SRINAGAR, India: Eight civilians, including an Indian husband and wife and four members of a Pakistani family, were killed when Indian and Pakistani soldiers fired at border posts and villages along the highly militarized frontier in disputed Kashmir, officials said Friday. An Indian soldier was also killed in the fighting.
The cross-border firing and shelling began overnight and spread to dozens of posts in the Jammu region of the Himalayan territory, said Indian police officer S.D. Singh.
Indian paramilitary officials said their soldiers responded to Pakistani gunfire and shelling, describing it as "unprovoked and indiscriminate." The officials said the paramilitary soldier was killed by a Pakistani sniper Thursday night, leading to cross-border firing and shelling at several forward posts.
The husband and wife and two other civilians were killed on the Indian side. At least 12 civilians were also wounded and were being treated in hospitals.
A Pakistani woman, Kulsoom Hussain, and her three children were killed when a mortar fired by Indian troops from across the frontier struck their home, local police official Mohammad Amin said. The woman was making food at the time.
The exchange of fire between Pakistan and India continued for hours near Pakistan's city of Sialkot bordering Kashmir, forcing villagers to move to safer places.
In a statement, Pakistan army accused Indian troops of initiating an "unprovoked" violation of the 2003 cease-fire accord between the two countries along the frontier near Kashmir and targeting the civilian population, including four villagers who died Friday morning.
In a statement, the military said Indian fire also wounded 10 people, including three children.
It said Pakistani troops "effectively" responded and targeted the Indian posts from where the fire came.
The military said the artillery exchange was continuing. Pakistan's foreign ministry said the killed civilians were members of a family.
As in the past, each country accused the other of initiating the border skirmishes and violating the cease-fire agreement.
This year, soldiers from the two nations have engaged in fierce border skirmishes along the rugged and mountainous Line of Control, as well as a lower-altitude 200-kilometer (125-mile) boundary separating Indian-controlled Kashmir and the Pakistani province of Punjab, where Friday's fighting occurred.
Singh, the Indian officer, said authorities were evacuating civilians living near the frontier in armored vehicles. The fighting earlier this year also sent thousands of border residents to temporary shelters for days.
Pakistan's foreign ministry summoned an Indian diplomat on Friday and lodged a strong protest over the killing of civilians along the frontier.
The ministry said Indian forces have carried out more than 1,050 cease-fire violations, resulting in the deaths of 28 civilians and injuries to 117 others.
"The cease-fire violations by India are a threat to regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation," it said in a statement.
Indian officials say Friday's killings took the death toll in such incidents to 20 civilians and 18 government troops this year. They say dozens have been injured and scores of cattle have perished.
India and Pakistan have a long history of bitter relations over Kashmir, which both claim. They have fought two of their three wars since 1947 over their competing claims to the region.
The fighting has become a predictable cycle of violence as the region convulses with decades-old animosities between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, where rebel groups demand that the territory be united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.
India accuses Pakistan of arming and training anti-India rebels and also helping them by providing gunfire as cover for incursions into the Indian side.
Pakistan denies this, saying it offers only moral and diplomatic support to the militants and to Kashmiris who oppose Indian rule.
Rebels have been fighting Indian rule since 1989. Nearly 70,000 people have been killed in the uprising and the ensuing Indian military crackdown.
9 dead as India, Pakistan trade fire along Kashmir border
9 dead as India, Pakistan trade fire along Kashmir border
- Eight civilians, including an Indian husband and wife and four members of a Pakistani family, were killed during an exchange of fires between Indian and Pakistani soldiers
- The cross-border firing and shelling began overnight and spread to dozens of posts in the Jammu region of the Himalayan territory
Marcos drops estranged VP Duterte from Philippine security council
MANILA: Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte will no longer sit on the National Security Council after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed an order removing her office from the agency, following a bitter split between the two former allies last year.
Marcos said the reorganization of the National Security Council (NSC) was needed to “ensure that its council members uphold and protect national security and sovereignty.”
The vice president’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“At the moment, the VP is not considered relevant to the responsibilities of membership in the NSC,” Lucas P. Bersamin, Executive Secretary to the President, said in a statement.
The council’s reorganization was also aimed at guaranteeing a resilient national security institution that was able to adapt to new challenges, according to the order, which was signed on Dec. 30 and released on Friday.
The changes have also excluded former presidents from council membership and empowered Marcos to appoint “other government officials and private citizens” as needed.
Sara Duterte, the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte, is currently facing impeachment complaints accusing her of graft, incompetence and amassing ill-gotten wealth while in office. She has denied the allegations.
Duterte has said she had contracted an assassin to kill the president, his wife and cousin who is the speaker of the House of Representatives if she herself were killed. She later claimed her remarks had been taken out of context.
Bangladesh revamps worker training for Saudi 2034 FIFA World Cup projects
- Govt to prepare training centers with focus on Saudi market demands
- Reskilling, upskilling services to be provided to migrants already residing in the Kingdom
DHAKA: Bangladeshi authorities are revamping training for prospective migrant workers and will offer upskilling programs to those residing in Saudi Arabia to tap into the labor market ahead of the FIFA World Cup, which the Kingdom will host in 2034.
Last month, the football governing body confirmed that Saudi Arabia had won the bid to host the world’s largest sporting event.
With the bid proposing to hold games across 15 stadiums in five cities, many new migrant workers will be involved in building new sports and transport networks, as well as hotel infrastructure.
In Bangladesh, which has a major expat community in Saudi Arabia, the trend is viewed as an “opportunity” for the country’s migrant workers, according to A.Z.M. Nurul Huq, joint secretary at the employment wing of the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment.
“It’s a huge task, and a lot of construction works will take place targeting this World Cup event. Here lies the opportunity for us as our migrants have been working with much goodwill in many sectors of the Kingdom for many years,” Huq told Arab News.
“Saudi Arabia has to build over a dozen new stadiums, renovate existing ones and develop numerous new accommodation facilities, along with necessary infrastructure and connectivity.”
Some 3 million Bangladeshi nationals live and work in Saudi Arabia. They are the largest expat group in the Kingdom and also the biggest Bangladeshi community outside Bangladesh.
Many are employed in the construction sector as masons, electricians, pipe fitters, plumbers and electricians.
“Bangladeshi migrants can be more actively employed in the construction work for the FIFA World Cup,” Huq said.
“Works are underway for providing reskilling and upskilling services to migrants who are already in the Kingdom. In this way, our workers will be able to secure their jobs and earn more.”
For the past few years, as Saudi Arabia is prioritizing efforts to improve the professional competence of employees under its Vision 2030 program, the expatriates’ ministry has been collaborating with the Kingdom’s skills verification authority, Takamol.
The agency, which manages migrant skill certification based on the needs of Saudi employers, provides Bangladesh’s 113 technical training centers with a list of the Kingdom’s latest workforce requirements.
“Our centers tailor their programs to equip workers with the necessary skills. Upon completing the training, the prospective migrants receive certification through Takamol, which is recognized by Saudi authorities,” said Shah Zulfiquer Haider, deputy secretary at the ministry’s training wing.
As demand is set to increase in line with 2034 World Cup projects, more Bangladeshi training centers will focus on the Saudi market in particular.
“We are planning to strengthen our collaboration with Takamol,” Haider said. “Currently, a dozen technical training centers are preparing skilled workers to meet Saudi Arabia’s demands. We will soon increase the number of training centers, which will produce more skilled migrants tailored to the needs of the Saudi labor market.”
Malaysia doubles patrols to find Myanmar migrant boats after nearly 200 detained
- Malaysia doubles patrols to find Myanmar migrant boats after nearly 200 detained
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s coast guard said on Friday it was doubling patrols in its waters to locate boats carrying undocumented Myanmar migrants, after almost 200 were detained on an island in the northwestern Malaysian state of Kedah.
The coast guard said police had detained 196 undocumented Myanmar migrants in the early hours of Friday after their boat came ashore on a beach on the resort island of Langkawi.
“Based on information the coast guard received, there are two more boats carrying undocumented Myanmar migrants at sea but their exact location is still unknown,” the coast guard said in a statement.
Malaysian coast guard director-general Mohd Rosli Abdullah said authorities were patrolling the northern waters off Langkawi and border areas, and had arranged for air surveillance to be conducted to locate the boats.
The coast guard is also in contact with Thai authorities to identify the movement of the boats carrying the migrants, Mohd Rosli said.
Earlier on Friday, local English daily The Star reported about 200 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar had come ashore on Langkawi. The Rohingya are a mainly Muslim minority in majority Buddhist Myanmar.
The coast guard did not specify in its statement whether the migrants were Rohingya.
Around one million Rohingya have fled, mostly to neighboring Bangladesh, to escape a Myanmar military offensive launched in August 2017, a campaign that UN investigators have described as a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.
Mynamar’s military rulers deny the allegations.
Malaysia, which does not recognize refugee status, has long been a favored destination for ethnic Rohingya fleeing persecution in Myanmar or the refugee camps in Bangladesh.
But in recent years, Malaysia has turned away boats carrying Rohingya refugees and rounded up thousands in crowded detention centers as part of a crackdown on undocumented migrants.
Between 2010 and 2024, Malaysian authorities detained 2,089 undocumented Myanmar migrants attempting to enter the country by sea, the coast guard said.
Dense smog shrouds Indian capital, threatening to disrupt flights
- Delhi ranked third among the world’s most polluted capitals in Friday’s live rankings by Swiss group IQAir
- On social media, India’s largest airline IndiGo and low-cost carrier Spicejet caution against weather delays
NEW DELHI: Thick smog engulfed the Indian capital on Friday, prompting warnings of possible flight disruptions from airport and airline officials, as worsening air quality cut visibility to zero in some areas.
Delhi, which has been battling smog and poor air quality since the beginning of winter, ranked third among the world’s most polluted capitals in Friday’s live rankings by Swiss group IQAir.
No diversion or cancelation has been reported yet, an airport spokesperson said, although authorities warned in a post on X that aircraft lacking equipment to enable landings in low visibility could face difficulties.
On social media, India’s largest airline IndiGo and low-cost carrier Spicejet also cautioned against weather delays.
Delays averaged eight minutes for 20 flights by 10:14 a.m., aviation website FlightRadar24 said.
Some train services in the capital were also delayed, media said.
New Delhi’s air quality was rated “very poor” on Friday, with an index score of 351, the country’s top pollution control body said, well beyond the levels from zero to 50 that it considers “good.”
Biden awards the 2nd highest civilian award to leaders of the Jan. 6 committee and 18 others
- Cheney, a Republican former Wyoming congresswoman, and Rep. Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, led the House committee that investigated the Trump-inspired insurrection
- Biden last year honored people who were involved in defending the Capitol from a mob of angry Trump supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, or who helped safeguard the will of American voters during the 2020 presidential election
WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden on Thursday awarded the second highest civilian medal to Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson, leaders of the congressional investigation into the Capitol riot who Donald Trump has said should be jailed for their roles in the inquiry.
Biden awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to 20 people in a ceremony in the East Room, including Americans who fought for marriage equality, a pioneer in treating wounded soldiers, and two of the president’s longtime friends, former Sens. Ted Kaufman, D-Delaware, and Chris Dodd, D-Connecticut.
“Together, you embody the central truth: We’re a great nation because we’re a good people,” he said. “Our democracy begins and ends with the duties of citizenship. That’s our work for the ages and it’s what all of you embody.”
Biden last year honored people who were involved in defending the Capitol from a mob of angry Trump supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, or who helped safeguard the will of American voters during the 2020 presidential election, when Trump tried and failed to overturn the results.
Cheney, a Republican former Wyoming congresswoman, and Rep. Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat, led the House committee that investigated the insurrection. The committee’s final report asserted that Trump criminally engaged in a “multi-part conspiracy” to overturn the lawful results of the election he lost to Biden and failed to act to stop his supporters from attacking the Capitol. Thompson wrote that Trump “lit that fire.”
The audience erupted in loud cheers and stood when Cheney took the stage. Biden clasped her hand and gave her the medal. The announcer said she was being given it “for putting the American people over party.”
Cheney, who lost her seat in the GOP primary in August 2022, later said she would vote for Democrat Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential race and campaigned with the Democratic nominee, raising Trump’s ire. Biden has been considering whether to offer preemptive pardons to Cheney and others Trump has targeted.
Thompson, who also received a standing ovation, was recognized “for his lifelong dedication to safeguarding our Constitution.”
Trump, who won the 2024 election and will take office Jan. 20, still refuses to back away from his lies about the 2020 presidential race and has said he would pardon the rioters once he is back in the White House.
During an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” the president-elect said that “Cheney did something that’s inexcusable, along with Thompson and the people on the un-select committee of political thugs and, you know, creeps,” claiming without evidence they “deleted and destroyed” testimony they collected.
“Honestly, they should go to jail,” he said.
Cheney and Thompson were “an embarrassment to this country” for their conduct on the committee, Trump’s communications director Steven Cheung asserted.
Biden also awarded the medal to attorney Mary Bonauto, who fought to legalize same-sex marriage, and Evan Wolfson, a leader of the marriage equality movement.
Other honorees included Frank Butler, who set new standards for using tourniquets on war injuries; Diane Carlson Evans, an Army nurse during the Vietnam War who founded the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Foundation; and Eleanor Smeal, an activist who led women’s rights protests in the 1970s and fought for equal pay.
He bestowed the honor to photographer Bobby Sager, academics Thomas Vallely and Paula Wallace, and Frances Visco, the president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition.
Other former lawmakers honored included former Sen. Bill Bradley, D-N.J.; former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum, the first woman to represent Kansas; and former Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y., who championed gun safety measures after her son and husband were shot to death.
After he presented the awards, he went back to the lectern to ask lawmakers in the room to stand, as well as John Kerry, a former US senator and Biden’s first climate envoy.
“Let’s remember, our work continues,” he said to the room after he thanked the families in attendance for the support they gave to the nominees. “We’ve got a lot more work to do to keep this going.”
Biden honored four people posthumously: Joseph Galloway, a former war correspondent who wrote about the first major battle in Vietnam in the book “We Were Soldiers Once … and Young“; civil rights advocate and attorney Louis Lorenzo Redding; former Delaware judge Collins Seitz; and Mitsuye Endo Tsutsumi, who was held with other Japanese Americans during World War II and challenged the detention.
The Presidential Citizens Medal was created by President Richard Nixon in 1969 and is the country’s second highest civilian honor after the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It recognizes people who “performed exemplary deeds of service for their country or their fellow citizens.”
