General Awareness

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS - September 2017

Sep 2017

Apr 26, 2021

3 UN Peacekeepers 'Gravely Wounded' in a Rocket Attack in Mali

Three United Nations peacekeepers were seriously injured in a rocket attack on a military base in the north of the conflict-ridden Sahel state.
Olivier Salgado, the spokesman for the UN's MINUSMA mission in Mali, said the attack took place on a base in Tessalit -- in the north -- which houses Malian soldiers, UN peacekeepers and French troops.
Three peacekeepers were "gravely wounded" in the attack, he added.
A Tessalit tribal leader, who declined to be named, said that the camp had come under rocket fire, hitting the barracks of peacekeepers from Chad.
Mali has been battling a brutal jihadist insurgency since 2012, when Islamist fighters first emerged during a rebellion by ethnic Tuareg separatists in the north.
France intervened to crush the rebellion, but the jihadists scattered and regrouped, taking their campaign into central Mali in 2015 and then into neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso.

Japan's Ruling Party Loses Seats in Blow for PM Yoshihide Suga Before Election

Japanese opposition parties won all three by-elections for parliamentary seats in a blow for Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, who must hold a general election within six months.
The by-elections held Sunday were the first of their kind for Suga since he became prime minister in September. Two of the races -- one on the northern island of Hokkaido and another in Hiroshima -- were to replace ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers who stepped down over graft charges. The LDP didn't field a candidate in the Hokkaido election.
The opposition also won a third election in the central prefecture of Nagano, held after the death of a lawmaker from Covid-19. Despite the losses, the LDP-led coalition kept its majority in both houses of parliament.
While Suga's LDP is unlikely to be toppled in the near future, the losses could weaken support for the prime minister, who has come under fire since he took office last year over scandals and his handling of the pandemic. He faces a party leadership poll in September and must also call a general election by October.

Apr 25, 2021

Israel: Google and AWS Chosen for 1 Billion Nimbus Project

The Government of Israel has chosen Google and Amazon Web Services to provide cloud services for its military and Public Sector Units. The project is to be implemented in four phases and has been named the "Nimbus" project.
The Nimbus Project is to be implemented at an estimated cost of 1 billion USD.
It will establish cloud sites in Israel. These sites will keep the information within the borders of Israel under strict security guidelines.
The four phases of the project are: Acquisition and Construction of cloud Infrastructure, Formulating Government Policy for migrating to the Cloud, Integration and Migration and Control and Optimisation of Cloud Activity.
In future, the project is to be extended, where dozens of local suppliers are to be selected to assist in migration of Government Systems to the Cloud.

AU Condemns Somalia President's Term Extension

The African Union has condemned the extension of the term of Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo and is sending a special envoy to Mogadishu to help resolve the political impasse there.
The AU's Peace and Security Council made the announcement after hours of closed-door meeting where it also resolved to mediate the crisis.
The AU council called on all Somali political leaders to exercise maximum restraint and refrain from any actions that may lead to an escalation of tensions and further undermine the stability of Somalia.
Last week, Mr. Farmajo controversially approved an extension of his term in office by two years but the move has been criticised by major world powers including the United States and Britain, the United Nations and the European Union.

US House Passes No Ban Act

The US House of Representatives passed a bill that will limit the ability of the President to impose religion-based travel ban. It is informally called "No Ban Act".
The No Ban Act was passed in response to the controversial "Muslim ban" passed by the former US President Donald Trump. The Muslim ban barred the travel from Muslim-majority countries to the US.
Before imposing a restriction, the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department should report to Congress about the restriction.
The President should present his evidence of credible threat that initiated travel ban to the Department of Homeland Security and Secretary of the State. He shall impose the ban only after getting approval from DHS and the Secretary.

Apr 24, 2021

Russia Orders Troops Back after Massive Drills near Ukraine

Russia's Defence Minister ordered troops back to their permanent bases following massive drills in Crimea that involved dozens of Navy ships, hundreds of war planes and thousands of troops in a show of force amid tensions with Ukraine.
He said the troops should return to their bases by May 1, but he also ordered to keep the heavy weapons deployed to western Russia as part of the drills for another massive military exercise later this year.
The Russian troop buildup near Ukraine that came amid increasing violations of a ceasefire in Ukraine's east has raised concerns in the West, which urged the Kremlin to pull its forces back.

Iran Seeks to Enhance Security and Economic Cooperation with Pakistan

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has called for the enhancement of security and economic cooperation between Tehran and Islamabad.
"Security is a common concern for the two countries, and it is essential to boost cooperation in this regard," Rouhani said in a meeting on Wednesday with visiting Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi.
He also stressed the need to promote security along the Iran-Pakistan borders, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Iranian President urged for the promotion of Tehran-Islamabad ties in trade, energy and border markets, adding it is necessary for both sides to implement the signed agreements to further cooperation.

Apr 23, 2021

U.S. Senate Confirms Vanita Gupta as Associate Attorney-General

The United States Senate voted 51-49 to confirm Indian-American Vanita Gupta as Associate Attorney-General, making her the first person of colour to occupy the third highest position at the Department of Justice.
From 2014 to 2017, Ms. Gupta served as the assistant attorney general for civil rights under President Barack Obama, where she advanced criminal justice reform, prosecuted hate crimes, protected voting rights and fought against discrimination.
Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski broke away from her party colleagues to support Gupta (46), that gave the Democrats 51 votes to see her through the historic confirmation.
Vice President Kamala Harris was present in the Senate to cast her vote in case of a tie. The two parties have 50 members each in the 100-seat United States Senate.
Ms. Gupta is also the first civil rights lawyer to serve at one of the top three positions at the Department of Justice.

Mrs. Ireland is New Mrs. World

Kate Schneider from Ireland has been named the new Mrs. World after the reigning titleholder resigned following an on-stage fracas in which she pulled the crown off the head of the winner of the Mrs. Sri Lanka beauty pageant.
Mrs. World Inc. received the resignation of Caroline Jurie and that the first runner-up, Mrs. Ireland Kate Schneider, therefore will be the new Mrs. World 2020.

Apr 22, 2021

Russia Warns West of Harsh, Swift Response amid Tension

President Vladimir Putin warned the West not to cross Russia's red lines, saying that Moscow would respond swiftly and harshly to any provocations and those responsible would regret it.
At a time of acute crisis in ties with the United States and Europe, with Russian troops massed near Ukraine and opposition leader Alexei Navalny on hunger strike in jail, the Kremlin leader used his state-of-the nation speech to project a message of Russian strength and defiance in the face of outside threats.
Meanwhile, the police detained 102 people at protests across Russia in support of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

Japan Prime Minister Cancels Trip to India and Philippines

Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga has cancelled plans to visit India and the Philippines during his country's extended holiday starting in late April amid a sharp rise in Covid cases, a senior government spokesman said on Wednesday. Japan is considering a state of emergency for Tokyo. Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said, "It has been decided Prime Minister Suga won't take any overseas trips during the Golden Week."

Chad's New Leader

Lt Gen Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno has been named as the new leader of Chad, after his father Idriss Déby was killed during a battle with rebel forces.
Mahamat is now incharge of a 15-member Transitional Military Council (CMT) that will be in power for the next 18 months.
He has a reputation for discretion and shunning the limelight, unlike some of his half-brothers. However, he is a battle-hardened soldier like his father.
Mahamat, is the same age as the late Déby was when he took power through a military coup in 1990.
Until his father's death, he was the head of the elite presidential guard: the Directorate-General of the Security Services of State Institutions (DGSSIE).

Sudan Talks Tough with Ethiopia over River Nile Dam

Sudan is caught in the middle of a decade-long row between Ethiopia and Egypt over the dam Ethiopia is building on the River Nile and in recent months it has undergone a major shift in attitude, as Zeinab Mohammed Salih reports from Khartoum.
When discussing the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Gerd), Sudan's rhetoric has moved from being broadly welcoming to being suspicious and belligerent.
This change, in large part, reflects the increasing influence of the military in the transitional government that is supposed to pave the way to a democratic system after the overthrow of long-serving leader Omar al-Bashir.
The diplomatic temperature has increased as Ethiopia's rainy season approaches and the reservoir behind the dam will fill up for a second year without any agreement on how it should be done.

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