Snapdeal ends merger talks with Flipkart; to go solo

In a country that brands itself the “Land of the Free,” pro-Palestine students are being treated like enemies of the state. The United States—once hailed as a beacon for academic freedom—is now using deportation threats, visa revocations, and AI surveillance to silence dissenting voices on its university campuses. What started as peaceful protest against the genocide in Gaza has turned into a full-scale purge of international students who dare to speak out. As global outrage grows, America's hypocrisy on free speech has never been more glaring—or dangerous.

Point-by-Point Summary:

•    Momodou Taal Forced Out:
British-Gambian activist and former Cornell PhD student Momodou Taal has left the U.S. after facing threats of deportation. His only “crime”: suing the Trump administration for policies targeting pro-Palestine students.

•    Bold Words from Exile:
Taal called out the U.S. for suppressing dissent and ignoring its own laws:
“Is imprisoning those who speak against genocide the kind of nation you want?”

•    300+ Visas Revoked:
Trump-era directives have led to mass deportations of foreign students who participated in or supported Gaza solidarity protests.

•    Rubio's Harsh Justification:
Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the move, calling student protesters “lunatics” and stressing the government’s right to “remove you from our country.”

•    ACLU Slams Hypocrisy:
ACLU's Ben Wizner warned that the U.S. is now driving away the world’s brightest minds by criminalizing intellectual dissent.

•    Targeted Individuals:

•    Iranian student Alireza Doroudi arrested without cause.

•    Turkish student Rumeysa Ozturk lost her visa for an op-ed criticizing the Israeli regime.

•    Indian scholar Ranjani Srinivasan fled after agents showed up unannounced.

•    Korean resident Yunseo Chung, a green card holder, is still fighting deportation.

•    Professor Rasha Alawieh was deported despite holding a valid visa.

•    AI Used for Surveillance:
Reports confirm U.S. authorities are using artificial intelligence to flag students based on social media activity—even likes or shares.

•    Selective Freedom:
No pro-Israel lobbyist or supporter has faced deportation, even amid cases of inciting violence and harassment.

•    Global Consequences:
Calls to boycott U.S. universities are growing. The crackdown has undermined America’s status as a hub of academic freedom and global talent.

•    Final Warning:
The U.S. now risks not only its academic integrity but its moral standing. In defending a genocide abroad, it’s committing a slow-motion purge at home.

New Israeli strikes have killed over a dozen people, including seven children, in the besieged territory as the regime is pressing ahead with its bloody military onslaught against Palestinians.

Gaza's civil defense agency said the bodies of 10 people, including seven children, were brought to the hospital following an Israeli airstrike that targeted the al-Farra family home in central Khan Younis.

Witnesses reported continuous and intensive Israeli tank fire in the city. 

Moreover, one Palestinian was killed and four others were wounded following an aerial attack on a group of civilians in Rafah.

In central Gaza, Israeli drones struck a group of civilians in Deir el-Balah, following which a number of casualties were transferred to the al-Aqsa Hospital.

Two more people killed in an Israeli strike that targeted a group of civilians in the al-Atatra area in the northern city of Beit Lahia.

On Friday morning, the Israeli military released an “urgent and serious” evacuation notice for residents living in various neighborhoods east of Gaza City.

The United Nations on Friday said its analysis of 36 recent Israeli strikes in Gaza showed only women and children were killed and decried the human cost of the war.

Spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani cited an April 6 strike on a residential building of the Abu Issa family in Deir al-Balah, which reportedly killed one girl, four women, and one four-year-old boy.

Even the areas where Palestinians were being instructed to go in the expanding number of Israeli "evacuation orders" were also being subjected to attacks, she said.

Israel has said its troops are seizing "large areas" in Gaza and incorporating them into buffer zones cleared of their inhabitants.

The UN rights office warned that expanding Israeli evacuation orders are resulting in the "forcible transfer" of people into ever-shrinking spaces in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory.

"Let us be clear, these so-called evacuation orders are actually displacement orders, leading to displacement of the population of Gaza into ever shrinking spaces," Shamdasani said.

"The permanently displacing the civilian population within occupied territories amounts to forcible transfer, which is a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and it is a crime against humanity."

Speaking to reporters in Geneva, Shamsadani said between March 18 and April 9, there were some 224 incidents of Israeli strikes on residential buildings and tents for internally displaced people.

"In some 36 strikes about which the UN Human Rights Office corroborated information, the fatalities recorded so far were only women and children," she said.

"Overall, a large percentage of fatalities are children and women, according to information recorded by our Office," she added.

Mangaluru, Apr 7: The long-standing demand for a separate Beary Development Corporation has hit a wall — the Karnataka government has officially stated that no such proposal is currently under consideration.

Beary-speaking people, mainly settled across Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, and parts of Kodagu, have been urging the government to set up a dedicated body for the welfare of their community and the promotion of their unique 1,200-year-old language. But during the recent legislative session, Minority Affairs Minister B.Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan confirmed that his department has not received any proposal on this matter.

The clarification came in response to a question by MLC Ivan D’Souza, who highlighted the community’s cultural richness and a population of over 25 lakh. “The community has raised this demand several times to support education and social upliftment, but the government hasn’t taken any concrete steps,” he said.

In his reply, the minister pointed out that the Karnataka Minorities Development Corporation (KMDC) already runs various welfare schemes for Muslim, Christian, Jain, Buddhist, Sikh, and Parsi communities. Since Beary speakers are considered part of the Muslim community, they are eligible for benefits under these existing programs, he added.

Still, many in the Beary community feel that without a separate development body, their identity, language, and specific needs risk being overlooked.