LIVE! North Korea detains another US citizen

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Sun, 07 May 2017

North Korea detains another US citizen

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21:33 North Korea detains another US citizen

North Korea says it has detained a US citizen on suspicion of "hostile acts" against the state.

Kim Hak-song worked at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology and was held on 6 May, state-run news agency KCNA said.

Three other US citizens are currently held in North Korea, including Kim Sang-duck, who had taught at PUST.

The US has in the past accused North Korea of detaining its citizens to use them as pawns.

KCNA said that "a relevant institution" was "conducting [a] detailed investigation" into Kim Hak-song's alleged crimes.

It gave no further details.

Kim Hak-song had previously described himself as a Christian missionary who intended to start an experimental farm at PUST.

Relatives of US president's son-in-law Jared Kushner are touring major mainland cities to woo wealthy Chinese investors for luxury projects in New Jersey while offering an American green card in return, according to a media report.

Kushner's sister, Nicole Kushner Meyer, and her husband Joseph Meyer, took to the stage at Beijing's Ritz-Carlton hotel yesterday, and Shanghai's Four Seasons Hotel today to promote their new project 'One Journal Square', the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

The Beijing leg ignited controversy in the United States over whether Kushner, who is a senior White House adviser and US President Donald Trump, is involved in the project and the immigrant investor visa programme.

About 100 people attended the Shanghai event where they were told they could become US residents under a 'EB-5' visa programme if they put $500,000 into the project.

Agents of Hyderabad's Commissioners Task Force, North Zone on Sunday detained 13 persons in possession of demonetised Indian currency notes of Rs 500 and 1000, totalling up to Rs 1,85,00,000.

Along with this, the police also seized two cars and 13 cell phones.

The perpetrators, under the pretext of illegally exchanging these notes, were nabbed while attempting to exchange them with agents.

A day after an audiotape of a conversation between Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and criminal-turned-political leader Mohammad Shahabuddin was made public by an English news channel, the RJD on Sunday termed it as doctored and accused the channel for propagating the Bharatiya Janata Party's agenda.

RJD spokesperson Manoj Jha said, "This is the conspiracy hatched against our party by the channel whose anchors just read out the script penned down by the BJP. They used the 'His Masters Voice' to execute a baseless political battle and attack us."

"When a channel makes huge claims on doctored tapes and refuses to run other side of the story, its credibility comes to zero and then it is nothing more than a mouthpiece of the left wing," added Jha.

The news channel had played a recorded conversation which it claimed took place between Lalu Prasad and convicted MP Mohammad Shahabuddin, wherein the latter is heard complaining against the stringent law enforcement.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today announced jobs for the son and the daughter of JCO Paramjeet Singh, killed by Pakistani forces at the LoC recently, during a visit to the family's home.

The state government will provide the soldier's 16-year-old daughter Simrandeep Kaur a police job, and also a job to his son Sahildeep Singh, 12, on completion of their education, he said at the family's home in Vein Poin village.

The CM also said his government would soon table before the Cabinet a comprehensive policy standardising compensation rules for Punjabis, working with of any force, who lays down life fighting for the nation.

Paramjeet Singh of the 22 Sikh Regiment was beheaded by Pakistani special forces near the Line of Control in Poonch sector on May 1.

Amarinder said the jobs for the two children, which the family had sought from the government, would be in addition to the compensation already announced for the family.

The state government had earlier announced a compensation of Rs 12 lakh for the family-- Rs 5 lakh for the widow and the children, Rs 2 lakh for parents, and a plot worth Rs 5 lakh.

Another Rs 1 lakh was announced for renaming the local rest house in the soldier's name.

The CM also announced a school and a stadium in the area in the name of the martyred jawan.

A modest amount of Rs 2.1 crore has been donated by the people through an online portal launched by the home ministry to help families of paramilitary personnel who laid down their lives fighting extremists.

Around Rs 60 lakh of the said amount has been received for 25 personnel who were massacred by the Maoists at Sukma in Chhattisgarh on April 24.

Encouraging response to #BharatKeVeer website. Within a month, the portal has received more than Rs 2 crore for helping martyrs families, Home Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and chief ministers of 10 Maoist violence-hit states will brainstorm tomorrow over ways to tackle the menance, a fortnight after 25 CRPF men were massacred by underground

guerrillas in Chhattisgarh's Sukma.

Ahead of the crucial meeting, the strategic command headquarters of CRPF's anti-Naxal operations was shifted from Kolkata to Chhattisgarh.

The conclave would discuss ways to revamp intelligence gathering mechanism, take a close look at ongoing operations against Naxalites, identify problem areas and devise ways to minimise casualties among the security forces, a home ministry official said today.

Altogether 37 CRPF personnel have been killed by Naxalites in the worst-hit Chhattisgarh in less than two months.

The April 24 assault on a CRPF road opening party that claimed lives of 25 personnel was the deadliest since the April 2010 attack in Dantewada, also in Chhattisgarh, in which 76 personnel were slain.

Chief ministers of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar, Maharashtra, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh have been invited to meeting which would be chaired by Singh.

District magistrates and superintendents of police of 35 worst-hit districts, besides heads of paramilitary forces and intelligence agencies will attend the meeting.

On top of the agenda will be the issue of re-calibrating the anti-Naxal strategy to make it more effective, and to minimise casualties, the official said.

Image: Home Minister Rajnath Singh pays tribute to the slain CRPF soldiers in the Sukma attack.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today sought the resignation of his Delhi counterpart, Arvind Kejriwal, claiming that the AAP supremo

had no moral right to continue in office as his "corrupt face" had been "totally exposed".

The Congress leader said his party had for long been maintaining that Kejriwal was a "dacoit", who was "only interested in filling his pockets".

His comments came in the backdrop of sacked Delhi minister Kapil Mishra today accusing Kejriwal of taking Rs 2 crore from his cabinet colleague Satyendra Jain, a charge refuted by Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

Singh said given the seriousness of the allegations levelled against him and his party over the past several months, Kejriwal should have resigned a long time ago.

"But being a shameless person that he is, the Aam Aadmi Party leader will not even quit now," he added.

Admitting that there were detractors within the Aam Aadmi Party, party leader Ashish Khetan on Sunday said Chief Minister Arvind Kejirwal's role as an anti-corruption crusader had increased after his "staunchest critics" brushed aside allegations of corruption against him.

"I think today, Arvind Kejriwal's stature as an anti corruption crusader has gone up by several notches. Die hard critics and worst adversaries paid a tribute to him by saying that we will believe everything, but an allegation of this kind. I think it is the biggest testimony of a man's standing," Khetan said.

The Supreme Court will tomorrow pronounce its verdict in fodder scam involving Rashtriya Janata Dal chief and former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav on Central Bureau of India application.

The apex court earlier on April 20 reserved its judgment in the case and asked all parties concerned to give their submissions within a week.

The court also heard the plea filed by RJD supremo challenging his jail sentence in connection with the mid-1990s fodder scam case.

The CBI had filed a plea in the apex court against the dropping of a conspiracy charge against Lalu Prasad by the Jharkhand high court in one of the fodder scam cases.

Pakistan International Airlines will suspend its flights between Karachi and Mumbai from tomorrow due to commercial considerations, a senior airline official has said.

PIA operated two flights in a week (Monday and Thursday) between Karachi and Mumbai.

However, the PIA's Lahore-Delhi flight operation will continue as traffic volume on this route is satisfactory, the PIA official said.

The move comes amid a strain in Indo-Pak ties following the beheading of two Indian soldiers by the Pakistan military in Jammu and Kashmir.

The PIA administration, however, dismissed media reports that the Karachi-Mumbai operation is being suspended due to tense relations between India and Pakistan.

17:04

JUST IN: Courtyard outside Paris' Louvre museum where Macron planned to celebrate evacuated because of security alert.

16:49 Mulayam blames Congress for poor state of Samajwadi Party

Samajwadi patron Mulayam Singh Yadav today blamed the alliance with the Congress for the "poor" state of the party and said efforts should be made to strengthen the SP.

He said though the Congress left no stone unturned to "ruin" his life, his son Akhilesh Yadav forged an alliance with the party in the run up to the assembly polls.

"Alliance with Congress is responsible for the present poor state of the party. I had advised Akhilesh not to go ahead with it but he did so. The SP is itself responsible for its defeat and not the people of the state," he said.

Attacking the Congress further, Mulayam said, "Congress left no stone unturned to ruin my life. It (Congress) lodged cases against me and Akhilesh forged alliance with it".

Anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare reacts for the first time on corruption charges levelled by Kapil Mishra against Kejriwal.

The anti-corruption crusader said, "It is unfortunate if he has accepted the cash. If the allegations are true, then he has shattered the movement. Probe will definitely reveal the truth."

15:48

JUST IN: Major accident averted at Delhi airport, when wings of a Srinagar bound Jet Airways touched another aircraft before take off.

15:31 UPDATE: Corrupt Kejriwal is unimaginable, says Kumar Vishwas

After a cryptic twitter message, Kumar Vishwas finally came out in support of Delhi CM stating that a corrupt Kejriwal would be an unimaginable thing for him.

He said that he was saddened by the way Mishra took things up.

Seeking to reassure the party workers, he said if ever anyone thinks that anyone is wrong within the party, they must come with the proof and keep it in front of everyone.

"Levelling baseless allegations like this in front of media is not right," Vishwas said.

Earlier, Vishwas had merely tweeted that party workers must be patient and that party's best interests will be upheld in the end.

AAP's Kapil Mishra corruption allegations against Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has set off a controversy of mammoth proportions.

Delhi BJP's Manoj Tiwari addressing a press conference said, "Arvind Kejriwal neither has the moral right, neither the legal standing to remain Delhi chief minister as it is unprecedented that a cabinet colleague of a sitting chief minister has levelled such serious charges. Kejriwal must seek apology from his party men and quit as Delhi CM as soon as possible."

Tiwari added that the allegations made by Kapil Mishra weren't new and that they required an immediate probe.

"Delhi is absolutely shocked by today's remarks of Kapil Mishra. It's not an allegation but statement of a witness," said the BJP leader.

Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari along with senior party leaders will meet Delhi LG Anil Baijal to request him to take action based on the allegations levelled by former AAP minister Kapil Mishra.

BJP today alleged that some miscreants attacked the office of former Union minister and MLA O Rajagopal here early today and blamed CPI-M for it.

Rajagopal's office is on the ground floor of a two storeyed building.

BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan alleged that CPI-M's Kannur lobby was responsible for the attack and demanded that the culprits be brought to book immediately.

Police said three motorbike borne miscreants had hurled stones at the first floor portion of the building, where one Anil Kumar resides. His car was also damaged.

A case has been registered on the basis of a complaint from Anil Kumar, police said.

They said the incident was not due to political rivalry.

Hours after Delhi's Water Minister Kapil Mishra was sacked from his ministerial post, a fresh crisis arose in the AAP as founder member Kumar Vishwas vowed for "another movement inside and outside".

"I want to assure the workers and people of the country that we will keep on raising our voice against corruption inside and outside, whatever be the consequences. Bharat Mata Ki Jai," Kumar Vishwas tweeted.

The Aam Aadmi Party leader in another tweet said: "Let there be another movement. We will not wear out. Haven't tasted a drop of power until now, which is why the zeal from Jantar Mantar struggle still remains alive. Friends be assured."

The remarks came after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday removed Mishra from his cabinet and inducted AAP legislators Rajendra Pal Gautam and Kailash Gehlot as new faces.

Following the explosive corruption charges against Arvind Kejriwal by his former Water Minister Kapil Mishra, Congress leader Ajay Maken said that the party will collect 10 lakh signatures against the Kejriwal government in the next four to five days in order to remind him of the 'right ot recall'.

BJP's Sambit Patra also tweeted, "Conglomerate of Corrupts masquerading as Fighters against corruption have been completely exposed! Captain Corrupt should RESIGN!!"

13:20 This summer, feast on the 'Yogi Mango'

Mango lovers will get to relish a "slender" and "beautiful" mango this summer - a "Yogi mango" named after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

The mango variety has been developed by the city's famous mango grower Padamshri Haji Kalimullah.

Kalimullaha, 74, who had earlier named mangoes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and actresses, has developed the "Yogi mango" in his orchard in the Dussehri mango belt in Malihabad area.

The "Yogi mango", he says, is grown naturally, is slender and beautiful and is a hybrid of the famous Dussehri mango variety.

The mango grower had earlier named mangoes after Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai and cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar.

'Baahubali 2: The Conclusion' did something that no Indian movie has ever done before -- it has joined the Rs 1000 crore-club.

The movie's official Twitter handle shared a photo, announcing the movie crossing the gigantic figure at global box office.

They captioned the snap, "THANK YOU EVERYONE !!! #1000croreBaahubali."

Going by the latest figures, the film has minted Rs 800 crore at the Indian box office and Rs 200 crore at the overseas market. With this, 'Baahubali 2: The Conclusion' has become the first Indian movie to earn Rs 1000 crore worldwide.

Recently, the film's lead actor Prabhas thanked his fans for making this movie such a big success.

12:38 Manish Sisodia refutes Mishra's allegations

Deputy Delhi Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has refuted the explosive allegations by Kapil Mishra, who was sacked by the Delhi government.

Sisodia, in a short press conference, said, "His allegations are not even worth responding to, they are so absurd and without any facts."

Earlier, at Rajghat, Mishra, who was the former water minister for Delhi, said that he had seen Satyendra Jain giving the Delhi CM Rs 2 crore.

12:24

JUST IN: BCCI clears India's participation in the Champions Trophy at its Special General Meeting.

12:23 PM Modi to visit Lanka on May 11

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Sri Lanka on May 11 to attend the biggest Buddhist festival, 'Vesak Day'.

The 'International Day of Vesak' celebrations, to be held in Colombo from May 12 to 14, will include an International Buddhist Conference in which over 400 delegates from more than 100 countries will participate.

Vesak, the most important day in the Buddhist calendar, marks commemoration of Lord Buddha's birth, enlightenment and passing away.

During the two-day trip, his second to Sri Lanka since becoming the prime minister, Modi is also likely to visit Kandy in the Central Province which is famous for production of Ceylon Tea, officials said.

He is also expected to visit some Buddhist temples.

Kapil Mishra, the water minister, who was sacked on Friday, has made explosive allegations against his party chief -- Arvind Kejriwal.

Here are the highlights of his press conference from Rajghat.

>> Satyendra Jain gave Arvind Kejriwal Rs 2 crore in cash in front of my eyes on Friday

>> When I questioned Kejriwal about the money that he took from Jain he said lots of things in politics cannot be explained

>> It's my party. Will stay in AAP

>> I am the sole minister in the entire cabinet ministry against whom there is no CBI case... I have raised the corruption issue earlier as well

>> I was removed after I spoke out against corruption, not speaking out after being removed

The police have prepared a detailed security plan for international pop sensation Justin Bieber's concert, which includes a cover of 500 personnel and use of drone cameras.

Bieber is set to perform at D Y Patil stadium on May 10 in neighbouring Navi Mumbai and around 45,000 people are expected to attend the show.

Twenty five officers will also be deployed for security, said Hemant Nagrale, Navi Mumbai police commissioner.

Organisers have hired private security agencies for crowd management and ticket checking, he said.

Nagrale added plain-clothes police personnel would keep a watch inside the stadium.

A police control room will be set up at the venue, where feed from CCTV cameras would be monitored.

Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad will check the stadium premises prior to the event and drone cameras would provide live feed to the police control room, Nagrale said.

The organisers would be providing parking facility for 15,000 vehicles at various places. Shuttle services would be provided between the parking space and the stadium.

The sacked Delhi minister, Kapil Mishra, on Sunday alleged that he had seen 'HIM' accepting illegal cash adding that he shared every single detail with the LG Anil Baijal.

Mishra, whos expected to address media around noon, tweeted, I have witnessed HIM taking illegal cash... Have shared all details with Lt Gov. It was impossible to remain silent even if I had to sacrifice my life, not just my ministry.

Mishra, who was the tourism and water minister in Arvind Kejriwals Delhi cabinet, was removed from his post on Saturday. He was also been removed from the chairman of Delhi Jal Board.

At least one incident of ceasefire violation by Pakistan has been reported daily along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir in 2015 and 2016, with 23 security personnel being killed in the two years, the Union Home Ministry has said in an RTI reply.

It also said that 1,142 terror incidents were reported in J&K between 2012 and 2016 in which 236 security personnel and 90 civilians were killed.

In the same period, 507 terrorists were killed in encounters, the ministry said.

According to the reply, Pakistan violated the ceasefire across the Line of Control 449 times in 2016, as compared to 405 violations in 2015.

23 security personnel were killed in the two-year period, it said.

Compared to 220 terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir in 2012, there were 322 incidents in 2016 in which 82 security personnel and 15 civilians were killed, the RTI reply said.

It said in 2015, 39 security personnel and 17 civilians were killed in 208 terror incidents while 108 terrorists were killed in encounters.

While 47 security personnel and 28 civilians were killed in the state, 110 terrorists were killed in encounters in 2014, the reply said.

The RTI reply said in 2012, 15 security personnel and as many civilians were killed in 220 terror incidents, and 72 terrorists were killed in encounters.

In 2013, 53 security personnel and 15 civilians were killed in 170 terror incidents in J&K with security forces killing 67 terrorists in encounters. -- PTI

10:54 Boko Haram frees 82 Chibok girls

At least 82 Chibok schoolgirls out of the 276 captured in 2014 were released by Boko Haram terrorists on Saturday after more than three years in captivity.

A government official said consistent negotiations between the terrorist group Boko Haram and the Nigeria government resulted in the release of 82 girls.

The freed girls are in military custody in Banki, a town in Northeast Nigeria, CNN reports.

The girls will undergo medical checkup in Abuja and then they will be reunited with their families.

Around 276 girls were kidnapped from the government Secondary School in the town of Chibok in Borno state in the middle of the night in April 2014, sparking a global campaign 'bring back our girls'.

The campaign was supported by then US First lady Michelle Obama. As many as 57 girls escaped within days after mass abduction. Another 21 Chibok girls were released in October 2016 in a deal brokered by Switzerland and the International Red Cross.

President Muthammadu Buhari had said in a statement that his government is in constant negotiations with the Boko Haram group. -- ANI

Islamic State is finding willing recruits in Pakistan through its efforts online even as its territory is shrinking in Iraq and Syria, a Washington Post report says.

The report says even young Pakistani women and educated youth from liberal families have proven susceptible to the lure of the Islamic State's brand of extremism.

While there are no concrete numbers on how many IS members are in Pakistan, a report issued last January by the Royal United Services Institute, a London-based defense think tank, estimated the group had recruited 2,000 to 3,000 individuals in the country.

Security experts say that number is relatively low, especially when compared to the recruitment levels of more established terror groups like Al Qaeda or the Taliban. But they agree the threat to Pakistan is real and rising.

Read more

Ousted Aam Aadmi Party leader Kapil Mishra will meet Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal at 10.30 am today.

After being sacked on Saturday, former water minister Mishra had claimed to 'expose' the involvement of certain AAP leaders in an alleged scam in the supply of water.

On being asked on the possibility of him willing to join the Bharatiya Janata Party, he said, "I am one of the founding members of AAP and will always be in the party, those who are corrupt will be sacked from the party."

Mishra said that he will unveil his 'expose' at 11.30 am.

Mishra was axed from the cabinet days after he sided with senior party leader Kumar Vishwas who has been at loggerheads with the AAP leadership.

"I was not informed of the decision and as per my knowledge, it was taken unilaterally by (AAP chief Arvind) Kejriwal. The cabinet or the Political Affairs Committee (the AAP's top decision-making body) was not involved," Mishra said on Saturday.

Mishra became the fourth AAP minister to be sacked after Jitendra Singh Tomar, Asim Ahmed Khan and Sandeep Kumar, since the AAP stormed to power in 2015. -- ANI

09:34 France votes today to elect President

The second round of voting for Presidential election in France will be held today and opinion polls have shown the centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron bagging around 62 per cent votes.

In the first round of the election, National Front candidate, Le Pen finished second behind Macron on 21.3 percent.

Meanwhile, Macron has been the target of a massive hacking attack, as his campaign team have stated that hackers have mixed up genuine files with fake ones in order to confuse people.

The Macron camp has not blamed any specific party, but said that it was clear the hackers wanted to undermine Macron ahead of second round vote.

Today's round of vote will decide whether France's voters have rejected the two big political parties -- the Socialists and the Republicans - that have governed for decades. -- ANI

09:31 No Karachi-Mumbai PIA flight from tomorrow

Pakistan International Airlines will suspend its flight between Karachi and Mumbai from tomorrow due to commercial considerations, a senior airline official has said.

PIA operated two flights in a week (Monday and Thursday) between Karachi and Mumbai. However, the PIA's Lahore-Delhi flight operation will continue as traffic volume on this route is satisfactory, the PIA official said.

The suspension of Karachi-Mumbai route may add traffic to Lahore-Delhi route, he said.

"There will be no PIA flight between Karachi to Mumbai and Mumbai to Karachi from April 8. The PIA has stopped booking for flights on this route," the official said.

The PIA management has decided to suspend the flight on the Karachi-Mumbai route because of extremely low traffic (on the route).

"Since we have been bearing financial loss on this route for the last six months or so we have arrived at a decision to suspend this route," the official said, adding that unless a special subsidy is not given by the government on this route it may not be restored in the near future.

The move comes amid a strain in Indo-Pak ties following the beheading of two Indian soldiers by the Pakistan military in Jammu and Kashmir.

The PIA administration, however, dismissed media reports that the Karachi-Mumbai operation is being suspended due to tense relations between India and Pakistan. -- PTI

Aam Aadmi Party founder member Kumar Vishwas has hinted more rebellion in the party after his colleague Kapil Mishra was removed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday from his cabinet.

Mishra was water minister in Delhi government.

Soon after his removal, he hinted that he was removed because 'I told Kejriwal that I would not tolerate delay in tanker scam report and would submit names of those who were involved in delaying the case in the Anti-Corruption Bureau'.

Soon after Mishra's ouster, Vishwas took to Twitter to air his rebellious mood.

When Kapil Mishra posted a letter on Twitter addressed to Delhi ACB Chief M K Meena asking him why former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit has not been questioned, Vishwas re-tweeted Mishra's tweet and said: 'No compromise on corruption'.

In his next tweet, he vowed to continue the fight against corruption in and outside the party.

In another tweet, Vishwas hinted at launching another Jantar-Mantar type movement against corruption.

With Mishra's removal from Delhi's cabinet and Vishwas' mood, it is expected that the AAP's internal fight is going to be intensify. -- ANI

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