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Myanmar’s NUG says anti-coup forces ‘edging closer’ to defeating generals

Myanmar’s NUG says anti-coup forces ‘edging closer’ to defeating generals

Myanmar’s anti-coup forces say they are moving closer to victory over the generals who seized power in a coup three years ago, energised by the successes of a major offensive that began at the end of October. Speaking from an undisclosed location inside Myanmar at an online forum, NUG Acting President Duwa Lashi La said anti-coup forces had made “stunning gains” since the start of Operation 1027, which was launched late last year by an alliance of ethnic armed groups and resistance fighters. “After three years, the Spring Revolution is stronger than ever,” Duwa Lashi La said on Tuesday. “With each passing day, we are edging closer to victory. The criminal military will never crush the will of the people.” The NUG includes elected politicians who were removed in the February 2021 coup and established the so-called Peoples’ Defence Force (PDF) of civilians, after the military responded with brutal force against peaceful protests against its power grab. Duwa Lashi La added that the military was facing an increasing rate of desertion that was a “deep humiliation for the junta”. As anti-coup forces advance in multiple areas of the country taking control of military outposts and several towns, the generals are facing their biggest challenge since they overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi triggering a mass opposition movement. The military has claimed those fighting against them are “terrorists”, while reports of military abuses, losses and desertions are “fake news” designed to “discredit” the military. At least 4,468 civilians have been killed since the coup and nearly 20,000 people are being held in detention on political grounds, according to the local monitoring group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. The United Nations and human rights groups have accused the generals of serious human rights abuses, including crimes against humanity in their crackdown on the opposition. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said the country’s human rights crisis was now in “free fall” with the military “routinely” targeting civilians, medical facilities and schools. The world, he added, was paying “insufficient attention” to the situation. “Amid all of the crises around the world, it is important no one is forgotten,” Turk said in a statement on Tuesday. “The people of Myanmar have been suffering for too long. As the military has suffered setback after setback on the battlefield, they have lashed out, launching waves of indiscriminate aerial bombardments and artillery strikes.” Entire villagers have been burned to the ground and attacks from the air, where the military has overwhelming superiority, have intensified. ‘Where dictatorship ends’ On Wednesday, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch were among those calling on the international community to take additional steps to end the military’s access to jet fuel. “Concerned governments should be doing more to curb the junta’s capacity to commit appalling laws of war violations,” Elaine Pearson, the Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. “United Nations member countries should urge the UN Security Council to impose an arms embargo on Myanmar including sanctions on jet fuel that facilitates unlawful air attacks on civilians.” Amnesty said an analysis of shipping satellite, trade and customs data from 2023 suggested there had been “significant changes” in the way in which aviation fuel was entering Myanmar over the past year after the European Union, United Kingdom, United States and others implemented sanctions. The military was engaged in multiple sales and using intermediaries as well as storage units, including in Vietnam, to obscure the fuel’s origin and destination, it added. “After the international community took action on this deadly supply chain, the Myanmar military is ripping a page out of the sanctions evasion playbook to continue importing jet fuel,” Montse Ferrer, Amnesty’s deputy regional director for research, said in a statement. “Air strikes have killed or injured hundreds of civilians across Myanmar in 2023, and left many feeling nowhere is safe. The best way to stop the Myanmar military from carrying out lethal air strikes is to stop all jet fuel imports into the country.” Calls are also growing for the international community to make more effort to hold the military leadership accountable for its abuses. “Since the February 1, 2021 coup, the junta military has been killing unarmed civilians, razing down villages, destroying religious structures, and arresting activists, journalists, and politicians with impunity. After Operation 1027, it has continued targeting and killing innocent civilians and displacing whole communities across Myanmar,” John Quinley III, the director at Fortify Rights, said in a statement urging the international community to take “concrete action” to hold the generals to account. Quinley said member states of the International Criminal Court (ICC) should request the court to investigate the military’s alleged crimes in Myanmar. Although the country is not part of the ICC, the NUG lodged a declaration with the court in 2021 accepting its jurisdiction. “Without adequate intervention by the international community, the well-oiled killing machine that is the Myanmar junta will continue unabated,” he said. The NUG’s Duwa Lashi La also called for accountability as well as for governments to recognise the NUG. Any attempt at negotiations by the military should also be treated with caution, he added. “The military has no place in our politics,” said Duwa Lashi La. “It must be made permanently subservient to a civilian government. Now is where the dictatorship ends.” Adblock test (Why?)

Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan, wife sentenced to 14 years in state gifts case

Pakistan ex-PM Imran Khan, wife sentenced to 14 years in state gifts case

Verdict comes a day after another court convicted Khan for leaking state secrets and gave him a 10-year prison sentence. Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been sentenced to 14 years in jail in a case related to illegal selling of state gifts. An accountability court – which deals with corruption cases – in Rawalpindi on Wednesday also ruled that the couple would be ineligible to contest for a public office for 10 years while also slapping a fine of 757 million rupees ($2.7m). The sentencing came a day after Khan was given a 10-year prison term for revealing state secrets. It was not immediately clear if the sentences were to run consecutively or concurrently. Khan was handed a three-year prison sentence in August for selling gifts worth more than 140 million rupees ($501,000) he received when he was the prime minister from 2018 to April 2022. Though he secured bail, he remained in jail facing trial in other cases. The convictions against arguably Pakistan’s most popular politician came a week before the general elections to be held on February 8. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has already been stripped of its election symbol, with most of its candidates contesting as independents. PTI official Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari said the sentencing against Khan was “yet another sad day in Pakistan’s judicial history” and questioned its legitimacy. “Judiciary is being dismantled. A flawed decision meant to be suspended by the higher court, as witnesses clearly seemed compromised,” he told Al Jazeera. “Star witnesses were changed… with no cross questioning allowed, no final argument concluded, and the decision pops up like a predetermined process in play. This ridiculous decision will be challenged in superior courts.” Adblock test (Why?)

‘Slank U’: Indonesian presidential candidates try to harness power of music

‘Slank U’: Indonesian presidential candidates try to harness power of music

Medan, Indonesia – On a blisteringly hot and thundery day in the city of Medan, fans peeled off their T-shirts and hoisted each other up onto shoulders to get a better view of one of Indonesia’s most famous rock bands. “Don’t forget to spread the virus of peace across Indonesia” Slank’s frontman and lead vocalist, Akhadi Wira Satriaji, better known as Kaka, screamed to the thousands of people who had come down to Istana Maimun, the palace of the Sultanate of Deli, to rock out with their favourite band. The crowd, known as “Slankers”, roared their approval and grabbed selfies with their idol, as Kaka crouched near the edge of the stage, shaking hands and bumping fists with thrilled fans. But while the atmosphere was electric, Slank had not come to Medan on Indonesia’s western island of Sumatra, just to put on a good show. In Indonesia, there is a tradition of presidential and vice presidential candidates enlisting popular musicians in their campaigns in an attempt to boost their electability. “Political elites and political parties have actually been using artists to gain support or votes for a long time,” said Hikmawan “Indra” Saefullah, who played guitar in the Indonesian indie band Alone at Last from 2002 to 2013 and is a lecturer in Indonesian Studies at the University of New England. Slank frontman Kaka preached a message of “peace” at the concert [Al Jazeera] “Whether it is effective or not is rather difficult to measure unless you want to wait until the election results come out. Even then, it is difficult to know for sure whether a candidate’s victory was the result of votes from a supporting artist’s fans or not. Because voting is secret. So who knows?” The Slank gig was organised in conjunction with a visit to the city by presidential hopeful and former governor of Central Java, Ganjar Pranowo, and his running mate Mahfud MD, the former coordinating minister for politics, legal and security affairs. A natural fit To some supporters, the concert was the perfect mix of music and politics. Johnny and Dian, both construction workers, told Al Jazeera that they were lifelong Slankers and fervent supporters of Ganjar. “We like their songs because they are easy to listen to and understand, and they appeal to young people,” 30-year-old Johnny said. “Slank also often come to Medan to perform and we also go to see them.” Dian, also 30, added that he liked Slank because they “sing from the heart” and that he would vote for Ganjar and his party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), because Slank supported them. For Dian, the band and the candidates are a natural fit. He noted Slank was interested in social justice, while the PDI-P, a secular-nationalist party, had traditionally been affiliated with the interests and rights of workers across Indonesia. “Ganjar will work for the people and will make changes for the Indonesian populace. He supports grassroots workers more than other candidates,” Dian said. University student Lufti (back centre) holds a flag with the Slank logo as he poses with his friends. He said he would not vote for Ganjar even though the band had endorsed him [Al Jazeera] Slank was founded in 1983 by a group of then-teenagers in Jakarta and takes its name from the term “slange’an” which means “free men” in Betawi, the language of the Betawi ethnic group in the capital. Slank has also long been known for the political nature of many of its songs and lent its support to current Indonesian President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, when he ran for the presidency in 2014 and 2019 on a PDI-P ticket. Now that Ganjar is the PDI-P presidential candidate (Jokowi has served the maximum two terms in office), Slank is also backing him ahead of the presidential election on February 14. “They want to build a perception among the public that they will be left behind or ‘not cool’ if they don’t support the PDI-P and Ganjar [by saying], ‘See, Slank support him, why wouldn’t everyone else?’” lecturer Saefullah said of the alliance. Also in the crowd at the concert were market-sellers 34-year-old Ratna and 28-year-old Lisa who said that they had come to the event to support Ganjar who they praised for being “an intellectual candidate”. Among his election promises, Ganjar has said will improve Indonesians’ work life, including raising salaries, paying off farmers’ debts and eliminating the corruption and nepotism that have long plagued the job market in Indonesia. Most of the Slank fans were there to see the band and Ganjar made only a brief appearance [Al Jazeera] He has also pledged to distribute social assistance more evenly and widely across the archipelago of 278 million people. “The cost of living is rising in Indonesia and essentials are becoming more expensive,” Ratna said. “Rice and cooking oil are more expensive now while salaries are still low. We want salaries to be reasonable, which is why we support Ganjar.” No guarantees However, not everyone in the crowd was convinced. Mulia, a 20-year-old communications student at the State Islamic University of North Sumatra, told Al Jazeera that he had come to the concert to see Slank but that he had yet to decide who to vote for. “Maybe I will choose Ganjar. It seems like he is close to young people and he might do more for the youth of Indonesia if he is elected,” he said. “It depends how I feel when I see him. If I like him, then I’ll vote for him.” Ganjar, himself, made only a brief appearance at the concert. Ganjar Pranowo took his campaign to Medan over the weekend as Indonesia prepares to go to the polls on February 14 [Binsar Bakkara/AP] Given a traditional Sumatran welcome dance, he made his way through the crowd, a flower garland around his neck, greeting supporters who screamed and grasped his hands while taking selfies on their phones. But, while Ganjar stood alongside Kaka and

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 707

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 707

As the war enters its 707th day, these are the main developments. Here is the situation on Wednesday, January 31, 2024. Fighting Four people in two villages in Ukraine’s northern Sumy region near the Russian border were killed in Russian shelling, while a woman died in a new assault on the devastated eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka, according to local officials. Three people were also reported injured after Russian drones hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, according to local officials. The attack also started a fire and caused damage to apartment blocks and infrastructure. Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia launched a total of 35 attack drones and two guided missiles targeting energy and military infrastructure near the front line and other Ukrainian regions, with air defence systems destroying 15 of the 35 drones. Russia said it brought down 11 drones launched by Ukraine over Crimea, which it occupied and annexed in 2014 in a move that was not recognised internationally. Ukraine’s military said it hit a Russian air defence radar station on the peninsula. Russian news agencies said several alleged Ukraine-launched drones were also shot down over Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga and Tula – all regions in Russia. Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency GUR, said he expected Russia’s offensive on the eastern front to fizzle out by early spring. In recent months, Russia has stepped up its attacks in the area, attempting to encircle towns such as Avdiivka. Budanov said they had only achieved “a few advances across some fields”. The Ukrainian government submitted an amended version of its controversial military mobilisation bill to parliament, including a new provision that would allow certain people to serve in the armed forces despite being convicted of a crime. The bill aims to lower the age of conscription to 25 from 27. Andriy Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence, said Russia showed “no readiness” to return the bodies of 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war Moscow claims were killed in the crash of a military transport plane last week. Ukraine said it temporarily disrupted communications for military units in a cyberattack that knocked out a server used by Russia’s Defence Ministry. Politics and diplomacy Writing on the website of the journal Foreign Affairs, the director of the United States’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Bill Burns, said Ukraine was likely to face a tough year fighting Russia in 2024, and that a US move to cut off aid to Kyiv would be an “own goal of historic proportions”. A huge assistance package for Ukraine is currently held up in Congress because some Republicans want to link it to changes in US border policies. Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza wrote in a letter to his lawyer that he was in four months of solitary confinement after being transferred to a new Siberian penal colony. In the letter, published by his wife, he said the move was punishment for not standing up when a guard commanded him to “rise”, which he said the authorities had deemed a “malicious violation”. Kara-Murza, a critic of President Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine, was jailed for 25 years last April after being found guilty of treason. Russian investigators charged two 17-year-olds with carrying out sabotage for Ukraine after they set fire to a rail-side equipment box in Moscow. The two have been remanded in custody and face as long as 20 years in prison if found guilty. Weapons Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russia had more than doubled production of air defence missiles and aimed to further increase production but that there were “questions” over engine and launcher production that needed to be addressed, Ukraine is expected to receive its first batch of the Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB), a new long-range precision bomb developed by Boeing, as soon as Wednesday, according to Politico. The new bomb can travel about 145km (90 miles) and will give Ukraine “a deeper strike capability they haven’t had”, a US official told the magazine. Adblock test (Why?)

First on Fox: Republican National Committee January fundraising best monthly haul in 2024 cycle

First on Fox: Republican National Committee January fundraising best monthly haul in 2024 cycle

EXCLUSIVE – The Republican National Committee (RNC) appears to be coming quickly out of the gate when it comes to 2024 fundraising. The RNC reports hauling in $12 million in January, which it highlights was over $2 million higher than any monthly fundraising total during 2023.  The national party committee, which shared its figures first with Fox News on Tuesday, also noted that its digital grassroots and major donor fundraising hauls were higher in January than any other month over the past year. The RNC also spotlighted that it is also on track to have a strong fundraising month in February, “dispelling mainstream media narratives and proving that we will have the necessary resources to strengthen our infrastructure and investments to win in the fall.” RNC WINTER MEETING GETS UNDERWAY MINUS ANY FIREWORKS OVER TRUMP-HALEY PRIMARY SHOWDOWN The national party committee faced a slew of stories last autumn – after its cash on hand dropped to just over $9 million – that questioned the RNC’s fundraising and overall finances. But longtime RNC chair Ronna McDaniel emphasized in a statement that “we’re 10 months out from Election Day, and the RNC is not only raising the necessary resources, but we’re continuing our strategic investments in battlegrounds across the country to take back the Senate and White House, and grow our majority in the House in the fall.” NIKKI HALEY COURTS GOP DONORS FROM WALL STREET TO MAIN STREET  “While Democrats have no ground game nor any issues to run on, Republicans are firing on all cylinders to get-out-the-vote and grow our Party to Beat Biden,” McDaniel argued. The RNC didn’t share its latest cash on hand figures, as the filing of its fundraising report wasn’t due until the end of business on Wednesday. The Democratic National Committee (DNC), which has yet to release its January fundraising, enjoys a joint fundraising agreement with President Biden’s re-election campaign. And the DNC outpaced the RNC for much of the past year. But Republicans note that even with an incumbent president in the White House, the DNC is barely outraising the RNC in direct fundraising cycle-to-date.  The RNC, touting its strategic investments, notes that it has hired political and election integrity directors and support staff in 15 battleground states, including important House and Senate states such as New York, California, and Montana. It also highlights that its invested in recent years in community centers in states including California, New York and Texas. And the RNC also spotlights its Bank Your Vote Initiative – an early in-person voting and ballot harvesting push to improve the GOP’s vote totals heading into Election Day in November. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Jean Carnahan, Missouri’s first female U.S. senator, dies at 90: ‘A fearless trailblazer’

Jean Carnahan, Missouri’s first female U.S. senator, dies at 90: ‘A fearless trailblazer’

Former U.S. Senator Jean Carnahan died on Tuesday at the age of 90, her family announced. In a statement on Tuesday, Carnahan’s family said that she “passed peacefully after a long and rich life.” “She was a fearless trailblazer,” the statement read. “She was brilliant, creative, compassionate and dedicated to her family and her fellow Missourians.” Carnahan’s cause of death is unknown, but her family disclosed that she passed away after a brief illness. MANCHIN HINTS AT POTENTIAL THIRD PARTY RUN AFTER SUPER TUESDAY Carnahan served as a Democrat in the U.S. Senate from Jan. 3, 2001 to Nov. 25, 2002. She ascended to the position after her husband Mel was elected posthumously in 2000. Mel, who died in a plane crash along with his son in 2000, had served as the Governor of Missouri from 1992 until his death. He was running for U.S. Senate against incumbent John Ashcroft when he passed away. MANCHIN ‘ABSOLUTELY’ CAN SEE HIMSELF AS PRESIDENT, THINKS BIDEN HEALTH OR TRUMP CONVICTION COULD GIVE OPENING Jean and Mel were married on June 12, 1954, after previously meeting at a church event. Jean, who was born in D.C., graduated from George Washington University a year later. Jean was succeeded by Republican Jim Talent, who won a special election against her in 2002. “My name has never been on a ballot. On election night, there was no victory celebration,” Carnahan said after she was appointed to the U.S. Senate. “You are here because of your win. I am here because of my loss. But we are all here to do the work of this great nation.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.