North Korea says US drills have pushed situation to ‘extreme red-line’

North Korea says US drills have pushed situation to ‘extreme red-line’
South Korea and the US staged joint air drills featuring an American strategic bomber and stealth fighter planes in response to threats from North Korea drawing an angry rebuke from Pyongyang. (File/AFP)
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Updated 02 February 2023

North Korea says US drills have pushed situation to ‘extreme red-line’

North Korea says US drills have pushed situation to ‘extreme red-line’
  • Pyongyang was not interested in dialogue as long as Washington pursues hostile policies: statement
  • White House rejected North Korean statement and reiterated willingness to meet North Korean diplomats

SEOUL: North Korea’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that drills by the United States and its allies have pushed the situation to an “extreme red-line” and threaten to turn the peninsula into a “huge war arsenal and a more critical war zone.”
The statement, carried by state news agency KCNA, said Pyongyang was not interested in dialogue as long as Washington pursues hostile policies.
“The military and political situation on the Korean peninsula and in the region has reached an extreme red-line due to the reckless military confrontational maneuvers and hostile acts of the US and its vassal forces,” an unnamed ministry spokesperson said in the statement.
In Washington, the White House rejected the North Korean statement and reiterated a willingness to meet with North Korean diplomats “at a time and place convenient for them.”
“We have made clear we have no hostile intent toward the DPRK and seek serious and sustained diplomacy to address the full range of issues of concern to both countries and the region,” said a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council.
The North Korean statement cited a visit to Seoul this week by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. On Tuesday Austin and his South Korean counterpart vowed to expand military drills and deploy more “strategic assets,” such as aircraft carriers and long-range bombers, to counter North Korea’s weapons development and prevent a war.
“This is a vivid expression of the US dangerous scenario which will result in turning the Korean peninsula into a huge war arsenal and a more critical war zone,” the North Korean statement said.
North Korea will respond to any military moves by the United States, and has strong counteraction strategies, including “the most overwhelming nuclear force” if necessary, the statement added.
More than 28,500 American troops are based in South Korea as a legacy of the 1950-1953 Korean War, which ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
“We reject the notion that our joint exercises with partners in the region serve as any sort of provocation. These are routine exercises fully consistent with past practice,” the White House statement said.
Last year, North Korea conducted a record number of ballistic missile tests, which are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions. It was also observed reopening its shuttered nuclear weapons test site, raising expectations of a nuclear test for the first time since 2017.
In New York, South Korea’s foreign minister, Park Jin, met with the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday and called for the UN’s continued attention to North Korea’s recent provocations and efforts to implement sanctions on the reclusive regime.
Guterres said any resumption of nuclear testing by North Korea would deal a devastating blow to regional and international security, and reaffirmed support to build lasting peace on the Korean peninsula, according to Park’s office.
Park is on a four-day trip to the United States, which will include a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington on Friday.
On Wednesday the United States and South Korea carried out a joint air drill with American B-1B heavy bombers and F-22 stealth fighters, as well as F-35 jets from both countries, according to South Korea’s Defense Ministry.
“The combined air drills this time show the US’ will and capabilities to provide strong and credible extended deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement.


Experimental Bangladeshi school boats engage children in play-based learning

Experimental Bangladeshi school boats engage children in play-based learning
Updated 19 sec ago

Experimental Bangladeshi school boats engage children in play-based learning

Experimental Bangladeshi school boats engage children in play-based learning
  • Floating classrooms operated by country’s largest development organization
  • Fleet of 3 boats offer unique learning experience as they drop anchor in riverine towns

Dhaka: When Abir Chandra Das boarded a floating boat instead of going to the classroom on a Monday morning, it was a completely new experience, one in which the 11-year-old grasped ethics, geometry, and astronomy simultaneously as he played.

Three boats — pink, blue, and violet — anchored on the bank of the Dakatia River near his home in Chandpur district, 110 kilometers from Dhaka, and each of them had something else to offer, from mathematics through science to values.

Launched in September by BRAC, the largest development organization based in Bangladesh, the schools made a stop in Chandpur last month on their way from the northeastern district of Sunamganj to the coastal areas of Bhola in the country’s south.

“I enjoyed different elements in all three boats, especially the games and books in the values boat attracted me a lot,” Das told Arab News.

“Apart from that, I learned the triangle, square, and so on in geometry from the mathematics boat, and got some knowledge on the cosmos and microscopes from the science boat.”

Wherever they arrive, the boats usually anchor for seven to 10 days and are open from morning until afternoon, offering children the experience of play-based learning.

They stop near primary and secondary schools with which BRAC’s teams had been in touch in advance, taking onboard young volunteer teachers from local communities to make contact with children easier.

“All of the activities, materials, and contents in these three boats have been designed in a way so that children will have fun, will enjoy learning, will be curious about learning and through that hopefully be inspired to continue their education,” BRAC education director, Safi Rahman Khan, told Arab News.

“Many of these children, they may never have had the opportunity to experience such an experiential learning space. So, in that sense, we are seeing a lot of spontaneity, a lot of curiosity, many, many visitors. A lot of children are coming, a lot of guardians are coming, and teachers.”

The boats have special ramps so that children and people with disabilities can easily access them.

“We want to ensure that these boats are a more inclusive and open space for learning for all students, for all visitors, guardians, teachers, professionals, officials, and for children and visitors who may have difficulty getting onto a boat,” Khan said.

Ipshita De Chowdhury, 10, who played on the boats when they anchored in Chandpur, told Arab News that she was “very proud” of what she had learned onboard the values boat.

“It taught me the importance of values for people,” she said. “I enjoyed the elements of the other two boats also, but the values boat attracted me more.”

The things children learn in the colorful boats are also taught at normal schools too, but the way they are introduced is different.

“The difference is we have brought them into a format which is all hands-on activities. It’s not based on just reading from a book,” Khan added. “We are seeing a lot of spontaneity, a lot of curiosity.”

All the experiments, puzzles, and games they find on board, children can solve on their own or in groups. Only if they have difficulties will a teacher come to guide them.

As children flock to the boats wherever they moor and their reactions are never short of enthusiasm, BRAC is open to sharing its methods of teaching with schools and education departments.

“We hope they will be inspired, and the teachers will be inspired, and the parents will be inspired, so that they can make learning fun to encourage the children to explore, encourage the children to try and solve various types of problems, various types of activities, on their own rather than depending on maybe a rote system of learning or a system of learning which is more passive,” Khan said.

“This is a journey that we have started and it’s a very small initiative. We hope that others will get inspired.”


Kenya says 238 protesters arrested, 31 police hurt

Kenya says 238 protesters arrested, 31 police hurt
Updated 44 min 27 sec ago

Kenya says 238 protesters arrested, 31 police hurt

Kenya says 238 protesters arrested, 31 police hurt
  • Protesters had joined demonstrations in Nairobi and other parts of Kenya
  • Police fired tear gas and water cannon against demonstrators, some of whom were hurling rocks and burning tires

NAIROBI: Kenyan police said Tuesday they had arrested 238 people during the previous day’s violent protests over the surging cost of living that also saw 31 police officers injured.
Protesters had joined demonstrations in Nairobi and other parts of Kenya on Monday in response to a call by veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga for a day of action against the government of President William Ruto.
Police fired tear gas and water cannon against demonstrators, some of whom were hurling rocks and burning tires, as well as Odinga’s motorcade.
It was the worst violence since Ruto took office six months ago after narrowly beating Odinga in an election his defeated rival claims was “stolen.”
The inspector general of police, Japhet Koome, said in a statement that 213 people were arrested in Nairobi and 24 officers injured.
In the province of Nyanza, an opposition stronghold in western Kenya, there were 25 arrests while seven officers were hurt, he said.
Police had also announced on Monday that a university student was killed in the western town of Maseno after officers fired live bullets during “skirmishes” with protesters who were “pelting stones.”


Ethiopia rejects US war crime allegations as ‘inflammatory’

Ethiopia rejects US war crime allegations as ‘inflammatory’
Updated 21 March 2023

Ethiopia rejects US war crime allegations as ‘inflammatory’

Ethiopia rejects US war crime allegations as ‘inflammatory’

ADDIS ABABA: Ethiopia’s government on Tuesday accused the United States of unfairly apportioning blame for crimes committed during the two-year Tigrayan conflict.
The US allegations were “partisan,” the foreign ministry said, adding: “The US statement is inflammatory.”
Washington on Monday accused all parties to the conflict of committing war crimes.
But it singled out Ethiopian, Eritrean and regional Amhara forces for crimes against humanity, without mentioning the Tigrayan rebels.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who last week made his first visit to Ethiopia since a breakthrough November 2022 peace deal between the federal government and Tigrayan rebels, on Monday made a forceful call for accountability on his return to Washington.
He said the State Department carried out a “careful review of the law and the facts” and concluded that war crimes were committed by federal troops from both Ethiopia and its ally Eritrea as well as by the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and forces from the neighboring Amhara region.
“Many of these actions were not random or a mere byproduct of war. They were calculated and deliberate,” Blinken said as he presented an annual rights report.
Blinken added that the State Department also found crimes against humanity by Ethiopian, Eritrean and Amhara forces, including killings and sexual violence, although he did not mention the TPLF.
Ethiopia’s foreign ministry said the US statement “unfairly apportions blame among different parties in the conflict.”
“The statement appears to exonerate one party from certain allegations of human rights violations such as rape and other forms of sexual violence despite the clear and overwhelming evidence about its culpability,” it said.
“This partisan and divisive approach from the US is ill-advised,” it added, calling it “unwarranted.”
TPLF officials did not respond to AFP requests to comment about the US report.
Blinken had called for accountability during his trip to Addis Ababa, where he held an unusually long meeting with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and spoke separately with senior TPLF leader Getachew Reda.
But he did not directly mention war crimes or crimes against humanity and sounded upbeat about the prospects for peace during his visit.


The war badly soured US relations with Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous nation and long one of Washington’s major partners on the continent.
Abiy had earlier voiced anger when Blinken during the war spoke more generally about crimes against humanity, and the Ethiopian leader has rejected UN-led efforts for a probe.
On Tuesday, the foreign ministry said Washington’s statement “undercuts the support of the US for an inclusive peace process.”
The United States has estimated that some 500,000 people died in the two-year conflict, making it one of the deadliest wars of the 21st century and dwarfing the toll from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The war began in November 2020 when the TPLF, once the major powerbroker in Ethiopia, attacked military installations in the Tigray, triggering a major counteroffensive.
As allegations of atrocities mounted, the US imposed sanctions on Eritrea, an authoritarian state whose relations with Washington were already poor, and booted Ethiopia from a major trade pact, although it held back on further actions against the warring parties.


Pakistan’s parliament summoned in midst of crisis over former PM Imran Khan

Pakistan’s parliament summoned in midst of crisis over former PM Imran Khan
Updated 21 March 2023

Pakistan’s parliament summoned in midst of crisis over former PM Imran Khan

Pakistan’s parliament summoned in midst of crisis over former PM Imran Khan
  • Former cricket star Khan was prime minister from 2018 until 2022
  • His supporters have clashed with police several times over recent days

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s parliament is to meet in a special joint session on Wednesday to “take important decisions” to enforce the state’s authority, media reported, in the midst of prolonged anti-government defiance by former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Former cricket star Khan was prime minister from 2018 until 2022, when he was ousted from office in a parliamentary vote. Since then, he has been demanding a new election and holding protests across the country to press his case.
His supporters have clashed with police several times over recent days as authorities try to force him to appear in court in connection with various cases brought against him.
The office of the speaker of parliament, in calling Wednesday’s joint session, did not give a reason but the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) said the ruling coalition had called for parliament to “take important decisions” to ensure the writ of the state was enforced.
The APP, reporting on a meeting attended by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his cabinet, cited the participants as saying Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was not a political party but “rather a gang of militants,” and its “enmity against the state” could not be tolerated.
Sharif has rejected Khan’s demand for a new election saying it would be held as scheduled later this year.
Parliament will meet in the capital, Islamabad, as Khan’s supporters gather for his latest rally in the eastern city of Lahore.
The clashes between Khan’s supporters and the security forces have brought a new round of political instability to the nuclear-armed country of 220 million people, which is in the midst of a crippling economic crisis.
Khan says the government and the powerful military are trying to stop him from contesting the next election, scheduled for November. If convicted in a case, Khan could face disqualification from the polls.
Both the government and military deny this.
Police have arrested hundreds of Khan’s supporters in raids in recent days in response to the clashes.
Khan appeared on Tuesday before the Lahore High Court to apply for protective bail in fresh cases against him, PTI leader Mussarat Jamshed Cheema told Reuters.
The former prime minister is also appearing before a bench hearing a case he has filed against the police for raiding his home, which he says was in violation of court orders granting him protective bail last week.

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London police force racist, misogynist and homophobic: report

London police force racist, misogynist and homophobic: report
Updated 21 March 2023

London police force racist, misogynist and homophobic: report

London police force racist, misogynist and homophobic: report
  • Crimes perpetrated in a pervasive culture of ‘deep-seated homophobia’ and predatory behavior
  • Female officers and staff ‘routinely face sexism and misogyny’

LONDON: The London police forces, Britain’s largest, is institutionally racist, misogynist and homophobic and could still be employing rapists and murderers, a scathing independent review said Tuesday.
The report, written by government official Louise Casey, was commissioned after the kidnap, rape and murder two years ago of a London woman, Sarah Everard, by serving Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens.
But since then, another officer, David Carrick, was also jailed for life for dozens of rapes and sexual assaults stretching back two decades, and several other Met scandals have emerged.
Casey found the shocking crimes had been perpetrated in a pervasive culture of “deep-seated homophobia” and predatory behavior, in which female officers and staff “routinely face sexism and misogyny.”
Officers from minorities suffer widespread bullying, while violence against women and girls in the majority white and male force has not been treated seriously enough, she concluded.
Asked if there could be more officers like Couzens and Carrick — who at one point served in the same armed unit protecting MPs and foreign diplomats — Casey said: “I cannot sufficiently assure you that that is not the case.”
“It is the police’s job to keep us safe as the public,” she said. “Far too many Londoners have now lost faith in policing to do that.”
Casey’s findings come nearly 25 years after the Macpherson Report, which probed Met failures after the murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence in 1993, also found the force institutionally racist and recommended dozens of reforms.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that what was happening inside the Met was “simply shocking and unacceptable” and that “there needs to be a change in culture and leadership.”
But he backed its chief Mark Rowley, who was appointed after Cressida Dick was forced out last April, to “restore confidence and trust” through a draft overhaul unveiled in January.
Rowley called Casey’s report “a very upsetting read.”
“We have a real problem here. We have misogyny, homophobia and racism in the organization and we’re going to root it out,” he told Sky News.
The report, which identified “systemic and fundamental problems” within the Met including “inadequate management,” made 16 recommendations that would constitute a “complete overhaul.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has responsibility for the force and initiated the review, said he expected all of them to be fully implemented quickly.
“It’s in all of our interests to make sure that the police service changes, root and branch,” he told the BBC.
Failure to reform could mean the force, which polices more than eight million people over 1,605 square kilometers in the British capital, would be broken up, Casey warned.
“The bottom line is this if an organization can’t fix itself then there has to be change,” she told BBC radio.
But she noted: “The tougher thing is to ask the organization to change its culture and to do a better job.”
The Met had failed to protect its female staff and the public from “police perpetrators of domestic abuse, nor those who abuse their position for sexual purposes,” her report stated.
“Time and time again, those complaining are not believed or supported. They are treated badly, or face counter-claims from those they have accused,” it said.
The 363-page review also said an “absence of vigilance” meant that “predatory and unacceptable behavior has been allowed to flourish.”
Racism also exists within the force, with discrimination “often ignored” and complaints “likely to be turned against Black, Asian and ethnic minority officers.”
The Met’s investigations of crimes was also criticized, with the review saying that the force relied on “over-stuffed, dilapidated or broken fridges and freezers” to store forensic evidence.
A lunchbox was found in the same fridge as forensic samples in rape cases, and some appliances were so full they were strapped shut.
One fridge broke down, meaning the evidence inside could no longer be used, the report found.