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Saudi crown prince, world leaders react to Labour’s sweeping victory in UK election

Britain's incoming Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party, Keir Starmer, thanks supporters and members of the party after he following his general election victory, in Downing Street in London on July 5, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 05 July 2024
Arab News
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Saudi crown prince, world leaders react to Labour’s sweeping victory in UK election

  • Saudi crown prince, UAE president among Arab leaders to congratulate PM Keir Starmer
Updated 05 July 2024
Arab News

LONDON: Keir Starmer has been appointed as Britain’s prime minister after his center-left Labour Party won a huge majority in Thursday’s parliamentary election, defeating Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives and ending their 14 years of often tumultuous rule.

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman congratulated Starmer on his appointment as prime minister on Friday, Saudi Press Agency reported.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed wrote on X: “I extend my congratulations to Keir Starmer on becoming Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and I look forward to working together to further strengthen the long-standing partnership between our countries.”

Below are other world leaders’ reactions:

US PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN:

US President Joe Biden on Friday congratulated new British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose center-left Labour party won a landslide general election victory.

“I look forward to our shared work in support of freedom and democracy around the world, and to further strengthening the special relationship between our two countries.” Biden said on X.


GERMAN CHANCELLOR OLAF SCHOLZ IN STATEMENT:
“I am delighted about the election victory of the leader of our sister party in the UK. I know Keir Starmer personally, we have often met and talked. He will be a very good, very successful prime minister... I also have the impression that we won’t have much trouble developing relations between Europe and the UK and between Germany and the UK.”

ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER GIORGIA MELONI ON X:
“My congratulations to Keir Starmer on his election success. Relations between Italy and the United Kingdom are excellent and I’m sure we’ll continue to cultivate a relationship of strong and reliable cooperation between our great nations...

“I thank my friend Rishi Sunak for these years of intense cooperation and sincere friendship...”

NATO SECRETARY-GENERAL JENS STOLTENBERG TO REPORTERS:
“I will congratulate Keir Starmer on his election. I look forward to welcoming him and meeting him at the NATO summit in Washington next week. I have met Keir Starmer here at the NATO headquarters and I know that he is a strong supporter of NATO, of the transatlantic alliance and also committed to ensuring that United Kingdom continues to be a strong and very committed NATO ally.”

INDIAN PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI ON X:
“Heartiest congratulations and best wishes to @Keir_Starmer on the remarkable victory in the general elections. I look forward to our positive and constructive collaboration to further strengthen the India-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in all areas, fostering mutual growth and prosperity.”

“Thank you @RishiSunak for your admirable leadership of the UK, and your active contribution to deepen the ties between India and the UK during your term in office.”

IRISH PRIME MINISTER SIMON HARRIS AT PRESS CONFERENCE:
“The relationship between an Irish Taoiseach (prime minister) and a British prime minister is vital... It is time for a great reset. This morning from Dublin, I want to send a message to London that I will match Keir Starmer’s commitment and energy to our peace process and to our future potential in so many areas.”

UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKIY ON X:
“Congratulations to @Keir_Starmer and @UKLabour on their convincing election victory. Ukraine and the United Kingdom have been and will continue to be reliable allies through thick and thin. We will continue to defend and advance our common values of life, freedom, and a rules-based international order...

“I am grateful to my good friend @RishiSunak for the UK government’s steadfast support under his leadership. Challenger tanks, Storm Shadow missiles, F-16 training for our pilots, and the first bilateral security cooperation agreement are just a few of our shared achievements that Ukraine will never forget.”

FRENCH PRESIDENT EMMANUEL MACRON ON X:
“Congratulations Sir @Keir_Starmer on your victory. Pleased with our first discussion. We will continue the work begun with the UK for our bilateral cooperation, for peace and security in Europe, for the climate and for AI.”

AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE TO REPORTERS:
“We have a strong relationship between our two countries, but in Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner and so many others who I am very familiar with in the British Labour Party, I look forward very much to working with them. They have very similar views to us on a range of issues. I’m sure we’ll work closely on AUKUS, where we worked very closely as well with the former government.”

CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU ON X:
“Congratulations, @Keir_Starmer, on a historic UK election victory. Lots of work ahead to build a more progressive, fair future for people on both sides of the Atlantic. Let’s get to it, my friend.”

* With Reuters

Topics: UK UK Labour Party Saudi Arabia keir starmer

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Teenager 'stabbed 50 times', burned alive in Marseille: prosecutors

Updated 8 sec ago
AFP
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Teenager 'stabbed 50 times', burned alive in Marseille: prosecutors

Updated 8 sec ago
AFP
MARSEILLE: A 15-year-old boy was "stabbed 50 times" and burned alive this week in the southern French city of Marseille in an apparent case of drug-related violence, prosecutors said on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters, Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone said the teenager was murdered on Wednesday, describing the case as one of "unprecedented savagery."
Marseille, France's second-largest city but also one of its poorest, is plagued by drug-related violence.
Bessone said that victims and perpetrators of such violence were getting increasingly younger.
The city has in recent years witnessed a turf war for control of the highly profitable drug market between various clans including DZ Mafia.
The teenager had been hired by a 23-year-old prisoner to intimidate a competitor by setting fire to his door, the prosecutor said, adding he had been promised 2,000 euros.
The teenager had however been spotted by members of a rival gang who repeatedly stabbed him then set him on fire, he added.
The same prisoner then recruited a 14-year-old minor to carry out a revenge attack and kill a member of the Blacks gang, promising to pay him 50,000 euros.
The 14-year-old hired a 36-year-old driver who angered the minor and ended up being killed.
The two latest cases mean that the number of drug-related killings in Marseille has risen to 17 since the start of the year.
By comparison, a total of 49 people were killed in drug related violence in Marseille in 2023.
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1 dead as Russia strikes Ukraine with drones and missiles

Updated 15 min 33 sec ago
AP
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1 dead as Russia strikes Ukraine with drones and missiles

Updated 15 min 33 sec ago
AP

KYIV: One person has died after Russian forces attacked Ukraine overnight with 87 Shahed drones and four different types of missiles, officials said Sunday.
A 49-year-old man was killed in the Kharkiv region after his car was hit by a drone, said regional Gov. Oleh Syniehubov. A gas pipeline was also damaged and a warehouse set alight in the city of Odesa, Ukrainian officials reported.
Ukraine’s air force said in a statement that air defenses had destroyed 56 of the 87 drones and two missiles over 14 Ukrainian regions, including the capital, Kyiv.
Another 25 drones disappeared from radar “presumably as a result of anti-aircraft missile defense,” it said.
The barrage comes a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday that he will present his “victory plan” at the Oct. 12 meeting of the Ramstein group of nations that supplies arms to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy presented his plan to U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington last week. Its contents have not been made public but it is known that the plan includes Ukrainian membership in NATO and the provision of long-range missiles to strike inside Russia.
In a statement Sunday, the Ukrainian leader paid tribute to the country’s troops, which he also described as “preparing (for) the next Ramstein.”
“They demonstrate what Ukrainians are capable of when they have enough weapons and sufficient range,” he said in a statement on social media. “We will keep convincing our partners that our drones alone are not enough. More decisive steps are needed — and the end of this war will be closer.”

Topics: Ukraine Russia war

Teenager ‘stabbed 50 times’, burned alive in Marseille: prosecutors

Updated 21 min 17 sec ago
AFP
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Teenager ‘stabbed 50 times’, burned alive in Marseille: prosecutors

Updated 21 min 17 sec ago
AFP

MAREILLE: A 15-year-old boy was “stabbed 50 times” and burned alive this week in the southern French city of Marseille in an apparent case of drug-related violence, prosecutors said on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters, Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone said the teenager was murdered on Wednesday, describing the case as one of “unprecedented savagery.”

Topics: France police crime

Indian villagers kill last wolf from man-eating pack

Updated 29 min 39 sec ago
AFP
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Indian villagers kill last wolf from man-eating pack

Updated 29 min 39 sec ago
AFP

LUCKNOW: Villagers in India have beaten to death a wolf believed to be the last of a six-member pack that killed nine people, eight of them children, wildlife officials said on Sunday.
The grey wolves sparked hysteria among residents in Bahraich district of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, where the animals were said to have attacked more than 40 people.
More than 150 armed personnel and dozens of government forestry officials were deployed to capture the wolves last month.
Five of the animals were trapped, with drones and surveillance cameras suggesting only one remained free.
Government forest officer Ajit Singh said villagers had contacted his team on Sunday after they killed a prowling wolf.
"We were informed about a dead animal in the village, and upon reaching the scene, we found a wolf with clear signs of physical injuries," Singh told AFP.
"It seems it is part of the same pack of wolves," Singh said.
Further investigations were needed to verify that no more wolves remained in the area, he said.
Experts say wolves attack humans or livestock only as a last resort when they are starving, preferring less dangerous prey such as small antelopes.
However, wildlife officials say heavy flooding from extreme torrential rains had swamped the wolves' usual territory, depriving them of hunting grounds, and driving them into areas of more populated farmland.
Some of those killed or injured were attacked while sleeping on the veranda of their homes, a common practice during the hot and humid days of the monsoon rains.
The grassland plains of Bahraich district lie about 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of the border with Nepal, where thick forests cover Himalayan foothills.
The majority of India's roughly 3,000 wolves survive outside protected areas, often in close proximity to people.
Numbers have been dwindling due to the loss of habitat and a lack of wild prey, experts say.
The animals, also known as the plains wolf, are smaller than the stronger Himalayan wolf and can be mistaken for other species such as jackals.
In Rudyard Kipling's 1894 novel The Jungle Book, the "man-cub" Mowgli was raised in the jungle by grey wolves.

Topics: India

India’s ruling party set to lose two state elections, exit polls show

Updated 06 October 2024
Reuters
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India’s ruling party set to lose two state elections, exit polls show

  • Congress holds clear advantage in northern state of Haryana, local media reports say 
  • Reports say opposition also holds edge in Himalayan territory of Jammu and Kashmir
Updated 06 October 2024
Reuters

NEW DELHI: India’s ruling party is projected to have lost two key provincial elections to the main opposition Congress party and its allies, exit polls showed, suggesting another setback after the party fared poorly in national elections.

Local media reported that Congress had a clear advantage in exit polls in the northern state of Haryana, indicating an end to a decade of rule by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state. The opposition also held an edge in the Himalayan territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The two elections were held in phases that ended on Saturday. Votes will be counted on Tuesday and results will be announced the same day. The exit poll results were released late on Saturday.

Exit polls, conducted by private polling firms including TV broadcasters, have a patchy record in India, which analysts say poses a particular challenge due to its large and diverse voting population.

The exit polls had projected Modi’s BJP would win a large majority in the general election in June, but it fell short and had to depend on regional parties to secure a majority and form a coalition government.

The two Indian territories are the first to go to the polls since the national elections.

India’s industrial hub of Maharashtra and the mineral-rich eastern state of Jharkhand, next up in provincial elections, are awaiting the announcement of poll dates that are expected to be in November.

The Jammu and Kashmir election was the first in a decade in the Himalayan region, which has endured years of militant violence. It is India’s only Muslim-majority territory and has been at the center of a dispute with neighboring Pakistan since 1947.

Its status as a special semi-autonomous entity was revoked in 2019 by Modi’s government, which says the move has helped to restore normalcy in the area and boosted development. 

Topics: Kashmir elections India's Congress party

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