Sindh, April 29: Protest intensified in Sindh province of Pakistan against the construction of six new canals on the Indus River, as the declaration of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) has failed to build any consensus among the protesting lawyers.

The lawyers’ association, unsatisfied with the CCI proposal, decided to continue with their sit-in protest, which started last week at the Babarloi bypass in Khairpur district, local media reported.

The CCI, recognized as the highest constitutional body in Pakistan, was originally scheduled to convene on May 2. However, it was rescheduled to meet on Monday due to the deteriorating situation in Sindh amid ongoing protests against the canal project.

But the “hurriedly-called” CCI did not announce the complete abandonment of the six-canal project. Rather, it endorsed the earlier stance of the federal government that the project will only move if the CCI and the provinces reach a consensus, Pakistani newspaper The Express Tribune reported.

“The CCI endorses the policy of the federal government. The federal government has decided that no new canals will be built without mutual understanding from CCI. It has been decided that the federal government will not move further until mutual understanding is evolved among the provinces,” an official statement released after the meeting stated.

Addressing the media in Kashmore-Kandhkot district, Sindh High Court Bar Association President Barrister Sarfaraz Ali Metlo stated that the lawyers’ demand is the issuance of notifications declaring the cancellation of not only the six canals project but also the corporate farming as well. He stated that the lawyers’ sit-ins will not cease over the CCI’s announcement.

“We have been demanding from day one that the government should notify cancellation of both, the six canal projects and the corporate farming,” he stated.

He warned that if the governments delay in issuing the notifications, protests will intensify and spread in the province.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Advocate Sajjad Ahmed Chandio, a member of the lawyers committee constituted to negotiate with the government, stated that a majority of the lawyers have rejected the CCI’s decision.

The declaration of the CCI had also not gone well with the nationalist leaders and social activists who are similarly demanding the cancellation of the project.

One of the social activists, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Jr said that the CCI’s decision does not reflect their demand to cancel the canals and corporate farming project.

“The government is also not listening to the people’s wishes because this CCI meeting was called in an emergency, in fear of the people,” he added.

Seoul, April 28: South Korea’s National Fire Agency (NFA) issued an emergency response order Monday to mobilise available national personnel and equipment to put out a fire spreading in the southeastern city of Daegu, officials said.

The NFA issued the order about two hours after the blaze began around 2 p.m. on Mount Hamji in the city, some 230 kilometres southeast of Seoul, and was spreading toward nearby villages.

Under the emergency order, the fire authorities have mobilised 28 additional fire engines to aid efforts to extinguish the blaze on top of 67 fire engines and 29 fire helicopters that had already been in operation, according to the officials.

No casualties have been reported so far, but nearby residents have been instructed to evacuate to local elementary schools, reports Yonhap news agency.

Acting President Han Duck-soo also ordered related authorities to “use all available equipment and personnel” to extinguish the fire and help people evacuate to safety.

“As the wildfire is spreading rapidly due to strong winds and there are residential areas nearby, make sure to take all necessary measures for emergency rescue and evacuation to prevent any loss of life,” he said.

The Korea Forest Service also issued a Level 3 wildfire response, the highest in its three-tier scale, as strong winds continued to spread the flames.

A Level 3 response is issued when wind speeds exceed 7 metres per second, the expected damage area is over 100 hectares and firefighting efforts are expected to last over 24 hours.

As of 6 p.m., some 57 hectares of land had been affected by the fire, with the containment rate remaining at 14.5 per cent, according to fire authorities.

United Nations, April 26: The Security Council has “condemned in the strongest terms” the Pahalgam terrorist attack and urged all countries to cooperate in bringing all those involved in the massacre, to justice.

The members of the Security Council “stressed that those responsible for these killings should be held accountable, and urged all States, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with all relevant authorities in this regard”, Council President Jerome Bonnafont said in a Press statement on Friday.

A front organisation of the Pakistan-based terrorist group Laskhar-e-Tayiba has owned responsibility for the attack.

The statement issued by France’s Permanent Representative Bonnafont who is the Council president for this month, took a broad view of those involved in the massacre by including the financiers and sponsors.

“The members of the Security Council underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice”, the statement said.

Pakistan, which is on the Council as an elected member, went along with the other members in endorsing the statement, committing itself – at least on paper – to bringing those involved to justice.

A Press statement expresses the consensus of the Council and carries moral authority, while not being legally binding like a resolution.

The statement also shot down the attempts by some in Pakistan to give terrorist attacks a veneer of justification.

“The members of the Security Council reiterated that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed”, it said.

The Council members “reaffirmed the need for all States to combat by all means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and other obligations under international law, including international human rights law, international refugee law and international humanitarian law, threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts”, the statement added.

Earlier, the spokesperson for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hinted that a diplomatic effort by him may be afoot.

Asked by a reporter, if Guterres would speak to leaders of India and Pakistan, Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that he hoped to have something to share on that later.

Reiterating the condemnation of the terrorist attacks, Dujarric said, “We again urge both the Government of India and the Government of Pakistan to exercise maximum restraint to ensure the situation does not deteriorate further.”

When a reporter asserted that the possibility that “two nuclear countries” might “go to war” was getting insufficient attention, Dujarric said, “I don’t agree with your comment. We are paying very close attention to the situation between India and Pakistan.”