Indian-origin woman doctor held for female circumcision in US

April 14, 2017

New York, Apr 14: A 44-year-old Indian-origin woman doctor has been arrested and charged with performing genital mutilation on girls aged 6 to 8. Jumana Nagarwala has been charged with performing FGM on minor girls out of a medical office in Livonia, Michigan.

doctorAccording to Nagarwala's profile in the Henry Ford Health System website, she speaks English and Gujarati. According to the complaint, some of the minor victims allegedly traveled inter-state to have Nagarwala perform the procedure.

The complaint alleges that Nagarwala performed FGM on girls who were approximately 6 to 8 years old. This is believed to be the first case brought under a US law, which criminalises FGM.

Nagarwala, who is an emergency room physician, was arrested and was scheduled to appear in federal court in Detroit.

US AGAINST GENITAL MUTILATION

The number of girls under 18 at risk for FGM in the US has quadrupled since 1997. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 513,000 women and girls are at risk of FGM in the US.

Congress passed a law in 1996 making it illegal to perform genital mutilation or cutting in the US on anyone under than 18. FGM is punishable by up to five years in prison, however, it is not a crime in 26 US states, including Michigan.

"Despite her oath to care for her patients, Nagarwala is alleged to have performed horrifying acts of brutality on the most vulnerable victims," Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Blanco of the Justice Department's Criminal Division said in a statement on Thursday.

Blanco added that the Department of Justice is committed to stopping female genital mutilation in the US and will use the full power of the law to ensure that "no girls suffer such physical and emotional abuse".

Acting US Attorney Daniel Lemisch of the Eastern District of Michigan said female genital mutilation constitutes a particularly brutal form of violence against women and girls.

"It is also a serious federal felony in the United States. The practice has no place in modern society and those who perform FGM on minors will be held accountable under federal law," Lemisch said.

COMPLAINT AGAINST JUMANA NAGARWALA

The complaint said federal agents reviewed Nagarwala's telephone records and further investigation revealed that parents of two minor girls had traveled to Michigan.

The girls were later interviewed by a forensic expert and one of the girls said she was told she was coming to Detroit for a "special" girls trip, but after arriving at the hotel, she learned that she and the other girl had to go to the doctor because "our tummies hurt"..The girls had been taken to Nagarwala, who performed the procedure on the girls.

The World Health Organisation said female genital mutilation comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.

More than 200 million girls and women alive today have been cut in 30 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia where FGM is concentrated.

WHO said FGM, which is mostly carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15, is a violation of the human rights of girls and women.

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Agencies
May 28,2020

Washington, May 28: US President Donald Trump has warned social media giants that his government could "strongly regulate" or "close them down" after Twitter fact-checked one of his tweets for the first time.

"Republicans feel that Social Media Platforms totally silence conservatives voices," Xinhua news agency reported citing Trump as saying in a tweet to his 80 million followers on Wednesday.

"We will strongly regulate, or close them down, before we can ever allow this to happen."

Later in the day, he said that Twitter "has now shown everything we have been saying about them... is correct" and vowed "big action to follow".

The President's remarks came after Twitter slapped a warning label on one of his tweets on Tuesday, cautioning readers "Trump makes unsubstantiated claim that mail-in ballots will lead to voter fraud".

It was in response to Trump's tweet, without providing evidence, said: "There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent."

Also Read: Obama was ‘grossly incompetent president’, says Donald Trump
It is unclear what regulatory steps the president could take without new laws passed by Congress, the BBC reported.

The White House is yet to offer further details.

Earlier, Trump has accused Twitter of interfering in this year's US presidential election scheduled for November, saying the company was "completely stifling free speech, and I, as president, will not allow it to happen".

With more than 52,000 tweets currently to his name, Trump is a prolific tweeter and relies on the platform to disseminate his views to millions of people.

He has used Twitter to launch attacks on opponents, with targets ranging from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to his political rivals in the US.

In 2017 he used anti-Muslim tweets aimed at London Mayor Sadiq Khan to serve a domestic political purpose of warning about immigration.

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News Network
February 27,2020

Washington, Feb 27: President Donald Trump has said that the US' relationship with India is "extraordinary" right now and a lot of progress was made in bilateral ties during his maiden official visit to the country where America will be doing a lot of business.

Talking to reporters, after his return from India on Wednesday, Trump said, "He (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) is a great gentleman, a great leader. It's an incredible country."

President Trump visited India from February 24 to 25. He was accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, daughter Ivanka Trump, son-in-law Jared Kushner and the top brass of his administration, including national security advisor Robert O'Brien.

They visited Ahmedabad, Agra and New Delhi before leaving for Washington on Tuesday.

During his stay, he addressed a massive rally in Ahmedabad, visited Agra and held official meetings in New Delhi.

The US President was feted at the world's largest cricket stadium in the "Namaste Trump" event in Ahmedabad and was cheered by tens of thousands of people.

"We were treated very, very well and we really enjoyed it. A lot of tremendous progress was made in terms of relationship - our relationship with India is extraordinary right now," he said.

"We are going to be doing a lot of business with India, they are sending billions and billions of dollars now to the United States," Trump said in response to a question.

In a tweet, his daughter Ivanka said that, Trump announced that US international development finance corporation "will establish a permanent presence in India to strengthen our economic ties, improve development plus further women's economic empowerment through WGDP (Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative)!"

On her arrival from India, she thanked PM Modi for "your warm hospitality as we visited your beautiful country and celebrated the strength, spirit and unity of the US and India!"

"Throughout our visit we saw monumental achievements of human creativity and proof of the infinite capacity of the human heart!" she said.

The first lady tweeted two pictures of her with Trump facing the Taj Mahal in Agra.

"One of the Seven Wonders of the World, the breathtaking Taj Mahal!" she said.

President Trump "reaffirmed the strong strategic partnership, vibrant economic ties and expanding security relationship between our two countries. Wonderful trip, but glad to be home! Thank you India!" said White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham.

During the visit, India and the US on Tuesday finalised defence deals worth $3 billion under which 30 military helicopters will be procured from two American defence majors for Indian armed forces.

The deals will include procurement of 24 MH-60 Romeo helicopters by India from the US at a cost of $2.6 billion. Another contract to acquire six AH-64E Apache helicopters for $800 million from the US is also on the table.

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June 1,2020

Washington, Jun 1: As protesters gathered outside the White House on Friday night in Washington DC, US President Donald Trump was briefly taken to the White House underground bunker, The New York Times reported citing a person having firsthand knowledge about the incident.

Trump was there for less than an hour before being brought upstairs. After hundreds of people surged towards the White House on Friday, Secret Service and the United States Park Police officers sought to block them.

Trump's team was surprised by the protests that were witnessed outside the White House on Friday night, according to the US daily. It is, however, unclear if Melania Trump and Barron Trump were also taken down with him.

in response to the continuing protests against the death of African-American man George Floyd in police custody.

National Guard members have been activated in 15 states and Washington, DC with another 2,000 prepared to activate if needed.

Demonstrators across the United States have been protesting since May 25, when George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, died under the police custody in the city of Minneapolis.

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