There was no pressure to release IAF pilot Abhinandan: Pakistan

Agencies
March 3, 2019

Lahore, Mar 3: Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said the decision to release IAF pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was not taken under any external pressure or compulsion.

“We wanted to send a message to India. We don’t want to increase your grief, we don’t want to mistreat your citizens, we just want peace,” he told BBC Urdu in an interview.

The pilot was captured by Pakistani troops after his jet crashed on the other side of the border on Wednesday.

In a separate interview with BBC, the Foreign Minister said both countries were still in a very serious situation. “We still are... it isn’t over!... We are on high alert.” Both India and Pakistan have issues, “but how do we resolve these issues? By firing missiles at each other? No!” he said.

Mr. Qureshi said Pakistan never wanted a crisis and was ready to cooperate with India. “We said share evidence with us; we said we are willing to cooperate; we said let’s sit and talk. That’s the only sensible way forward. Two neighbours, two atomic powers, can they afford going to war? Suicidal!”

Asked whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sent any message to Pakistan, Mr. Qureshi said he did not. “We have made the overtures but he seems under a lot of domestic pressure, he seems in a very tight position.”

Mr. Qureshi also cast doubt on the Jaish-e-Mohammad’s role in the February 14 Pulwama attack that killed at least 40 CRPF soldiers. “We are not sure of that... They [the Jaish] have not [claimed responsibility]... There is confusion on that. The confusion is that the leadership, when contacted, said no.”

Asked who contacted the Jaish leadership, the Minister said: “By people over here who are known to them. They deny that [attack]. That’s the confusion...they claimed no responsibility. What I am saying is there is confusion, there are conflicting reports on it.”

Regarding the anti-India militant groups, Mr. Qureshi said: “We have proscribed the JuD [Jamaat-ud-Dawah], and the so-called nerve centre of the Jaish-e-Mohammad at Bahawalpur has been taken over by the Punjab government.”

Asked about India’s February 26 air strikes, he said there was a madrasa in Jaba Top in Balakot, which “the world and Indians have been talking about as a training camp.” “Now the media were taken there and what did they see is in front of you. India claims that they have hit three terrorist camps. Where are they? They claimed that they killed 350 terrorists. Where are the bodies?”

Mr. Qureshi added that the government of Imran Khan would not allow “Pakistani soil to be used by any group, any organisation for terrorist activity against anyone, including India. That’s our policy. What I am saying is I don’t want to go in the past. At this stage, we want to de-escalate.”

As for Jaish chief Masood Azhar, Mr. Qureshi said: “We are willing to listen to any reasonable proposal. Now we have courts in this country, and the courts are independent. When you take action against an individual, no matter who he is, you will have to prove your point in the court of law. What we are saying to the Indians: if you have something, please share it with us. And if you do, we can articulate a case in court and we can justify action against that individual and that organisation to the people of Pakistan.”

On the dossier India has sent, he said: “It was received and we are studying the dossier... If India wants to initiate a dialogue based on this dossier, we are willing to engage with them.”

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News Network
September 16,2024

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The Israeli regime is recruiting African asylum seekers to kill Palestinians in the Israeli genocidal war on the Gaza Strip in exchange for permanent residency status, according to a report.

The report, ran by the Israeli paper Haaretz on Sunday, revealed that the project is conducted in an organized manner, with the guidance of military establishment legal advisers.  

In Gaza, the death toll passes 41,200 with close to 100,000 more injured in almost a year since the Israeli regime forces launched their genocidal war. However, the continued violence is prompting some Jewish Israelis to leave the occupied Palestinian land.

To make up for the loss, Tel Aviv is offering the incentive of permanent residency status to asylum seekers who agree to join the Israeli regime forces ongoing genocide in Gaza.

Haaretz has learned that some people have expressed objections to the practice, arguing that it exploits people who have fled their countries due to war. However, according to those sources, these voices have been silenced.

“This is a very problematic matter,” one source was quoted as saying by Haaretz.

According to the report, there are currently some 30,000 African asylum seekers living in the occupied territories, most of them young men. Around 3,500 are Sudanese citizens with temporary status granted by the court because the regime has not processed and ruled on their applications.

Unnamed sources who spoke with Haaretz also revealed that while there were some inquiries about granting status to asylum seekers who assisted in the genocidal war in Gaza, none were actually given status.

Haaretz also learned that the Interior Ministry explored the possibility of drafting the children of asylum seekers, who were educated in schools in the occupied territories, into the Israeli military.

In the past, the regime allowed the children of foreign workers to serve in the military in exchange for granting status to their immediate family members.

African refugees, who came to the occupied territories seeking asylum, were previously kept in internment camps and deported without their own consent.

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News Network
September 20,2024

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Kasaragod: In a heartbreaking turn of events, the vibrant life of a young medical student from Kasaragod district was tragically cut short in a road accident in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, on Wednesday night.

Mohammed Rashid, a 20-year-old second-year MBBS student, hailed from the close-knit community of Kattatadka AKG Nagar in Kerala's Kasaragod district. Brimming with hope and aspirations, he had recently returned to Coimbatore to continue his studies after spending cherished moments with his family during a brief vacation back home.

On that fateful evening, around 8 PM, Rashid was crossing the road to grab dinner at a nearby hotel when tragedy struck. A speeding tipper truck hit him, leaving the young student fatally injured. Though he was rushed to the hospital, his fight for life ended before he could make it to the emergency room.

The devastating news sent shockwaves through his family and friends. His father, Ahmed, who works in the Gulf, returned immediately, heartbroken, to mourn the unimaginable loss of his beloved son. Rasheed's relatives, too, made the painful journey to Coimbatore, overcome with grief and disbelief.

The passing of Mohammed Rashid has left a deep void not only in the hearts of those who knew and loved him but in the wider community. His dreams of healing others and serving society as a doctor were tragically cut short, leaving behind an irreplaceable loss.

May his memory be a reminder of the fragility of life and the promise that he once held.

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News Network
September 14,2024

Mangaluru: The block level and District Congress Committee presidents in the state will be changed in the next one month for better reach into society and bring in organisational fortification, said Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee working president G C Chandrasheker on Saturday.

The All India Congress Committee and KPCC have a vision for bringing a change in how the party works with the last man and woman in the state, he said at a press conference here.

"We are looking at bringing development models into the state with a new vision. We are a party that likes to work with the opposition in the developmental aspects and keep all other matters away that do not relate to the development of the state.

"We have a great respect for the people of the coast who are considered to be forward-looking and perceptible, but it is also true that we do not have the numbers in the upper house and in the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)," he said.

"Our endeavour is to not only create a strong pro-development workforce at the base level by strengthening the second and third level leadership in the state," he said.

Chandrasheker, who is also a Rajya Sabha member, said that he and his four colleagues of the rank of working presidents of the KPCC are going to every district to infuse the new thinking in our workers and leaders.

"This move will get a new surge considering the party is facing byelections in Shiggaon, Chennapatna and Sandhur segments and also vacant seats in the legislative council, followed by elections to the Urban Local Bodies and Panchayats" he said.

When asked about the reason for the changes, Chandrashekar said most of the people have already lived their tenures. The party wants to reward those who have not been given tickets to contest in the 2023 state assembly elections and 2024 Lok Sabha elections for political reasons.

There are quite good leaders and hard-working ground level workers who have great potential to lead the party in the coming years, he said.

"Women will get at least one top post in all District Congress Committees and block levels. There is also a move to give responsible positions for the workers and leaders coming from different strata of society, which are deliverable. The party will not shy away from it," he said.

The other two working presidents, Dr Manjunath Bhandary and Vasanth Kumar, were also present at the press conference.

Kumar said some of the regions in the state are dominated by the BJP. "We want to end this run and defeat the divisive models of the BJP." Bhandary said the Indian National Congress was aiming at a high development phase in the state and involve the opposition parties and their leaders in the development plans in the state. 

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