By Yadnom Awu/ Asaba
Afghanistan
Man Who Lost 63 family members To Quake Seeks Global Support For Country
….Says 35 Other Family Members Wounded
A man, Gul Rahim, who lost 63 members of his extended family to Sunday’s devastating earthquake in which 35 other members were wounded has appealed to the international community for urgent humanitarian support for his embattled country of Afghanistan.
He said in a media chat that he had never experienced anything in the mould of the quake in the past 50 years that he had lived in the area.
Aside from his family, Rahimi said more than 100 other persons from his immediate village perished in the quake.
The survivor recalled the day of the quake and how, in the twinkle of an eye , he lost precious children, wives, cousins , nephews and other family members to a quake that he said he was still struggling to comprehend.
According to him, he would be starting life afresh in the wake of the disaster he said had struck the heart of his poor country.
He called on the global community, irrespective of faith and creed, to rally to the aid of Afghanistan which, he said, could not on its own, cope with the long term effects of the tremor which killed in excess of 2,200 and wounded more than 4,000 others, aside from the hundreds of homes that it destroyed.
He acknowledged the support of the Taliban- led Afghan government, which, he said, had given him $90 ( about N140,000) in humanitarian assistance, but said that, given the scope of the devastation and the number of persons affected, the best efforts of the Afghan government would be infinitesimal.
The quake struck the isolated mountainous Eastern flank of the country which was already struggling with the effects of the massive cut to its foreign aid receipts by the American government.
The United Kingdom, China and India have pledged support for Afghanistan over its quake challenge.
The country has lost more than 7,000 persons to three earthquakes in the past five years.
Afghanistan is vulnerable to quakes because of its location at the juncture of the Eurasian Earth Crust and its unstable seismic plate.
Canada
Palestine ’36 Premieres at TIFF
A film on British colonial Palestine has premiered to much acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Canada.
The film dwells on the Palestinian resistance to British colonial rule during the British Protectorate.
One of the participants, Bily How, said the film enabled him to learn and understand the role Britain played in the Palestinian matter and its responsibility for its effects both in the past, present and the future.
Japan
A massive typhoon has lashed the Pacific Coast of Japan , destroying or damaging hundreds of houses and causing massive disruptions to public utilities, including public power.
Emergency workers were called up as efforts to restore public utilities continued.
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Lebanon
Lebanese Govt Okays Army’s Plan To Disarm Hezbollah
The Lebanese Government has approved the plan of the Lebanese Military to disarm the militia group, Hezbollah.
The approval followed mounting pressure by the government of Donald Trump of America and Israel for the disarmament of the group which has a long history of military confrontatoons with Israel, especially in southern parts of the country and north of Israel, around the Litani River.
One of the military conflicts ended recently with a peace deal between Israel and Hezbollah, which backs Hamas of Palestine.
Both Hamas and Hezbollah, like the Houthis of Yemen and the militias of Iraq, are proxies of the Iran government , which is locked in an internecine conflict with Israel.
By the terms of the peace deal that ended the last military conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the militant group was to give up its domination of Lebanese politics and disarm under the supervision of the, Lebanese government , while Israel was to pull out of Lebanese territories and cease its cross – border military attacks on Lebanon.
But Israel has not only failed to keep faith with the terms to pull South of the Litani River, but has seized several other parts of the country and created and operationalised five military outposts in Lebanon.
America, which is the main backer, has ignored Israel ‘s repeated breaches of the peace deal terms and the violation of Lebanon ‘s sovereignty, and instead, insists on the disarmament of Hezbollah.
At the cabinet meeting where the approval was made, five Shiite cabinet ministers staged a walk out, in a clear depiction of their opposition.
Hezbollah has also said it would not disarm while Israel, against the terms of the peace deal, remained in parts of Lebanon, built more military centres in it and regularly breaches the sovereignty of the country as the global community keeps mum.
Experts have warned that any attempt to forcibly disarm Hezbollah could trigger a civil conflict between the Lebanese military and the group which has both a political and and an armed wings.
Egypt
Egypt Warns Against Forced Relocation of Palestinians From Gaza
Egypt has strongly reacted to the statement of Israeli Prime Minister , Benjamin Netanyahu, that Palestinians in Gaza could relocate elsewhere, including Egypt.
In a statement ,the Foreign Ministry said any attempt for Israel to forcibly relocate Gazans outside their ancestral land would be a red line.
It added that Egypt would not accept the relocations which it said had no legal, political or military justification
Egypt and Qatar are the artiwheads of the diplomatic efforts to resolve the Israeli Palestinian war.
Like Egypt, Qatar had also condemned the move by Israeli Prime Minister, Netanyahu.
It warned that it would not accept the forced relocation of Gazans.
Britain
Palestinian Action
To Hold Rally Today
The Palestinian group, Palestinian Action plans to hold a mass rally today in protest at the ongoing Israeli military action in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem
The group, which has been controversially declared illegal, regularly holds rallies in spite of ethe efforts of the British Government to restrict it.
The government has warned that participants and organisers risked jail terms of up to 14 years each under the Terrorism Law.
But the organisers remain defiant, saying, instead, that they expect up to one thousand active physical participatnts.
Australia
Shark Kills Australian Surfer
A surfer described by officials as inexperienced, was this morning killed near Sydney.
He was surfing at the Long Reef area of the coast near the city when he was sighted in distress by friends who rushed to his aid.
However, it appears that haste was useless.
The unnamed man had lost his limbs to the violent fish before helping reached him.
This is the first time in three years that a shark would fatally strike a person around Sydney .
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