epubdos : Afghanistan
SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS
Prepared for the U.S. Department of State
Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs
TO:
SCA & Staff
DATE:
Wednesday, January 29, 2025 6:30 AM ET

Afghanistan
With Foreign Aid Freeze and Immigration Restrictions, US Leaves Afghan Allies in the Cold (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [1/28/2025 12:05 PM, Catherine Putz, 857K, Negative]
With the unprecedented wave of executive orders signed in the first week of his second administration, U.S. President Donald Trump dealt a devastating blow to an already embattled group of American allies: Afghans.

Among the executive orders signed on the day of Trump’s inauguration was an immediate and total freeze on U.S. aid. The order – "Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid" – immediately paused all assistance to "foreign countries and implementing non-governmental organizations, international organizations, and contractors" pending review. The order parrots conspiratorial language alleging that U.S. foreign aid serves "to destabilize world peace by promoting ideas in foreign countries that are directly inverse to harmonious and stable relations internal to and among countries.".

A second inauguration day executive order – "Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program" – suspended the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) as of January 27, broadly ending all refugee admissions and applications with the absurd claim that the United States "lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular, refugees, into its communities in a manner that does not compromise the availability of resources for Americans, that protects their safety and security, and that ensures the appropriate assimilation of refugees.".

The cascade of effects from these two orders has led to the effective suspension of the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program in addition to the freeze on USRAP. Immigration to the United States has long been an arduous process, but now Afghans already approved for SIVs have been left stranded by the executive orders at various stages in the process.

The executive orders have "turned a bureaucratic decision into a humanitarian catastrophe. Thousands of Afghans who stood by the United States are now stranded — without food, without medical care, and without a way forward. The U.S. made a promise to these people. Right now, we are breaking it," Shawn VanDiver, the president and board chairman of #AfghanEvac, said.

In an email to #AfghanEvac’s coalition partners, and shared with The Diplomat, VanDiver laid out the effects of Trump’s executive order on Afghans in the SIV pipeline.

The freezing of foreign aid, in particular, has hamstrung NGOs that assist Afghans in the resettlement process. These groups welcome Afghans on arrival, help them find housing and jobs, assist them in enrolling their children in school, find healthcare, and broadly help them integrate into American life.

The secretary of state has the authority to grant waivers for specific programs, but so far Marco Rubio has not issued any such waivers. Only foreign military assistance to Israel and Egypt has been exempted from the aid freeze.

"Secretary [Marco] Rubio has the power to restart these services immediately, yet thousands remain in limbo while the administration stalls," VanDiver wrote.

According to #AfghanEvac, more than 2,400 Afghans, including SIV holders, refugees and more than 1,100 children have lost access to basic necessities like food, medical devices, clothing, and hygiene products, as well as access to English language classes. Programs providing informal education to women and girls still stranded in Afghanistan – where the Taliban regime bans them from education and most work – have also been stopped.

The executive orders have triggered a breakdown in resettlement programs, with #AfghanEvac stating that the International Organization for Migration (IOM), a U.N. organization, is now "unable to issue flight loans, which are a crucial mechanism for helping [evacuees] book travel to their final destinations.".

"Almost universally, travel to the U.S. for SIVs has stopped due to the lack of flight loans and absence of resettlement support services upon arrival," #AfghanEvac said. That leaves Afghans already approved for resettlement in the United States "effectively trapped" in their current country of residence.

"If an Afghan evacuee somehow manages to self-fund their way to the U.S., they are met with silence. No resettlement services, no housing assistance, no job placement support — just uncertainty and hardship," VanDiver noted. "The infrastructure to help is there, but it’s been turned off. We can fix this, but only if we act now.".

The Trump administration has not commented on the plight of Afghans who put their lives at risk helping the United States over the course of Washington’s 20-year war in Afghanistan.

Before the inauguration, there were hopes among some Afghans with whom I’ve spoken that Trump’s pick of Michael Waltz — an Afghan War veteran — for his national security adviser signaled an intention not to abandon U.S. commitments to its Afghan allies.

In an early November 2024 interview with CNN’s Jack Tapper regarding Trump’s promises to crack down on illegal immigration, Waltz brought up Afghans and criticized the Biden administration for leaving them behind.

"The most upset immigrant I’ve ever talked to is one that came legally, waited years, did everything they were supposed to, and then just watched a government — especially the Biden-Harris administration — turn a blind eye, as those — as they just break the law and skip the line," he said. "And first and foremost is, of those that are upset, are the Afghans who are left behind, who were willing to fight and die with us and are still stuck over there.".

Now Trump is president and the United States’ Afghan allies are still stuck.
Trump has stranded refugees and Afghan allies. America’s word is on the line (Houston Chronicle – opinion)
Houston Chronicle [1/28/2025 7:00 AM, Editorial Board, 2315K, Neutral]
About 1,600 people from Afghanistan who were cleared to come to the United States through the refugee resettlement program lost their seats on flights last week, according to #AfghanEvac, coalition of veterans and advocacy groups.

Thousands more refugees are stranded owing to an executive order by Donald Trump — one of a flurry of orders signed by the president, who tossed pens to a cheering inauguration crowd and signed stacks more at his desk in the Oval Office.

How strange those spectacles must appear to stranded family members of Afghans who supported U.S. troops, who seem to have been swept up in the onslaught of orders.

"The Taliban regard us as traitors, and returning to Afghanistan would expose us to arrest, torture, or death," an advocacy group called Afghan USRAP Refugees wrote in a letter to Trump. "In Pakistan, the situation is increasingly untenable. Arbitrary arrests, deportations, and insecurity compound our distress.".

These individuals include people who received special visas for helping the U.S. military and appear to have been affected by the broadly disruptive freeze in refugee resettlement funding and spending.

It’s important to note that refugees are not part of the asylum system, which is often overwhelmed and can be abused by people presenting themselves at the border. In contrast, the refugee resettlement program is tightly controlled. Applicants wait in line and the process can take years.

Last year, Texas led the country in refugee resettlement, welcoming nearly 10,000 people in the fiscal year ending on Sep. 30. Houston has also become home to thousands of Afghan people through the special visa program.

Both communities have been affected by the blunt application of Trump’s orders, which has hit resettlement agencies that aid both.

Begun in the shadows of genocide and World War II, refugee resettlement in this country was codified in 1980. It ensured that America would be a bright light to all nations and never again turn its back on the most vulnerable. In Houston, the influx of refugees, many from Vietnam, came almost at the exact moment when oil went bust. Their numbers and their resolve to reestablish their lives here helped reinvigorate parts of town that had been emptied out of professionals fleeing the faltering economy. Aging apartment complex built for singles took on new life with kids playing in the courtyards and gardens hanging from the balconies.

But resettlement was never without limits. In 2024, the country welcomed roughly 100,000 refugees, a bounceback from the freeze on resettlements during Trump’s first term, but less than half of the number admitted in 1980 and still less than levels in the ‘90s.

Refugees go through rigorous screening, including health and background checks, to ensure they meet a narrow set of criteria. They must prove they have been persecuted or have a well-founded fear of being persecuted based on specific characteristics, including religion and ethnicity. They are interviewed extensively, must produce documents and evidence. If they say they have been beaten, they may have to show the scars to prove it.

Once they get here, they get benefits that other migrants don’t necessarily receive, often including cash assistance, language classes, help finding housing and other services to help them establish their new lives here. All of this helps explain why refugees have an employment rate of roughly 96 percent, according to a 2022 report from the American Immigration Council, and contribute nearly $32 billion in taxes.

According to Trump’s executive order again freezing the program, the country "lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular refugees" and cites the need for "appropriate assimilation.".

Trump has ordered his Homeland Security Advisor to produce a report within three months stating whether resuming resettlement "would be in the interests of the United States.".

The resettlement program is critical to our country’s international standing, especially our ability to gain the trust of potential allies.

Critics of the resettlement program argue that far more refugees and displaced people could be helped abroad for the same cost as bringing only few to the U.S. They have a point but that tradeoff is hardly what’s behind Trump’s callous and cruel actions. He’s also paused virtually all foreign aid.

There are real resource constraints to resettlement, although Texas offers far less than, say, California, to help launch refugees. But study after study shows that immigrants, including refugees and asylees, provide more than they take, even when accounting for their extended families.

Refugees represent a small slice of overall immigration and certainly do not pose the kind of threats Trump and his allies repeat ad nauseam. If it were truly a question of resources, Trump could have ordered the analysis without halting the program entirely, throwing families into chaos, putting people at risk and compromising the values of our country.

Shawn VanDiver, head of the #AfghanEvac, told Reuters that the organization believes the suspension of flights for Afghan refugees "was a mistake." We hope that’s true and they are on their way. And the order allows for a "case by case" implementation.

During his first term, Trump did change course on some immigration policies after fierce public backlash, notably on the separation of children from their parents. We hope Americans will speak up for the more than 100 million displaced people all over the world. Excluding the military budget, less than 1 percent of the U.S. budget goes to foreign aid and a smaller percentage still to refugee resettlement. Helping the vulnerable, and certainly our allies, is not only in our country’s interest, it is the moral thing to do.
Pakistan
2 soldiers, 5 militants killed in southwest Pakistan during attack on security post (AP)
AP [1/28/2025 7:45 AM, Staff, 33392K, Negative]
A group of militants attacked a security post in southwest Pakistan, triggering an intense shootout in which two soldiers and five insurgents were killed, military and local officials said on Tuesday.

The overnight attack happened in Qila Abdullah, a district in Balochistan province, the military said in a statement. It said the attempt by insurgents to enter the post was foiled, and the attackers then rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a perimeter wall.

The military said that the troops responded bravely and killed the attackers, who the military referred to as "khwarij," a phrase which the government uses for Pakistani Taliban. Two suicide bombers were also among the five attackers, it said.

In separate statements, President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to the "martyred soldiers" and praised security forces for repelling the attack.

No group claimed responsibility, but suspicion is likely to fall on the Pakistani Taliban and an outlawed Baloch separatist group, which often attacks security forces in Balochistan and elsewhere in the country.

The gas-rich Baluchistan province has also been the scene of a low-level insurgency by small separatist groups for more than two decades. They initially wanted a share of provincial resources, but later they launched an insurgency for independence. Pakistani Taliban also have a strong presence in the province.
Pakistan army foils militant attempt to take security post in Balochistan (Reuters)
Reuters [1/28/2025 11:02 AM, Saleem Ahmed, 48128K, Negative]
Islamist militants in an explosive-laden vehicle were thwarted in their attempt to overrun a Pakistani security post near the border with Afghanistan, the army said on Tuesday.

The five attackers, including two suicide bombers, were killed when the post came under attack in Qila Abdullah district in the southwestern province of Balochistan, the military said in a statement.

"The attempt to enter the post was effectively thwarted by our own troops," it said, adding that the Pakistani troops forced the militants to ram the explosive-laden vehicle into the perimeter wall of the post. Two soldiers were killed, it said.

The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella alliance for Sunni militant groups, claimed responsibility for the attack in a WhatsApp message shared with a Reuters’ reporter.

The mineral-rich province, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, has been the scene of a decade-old insurgency by separatist ethnic Baloch groups and Islamist militants also operate there.

Islamabad says the militants use Afghan soil to train and plan attacks inside Pakistan, a charge Kabul denies.

The TTP has been waging an armed insurgency in a bid to overthrow the government and replace it with one that rules according to Sharia, or Islamic law.

It has accelerated its attacks, particularly targeting Pakistani security forces, since revoking a ceasefire late 2022.
Pakistani journalists rally against law regulating social media (Reuters)
Reuters [1/28/2025 9:31 AM, Staff, 48128K, Neutral]
Hundreds of Pakistani journalists rallied on Tuesday against a proposed law to regulate social media content that they say is aimed at curbing press freedom and controlling the digital landscape.

The law would establish a regulatory authority that would have its own investigation agency and tribunals. Those found to have disseminated false or fake information face prison sentences of up to three years and fines of 2 million rupees ($7,200).

The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists led rallies in cities including Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore, to demand the government withdraws the bill, which has been passed by parliament but has yet to be signed into law by the president.

"It is a direct attack on press freedom," PFUJ President Afzal Butt said at the rally in Islamabad, before police blocked him and other protesters from marching toward the Red Zone, which houses the prime minister’s secretariat, parliament and diplomatic offices.

"Our movement will continue until the law is revoked."

Digital media in Pakistan has already been muffled with measures by telecom authorities to slow down internet speeds, and social media platform X has been blocked for more than a year.

Reporters Without Borders, an organisation that defends press freedom, ranked Pakistan at number 152 out of 180 on its 2024 world Press Freedom Index. The group also says Pakistan is one of the most dangerous places for journalists to work.

Parliament passed the amendments to the law known as Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act last week.

The government has defended the new regulations, saying the law is being introduced to block fake and false news.
Pakistan Senate votes to ban fake news on social media (Deutsche Welle)
Deutsche Welle [1/28/2025 6:17 AM, Staff, 13448K, Negative]
Pakistan’s upper house of parliament passed a bill on Tuesday criminalizing the spread of online misinformation.

The bill was already passed in the National Assembly last week.

What do we know about the bill?

The law would target anyone who "intentionally disseminates" information they have "reason to believe to be false or fake and likely to cause or create a sense of fear, panic or disorder or unrest.".

It would allow authorities to imprison social media users for up to three years for spreading disinformation and stipulate fines of up to 2 million rupees ($7,121, €6,822).

The legislation would also create an agency with the power to immediately block content deemed "unlawful and offensive" from social media.

Pakistan’s media regulator blocked Wikipedia in 2023 over "blasphemous material," but the ban was lifted days later at the request of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

Journalists walk out from controversial vote

The approval of the bill was accompanied by a walkout of journalists from the Senate’s press gallery.

Asif Bashir Chaudhry, a member of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, told the AFP news agency that journalists had felt betrayed by the government.

"We genuinely wanted a law against misinformation, but if it’s not being done through open discussion but rather through fear and coercion, we will challenge it on every available platform," he said.

Members of the center-left Pashtun nationalist Awami National Party (ANP), which is part of the Senate’s ruling coalition, also walked out of the Tuesday vote, Pakistani media reported.

Khan’s PTI warns against social media bill

Shibli Faraz, who is the leader of the opposition in the Senate and a member of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI), argued that the bill had been passed hastily and without consulting stakeholders.

He was cited by the AFP news agency as saying the bill was "highly undemocratic" and would lead to the targeting of PTI party activists.

Pakistani authorities imposed multiple internet shutdowns amid protests from supporters of the PTI, who have demanded Khan’s release and argued his graft conviction is political.
Chinese harassment claim shows growing frustration with Pakistan (Nikkei Asia)
Nikkei Asia [1/29/2025 4:26 AM, Adnan Aamir, 1.3M, Neutral]
Chinese investors filed a petition at a local court in Pakistan last week against police harassment that they say is done in the guise of providing security. Though the petition was withdrawn a few days later, the action marks the first of its kind by Chinese nationals in Pakistan and could impact China’s already shaky investment confidence in the South Asian nation.

Pakistan has enacted strict security protocols for over 20,000 Chinese nationals working in the country due to repeated attacks targeting them. Twenty Chinese nationals have been killed and 34 injured across 14 attacks since 2021, according to Pakistan’s National Counter Terrorism Authority. But these security arrangements, which were a demand from Beijing, are backfiring.

Six Chinese investors filed the petition to the Sindh High Court in Karachi last Friday, alleging harassment and corruption by the police. These investors are mostly involved in setting up medium sized manufacturing plants and the importing of raw materials that they sell to Pakistani customers.

"Over the past six to seven months, the Sindh Police have engaged in repeated acts of harassment, including unjustifiably restricting the movements of Chinese nationals within Karachi and Sindh, particularly," reads the petition, seen by Nikkei Asia.

"The [investors] and a lot of other Chinese citizens have been subjected to unjustified detainments within their residences, on the pretext of ‘security issues,’ without any clear legal grounds or specific incidents that warrant such actions," it continued. "These measures not only limit the Petitioners’ basic freedoms but also interfere with their abilities to conduct business activities effectively."

The investors say they faced bribe demands from the moment they arrived at Karachi’s airport. The petition further adds that previous attempts to resolve these grievances were ignored by authorities. They also warned that they might return to China if such harassment continues.

The petition pleads with the court to direct the local and federal governments to immediately cease any harassment, unjustified detainment and restrictions done in the name of security issues.

"If the Chinese, who by tradition keep issues away from the public eye, are going to the extent of not only making their long-held grievances public but also approaching provincial apex courts, it shows the intensity of the matter," Ghulam Ali, deputy director at Hong Kong Research Center for Asian Studies, told Nikkei.

The Sindh government has responded by defending the security arrangements for Chinese nationals.

"Certain Chinese associated with projects unrelated to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor wanted free movement, but we cannot compromise their security, thus standard operating procedures are strictly followed," Ghulam Nabi Memon, Sindh’s police chief, told local media.

On Tuesday evening, the Chinese investors decided to withdraw their petition after the top administration of Sindh and the federal government told them to address the concerns.

"Chinese have delivered a message through this petition that they can’t take more of such harassment in the name of security," a government official linked to the matter told Nikkei on condition of anonymity.

Experts say this development will further contribute to reducing China’s economic footprint in Pakistan.

"There is no new major investment from China to Pakistan recently. Slowly, the ‘higher than the Himalayas’ relationship will descend to the ground," said Ali of the Hong Kong Research Center. "However, given the long history of cooperation between the two countries, China will continue the rhetoric of a friendly relationship."
As Pakistanis die in fresh Mediterranean tragedy, a question lingers: Why? (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [1/28/2025 10:27 PM, Abid Hussain, 19588K, Negative]
Rehan Aslam’s family ran a transport and car rental business, and grocery stores. Rehan helped run those businesses.

But five months ago, the 34-year-old sold his car, a Toyota Hiace wagon, for 4.5 million rupees ($16,000) to pay an agent who would help him leave behind his life in his village, Jora, in Gujrat district of Pakistan’s Punjab province, in search of a future in Europe.

He never made it.

Rehan, a father of two girls and a boy, was among 86 people who boarded a passenger boat on January 2 near Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania in West Africa, aiming for the Canary Islands, an archipelago off the coast of northwestern Africa controlled by Spain.

Stranded at sea for more than 13 days, the vessel was eventually rescued by Moroccan authorities – with only 36 survivors on board. Rabia Kasuri, Pakistan’s acting ambassador to Morocco, confirmed that at least 65 Pakistanis were on board the boat: of them, 43 were dead, while 22 survived.

Rehan was among those who died.

“He just wanted to get to Europe somehow. That was his dream, and he told us not to create any obstacles in his way,” Mian Ikram Aslam, Rehan’s elder brother, told Al Jazeera. “All he wanted was to seek better opportunities outside Pakistan for his three children.”

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Saturday that it would repatriate the 22 survivors of the recent boat accident off the coast of Morocco, but there’s little closure on the horizon for the families of those who died.

Instead, the tragedy has left in its wake a series of questions. How did the people on the boat die? Why were they travelling to Europe from West Africa – an unlikely and new route for irregular Pakistani migrants?

And why were people like Rehan, from families with some financial stability, risking their lives to get to Europe in the first place?

‘Tortured to death’

This incident on the Western Mediterranean route comes just weeks after four other vessels sank in the central Mediterranean in December last year. In those tragedies, 200 people were rescued, but nearly 50 were reported dead or missing, including at least 40 Pakistanis.

One of the deadliest shipwrecks in the Mediterranean occurred in June 2023, when more than 700 people, including nearly 300 Pakistanis, died after the Adriana, an ageing fishing trawler, capsized near the Greek island of Pylos.

In the latest incident, the Pakistani Foreign Ministry initially announced on January 16 that the boat had “capsized” near Dakhla, a port city in the disputed Western Sahara territory controlled by Morocco. But families of the victims claim their loved ones were “beaten” and “tortured” before being thrown overboard.

Aslam, 49, said survivors from his village reported that pirates on another boat attacked them, stole their belongings and assaulted passengers with hammers before throwing some into the sea.

“We were able to talk with some of the surviving boys in Dakhla, who shared how pirates repeatedly attacked their boat for a week, torturing and throwing people overboard,” he said.

A similar account was shared by Chaudhry Ahsan Gorsi, a businessman from Dhola village near Gujrat city in Punjab province.

Gorsi lost his nephews, Atif Shehzad and Sufyan Ali, who paid 3.5 million rupees ($12,500) to agents to facilitate their journey. Survivors informed him about the brutal circumstances of their deaths.

“These boys sold their land to raise the money and left last August,” Gorsi told Al Jazeera. “But I could never have imagined they would meet such a gruesome fate – physically attacked, tortured and thrown into the water,” he said.

Following the rescue of the boat last week, the Pakistani government sent an investigation team to Rabat to probe the allegations. However, their report has not yet been made public.

“We are still conducting our investigation and have interviewed the survivors about their experiences,” Rabia Kasuri, Pakistan’s acting ambassador to Morocco, told Al Jazeera from Rabat, where she has served for the past two years. Investigators, she said, were still “trying to figure out the details of what unfolded during the days when the boat was stranded in the sea”.

A new route

Despite being one of Pakistan’s most fertile regions, and the home of several industries manufacturing electronic goods such as refrigerators, fans, sports and surgical goods, Punjab’s districts of Gujrat, Sialkot, Jhelum, and Mandi Bahauddin have been hubs for people seeking to migrate to Europe for decades.

According to Frontex, the European Union’s border and coastguard agency, nearly 150,000 irregular migrants from Pakistan have made it to Europe using land and sea routes, since 2009, when the agency started keeping records of migrants entering the European Union.

Most Pakistanis making the trip typically travel to the United Arab Emirates, then take flights to Egypt and Libya before attempting a sea journey across the Mediterranean.

Kasuri, the acting envoy, said the Western Mediterranean route is uncommon for Pakistanis seeking irregular migration. But that choice of route might be the consequence of attempts by Frontex and Pakistani authorities to tighten their curbs on irregular migration, said Pakistani officials.

Overall, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), nearly 200,000 people crossed into Europe via various Mediterranean routes in 2024, while at least 2,824 were declared dead or missing.

But while those numbers are still significant, Frontex reported a 38 percent decline in irregular border crossings into the EU in 2024, marking the lowest levels since 2021.

Frontex data reveals that while just over 10,000 Pakistanis made it to Europe in 2023, the numbers fell by half the following year, as about 5,000 people entered Europe through irregular means using land or sea routes.

Since the Adriana sinking in June 2023, which caused national outrage, Pakistani authorities say they have increased and improved their screening to clamp down on human smuggling networks, Munir Masood Marath, a senior official of Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency said. But smugglers, in response, have searched and found new routes.

“This is a game of cat and mouse, as we keep tracking the smuggling network, they also find different routes to seek and lure people to use those,” Marath told Al Jazeera in an interview.

Rehan flew from Faisalabad in Punjab to Dubai. Then to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and then on to Dakar, Senegal. From Dakar, the agent took Rehan and others in their group by road to Nouakchott, up north along the Atlantic coast.

The agent, Aslam said, was known to the family. Rehan didn’t face abuse from the agent or his aides and was often able to speak with his family back home over the phone.

Until his death, Rehan’s journey seemed better than what many undocumented migrants making such trips have to endure – something Aslam knew from his own experience.

Europe’s ‘lifestyle’ lure

More than two decades ago, in 2003, Aslam, too, had tried a risky journey to Europe – via land, to Greece. Along with a group of 50 to 80 people from the Gujrat district, he made his way to Pakistan’s southwestern province Balochistan, from where smugglers helped him, and others cross the border and enter Iran.

“We kept walking on foot for months on end, and when we would slow down, they [smugglers] would threaten to kill us or sometimes beat us”, he recalled of his journey.

But after nearly two months of walking and hiding, when the group eventually reached the Turkiye border, Aslam gave up and decided to return home.

“I just told them that I cannot walk any more. I showed them blisters on my feet and begged them to let me go,” he said. They let him go. “It’s a miracle I survived that ordeal,” Aslam added.

Since then, the family has built its businesses, and Aslam, one of five brothers, said they were financially secure. The brothers now run a successful car rental business with a “fleet of 10-15 vehicles”, he said, as well as grocery shops. They also own a small tract of agricultural land.

“Our family was well settled, and Rehan helped me with our business,” Aslam said. “But after failing multiple times to secure visas for Canada or the United Kingdom, he decided to take the risk [going to Europe without documents].”

Marath, the FIA official, pointed out that while economic reasons play their part in compelling people to undertake such perilous journeys, there is also a social aspect. Families, even those that are financially stable, see their neighbours, friends, and relatives whose sons have made it to Europe flaunting their upward social mobility.

Aslam explained that the lure of wealth, better opportunities, and the “chance to live in a more equitable society” pushed people into taking life-threatening risks.

“There is such a rot in our society, people do not get justice for small things,” he said. “So often, when our vehicle is plying between cities, traffic police stop people seeking bribes randomly. For many, it is part and parcel of doing business here, but for some, like my brother, they had enough of it.”

Gorsi, too, recalled how his nephews worked in Dubai at a construction company which he had helped set up before deciding to pursue their European dreams.

“Both these boys had been wanting to find a way to reach Europe. They see the lifestyle of some of our fellow villagers who have managed to send their children to Europe, and how it gave them upward social mobility. So, these two also wanted to try their luck,” he added.

Still, despite his own journey in 2003, and the death of his nephew in January, Aslam was fatalistic – almost as though he was making peace with the dangerous decisions that led to Rehan’s death.

“Our brother made this choice,” he said. “And we knowingly allowed it, despite the risks.”
India
India tries to give Trump ‘quick wins.’ What does Modi want in return? (Washington Post)
Washington Post [1/28/2025 11:34 AM, Karishma Mehrotra, 40736K, Neutral]
Just a week into Donald Trump’s presidency, India has signaled it is ready to adapt to his transactional style of diplomacy.

Indian officials have zeroed in on two of Trump’s top priorities — the economy and immigration — indicating an openness to increased U.S. investment in the country, more imports of American oil and gas, and the return of Indian nationals staying illegally in the United States.

“A preemptive and proactive policy is always better when it comes to Trump,” said Harsh Shringla, India’s ambassador to the United States during Trump’s first term.

Trump has forged close ties with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has spoken admiringly of the leader’s Hindu-nationalist political movement. Experts say the early conciliatory language from New Delhi reflects the return to a dealmaking era and is aimed at limiting fallout over thornier bilateral issues — including tariffs and India’s expanding wave of aggression against dissidents abroad.

“We have a very good relationship with India,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Monday after his first post-election phone call with Modi, adding that the Indian leader would visit the White House soon, probably in February.

“India’s posture of appeasement is not unique, but it’s very clever,” said Milan Vaishnav, director of the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “By making preemptive concessions on relatively minor issues, governments can allow Trump to put quick wins on the board without enduring too much pain themselves.”

An ‘open door’

Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar was the first Indian official to attend an American presidential inauguration, and he had a seat near the front.

Jaishankar was also among the first to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week and was quick to say at a news conference afterward that India has “always been open” to the return of its citizens living abroad illegally.

Indians are the third-largest group of undocumented immigrants in the United States, according to estimates from the Pew Research Center in 2022. Increasingly, Indian migrants are crossing over from Canada, at a time when Trump has threatened tariffs against Ottawa if it does not lock down its border — part of his administration’s far-reaching anti-immigration agenda.

The U.S. government has previously categorized India as a “recalcitrant” or “uncooperative” country for “systematically” refusing or delaying to repatriate its citizens. Last week, Jaishankar was keen to highlight that New Delhi was taking the issue seriously: “We are firmly opposed to illegal mobility and illegal migration,” he told reporters.

The president has already sought to make an example of countries that defy him on the issue — getting into an intense but short-lived feud with his Colombian counterpart Sunday when the country refused to accept flights carrying deportees.

Aboard Air Force One on Monday, Trump said that he and Modi discussed repatriations during their call and that the prime minister “will do what’s right.”

Indian officials have also highlighted their willingness to ramp up energy cooperation, on the heels of a Trump executive order calling for an expansion of American oil and gas drilling. “If you say there is a potent possibility of more purchase of energy between India and the U.S., the answer is yes,” Indian Petroleum Minister Hardeep Puri said at an auto industry event two days after Trump’s inauguration.

India frustrated the Biden administration in recent years by increasing its purchases of Russian crude — steeply discounted as a result of Western sanctions on Moscow over its war in Ukraine. Among Biden’s final acts in office was a more targeted sanctions package aimed at the Russian oil and gas sector, which experts say had already prompted India to explore diversifying its energy supply.

India’s small concessions to Trump on energy imports and repatriations are “like pushing on an open door,” said Michael Kugelman, director of the Wilson Center’s South Asia Institute.

New Delhi is also hinting it may be open to larger economic compromises, as Trump threatens a global trade war much broader than anything he attempted in his first term. India exports far more to the United States — its largest trade partner — than it imports into its heavily protected economy.

On the campaign trail, Trump regularly denounced India’s protectionism and criticized the tariffs it imposed on American brands. In his call with Modi, the president emphasized “the importance of … moving toward a fair bilateral trade relationship,” according to the White House readout.

Experts say it’s another area in which New Delhi is eager to signal flexibility.

“If tariff concessions are warranted to preserve our technology and defense partnerships, well, so be it,” Ashok Malik, partner and chair of the India practice at the Asia Group and a former Foreign Ministry official, said in reference to initiatives reached with the Biden administration — including on the development of jet engines and the production of semiconductors.

The perception in New Delhi is that Trump has “much more control this time,” requiring other countries to “take him more seriously,” according to an Indian trade expert with experience in international negotiations, who, like others in this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive issues.

On how much India might be willing to relax its economic restrictions to please the new administration, “the intent is clear, but the details are yet to come out,” the former negotiator said. “And the devil lies in the details.”

India’s interests

India had hoped to reach a comprehensive trade deal with the United States during Trump’s first term, but it never came to fruition.

Negotiations were like “pulling teeth,” according to an Indian official involved in the process, adding that he feels more optimism this time around.

Ajay Sahai, the CEO of the Federation of Indian Export Organizations and former head of foreign trade in the Commerce Ministry, predicted “we will likely provide much more market access to the U.S. now.”

The agricultural sector is likely to remain a red line for India, he said, with almost half of the country dependent on farming, but he predicted that officials could loosen protections in areas such as medical equipment and aviation.

On immigration, India has been assertive about its own priorities. “I told Rubio that it is in our interests to facilitate legal, mutually beneficial mobility,” Jaishankar said at the news conference last week, adding that India was very concerned about visa delays.

Trump’s controversial order to end birthright citizenship — temporarily blocked by a federal judge on Thursday — specifically included the children of those in the country on high-skill H-1B work visas, the majority of whom are Indian. But India has been encouraged by Trump’s vocal support for the H-1B program, which has caused a rift in his right-wing base.

New Delhi is also hoping the new president will help smooth over lingering frictions from the Biden administration in the aftermath of two politically explosive indictments.

In 2023, an Indian government official was charged with orchestrating a murder-for-hire plot on American soil against a Sikh activist, ultimately thwarted by U.S. authorities. In November, Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, who has close ties to the Modi government, was indicted on fraud and bribery charges. A former Indian official said the government is hoping the indictments will be less of an issue under Trump.

India is also nervous about the political future of neighboring Bangladesh, where Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina — a close ally of New Delhi — was ousted in a popular uprising in August. Analysts say India will be looking to maintain its influence in Bangladesh and will encourage Trump to follow its lead across the region.

“With Trump keen to walk the U.S. back from many global responsibilities, the idea of deferring to allies and partners in their regions … will be appealing,” Kugelman said. “This is particularly so in South Asia, which likely won’t be a top region of strategic concern for Trump.”
Dozens Feared Dead in Stampede at Huge Hindu Festival in India (New York Times)
New York Times [1/29/2025 2:18 AM, Hari Kumar and Anupreeta Das, 831K, Negative]
Many people were feared to have been killed early Wednesday after millions of Hindu pilgrims at the Maha Kumbh Mela, a huge festival in the Indian city of Prayagraj, rushed to bathe in holy river waters on what is considered one of the most auspicious dates in the Hindu calendar.

As pilgrims rushed to the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, which Hindus consider sacred, hundreds of people who were sleeping on the river banks were trampled and a barrier broke, government officials said. Others were trying to escape after bathing, adding to the chaos.

Videos and photos from the scene showed people on the ground, their bodies and faces covered, and emergency personnel carrying people away on stretchers and into ambulances. Festival organizers had yet to release any casualty figures, but local news reports suggested that dozens had died.

The Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj, one of the world’s biggest religious gatherings, occurs every 12 years. Hindus believe that bathing at the spot where the two holy rivers meet, along with a third mythical river called Sarasvati, will purge them of all sins and help them attain salvation. Because of certain favorable celestial alignments, millions more were expected this year at the event, named the “Maha” or Great Kumbh.

Although there are a number of days considered auspicious for bathing during the event, the period starting late Jan. 28 and heading into the morning of Jan. 29 is seen as especially favorable. Government officials had said they expected around 100 million people to come to the rivers then.

The government of the state of Uttar Pradesh, where Prayagraj is, estimated that around 400 million people in total would attend the six-week festival from all corners of India. To house them all, the government built a temporary city on the banks of the Ganges, with tents, toilets, streets, pontoon bridges and waste management facilities. The government also built temporary bathing platforms using sandbags to make it easier for people to step into the water.

On Wednesday, Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, urged pilgrims to perform their rituals at the nearest platform rather than pushing to get to the confluence.

The danger posed by huge crowds has been a frequent problem at the Kumbh Mela and other religious events. In 2013, 42 people were killed and 45 injured in a crowd crush on a train platform. And in July, more than 100 people were killed and many injured during a prayer meeting organized by a local guru that officials said owed to high temperatures and overcrowding.

Government officials became much more organized and focused on the safety and security of pilgrims after the 2013 deaths. This year, the Uttar Pradesh government has employed more sophisticated technology to monitor the inflow and outflow of people so that police personnel on the ground can redirect crowds.

The pilgrims “come gradually and exit simultaneously,” said Vijay Vishwas Pant, a senior government official, on Tuesday. Millions of pilgrims had begun trickling in during the day, but there was no set formula for how the crowds would exit, Mr. Pant said. The goal was to keep pilgrims moving safely, he added. “It is all dynamic.”

Despite the precautions, festival employees and others were encouraging people to go toward the confluence of the rivers, with some even using the public address system to do so. Police officials were unable to clear the bathing areas before more pilgrims rushed in, officials said. As pilgrims tried to escape, they created stampede-like situations elsewhere, according to witness accounts.

The Kumbh Mela festival, which is rotated among four cities every three years, is known for the massive number of Hindu devotees who attend, including monks and ascetics from various orders of Hinduism and ordinary pilgrims.
Several Feared Dead in Stampede at Indian Religious Festival (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [1/29/2025 1:29 AM, Satviki Sanjay and Swati Gupta, 21617K, Negative]
A stampede broke out at the world’s largest religious gathering in India, leaving several dead and many injured, according to local media reports.

A huge crowd of devotees turned up for a holy bath at the Maha Kumbh Mela in the northern Indian city of Prayagraj, breaking through barricades in the early hours Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath told reporters.

India is hosting the Kumbh Mela, a massive Hindu religious event, in the nation’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers. The six-week-long event is expected to draw as many as 400 million pilgrims, in what is a mammoth logistics operation for the state government.

At least 15 people are feared killed and around 70 injured in the stampede, Hindustan Times reported citing officials it didn’t identify.

Adityanath did not comment on the death toll but said many people were “critically injured” and were taken to hospitals in the area. “There is a huge crowd here. About 80-100 million devotees are in Prayagraj currently,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a stock of the situation, the chief minister said, adding situation at the gathering is under control.

Stampedes during religious gatherings are not uncommon in India. In 2013, dozens of devotees were killed in a stampede at the Prayagraj railway station during the Kumbh Mela.
Several people are feared dead in a stampede at the massive Maha Kumbh festival in India (AP)
AP [1/29/2025 1:48 AM, Rajesh Kumar Singh and Sheikh Saaliq, 456K, Negative]
Several people were feared dead and many more injured in a stampede early Wednesday as tens of thousands of Hindus rushed to take ritual baths in sacred rivers at the massive Maha Kumbh festival in northern India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the incident “extremely sad” and extended his condolences without specifying how many had died. “My deepest condolences to the devotees who have lost their loved ones. Along with this, I wish for the speedy recovery of all the injured,” Modi said in a post on social platform X.

Several pilgrims were injured, some seriously, in the stampede between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. as they tried to jump barricades erected for the movement of religious saints, Uttar Pradesh state’s top elected official, Yogi Adityanath, said in a televised statement.

He made no mention of any deaths even eight hours after the crush of pilgrims at the site. Some local news websites said 10 people had died.

Distressed families lined up outside a makeshift hospital inquiring about their missing relatives, rescuers were helping the injured and police tried to manage the crowds. People’s belongings like clothes, blankets and backpacks were strewn around the scene of the stampede. It was not immediately clear what triggered the panic.

“The situation is now under control, but there is a massive crowd of pilgrims,” Adityanath said, adding that 90 million to 100 million pilgrims had congregated there.

“About 30 million people had taken the holy bath by 8 a.m. Wednesday,” he said.

Wednesday was a sacred day during the six-week festival, and authorities were expecting a record 100 million devotees to engage in a ritual bath at the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers. Hindus believe that a dip at the confluence will cleanse them of their past sins and end their process of reincarnation. The main draw are thousands of ash-smeared Hindu ascetics who make massive processions toward the confluence to bathe.

Millions continued to throng the site even as police officials urged them over megaphones to avoid the confluence. Adityanath urged people to instead take baths at other riverbanks.

The Maha Kumbh festival, held every 12 years, started on Jan. 13 and is the world’s largest religious gathering. Authorities expect more than 400 million people to throng the pilgrimage site in total.

Nearly 150 million people have already attended, including the likes of Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah and celebrities like Coldplay’s Chris Martin.

A sprawling tent city was built on the riverbanks to accommodate visitors. It has roads, electricity and water, 3,000 kitchens and 11 hospitals.

About 50,000 security personnel are stationed in the city to maintain law and order and manage crowds, and more than 2,500 cameras monitor crowd movement and density so officials can try to prevent such crushes.

Deadly stampedes are relatively common around Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas. In 2013, at least 40 pilgrims who were taking part in the same festival were killed in a stampede at a train station in Prayagraj.
At least seven killed in stampede at India’s Maha Kumbh festival, official says (Reuters)
Reuters [1/29/2025 1:27 AM, Adnan Abidi and Saurabh Sharma, 48128K, Negative]
At least seven people were killed and around 10 injured in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday, said an official, as tens of millions gathered to take a holy dip on the most auspicious day of the six-week Hindu festival.

The stampede occurred between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. (1930-2030 GMT Tuesday) near the arena of the ascetics, where barricades had been put up to manage crowds during their holy dip, said Yogi Adityanath, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state where the festival city of Prayagraj is located.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a post on X, offered condolences to "devotees who have lost their loves ones", but did not specify the number of dead.

"The local administration is engaged in helping the victims in every possible way", he said.

Adityanath added that the situation was under control but the crowd was still massive.

A senior state official said "more than seven people have been killed in the stampede and around 10 others injured". The official did not want to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the media.

Videos and photographs after the stampede showed bodies being taken away on stretchers and people sitting on the ground crying, while others stepped over clothes, shoes, backpacks and blankets left by those trying to escape the crush.

A Reuters witness saw several dead bodies as he followed dozens of ambulances rushing towards the river bank where the incident occurred.

Witnesses spoke of a huge push near the confluence of three holy rivers - where a dip is considered particularly sacred - that caused devotees to fall on each other. Chief Minister Adityanath urged people to avoid the area.

"We had barricades in front of us and police with batons on the other side. The push from behind was very powerful...people started falling," said Vijay Kumar, who came for the festival from the eastern city of Patna.

"There were people lying all around, I don’t know if they were dead or alive."

A woman who was part of the crowd but did not give her name told news agency ANI that people "kept stepping" on her mother and her when they fell.

"I am safe but my mother has died," she said.

OPPOSITION PARTIES BLAME "MISMANAGEMENT"

The Hindu festival is the world’s largest congregation of humanity, attracting some 400 million over its six weeks compared with the Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia which drew 1.8 million last year. By Tuesday nearly 200 million people have attended the 2025 festival since it started two weeks ago.

Devout Hindus believe taking a dip at the confluence of three sacred rivers - the Ganga, the Yamuna, and the mythical, invisible Saraswati - absolves people of sins, and during the Kumbh, it also brings salvation from the cycle of life and death.

More than 36 million people had taken a holy dip on Wednesday by 10 a.m., said officials.

Attendees range from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah to Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and celebrities like Coldplay’s Chris Martin and actress Dakota Johnson, who local media reported reached Prayagraj on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected to visit the festival next month.

Authorities had expected a record 100 million people to throng the temporary township in Prayagraj on Wednesday, and had deployed additional security and medical personnel along with AI-software based technology to manage the crowd.

A Rapid Action Force (RAF) - a special police unit called in during crisis - was deployed to bring the situation under control and rescue efforts were underway, officials said.

Opposition parties criticised the federal and state governments and blamed the stampede on what they called "mismanagement" and "VIP culture".

"VIP culture should be curbed and the government should make better arrangements to meet the needs of common devotees," Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress party said on X, referring to politicians and celebrities being treated differently.

A similar stampede had broken out on the most auspicious day of the festival when it was last held in 2013, killing at least 36 pilgrims, mostly women.
India’s Modi may tackle economic slowdown, impending trade turmoil in annual budget (Reuters)
Reuters [1/29/2025 2:34 AM, Shivangi Acharya, 5.2M, Neutral]
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi may seek to shore up faltering economic growth, placate a middle class squeezed by high prices and low wage growth, and prepare for an uncertain year of global trade in the nation’s budget this week.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the budget for the next fiscal year on Feb. 1 at 0530 GMT.

The budget may provide a policy boost for the world’s fifth-largest economy, which is expected to post its slowest pace of growth in four years, amid frail urban demand and inflation risks fuelled by a weak currency.

Economists expect measures to raise disposable incomes and tariff cuts to encourage local manufacturing.

"We could see a nod from the government, to signal to the middle class that we aware of your challenges and we would like to raise disposable incomes, which increases spending power," Priyanka Kishore, director and principal economist at research firm Asia Decoded said.

Reuters reported last month that India is considering cutting tax on personal incomes to provide some relief.

The budget could also introduce tax cuts on fuel prices or cooking gas, Dhiraj Nim, an economist at ANZ said.

Despite world-beating growth, India’s job market offers insufficient opportunities for its large youthful population to earn regular wages.

In the last budget, India earmarked nearly $24 billion to be spent over five years in various schemes to create jobs but those programmes have not yet been implemented as discussions on details drag on.

"They will focus more on direct measures for employment generation and skilling," Kishore said.

India will also have to cope with possible global disruptions from U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade policies.

To support local production, the government could offer concessional tax rates to companies that use the country as a manufacturing hub, lower custom duties on intermediate inputs and raise tariffs to counter goods dumped from China, Nomura economists said in a note.

India will also see an opportunity to clinch a larger share from further global supply chain shifts spurred by Trump’s new tariffs, Nomura economists said.

To that effect, India has drawn up a list of products that act as inputs for various local production units and is considering cutting import taxes on them, a senior government sources aware of the matter said.

The list likely includes components for mobile phone assembly such as printed circuit board assembly, parts of camera modules, and USB cables, two industry sources said.

The government source and the two industry sources, who joined the finance ministry’s budget consultations, refused to be identified as such discussions were private.

Moreover, India may also boost its textile and garment industry with financial support, tariff cuts on key inputs and incentives to produce locally, as a political crisis has hit neighbouring Bangladesh’s exports.

The budget is also likely to continue to prioritise spending on infrastructure, ICRA economists said in a note.

Government infrastructure spending has been key to India’s strong growth in recent years, though it is likely to undershoot a record spending allocation of 11.1 trillion rupees($128.22 billion) in the current fiscal year.

India also plans to raise its spending for the agriculture sector by about 15%, marking the biggest increase in six years, and moderately increase key subsidy payouts to sustain a recovery in its rural economy.

FISCAL BALANCE, GROWTH HOPES

In the budget, India plans to project higher economic growth for the next fiscal year, Reuters has reported, an upbeat outlook that could help dispel worries over an economic slowdown which have bothered investors and equity markets since October.

Indian stocks are set for their longest monthly losing streak in over 23 years, tumbling from record highs in September.

However, the government will be walking a fine line on support measures given its relative lack of fiscal space, ANZ’s Nim said.

"The fiscal debt-to-GDP ratio is still over 80%, which is very high for emerging markets ... It needs to be brought down," Nim said.

India is likely to continue fiscal consolidation and pursue its targeted fiscal deficit of 4.5% of gross domestic product for the next financial year that starts April 1, a Reuters poll of economists found.

That will put the onus of reviving the economy on the central bank.

Economists polled by Reuters forecast New Delhi’s gross borrowing at 14.28 trillion Indian rupees ($164.95 billion) in the next fiscal year, up from this year’s 14.01 trillion rupees borrowing.
Indian state studies plan to ban petrol, diesel vehicles in Mumbai to control pollution (Reuters)
Reuters [1/28/2025 12:09 AM, Staff, 57114K, Neutral]
The western Indian state of Maharashtra has formed a panel to study a proposal to ban petrol and diesel vehicles in Mumbai city amid worsening air quality and only allow electric or gas driven vehicles, it said in an order.

Any ban on petrol, diesel vehicles in the financial capital, if implemented, may not only impact automobile manufacturers, but also citizens and businesses which rely heavily on these vehicles amid inadequate electric vehicle charging infrastructure and still developing metro rail networks.

The city, home to the country’s stock exchanges and offices of several global banks and multinationals, has seen air quality worsen since the pandemic amid growing traffic congestion and several ongoing infrastructure and construction projects.

Maharashtra’s government said it has formed a seven-member committee to study the proposal of banning petrol and diesel vehicles and only allowing electric and compressed natural gas vehicles in the Mumbai metropolitan region following a court directive. The government order is dated Jan. 22 but gained public attention on Tuesday after Indian media extensively reported it.

Earlier in January the Bombay High Court in its own public interest litigation directed the Maharashtra state government to constitute a committee of experts to study and see if it is feasible to phase out petrol-diesel driven vehicles.

"The vehicular emission is one of the main sources of air pollution. The roads in Mumbai metropolitan region are chocked with vehicles and density of the vehicles on the roads is alarming," the court said in an order on Jan. 9.

Air quality in Mumbai has incrementally worsened since 2020, showing 12% increase in air quality index according to open-source air quality monitoring platform AQI that shows real time air quality data on its website.

India has some of the world’s most polluted cities including its capital New Delhi, which often see its air quality index plummet to unhealthy levels during winter.

The committee will submit the results of its study in three months, the state said.

The state is also considering a policy, which will make it compulsory for car and bike owners in the state to have certified parking area, in absence of which new vehicle registration could be rejected, Indian news media reported earlier this month, quoting the state transport commissioner Vivek Bhimanwar.
Life sentence for hitman who killed suspect in 1985 Air India bombings (BBC)
BBC [1/28/2025 6:46 PM, Jessica Murphy and Nadine Yousif, 57114K, Negative]
A hitman who was one of two people who shot and killed a man acquitted in the 1985 bombing of an Air India flight has been jailed for life in Canada without the possibility of parole for 20 years.

Tanner Fox, 24, was sentenced on Tuesday by a British Columbia Supreme Court judge.

Fox and Jose Lopez pleaded guilty in October to the second-degree murder of Sikh businessman Ripudaman Singh Malik in 2022. Lopez will be sentenced on Friday.

The sentencing came after an emotional morning, in which Malik’s relatives begged Fox to reveal who hired him to carry out the murder.

"We plead with you to reveal the names of the people who hired you," said Malik’s daughter-in-law Sundeep Kaur Dhaliwal, according to reporters inside the New Westminster courtroom.

The two men entered their guilty pleas on the eve of their trial for first-degree murder.

Malik was shot several times in his car outside his family business in Surrey, in the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the morning of 14 July 2022. Police found a burnt-out vehicle nearby.

Prosecutor Matthew Stacey told the court that Fox and Lopez planned a "deliberate killing" of Malik.

"They were financially compensated for killing him," he added.

The killing happened more than a decade after Malik was acquitted in the devastating double bomb attack - Canada’s deadliest terrorist attack in history.

On 23 June 1985, Air India flight 182 from Canada to India blew up off the Irish coast, killing all 329 people on board, most of them Canadian citizens visiting relatives in India.

About the same time, a second bomb exploded prematurely in Japan, killing two baggage handlers.

The bombings - widely believed to have been carried out by Canadian-based Sikhs in retaliation for India’s deadly 1984 storming of the Golden Temple, the holiest shrine in the Sikh religion - remain Canada’s deadliest terror attack.

Following a two-year trial, Malik and his co-accused, Ajaib Singh Bagri, were both acquitted in 2005 of mass murder and conspiracy charges related to the two bombings, after a judge ruled that testimony against them was not credible.

According to the agreed statement of facts, Fox and Lopez were contracted to kill Malik, but the evidence did not establish who had hired them.

Malik’s family has urged them to co-operate with police to bring to justice whoever had directed the killing.

In her testimony to court on Tuesday, Malik’s daughter-in-law said the lack of answers has left the family afraid for their safety.

"This fear and anxiety comes from not knowing who hired you," she told Fox. "Are we next?".

According to Fox’s lawyer, the 24-year-old was born in Thailand and was adopted at age three by parents in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

"It’s impossible to say where he went awry, went wrong in his youth that took him to this horrible offence," lawyer Richard Fowler has said.

In court, Fox stood up to apologise for his actions.

"I’m sorry for all the pain and hurt that I’ve caused," he said.
Why India’s Growth Momentum Is Losing Steam (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [1/28/2025 10:36 AM, Biswajit Dhar, 857K, Neutral]
India’s growth momentum seems to be losing steam.

After registering 8.2 percent growth in 2023-24, the Indian economy grew by 5.4 percent in the second quarter of the current fiscal year (July-September 2024). This was the slowest growth in six quarters, almost 3 percentage points slower than the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.

The slowdown of the Indian economy was confirmed by the National Statistics Office (NSO) when its recently unveiled advance estimates of GDP for the 2024-25 fiscal year showed that the economy could grow by 6.4 percent, nearly 2 points slower than the previous year.

International institutions saw a slowing of the Indian economy early last year. In its assessment of global economic developments in April 2024, the IMF had predicted a drop in India’s growth rate from 7.8 percent in 2023 to 6.8 percent in 2024, and a tad down to 6.5 percent in 2025.

Although most economies would consider a growth rate above 6 percent "aspirational," in India’s case this level of economic expansion must be considered inadequate given the present government has set the target of making the country a developed nation by 2047. Less than 7 percent growth can cast a shadow over the realization of this target.

The expected slowdown should, therefore, be considered as a wake-up call for the government to take remedial action in several areas that are holding the economy back from growing at the rate it could. Undoubtedly, the most significant of these is the weakness in the demand side of the economy that has shown up in the first advance estimates for the current fiscal year through the two major components of the GDP, consumption expenditure and fixed capital formation, or investment.

Although consumption expenditure is estimated to grow somewhat faster than in the previous fiscal year, its overall share in the GDP would continue to remain lower than expected. However, fixed capital formation should decelerate, according to estimates.

Over the past few years, the central government has relied heavily on higher public investment, expecting it "to crowd-in private investment," according to Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The government’s move to use public investment as a driver was on account of the private sector’s disinclination to increase investments despite a steep reduction in corporate tax immediately preceding the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the current fiscal year, private investment declined in two of the three quarters, including in the most recent third quarter. There are indications that public investment is also declining. Central government accounts show that in the first eight months of the current fiscal year (April-November 2024), capital expenditure was more than 12 percent lower than in the corresponding period during the previous year.

The government seems to be lacking in its intent of using public investment to "crowd-in private investment." The sluggish behavior of private consumption expenditure has adversely impacted India’s current growth trajectory. This is the largest component of GDP and, therefore, its most significant driver. It has remained sluggish ever since the effect of the government stimulus packages provided during the COVID-19 pandemic wore out.

During 2021-22 and 2022-23, private consumption expenditure exceeded 60 percent of the GDP in two quarters, while in the following period it mostly remained in the mid-50 percent range, even declining to 53 percent in the third quarter of fiscal year 2023-24. By the end of 2024, there were indications of a demand slowdown as sales of products ranging from cars to biscuits decreased.

Automobile sales have been on a declining trend since the end of 2023 but after the middle of 2024, the decline became steep. By December 2024, automobiles sales dipped to negative territory on a year-on-year basis. FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) companies, on the other hand, are expected to register low single-digit growth in their revenues as they hiked prices of their products due to rising cost of inputs.

These trends are largely attributable to the wage squeeze suffered by India’s workforce, a large majority of which is in the informal sector. But even the relatively small share of workers in the formal sector has experienced a decline in their real wages over the past few years.

A recent report prepared for the government by the industry chamber, Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), and Quess Corp Ltd, a business services provider, showed that while nominal wages across six major manufacturing and infrastructure sectors increased by 0.8-5.4 percent, retail inflation was between 4.8 percent and 5.7 percent, implying either stagnant or declining real wages. Wage earners were impacted more than the retail inflation numbers suggest as food inflation in India was consistently much higher, often close to double digits.

In sharp contrast, corporate profits increased four-fold during the same period. Growth in profit share and a reduction in the wage share in India’s formal sector has, unsurprisingly, caused sluggish demand conditions in the economy.

Data on India’s labor market available from the Periodic Labor Force Survey support the findings of the FICCI-Quess Corp report. In 2023-24, the share of workers earning a regular wage/salary was just a fifth of the total workforce. Of this lot, 58 percent had no written job contract and 53 percent were not eligible for any social security benefit. They clearly face considerable uncertainties regarding their wage earnings, which is no different from the condition of 80 percent of India’s workforce, the "self-employed" and casual labor.

Unless the perverse conditions prevailing in the labor market are remedied, India will find it difficult to sustain high GDP growth, casting doubts regarding its ability to transform itself into a developed nation by 2047.
NSB
US aid freeze threatens Bangladesh’s fragile economy and political stability (South China Morning Post)
South China Morning Post [1/28/2025 7:00 PM, Biman Mukherji, 9355K, Neutral]
Washington’s abrupt suspension of nearly all foreign aid could upend Bangladesh’s fragile efforts to stabilise its economy and hold national elections, analysts said, warning that vital US-funded programmes from governance to health may be in jeopardy.

Bangladesh, a major recipient of funds from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has long relied on the money to bolster global food security and education initiatives and manage economic turbulence.

The aid suspension stems from an executive order issued by US President Donald Trump on January 20 mandating a 90-day review of all foreign help to ensure alignment with US foreign policy objectives. While most programmes, including those under USAID, are affected, exceptions have been made for emergency food aid and military help to Israel and Egypt.

The freeze comes as Dhaka’s interim government, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, tries to restore order and set a date for national polls after a student-led uprising in August forced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to flee.

Bangladesh’s once-promising economy has been battered by high inflation and crippling debt since the Covid-19 pandemic, while mounting incidents of communal violence threaten attempts to stabilise the political landscape.

“There will be consequences for the halt to USAID as many projects depend on its funding,” said Sreeradha Datta, an international-affairs professor at Jindal Global University in northern India. She added that Republican administrations often scale back aid and review projects “every time” they take office.

The Trump administration will only give aid to projects that are in line with their foreign policy objectives, she said, noting that the full impact of the decision will only be known after the 90-day review period.
Last year, Bangladesh’s caretaker government requested US$5 billion in financial aid from international lenders, plus a US$4.7 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund, to shore up dwindling foreign reserves.

Datta said USAID operates separately from such bailouts, focusing instead on social welfare projects such as supplying potable water and computers to schools. If that aid is withdrawn, it will have a “deep impact,” she said.
However, she said the move should not be seen as one aimed at creating pressure on Bangladesh’s interim government headed by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus because he was seen as close to the previous US administration of former president Joe Biden.

“It is about America first [under Trump)] or, in other words, what he wants is to prioritise funding for his people. If he feels that it is at the cost of his own people, then he may not extend it,” Datta said.

The US is the largest single donor of aid worldwide. In 2023, it disbursed US$72 billion in foreign help, including US$401 million to Bangladesh, US$232 million to Pakistan and US$176 million to India through USAID.

Priyajit Debsarkar, an author who specialises in writing on Bangladesh, said that the aid suspension poses a significant hurdle for Bangladesh at a sensitive juncture.

“It is going to be extremely challenging for Bangladesh to cope with suspension of aid on one hand and on the other hand [deal with] recent incursions and more disturbance in the neighbouring area of Myanmar,” he said, highlighting clashes between the rebel Arakan army and the military junta.

However, Datta pointed out that aid to the Rohingya community, including funds for food and amenities, is exempt from the suspension.

On Sunday, Yunus’ press secretary, Shafiqul Alam confirmed that while Trump has temporarily suspended almost all US foreign aid, “help for the Rohingya who have taken refuge in Bangladesh will continue”. He said that Yunus had expressed his gratitude to Trump for the decision.

Debsarkar noted that while critical funding for the Rohingyas remains unaffected, the suspension of the bulk of aid would impact all operations, including those of security forces tasked with protecting the refugee community.

A brutal crackdown by the military in Rakhine seven years ago forced at least 750,000 Rohingya to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh for safety. In recent months, a coalition of ethnic armed forces, including the Arakan Army, has escalated the offensive to oust the junta.

Political flux

The added financial burden caused by the suspension of USAID could make it daunting for Bangladesh’s interim government to control civilian unrest, which has continued since last year in parts of the country, including Dhaka, Debsarkar said.

Last month, Bangladesh’s caretaker government vowed to hold fresh elections as early as the end of this year or early 2026, despite the continued unrest, amid calls by political parties to hold fresh polls as soon as possible.

Analysts said conducting a credible poll will require stabilising the country’s security landscape and securing a more solid economic foundation, which many believe to be a key cause for anger among the public.

Datta said that she believed that Yunus will step aside either this year or early next year to conduct the polls, though his interim administration will need to carry out reforms to strengthen the voter roll, the powers of the election regulator and an anti-corruption panel.

The bigger challenge, she said, would be convincing the leaders of the student protests to allow Hasina’s Awami League to contest the polls, given the widespread resentment that drove the former prime minister from power.
Bangladesh train services resume after strike called off (Reuters)
Reuters [1/29/2025 12:32 AM, Staff, 5.2M, Neutral]
Train services in Bangladesh resumed on Wednesday after railway workers ended their indefinite strike, which had brought the country’s rail network to a halt.

The strike, which began on Tuesday, caused significant disruptions for commuters and businesses.

"Train services across the country have returned to normal as Bangladesh Railway running staff have withdrawn their strike," a Railway Ministry spokesman said.

The strike affected around 400 passenger trains, including more than 100 inter-city services, as well as over 30 freight trains. Thousands of passengers were left stranded, and many had to find alternative forms of transport, which led to higher fares due to the surge in demand for road transport.

The workers, including drivers, ticket checkers, and guards, had walked off the job to protest a government decision that removed pension benefits for extra hours worked.

“We have been assured by the government that the benefits we received earlier will remain in place,” Union leader Mujibur Rahman told reporters.

Due to a shortage of staff, many railway employees have long worked beyond their scheduled hours, traditionally receiving additional pay and pension benefits in return. However, a controversial decision in November 2021 removed these pension benefits, leading to growing concerns among workers about their financial security after retirement.
Bangladesh needs systemic reform to end rights abuse: HRW (Al Jazeera)
Al Jazeera [1/28/2025 6:13 AM, Staff, 19588K, Negative]
Bangladesh risks the return of the rights abuses seen under ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina unless robust reform is instituted, an international NGO has warned.

The interim government in Bangladesh risks losing “hard-won progress” if it does not implement reform that can withstand repression by future governments, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report published on Monday.

Ongoing arbitrary arrests and reprisal violence underscore the threat to “the country’s once-in-a-generation opportunity to end the legal abuses” that were seen on Hasina’s watch, the report said.

HRW used the publication to urge Dhaka to establish legal detention practices and repeal laws used to target critics.

“Reforms should be centered on separation of powers and ensuring political neutrality across institutions, including the civil service, police, military, and the judiciary,” it declared.

Return to abuses

Hasina fled into exile in August after mass protests ended her 15 years in power.

An interim government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus has since taken charge of the country, pledging to institute far-reaching democratic reforms and stage new elections.

Human Rights Watch noted that Yunus’s administration has begun the process of reforming degraded institutions used as tools to persecute opponents of Hasina’s Awami League party.

But it also highlighted that in targeting the ex-premier’s supporters, the police have “returned to the abusive practices that characterised the previous government”.

Family members of those killed by security forces in the protests have been pressured into signing case documents without knowing who was being accused in their killings, according to the report.

The rights group also highlighted actions against journalists perceived to support Hasina’s government with at least 140 facing murder charges.

Accountable

“Nearly 1,000 Bangladeshis lost their lives fighting for democracy, ushering in a landmark opportunity to build a rights-respecting future in Bangladesh,” Elaine Pearson, the Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said.

“This hard-won progress could all be lost if the interim government does not create swift and structural reforms that can withstand any repression by future governments.”

HRW recommended that the government seek help from United Nations rights experts to ensure lasting reforms.

Yunus’s government has yet to comment on the report.

The 84-year-old has said he inherited a “completely broken-down” system of public administration and justice that needs a comprehensive overhaul to prevent a future return to government abuses.

After his swearing-in in August, he told reporters: “Bangladesh is a family. We have to unite it. It has immense possibility.”

However, he has also said those who committed wrongdoing during Hasina’s tenure “will be held accountable”.
Sri Lanka Keeps Policy Rate Steady in First Meeting for 2025 (Bloomberg)
Bloomberg [1/28/2025 10:31 PM, Anusha Ondaatjie, 21617K, Positive]
Sri Lanka’s central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged in the first policy meeting of 2025, as it aims to help inflation reach the target while supporting an economic revival.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka held the overnight policy rate at 8% on Wednesday — in line with the forecasts of most economists surveyed by Bloomberg.

In November last year, the South Asian nation moved to a single rate, from a system of two gauges, and effectively eased policy by around 50 basis points to bolster the economy’s recovery from a historic default in 2022.

The “latest projections indicate deeper deflation than previously projected, mainly due to the more than anticipated downward adjustment in the electricity tariff announced in January 2025,” the central bank said in a statement on its website.

“Core inflation, which is currently in lower positive levels, is projected to decelerate further over the next few months, before adjusting upwards thereafter,” it said.

Sri Lanka has recorded deflation in the last four months and the central bank forecasts price gains will reach its target level of 5% in the second half of the year.

The monetary authority said on Wednesday that it would assess risks to the inflation outlook and stand ready to take appropriate measures “to maintain domestic price stability in the period ahead while supporting the economy to reach its potential.”

The Sri Lankan rupee was little changed at 296.64 per dollar, while the dollar bond maturing in 2030 rose to the highest ever level, according to Bloomberg-compiled data going back to December.

Sri Lanka has lately managed to find some balance after suffering an economic meltdown. Funds from the International Monetary Fund have helped stabilize the island nation’s economy and the conclusion of its $12.6 billion external debt restructuring will ensure further aid keeps flowing.

Sri Lanka’s economic recovery is gaining momentum supported by the improving business confidence and market sentiment, reflecting relaxed monetary conditions, the central bank said. The latest economic indicators suggest that robust economic growth is likely to have continued, resulting in higher growth for 2024 than initially projected, it added.
Central Asia
Kazakhstan aims for revision of contracts with Western oil majors (Reuters)
Reuters [1/28/2025 8:49 AM, Mariya Gordeyeva, 48128K, Neutral]
Kazakhstan, one of the world’s 10 biggest oil producers, stepped up pressure on international firms working in the country on Tuesday with a call for "better terms" in their contracts.

The central Asian country has clashed for years with international oil companies over costs, bringing multi-billion-dollar claims against them in 2023.

The companies say the government is simply seeking to increase its shares in key oil and gas projects in what amounts to "resource nationalism".

Kazakhstan’s authorities have rejected such criticism saying its aim was to rein in costs inflated by Western majors.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Tuesday ordered the government to step up talks with international oil majors about an extension of existing production sharing agreements (PSA) on "better terms".

"Large investments require a long-term planning horizon. Therefore, the government will have to intensify negotiations regarding the extension of PSA contracts on the updated terms, favourable to the country," Tokayev said.

Speaking at a briefing, Energy Minister Almasadam Satkaliyev said the state may raise its share in oil projects developed by international energy firms, change operators or renegotiate contracts.

"One of the possible conditions for extending the PSA may be an improvement in the terms of the contract, a change in the share of the Republic of Kazakhstan, or a change in certain operators," he said.

"The final decision will be made on the basis of dialogue, open, competitive dialogue in accordance with international law with the participants of these consortia."

Kazakhstan derives most of its oil production from its Tengiz, Karachaganak and Kashagan oilfields, which were developed with the help of international oil majors.

In 2023 it launched claims against groups developing the Kashagan and Karachaganak oilfields worth more than $13 billion and $3.5 billion, respectively, over disputed costs.

The offshore Kashagan field, one of the world’s biggest discoveries in recent decades, is being developed by Eni (ENI.MI), Shell (SHEL.L), TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA), ExxonMobil (XOM.N), KazMunayGaz (KMGZ.KZ), Inpex (1605.T), and CNPC (CNPC.UL).

The consortium, called the North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC), has invested some $50 billion in the project.

Eni, Shell and KazMunayGaz are also partners in Karachaganak, alongside Chevron (CVX.N) and Russia’s Lukoil (LKOH.MM), with investments of more than $27 billion.

Tengizchevroil, Kazakhstan’s largest oil producing enterprise, involves Chevron, ExxonMobil, Lukoil and KazMunayGaz.

Last Friday, Chevron started production at a $48 billion expansion of the giant Tengiz oilfield which will bring its output to around 1% of global crude supply.

Asked about Tuesday’s statements by Kazakh officials, the company declined to comment directly and said it was focused on its work at Tengiz and Karachaganak.

The Tengiz field accounts for a large part of landlocked Kazakhstan’s oil production and has been a major cash generator for Chevron for decades. But its exports depend almost entirely on a pipeline that runs through Russia to the Black Sea, a route therefore effectively under Moscow’s control.

Exxon did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Kazakhstan: Authorities aren’t joking about prosecuting satirical social media channel (EurasiaNet)
EurasiaNet [1/28/2025 4:14 PM, Almaz Kumenov, 57.6K, Neutral]
Satire has long been a form of political expression around the world. In some countries, including the United States and many other nations, satire is considered protected speech. But as a pending case in Kazakhstan shows, humor can be considered a crime punishable with a prison sentence.

The case in question involves Temirlan Yensebek, who runs a satirical Instagram channel called Qaznews24. The channel features blatantly phony reports meant to amuse readers while highlighting important issues relating to current affairs.

Roughly a year ago, Yensebek posted an item accompanied by a song called “Yo, Russians,” which contains mocking lyrics about Russians. At the time of publication, social media in Kazakhstan was aflame in response to provocative comments made by Russian TV presenter Tina Kandelaki that the Russian language was allegedly being oppressed in Kazakhstan. Following this incident, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry banned Kandelaki from entering the country.

On January 17 this year, the police unexpectedly raided Yensebek’s home and arrested him, opening a criminal case on suspicion of “inciting ethnic hatred through publication on social networks.” An Almaty court ordered two months of pre-trial detention for Yensebek, who faces up to seven-years in prison, if convicted.

The case has generated widespread attention in Kazakhstan, with many believing Yensebek is being unfairly targeted. Serik Beysembayev, a sociologist who heads the Paperlab Research Center, an Astana-based non-governmental organization, believes that Yensebek’s case is not really connected with the crime he is suspected of, but is motivated by a general desire of Kazakh authorities to silence nettlesome critics. Yensebek’s Instagram channel often pokes fun at President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s administration.

Adil Jalilov, founder of a watchdog media project, Factcheck.kz, suggested the timing of Yensebek’s detention could be connected to the return to the White House of Donald Trump. Kazakh officials may have acted out of a belief that the new Trump administration would not complain about what is widely viewed as action to suppress free speech.

“It is quite possible that Temirlan’s case opens a new season of hunting for dissent in Kazakhstan,” Jalilov wrote on the Factcheck.kz website.

The current case is not Yensebek’s first run-in with authorities. In 2022, he came under police investigation for a satirical post that angered members of parliament and other top officials. Officials eventually dropped the investigation without bringing any charges against him. At that time, investigators decided that publishing plainly evident satire could not be considered deliberately spreading mis- or disinformation.

Yensebek’s is also not the only high-profile case of late in Kazakhstan involving the criminalization of humor. A Kazakh court last July gave a comedian 10 days in jail on an obscenity charge.

Officials in Kazakhstan have struggled in recent years to regulate social media in ways that reduce the proliferation of mis- and disinformation. Rights watchdogs say governmental regulatory efforts have gone too far in restricting freedom of expression.

“In June, Kazakhstan adopted a new mass media law that threatens freedom of speech and the right to information,” international watchdog HRW noted in its annual report on Kazakhstan. “The law extends the definition of mass media to online publications, requiring that they be registered and have a physical presence in Kazakhstan, and grants the government expansive power to deny accreditation to foreign media representatives if their materials contain unspecified “propaganda of extremism.”
Read, Don’t Wipe! Turkmenistan Tells Citizens Not To ‘Soil’ State Newspapers (Radio Free Europe)
Radio Free Europe [1/29/2025 5:03 AM, Chris Rickleton, 235K, Neutral]
Turkmenistan’s heavily censored newspapers contain little actual news, leading people to find alternative uses for them.

In the past, that has included using the state dailies -- dominated by praise of President Serdar Berdymukhammedov and his father, ex-President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov -- as toilet paper, and to wrap objects in and start a fire with.

Now, the authorities are forcing state employees to sign a written pledge promising to “safeguard the pages in newspapers and magazines featuring photographs” of the ruling family, according to multiple state employees who signed the document.

Public employees and students are often forced to pay for subscriptions to state newspapers in the impoverished and authoritarian Central Asian country, where the free press is effectively banned.

A civil servant in the western Balkan Province who spoke to RFE/RL’s Turkmen Service on condition of anonymity said state employees in his city were ordered since the New Year not to “soil” state newspapers.

To monitor compliance, the authorities have said they could print QR codes on each page of newspapers. That would allow them to trace littered pages to individual subscribers, according to another civil servant in Balkan.

“Now we’re even afraid to let the children touch the newspapers at home. If a small child tears or ruins the president’s photo and discards it somewhere in the street, we risk losing our jobs,” said the state employee, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

Few state employees read the newspapers they are forced to subscribe to, and instead use them around the house or at work.

Using newspapers to line old shoes is popular during the wetter months. Given the low purchasing power of the population, newspapers are also regularly used in the bathroom.

No Bad News, Ever

Turkmenistan is consistently ranked by media watchdogs, such as Reporters Without Borders (RSF), among the worst countries in the world for press freedom.

The situation has not improved since Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, 67, handed the presidency to his now 43-year-old son Serdar in 2022. The older Berdymukhammedov is still regarded as the country’s ultimate decision-maker.

Independent media outlets are nonexistent in the country, where journalism “amounts only to praise for the regime,” according to RSF.

The government continues a relentless clampdown on dissent -- with critics being harassed, beaten, tortured, jailed, and even killed. Many others have been forced abroad into self-exile.

Last year, 35-year-old former RFE/RL reporter Hudaiberdy Allashov died last year after a long illness that his supporters say was brought on by pressure from the government due to his work.
Kambarata-1 Brings Kyrgyz, Kazakh, and Uzbek Energy Officials Together in Tashkent (The Diplomat)
The Diplomat [1/28/2025 10:00 AM, Catherine Putz, 857K, Neutral]
Two years after signing a roadmap on the construction of the Kambarata-1 hydropower plant, energy ministers from Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan gathered in Tashkent with World Bank officials for a roundtable discussion on the project.

According to Uzbek media outlet Daryo.uz, Uzbek Energy Minister Jurabek Mirzamahmudov hailed the project, stating that it would bring "great benefits to all of Central Asia, strengthen regional energy security, accelerate the transition to a ‘green’ economy, and improve the use of water resources.".

Kyrgyz Energy Minister Taalaibek Ibraev called Kambarata-1 "the project of the century," owing to its "enormous potential to strengthen regional cooperation and promote long-term development of the entire Central Asian region.".

Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Energy Sungat Yessimkhanov, leading Astana’s delegation, also noted the project’s potential to "ensure long-term stability in our region and stimulate the future socio-economic growth of our countries.".

In 2023, when the three countries agreed to a roadmap regarding the planned hydropower project, to be built on Kyrgyzstan’s Naryn River, I summarized its tumultuous recent history:

Kambar-Ata-1 (also written as Kambarata-1) is not a new proposal. Indeed, the first such hydropower project at the site was begun in 1986, but construction fell victim to the Soviet collapse in 1991. By 2008, Russia had taken up the Kambar-Ata-1 project and the Upper Naryn Cascade project and pledged funding; however, little actual work was done and by 2014 — especially after Russia invaded Crimea — it became clear that the projects were not a priority for Moscow.

In late 2015, then-Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev was openly questioning Russia’s commitment, saying in an end-of-year press conference: "I don’t like uncompleted construction projects, one should be realistic. We all see the state of the Russian economy, it is, shall we say, not on the rise, and for objective reasons, these agreements (on the construction of hydropower plants) can’t be implemented by the Russian party.".

Of course, the question then became: If not Russia, who would fund this massive project?

In answer, the three Central Asian states have looked to the international community, with the World Bank stepping in. The multilateral lender approved an initial $5 million in technical assistance in October 2023, primarily to update the project’s feasibility studies. The Word Bank followed that in June 2024 with the approval of $13.6 million for the project. As Hydro Review reported at the time, the additional financing was provided "on highly concessional terms through the International Development Association." The IDA is a member of the World Bank Group that offers concessional loans and grants for projects in the world’s poorest countries. The additional financing included $11 million in zero-interest credit, and a $2.6 million grant from the Central Asia Water and Energy Program (CAWEP).

The World Bank’s financing certainly moves the project along, but more will be needed. A prior feasibility study placed the total project cost at around $3 billion; the updated feasibility study will need to be completed before the current figure is known. The steady beat of meetings – including in Vienna, Brussels, and Washington in 2024 – highlight the coordination and cooperation between the three governments and their international partners.

Tajikistan’s Minister of Energy and Water Resources Daler Juma and Azerbaijan’s Deputy Minister of Energy Orkhan Zeynalov attended the Tashkent meeting as guests, further highlighting the extent of regional cooperation in this arena.

At a time when Russia, Central Asia’s traditional partner in many sectors, is embroiled in conflict in Europe, and China is already heavily invested in numerous regional projects – such as the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway – the Kambarata-1 project marks a high-point for intra-regional cooperation. The participating states will certainly need to look further abroad for funding, but the high degree of regional cooperation behind the project is a strong selling point.
Twitter
Afghanistan
Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzeb_Wesa
[1/28/2025 2:13 PM, 5.5K followers, 2 retweets, 5 likes]
A recent and tragic report: Today in Bukhana area of Alishru district, Khost province, unknown armed individuals shot and killed 10 members of a family. Among the victims, three women were also included. Such attacks have become increasingly common in Afghanistan in recent times.

Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzeb_Wesa
[1/28/2025 12:43 PM, 5.5K followers, 6 retweets, 12 likes]
The Afghanistan Human Rights Center (AHRC) reports a sharp rise in child and forced marriages due to Taliban’s education ban, with schoolgirls as the primary victims. This tragic development highlights the severe consequences of denying education and opportunities to young girls.

Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzeb_Wesa
[1/28/2025 12:33 PM, 5.5K followers, 5 retweets, 11 likes]
The National Union of Journalists of France held a protest in Nantes to support Afghan journalists in Pakistan & Iran. They called for faster visa processing and relocation to France. Hope the French government takes swift action to address their situation. #SupportJournalists

Jahanzeb Wesa
@Jahanzeb_Wesa
[1/28/2025 12:26 PM, 5.5K followers, 19 retweets, 30 likes]
The Taliban burned 900 kilograms of women’s hair and several musical instruments in Kabul. This act was carried out simply because of the women’s gender and the suppression of cultural expression. The Taliban’s oppressive policies against women in Afghanistan continue.

Habib Khan
@HabibKhanT
[1/28/2025 2:26 PM, 247.5K followers, 21 retweets, 52 likes]
Gunmen stormed a house in Afghanistan’s Khost province, killing ten people, including three women and several children. Under Taliban rule, women and children remain the most vulnerable and continue to suffer the most.

Habib Khan
@HabibKhanT
[1/28/2025 10:52 AM, 247.5K followers, 13 retweets, 40 likes]
Women activists from inside Afghanistan urge the ICC to issue more arrest warrants for senior Taliban leaders, welcoming the warrants for Hibatullah Akhundzada and Abdul Hakim Haqqani as a step toward justice.
Pakistan
Shehbaz Sharif
@CMShehbaz
[1/29/2025 1:36 AM, 6.7M followers, 89 retweets, 284 likes]
My warmest greetings to President Xi Jinping, the brotherly people of China and our Chinese friends in Pakistan, on the auspicious occasion of the Chinese New Year 2025! May the Year of the Snake bring wisdom, prosperity, and further strengthen the enduring bonds between Pakistan and China.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan
@ForeignOfficePk
[1/28/2025 12:48 PM, 480.7K followers, 8 retweets, 18 likes]
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar @MIshaqDar50 was the chief guest of an event hosted by Pakistan Business Council on “Dialogue on the Economy 2025: Pakistan’s economic revival and its place in the global economy”.
The DPM in his speech:
- Highlighted the improvement in Pakistan’s economic indicators due to recent initiatives taken by the government.
- Expressed satisfaction at the positive economic outlook as reflected in the increased FDI, remittances and exports.
- reiterated Government’s resolve to create a business-friendly environment.
- Underlined the importance of economic diplomacy to secure greater market access, attract foreign investment, and develop international partnerships.
- Hoped that by leveraging strategic investments, fostering innovation, and implementing structural reforms, Pakistan would transform into a competitive, export-driven economy and a hub for global trade and investment.

Imran Khan
@ImranKhanPTI
[1/28/2025 11:22 PM, 21.1M followers, 4.4K retweets, 6.8K likes]
Former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s conversation with representatives of the media at Adiala Jail - January 28, 2025

"The Form-47 [in power through election fraud] government is merely a puppet that cannot even have breakfast without the establishment’s approval. This government is avoiding the formation of a judicial commission because it has something to hide. We cannot move forward (with negotiations) without accountability for the incidents of May 9th (2023) and November 26th (2024). Our people were killed, abducted, injured, and falsely charged before being handed over into military custody. Nowhere in history have security forces opened direct fire on their own citizens, yet this brutality was inflicted upon our workers. Establishing a commission to investigate these incidents is essential, and refusing to do so is evidence of the government’s dishonesty. They used to spread propaganda that we were unwilling to sit at the negotiation table. However, when we came forward for the country’s sake and demanded a commission, they fled because their intentions were nefarious.

A sum of 500 million was paid to the prosecution to pursue false cases against me. In addition, taxpayers’ money is being spent on judges and lawyers in the name of political vengeance. This is the money that people earn through their sweat and tears, and pay taxes on. Due to this instability, 1.8 million people have left the country over the past two years. It’s a tragedy that our youth, disillusioned by unemployment and lawlessness, are leaving, and no one seems to care.

All of Pakistan’s agencies have been mobilized to crush Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), to hide the theft of the public’s mandate on February 8th (2024). Had these agencies focused on their actual duties instead of politics, the scourge of terrorism would not have resurfaced in the country.

Yahya Khan Part 2 and the puppet government are keeping me in jail under false pretenses. The Al-Qadir (University) Trust case is absurd, and so is the Toshakhana case.

I will pursue legal action against the current NAB Chairman and Judge Nasir Javed, who have already been exposed in the Supreme Court’s verdict. NAB’s purpose is to recover the looted wealth of the Pakistani people, not to act as a tool of the establishment for political vengeance.

I have serious reservations about Judge Raja Minhas being assigned to my Toshakhana 2 Case appeal in the Islamabad High Court. Arshad Minhas, his brother, is both a lawyer and prosecutor against me in the May 9th cases and the GHQ attack case. Secondly, Raja Minhas became a judge under the controversial 26th Constitutional Amendment, which we have outright rejected and challenged in the Supreme Court. This amendment was passed by an illegitimate and unconstitutional parliament. Therefore, Raja Minhas should not hear any of our cases on ethical grounds. Furthermore, senior judges of the High Court have already given their decision on six interrelated Toshakhana matters. After their judgment, the junior-most judge should not be handling this case. Raja Minhas’s ad-hoc appointment after the 26th Amendment and his dependence on the government for confirmation of his position reflect a conflict of interest, so he must recuse himself from the case.

The decision of the London court is clear in the Al-Qadir Trust case: the funds were to go into the Supreme Court’s account, not to the government. The same court decision also clarified that these funds were neither laundered money nor linked to any crime. On April 21st, 2020, NAB constituted an inquiry committee comprising the Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Prosecutor, and Additional Prosecutor, who unanimously decided to close this case due to the lack of any merit to proceed. The reopening of this inquiry was malicious. It has been proven that neither my wife nor I benefitted even a single penny from the Al-Qadir Trust Fund. 1/2

Imran Khan
@ImranKhanPTI
[1/28/2025 11:22 PM, 21.1M followers, 1.4K retweets, 2K likes]
The current NAB Chairman is being dishonest to his position by continuing with the case despite this, merely to increase pressure on me.

The agenda to crush PTI has destroyed every institution in this country. During our tenure, the GDP growth was 6.2%, which has now fallen to zero. Investments, which were rising rapidly even during COVID-19, are now in decline. No one invests in a country where there’s no constitutional government and no rule of law.

There is a democratically elected government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), whose performance is exemplary. KP is the only province currently running a surplus, not a deficit. The KP government operates welfare projects modeled on a welfare state, including the restoration of health cards.

The country was supposed to receive 1,100 billion in revenue, but we could not get that due to the NAB amendments. These amendments were made solely to exonerate cases against Nawaz Sharif and his entire family. Progress will remain elusive until Pakistan breaks free from the vicious cycle of deals made by this mafia.

Every individual in Pakistan must support PTI if we are to achieve genuine sovereignty. The youth must liberate themselves from fear. As Maulana Rumi said, _ “You were born with wings, why prefer to crawl through life?” _ Therefore, break the shackles of fear and participate actively in PTI’s membership campaign." 2/2
India
Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[1/28/2025 10:50 AM, 104.9M followers, 4.2K retweets, 32K likes]
May the National Games be marked by exceptional sporting performances and may it further encourage sporting talent in our nation.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[1/28/2025 5:05 AM, 104.9M followers, 3.4K retweets, 12K likes]
Inaugurating the 38th National Games in Uttarakhand. It is a celebration of India’s incredible sporting talent and showcases the spirit of athletes from across the country.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[1/28/2025 6:25 AM, 104.9M followers, 1.8K retweets, 7K likes]
The Central and Odisha Governments are working to ensure maximum investments in Odisha so that the aspirations of our youth are fulfilled.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[1/28/2025 6:13 AM, 104.9M followers, 3.7K retweets, 29K likes]
Gratitude to the people of Bhubaneswar for the special welcome. We will keep working for the progress of Odisha across all sectors.

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[1/28/2025 6:12 AM, 104.9M followers, 2.4K retweets, 15K likes]
‘Utkarsh Odisha’ is a commendable effort to boost investment and economic growth in Odisha. I compliment the Odisha Government for this effort.

President of India
@rashtrapatibhvn
[1/28/2025 5:10 AM, 26.3M followers, 337 retweets, 2.4K likes]
President Droupadi Murmu met tribal guests, tableaux artists and tractor drivers, NSS volunteers and NCC cadets, officials and other participants of the Republic Day Parade 2025 at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Dr. S. Jaishankar
@DrSJaishankar
[1/29/2025 3:01 AM, 3.3M followers, 61 retweets, 541 likes]
A pleasure meeting Raisina US-India AI Fellows and members of Raisina India-US Taskforce on Responsible AI, in Abu Dhabi this morning. #RaisinaMiddleEast
NSB
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh
@BDMOFA
[1/29/2025 12:15 AM, 71.2K followers, 2 retweets, 74 likes]
Chinese Ambassador HE Yao Wen briefed Foreign Secretary Ambassador Md. Jashim Uddin about the outcome of Hon’ble Foreign Adviser’s visit to China on 20-24 January 2025.

The President’s Office, Maldives
@presidencymv
[1/29/2025 2:24 AM, 111.9K followers, 51 retweets, 50 likes]
President Dr @MMuizzu visits Thakandhoo Cemetery during his visit to the island. Thakandhoo Cemetery, an old and historically important cemetery, renowned for housing one of the largest numbers of coral-stone gravestones.

The President’s Office, Maldives
@presidencymv
[1/29/2025 1:50 AM, 111.9K followers, 53 retweets, 56 likes]
President Dr @MMuizzu inaugurates the new Police post on Thakandhoo Island, North Thiladhunmathi Atoll. This initiative reflects the Administration’s ongoing efforts to enhance nationwide safety through the development and strengthening of policing infrastructure.

The President’s Office, Maldives
@presidencymv
[1/28/2025 1:04 PM, 111.9K followers, 141 retweets, 144 likes]
President Dr @MMuizzu attends the inauguration ceremony for the printing and issuance of National Identity Cards on Dhihdhoo Island, North Thiladhunmathi Atoll. This expansion of essential service delivery to the outer atolls represents a significant milestone in achieving the equity enshrined in the constitution.

Anura Kumara Dissanayake
@anuradisanayake
[1/28/2025 10:41 PM, 144.8K followers, 10 retweets, 85 likes]
Participated in the 2025 Economic Summit at Shangri-La, Colombo, organized by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce under the theme ‘Transformational Growth.’ Highlighted the Govt’s Rs. 1.35T public investment & projected 4%+ economic growth. Creating a strong investment climate is key!

Anura Kumara Dissanayake
@anuradisanayake
[1/28/2025 7:19 AM, 144.8K followers, 16 retweets, 161 likes]
Under my leadership, the President’s Fund will expand its activities to village level in 2025, delivering services through Divisional Secretariats to reach more citizens.
Key initiatives discussed today include:
- Incentivizing hospital staff to perform surgeries after hours, already in progress at Karapitiya Hospital, with plans to expand to the National Hospital, Kandy General Hospital, and Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital.
- New education support programs for students sitting O/L and A/L exams, alongside continuing existing assistance programs.
These steps aim to optimize the Fund’s activities, ensuring it addresses key healthcare and educational needs while directly benefiting the people of Sri Lanka.

Namal Rajapaksa
@RajapaksaNamal
[1/28/2025 8:37 AM, 436.8K followers, 15 retweets, 108 likes]
I have read in the media that the Hon. Attorney General has filed an indictment against me in connection with the case involving the Krrish Company. During the Yahapalanaya government, when this matter was initially investigated, the matter was referred to the Hon. Attorney General 8 years ago. Today after 8 years under the present government an indictment is filed. It is evident that the present government has launched a political witch hunt against the Rajapaksa family. I remain confident in the judiciary and trust that justice will prevail. The NPP government seems to believe that by fabricating allegations against us, they can divert attention from their failures in governing the country and alleviating the serious burdens faced by the people. However, their shortcomings will soon be exposed for all to see. The government cannot hide their failures behind Rajapaksa-bashing for long. I strongly and sincerely hope and believe that justice will prevail above all else.

Namal Rajapaksa
@RajapaksaNamal
[1/28/2025 5:48 AM, 436.8K followers, 7 likes]
The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna Local Government Forum office was inaugurated at the Nelum Mawatha head office today. Grateful for the participation of LG Forum representatives, political authorities, and MPs, as we continue strengthening grassroots governance. #SLPP

Harsha de Silva
@HarshadeSilvaMP
[1/29/2025 1:51 AM, 360.4K followers, 4 retweets, 29 likes]
At last weeks #COPF meeting, I questioned @CBSL officials on foreigners conducting unregistered businesses while on tourist visas. This practice is illegal & unfair to our legitimate local businesses. Proper enforcement of business registration & visa regulations is crucial. #lka
Central Asia
Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[1/28/2025 12:42 PM, 211.1K followers, 3 retweets, 15 likes]
President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev reviewed plans for the development of the electric power sector for the period 2025-2035. The proposed measures include the construction of power plants and energy storage facilities, the development of micro hydropower plants, solar and wind energy installations, as well as the modernization of networks and implementation of digital control systems to ensure a stable energy supply. A comprehensive long-term program for the sector’s sustainable growth will also be developed.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[1/28/2025 11:36 PM, 211.1K followers, 1 retweet, 15 likes]
President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev reviewed measures to improve social assistance and support for people with disabilities. The "Registry of Poor Families" has facilitated employment for 48,000 citizens, with 10,000 receiving vocational training and 14,000 benefiting from loans or subsidies. Families in the registry will automatically receive social aid based on population and need. A unified list of 28 types of social assistance will replace ineffective programs. A day care service for children with disabilities aged 3 to 18 will be established through public-private partnerships, benefiting 2,000 children by year-end, with comprehensive services provided through the "Children’s Health" system.

{End of Report}
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