‘Fighting is all around’: Myanmar faces deepening humanitarian crisis
In late October, Sai Lam had an uneasy feeling. The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), an ethnic armed organisation operating in Myanmar’s northern Shan State, was massing forces near his village on the Chinese border and he sensed that fighting was imminent. So the 27-year-old, who had already secured a job in the construction sector in China’s Yunnan province in order to support his family, decided to expedite his plan. He travelled from his village near the town of Mong Ko up to the border gate of Muse, and then crossed into China province using a temporary border pass. His wife and mother, meanwhile, stayed behind to look after their farmland and newborn baby. Days later, the MNDAA, together with its allies the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and the Arakan Army, launched Operation 1027, a joint offensive on military outposts in northern Shan State. Sai Lam’s family were forced to flee at dawn on October 27. They returned 10 days later, after the MNDAA had declared control over Mong Ko and the surrounding villages. Although the situation around Mong Ko has calmed, the military has relentlessly attacked other areas where it has lost ground, including the nearby town of Namkham, which it bombed on December 1 and again a week later. Worrying that the military could also attack Mong Ko, Sai Lam wants to bring his family to China, but they are unable to flee, because the roads out are now inaccessible due to the fighting. “They are still very scared and alert at all times because the military often fires heavy artillery and bombs from jets,” he said. Despite the challenges his family has endured, Sai Lam continues to support the ongoing resistance to the military, which seized power from the elected government in February 2021. “We are being oppressed, so we don’t want the military to win,” he said. “We expect that if the military loses and local resistance forces gain control, we may have more freedom and opportunities.” The Loikaw Local People’s Defence Force (PDF) preparing to go to the front line in Myanmar’s east [File: AFP] He and others interviewed for this report have been given pseudonyms due to the risk of military retaliation. Since the start of Operation 1027, Myanmar has seen the most significant escalation in hostilities across the country since the coup, which sparked a widespread armed uprising. Resistance forces have in recent weeks managed to overtake hundreds of military outposts, including strategic border crossings with China and India. They are also closing in on Loikaw, the Karenni State capital, as well as Laukkai, an enclave notorious for transnational human trafficking and online scams. Analysts now say that the military is at its weakest since the coup, with some even suggesting its imminent collapse. But alongside resistance gains, there has been a serious humanitarian cost. From October 26 to December 8, more than 578,000 people were newly displaced on top of nearly 2 million who were already displaced before the surge in fighting according to the United Nations, which said 363 civilians had been killed and 461 injured since late October. And at a time when UN agencies and international nongovernmental organisations have struggled to reach affected populations, it is community-based organisations, charity groups and local volunteers who are taking life-threatening risks to help civilians. “We all know that doing this kind of work is very dangerous, but if we don’t do it, there’s no one,” said Nway Thitsar, who works with a Christian faith-based organisation operating in northern Shan State to deliver food aid. “I can hear the sounds of bombing and gunfire all the time,” she added. “[But] I’m still safe enough that I can help people facing danger.” No refuge Even before the start of Operation 1027, Myanmar was experiencing unprecedented levels of armed conflict and a humanitarian crisis. Within months of the coup, autonomy-seeking ethnic armed organisations had joined forces with newly-formed groups, commonly known as people’s defence forces, to drive the military from power and establish a federal democracy. In response, the military scaled up its use of “four cuts,” a strategy it has long employed against ethnic minorities in the country’s border areas and which seeks to starve resistance groups of food, funds, intelligence and recruits by going after their civilian support base. Since the coup, it has bombed schools, hospitals and displacement camps across the country, burned tens of thousands of homes, and committed widespread atrocities including torture and mass executions, according to the UN. In March this year, its human rights office found that the military’s use of four cuts was driving a “perpetual human rights crisis” across Myanmar. The crisis has only worsened in recent weeks. In Shan State, some of the most intense fighting has been near Laukkai, one of several criminal hubs along Myanmar’s eastern border run by Chinese gangs. Capitalising on China’s desire to crack down on the industry, which also involves the large-scale trafficking of Chinese nationals, resistance groups have declared combating cybercrime as one of their goals. As they close in on Laukkai, the city has seen a mass exodus, but those fleeing face a perilous journey. On November 11 and 22, shelling killed multiple civilians as they attempted to leave by car. There are also few places of refuge. About 40,000 people have taken shelter in an autonomous region run by the United Wa State Army, Myanmar’s most powerful ethnic armed organisation, but most displaced people are stranded. About 50,000 are camping under tarpaulin sheets at the border, where China built an electrified metal fence topped with razor wire during the pandemic. On November 25, Chinese authorities fired tear gas to disperse the displaced, but most have nowhere else to go. Some people also remain trapped in Laukkai, where many are squatting in unfinished construction sites, according to Nway Thitsar, whose organisation is working to send them food in spite of roadblocks, checkpoints, telecommunications outages and active conflict. Their funds are also being syphoned off on inflated fuel costs. “If
Trump jabs at Hunter Biden skipping congressional deposition: ‘Went to the wrong place’
Former President Trump jabbed at President Biden’s son Hunter Biden for skipping his closed-door congressional deposition on Wednesday. Trump took a shot at the younger Biden during his Iowa speech Wednesday night, joking that the presidential scion “went to the wrong place” on Capitol Hill. The former president joked that Hunter went to the Senate side of the U.S. Capitol when he should have gone to the House side. JUDGE PAUSES JAN. 6 CASE AGAINST TRUMP AMID FORMER PRESIDENT’S APPEAL TO DISMISS “Did you see Hunter today, right?” Trump said. “He went to the wrong place. He went to the Senate instead of the House.” “Everyone’s saying, ‘Where’s Hunter?’ See, it always gets, ‘Where’s Hunter?’” the former president continued. “What a two-tier system of justice we have.” Trump’s comments came the same day that the younger Biden skipped his House deposition, instead giving a press conference on the Senate side of the Capitol. While they occupy the same building, the House and Senate are separate parts of the Legislative Branch. On Capitol Hill, the House has no authority on the Senate side and vice-versa. The presidential scion is facing intense backlash after holding a Capitol Hill press conference on Wednesday in which he refused to sit for a deposition before Congress, and declared his father, President Biden, was never “financially involved” in his business dealings. Calls to hold Hunter in contempt of Congress began almost immediately following the end of the press conference, while other critics pointed to the claims concerning his father’s relationship to his business dealings as “goalpost shifting.” “They belittled my recovery, and they have tried to dehumanize me, all to embarrass my father, who has devoted his entire life to public service,” Hunter said. “For six years I have been a target of the unrelenting Trump attack team. ‘Where’s Hunter?’ Well, here’s my answer. I am here.” He added that “my father was not financially involved in my business,” saying the elder Biden was not involved in his dealings with Ukrainian natural gas firm Burisma Holdings, or his Chinese investments and others in the United States. Biden’s campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Six Indian fishermen detained by Sri Lankan Navy; second incident within a week
“The Navy continues to conduct regular patrols and operations in Sri Lankan waters to curb illegal fishing practices by foreign fishing trawlers, taking into account the consequences of these practices on the livelihood of local fishermen and marine resources of the country,” the release stated.
Parliament breach: Police reaches house in Gurugram, where four accused stayed before incident
Resident Welfare Association (RWA) president Vijay Parmar told ANI that one of the accused, Vicky Sharma, the father of a 14-year-old, used to do odd jobs and did not have a stable job.
Thousands of migrants wait a few hours south of Eagle Pass, Texas, to catch trains headed for southern border
Thousands of migrants lined railroad tracks as a freight train passed about three hours south of Eagle Pass, Texas, in Piedras Negras, Mexico, waiting for a chance to jump aboard to the southern border, where they are expected to arrive in the coming days. Border Patrol agents are already overwhelmed and dealing with unprecedented numbers of migrants, and according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sources, migrant encounters topped 10,000 in a single day on Tuesday. Last week, there were over 12,000 migrant encounters in a single day, breaking daily records and still at levels overwhelming agents on the ground. MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS HIT DAILY RECORD AT SOUTHERN BORDER, AS WASHINGTON STRUGGLES TO AGREE ON SOLUTIONS In the Tucson and Del Rio Sectors, agents saw 3,000 and 2,700 encounters respectively, with both sectors more than 200% over capacity. On Saturday, Fox reported that lawmakers were briefed by officials that over 5,000 illegal immigrants are currently being released into the U.S. each day, in addition to the 1,600 migrants who arrived at ports of entry and are being processed and released via the use of humanitarian parole each day under the CBP One app. Agents are seeing migrants from over 150 countries, lawmakers were told. On Tuesday, sources said there were more than 190 Chinese nationals encountered in the San Diego sector, while there were more than 120 encounters of nationals from Guinea in the Tucson Sector. 5,000 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RELEASED EVERY DAY INTO US, ADMIN OFFICIALS PRIVATELY TELL LAWMAKERS In FY23, agents saw record-breaking numbers, with 2.4 million encounters. Then, as FY24 kicked off, agents continued to see records broken in September and October. There is little sign that the numbers are slowing, though typically they drop over the winter months. The Tucson Sector, which has been at the center of the most recent migrant surge that has seen hundreds of mostly male adult migrants queued up against the border fence, agents are outmanned 200 to 1 in the field, officials said. JORDAN SUBPOENAS MAYORKAS FOR CASE FILES OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WITH MURDER, TERROR CHARGES The Biden administration has been calling for additional border funding from Congress with a $14 billion request, which includes funding for migrant care, costs related to expedited removal and help for cities. But that has been blocked so far as Republicans seek limits on releases into the U.S. by increasing asylum screening standards and reducing parole use — proposals at which some Democrats have balked. The administration has said overall that it is dealing with a hemisphere-wide crisis and needs funding and immigration reform to fix what it says is a broken system. The administration has touted a significant expansion of “lawful migration pathways” while also claiming it has increased consequences for illegal entry in the wake of the end of Title 42 in May. Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw and Bill Melugin contributed to this report.
Biden’s impeachment inquiry response urges GOP to address ‘important priorities,’ like the border crisis
President Biden on Wednesday said the southern border needs to be addressed as record numbers of migrants continue to overwhelm authorities while criticizing House Republicans over their impeachment inquiry into the business dealings of his son, Hunter Biden. In a statement released by the White House, Biden responded to the Republican-led House formally approving the impeachment inquiry. “The American people need their leaders in Congress to take action on important priorities for the nation and world,” the president said, before saying Congress should do more on a host of issues, including on Ukraine, Israel, the border, and the economy. On the border specifically, Biden said, “We have to address the situation at our southern border, and I am determined to try to fix the problem. We need funding to strengthen border security, but Republicans in Congress won’t act to help.” Republicans have long called for increased border measures, arguing the record number of migrants poses a security threat as border authorities cannot properly screen them. MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AGAIN TOP 10K IN SINGLE DAY AS LAWMAKERS EYE NEW BORDER LIMITS Last week, a 49-51 Senate vote to issue billions of dollars in military and security aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific fell short because Republicans wanted the president to focus on the border. Biden has asked Congress for nearly $106 billion to fund the wars in Ukraine and Israel and other security needs. On Wednesday, Biden noted that he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week. “He came to America to ask us for help. Yet Republicans in Congress won’t act to help,” he said. HUNTER BIDEN CASE MOVE TO LOS ANGELES MAY BE EVIDENCE THE FEDS ‘FOUND SOMETHING’: DERSHOWITZ Biden has signaled his willingness to make some compromises at the border, but has not said what policies he would embrace. He’s accused Republicans of wanting a political issue ahead of the 2024 presidential election more than bipartisan compromise. “Republicans think they get everything they want without any bipartisan compromise,” Biden said last week. “Now they’re willing to literally kneecap Ukraine on the battlefield and damage our national security in the process.” The president also accused the GOP of attacking his family amid a probe into his son. Hunter Biden on Wednesday defied a subpoena and refused to testify in front of House lawmakers about his business activities. He has maintained that his father was not involved in those deals. CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “They belittled my recovery, and they have tried to dehumanize me, all to embarrass my father, who has devoted his entire life to public service,” the younger Biden said at a news conference on Capitol Hill. “For six years I have been a target of the unrelenting Trump attack team. ‘Where’s Hunter?’ Well, here’s my answer. I am here.” President Biden said Republicans were “choosing to waste time on this baseless political stunt that even Republicans in Congress admit is not supported by facts.”
Tesla recalls nearly all US vehicles over autopilot system defects
The firm’s largest-ever recall comes after a two-year investigation by federal safety regulator focused on autopilot function. Tesla is recalling more than two million cars in the United States, nearly all of its vehicles sold there, after a federal regulator said defects with the autopilot system pose a safety hazard. In a recall filing on Wednesday, the carmaker said autopilot software system controls “may not be sufficient to prevent driver misuse”. “Automated technology holds great promise for improving safety but only when it is deployed responsibly,” said a spokesperson for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which has been investigating the autopilot function for more than two years. “Today’s action is an example of improving automated systems by prioritizing safety.” The decision marks the largest-ever recall for Tesla, as autonomous vehicle development in the US hits a series of snags over safety concerns. The company has said that it will install new safeguards and fix current defects. The recall covers models Y, S, 3 and X produced between October 5, 2012, and December 7, 2023. Speaking before the US House of Representatives on Wednesday, acting NHTSA Administrator Ann Carlson said she was happy Tesla had agreed to a recall. She said that the agency first started investigating Tesla’s autopilot function in August 2021 after hearing about several fatal crashes that occurred when the autopilot was on. “One of the things we determined is that drivers are not always paying attention when that system is on,” she said. Documents posted on Wednesday by the agency said the current autopilot design can lead to “foreseeable misuse of the system,” and that the changes to be instituted will “further encourage the driver to adhere to their continuous driving responsibility”. Some experts have raised questions over whether such steps go far enough. “The compromise is disappointing,” Phil Koopman, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University who studies autonomous vehicle safety, told The Associated Press. “Because it does not fix the problem that the older cars do not have adequate hardware for driver monitoring.” Driverless cars, exalted by supporters as an exciting technological advancement, have faced a series of setbacks in recent months. In October, California suspended testing by the self-driving car firm Cruise, after California’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) raised questions about safety concerns. Adblock test (Why?)
What to know about Turkey’s football crisis after attack on referee
Turkey is set to resume its league football on Tuesday, ending a brief suspension in the domestic competition caused by an attack on a referee by a club’s president who was later arrested by local authorities. Turkish football’s “night of shame” has caused the country’s most popular sport to spiral into a crisis and has raised questions about on-pitch violence towards match officials. Here’s a look at the events that unfolded since the violent incident in Ankara: What happened during and after the match? The Turkish Super Lig match between MKA Ankaragucu and Caykur Rizespor ended in a 1-1 draw on Monday after the visitors equalised in the last minute of added time. After the full-time whistle was blown, Ankaragucu President Faruk Koca rushed onto the pitch with a group of men and knocked out referee Halil Umut Meler with a blow to the left side of his face. Meler was kicked several times in the ensuing melee, which occurred when fans invaded the pitch. The 37-year-old match official was shown standing minutes later with a black eye that had swelled up the left part of his face. He eventually made it to the dressing room with the help of the police. Why was the referee attacked? Koca appeared to be incensed at Meler for sending off one of his players and then awarding a stoppage-time goal that allowed Rizespor to leave Ankara with a draw. Meler released a statement on Tuesday saying Koca had threatened his life. “Faruk Koca punched me under my left eye, and I fell to the ground. While I was on the ground, they kicked my face and other parts of my body many times,” Meler said. “[He] told me and my fellow referees: ‘I will finish you.’ Addressing me in particular, he said: ‘I will kill you.’” Meler was released from hospital in Ankara on Wednesday after undergoing observation and receiving a phone call from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Meler, a respected referee with accreditation to officiate international matches, is expected to recover and join the refereeing crew of the Euro 2024 championship, to be held from June to July in Germany. Halil Umut Meler leaves the hospital in Ankara on December 13, 2023 [Cagla Gurdogan/Reuters] Who is Faruk Koca? MKE Ankaragucu’s Koca is a politician, former parliamentarian, aspiring Ankara mayor and member of Erdogan’s AK Party. “If I am entrusted with the task of being the metropolitan municipality mayor, I will do what is necessary,” Koca said this year. However, the ruling party has initiated procedures to expel Koca. Since the incident, Koca has resigned as club president – a role he took up in 2021 – but insists that his team was cheated by the referee. “No matter how great an injustice or how wrong [the officiating] was, nothing can legitimise or explain the violence that I perpetrated,” Koca said in a club statement. “I apologise to the Turkish refereeing community, the sports public and our nation,” he added. Turkish Football Federation (TFF) chief Mehmet Buyukeksi said the sport’s governing body will announce penalties for the altercation. Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said Koca and two others were formally arrested for “injuring a public official” after prosecutors took statements from them. “The investigation is continuing meticulously,” he said on the social media platform X. Turkey’s president was also quick to condemn the incident. “Sports means peace and brotherhood. The sport is incompatible with violence. We will never allow violence to take place in Turkish sports,” Erdogan wrote on X. What has FIFA said? FIFA President Gianni Infantino said the events after the match were “totally unacceptable and have no place in our sport or society”. “Without match officials, there is no football,” he added. European football’s governing body, UEFA, also condemned the incident. “We urge the authorities and the responsible disciplinary bodies to take decisive and necessary action against anyone involved in acts of abuse and violence against referees,” UEFA said. Statement from FIFA President Gianni Infantino: 🔗 https://t.co/mBhi38Nf40 pic.twitter.com/YqJ3KqeWqy — FIFA Media (@fifamedia) December 12, 2023 Matches were suspended indefinitely hours after the incident, but on Wednesday, the TFF said action will resume next week. Is there a history of violent attacks on referees and match officials? Violence in football is commonplace in Turkey despite efforts to clamp down on it although direct attacks on top-level referees are rare. Still, Buyukeksi blamed the attack on a culture of contempt towards referees. “Everyone who has targeted referees and encouraged them to commit crimes is complicit in this despicable attack,” he said. “The irresponsible statements of club presidents, managers, coaches and television commentators targeting referees have opened the way for this attack.” Pierluigi Collina, chairman of FIFA’s referees committee, said the incident was horrific. “Neither the referee nor the man deserved to live the experience he lived yesterday in Ankara. He was doing his job when he was assaulted on the field of play at the end of a match he just officiated,” Collina said on Tuesday. Hugh Dallas, Turkish Super Lig’s head of referee education, was in the stadium when the incident happened and has called for governments to take action. Referees in Turkey are often criticised by club managers and presidents for their decisions. “I think a lot of club presidents, media and others will take a look at themselves today and realise when you whip up that type of mass hysteria regarding refereeing, this is the result,” he told the BBC. “There has to be legislation and punishments put in place for clubs, players, owners or whoever when they behave in such a manner because it definitely can’t continue.” Adblock test (Why?)
Letter accuses US security agency of turning ‘blind eye’ to Gaza suffering
Washington, DC – More than a hundred staff members from the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have signed an open letter to Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas denouncing the department’s handling of the war in Gaza. The letter, exclusively obtained by Al Jazeera, expresses frustration with the “palpable, glaring absence in the Department’s messaging” of “recognition, support, and mourning” for the more than 18,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since the start of the war on October 7. “The grave humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the conditions in the West Bank are circumstances that the Department would generally respond to in various ways,” the letter, dated November 22, said. “Yet DHS leadership has seemingly turned a blind eye to the bombing of refugee camps, hospitals, ambulances, and civilians.” The letter’s signatories include 139 staff members from DHS and the agencies it manages, like Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). But some staff members “elected to sign this letter anonymously” for fear of backlash, the document explained. It called for DHS to “provide a fair and balanced representation of the situation, and allow for respectful expression without the fear of professional repercussions”. DHS did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment by the time of publication. The letter is the latest indication of fractures within the administration of President Joe Biden, who has faced internal criticism for his government’s stance on the Gaza war. Last month, more than 500 officials from 40 government agencies issued an anonymous letter pushing Biden to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Another letter, signed by 1,000 employees from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), expressed a similar appeal. But Biden has been reluctant to criticise Israel’s ongoing military offensive in Gaza, instead pledging his “rock solid and unwavering” support for the longtime US ally. In an internal message on November 2, Mayorkas echoed Biden’s stance. He denounced the “horrific terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7”, perpetrated by the Palestinian group Hamas, but made no mention of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. “The impacts [of October 7] continue to sweep through Jewish, Arab American, Muslim and other communities everywhere,” Mayorkas wrote. “I am heartened knowing that our Department is on the front lines of protecting our communities from antisemitism, Islamophobia, and other forms of bigotry and hate.” US President Joe Biden has expressed ‘unwavering’ support for Israel as it conducts a months-long military offensive in Gaza [Leah Millis/Reuters] But two DHS staff members who spoke to Al Jazeera on the condition of anonymity felt that department leadership should be going further to address the mounting death toll in Gaza, where civilians remain under Israeli siege. United Nations experts have already warned of a “grave risk of genocide” in the territory, as supplies run low and bombs continue to fall. “I’ve been very dedicated to the federal government,” one anonymous DHS official said. “I’ve served in different capacities. I very much believed in our mission. “And then, after October 7, I feel like there has just been a drastic shift in this expectation of what we’re supposed to do when there’s a humanitarian crisis and what we’re actually doing when there’s politics involved, and that has a very, very scary, chilling impact.” The staff’s open letter calls for DHS to take actions in Gaza “commensurate with past responses to humanitarian tragedies”, including through the creation of a humanitarian parole programme for Palestinians in the territory. That would allow them to temporarily enter the US “based on urgent humanitarian or significant public benefit reasons”. The letter also pushed DHS to designate residents of the Palestinian territories eligible for “temporary protected status” or TPS. That would permit Palestinians already in the US to remain in the country and qualify for employment authorisation. Such programmes have been put in place for other conflicts, including for Ukrainians facing full-scale invasion from Russia. Last month, 106 members of Congress — including Senator Dick Durbin and Representatives Pramila Jayapal and Jerry Nadler — even sent a letter to Biden, urging a TPS designation for the Palestinian territories. Biden has been criticised for offering temporary protected status for Ukrainians but not for Palestinians in Gaza [Evan Vucci/AP Photo] But one of the anonymous DHS officials who spoke with Al Jazeera said that, although there has been discussion about a possible TPS designation, action seems unlikely. “There have been a lot of serious systemic and programmatic obstacles driven purely by politics,” she said. Part of the challenge is that the US does not recognise Palestine as a foreign state, putting its eligibility for TPS in doubt. “We don’t recognise Palestine as a state. We don’t code them with that,” the DHS official explained. “And that’s something across Customs and Border Protection, ICE and USCIS. There have just been obstacles raised at the highest levels of those agencies.” The official suspects she knows why. “They’re worried about their own operations in terms of removing or deporting people to Gaza and the West Bank, if they were to change these codes.” But that inaction has levied a steep toll on employees’ mental health, according to the DHS officials Al Jazeera spoke to. One described how colleagues with family in Gaza had received no support from DHS leadership as they tried to bring their relatives to safety. The other, a senior staff member who has spent more than a decade working for the federal government, described having nightmares of losing his own children. He said he wakes up “with the knowledge that we’re not actually doing all that we can to provide programmes and relief for the Palestinians”. “It’s definitely distressing and dispiriting to feel like, for political considerations, we’re not addressing [the conflict] in the same way that we would other previous, recent humanitarian crises, for instance, like Ukraine.” Houses are left in ruin after an Israeli air strike in Rafah, part of the southern Gaza
Bhajan Lal to take oath as Rajasthan CM tomorrow; PM Modi, Amit Shah to attend swearing-in ceremony
The swearing-in ceremony of Bhajan Lal Sharma, the chief minister-designate, and his deputies Diya Kumari and Prem Chand Bairwa, will be held on Friday. The three will be administered oath by Governor Kalraj Mishra.