Tag: violence

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-Top News Afghanistan Asia News

Afghans urges ceasefire during Ramadan

In war-torn Afghanistan, fighting and violence have been continuing…reports Asian Lite News

Afghans from all walks of life are calling for ceasefire to be observed in Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which starts on Tuesday.

In war-torn Afghanistan, fighting and violence have been continuing, and in the latest wave, over 50 people including Taliban militants, government security personnel and civilians were killed, according to sources and local media reports.

An explosive device went off in Imam Sahib district of Kunduz province on Sunday afternoon, killing two civilians and injuring another, reports Xinhua news agency.

District chief Nazikmir Akbari has blamed the Taliban militants for planting the explosive device to terrorize the local residents.

Refugees from Afghanistan arrive at Skala Sikaminias, on the island of Lesvos, Greece(Xinhua/Marios Lolos/IANS)


A similar blast claimed the lives of two children in Arghandab district in the southern Kandahar province on Saturday, police spokesperson Jamal Barikzai has said.

According to security officials, 18 militants have been killed in Kandahar and 14 more in the neighbouring Uruzgan province since Saturday.

At least 16 more insurgents have recently been killed in the Wardak, Kunduz and Samangan provinces, according to officials.

Also read:Targeted killings soar in Afghanistan

“The month of Ramadan is the month of peace and brotherhood and therefore I ask the Taliban and the government to observe cease-fire and let the Afghans to live in peace at least in Ramadan,” Noorul Haq Khan, a Kabul resident, told Xinhua.

First Vice President Amrullah Saleh, at a gathering in the Shamali area outside the capital Kabul on Sunday, called on the Taliban outfit to meet the demand by the Afghan people for cease-fire and reconciliation.

Lawmaker Mohiudin Munsif was quoted by the local media as saying, “Taliban should observe ceasefire at least in Ramadan” if they want peace.

According to local media reports, a former commander, Sayed Akbar Agha, said that “no sign of observing ceasefire from the Taliban” has been seen.

Local media reports said 79 security personnel and 28 civilians have been killed and 106 others including 57 civilians injured over the past seven days in Afghanistan.

Also read:TRADE: Afghanistan Puts Pakistan On Back Burner

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-Top News USA

Biden to curb US gun violence epidemic

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris

Biden delivered a speech from the White House introducing new executive actions aimed at addressing rising gun violence in the country…reports Asian Lite News

US President Joe Biden called gun violence in the country an “epidemic” and an “international embarrassment”, as he delivered a speech from the White House introducing new executive actions aimed at addressing the issue.

“Nothing I’m about to recommend in any way impinges on the Second Amendment,” Biden said in the Rose Garden during an event on Thursday also attended by Vice President Kamala Harris and Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Further pushing back the idea that tighter gun control amid a recent surge in mass shootings will infringe Americans’ right to bear arms, the President said that “no amendment to the Constitution is absolute”, reports Xinhua news agency.

“So the idea is just bizarre to suggest that some of the things we’re recommending are contrary to the Constitution,” he added.

“Gun violence in this country is an epidemic. And it’s an international embarrassment.”

Laying out a set of executive actions, Biden said he wanted to tighten regulations for the so-called “ghost guns”, homemade weapons or firearms that are assembled from parts without serial numbers so that they are more difficult to track.

The President wants the Department of Justice (DOJ) to propose rules requiring that the gun kits be treated as firearms, so that they must bear easy-to-trace serial numbers, and that background checks are required for people purchasing them.

Also read:Biden makes all adults eligible for vaccine by April 19

He also directed the DOJ to propose model “red flag” legislation for states that could help keep firearms out of the hands of potentially dangerous people, and to reclassify pistols modified with stabilizer braces to be subject to the National Firearms Act, meaning owners would have to register and pay a fee for the modifications.

The DOJ is also expected to issue a report on gun trafficking, and federal agencies will be paying more attention on using grant programs to intervene in community-based gun violence. Biden is set to nominate David Chipman, a gun control advocate, to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

Increasingly under pressure to take action after the back-to-back mass shootings earlier this month in Boulder, Colorado, Atlanta, Georgia, and Southern California, Biden urged Congress to move legislatively, especially calling on the Senate to pass the House-passed bills closing gun control loopholes and expand background checks.

The House-passed bills, however, face slim prospects in the evenly-divided Senate, as Republicans are almost unified in opposing most of the proposals

“Enough prayers, time for some action,” Biden said in his plea with lawmakers, conceding that stricter gun restriction proposals that have so far been to no avail even in the face of perpetuating gun violence are making it seem “like our entire political process is broken”.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters later in the day that “there will be more” executive actions by the administration on gun safety.

Also read:Biden backs Jordan’s king

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-Top News Australia

Australia to host women’s safety summit

The announcement came after federal, state and territory ministers recently agreed to the terms on the National Women’s Safety Summit…reports Asian Lite News

The Australian government announced that it will convene a national summit on women’s safety in July, which will shape a new plan to prevent all kinds of violence, including domestic and sexual, against women and children.

The announcement came after federal, state and territory ministers recently agreed to the terms on the National Women’s Safety Summit, reports Xinhua news agency.

“This summit will further elevate the important national discussion we are having about women’s safety and ensure that we bring all people along with us as we develop the next national plan,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement on Wednesday evening.

Aus to convene national women’s safety summit(Twitter)


It comes three years after the last summit, which was attended by about 100 delegates and secured A$328 million in funding for the current plan that ends in 2021.

The new summit on July 29 and 30 is expected to be bigger as the government faces calls for greater action to prevent domestic violence.

Also read:Australian nod for domestic AstraZeneca

Anne Ruston, the Minister for Women’s Safety, Families and Social Services, said that delegates will have the opportunity to share their personal experiences and make suggestions for prevention and response measures.

“We need to make sure that we move from just reducing violence against women and their children to ending violence against women and their children,” she told Nine Entertainment newspapers.

Aus to convene national women’s safety summit(twitter)

“We must have a goal towards zero and the next plan will be an ambitious blueprint to stop the rot that is domestic violence across our national landscape.”

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, sexual assault is a major health and welfare issue in Australia and worldwide.

Almost 2 million Australian adults have experienced at least one sexual assault since the age of 15.

Also read:New Zealand-Australia travel bubble soon


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-Top News Asia News World News

UN chief Guterres upset over anti-Asian violence

Guterres voiced his full support for the victims and families, and expressed solidarity with all those facing racism and other assaults on their human rights…reports Asian Lite News

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed profound concerns over the rise in violence against Asians and people of Asian descent during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The world has witnessed horrific deadly attacks, verbal and physical harassment, bullying in schools, workplace discrimination, incitement to hatred in the media and on social media platforms, and incendiary language by those in positions of power, Xinhua news agency quoted Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for Guterres, as saying in a statement on Monday.

In some countries, Asian women have been specifically targeted for attack, adding misogyny to the toxic mix of hatred, the statement said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
Also read:Biden denounces anti-Asian attacks

Thousands of incidents across the past year have perpetuated a centuries-long history of intolerance, stereotyping, scapegoating, exploitation and abuse, it added.

The Secretary-General expressed his full support for the victims and families, and stood in solidarity with all those facing racism and other assaults on their human rights.

A protester holds a placard during a protest against Asian hate(IANS)

“This moment of challenge for all must be a time to uphold dignity for all,” the UN chief said.

The statement comes almost a week after after multiple shootings in and around the US city of Atlanta that killed eight people, among whom six were Asian women.

Also read:Putin invites Biden to virtual talks