WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Thursday he will present to President Donald Trump a range of options to restrict  steel imports on national security grounds, according to senators who met with Ross. Senator Sherrod Brown said that Ross “pretty much committed” to announcing these options next week as part of Commerce’s review of whether steel imports are threatening U.S. national security under a 1962 trade law. But Ross, speaking to reporters following a closed-door meeting with Senate Finance Committee members, declined to put a time frame on the review’s release. “It’ll come out when it’s ready to come out,” he said. The 79-year-old former steel industry magnate said he spoke to senators about the broad outlines of the “Section 232” probe, including its legal basis and objectives, “the potential tools for accomplishing those objectives, what are the risks involved in the process.” Ross did not provide any details on specific recommendations to Trump, saying the purpose of the meeting was to provide senators “with some background within which they can judge their reaction to the report when it comes out.” Trump told reporters on his flight to France that he was considering both tariffs and quotas to stop foreign countries from dumping steel into the U.S. market and “destroying” the U.S. steel industry. The release of his remarks sent steel stocks soaring on Thursday. “The options are everything,” said Brown, a Democrat from a major steel-producing state. “I pushed him to move quickly on this. I want it to be strong. I want it to be long lasting, and I want it to address the overhanging issue of Chinese steel overcapacity.” While steelmakers and workers argue that protections are needed to put the industry on a healthy footing, steel users say that import curbs would raise steel prices, putting them at a disadvantage to foreign competitors. Senator Ron Wyden, the Finance Committee’s top Democrat, said some members tried to convey to Ross that using the Cold War-era trade law to restrict imports of steel on defense grounds was “not an enduring solution” to the steel production glut.   “The secretary feels confident that his approach is going to make all sides happy in the steel industry,” Wyden said.     In 2001, Commerce investigated the national security impact of iron ore and semifinished steel imports but recommended no action.

Summary: इस्पात आयात पर अंकुश लगाने के लिए ट्रम्प को कई विकल्प मिलेंगेः सीनेटर


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee introduced a bill on Monday to provide $81 billion in emergency aid for recent hurricanes and wildfires. The legislation includes $27.6 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and $26.1 billion for community development block grants, Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen said in a statement. President Donald Trump had requested $44 billion last month, which was widely criticized by lawmakers as being insufficient.

Summary: सदन की समिति के अध्यक्ष ने 81 अरब डॉलर का आपदा सहायता विधेयक पेश किया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A senior U.S. lawmaker expressed a new willingness to support legislation establishing ground rules for when technology firms should grant authorities access to their products, after Apple Inc (AAPL.O) said it would fight a court order to unlock an iPhone linked to the San Bernardino shooting rampage.  Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the U.S. House of Representatives’ Intelligence Committee, said in a statement on Wednesday that the “complex issues” raised by the Apple case, as well as the prevalence of strongly encrypted devices and communications, “will ultimately need to be resolved by Congress, the administration and industry, rather than the courts alone.” Two weeks ago, Schiff told reporters he considered a legislative approach to the issue neither “feasible or even desirable.” On Tuesday, a federal judge in Los Angeles said that Apple must provide “reasonable technical assistance” to investigators seeking to unlock the data on an iPhone that had been used by San Bernardino shooter Rizwan Farook, who, with his wife, killed 14 people on Dec. 2.  Apple said it would fight the court order, which it said would set a dangerous precedent that could ultimately undermine the security of its iPhones.   While lawmakers are far from a consensus on the issue, Schiff said, “the court’s decision will likely accelerate our consideration of how to weigh the competing privacy, security and competitiveness issues.” Schiff’s pivot could signal renewed interest from lawmakers in an encryption debate that so far has found little traction in Congress. The House Judiciary Committee is planning to hold a hearing on encryption on March 1 and has invited Apple to attend, according to a congressional source. Senators Richard Burr and Dianne Feinstein, the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate intelligence panel respectively, have said they want to pursue encryption legislation, though neither has introduced a bill yet. The Wall Street Journal, citing anonymous sources, reported on Thursday that Burr was working on a proposal that would levy “criminal penalties” on companies that did not comply with court orders to decrypt communications, though it said negotiations were still fluid.  However, Burr’s spokeswoman Becca Watkins told Reuters he  “is not considering criminal penalties in his draft encryption proposals.” Momentum for a law that would require companies to provide government access to the contents of encrypted devices relevant to a criminal investigation faltered last summer when the White House stopped pushing for a bill amid intense opposition from technology companies and privacy advocates.  It is difficult to gauge the Apple case’s impact on Congress, as both the Senate and House of Representatives are on recess this week.  But congressional aides say any encryption legislation likely still faces a steep climb. That is especially true in the House, which in 2014 passed an amendment to a defense funding bill that would have barred the government from forcing an organization to build a technical “backdoor” into its products. The measure was later removed during negotiations. Federal officials have privately dismissed a theory that  the Apple case was choreographed to stir up support for encryption legislation.  But Cindy Cohn, executive director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights group, said she believed the U.S. Justice Department is pursuing the case in California with one eye on Congress.  “It’s a win-win for them,” she said. “If they prevail in court, they don’t need a law. And if they lose, they have it set up to go to lawmakers and say: This is what we need, the courts didn’t give it to us, so we need a new law.”

Summary: प्रमुख अमेरिकी सांसद ने एप्पल के आदेश के बाद एन्क्रिप्शन कानून के लिए खुलेपन का सुझाव दिया


ANKARA (Reuters) - Iran has dismissed a U.S. demand for United Nations nuclear inspectors to visit its military bases as  merely a dream . It also said the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was unlikely to agree anyway. The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, last week pressed the IAEA to seek access to Iranian military bases to ensure that they were not concealing activities banned by the 2015 nuclear deal reached between Iran and six major powers. U.S. President Donald Trump has called the nuclear pact   negotiated under his predecessor Barack Obama    the worst deal ever . In April, he ordered a review of whether a suspension of nuclear sanctions on Iran was in the U.S. interest. Iranian government spokesman Mohammad Baqer Nobakht responded at a weekly news conference broadcast on state television on Tuesday.  Iran s military sites are off limits,  he said.  All information about these sites are classified. Iran will never allow such visits. Don t pay attention to such remarks that are only a dream.  Iranian President Hassan Rouhani followed up later by saying the U.S. call was unlikely to be accepted by the U.N. nuclear watchdog.  The International Atomic Energy Agency is very unlikely to accept America s demand to inspect our military sites,  Rouhani said in a televised interview. Rouhani gave no indication why he believed the IAEA would decline the request. Under the deal, the IAEA can request access to Iranian sites including military ones if it has concerns about activities there that violate the agreement, but it must show Iran the basis for those concerns. That means new and credible information pointing to such a violation is required first, officials from the agency and major powers say. There is no indication that Washington has presented such information to back up its call for inspections of Iranian military sites. Under U.S. law, the State Department must notify Congress every 90 days of Iran s compliance with the nuclear deal. The next deadline is October, and Trump has said he thinks by then the United States will declare Iran to be non-compliant. So far, IAEA inspectors have certified that Iran is fully complying with the deal, under which it significantly reduced its enriched uranium stockpile and took steps to ensure no possible use of it for a nuclear weapon. This was in return for an end to international sanctions that had helped cripple its oil-based economy. During its decade-long stand-off with world powers over its nuclear program, Iran repeatedly rejected visits by U.N. inspectors to its military sites, saying they had nothing to do with nuclear activity and so were beyond the IAEA s purview. Shortly after the deal was reached, Iran allowed inspectors to check its Parchin military complex, where Western security services believe Tehran carried out tests relevant to nuclear bomb detonations more than a decade ago. Iran has denied this.  Under the 2015 accord, Iran could not get sanctions relief until the IAEA was satisfied Tehran had answered outstanding questions about the so-called  possible military dimensions  of its past nuclear research.  Iran has placed its military bases off limits also because of what it calls the risk that IAEA findings could find their way to the intelligence services of its U.S. or Israeli foes.  The Americans will take their dream of visiting our military and sensitive sites to their graves ... It will never happen,  Ali Akbar Velayati, a top adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran s highest authority, told reporters.

Summary: ईरान ने संयुक्त राष्ट्र की सैन्य स्थलों की यात्रा की अमेरिकी मांग को खारिज किया


VIENNA (Reuters) - The European Union is increasingly willing to consider Western Balkan states joining the bloc, which could help ensure peace in the region while enriching the EU itself, the bloc s integration commissioner said.  There is more willingness among (EU) member states to address an enlargement (than a year ago),  Johannes Hahn told Austrian daily Wiener Zeitung in an interview published on Tuesday. Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia are official candidates for EU membership while Bosnia and Kosovo are seeking the same status. The EU sees the region as important for issues from controlling immigration to countering security threats ranging from alleged interference of Russia to radical Islam. Member states have realized that  peace could be achieved in the Balkans and that the perspective of joining the EU is vital for it,  Hahn said. The Western Balkans and its 20 million people who are keen on developing their prosperity were a very attractive market for the bloc, Hahn said, adding  that a new member state is not a burden but an enrichment . The commissioner said he did not support the idea of a multi speed Europe as this would lead to member states drifting apart. Instead, every effort should be made to enable weaker states to catch up to strengthen the European Union, he said.

Summary: यूरोपीय संघ बाल्कन में नए सदस्यों पर विचार करने के लिए अधिक इच्छुक हैः यूरोपीय संघ आयुक्त


BEIRUT (Reuters) - With the map of Syria s conflict decisively redrawn in President Bashar al-Assad s favor, his Russian allies want to convert military gains into a settlement that stabilizes the shattered nation and secures their interests in the region. A year after the opposition s defeat in Aleppo, government forces backed by Russia and Iran have recovered large swathes of territory as Islamic State s  caliphate  collapses.     As U.N.-backed talks in Geneva fail to make any progress, Russia is preparing to launch its own political process in 2018. President Vladimir Putin declared mission accomplished for the military on a visit to Russia s Syrian air base this week, and said conditions were ripe for a political solution. Though Washington still insists Assad must go, a senior Syrian opposition figure told Reuters the United States and other governments that have backed the rebellion had finally  surrendered to the Russian vision  on ending the war. The view in Damascus is that this will preserve Assad as president. A Syrian official in Damascus said  it is clear a track is underway, and the Russians are overseeing it .  There is a shift in the path of the crisis in Syria, a shift for the better,  the official said. But analysts struggle to see how Russian diplomacy can  bring lasting peace to Syria, encourage millions of refugees to return, or secure Western reconstruction aid. There is no sign that Assad is ready to compromise with his opponents. The war has also allowed his other big ally, Iran and its Revolutionary Guard, to expand its regional influence, which Tehran will not want to see diluted by any settlement in Syria. Having worked closely to secure Assad, Iran and Russia may now differ in ways that could complicate Russian policy.   Assad and his allies now command the single largest chunk of Syria, followed by U.S.-backed Kurdish militias who control much of northern and eastern Syria and are more concerned with shoring up their regional autonomy than fighting Damascus.      Anti-Assad rebels still cling to patches of territory: a corner of the northwest at the Turkish border, a corner of the southwest at the Israeli frontier, and the Eastern Ghouta near Damascus. Eastern Ghouta and the northwest are now in the firing line.   The Revolutionary Guards clearly feel they have won this war and the hardliners in Iran are not too keen on anything but accommodation with Assad, so on that basis it is a little hard to see that there can be any real progress,  said Rolf Holmboe, a former Danish ambassador to Syria.  Assad cannot live with a political solution that involves any real power sharing,  said Holmboe.  The solution he could potentially live with is to freeze the situation you have on the ground right now.   The war has been going Assad s way since 2015, when Russia sent its air force to help him. The scales tipped even more his way this year: Russia struck deals with Turkey, the United States and Jordan that contained in the war in the west, indirectly helping Assad s advances in the east, and Washington pulled military aid from the rebels. Though Assad seems unbeatable, Western governments still hope to effect change by linking reconstruction aid to a credible political process leading to  a genuine transition .     While paying lip service to the principle that any peace deal should be concluded under U.N. auspices, Russia aims to convene its own peace congress in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. The aim is to draw up a new constitution followed by elections.     The senior Syrian opposition figure said the United States and other states that had backed their cause - Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan and Turkey - had all given way to Russia. Sochi, not Geneva, would be the focal point for talks.  This is the way it has been understood from talking to the Americans, the French, the Saudis - all the states,  the opposition figure said.  It is clear that this is the plan, and there is no state that will oppose this ... because the entire world is tired of this crisis.  Proposals include forming a new government to hold elections that would include Syrian refugees.  But  the time frame: six months, two years, three years, all depends on the extent of understanding between the Russians and Americans , the opposition figure said.  If the Russians and Americans differ greatly, the whole table could be overturned.  Russia is serious about accomplishing something with the political process, but on its own terms and turf, said senior International Crisis Group analyst Noah Bonsey.  I am not sure they have a good sense of how to accomplish that and to the extent that they seek to accomplish things politically, they may run into the divergence of interests between themselves and their allies,  he said. The Syrian Kurdish question is one area where Russia and Iran have signaled different goals. While a top Iranian official recently said the government would take areas held by the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led forces, Russia has struck deals with the Kurds and their U.S. sponsors.  From the start of the crisis, there s been a difference between the Russians and the Iranians and the regime,  said Fawza Youssef, a top Kurdish politician. The Russians believe the Kurds  have a cause that should be taken into account . Damascus, while issuing its own warnings to the Kurds, may continue to leave them to their own devices as it presses campaigns against the last rebel-held pockets of western Syria.  The situation in the southwest is shaped by different factors, namely Israel s determination to keep Iran-backed forces away from its frontier, which could prompt an Israeli military response.  There are still major questions and a lot of potential for escalating violence in various parts of Syria,  said Bonsey.

Summary: सीरिया में असद के युद्ध के दबाव के बीच रूस अपनी स्थिति मजबूत कर रहा है


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iraq s top Sunni Muslim politician said on Wednesday he would back Shi ite Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi for a new term as long as conditions such as bringing Shi ite militias under state control and balancing relations with other countries are fulfilled. Osama al-Nujaifi, Baghdad s Sunni Vice President, was in Washington for talks with senior State Department and congressional officials to discuss issues facing Iraq as the battle against Islamic State winds down. Iraq will hold parliamentary elections on May 15. Abadi, who has not yet said whether he would seek a second term, took over the premiership in 2014 from Nuri al-Maliki, a close ally of Iran. Abadi is credited with quickly rebuilding the army and defeating Islamic State in its main Iraqi stronghold, Mosul, last July, with strong assistance from a U.S.-led coalition. Asked whether he would ally with Abadi, Nujaifi told Reuters in an interview:  This is very possible ... We may be able to ally with him but that hasn t happened yet ... We need talks, but his (politics) are the closest to us in the next elections.  Nujaifi said Abadi had to  determine his position,  given that he belonged to the Dawa party, a Shi ite group with close ties to Iran.  He has to leave this umbrella and embrace the national umbrella and he can get lots of support,  Nujaifi said.  We support him but not without conditions. There must be political agreement based on mutual interests of Iraqis, an exit from sectarian politics ... controlling the weapons, and the balance in relationship with countries ... If we agree on these things, we can be together.  Nujaifi singled out the Iran-backed Shi ite militia forces known as Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMFs) as one of the biggest challenges in post-Islamic State Iraq, and said it would be impossible to hold elections if their weaponry was not brought under government control. Iranian-backed militia groups were formed after Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani called on Iraqis to defend their country days after Islamic State seized control of the northern city of Mosul. They played a major role in protecting Baghdad and pushing back Islamic State. But the militias have also created headaches for the government. Many of them have ties to Iran and have amassed vast military and political influence. Abadi has promised to rein in the militias but it is a daunting task and Iraqi and Western officials say he is too weak to take on the militias directly. Parliament approved a law late last year that will transform PMFs into a legal and separate military corps.  This of course shapes a threat to stability in Iraq if these weapons are not controlled and melded with the armed forces. If there s any political disagreement, it could turn into armed confrontations ... The only correct way is to meld these forces with the armed forces and to control them.   It is unreasonable to run the elections under the shadow of the spread of all these weapons or with the displacement of millions of people ... This will distort these elections.  Asked whether the Baghdad government had the will to remove them from Iraqi cities, he said:  I think that is natural, but they (PMFs) have influence in Baghdad .... Their role and their influence on the state is very big. It s not easy for the prime minister to force them to do something outside their attitudes,  Nujaifi said. Abadi declared victory over Islamic State in Mosul in the summer after a months-long battle, three years after the militants seized the city and made it the stronghold of a  caliphate  they said would take over the world. Nujaifi said Mosul would need at least $30 billion to rebuild the city and its infrastructure.  Estimates indicate that 70 percent of the city was destroyed or largely destroyed. The infrastructure, all aspects of life, water, energy, the hospitals are all destroyed.

Summary: सुन्नी इराक वीपी ने शर्तों के साथ दूसरे कार्यकाल के लिए पीएम अबादी का समर्थन किया


The following statements were posted to the verified Twitter accounts of U.S. President Donald Trump, @realDonaldTrump and @POTUS.  The opinions expressed are his own. Reuters has not edited the statements or confirmed their accuracy.  @realDonaldTrump : - So proud of NASCAR and its supporters and fans. They won’t put up with disrespecting our Country or our Flag - they said it loud and clear! [0725 EDT] - Many people booed the players who kneeled yesterday (which was a small percentage of total). These are fans who demand respect for our Flag! [0731 EDT] - The issue of kneeling has nothing to do with race. It is about respect for our Country, Flag and National Anthem. NFL must respect this! [0739 EDT] - The White House never looked more beautiful than it did returning last night. Important meetings taking place today. Big tax cuts & reform. [0744 EDT] - #StandForOurAnthem [0902 EDT] - @CNN is #FakeNews. Just reported COS (John Kelly) was opposed to my stance on NFL players disrespecting FLAG, ANTHEM, COUNTRY. Total lie! [1826 EDT] - General John Kelly totally agrees w/ my stance on NFL players and the fact that they should not be disrespecting our FLAG or GREAT COUNTRY! [1828 EDT] - Tremendous backlash against the NFL and its players for disrespect of our Country. #StandForOurAnthem [1829 EDT] - Texas & Florida are doing great but Puerto Rico, which was already suffering from broken infrastructure & massive debt, is in deep trouble.. [2045 EDT] - ...It’s old electrical grid, which was in terrible shape, was devastated. Much of the Island was destroyed, with billions of dollars.... [2050 EDT] - ...owed to Wall Street and the banks which, sadly, must be dealt with. Food, water and medical are top priorities - and doing well. #FEMA [2058 EDT] - A few of the many clips of John McCain talking about Repealing & Replacing O’Care. My oh my has he changed-complete turn from years of talk! [2124 EDT] - Big election tomorrow in the Great State of Alabama. Vote for Senator Luther Strange, tough on crime & border - will never let you down! [2150 EDT] -- Source link: (bit.ly/2jBh4LU) (bit.ly/2jpEXYR)

Summary: फैक्टबॉक्सः ट्विटर पर ट्रम्प (25 सितंबर)-एन. ए. एस. सी. ए. आर., एन. एफ. एल., जॉन केली, प्यूर्टो रिको, जॉन मैक्केन, अलबामा


BAGHDAD (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, flew into Iraq on Monday with the top U.S. general to get a first-hand assessment of the battle against Islamic State from U.S. commanders on the ground and Iraqi leaders. For Kushner, who has not been to Iraq before, the trip comes at a critical time as Trump examines ways to accelerate a U.S.-led coalition campaign that U.S. and Iraqi officials say has so far been largely successful in uprooting Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. The visit appears to demonstrate the far-reaching portfolio of Kushner, 36, who is part of Trump’s innermost circle and who has been given a wide range of domestic and foreign policy responsibilities, including working on a Middle East peace deal.  Marine General Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the U.S. military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he invited Kushner and Tom Bossert, White House homeland security adviser, to accompany him so they could hear “first-hand and unfiltered” from military advisers about the situation on the ground and interact with U.S. forces.  “I said, ‘Hey, next time I go to Iraq, if you’re interested, come and it’d be good,” Dunford said, adding he extended the invitation weeks ago.  That kind of ground-level awareness of the war helps inform strategic decisions, Dunford said, adding it was the same reason he regularly leaves Washington to visit Iraq. “The more appreciation you could have for what’s actually happening on the ground, the more informed you are when you start talking about the strategic issues,” Dunford said. Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, did not speak with reporters. Trump campaigned on defeating Islamic State but has yet to announce any dramatic shift in war strategy.   After arriving, Kushner joined Dunford for meetings with the U.S. ambassador to Baghdad and the senior American commander in Iraq, Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend.  Dunford’s delegation also met Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, whose office said their talks focused on the ongoing battle to retake the city of Mosul from Islamic State and U.S.-led coalition assistance, including aiding civilians displaced by the fighting. “The delegation affirmed its support to Iraq in the war on terror,” Abadi’s office said in a statement. The trip comes as Iraqi security forces engage in fierce, house-to-house fighting in Mosul, Islamic State’s last major stronghold in Iraq and the city where leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a caliphate nearly three years ago. Nearly 290,000 people have fled the city to escape the fighting, according to the United Nations.  Although the loss of Mosul would deal a major defeat to Islamic State, U.S. and Iraqi officials are preparing for smaller battles even after the city is recaptured and expect the group to go underground to fight as a traditional insurgency. What happens to the U.S. military role in Iraq after Mosul is recaptured remain unclear.  Influential Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has previously called on Iraq’s government to order the withdrawal of U.S. and allied forces after the battle of Mosul is over. Dunford said Abadi understood the need for continued U.S. military support. “It’s not our judgment that the Iraqis will be self sustaining and self sufficient in the wake of Mosul. More importantly, it’s not Prime Minister Abadi’s assessment,” Dunford said before his talks. Across the border in Syria, a U.S.-backed campaign to isolate Islamic State’s de facto capital of Raqqa is advancing ahead of an eventual assault on the city.  But in Syria, too, tough decisions await Trump. NATO ally Turkey has been incensed by U.S. support for the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, seen by the U.S. military as a reliable partner but by Turkey as a hostile force with deep links to Kurdish PKK militants who have waged a three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state. The U.S. military has said no decision has been made yet on whether to support the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, which include the YPG, in the Raqqa assault.

Summary: ट्रम्प के दामाद, कुशनर, शीर्ष अमेरिकी जनरल के साथ इराक में उड़ान भरते हैं


SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea s Joint Chiefs of Staff said they presume North Korea fired a Hwasong-14 long-range ballistic missile on Wednesday, the South s Yonhap News Agency reported. A military spokesman told Reuters he could not confirm the report.

Summary: दक्षिण कोरिया की सेना का कहना है कि उत्तर कोरिया की मिसाइल ह्वासोंग-14 हो सकती हैः योनहाप


UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - United Nations officials have found that missiles fired at Saudi Arabia by Yemen s Houthi rebels appear to have a  common origin,  but they are still investigating U.S. and Saudi claims that Iran supplied them, according to a confidential report. The officials traveled to Saudi Arabia to examine the debris of missiles fired on July 22 and Nov. 4, wrote U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in the fourth biannual report on the implementation of U.N. sanctions and restrictions on Iran. They found  that the missiles had similar structural and manufacturing features which suggest a common origin,  said Guterres in the Friday report to the U.N. Security Council, seen by Reuters on Saturday. The report comes amid calls by the United States for Iran to be held accountable for violating U.N. Security Council resolutions on Yemen and Iran by supplying weapons to the Houthis. Saudi-led forces, which back the Yemeni government, have fought the Iran-allied Houthis in Yemen s more than two-year-long civil war. Saudi Arabia s crown prince has described Iran s supply of rockets to the Houthis as  direct military aggression  that could be an act of war. Iran has denied supplying the Houthis with weapons, saying the U.S. and Saudi allegations are  baseless and unfounded.   Guterre s report said the U.N. officials saw three components, which Saudi authorities said came from the missile fired on Nov. 4. The components  bore the castings of a logo similar to that of the Shahid Bagheri Industrial Group  - a U.N.-blacklisted company. The officials are  still analyzing the information collected and will report back to the Security Council,  wrote Guterres.  The Saudi-led coalition used the Nov. 4 missile attack to justify a blockade of Yemen for several weeks, saying it was needed to stem the flow of arms to the Houthis from Iran.  Although the blockade later eased, Yemen s situation has remained dire. About 8 million people are on the brink of famine, with outbreaks of cholera and diphtheria. A separate report to the Security Council last month by a panel of independent experts monitoring sanctions imposed in Yemen found that four missiles fired this year into Saudi Arabia appear to have been designed and manufactured by Iran. However, the panel said it  as yet has no evidence as to the identity of the broker or supplier  of the missiles, which were likely shipped to the Houthis in violation of a targeted U.N. arms embargo imposed on Houthi leaders in April 2015.  Most U.N. sanctions on Iran were lifted in January last year when the U.N. nuclear watchdog confirmed that Tehran fulfilled commitments under a nuclear deal with Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia and the United States. But Iran is still subject to a U.N. arms embargo and other restrictions. U.S. President Donald Trump dealt a blow to the nuclear deal in October by refusing to certify that Tehran was complying with the accord and warning that he might ultimately terminate it. International inspectors have said Iran is in compliance.   I encourage the United States to maintain its commitments to the plan and to consider the broader implications for the region and beyond before taking any further steps,  Guterres wrote.   Similarly, I encourage the Islamic Republic of Iran to carefully consider the concerns raised by other participants in the plan,  he said.

Summary: संयुक्त राष्ट्र का कहना है कि सऊदी अरब पर दागी गई मिसाइलों का 'सामान्य मूल' है


LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May should stop misleading voters and admit that Brexit can be avoided if Britain decides unilaterally to scrap divorce talks, the man who drafted Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty said on Friday. May, who formally notified the European Union of Britain s intention to leave the EU by triggering Article 50 of the treaty on March 29, said she would not tolerate any attempt in parliament to block Brexit. By triggering Article 50, May set the clock ticking on a two-year exit process that has so far failed to yield a divorce deal and which was interrupted by her gamble on a snap election in June which cost her party its majority in parliament.  While the divorce talks proceed, the parties are still married. Reconciliation is still possible,  John Kerr, British ambassador to the EU from 1990 to 1995, said in a speech in London.  We can change our minds at any stage during the process,  said Kerr, who added that the legalities of Article 50 had been misrepresented in Britain.  The British people have the right to know this: they shouldn t be misled.  The day May triggered Article 50, she told the British parliament that there was  no turning back  and on Friday insisted that the United Kingdom would be leaving the EU at 2300 GMT on March 29 2019.  In a June 2016 referendum, 51.9 percent of voters backed leaving the EU while 48.1 percent wanted to remain. Brexit supporters argue any attempt to halt the exit process would be anti-democratic, while opponents say the country should have a right to pass final judgment on any exit deal negotiated. May, an initial opponent of Brexit who won the top job in the political turmoil that followed the vote, said last month that Britain would not revoke Article 50. But ever since the referendum, opponents of Britain s exit - from French President Emmanuel Macron and former British prime minister Tony Blair to billionaire investor George Soros - have suggested Britain could change its mind and avoid what they say will be disastrous consequences for the British economy. Thus far, there are few signs of a change of heart on Brexit in opinion polls. Both May s Conservatives and the opposition Labour Party now explicitly support leaving the EU, which Britain joined in 1973. Supporters of Brexit have repeatedly said that any attempt to have another referendum, or to undermine Brexit, would catapult the world s fifth largest economy into crisis.  A second referendum would lead the United Kingdom into totally uncharted territory with very serious potential consequences for our democracy,  said Richard Tice, who helped found one of the two Leave campaign groups in the referendum. But the Brexit process has been challenged in a number of cases in British courts, many focusing on the as-yet unanswered question: Can Article 50 be reversed? The 256-word clause does not say whether it can be revoked once it is invoked. This means that, if lawyers ask for clarification, the question would have to go to the European Court of Justice, the EU s highest court. Kerr, who in 2002-2003 acted as secretary-general of the European Constitutional Convention that drafted Article 50, said the debate had been misrepresented inside Britain: it was clear, he said, that May s Article 50 letter could be revoked. Such is the interest in the legalities of Brexit that one prominent lawyer, Jessica Simor, has formally asked for May s unpublished legal advice on the matter.  Britain can basically change its mind at any time right up to the 29th of March 2019,  Simor told Reuters last month.  If you can revoke Article 50, then parliament has the power to rescue the country if that becomes necessary   if the government fails to secure a deal, or the deal is terrible, or the people do not want it.

Summary: ब्रेक्सिट कभी नहीं? ब्रिटेन अभी भी अपना मन बदल सकता हैः अनुच्छेद 50 के लेखक


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said on Thursday he has sent recommendations from his review of more than two dozen national monuments to President Donald Trump, indicating that some could be scaled back to allow for more hunting and fishing and economic development. The recommendations follow a 120-day study of 27 national monuments across the country, created by presidents since 1996, that Trump ordered in April as part of his broader effort to increase development on federal lands. The review has cheered energy, mining, ranching and timber advocates but has drawn widespread criticism and threats of lawsuits from conservation groups and the outdoor recreation industry. There were fears that Zinke would recommend the outright elimination of some of the monuments on the list, but on Thursday, speaking to the Associated Press in Billings, Montana, he said he will not recommend eliminating any. Zinke said in a statement that the recommendations would “provide a much needed change for the local communities who border and rely on these lands for hunting and fishing, economic development, traditional uses, and recreation.” He did not specify which monuments he plans to recommend be scaled back. The Associated Press reported that Zinke said he would recommend changing the boundaries for a “handful” of sites. Zinke has already announced a recommendation to shrink the size of one site under review, the 1.35 million-acre Bears Ears National Monument in Utah created by former President Barack Obama late last year. In the last few weeks, Zinke has said that six monuments, including the Upper Missouri River Breaks in his home state of Montana, would be left intact. “The report is a draft, so we are continuing to work with Interior on getting the best information on which to base recommendations” for Trump, a White House official said. “Once we have a final report, in the coming weeks, we will make it public.”  Timing for the public release of the recommendations has not been set. Trump has argued that previous administrations abused their right to create monuments under the Antiquities Act of 1906 by putting huge areas, mainly in Western states, off limits to drilling, mining, logging, ranching and other activities without adequate input from locals.  The law enables a president to declare certain areas of historic or scientific interest a national monument if “confined to the smallest area compatible with proper care and management of the objects to be protected.”  (Graphic on review of monuments:  tmsnrt.rs/2itKQFD) A designation as a national monument is permanent, and prohibits mining and sets stringent protections for ecosystems on the site. The designation offers more permanent protection than other federal designations like national wilderness or conservation areas. No president has ever revoked a previous designation but a few have reduced the size of some monuments. Conservation groups and the growing outdoor retail industry launched public campaigns over the last few weeks to urge Zinke to leave the monuments intact, and they vowed to challenge him in court.  “Any recommendation from Secretary Zinke to shrink national monuments is hypocritical at best and ruinous at worst,” said Michael Brune, director of the Sierra Club. One Republican congressman from Utah, Rob Bishop, chairman of the House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee, said he had not yet seen the full report but was briefed on some aspects of it by Zinke. He said his committee would eventually take up legislation to carry out some of Zinke’s recommendations and may attempt to reform the Antiquities Act. “If we don’t do reform of the Antiquities Act, we will have failures in the future,” he said.

Summary: अमेरिकी एजेंसी कुछ राष्ट्रीय स्मारकों को कम करने की सिफारिश करेगी


NAYPYITAW (Reuters) - Myanmar and Bangladesh signed an accord on Thursday over terms for the return of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who have fled to Bangladesh, both governments said, amid concern that Myanmar s powerful army could prove obstructive. Rights groups have accused the military in mostly Buddhist Myanmar of carrying out mass rape and other atrocities during a counter-insurgency operation launched in late August in retaliation for attacks by Rohingya militants in Rakhine State. On Wednesday, the United States said the military operation that drove 620,000 Rohingya to seek sanctuary in neighboring, largely Muslim Bangladesh, amounted to  ethnic cleansing , echoing an accusation first leveled by top U.N. officials in the early days of the humanitarian crisis. Myanmar is seeking to ease international pressure by striking an initial agreement on returns, while Dhaka wants to ensure overstretched refugee camps that have mushroomed in the Cox s Bazar region don t become permanent. The return of the refugees should start in two months, the pact says. A joint working group will be set up in three weeks and a specific bilateral arrangement for repatriation  will be concluded in a speedy manner,  the Bangladesh foreign affairs ministry said in a statement.  We are ready to take them back as soon as possible after Bangladesh sends the forms back to us,  Myint Kyaing, a permanent secretary at Myanmar s ministry of labor, immigration and population, told Reuters, referring to forms the Rohingya must complete with personal details before repatriation. The signing took place after a meeting between Myanmar s civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Bangladesh foreign minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali in Naypyitaw. In its statement, Myanmar said the deal was based on the 1992-1993 repatriation pact between the two countries that followed a previous spasm of violence in Myanmar. Although Western countries and the world Muslim body, the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation, portrayed the matter as an international issue, Myanmar said it was resolved via two-way talks based on  friendly and good neighborly relations .  Issues that emerge between neighboring countries must be resolved amicably through bilateral negotiations,  Suu Kyi s office said. On the basis of the 1992-1993 agreement, Myanmar would accept those who could present identity documents issued to the Rohingya by governments in the past, Myint Kyaing said. Acceptable identity documents include the currently distributed national verification cards, the now-withdrawn  white cards , and receipts the Rohingya received for the return of  white cards , he said. The refugees have to provide names of family members, previous addresses in Myanmar, birthdates and a statement of voluntary return in the forms they fill out, he added.  Diplomats have said key deal elements will be the criteria of return and the participation of the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR. Other important points include safeguards for the Rohingya against further violence, a path to resolving their legal status and whether they would be allowed to return to their own homes and farms. Myint Kyaing declined to elaborate on those points. Speaking at a military event in Dhaka, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said she was calling on Myanmar  to start taking back soon their nationals from Bangladesh .  However, there was little enthusiasm for the deal among Rohingya refugees in the camps in Bangladesh s Cox s Bazar area near the Myanmar border.    We will go back to our country if our demands are met,   said one of them, Salimullah, who arrived in Bangladesh 15 days ago.  Our demands are that we are given citizenship. They also have to give us back our land,  he told Reuters Television. Suu Kyi, whose stature as a Nobel peace prize winner was tarnished by the crisis, has said repatriation of the largely stateless Muslim minority would be based on residency and that it will be  safe and voluntary . But her civilian administration, which is less than two years old, has to share power with the military that ruled Myanmar for decades, and the generals have appeared less enthusiastic about the prospect of Rohingya returning. Russia s ambassador to Myanmar criticized the U.S. stance, saying that using the term  ethnic cleansing  was unhelpful and could aggravate the situation. On a visit to Beijing on Wednesday, Myanmar s commander in chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, was told by a senior Chinese general that China wanted stronger ties with Myanmar s military. Humanitarian workers told Reuters they were particularly concerned about a statement by Min Aung Hlaing last week.  The situation must be acceptable for both local Rakhine ethnic people and Bengalis, and emphasis must be placed on wish of local Rakhine ethnic people who are real Myanmar citizens,  Min Aung Hlaing said. His use of the term Bengali for the Rohingya implies they are from Bangladesh, and Buddhists in Rakhine are largely opposed to their presence. Min Aung Hlaing, over whom Suu Kyi has no control, also said the returnees would be  scrutinized and re-accepted under the 1982 Citizenship Law and the 1992 Myanmar-Bangladesh bilateral agreement . The 1982 law, passed during the junta s long rule, ties Myanmar citizenship to membership of recognized ethnic groups, an official list that excludes the Rohingya. Senior U.N. officials based in Myanmar told Reuters they feared that security personnel in key positions may not cooperate over the return of Rohingya.

Summary: म्यांमार, बांग्लादेश ने सेना की भूमिका पर चिंता के बीच रोहिंग्याओं की वापसी समझौते पर हस्ताक्षर किए


DAKAR (Reuters) - U.N. investigators Zaida Catalan and Michael Sharp were on familiar ground when they sat down with local leaders in central Congo in March to discuss a widening seven-month-old conflict in the area. The pair   experienced members of a panel monitoring the sanctions regime in Democratic Republic of Congo for the U.N. Security Council   were meeting members of the Kamuina Nsapu, a local clan, on the sidelines of peace talks with the government in the city of Kananga.  Among other things, they discussed plans to visit the village of Bunkonde, the site of violent clashes, the next day. The two U.N. workers left Kananga on the morning of March 12. On March 27, their bodies were found in a shallow grave. Catalan had been decapitated. Congolese government officials maintained for months to reporters that no state agents were involved in the killings and that they did not know that the two experts were in the region, let alone heading to Bunkonde. But at least one person who helped organize the trip, Jose Tshibuabua, worked for Congo s intelligence service, the Agence Nationale de Renseignements (ANR), Reuters and Radio France Internationale (RFI) have learned. The trial of a dozen suspected Kamuina Nsapu militia members started in June but was suspended in October pending the arrival in Congo of four U.N. experts last month to assist with additional investigations.  Phone logs in a confidential prosecutor s case file compiled for the trial and seen by Reuters and RFI, who jointly reported this story, show that Tshibuabua had frequent contact with a local ANR boss, Luc Albert Tanga Sakrine, before and after the two experts were killed.  Two security sources said that case file was given to a U.N. board of inquiry that concluded militiamen were likely responsible for the killings of Sharp, 34, an American, and Catalan, 36, a Swede. Tshibuabua and his ties to the ANR were not mentioned in the board s confidential report to the U.N. Security Council or in the trial, however.  The board said it was unable to establish a motive for state actors to have been involved. But the two experts were conducting investigations in an area where the United Nations has accused Congo s military of using excessive force against militia and civilians and of digging mass graves. The top ANR official in Congo, Kalev Mutond, told Reuters and RFI that Tshibuabua was working as a  volunteer informant  for the agency at the time of the meeting, but did not inform ANR officials about his contacts with the two experts. Since the trial of the militiamen was suspended, Tshibuabua was arrested and charged last week with the murder of Catalan and Sharp and participation in an insurrection, his lawyer, Tresor Kabangu, told Reuters. Kabangu said his client denies the charges and has not worked for the ANR in more than a year. Government spokesman Lambert Mende now says that authorities have not excluded the possibility that state agents were involved.   If there is a state agent who was involved, he will be pursued and judged,  Mende said on Dec. 1 after Reuters and RFI laid out the contents of the case file and phone logs. The U.N. board s chairman, Greg Starr, declined to say if he had seen the prosecutor s file or was aware of its contents.  In an emailed answer to questions, Starr said only that the board s report had a tight deadline and did not include some sensitive information, which was turned over to authorities in the United States and Sweden, because of concerns about leaks.  A thorough criminal investigation into a heinous act like this, under these circumstances, could not be accomplished in only three months,  he said. Congo s top military prosecutor, Joseph Ponde, declined to respond to questions about why Tshibuabua s involvement was not raised in the trial, except to say the proceedings are public.  Tanga Sakrine declined to comment. President Joseph Kabila s deputy chief of staff, Jean-Pierre Kambila, also declined to comment, citing the ongoing trial.      Ties between the United Nations and Congo can be tense, with authorities often accusing the world body of meddling in their sovereign affairs. The U.N. peacekeeping mission, deployed in 1999 to monitor a cease-fire in a long-running war in the east, is the world s largest with about 18,000 uniformed personnel.  Catalan and Sharp were investigating a new conflict in the central Kasai region. In August 2016, Kamuina Nsapu militiamen in the area rose up to demand government forces withdraw after the local chief, Jean-Pierre Mpandi, was killed. Up to 5,000 people died in the violence.  On the weekend of March 11, a delegation of about 40 Kamuina Nsapu representatives was in Kananga to talk peace. Members of this delegation met Sharp and Catalan at the Woodland Hotel. In audio recovered from Catalan s computer by the United Nations, Tshibuabua describes himself as a Mpandi family member and helps translate from the local Tshiluba language into French for the group s leader, Francois Muamba. He does not say he works for the ANR. According to a Reuters translation, Tshibuabua and another person assured Sharp and Catalan in French that their safety would be guaranteed in Bunkonde, even as Muamba warned not to make promises they couldn t keep.  We don t know the situation over there,  Muamba said at one point. He said he did not have control of the local militia in Bunkonde.  Let s talk about (the situation) near us.  Tshibuabua continued to assure the U.N. investigators that the militiamen  will not do anything , adding later:  Here in Kasai, we really guarantee your passage.  Reuters was unable to reach Muamba for comment. The prosecutor s case file includes logs from about 20 phone numbers over various periods from early March to mid-June. One is from the phone of Tshibuabua and another is from the phone of his cousin Betu Tshintela, who accompanied Catalan and Sharp to Bunkonde as an interpreter. Tshintela claimed in a 2012 job application to the government of Kasai-Occidental province - seen by Reuters and RFI - to have also worked for the ANR. The government says Tshintela is dead but the United Nations cannot confirm that. Mutond, the top ANR official, could not confirm if Tshintela had worked for the ANR but said he was looking into it.         The phone logs show Tshibuabua was repeatedly in contact with Tanga Sakrine, the provincial ANR chief, around this time. Between March 10 and 12, the two exchanged at least 17 text messages, including five in the afternoon of March 11, shortly after the meeting at the Woodland Hotel, and five around 9 p.m. on March 12, hours after Sharp and Catalan were killed.  Mutond said he asked Tshibuabua three times in an interrogation in the capital Kinshasa whether he informed ANR officials about his contacts with the investigators, and Tshibuabua said no each time.  Reuters and RFI could not independently confirm this.  I looked Jose Tshibuabua in the eyes and asked him because I myself wanted to have a clean conscience, Mutond said. Sharp spent three years working in eastern Congo for a Mennonite peace-building organization, trying to persuade rebels to lay down their weapons, before joining the sanctions panel in 2015 as its armed groups expert. Catalan, the panel s humanitarian expert, worked for the European Union s police mission in Congo in 2011-12 and also held posts with the EU in Palestine and Afghanistan.  The phone logs show the last call from Catalan s phone was to her sister, Elizabeth Morseby, in Sweden at 4:49 p.m. Morseby told Reuters and RFI she could hear only some male voices in the background and Catalan breathing deeply before the call disconnected. No-one answered when she called back.  Some relatives and rights activists told Reuters and RFI they raised concerns early about possible government involvement because state forces were heavily implicated in rights abuses in Kasai that attracted international attention in the past.  The families and Washington want the United Nations to launch an independent investigation.     A former colleague on the U.N. panel also cast doubt on a video that the government said showed the two being executed by Kamuina Nsapu members. He said the video raised more questions than it answered, for example, why at least one of the alleged assassins gave orders in Lingala, the language of western Congo and the army, rather than the local Tshiluba. Mende, the government spokesman, countered that many Congolese speak at least some Lingala. The U.N. board noted theories of  alternate causes of the incident  but cited a lack of motive for government to be involved. It also said Sharp and Catalan failed to heed warnings from U.N. security officials that travel outside Kananga was dangerous.     The FBI has opened an investigation, according to Sharp s parents, who have met with bureau investigators. The FBI declined to comment. The Swedish prosecutor s office is investigating Catalan s killing but complained in a statement last month that Congolese officials are not cooperating. Mende said it was up to Swedish authorities to provide information to the Congolese court hearing the case, not the other way around.

Summary: कांगो में संयुक्त राष्ट्र के विशेषज्ञों की हत्या किसने की? गोपनीय अभियोजक की फाइल सुराग देती है


SEOUL (Reuters) - Plans for the first contact between North Korea and the United States after President Donald Trump took office were canceled after the U.S. State Department denied a visa for the top envoy from Pyongyang, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. The talks, between senior North Korean foreign ministry envoy Choe Son Hui and former U.S. officials, were scheduled to take place on March 1 and 2 in New York but were called off after Choe was denied a visa, the Journal said. It was not clear what led the State Department to deny the visa but North Korea’s test-firing of a ballistic missile on Feb. 12 and the murder of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s half brother in Malaysia may have played a role, the report said. South Korean and U.S. officials have said they believe North Korean agents assassinated Kim Jong Nam, the estranged half brother of Kim Jong Un, on Feb. 13. A U.S. State Department official denied so-called track two discussions had been scheduled. “The U.S government had no plans to engage in track 2 talks in New York,” the official said, declining comment on individual visa cases. A South Korean foreign ministry official declined to comment on the report of the canceled meeting in New York, saying the reported plan did not involve the U.S. or South Korean government. The meeting in New York would have been the first time a senior North Korean envoy would visit the United States since 2011 and the first contact between U.S. and North Korean representatives since Trump took office. Choe, director general for North American affairs at the North’s foreign ministry, has previously met former U.s. officials and academics, the last time in November in Geneva for informal discussions. Trump said in a Reuters interview on Thursday that he was concerned about North Korea’s ballistic missile tests and “it’s a very dangerous situation”. Trump did not ruling out meeting Kim at some point in the future under certain circumstances but suggested it might be too late.

Summary: पहले नियोजित उत्तर Korea-U.S. ट्रम्प प्रशासन में संपर्क रद्दः WSJ


HARARE (Reuters) - Soldiers took over the headquarters of Zimbabwe s ZBC state broadcaster in the early hours of Wednesday, two members of staff and a human rights worker said, compounding speculation of a coup against 93-year-old President Robert Mugabe. Some ZBC members of staff were manhandled when soldiers occupied the premises, the sources said. However, staff were told they  should not worry  as the soldiers were merely there to protect the site, one source added.

Summary: सैनिकों ने जिम्बाब्वे राज्य प्रसारक पर कब्जा कर लियाः जेडबीसी कर्मचारी


WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Donald Trump’s endorsement from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie opens up a wide network of donors, advisers and prominent elected officials whom the billionaire has not yet been able to attract to his unorthodox bid for the Republican presidential nomination. As Trump tries to lock up the Republican nomination on Super Tuesday, Christie advisers and supporters told Reuters in interviews that he could bring much-needed financial and strategic backing.  Christie’s backing demonstrates that Trump will be able to bring establishment politicians into the fold, that he could raise the money necessary for a general election campaign and build a staffing operation that can rival a Democratic nominee.      The nod from Christie comes at a critical moment. On Tuesday, 11 states will vote and if Trump is able to win all or most of them, he could pull so far ahead in the competition for delegates that none of his rivals will be able to catch him. In an interview with Reuters, Christie supporter Finn Wentworth, a real estate investor and former head of the company that owns the New York Yankees, New Jersey Nets and New Jersey Devils, said he is now seriously considering backing Trump. “I am a long-time supporter of Governor Christie. In that process, I have learned to respect his opinion and his judgment,” Wentworth said. “He’s a results-oriented person, and frankly I am now looking at Donald Trump because of Governor Christie’s endorsement today.” Maine Governor Paul LePage, who had backed Christie initially, quickly followed in the New Jersey governor’s footsteps and got behind Trump - making him the second sitting governor to endorse the New York real estate mogul. Maine votes on March 5.  A senior Christie aide told Reuters he believes staff could move to the Trump campaign in the coming weeks, helping the Republican front-runner in his fledgling efforts to build a circle of advisers who could form the core of his general election campaign should he clinch the nomination. Wentworth said part of his decision-making process is that he is now convinced it is inevitable that Trump will clinch the Republican nomination. Dale Florio, a donor to Christie, said he, along with others, has a call scheduled with the New Jersey governor later on Friday. “If he says, I’d like you guys to support Donald Trump, I’ll be there for him,” Florio said. Trump has thus far avoided traditional fundraising. However, more than half of his campaign spending in 2015 was covered by money raised through the sale of his “Make America Great Again” hats and T-shirts, even though he told his supporters not to write donation checks. But as a nominee, that position may be impossible to stick to, especially if Clinton is the Democratic nominee and she is able to build a sizable arsenal. Christie’s endorsement could have the power to bring more establishment-aligned officials and donors into Trump’s camp. Christie could also serve as a surrogate fundraiser. Christie is no stranger to the nation’s top Republican donors. In 2014, he served as the head of the Republican Governors Association, a role that largely consists of traveling the nation and raising money for Republican gubernatorial candidates. Christie was one of the most successful heads the organization has ever seen. Rob Gray, a Republican strategist who had been advising Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor who dropped out of the race last Saturday, called the endorsement a “stunning surprise.”  “Christie’s endorsement is an indicator to me Trump is starting to mainstream his candidacy and that he’ll be able to attract a lot of mainstream experienced political leaders’ support if he gets the nomination,” Gray said. “I wasn’t as sure before this.” The biggest boost Christie may have offered Trump was a distraction from the coverage of Marco Rubio’s Thursday night debate performance and increased scrutiny in some of his business endeavors, like Trump University, a defunct venture that offered real estate investing seminars and which is currently the target of lawsuits. Both Rubio and Ted Cruz, Trump’s two biggest challengers, battered away at Trump in Thursday’s televised debate - the last before Super Tuesday. “I’m sure Rubio and Cruz at the very least had things that they wanted to do today to follow up from their narrative last night and this kind of sucked the air out,” said Tom Rath, who is advising the campaign of Ohio Governor John Kasich.

Summary: क्रिस्टी से ट्रम्प का समर्थन दानदाताओं, मुख्यधारा के सलाहकारों तक पहुंच खोलता है


(Reuters) - New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said on Thursday he has urged Donald Trump not to leave the Republican Party, saying it remains unified despite scathing criticism of Trump’s  presidential candidacy by a senior party leader earlier on Thursday. “I have urged him not to leave the party,” said Christie, a former candidate himself, who gave Trump a major boost last week when he endorsed him for the party’s nomination for the Nov. 8 election. “I don’t think that’s a constructive way to go about it, and he knows that,” Christie told reporters. Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to leave the Republican Party if it does not respect him, told ABC News on Thursday that Republicans should be glad he has brought millions more people into the party: “They’re leaving the Democrats. They’re leaving the independents. And they’re with me 100 percent.” The New York real estate magnate is the clear front-runner to be the Republican nominee in November but is facing heavy criticism from many in the party establishment - including a blistering speech on Thursday by the party’s 2012 presidential candidate, Mitt Romney. U.S. Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, and Ohio Governor John Kasich are trailing Trump in their bids for the nomination, but are trying to coalesce the support of establishment Republicans to topple Trump before or at the party’s nominating convention in July. Trump told MSNBC that the increasing number of ads from the establishment targeting him are “really unfair,” and that he could depart the party to run as an independent. “If I leave, if I go ... which I may do, I mean, may or may not, but if I go, I will tell you these millions of people that joined, they’ve told them, they’re all coming with me,” he said. Concern about Trump among Republicans increased at the weekend over his failure to quickly disavow support from a leading white supremacist.     “I’ve know Donald Trump for 14 years, and Donald Trump is not a bigot,” Christie told a news conference in New Jersey. “In fact, Donald Trump is someone I think who has given a lot of opportunity to a lot of people of a lot of different backgrounds, and I disagree with Governor Romney on that one.”   (Reporting by Washington newsroom; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Frances Kerry) This article was funded in part by SAP. It was independently created by the Reuters editorial staff. SAP had no editorial involvement in its creation or production.

Summary: न्यूजर्सी के गवर्नर क्रिस्टी ने कहा कि उन्होंने ट्रम्प से रिपब्लिकन पार्टी नहीं छोड़ने का आग्रह किया


BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO s pledge to send more troops to Afghanistan still falls short of commitments, U.S. commanders said on Thursday, concerned that fewer reinforcements could threaten the already precarious security situation in the country. At a meeting of NATO defence ministers, commanders said that nearly three months after President Donald Trump announced his  South Asia strategy,  the promised troop numbers do expand the NATO training presence but not by as much as hoped.   We have made it very clear to the allies that we really need their help in filling these billets that we have identified,  said General John Nicholson, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan and head of the NATO training mission. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said this week that NATO allies and the United States would split the burden of providing some 3,000 more troops, an increase that would take NATO s training mission to about 16,000 troops. Two diplomats said that at this stage, the United States is likely to provide 2,800 troops, while non-U.S. NATO allies and partners will send an additional 700 troops, potentially making up a 3,500-strong personnel increase.  Germany, one of the main European troop contributors, said it was not increasing its contribution for next year, which German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen defended.   The commitments received so far are sufficient. We will not reach the total troop level, but to a high degree,  Von der Leyen told reporters. European NATO s focus has partly shifted to deterring Russia on its eastern flank, diplomats said, after Moscow s seizure of Crimea in 2014 helped take East-West ties to post-Cold War lows.  Nicholson said he was concerned that the United States would be put in a position where it would have to fill the shortfall.  Right now my plan is to have U.S. forces focused on the things that only U.S. forces can do, so I would not like to have to divert U.S. forces to do things that allies can perform,  Nicholson said. Security in Afghanistan has deteriorated in recent months, 16 years after the United States invaded to topple the Islamist Taliban government that gave al Qaeda the sanctuary where it plotted the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.  We fought ... at the lowest year level of capability that we have ever had in the 16 years. So it was the lowest level of capability and the highest level of risk we have faced in this time,  Nicholson said.  Before the ministers  meeting, U.S. officials said about 80 percent of the troop commitments had been met by the allies. U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said that about two dozen countries had signalled their intent to increase their troop commitment, but declined to publicly give concrete numbers.  I don t give the enemy information they can use to their advantage,  he told a news conference.   Officials said there was a 10 percent shortfall even after the NATO meeting. According to U.S. estimates, about 43 percent of Afghanistan s districts are either under Taliban control or being contested. One area in particular where there was a need for NATO troops was in training Afghan soldiers and police officers.  A total of 2,531 Afghan security forces were killed and 4,238 wounded in the first four months of the year, according to figures in a recent report by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan (SIGAR), a U.S. Congressional watchdog.  I am most concerned about police training in particular, because we are trying as part of this four-year road map to get the police out of paramilitary policing and (into) civilian policing,  Nicholson said.  The four-star general said that while contractors could potentially be used to fill the gaps, ideally it would be filled by NATO members. A recent report published by SIGAR said that tens of billions of dollars could be wasted unless changes are made in the training of Afghan security forces. U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that the conditions in Afghanistan will almost certainly deteriorate through next year, even with a modest increase in military assistance from America and its allies.

Summary: अफगान समर्थन बढ़ाने की नाटो की प्रतिबद्धता के बावजूद, सैनिकों की कमी बनी हुई हैः अमेरिका


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The nominee to be the next U.S. Army secretary told lawmakers on Thursday that cutting the size of the force had increased the risk to American security and that further reductions would require a rethinking of the Army’s role and priorities. Eric Fanning, a longtime senior defense official who would be the first openly gay military service secretary, told his confirmation hearing that reducing the Army to 450,000 troops by 2018 from about 490,000 currently, was manageable but would increase the risk to national security. The Pentagon is in the process of cutting almost $1 trillion in projected defense spending over a decade under a 2011 deal approved by the White House and Congress. Cutting the active-duty Army to 420,000 soldiers, which could be required if the spending cuts are not reversed, “would require a whole new set of assumptions and guidance on what the Army is supposed to do and what its priorities should be,” said Fanning, who would replace Army Secretary John McHugh, who stepped down several months ago. Republican presidential candidates have blasted the cuts, promising more military spending to confront international threats including Islamic State. Fanning would bring unique experience to the job because he has served at senior levels in all three branches of the U.S. armed forces, including stints as acting Air Force secretary and acting Army secretary. Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee were largely positive about Fanning’s nomination, although the panel waited several months to take it up, leading the administration to name him acting Army secretary. That prompted Republican Senator John McCain, chairman of the committee, to write a letter to the White House in November charging Fanning’s appointment as acting secretary was a violation of a law barring nominees from taking steps that presume they will be confirmed. While the White House disagreed, Fanning stepped down in deference to McCain’s concerns and has since been preparing for the confirmation hearing. Advocacy groups said Fanning’s nomination was a significant sign of progress in protecting the rights of gays and lesbians to serve in the world’s most powerful military. For many years, the U.S. military followed a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that allowed gays to serve only if they did not disclose their sexual orientation. It abolished that policy in 2011.

Summary: अमेरिकी सेना सचिव के लिए नामित व्यक्ति ने सैनिकों की और कटौती के प्रभाव के बारे में चेतावनी दी


BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi forces threatened on Wednesday to resume operations to capture northern Kurdish-held territory after accusing authorities there of delaying handing over control of Iraq s borders with Turkey, Iran and Syria. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Friday declared a pause in an offensive that began on Oct. 16 to take over areas claimed both by his government and the autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Abadi ordered economic and military retaliation against the KRG after Iraqi Kurds voted for independence in September in a referendum that Baghdad declared illegal. He said the truce was meant to allow Iraqi troops to deploy without hindrance in the disputed areas and at the international borders. Kurdish officials said on Tuesday they were willing to allow Iraqi  oversight  at the border but said the KRG had to remain in control of crossings into the Kurdish region.  The Iraqi Joint Operations Command accused the KRG of using the talks to  buy time  in order to strengthen Kurdish lines.  During the negotiations, the (Kurdish) region was moving its forces and building new defenses,  the Iraqi statement said.  We will not allow it; the federal forces are mandated to secure (the disputed) areas and borders.  The Kurdish Peshmerga fighters  command accused Iraqi forces of massing weapons and threatening force to resolve  domestic political differences.  Iraq s entire land border with Turkey is located inside the Kurdish autonomous region, and has been controlled by the Kurds since before the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Iraqis troops on Tuesday set up positions between the Turkish and the Iraqi Kurdish checkpoints at the Habur border crossing between the Turkish town of Silopi and the Iraqi town of Zakho. That meant vehicles crossing the border were subject to three checks. Control of the border area is of crucial importance for the landlocked Kurdish region. An oil pipeline runs from northern Iraq into Turkey, carrying crude exports which are the Kurds  in principal source of funds.

Summary: इराक ने कुर्दों के खिलाफ सैन्य अभियान फिर से शुरू करने की धमकी दी


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has decided not to impose further punishment on David Petraeus, a former U.S. military commander and CIA director who admitted sharing classified information with his mistress, according to a letter seen by Reuters. The short letter was sent by Stephen Hedger, the assistant secretary of defense for legislative affairs, and the decision is in line with an Army review. Petraeus resigned as head of the CIA in 2012 after it was revealed that he was having an affair with his biographer, Army Reserve officer Paula Broadwell. When he pleaded guilty to mishandling classified information, a court document signed by Petraeus and prosecutors said that in 2011, Petraeus illegally gave Broadwell access to official binders. In April, the retired four-star general was sentenced to two years of probation and fined $100,000 but was spared prison time after pleading guilty to mishandling classified information. The Pentagon could have sought to further reprimand Petraeus under military law. Hedger’s letter was addressed to Senate Armed Service Committee Chairman Senator John McCain and Senator Jack Reed, who had recently asked Carter not to take further action. The Pentagon declined to comment on the letter. Petraeus, a counter-insurgency expert with a Princeton University doctorate, served as the top U.S. commander in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and was once considered a possible vice presidential or presidential candidate. Known as “black books,” the binders that Petraeus shared with Broadwell contained classified information including identities of covert officers, code word information, war strategy, intelligence capabilities, diplomatic talks and information from high-level White House National Security Council meetings, according to court records. Petraeus now serves as chairman of the private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts’ captive economic and geopolitical think tank, the KKR Global Institute, according to its website.

Summary: सेवानिवृत्त जनरल, पूर्व सी. आई. ए. प्रमुख डेविड पेट्रियस को आगे कोई सजा नहीं मिलेगी


LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s interior minister said U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was “just plain wrong” to say that Muslims in Britain were failing to report suspicious activity by extremists. “I understand he said that Muslims were not coming forward in the United Kingdom to report matters of concern. This is absolutely not the case - he is just plain wrong,” Theresa May said in Britain’s parliament. Earlier on Wednesday, Trump said in an interview with Britain’s ITV television that it was “a disgrace” that one of the suspects behind last November’s attacks in Paris had been found in an area of Brussels where he lived. He also said people in the Muslim community in California had known in advance about an attack that killed 14 people in December.

Summary: मुस्लिम चरमपंथियों की मदद नहीं कर रहे हैंः ब्रिटेन के मंत्री ने कहा, ट्रम्प का यह कहना 'सरासर गलत' है


(Reuters) - Zimbabwe s military action was not a takeover of the government and was meant to  target criminals , the BBC reported on Wednesday, citing the country s national broadcaster. The military read out a statement on ZBC in which it said President Robert Mugabe was safe, the BBC reported. Zimbabwe's envoy to South Africa, Isaac Moyo, also dismissed talks of a coup, saying the government was "intact", the BBC said. bbc.in/2iX3Kls Soldiers were deployed across capital Harare and seized the state broadcaster on Wednesday after 93-year-old Mugabe s ruling ZANU-PF party accused the head of the military of treason, prompting frenzied speculation of a coup.

Summary: जिम्बाब्वे की सेना का कहना है कि वह सरकार नहीं संभाल रही हैः बीबीसी


RALEIGH, N.C. (Reuters) - Thousands of people flocked to North Carolina’s capital on Monday to show both support and disdain for a law that has thrust the state into the international spotlight over its restrictions on transgender bathroom access and gay rights. Lawmakers returned to Raleigh to begin a short session  designed to address the state budget. But controversy over the new law, which has drawn reaction from U.S. presidential candidates, U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron among others, is expected to dominate. The measure puts the state at the center of a debate over equality, privacy and religious freedom as states propose legislation seen as discriminatory against gay and transgender people in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court last year ruling that legalized same-sex marriage. North Carolina became the first U.S. state to require transgender people to use restrooms in public buildings and schools that match the sex on their birth certificate rather than their gender identity.  Fifty-four people were arrested at the Legislative Building as they protested against the law on Monday, General Assembly police Officer Scott Cameron said. “Our state is a state of crisis,” Chris Sgro, executive director of the Equality North Carolina advocacy group, said earlier in the day before activists delivered petitions to Republican Governor Pat McCrory’s office demanding the law’s repeal. A group of Democratic representatives filed a bill seeking a repeal. But leading Republican lawmakers in the state have shown little willingness to back down, and they were greeted at a rally on Monday by thousands of people who came on church buses and held signs thanking them for the measure. Business leaders, entertainers and politicians including Obama and Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump have come out against the law. Opponents contend it demonizes transgender people and limits government protections against discrimination for gays and lesbians.  Supporters including social conservatives and Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz say it is needed to protect women and children from sexual predators in bathrooms. On Monday, singers Demi Lovato and Nick Jonas joined a growing list of entertainers who have canceled shows in the state. Lovato wrote on Twitter that she and Jonas were protesting “this hateful law.” As part of the backlash, companies and associations have relocated conventions and halted job-creating investment projects initially slated for North Carolina.  Republican State Representative Paul Stam criticized companies, including PayPal Holdings (PYPL.O), that have pulled jobs out of North Carolina over the measure. “They have offices in countries where homosexuals are executed,” he said. “The hypocrisy of those who oppose this bill is amazing.”

Summary: एन. सी. ट्रांसजेंडर कानून पर लड़ाई तेज हो गई क्योंकि सांसदों ने फिर से बैठक की


HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe s stock market has shed $6 billion while its main index has slumped 40 percent since last Wednesday when the military seized power leading to the fall of Robert Mugabe, stock exchange data showed on Thursday. The main industrial index was at 315.12 points compared with 527.27 points on Wednesday last week when the military announced its takeover and put former president Mugabe under house arrest. On Thursday the index fell 4.4 percent. The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange had been on a rapid rise in the last two months, driven by investors seeking a safe haven for their investment amid fears of a return to hyperinflation in an economy suffering acute shortages of foreign exchange. But analysts said the market had entered a period of correction on investor optimism of a change in economic policy in a post-Mugabe era.  Market capitalization was $9 billion, down from $15 billion last week, bourse data showed. On the currency front, black market rates for buying cash dollars softened further on Thursday.  Buying $100 using electronic transfer cost $150, down from $180 last week. Some black market traders said they were not buying dollars at all, anticipating further softening of rates. Zimbabwe adopted the U.S. dollar in 2009, along with Britain s pound and the South African rand, to tame inflation that topped out at 500 billion percent.   The market is adjusting back to reality,  an analyst at a Harare-based asset management company said.  The gains that we had seen were being fueled by an outlook of a return to hyperinflation, continued isolation of Zimbabwe by international lenders as well as well as a depressed economic outlook.  An analyst at a local stockbrocking firm said Mnangagwa had hit the right notes with his speech on Wednesday. Mnangagwa said he wanted to grow the economy, create jobs and for Zimbabwe to re-engage the international community as the country has faced isolation since 1999 when it defaulted on its debt with the International Monetary Fund. Most of Zimbabwe s 13 million people remain poor and face currency shortages and sky-high unemployment, something Mnangagwa promised to address.

Summary: जिम्बाब्वे शेयर बाजार को 6 अरब डॉलर का नुकसान, सैन्य अधिग्रहण के बाद सूचकांक 40 प्रतिशत गिरा


CHARLESTON, S.C./MANCHESTER, N.H. (Reuters) - Flaring tempers and sharp elbows may turn a debate of seven Republican presidential candidates into a seven-car pileup on Thursday with tensions between Donald Trump and rival Ted Cruz leading the way. The sixth Republican debate, at the North Charleston Coliseum in the swing state of South Carolina, takes place at a tense time for the Republican field with the clock ticking toward Feb. 1 in Iowa, the first contest in the race to choose the party’s nominee for the Nov. 8 general election. “Everybody has to avoid making mistakes,” said David Yepsen, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University. “If you mess something up in this debate you’re going to have almost no opportunity to correct it.” The 9 p.m. EST debate features the top seven candidates ranked by Republican voters: New York real estate businessman and reality TV star Trump, Texas Senator Cruz, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Ohio Governor John Kasich.  Nearly every candidate has had a bone to pick with one or more of the others this week. Beyond the Trump-Cruz theatrics, Bush has blasted Trump and Rubio, Rubio has slammed Bush as well as Cruz and Christie, and Christie has attacked most everyone else. If Fox Business Channel moderators Neil Cavuto and Maria Bartiromo focus on these disputes, the debate could be one of the liveliest of the series. But whether the bickering helps is questionable. “I think the Republicans have to stop beating up each other and let their opponents do that in the Democratic Party,” said Republican voter J.P. Marzullo of Deering, N.H. Front-runner Trump has put Cruz, his main obstacle to an Iowa victory, on the defensive by suggesting Cruz may not qualify to be a candidate because he was born in Canada (to a U.S. citizen mother and a Cuban father). This was a change in posture by Trump on the issue, however, after saying in an interview with ABC News last September that he had heard that lawyers believed it was not a problem for Cruz. Trump and Cruz have been friendly over the past year, until now. Being targeted by Trump is a new position for Cruz, who has taken the lead in some polls of Iowa Republican voters in part by avoiding tangles with Trump. In the Reuters rolling national poll on Jan. 12, Trump had 39 percent of the vote, Cruz 14.5 percent, Bush 10.6 percent, Carson 9.6 percent and 6.7 percent favored Rubio, once viewed by the Republican establishment and many donors as a rising star. Cruz told reporters in New Hampshire on Tuesday that Trump is relying on a judgment on the birthright question from Harvard law professor Laurence Tribe, who Cruz described as “a liberal, left-wing, judicial-activist” and a supporter of Democratic Party front-runner Hillary Clinton. “The past couple of elections we saw the Democrats thrilled that they got the nominee they wanted to run against in the general election, and it seems the Hillary folks are very eager to support Donald Trump,” Cruz said. Trump, who has proved to be a master at finding a perceived weakness in an opponent, insisted Cruz’s Canadian birth violated the U.S. Constitution’s requirement that only native-born Americans can be president. “Sadly, there is no way that Ted Cruz can continue running in the Republican Primary unless he can erase doubt on eligibility. Dems will sue!” he tweeted on Wednesday. Mudslinging abounds elsewhere in the field as a grouping of other candidates fight to be the alternative to Trump with battles over national security and immigration. “Given all the attacks that are taking place and the counter attacks, I think it will be a more lively debate than we’ve seen at this point,” said Eric Fehrnstrom, who was a top adviser to 2012 Republican nominee Mitt Romney. “Donald Trump is still in complete command and the race is still about who will become his main challenger.” For more on the 2016 presidential race, see the Reuters blog, “Tales from the Trail” (here)

Summary: ट्रम्प, क्रूज़ तनाव अब तक की सबसे जीवंत रिपब्लिकन बहस प्रदान कर सकता है


RICHMOND, Va. (Reuters) - Virginia’s lieutenant governor will face a former Republican national committee chairman in a November general election to become the state’s next governor in a race seen as a bellwether for next year’s mid-term congressional races. Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam bested former congressman Tom Perriello in the Democratic primary, while former Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie topped President Donald Trump’s former Virginia campaign co-chairman Corey Stewart, according to unofficial returns posted online by the Virginia Department of Elections. The gubernatorial race in Virginia, the only state other than New Jersey electing a new governor this year, is seen as a key test of Trump’s popularity ahead of the 2018 mid-term elections for the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. The winner in November will succeed incumbent Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe, who is barred by term limits from running again. Northam sought to stoke Democrats’ anger toward Trump, calling the president a “narcissistic maniac” in statewide ads. “Tonight, we’re one step closer to building a Virginia that works for everyone - no matter who you are, no matter where you’re from,” Northam said in a Twitter post declaring victory. In the Republican primary, Gillespie beat Stewart 44 percent to 42 percent with Frank Wagner earning 14 percent of the vote. On the Democrat side, 56 percent vote went to Northam and 44 percent went to Perriello, unofficial returns showed.  The governor’s race in Virginia, a swing state where a recent Washington Post and George Mason University poll showed 59 percent of voters disapprove of Trump’s performance, is shaping up as a pivotal battleground with national implications.      “Virginia will be more hotly contested than ever,” said Stephen Farnsworth, a University of Mary Washington political analyst. “All the national money and national attention will be coming this way. ... Republicans want to claim that the Trump movement is doing well and the Democrats want to claim it is not.” Northam was backed by every statewide Democratic officeholder, while Perriello drew support of Democratic progressives, including U.S. Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.  Gillespie was endorsed by a raft of state and national Republican leaders. On the campaign trail, he largely avoided talking about Trump, who has not weighed in on the race. Republican strength has eroded in recent Virginia elections, with Democrats now holding all statewide offices. Virginia, once a Republican bulwark in presidential polls, has gone Democratic in three straight elections.

Summary: वर्जीनिया में गवर्नर पद के लिए कड़ी प्राथमिक दौड़ के बाद दौड़ तय


HARARE (Reuters) - A Zimbabwean court found a pastor not guilty on Wednesday of attempting to subvert the government in a case seen as a barometer of judicial independence under new President Emmerson Mnangagwa. Evan Mawarire was a strident critic of former President Robert Mugabe who resigned last week after 37 years in power week under pressure from the army and ruling ZANU-PF party. Mawarire s #ThisFlag movement last year organized the biggest protests in a decade against Mugabe over a deteriorating economy, cash shortages and accusations of government corruption. He was arrested in September and faced up to 20 years in jail if convicted. Mugabe s critics say he used the courts as a tool of repression. They want to see if Mnangagwa s government breaks with the past, particularly given that he served in Mugabe s administration since independence from Britain in 1980. Amnesty International said in a statement they hoped that the ruling represents a new beginning for the country. Mawarire said he would keep up the pressure.  If they (the new government) do to us what Robert Mugabe s government did to us, we will do the same thing to them that we have done to Robert Mugabe,  Mawarire told reporters in court room soon after High Court Judge Priscilla Chigumba s judgment.  This could be evidence of a freer Zimbabwe but this case had no legs to stand on. I think a lot more needs to be seen to determine whether this is a free judiciary going forward,  he said. Chigumba said state prosecutors failed to show evidence that Mawarire s actions were a criminal offense. She also found him not guilty of inciting people to commit public violence.  He urged passive resistance, he urged prayers for peace. How can prayers for peace be considered an unconstitutional means of removing a constitutional government?  said Chigumba. There was a sigh of relief from the handful of people in court when the ruling was made. Mnangagwa must address a crisis facing Zimbabwe s economy that includes balance of payments problems and rampant inflation and steer the country towards an election next year. Britain could take steps to stabilize Zimbabwe s currency system and extend a bridging loan to help it clear World Bank and African Development Bank arrears, but such support depends on  democratic progress , Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said.  Those are indeed the things that we would try to do to help Zimbabwe forward, but we ve got to see how the democratic process unfolds,  he said on Wednesday on the sidelines of an African Union-EU summit in Abidjan.

Summary: जिम्बाब्वे के पादरी को विध्वंस का दोषी नहीं पाया गया


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When is a tweet just a tweet? A debate is percolating in the U.S. State Department, where diplomats measure their words with demitasse spoons, on how to handle Donald Trump’s Twitter commentary if he continues to tweet after he becomes U.S. president on Jan. 20. By tradition, anything the president says is regarded as U.S. policy and can be repeated to foreign officials without fear of contradiction, at least from the White House. But Trump has questioned bedrock planks of U.S. policy, such as whether Taiwan is part of “one China” or whether Washington would defend NATO allies, causing consternation at home and abroad. “I have never hesitated to take anything that POTUS said in speeches, press conferences, and other remarks as anything but policy,” a midlevel diplomat who has served on four continents wrote Dec. 7 on an internal State Department discussion board, in reference to the President of the United States (POTUS).  “But what about tweets?” he asked. “Given the president-elect’s penchant for using (Twitter) in a much more spontaneous context than most other USG officials, how should FSOs regard those statements?” he added, referring to      U.S. government (USG) foreign service officers (FSOs). “In theory, we all should have a firm grasp of what is hyberbole (sic) and what is not, but in practice we should not be so sure. I for one am done making assumptions in this area for at least the next four years,” the diplomat added. He then appealed to the State Department’s Bureau of Public Affairs to issue an ALDAC, or formal message to “All Diplomatic and Consular Posts,” clarifying matters. The post, titled “Is a Tweet policy?” on “The Sounding Board,” a forum on the State Department’s intranet, prompted thoughtful, though equally perplexed, comments. Another official wrote that he was confident President Barack Obama’s comments are to be taken “seriously and literally”, Trump may want his tweets to be taken both “seriously and figuratively,” he wrote. “Assuming there is a strategy here, it would seem that it would be to create a sense of ambiguity around issues previously thought to be settled for the purpose of leveraging a better deal to advance USG interests,” he added. “Miscommunication may be the very purpose of the President Elect’s tweets.” A spokesman for the State Department said it would have no comment on how the next administration and president may use social media. Obama has tweeted since 2015 from the account @POTUS. Rather than suggesting specific policies, Obama used the handle to encourage Americans to vote, to cheerlead for Hillary Clinton, Trump’s election opponent, and to remember the recently deceased, including writer Elie Wiesel and golfer Arnold Palmer. From his Twitter account, @realdonaldtrump, Trump has mocked Clinton as “Crooked Hillary,” attacked a former Miss Universe and sniped at the parents of a Muslim American U.S. Army captain who died in Iraq after the soldier’s father spoke against him. On Nov. 27, he tweeted “I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally” but provided no evidence for the claim, which electoral officials have denied. Trump lost the popular vote by close to three million votes. The president-elect has not said definitively whether he will continue tweeting after Jan. 20. Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A third official said the entire government would need to deal with the issue to “limit the amount of miscommunication a specific POTUS tweet could engender.” “As the great Bette Davis line goes, ‘Fasten your seatbelt, it’s going to be a bumpy ride,’” he wrote.

Summary: विदेश विभाग के अधिकारी सोच रहे हैं, "क्या ट्वीट नीति है?"


(Reuters) - U.S. allies expressed support on Friday for Washington’s missile strikes on Syria, calling them a proportionate response to Syrian forces’ suspected use of chemical weapons.  The strikes were denounced as illegal by Syria and its allies Russia and Iran. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called on the world "to reject such policies, which bring only destruction and danger to the region and the globe". (Graphic locator map on attack - tmsnrt.rs/2nm68H0)  Iraq criticized “hasty interventions” in an apparent comment on the U.S. action. But a wide range of U.S. allies from Asia, Europe and the Middle East expressed support, if sometimes cautiously, in similar terms. “The U.K. government fully supports the U.S. action, which we believe was an appropriate response to the barbaric chemical weapons attack launched by the Syrian regime and is intended to deter further attacks,” a British government spokesman said. Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters: “Many innocent people became victims from the chemical attacks. “Japan supports the U.S. government’s determination to prevent the spread and use of chemical weapons,” he said. Turkey viewed the strikes positively and the international community should sustain its stance against the “barbarity” of the Syrian government, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said. In an interview with Turkish broadcaster Fox TV, Kurtulmus said Assad’s government must be punished in the international arena and the peace process in Syria needed to be accelerated. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said Russia and Iran needed to understand that supporting Assad made no sense and that the escalation of the U.S. military role in Syria was a “warning” to “a criminal regime”. “Use of chemical weapons is appalling and should be punished because it is a war crime,” Ayrault told Reuters and France Info radio. French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel issued statements saying Assad was solely to blame for the air strikes. The Dutch government said: “The United States has given a clear signal that the use of poison gas crosses a line.” It also labeled the strikes a “proportionate” response. “U.S. strikes show needed resolve against barbaric chemical attacks. EU will work with the US to end brutality in Syria,” the chairman of the council of EU leaders, Donald Tusk, said on Twitter. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the strikes sent “a vitally important message” that the world would not tolerate the use of chemical weapons. “The retribution has been proportionate and it has been swift,” he told reporters in Sydney. “We support the United States in that swift action.” Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which back rebels fighting Assad, said they supported the U.S. strikes and held only the Syrian government responsible for the attacks. Other Gulf countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait, also expressed support for the attacks.  Some countries expressed reservations about the U.S. decision to launch strikes without authorization from the U.N. Security Council. Indonesia, home to the world’s largest Muslim population, condemned the use of chemical weapons in Syria. “At the same time, Indonesia is concerned with unilateral actions by any parties, including the use of Tomahawk missiles, in responding to the chemical weapon attack tragedy in Syria,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Armanatha Nasir said in a text message. “Military actions, undertaken without prior authorization of the U.N. Security Council, are not in line with international legal principles in the peaceful settlement of disputes, as stipulated in the U.N. Charter.”

Summary: अमेरिकी सहयोगियों ने सीरिया पर हमलों के लिए समर्थन दिखाया