Israel's aggression in the territory. 

"Will you act -- decisively -- to prevent genocide and to ensure respect for international humanitarian law?" he said to UN ambassadors in New York.

Late Tuesday, the Israeli military urged civilians in several parts of northern Gaza to evacuate after it intercepted "two projectiles" fired from the territory. 

The armed wing of Hamas ally Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for rocket fire into Israel, which has been rare in recent weeks. 

In Paris, President Emmanuel Macron said in critical remarks not typical of France that Netanyahu's actions in blocking aid to Gaza were "shameful".

Meanwhile, Russia, China and the UK have rejected Israel’s plans for distributing aid in Gaza, instead urging Tel Aviv to lift its two-month blockade on the territory.

Since the Israeli military broke a two-month ceasefire agreement with the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas in mid-March, the occupying entity has blocked the entry of all humanitarian aid, including medicine, fuel, and food supplies into Gaza, drastically worsening the humanitarian crisis in the territory, where even clean water is critically scarce.

Dozens of people, mostly children, have died from starvation. Since the aid blockade began on March 2, at least 57 children have reportedly died from the effects of malnutrition, according to the Ministry of Health.

“People are trapped in this cycle where a lack of diversified food, malnutrition and disease fuel each other,” WHO’s representative in the Occupied Palestinian Territory Dr. Rik Peeperkorn said.

“This is one of the world’s worst hunger crises, unfolding in real time,” he added.

According to a World Bank report, the current crisis in Gaza has now made nearly all of its population almost entirely dependent on humanitarian aid due to prolonged war and blockade.

Nearly all of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million has been displaced, often multiple times, since the regime launched its genocidal war on the territory in October 2023.

Over 52,900 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in the brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023, most of them women and children.