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September
Afghanistan a 'wake-up call' for Europe on defence, leadership: France
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire attends a news conference after a meeting with business federations at the Bercy Finance Ministry in Paris, France, August 30, 2021. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier -
The challenges to security emerging from the upheaval in Afghanistan should be a wake-up call for the European Union, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Saturday (Sep 4), urging the EU to be more ambitious on defence and on global leadership.
"Europe has to become No 3 super-power besides China and the United States. Let's open our eyes, we are facing threats and we cannot rely anymore on the protection of the United States," Le Maire told reporters during an annual business conference in Cernobbio on Lake Como.
"Afghanistan is a wake-up call," he said, adding Europe also faced security threats in the Middle East and in Africa.
The French minister said Paris had decided to invest €1.7 billion (US$2.02 billion) more in defence this year and would like to see other European countries to do the same.
The minister also called other EU member states to invest and to deepen their single market to achieve technological independence from big overseas companies and third countries.
"EU member states have to build the single market for finance and also they need to reach a political agreement on the banking union, in order to have more funds for new technologies," Le Maire said.
He added that France will work toward these goals when it takes the rotating presidency of the EU Council, in the first half of 2022.
"You cannot be sovereign on the political point of view if you depend from foreigners for semiconductors, electric batteries, satellites ..." he said, echoing similar comments from Italy's Innovation Minister Vittorio Colao, who was also in Cernobbio.
Europe should invest to win the leadership in sectors including hydrogen, the digital cloud, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, space exploration, satellites and bio-technologies, Le Maire said//CNA
September
Taliban, opposition fight for Afghan holdout province, top US general warns of civil war
Written by nuke
Members of National Resistance Front observe by a house near Panjshir Valley, Afghanistan in this still image obtained handout. NATIONAL RESISTANCE FRONT OF AFGHANISTAN HANDOUT/Handout via REUTERS -
Taliban and opposition forces battled on Saturday (Sep 4) to control the Panjshir Valley north of Kabul, the last Afghan province holding out against the militant group, as the top US general warned of a "civil war" if the Islamists failed to consolidate power.
Both sides claimed to have the upper hand in Panjshir but neither could produce conclusive evidence to prove it. The Taliban, which swept through the country ahead of the final withdrawal of US-led forces this week, were unable to control the valley when they ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.
Taliban spokesman Bilal Karimi said the districts of Khinj and Unabah had been taken, giving Taliban forces control of four of the province's seven districts.
"The Mujahideen (Taliban fighters) are advancing toward the centre (of the province)," he said on Twitter.
But the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, grouping forces loyal to local leader Ahmad Massoud, said it surrounded "thousands of terrorists" in Khawak pass and the Taliban had abandoned vehicles and equipment in the Dashte Rewak area.
Front spokesman Fahim Dashti added "heavy clashes" were going on.
In a Facebook post, Massoud insisted Panjshir "continues to stand strongly". Praising "our honourable sisters", he said demonstrations by women in the western city of Herat calling for their rights showed Afghans had not given up demands for justice and "they fear no threats".
US General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, underscored the tenuous situation.
"My military estimate is, is that the conditions are likely to develop of a civil war. I don't know if the Taliban is going to be able to consolidate power and establish governance," Milley said.
Speaking to Fox News from Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Milley said if they cannot that will "in turn lead to a reconstitution of Al Qaeda or a growth of ISIS or other myriad of terrorist groups" over the next three years.
Emergency, an Italian medical aid organisation, said Taliban forces had pushed further into the Panjshir Valley on Friday night, reaching the village of Anabah where the group has medical facilities.
"We have received a small number of wounded people at the Anabah Surgical Centre," Emergency said in a statement, adding that many people fled in recent days.
It was not immediately possible to get further independent confirmation of events in Panjshir, which is walled off by mountains except for a narrow entrance.
Celebratory gunfire resounded in Kabul on Friday as reports spread of the Taliban's takeover of Panjshir. News agencies said at least 17 people were killed and 41 hurt.
Pakistan's spy chief Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed flew into Kabul on Saturday. It was not clear what his agenda was, but a senior official in Pakistan said earlier in the week that Hameed, who heads the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, could help the Taliban reorganise the Afghan military.
Washington has accused Pakistan and the ISI of backing the Taliban in the group's two-decade fight against the US-backed government in Kabul, although Islamabad has denied the charges.
In Kabul, Taliban fighters broke up a demonstration by about a dozen women urging the group to respect women's rights to education and jobs, according to private broadcaster Tolo news.
A Taliban source said the announcement of a new government would be pushed back to next week.
Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, reported by some Taliban sources to be in line to lead the new government, said in remarks on Qatar's Al Jazeera channel that the new administration will include all factions of Afghans.
"We are doing our utmost efforts to improve their living conditions. The government will provide security, because it is necessary for economic development," he said.
Some signs of normality returned to Kabul.
Qatar's ambassador to Afghanistan said a technical team was able to reopen Kabul airport to receive aid, according to Al Jazeera, which also cited its correspondent as saying domestic flights had restarted.
The airport has been closed since the United States on Aug 30 completed US-led evacuations of more than 120,000 US citizens, other foreigners and Afghans deemed at risk from the Taliban, and withdrew the last of its troops.
The Taliban's main spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, also said one of the main foreign exchange dealers in Kabul had reopened.
Afghanistan's economy has been thrown into disarray by the Taliban's takeover. Many banks are closed and cash is scarce.
The United Nations said it will convene an international aid conference on Sep 13 to help avert what UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called a looming humanitarian catastrophe.
Western powers say they are prepared to engage with the Taliban and send humanitarian aid, but that formal recognition of the government and broader economic assistance will depend on action - not just promises - to safeguard human rights//CNA
September
Ex-UK PM Brown accuses West of 'moral outrage' over COVID-19 vaccine stockpiling
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: Britain's former Prime Minister Gordon Brown speaks at an event in Edinburgh, Scotland, Britain January 17, 2019. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne/File Photo -
Former British prime minister Gordon Brown accused rich countries of committing a "moral outrage" by stockpiling COVID-19 doses while poor countries are struggling to get supplies.
Brown, who is a United Nations special envoy, called on US President Joe Biden and other Group of Seven leaders to urgently ship vaccines from warehouses in America and Europe to Africa.
Western countries are hoarding nearly 300 million shots while only 70 million people in Africa have so far been vaccinated, Brown said in an opinion piece published in the Sunday Mirror newspaper, citing research by data firm Airfinity.
By Christmas, the West is set to have 1 billion surplus doses even if every European and American adult has received a booster shot and all children over 12 are injected, he said.
"We are in a new 'arms' race – to get vaccines into people as quickly as possible – but this is an arms race where the West have a stranglehold on the vaccine supplies," Brown said.
The grip of rich countries on vaccine stocks was stopping Covax, the international facility for buying vaccines, from meeting its promise to send 2 billion vaccines to poorer countries this year, he added.
The stockpiling has also delayed dose-sharing by G7 countries with Africa and low-income countries, Brown said//CNA
September
New Zealand tried to deport extremist Samsudeen for years
Written by nuke
Police respond to the scene of an attack carried out by a man shot dead by police after he injured multiple people at a shopping mall in Auckland, New Zealand, Sep 3, 2021. (Photo: Stuff Limited/Ricky Wilson via REUTERS) -
New Zealand has tried for years to deport the knife-wielding militant who wounded seven people at a mall in Auckland last week, the government said after it released more details on the attacker following the lifting of a court suppression order.
Court documents made public on Sunday named the attacker as Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen, 32, a Tamil Muslim from Sri Lanka. He had arrived in New Zealand 10 years ago on a student visa seeking refugee status, which was granted in 2013.
Samsudeen came to the attention of the police and security services in 2016 after he expressed sympathy on Facebook for militant attacks, violent war-related videos and comments advocating violent extremism.
It was later discovered that his refugee status was fraudulently obtained, the government said in a statement, adding that the process had begun to cancel his refugee status.
Police shot dead Samsudeen, who had been convicted and imprisoned for about three years before being released in July, moments after he launched his stabbing spree on Friday.
"In July this year I met with officials in person and expressed my concern that the law could allow someone to remain here who obtained their immigration status fraudulently and posed a threat to our national security," Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said.
"This has been a frustrating process."
The attack by Samsudeen has led to questions about why the he was allowed to remain free if the authorities had decided he needed to be watched so closely.
Ardern vowed on Saturday to pass legislation that would criminalise planning a terror attack and tighten other counter-terrorism laws.
Samsudeen's family issued a statement to the local New Zealand media, describing their shock on the attack.
"We are heartbroken after this terrible event," said the statement released by his brother Aroos, carried by state broadcaster 1NEWS.
"We hope to find out with you all, what happened in Aathil's case and what we all could have done to prevent this," the statement said//CNA
September
Brazil health regulator suspends use of 12 million Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine shots
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: An employee handles vials containing CoronaVac, Sinovac Biotech's vaccine against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at Butantan biomedical center in Sao Paulo, Brazil January 12, 2021. REUTERS/Amanda Perobelli -
Brazil's federal health regulator Anvisa on Saturday (Sep 4) suspended the use of more than 12 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Sinovac Biotech that were produced in an unauthorised plant, it said in a statement.
Anvisa said it was alerted on Friday by Sao Paulo's Butantan institute, a biomedical centre that has partnered with Sinovac to locally fill and finish the vaccines, that 25 batches, or 12.1 million doses, sent to Brazil had been made in the plant.
"The manufacturing unit ... was not inspected and was not approved by Anvisa in the authorisation of emergency use of the mentioned vaccine," the regulator said. The ban was "a precautionary measure to avoid exposing the population to possible imminent risk", it added.
Butantan also told Anvisa that another 17 batches, totalling 9 million doses, had been produced in the same plant, and were on their way to Brazil, the regulator said.
During the 90-day ban, Anvisa will seek to inspect the plant, and find out more about the security of the manufacturing process, it said.
During Brazil's vaccine rollout earlier this year, the vast majority of administered vaccines were from Sinovac. More shots from other manufacturers have since come online.
Brazil on Saturday reported 21,804 new coronavirus cases, and 692 COVID-19 deaths//CNA
September
Algerian court detains Tunisian ex-presidential candidate Karoui
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: Tunisia's presidential candidate Nabil Karoui waits for the start of a televised debate with his opponent Kais Saied (not pictured) ahead of Sunday's second-round runoff electionin Tunis, Tunisia October 11, 2019. REUTERS / Zoubeir Souissi -
An Algerian court on Saturday (Sep 4) ordered former Tunisian presidential candidate Nabil Karoui to be placed in custody on a charge of illegally crossing a border, a judicial source said.
The court in the eastern city of Constantine also ordered the detention of four Algerians on people-smuggling charges, the source said. They are accused of helping Karoui enter the country and provide a house for him before his arrest on Sunday.
Karoui, the owner of the Nessma television channel and head of the Heart of Tunisia political party, the second largest in parliament, was placed in custody along with his brother Ghazi Karoui.
A court in Tunisia had released Nabil Karoui on Jun 15 after he spent more than six months in custody on money-laundering and tax evasion charges.
Tunisia has been embroiled in a constitutional crisis since President Kais Saied this summer announced emergency measures, which he indefinitely extended last week//CNA
September
Canada opposition chief, leading in election race, under fire over gun control
Written by nuke
FILE PHOTO: Conservative Party leader Erin O'Toole speaks during an election campaign visit to North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada September 3, 2021. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier -
The head of Canada's opposition Conservative Party, who has a chance of beating Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in an election, on Saturday (Sep 4) pushed back against charges he plans to weaken gun controls, an issue that could prove costly.
Conservative leader Erin O'Toole has been pressed repeatedly this week over his campaign promise to overturn a 2020 ban on weapons such as the AR-15, used by a gunman to kill 26 adults and children in the US 2012 Sandy Hook massacre.
O'Toole declined to answer the questions directly, noting he plans to keep a separate 1977 ban on assault rifles.
"Erin O'Toole is willing to say anything to Canadians to get elected. He lied to Canadians about his plans to scrap the Liberal ban on assault weapons," the Liberals said in a statement on Saturday.
Gun control is a sensitive issue in Canada, especially in the wake of a number of high-profile killings. In April 2020 a man killed 22 people in a rampage in the province of Nova Scotia, shooting 13 of them.
Liberal governments have over the years tightened gun control laws, which are stricter than those in the United States. Some Conservatives complain the measures are too restrictive and needlessly penalise farmers and hunters.
"It's very upsetting to see Mr Trudeau trying to import American-style politics, particularly on an issue of public safety," O'Toole told reporters in Vancouver, saying a big problem was weapons being smuggled in from the United States.
O'Toole is also promising a review of how weapons are classified as dangerous in Canada.
The 2020 ban affected 11 categories of assault rifles and other weapons, including the Ruger Mini-14 rifle, used in a 1989 Montreal mass shooting in which 14 women were killed.
Trudeau called the Sep 20 snap election, two years earlier than scheduled, on the grounds he needed public approval for his plans to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. But amid unhappiness with the call and voter fatigue, he is slipping.
An Ekos poll on Saturday put the Conservatives on 35 per cent public support with the Liberals on 28.8 per cent and the left-leaning New Democrats on 19.6 per cent, enough to give O'Toole a minority administration and end six years of rule by Trudeau//CNA
September
New migrant caravan sets off for US from southern Mexico
Written by nuke
Migrants and asylum seekers from Central America and the Caribbean walk in a caravan heading to the U.S., in Tapachula, Chiapas state, Mexico September 4, 2021. REUTERS/Jacob Garcia -
A migrant caravan of around 400 people, including many children, set off from the southern Mexican city of Tapachula for the United States on Saturday (Sep 4), just a couple of days after security and migration officials dispersed another large group.
Mostly comprising Central Americans and Haitians, the caravan left at around 7:30am local time from a park in Tapachula where they had been staying, ignoring an earlier attempt by security forces to make them give up, a Reuters witness reported.
Many in the group, which included Venezuelans and other South Americans, said they were fleeing poverty and violence at home as they began trekking towards the town of Huixtla.
This week Mexican officials gradually broke up another caravan as President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he wanted undocumented migrants to stay in southern Mexico, while also urging the U.S. government to help them find work.
Sharon, a 31-year-old Honduran wearing a Minnie Mouse face mask, said after spending a year living in Tapachula struggling to support her three children by selling gum, she felt she had to make a bid to reach the United States.
"I've handed in paperwork, but nothing ever gets fixed," she said tearfully. "Just appointments and more appointments. I am scared, but if I don't get out of here, I'm not going to get work," she said, declining to give her last name.
Some of the migrants travelling in the caravan earlier this week complained they had been subject to brutal treatment by Mexican officials, and the government's National Migration Institute condemned incidents of violence captured on video//CNA
September
FILE PHOTO: Paramedics transfer a patient outside the Royal London Hospital , amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in London, Britain, January 23, 2021. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls -
Britain has reported 37,578 new cases of COVID-19, government data showed on Saturday (Sep 4), meaning cases reported between Aug 29 and Sep 4 were up 2.4 per cent compared with the previous seven days.
A further 120 people were reported as having died within 28 days of a positive test for COVID-19, leaving the seven-day total unchanged from the previous week.
A total of 48.21 million people had received a first dose of a vaccine against coronavirus by the end of Sept. 3 and 43.25 million people had received a second dose//CNA
September
Malaysia's former prime minister Muhyiddin appointed to lead national recovery council
Written by nuke
Malaysia's former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin wearing a protective mask. (File photo: REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng) -
Malaysia's former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin has been appointed as chairman of the National Recovery Council, government chief secretary Mohd Zuki Ali said on Saturday (Sep 4).
The Cabinet on Wednesday agreed to the minister-level appointment for Muhyiddin based on confidence in him to lead a recovery strategy to "achieve the best economic impact and restore the lives of people affected by the pandemic", the chief secretary said in a statement.
The appointment has been presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Mohd Zuki said.
Muhyiddin stepped down last month after losing majority support in parliament. The 74-year-old left office after just 17 months - the shortest-serving prime minister since Malaysia's independence in 1957.
His successor, Ismail Sabri Yakoob of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), was sworn in on Aug 21.
Malaysia reported 19,057 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, bringing its cumulative caseload to more than 1.8 million. There have been more than 17,500 COVID-19 deaths in the country//CNA