Israel deploys 100 sharpshooters on Gaza border ahead of Palestinian protests

Agencies
March 28, 2018

Jerusalem, Mar 28: Gen. Gadi Eisenkot Gadi Eizenkot , the Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, has warned that his army has been given authorization to open fire ahead of mass protests on the Gaza border planned for Friday.

Eisenkot said reinforcements, including special forces snipers, had been deployed to the border to counter what he said was the most serious risk of conflict since he took up his post in 2015.

A series of incidents in recent days, including two infiltrations, one by three armed Palestinians who penetrated some 20 kilometers (12 miles) inside Israel, has already sent tensions soaring on the volatile frontier.

Friday’s mass rallies near the border fence mark the start of more than six weeks of planned protests leading up to the inauguration of the new US embassy in Jerusalem around May 14.

US President Donald Trump’s recognition of the disputed city as Israel’s capital in December has infuriated Palestinians who claim its annexed eastern sector as the capital of their future state.

Gazans are being urged to set up a string of protest camps along the Israeli border, each some 100 meters (yards) from the security fence, and the army is braced for attempts to break through.

“We won’t allow mass infiltration into Israel and to damage the fence, and certainly not to reach the communities,” Eisenkot told the mass-circulation Yediot Aharonot newspaper.

“The instructions are to use a lot of force,” he said.

“We’ve deployed more than 100 snipers who have been drafted from all the army’s units, mainly from the special units. In the event of mortal danger, there is authorization to open fire.”

Hamas, the Islamist group which controls Gaza, has fought three wars with Israel since 2008, the most recent of which in 2014 ended with a fragile truce.

Asked whether he feared a new conflict, Eisenkot said: “The chance of that happening is greater this year than it was in the first three years of my term.

“There are a lot of negative vectors in the region that are pushing toward a conflict.”

Eisenkot gave a similar warning in a separate interview with left-leaning newspaper Haaretz.

“An explosive, sensitive situation is developing in the entire Middle East, but especially among the Palestinians,” he said.

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News Network
April 11,2020

Dubai, Apr 11: The UAE has conducted over 49,000 Covid-19 tests among UAE citizens and residents, it was revealed on Friday, using state-of-the-art technology in line with the 's plans to intensify virus screening in order to bring the disease under control.

The accelerated investigative measures helped detect 370 new coronavirus cases among various nationalities, all of whom are in a stable condition and receiving the necessary care.

This took the total number of infections in the country to 3,360, according to a MoHaP statement.

The Ministry also revealed the death of two patients suffering from Covid-19. Both of the deceased were Asian nationals and had pre-existing chronic illnesses. The total number of deaths has now reached 16.

The Ministry expressed its sincere condolences to the families of the deceased and wished a speedy recovery to all patients, calling on the public to cooperate with health authorities and comply with all precautionary measures, particularly social distancing protocols, to ensure the safety and protection of the public.

The Ministry also announced the full recovery of 150 new cases after receiving the necessary treatment, taking to 418 the total of those now recovered from the virus in the UAE.

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Agencies
July 5,2020

Iraq’s deputy parliament speaker Hassan Karim al-Kaabi on Saturday described the move as provocative and in violation of international law.

Kaabi also called on the Iraqi government to take swift measures to halt such actions.

The Embassy’s move to fire in a residential area in the heart of Baghdad is an unacceptable act and another challenge for the Arab country, adding to the mass of its provocations and illegal actions in Iraq, he noted.

According to Iraqi media, the US tested a patriot missile system inside Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone.

Anti-US sentiments have been running high in Iraq since Washington assassinated top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani and the second-in-command of the Iraqi popular mobilization units, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, in January.

Following the attack, Iraqi lawmakers unanimously approved a bill on January 5, demanding the withdrawal of all foreign troops.

Baghdad and Washington are currently in talks over the withdrawal of American troops. Iraqi resistance groups have vowed to take up arms against US forces if Washington fails to comply with the parliamentary order.

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Agencies
January 25,2020

Jammu, Jan 25: People in Jammu and Kashmir expressed happiness over the restoration of mobile data services and internet access through fixed-line across the Union Territory on Saturday.

Speaking to ANI Jitendra Sharma, a resident of Jammu said, "The government has taken a good decision. People had been facing hardship for a long period and I think it will improve further."

"It is a big relief to people. People can finish their pending work. I hope that 4G services will also be resumed soon," said a resident of Kashmir.

The internet speed is restricted to 2G only.

"Access shall be limited only to whitelisted sites and not to any social media applications allowing peer to peer communication and virtual private network applications. Directions shall be effective from January 25 and will remain in force till January 31," the statement by the government read.

Earlier on January 15, 2G services were reinstated in Jammu, Samba, Kathua, and Udhampur for white-listed sites.

The Central government had suspended the internet in the region following the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution on August 5 last year, which conferred special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, and its bifurcation into two Union Territories -- Ladakh, and Jammu and Kashmir.

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