POLITICS
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Mar- 2024 -2 March
Blast in Bengaluru cafe, man who planted IED bomb identified on CCTV
A bomb blast occurred at Bengaluru’s Rameshwaram Cafe on Friday afternoon, injuring at least ten people. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah confirmed that the blast was caused by an IED and said a man placed a bag containing the device inside the cafe. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said the accused has been identified on CCTV. According to him, the accused is around 28 to 30 years of age. The accused took a coupon for Rava Idli at the cafe but went away without eating. He left his bag, which allegedly had the IED, said the Deputy Chief Minister. FOLLOW LIVE UPDATES ON BENGALURU CAFE BLAST Police told the Chief Minister that no more IED were found on the premises apart…
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Feb- 2024 -26 February
‘Deepening occupation’: Turkey condemns Israel on last day of ICJ hearing
Turkey has joined a large number of countries that have condemned Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Turkey’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmet Yildiz was the first representative to speak on the last day of the hearings on Monday, capping a weeklong event that saw 52 countries and several international organisations testify to Israel’s occupation of Palestine. He said the long-running conflict could have been settled by now if international and human rights laws were upheld by Israel and its Western allies, and emphasised how the United Nations Security Council has failed to protect the unalienable rights of the Palestinians. He said the “deepening occupation by Israel of the Palestinian territories” and the failure of its…
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26 February
Tripura forest department officer suspended over lions named ‘Akbar’, ‘Sita’
The Tripura government suspended a senior forest officer, IFS Pravin Lal Agrawal, over the naming of a lion as ‘Akbar’ and a lioness as ‘Sita ‘ by zoo authorities in Tripura. Agrawal is the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) and Chief Wildlife Warden (CWLW). The two lions were recently brought to the Bengal Safari Park in Siliguri from Tripura’s Sepahijala Zoo. Days later, the wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad approached the Calcutta High Court opposing the West Bengal forest department’s move to keep the lion named ‘Akbar’ with the lioness named ‘Sita’ in the same enclosure. The High Court later asked the Bengal government to rename the big cats. The state government had informed the court that the naming of the two…
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26 February
US airman sets himself on fire outside Israel embassy to protest ‘genocide’
An active member of the United States military has set himself on fire outside the Israeli embassy in Washington, DC, according to officials, in an apparent act of protest against Israel’s devastating war on Gaza. Aaron Bushnell, 25, was rushed to the hospital on Sunday with “critical life-threatening injuries”, according to the US capital’s fire department. The agency said emergency responders rushed to the scene just before 1pm (18:00 GMT) in response to a “call for person on fire outside the Israeli embassy”. They arrived to find that officers from the US Secret Service had already extinguished the fire. The US Air Force confirmed the incident involved an active duty airman. ‘Free Palestine!’ US media reports said Bushnell livestreamed himself…
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26 February
Earthquake fever grips Turkey’s Istanbul amid fears of ‘the big one’
Istanbul, Turkey – Earthquake fever has gripped Istanbul since last year’s disaster in southern Turkey, as residents in Europe’s most populous city fear they could face similar devastation. The city lies near the North Anatolia faultline, a geological danger that has seen Istanbul hit by at least 34 strong earthquakes over the last 2,000 years. Smaller tremors can be felt by people in Istanbul every year – an ominous reminder of the danger that lurks beneath their streets. For many, witnessing the stark devastation caused to swaths of Turkey last February added to their anxiety over the inevitable but unpredictable arrival of “the big one”. Istanbul’s official population is 16 million, but estimates based on household water consumption by the Istanbul…
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26 February
Palestinian PM Mohammed Shtayyeh submits resignation, a move that could open door to reforms
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh says his government is resigning, in a move that could open the door to U.S.-backed reforms in the Palestinian Authority. President Mahmoud Abbas must still decide whether he accepts Mr. Shtayyeh’s and his government’s resignation, tendered on February 26. But the move signals a willingness by the Western-backed Palestinian leadership to accept shake-up that might usher in reforms seen as necessary to revitalize the Palestinian Authority.
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24 February
UK offers Russian officials British citizenship to defect and pass secrets to MI6
Russian officials appalled by the war in Ukraine are being offered British citizenship to defect and pass secrets to UK intelligence agencies. Three UK intelligence sources and a former Russian informant have told i that British citizenship and cash payments are being used by UK government agencies in certain circumstances to persuade disgruntled members of Vladimir Putin’s regime to hand information to the UK. It comes after the head of MI6 last year issued a public plea to Russians angry with the invasion to “join hands” with the UK and “share secrets” to help end the war in Ukraine. he death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has further isolated Putin from the West, with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron and his counterparts at this…
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24 February
Lee Anderson suspended from Conservative Party after ‘Islamophobic’ comments
A spokesperson for Chief Whip Simon Hart said: “Following his refusal to apologise for comments made yesterday, the Chief Whip has suspended the Conservative whip from Lee Anderson MP.” Speaking on GB News this week, Mr Anderson, MP for Ashfield, said: “I don’t actually believe that the Islamists have got control of our country, but what I do believe is they’ve got control of Khan and they’ve got control of London… He’s actually given our capital city away to his mates.” Earlier today Sadiq Khan accused the prime minister of being “complicit” in racism for failing to condemn Mr Anderson‘s comments that “pour fuel on the fire of anti-Muslim hatred”. Mr Khan said the claim by the former deputy chairman of Tory…
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24 February
10 killed in massive apartment fire in Spain, victims’ families recall horror
The victims of a huge fire that ripped through an apartment block in the Spanish city of Valencia were mourned on Saturday as authorities said the death toll had risen to 10. The blaze, fanned by strong winds, broke out on Thursday evening in the affluent El Campanar district. Police had revised the number of dead to nine from 10 on Friday in the process of identifying the bodies in the building, but confirmed a 10th fatal victim had been found on Saturday. Outside the charred building, a single white flower was taped to a utility pole as Valencians gathered at the scene to pay their respects. Pilar Zamora, 53, who travelled across town with her husband, said she was…
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24 February
‘Digital Nagriks’ not to be experimented with ‘unreliable’ AI models, govt tells Google India
New Delhi: The Centre on Saturday warned Google India that India’s ‘Digital Nagriks’ are not to be experimented on with ‘unreliable’ algorithms or AI models, as the IT Ministry was in the process of issuing a notice to the tech giant over “problematic and illegal” responses by Google’s Gemini AI. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, said that the legal obligation to maintain safety and trust lies with the internet and digital platforms. “Our ‘Digital Nagriks’ are not to be experimented on with ‘unreliable’ platforms/algorithms/models,” said the minister. Safety and trust is platforms’ legal obligation and ‘Sorry Unreliable’ does not exempt from law,” he stressed. The minister reacted after Google said earlier in…
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