Daily News Brief

 

February 7, 2024 (Wednesday)

Asia Pacific

1.          Australian Writer Yang Hengjun Sentenced to Death on China Spy Charges. Australian writer Yang Hengjun, who was arrested in China on espionage charges in 2019, has been handed a suspended death sentence by a court in Beijing.          

2.       China Coast Guard Vessels Enter Disputed Waters in East China Sea. China's Coast Guard said it patrolled the waters of the Diaoyu Islands, also known as the Senkaku Islands. The islands, which lie in the East China Sea, are jointly claimed by China, Japan and Taiwan.

Russia/Europe/West

3.       Ukraine Claims Blowing Up Drilling Platform Used by Russia in Drone Attacks. Ukraine said a group of its special forces blew up a drilling platform in the Black Sea that Russia was using to enhance the range of its drones.               

4.       Ukraine Arrests Intelligence Officers Allegedly Spying for Russia. Ukraine said it had arrested five former and current intelligence officers it said were secretly working for Russia as part of a powerful spy ring.     

India/South Asia

5.       8 Killed, Over 80 Injured in Madhya Pradesh Firecracker Factory Blast. Senior district police official Rajeshwari Mahobia told AFP there were “eight deaths so far and around 80 injured”, at the factory in Harda in Madhya Pradesh state, adding that “the death toll is likely to go up”.

6.       Mumbai Tense after Arrest of Renowned Islamic Preacher. The detention of prominent Islamic Preacher Mufti Salman Azhari by the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad has ignited tensions in Mumbai, leading to widespread protests by outside in the city.          

7.       Maldives Vows to Boost Defences after Telling Indian Troops to Leave. Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu said in his first address to parliament he would turn the modest Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF) into a modern military capable of patrolling its seas, which straddle key global shipping lanes.

IIOJK

8.       Indian Police Arrest Kashmiri Youth in New Delhi. According to Kashmir Media Service, police arrested the Kashmiri man, identified as Riyaz Ahmad, at New Delhi Railway.

9.      Over 96,290 Lives Lost in IIOJK as International Silence Prolongs. A comprehensive report released by the Kashmir Media Service, removes the lid from the gravity of the deepening human rights crisis in the occupied territory. The figures speak volumes, with more than 96,290 Kashmiris, spanning across generations, having lost their lives since the eruption of the ongoing phase of resistance against India’s illegal occupation in 1989.   

Afghanistan

10.      Kabul’s Expectations of Pakistan Need to Be Clarified: PM Kakar. The prime minister of the caretaker government of Pakistan, Anwar ul-Haq Kakar, said that the expectations of Kabul and Islamabad should be clarified based on strategic interest.

11.      Posting of UN Special Envoy for Afghanistan Against UN Law: Taliban. The Islamic Emirate spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that the appointment of the UN special envoy for Afghanistan, a vacancy approved in the 2721 resolution by the UNSC in December 2023, is contrary to the law of the United Nations.

Middle East/Africa

12.      Minor Damage to Ship Hit by Projectile Off Yemen’s Hodeidah Coast. A cargo ship in the Red Sea suffered minor damage after being hit by a projectile while sailing off the coast of Yemen’s Hodeidah, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency and British maritime security firm Ambrey said.

13.      Antony Blinken Heads to Egypt to Seek ‘Enduring End’ to Gaza War. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due in Egypt as part of a Middle East crisis tour seeking a new truce and “an enduring end” to the Israel-Hamas war.

Iran

14.      No Iranians Killed in Retaliatory Strikes on IRGC, Militias: Pentagon.  The Pentagon’s initial assessment is that no Iranians were killed in the US airstrikes last week, which Washington said were the first of many attacks to come in retaliation for a deadly drone attack on American troops last month.

15.      Iran, Saudi Military Officials Stress Boosting Defense Ties. Brigadier General Bahman Behmard, deputy head of operations at the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, and Saudi Chief of General Staff General Fayyad bin Hamed al-Ruwaili met on the sidelines of the World Defense Show 2024 in Riyadh.

PAKISTAN

Security

16.      Flag March Held in Seven NA Constituencies. Pakistan Army, Rangers, Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), traffic police and other law enforcement agencies carried out a flag march in seven constituencies of the National Assembly in Rawalpindi district as part of their preparedness to maintain peace during the elections.

17.      PPP Candidate Injured after Gun Attack in Mirpur Khas. A candidate of the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP), Zulfiqar Shah, from Mirpur Khas reportedly got injured in a gun attack in the vicinity of Taluka Police Station.

Economy

18.      Federal Cabinet Approves Restructuring of National Carrier. With just two days to go for general elections, the federal cabinet on Tuesday approved the restructuring of national flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

19.      Caretakers Make Record Borrowing from Banks. The economy, already crushed under a huge debt burden, may witness an unprecedented increase in borrowings at the end of 2023-24 on 30 June as the amount has already surpassed the total borrowed in the entire FY23.

Politics

20.      PTI Seeks Review of SC Ruling on Intra-Party Elections. Senior lawyers Hamid Khan and Ali Zafar have filed the petition in the top court making the electoral watchdog and the complainants in the high court as respondents.