INTERNATIONAL

More than 200 United States (US) universities and 17 US states are taking legal action against the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)’s new restrictions on international students. The recently announced restrictions state that international students cannot reside in the US if they take all their classes online in the coming academic year. The Universities and States argue that the new policy threatens students' safety and forces institutions to renew plans that they have already spent months preparing. The universities have backed court briefs supporting Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the federal court in Boston. On Monday, the District of Columbia and 17 US states arranged their own lawsuits which argue that the new policy i...

On Monday, the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declared a formal rejection of "most" of China's claims in the South China Sea. Pompeo stated the rejection as "strengthening U.S. policy". The US diplomat stated that "Beijing's claims to offshore resources across most of the South China Sea are completely unlawful, as is its campaign of bullying to control them." "The world will not allow Beijing to treat the South China Sea as its maritime empire. America stands with our Southeast Asian allies and partners in protecting their sovereign rights to offshore resources, consistent with their rights and obligations under international law," Pompeo added. Although China claims most of the South China Sea as its sovereign territory, many islands and waters in the South China Sea are a...

On Monday, Azerbaijan and Armenia confirmed the death of several Azeri soldiers and the wounding of Armenian soldiers and police during a border clash. The border clash involved exchanges of fire that started from Sunday and continued till Monday. Both countries accuse each other of ceasefire violations and shelling. Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan accused the Armenian leadership of a “provocation.” Whereas, the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that the leadership of Azerbaijan would be accountable for “the unpredictable consequences of the regional destabilization.” The defence ministry of Azeri reported four of its soldiers killed and five wounded while Armenia’s ministry stated three of its soldiers and two police officers wounded in the border clashes...

There is a worldwide condemnation over Turkey’s decision to convert the Byzantine-era monument Hagia Sophia back into a mosque. Even Pope Francis on Sunday  joined an international chorus of condemnation of Turkey’s decision to convert Istanbul’s iconic Hagia Sophia landmark back into a mosque  saying “I think of Hagia Sophia, and I am very saddened,” Earlier the Russian Orthodox Church expressed dismay at Turkey’s decision to revoke the museum status of Hagia Sophia, accusing it of ignoring voices of millions of Christians. The European Union‘s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called the decision “regrettable”. “The ruling by the Turkish Council of State to overturn one of modern Turkey’s landmark decisions and President Erdogan’s decision to place the monument under the managem...

Some 9.7 million children worldwide “could be forced out of school forever” by the end of this year, as a result of increasing poverty and budget cuts incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, London headquartered charity Save the Children warned Monday.buy remeron online salempregnancy.org/wp-content/languages/new/remeron.html no prescription In 12 countries, mainly in West and Central Africa but also including Yemen and Afghanistan, children are at extremely high risk of not going back to school after the lockdowns are lifted, while in another 28 countries, they are at high or moderate risk, the charity said in a report published on its website. Lockdown measures during the pandemic saw a peak of 1.6 billion children out of school globally, according to the report. Inger Ashing, CEO o...

Israeli settlers set on fire Palestinian trees and crops southern Nablus in northern West Bank, PIB reported. The assault is believed to be aimed at emptying the land of its Palestinian owners by leaving them with now source of earning amidst the very difficult economic conditions they face in Corona era and Israeli occupation restrictions. The situation in Hebron in southern West Bank is not different, PIB reported. in the Southern part of the west bank, the settlers attacked Palestinian shepherds and forced them to leave without their goats and sheep. Such robberies and assaults are usually perpetrated by Israeli colonists under the protection of the Israeli occupation army. Settler attacks on the village have noticeably increased since March 2017, when residents of al-Mug...

On Sunday, Hong Kong recorded over 600,000 citizens casting ballots in an unofficial poll that determines the strongest pro-democracy candidates to run for elections in September to Hong Kong’s Legislative Council, Hong Kong’s opposition camp stated. The voting comes at a time when Hong Kong authorities have prohibited public protests for months on end due to coronavirus restrictions and arrested several over chanting protest slogans or holding protest papers. The votes for the unofficial poll were seen as an imperative and rare opportunity for Hong Kongers to express public opinion. Pro-democracy Hong Konger’s view this turnout as a protest vote against the recently implemented national security laws by China on Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s pro-democracy candidates aim to take over majority...

After long-time ruler Omar al-Bashir was overthrown in 2019 following a coup and massive protests, Sudan has drafted wide-reaching reforms contrasting the 30 years of Islamist rule.buy bactroban online https://www.mabvi.org/wp-content/themes/mabvi/images/new/bactroban.html no prescription In the first public explanation, the Sudanese government outlined reforms including allowing non-Muslims to drink alcohol, scrapping the apostasy law, public flogging and women no longer needing permission from a male relative to travel with their children. Referring to the reforms, Justice Minister Nasredeen Abdulbari said,  "We [will] drop all the laws violating the human rights in Sudan”. Following the revocation of laws that controlled how women acted and dressed in public, the latest reform...

Brenton Tarrant, an Australian man who pleaded guilty to committing the Christchurch mosque shooting on 15 March 2019, has decided to represent himself in court a month ahead of the sentencing hearing set to begin on Aug 24. Earlier this year, Tarrant pleaded guilty to 51 charges of murder, 40 charges of attempted murder and one charge of committing a terrorist act. Tarrant’s decision to represent himself was approved by the judge in a pre-trial video call after Tarrant was made to understand his rights to have legal representation. Tarrant’s lawyers stated that Tarrant’s request was consistent with his legal rights. Tarrant was arrested and accused of using semi-automatic weapons to target Muslims attending Friday prayers at two mosques, Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Cent...

After The World Council of Churches urged Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to reverse his decision to convert the Hagia Sophia museum back into a mosque, Pope Francis now states his sadness over Turkey’s decision. During his midday sermon in Saint Peter’s Square, Pope Francis said, "I think of Hagia Sophia and I am very saddened”. Pope Francis’s words come as the Vatican's first reaction to Turkey's decision of converting the 1,500 years old, UNESCO World Heritage site Hagia Sophia, back into a mosque. On Sunday, Archbishop Ieronymos, the head of the Greek Orthodox Church also denounced Turkey’s decision by stating that "instrumentalisation of religion to partisan or geopolitical ends". "The outrage and the arrogance doesn't just concern the Orthodox Church and Christianity but a...