Dawood's henchman an Indian, not Pakistani; to be extradited: Thai court

Agencies
August 9, 2018

Bangkok, Aug 9: In a major diplomatic victory for India over Pakistan, a criminal court in Thailand has ruled that a henchman of Dawood Ibrahim's criminal syndicate is not a Pakistani, but an Indian citizen.

Sayyed Muzakkir Muddassar Hussain, who is also known by aliases Mohammad Saleem and Munna Jhingra, is a senior D-Company operative and is a close associate of India's most wanted underworld criminals, Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Shakeel.

He entered Bangkok on a fake Pakistani passport and has been in a prison there since September 2000 for plotting to kill Chhota Rajan, rival of Dawood Ibrahim.

Jhingra, whose father Muddassar Nussain had deep links in 1993 Mumbai blast, had the patronage of the ISI, which had been pushing for a reduction in the sentence given to Jhingra through sustained efforts by the Pakistan Embassy, not just through the Thai Foreign Ministry but also through informal channels.

As a result, the Pakistan Embassy succeeded in obtaining two Royal pardons for Munna Jhingra and his jail sentence was reduced to 34 years.

Subsequently, the Pakistani Mission in Thailand gained two more Royal pardons, thereby, reducing Munna Jhingra's sentence to 18 years in 2016.

Pakistan authorities simultaneously also worked for extradition of Munna Jhingra to Pakistan under the Prisoner's Exchange Treaty between Pakistan and Thailand, a move that India contested and filed a strong extradition claim. The matter went to the Thai court.

Meanwhile, Jhingra received an amnesty under Thai laws and was to be released in December 2016. But, as the matter was subjudice, he was not extradited.

However, on Wednesday, the court ruled that based on finger print evidence submitted by India, it has been proved beyond reasonable doubt that Munna Jhingra is an Indian national.

The court also pulled up Pakistan for submitting concocted evidence through Pakistani embassy in Thailand.

The proceedings witnessed a high voltage drama with Jhingra reacting violently and abusing the judge after the announcement of the verdict. The Pakistani embassy official also reacted angrily.

Islamabad now has 30 days to file an appeal, failing which India has to repatriate the prisoner within 90 days.

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News Network
April 27,2020

London, Apr 27: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returns to work on Monday more than three weeks after being hospitalised for the coronavirus and spending three days in intensive care.

Johnson, one of the highest-profile people to have contracted the virus, returned to 10 Downing Street on Sunday evening and will chair a meeting on Monday morning of the coronavirus "war cabinet", his colleagues confirmed.

Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary who has deputised in Johnson's absence, told the BBC on Sunday that his return would be a "boost for the government and a boost for the country".

Raab also claimed the prime minister was "raring to go".

Johnson, 55, was admitted to hospital on April 5 suffering from "persistent symptoms" of the deadly disease.

His condition worsened and he later admitted after being put in intensive care that "things could have gone either way".

He was discharged on April 12 and has been recuperating at his official residence, west of London.

In a video message after leaving hospital, Johnson thanked "Jenny from New Zealand and Luis from Portugal" for helping him recover.

On medical advice, he has not been doing official government work during his convalescence but has spoken to Queen Elizabeth and US President Donald Trump on the phone.

The British leader was diagnosed with the virus late last month but initially stayed at Downing Street and was filmed taking part in a round of applause for health workers in the days before he went to hospital.

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Agencies
January 4,2020

Tel Aviv, Jan 4: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday came out in the support of Trump administration for carrying out the strike near Baghdad's international airport which led to the killing of Iran's elite IRGC Qassem Soleimani, saying that "The US has the right of self-defence."

"Just as Israel has the right of self-defence, the United States has exactly the same right. Qassem Soleimani is responsible for the death of American citizens and many other innocent people. He was planning more such attacks," PM Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on Twitter.

In another tweet, Netanyahu also credited US President Donald Trump for acting decisively in the operation of Iraq that led to the killing of Qassem Soleimani -- a US-designated terrorist, along with six others.

"President Donald Trump deserves all the credit for acting swiftly, forcefully and decisively. Israel stands with the United States in its just struggle for peace, security and self-defence," he added.

Meanwhile, Iran on Friday vowed to take a "vigorous revenge" over the killing of General Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite IRGC.

The US had accused Soleimani of orchestrating several attacks on coalition bases in Iraq including the December 27 attack in which American and Iraqi personnel were killed. 

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News Network
July 14,2020

Washington, Jul 14: Florida on Sunday reported a record 15,300 new coronavirus cases, the most by any state in a single day even as the coronavirus cases in the country have surged to 3,363,056.

The Washington Post reported that the huge number was result of both increased testing and widespread community transmission. The numbers shattered previous highs of 11,694 reported by California last week and 11,571 reported by New York on April 15.

Natalie E. Dean, an assistant professor of biostatistics at the University of Florida wrote that with Florida largely open for business, he doesn't expect this surge to slow.

Nationally, the conversation over reopening has become increasingly fraught amid the newly soaring case numbers, with much of the debate centering on whether schools should open their doors in the fall, reported the Post.

The Health workers in California and Texas too are facing an influx of COVID-19 patients where officials reported seven day averages for new cases - 8,664 and 9060 respectively.

According to the report, Florida has reported nearly 70,000 cases in last week alone, the most of any state.

Even though the COVID-19 cases are surging, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has stuck to an aggressive reopening plan with state officials recently ordering schools to reopen five days a week in the new academic year.

The state is also set to hold the Republican National Convention next month in Jacksonville's VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, an indoor facility that seats about 15,000, reported Washington Post.

Seven-day averages for new cases -- considered a more reliable indicator of the virus's impact than single-day totals -- hit new highs in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Puerto Rico.

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