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Latest news from and about the homeland

Photograph: Screenshot/ BLA video A fresh wave of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances has been documented across Balochistan this month, as Baloch rights groups recorded the recovery of several bodies of men who had earlier been forcibly taken, and appealed once more to international institutions that have largely ignored the province. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC)…

Eta military commander arrested in France

A commander within the Basque separatist organisation, Eta, was arrested by French police 70km north of Lyon this weekend.

Izaskun Lesaka, who is believed to be the military commander of Eta, was arrested along side her boyfriend, Joseba Iturbe Otxoteka.

The operation was a joint venture by RAID, an elite French police unit, and the Spanish Civil Guard.

Manmohan Singh reshuffles his cabinet

The Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reshuffled his cabinet on Sunday, said to be the 'last reshuffle' of his term before the 2014 general elections.

Promoting younger members of the Congress Party that have been supported by Rahul Gandhi, the move has been seen as heavily influenced by Rahul, prompting speculation that he could be Congress' next working president or secretary general.

See here for analysis by Times of India.

Following SM Krishna's sudden departure on Friday from his role in the minister of external affairs, Salman Khurshid will take up the role.

In its editorial, The Hindu commented,

'The biggest upheavals have been in the ministries of External Affairs and Petroleum and Natural Gas. Salman Khurshid is a natural choice to fill the vacuum created by S.M. Krishna’s exit. Mr. Krishna may have been slow to get off the block but he leaves behind a Ministry that is focused and efficient and in whose performance he played no small role.

28,000 flee Burma violence – UN

The United Nation has warned that their figure of 28,000 displaced is likely to rise, as refugees in several areas along the western coast are yet to be counted.

The UN’s Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Ashok Nigam, said that around 27,300 of the displaced are Muslim.

The latest violence in Arakan state has killed at least 84 people according to government figures, but human rights groups have claimed that the toll is likely to be much higher.

Clinton talks Mali on Algeria visit

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on Algeria for their backing in ousting Islamic militants out of northern Mali, when meeting with Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

The meeting follows a UN Security Council resolution earlier this month which paved the way for international intervention in Mali.

An American official reportedly said,
“There is a strong recognition that Algeria has to be a central part of the solution”.

Church bombing in Nigeria sparks reprisal violence

The bombing of a church in northern Nigeria on Sunday, has sparked reprisal attacks by angry Christian youths.

Eight people were killed, and over 100 people wounded, when a car packed with explosives was driven into St Rita's church in the Malali area of Kaduna.

Protestors force halt to Chinese factory plans

A plan to expand a petrochemical plant in China’s Zhejiang province has been scrapped after protesting crowds gathered in Ningbo over several days.

Crowds opposed to the expansion clashed with police and thousands of protestors were dispersed by security forces on Saturday.

Protestors again marched on the district government office on Sunday, calling for a stop to the project.

"There is very little public confidence in the government," protester Liu Li told the Associated Press.

Syria ceasefire 'practically over'

Syrian government jets reportedly bombed Damascus and other regions in the country, as hopes of retaining a ceasefire were declared “practically over” by an opposition campaigner.

Opposition campaigner Fawaz Tello told Reuters,
"The ceasefire is practically over. Damascus has been under brutal air raids since day one and hundreds of people have been arrested”.

Palestinians intend to seek further recognition at UN


Palestinian officials announced that the president planned to seek an upgraded observer status at the United Nations next month, despite American and Israeli threats of financial and diplomatic retaliation.

“We will go to the UN regardless of any threats,” said a senior member of Abbas’ movement, Tawfik Tirawi.

Building on last year’s recognition at the UN cultural agency, UNESCO, the Palestinians will seek the ‘non-member state’ status in the UN General Assembly. The 193 member assembly contains several developing nations that are sympathetic to the Palestinian cause. Palestinian officials have said that they are expecting a “quality majority” which would include European countries such as Britain and Germany, who have been considerate of the Palestinian struggle.

UN war crimes investigators vow action on Syria

War crimes investigators from the United Nations have vowed to take action over crimes in the country and to bring perpetrators to justice, according to the UN’s former war crimes prosecutor Carla del Ponte.

Del Ponte, who has joined a UN team investigating and compiling evidence of human rights abuses and war crimes in Syria, told reporters,
"My main task will be to continue the inquiry in the direction of determining the high-ranking political and military authorities responsible for these crimes."

British Kurds campaign for Genocide recognition

Iraqi Kurds from the UK have started a campaign for recognition of the mass-killing of Kurds in the 1980s and before as genocide.

Saddam Hussein’s regime killed over 180,000 Kurds in the northern region of Kurdistan, but the killing of Kurds by Arabs has occurred in the region since the 1960s.

The campaign, called Justice4Genocide, is petitioning the British Government to declare the atrocities as genocide and is calling on the EU and UN to do the same.