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Social media accounts of Covid policy critics suspended in China

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China has suspended or closed the social media accounts of more than 1,000 critics of the government’s policies on the Covid-19 outbreak, as the country moves to further open up.

The popular Sina Weibo social media platform said it had addressed 12,854 violations including attacks on experts, scholars and medical workers and issued temporary or permanent bans on 1,120 accounts.

The company “will continue to increase the investigation and cleanup of all kinds of illegal content, and create a harmonious and friendly community environment for the majority of users,” Sina Weibo said in a statement on Thursday.

Criticism has largely focused on open-ended travel restrictions that saw people confined to their homes for weeks, sometimes without adequate food or medical care.

Anger was also vented over the requirement that anyone who potentially tested positive or had been in contact with such a person be confined for observation in a field hospital, where overcrowding, poor food and hygiene were commonly cited.
Mass migration for Lunar New Year

The ruling Communist Party had largely relied on the medical community to justify its harsh lockdowns, quarantine measures and mass testing, almost all of which it abruptly abandoned last month.

China is now facing a surge in cases and hospitalisations in major cities and is bracing for a further spread into less developed areas with the start of the Lunar New Year travel rush, set to get underway in the coming days.

While international flights are still reduced, authorities say they expect domestic rail and air journeys will double over the same period last year, bringing overall numbers close to those of the 2019 holiday period before the pandemic hit.

Nonetheless, China is forging ahead with a plan to end mandatory quarantines for people arriving from abroad beginning on Sunday.

Hong Kong also plans to reopen some of its border crossings with mainland China on Sunday and allow tens of thousands of people to cross every day without being quarantined.

The end to mass testing, a lack of basic data such as the number of deaths, infections and severe cases, and the potential emergence of new variants have caused international concern.

Governments elsewhere have instituted virus testing requirements for travellers from China, whiChina take risks on black market drugs as Covid-19 surgesle the World Health Organization has also expressed concern about the lack of data.

Chinese health authorities publish a daily count of new cases, severe cases and deaths, but those numbers include only officially confirmed cases and use a very narrow definition of Covid-related deaths.

Authorities say that since the government ended compulsory testing and permitted people with mild symptoms to test themselves and convalesce at home, it can no longer provide a full picture of the state of the latest outbreak.

(Source: TRT WORLD)

International News

PM Modi And UAE President Mohammed Bin Zayed Reaffirm Commitment To Deepen Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

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New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan reaffirmed their commitment to deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the official statement by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.

According to the release, PM Modi spoke yesterday with the President of the UAE over the telephone, and the two leaders reaffirmed their mutual commitment to further strengthening the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and the UAE.

“They positively assessed the remarkable progress made across various sectors of bilateral cooperation and laid emphasis on further developing and deepening collaboration for the shared benefit of the peoples of both countries,” the release said.

Moreover, the UAE President also extended congratulations to PM Modi on becoming the second longest-serving Prime Minister in India’s history and wished him continued success in his service to the nation, the press release added.

Similarly, PM Modi also thanked the UAE President for his gracious wishes and the affection he expressed for the people of India.

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International News

Thailand, Cambodia Clash With Jets, Rockets, Artillery In Deadly Border Row

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Thailand launched air strikes on Cambodian military targets on Thursday as Cambodia fired rockets and artillery, killing a civilian, in a dramatic escalation of a long-running border row between the two neighbours.

The neighbours are locked in a bitter spat over an area known as the Emerald Triangle, where the borders of both countries and Laos meet, and which is home to several ancient temples.

The squabble has dragged on for decades, flaring into bloody military clashes more than 15 years ago and again in May, when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a firefight.

The conflict blazed up on Thursday, with Cambodia firing rockets and artillery shells into Thailand and the Thai military scrambling F-16 jets to carry out air strikes.

Six jets were deployed from Ubon Ratchathani province, hitting two “Cambodian military targets on the ground”, according to Thai military deputy spokesperson Ritcha Suksuwanon. 

The Thai prime minister’s office said a Cambodian artillery shell hit a house over the border, killing one civilian and wounding three others, including a five-year-old child.

Both sides blamed the other for starting the fighting, which erupted near two temples on the border between the Thai province of Surin and Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey.

“The Thai military violated the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Cambodia by launching an armed assault on Cambodian forces stationed to defend the nation’s sovereign territory,” defence ministry spokeswoman Maly Socheata said in a statement.

“In response, the Cambodian armed forces exercised their legitimate right to self-defence, in full accordance with international law, to repel the Thai incursion and protect Cambodia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

The Thai military blamed Cambodian soldiers for firing first, and later accused them of a “targeted attack on civilians”, saying two BM-21 rockets had hit a community in Surin’s Kap Choeng district, wounding three people.

According to the Thai military, the clashes began around 7:35 am (0035 GMT) when a unit guarding Ta Muen temple heard a Cambodian drone overhead.

Later, six armed Cambodian soldiers, including one carrying a rocket-propelled grenade, approached a barbed-wired fence in front of the Thai post, the army said.

Thai soldiers shouted to warn them, the army said, but around 8:20 am, Cambodian forces opened fire toward the eastern side of the temple, about 200 metres from the Thai base. 

Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said “the situation requires careful handling, and we must act in accordance with international law”.

“We will do our best to protect our sovereignty,” he said.

Thailand’s embassy in Phnom Penh urged its nationals to leave Cambodia “as soon as possible” unless they had urgent reasons to remain, in a Facebook post.

Long-Running Row 

The violence came hours after Thailand expelled the Cambodian ambassador and recalled its own envoy in protest after five members of a Thai military patrol were wounded by a landmine. 

Wechayachai said an investigation by the Thai military found evidence that Cambodia had laid new landmines in the disputed border area — a claim denied by Phnom Penh.

On Thursday morning, Cambodia announced it was downgrading ties to “the lowest level”, pulling out all but one of its diplomats and expelling their Thai equivalents from Phnom Penh.

Recent weeks have seen a series of tit-for-tat swipes by both sides, with Thailand restricting border crossings and Cambodia halting certain imports.

The border row also kicked off a domestic political crisis in Thailand, where prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended from office pending an ethics probe over her conduct.

A diplomatic call between Paetongtarn and Hun Sen, Cambodia’s former longtime ruler and father of Prime Minister Hun Manet, was leaked from the Cambodian side, sparking a judicial investigation.

Last week, Hun Manet announced that Cambodia would start conscripting civilians next year, activating a long-dormant mandatory draft law.

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Mumbai Police Reach Kapil Sharma’s House After Kap’s Cafe Firing In Canada

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Hours after shots were fired at comedian Kapil Sharma’s eatery, Kap’s Cafe, in Canada, the Mumbai Police on Friday reached his house in Mumbai to question him about the incident. Around 1 am on July 9 (Canada time), several rounds were fired at the cafe, located in Surrey.

Khalistani terrorist Harjeet Singh Laddi claimed the responsibility for the attack, and demanded an apology from Kapil for his alleged objectionable remarks.

the attackers felt that Nihang Sikhs were insulted on Kapil’s show. The report also mentioned that the attackers said the comedian ignored their calls seeking an apology, and that shots were fired at his eatery to warn him.

Kap’s Cafe team issues statement

Kapil is yet to issue an official statement on the incident.

The management of the eatery, however, took to their social media handles and wrote, “We opened Kap’s Cafe with hopes of bringing warmth, community, and joy through delicious coffee and friendly conversation. To have violence intersect with that dream is heartbreaking. We are processing this shock but we are not giving up (sic).”

It further stated, “Your kind words, prayers, and memories shared via DM mean more than you know. This cafe exists because of your belief in what we’re building together. Let’s stand firm against violence and ensure Kap’s Cafe remains a place of warmth and community. From all of us at Kap’s Cafe, thank you and see you soon, under better skies (sic).”

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