Human Rights

16 Aug 2020; MEMO: Israeli Finance Minister Yisrael Katz said Sunday that the annexation of parts of the occupied West Bank was already suspended before the announcement of a deal to normalise relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

New Delhi, Aug 15 (PTI) In her Independence Day message, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said these were "testing times" for Indian democracy and people need to introspect if there is freedom in the country to ask questions, disagree or seek accountability.

Since independence, India has tested its democratic values from time to time and constantly developed them, Gandhi said.

Lucknow, Aug 16 (PTI) The Uttar Pradesh government has extended by three months the detention of physician Kafeel Khan under the National Security Act for his alleged provocative speech during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests.

Khan was arrested in January for delivering the speech at Aligarh Muslim University on December 10, 2019. It is the second time his detention under the stringent law has been extended by another three months, this time beyond August 13.

15 Aug 2020; MEMO: Turkey’s ruling party on Saturday criticized the deal between the United Arab Emirates and Israel to normalize ties as a "political suicide" against the Palestinian cause.

It is also an attempt to eradicate two-state solution between Israel and Palestine proposed by international community, Omer Celik, spokesman for the Justice and Development (AK) Party said on Twitter.

15 Aug 2020; MEMO: Pakistan on Friday cautiously reacted to the controversial deal between the UAE and Israel to normalize ties, declaring the development with “far-reaching implications.”

“We have noted the Joint Statement announcing agreement of UAE and Israel to have full normalization of relations. This is a development with far-reaching implications,” said a statement from the Foreign Ministry.

14 Aug 2020; MEMO: Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar roundly beat her pro-Israel opponent in the Democratic primaries on Tuesday, making her the official nominee for Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District.

Omar was challenged by Antone Melton-Meaux, a pro-Israel candidate on whom the pro-Israel lobby had pinned their hopes to defeat the Palestine ally.

Omar received 57.4 per cent of 160,938 votes counted, with Melton-Meaux receiving 39.2 per cent of the vote.

14 Aug 2020; MEMO: The Palestinian government has recalled its ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in protest over the country’s agreement to normalise ties with Israel.

Palestine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Riyad Al-Maliki said in a statement: “At the request of [PA chairman] Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian foreign ministry has decided to immediately recall its ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.”

New Delhi, Aug 14 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Friday held activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan guilty of contempt for his two derogatory tweets against the judiciary.

A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said it would hear on August 20 the arguments on quantum of sentence to be awarded to Bhushan in the matter.

A contemnor can be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend up to six months or with a fine of up to Rs 2,000 or with both.

13 Aug 2020; MEMO: Israeli warplanes at dawn launched renewed air raids on the besieged Gaza Strip, causing only material damage to a school and some homes.

One missile struck an UNRWA-run primary school in the Shati refugee camp, which is one of the most densely populated areas in the Strip.

Interior Ministry spokesperson, Iyad Bozum, said the building was evacuated while explosives experts and security officials work to remove the remnants of the explosives.

13 Aug 2020; MEMO: Israel tried to expel 60,000 Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Uruguay after reaching understandings with the government of the South American state in 1969, Israeli Public Broadcaster (Kan) has revealed.

According to Al-Hadath news website, Kan said that the late Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol, who served from 1963-1969, laid down the basis of this plan.