Three injured in knife attack near EU Brussels headquarters

Emergency personnel arrive outside of a metro station near EU headquarters in Brussels, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)
Emergency personnel arrive outside of a metro station near EU headquarters in Brussels, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)
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Updated 30 January 2023

Three injured in knife attack near EU Brussels headquarters

Emergency personnel arrive outside of a metro station near EU headquarters in Brussels, Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. (AP)
  • The suspected attacker was known to police for “psychiatric problems,” a source close to the investigation said

BRUSSELS: Three people were injured, one seriously, in a knife attack Monday in a metro station near the European Union headquarters in Brussels, officials said, adding that the attacker had been arrested.
Brussels Mayor Philippe Close said the man was speedily detained due to coordinated police action at the Schuman metro station.
Police said one of the injured was in “critical condition.”
The suspected attacker was known to police for “psychiatric problems,” a source close to the investigation said.
The attack took place at rush hour around 6:00 pm.
European Union chief Charles Michel, a former Belgian prime minister, thanked the police in a tweet and said his thoughts were with the victims.
An AFP journalist at the site said a woman told people not to enter the station, saying there was a man inside armed with a knife as police rushed in.
Traffic was interrupted on the line.
 


US, Canada end loophole that let asylum-seekers cross border

US, Canada end loophole that let asylum-seekers cross border
Updated 58 min 33 sec ago

US, Canada end loophole that let asylum-seekers cross border

US, Canada end loophole that let asylum-seekers cross border
  • The new policy says that asylum seekers without US or Canadian citizenship who are caught within 14 days of crossing anywhere along the 5,061-kilometer border will be sent back
  • Migrants have taken advantage of a quirk in a 2002 agreement between the US and Canada that says asylum seekers must apply in the first country they arrive in

ST. JOHNSBURY, Vermont: US President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday announced a plan to close a loophole to an immigration agreement that has allowed thousands of asylum-seeking immigrants to move between the two countries along a back road linking New York state to the Canadian province of Quebec.
So many migrants since early 2017 have walked into Canada on Roxham Road outside Champlain, New York, that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police staffed a reception center to process them, less than five miles (8 kilometers) from the official border crossing.
Mounties have warned the migrants at the end of the narrow two-lane road bordered by forests and farm fields that they would be arrested if they crossed the border. But once on Canadian soil, they have been allowed to stay and pursue asylum cases that can take years to resolve.
The new policy says that asylum seekers without US or Canadian citizenship who are caught within 14 days of crossing anywhere along the 3,145-mile (5,061-kilometer) border will be sent back. That includes people walking on Roxham Road.
The deal was set to take effect at 12:01 a.m. Saturday — a quick implementation aimed at avoiding a surge of refugee claimants trying to cross, according to Canadian officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the deal in advance.
Some of the last migrants to make it through before the Biden-Trudeau announcement were about eight people in two families — one from Haiti, the other from Afghanistan — who arrived at the US end of Roxham Road just after dawn on Friday. Both said they took circuitous routes to get there.
Gerson Solay, 28, carried his daughter Bianca up to the border. He said he didn’t have the proper documents to remain in the United States. “That is why Canada is my last destination,” he said before he was taken into custody for processing.
It’s unclear how Roxham Road became a favorite route, but it’s just a taxi ride from where Interstate 87 approaches the Canadian border, and for southbound migrants, it’s a relatively short distance to New York City.

These migrants have taken advantage of a quirk in a 2002 agreement between the US and Canada that says asylum seekers must apply in the first country they arrive in. Migrants who go to an official Canadian crossing are returned to the US and told to apply there. But those who reach Canadian soil somewhere other than a port of entry — like the center near Roxham Road — are allowed to stay and request protection.
The agreement was immediately criticized by some who feel it could endanger the safety of asylum seekers by preventing them from getting needed support from both governments.
“We urge President Biden to strongly reconsider this deal and to work with Congress to restore access to asylum and support policies that recognize the dignity of all those arriving at our borders,” said Danilo Zak, associate director for policy and advocacy for the humanitarian group CWS, also known as Church World Services. The organization advocates for people across the world who have been forced from their homes.
The agreement comes as the US Border Patrol responds to a steep increase in illegal southbound crossings along the wide-open Canadian border. Nearly all happen in northern New York and Vermont along the stretch of border nearest Canada’s two largest cities, Toronto and Montreal.
While the numbers are still tiny compared to the US-Mexico border, it’s happening so frequently now that the Border Patrol increased its staffing in the region and has begun releasing some migrants into Vermont with a future date to appear before immigration authorities.
As part of the deal, Canada also agreed to allow 15,000 migrants from the Western Hemisphere to seek asylum on a humanitarian basis over the course of the year.
Meanwhile, southbound migrants are straining US border officials.
US Border Patrol agents stopped migrants entering illegally from Canada 628 times in February, more than five times the same period a year earlier. Those numbers pale compared to migrants entering from Mexico – where they were stopped more than 220,000 times in December alone — but it is still a massive change in percentage terms.
In the Border Patrol’s Swanton Sector, which stretches across New Hampshire, Vermont and a portion of upstate New York, agents stopped migrants 418 times in February, up more than 10 times from a year earlier. About half entering from Canada have been Mexicans, who can fly visa-free to Canada from Mexico.
About an hour south of the border, the police chief in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, population 6,000, alerted state officials that the Border Patrol had dropped off a vanload of immigrants with just a few minutes notice at the community’s welcome center. The same thing happened several times before within the last few weeks.
In a statement, US Customs and Border Protection said the migrants dropped off in St. Johnsbury had been apprehended along the border after entering the US without authorization, and were given a notice to appear for later immigration proceedings.
They were dropped off in St. Johnsbury because it has a station where migrants can take a bus to a larger city.
“In such circumstances, USBP works in tandem with local communities to ensure the safety of all parties— both community members and migrants— and to ensure stability in the community’s resources,” the statement said.
But local officials said they weren’t given time to prepare. State officials are now working to set up a system to provide migrants services they might require.
On Thursday, a Haitian couple and their children, boys aged 17 and 9 and a 15-year-old girl, were dropped off at the welcome center. The family, who did not want to give their names, wanted to take a bus to Miami.
They said they’d been in Canada for two months, but wouldn’t talk about what prompted them to keep moving.
They missed the Thursday bus that would allow them to connect to a bus to Boston, where they could catch another bus to Miami. A team of local volunteers spent the day getting them something to eat, finding them a place to stay the night and arranging for them to take the bus on Friday.
Police chief Tim Page said St. Johnsbury wants to help these migrants, but not on the fly.
“We need to get something down so we know what we are going to do when these families arrive,” he said. “We don’t have a system set yet, so when we do I am sure this will all go a little smoother.”
 


UN accuses Russia, Ukraine forces of ‘summary executions’ of prisoners

UN accuses Russia, Ukraine forces of ‘summary executions’ of prisoners
Updated 25 March 2023

UN accuses Russia, Ukraine forces of ‘summary executions’ of prisoners

UN accuses Russia, Ukraine forces of ‘summary executions’ of prisoners
  • Moscow and Kyiv have accused each other of mistreating prisoners of war since Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded a year ago

KYIV: The United Nations said Friday it was “deeply concerned” by what it said were summary executions of prisoners of war by both Russian and Ukrainian forces on the battlefield.
The allegations come shortly after Kyiv accused Russian forces of killing a captured Ukrainian serviceman who was filmed saying “Glory to Ukraine” before being shot dead.
The head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, Matilda Bogner, said at a press conference in Kyiv on Friday that her organization had recently recorded killings by both sides.
“We are deeply concerned about (the) summary execution of up to 25 Russian prisoners of war and persons hors de combat by the Ukrainian armed forces, which we have documented,” Bogner said.
“This was often perpetrated immediately upon capture on the battlefield,” she said.
“While we are aware of ongoing investigations by Ukraine authorities into five cases involving 22 victims, we are not aware of any prosecution of the perpetrators,” she added.
Bogner also expressed “deep” concern over the alleged executions of 15 Ukrainian prisoners by Russian armed forces after their capture.
She said the Wagner mercenary group, which claims to be leading Russia’s assault for Bakhmut — the longest and bloodiest battle of the war — was responsible for 11 of those killings.
Moscow and Kyiv have accused each other of mistreating prisoners of war since Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded a year ago.
One UN report issued Friday claimed Ukrainian military personnel had subjected prisoners of war to death threats, mock executions or threats of sexual violence. Some beatings were “purely retaliatory,” it said.
“In some cases, officers beat POWs saying: ‘This is for Bucha,’” the mission reported detainees as saying, referring to a town near Kyiv where Russian forces were accused of widespread atrocities.
“Before questioning, they showed me an axe handle covered in blood as a warning,” the report quoted a Russian POW as saying.
“The questioning lasted for about an hour and they used electricity six times, whenever they thought I was lying,” the detainee said, according to the report.
Ukrainian POWs quoted said they were subjected to torture, sexual violence, a lack of food and water and denied medical attention that sometimes led to death.
They said they were tortured and ill-treated to extract information or as a form of punishment, the mission said.
Ukrainian prisoners reported being beaten with shovels, stabbed, subjected to electric shocks and strangled.
“Some of them lost their teeth or fingers, had their ribs, fingers or noses broken,” the report said.
“They did not just beat us, they broke us. They used their fists, legs, batons, tasers. There were POWs who had their arms or legs broken,” one man was quoted as saying.
The Ukrainian parliament’s human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets said on Friday that he was “surprised” by the allegations against Ukrainian troops and said he had not been informed of them in advance.
He said on Telegram that he wanted to “know the facts and the indisputable arguments on which the conclusions” of the UN report are based.


UK-based runners complete Palestine Marathon to raise thousands for charity

UK-based runners complete Palestine Marathon to raise thousands for charity
Updated 25 March 2023

UK-based runners complete Palestine Marathon to raise thousands for charity

UK-based runners complete Palestine Marathon to raise thousands for charity
  • They were running on behalf of international humanitarian charity Penny Appeal
  • The cash raised will support its projects to help Palestinians

LONDON: A group of 90 runners from the UK raised thousands of pounds for charity by competing in the Palestine Marathon this month.

They were running on behalf of UK-based international humanitarian charity Penny Appeal, and the cash they raised, which has reached over £200,000 ($245,000) so far, will be used to support its projects that provide food, medical supplies, olive trees and emergency relief to people in need in Palestine.

“The Run for Palestine is a popular event that brings together runners of all levels and backgrounds to support a good cause,” Penny Appeal said.

“The marathon took runners through different views of Palestinian everyday life. The route itself is a technical course, with a few steep hills coupled with some fast sections, in scenery like no other marathon.

“The runners were delighted to have completed the race and to have raised money for a good cause.”

The main race begins at the Church of Nativity in the center of Bethlehem’s Old City, taking the runners through the city and two refugee camps, Al-Aida and Ad-Dheisheh, it added. In addition to the full marathon, this year’s Penny Appeal participants had the alternative options of taking part in a 5K,10K or half marathon.

“I’m thrilled to see our charity runners complete the Run for Palestine and to have raised funds for such an important cause,” said one volunteer.

“We couldn’t have done it without the support of our friends, family, and the amazing volunteers who made this event possible. We’re proud to have made a difference in the lives of those who need it most.”

Ridwana Wallace Laher, Penny Appeal’s CEO, said: “We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who participated in the Run for Palestine and helped us raise funds for this important cause.

“The money raised will go a long way in helping us make a difference in the lives of people in need around the world.

“We couldn’t have done it without the support of our runners, volunteers and sponsors, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s event.”


Indian Parliament disqualifies Rahul Gandhi after conviction in defamation case

India's Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, second left, arrives at the district court in Surat on March 23, 2023. (AFP)
India's Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, second left, arrives at the district court in Surat on March 23, 2023. (AFP)
Updated 24 March 2023

Indian Parliament disqualifies Rahul Gandhi after conviction in defamation case

India's Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, second left, arrives at the district court in Surat on March 23, 2023. (AFP)
  • Gandhi says is willing to pay any price in his fight for ‘the voice of India’
  • He was sentenced to two years in jail in a defamation case linked to PM Modi’s surname

NEW DELHI: India’s Parliament disqualified main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday, a day after he was convicted in a defamation case and sentenced to two years of imprisonment. The former president of India’s Congress party and a scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, which has given the country four prime ministers, was found guilty of defamation by a lower court in Gujarat — the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The court convicted Gandhi for comments made in a speech ahead of the 2019 general election, in which he referred to thieves as having the surname Modi.

“Rahul Gandhi, a member of Lok Sabha (lower house) representing the Wayanad Parliamentary Constituency of Kerala, stands disqualified from the membership of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction, i.e. 23 March, 2023,” the lower house of Parliament said in a notification on Friday.

If a higher court does not overturn the conviction, Gandhi would be barred from contesting next year’s polls, in which he has been seen as a main opponent to the rule of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.

According to Indian law, a convicted legislator cannot contest elections for six years after the end of their jail sentence.

Gandhi took to Twitter after his disqualification to say that he is “fighting for the voice of India” and is “willing to pay any price for that.”

Gandhi is on bail for 30 days and his party said would it appeal the Gujarat court’s verdict. The party led a protest march outside the parliament building on Friday, with opposition leaders carrying a large banner reading “democracy in danger.”

“They (BJP) tried all ways to disqualify him. They don’t want to keep those who are speaking the truth, but we will continue to speak the truth,” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge told reporters.

“If needed, we’ll go to jail to save democracy.”

Gandhi, 52, is the son of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. His grandmother Indira Gandhi was India’s first female leader, and his great-grandfather, Jawaharlal Nehru, was the country’s founding prime minister.

Opposition parties, cutting across their political differences, condemned his disqualification from parliament.

“In PM Modi’s New India opposition leaders have become the prime target of BJP,” tweeted Mamata Bannerjee, chief minister of the eastern state of West Bengal and a strong regional leader.

“Today, we have witnessed a new low for our constitutional democracy.”

But experts say the conviction and disqualification may offer the opposition a new card to play.

“However the Congress does it, it’s going to be a big challenge for them. There is a potential they can convert this disqualification into a qualification for a much bigger thing,” Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, a political analyst, told Arab News. But to stay the conviction or have Gandhi acquitted means a long legal battle for him and the Congress, which is preparing for local polls this year and general elections in 2024.

“They are getting ready for a bunch of state elections and parliament polls and would like to package Rahul’s disqualification as an attack on democracy and how voices are being smothered that are opposed to BJP or Modi, but they would have to rely a lot on how determined Rahul is to fight,” said Sanjay Kapoor, chief editor of the political magazine Hard News and former secretary-general of the Editors Guild of India.

“A fall in his morale could see Congress slipping badly in state elections as well as 2024 polls. It’s a big challenge for the Congress and Rahul.”

 

 


Muslim man asked not to pray inside Ottawa train station

Muslim man asked not to pray inside Ottawa train station
Updated 24 March 2023

Muslim man asked not to pray inside Ottawa train station

Muslim man asked not to pray inside Ottawa train station
  • Viral video of incident showed guard in security vest telling man prayers were disturbing other people
  • Via Rail issued unreserved apology to Muslim community, promised full investigation

DUBAI: A security guard subcontracted to work for Canada’s Via Rail has been suspended pending investigation after asking a Muslim man not to pray at an Ottawa train station.
CTV News Ottawa on Thursday reported that the worshipper, who identified himself only as Ahmad, had just finished praying in an empty hallway when the guard approached him and said, “don’t pray in here … Pray outside next time.”
Ahmad told the news channel that the incident happened on Monday at the station in the Canadian capital.
According to Ottawa Citizen news website, a video of the incident that went viral showed the guard in his security vest telling the man that his prayers were disturbing other station users.
Via Rail issued an unreserved apology to the man and the entire Muslim community and promised a full investigating and “appropriate actions” based on its findings.
Following a meeting to discuss what was described as a “regrettable and saddening incident,” Via Rail and the National Council of Canadian Muslims, a civil rights and advocacy group, issued a joint statement that said the two parties had held constructive talks and that the operator was working to improve its diversity and inclusion policies.
“The conversation focused on common objectives, namely, to ensure that Via Rail provides an inclusive environment where passengers and employees feel safe practicing freedom of religion, including the ability to worship,” the statement added.
The guard also reportedly told Ahmad, “we don’t want you praying here. You’re bothering our other customers, OK?”
Ahmad told CTV News that he was left feeling shocked, hurt, and disrespected.
He said: “He made me feel embarrassed. I was just disgusted. Like, this is Canada? This is the nation’s capital? This is Ottawa?”
Via Rail officials noted that the firm would be sharing its diversity and inclusion policies with the NCCM and would work with the group on “any improvements that could be brought to help prevent these incidents in the future.”
The railway company also pointed out that it strongly condemned Islamophobia and any discriminatory behavior.
The security guard was not an employee of Via Rail, but a spokesperson said the firm had asked its subcontractor to remove him from all Via Rail contracts pending the outcome of the investigation.
The NCCM has since been in contact with Ahmad.