Indian Rafale jets taking part in Bastille Day flypast will send message that India-France ties are strong, close: Envoy Jawed Ashraf



International Desk
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Indian Rafale jets taking part in the Bastille Day flypast over the Champs Elysees, Paris, will send a message across the world that India-France ties are very strong and close, said Indian Ambassador to France Jawed Ashraf on Wednesday.

In an interaction with ANI, Ashraf said that the flypast and marching by the IAF air warriors on Bastille Day follow a long association that the two nations share, especially in the field of air power.

The Indian envoy also termed Rafale being part of the Bastille Day flypast as “very important.” “Any ship could have come from India. We have many ships. What is important is that both our soldiers have a lot of inter-operability, a lot of trust and in this way, this Bastille Day parade sends a message to the whole world that the partnership between India and France is very close,” he told ANI. Ashraf also underlined that the India-France partnership is about the power of values. “The military relations that we have are to protect our values, without claiming or suppressing anyone else.

We call it Prime Minister's partnership of values,” he added. When asked about the procurement of 26 Rafale fighter aircraft and three Scorpene class conventional submarines from France, the envoy declined to comment, saying there is “a due process and approval procedure” in such deals. Notably, Indian Rafale jets that will take part in the Bastille Day flypast over the Champs Elysees, Paris, reached France a couple of days back.

Taking to Twitter, France's ambassador to India, Emmanuel Lenain said, "A warm welcome to France for the Indian Rafale jets that will soar in the skies of Paris on Friday for #BastilleDay!" The French traditional military parade is held in Paris during Bastille Day on July 14. PM Modi's visit will coincide with the 25th anniversary of the "strategic partnership" between France and India. At the invitation of France President Emmanuel Macron, PM Modi will be the Guest of Honour on France's National Day on July 14.

Also, in a major development, the Defence Ministry has given an initial nod to the plans to buy 26 Rafale fighter aircraft and three Scorpene class conventional submarines from France. The proposals were approved by the Defence Procurement Board of the Defence Ministry and will now be taken up by the Defence Acquisition Council for discussion most likely on July 13, government sources told ANI. The deals, once accorded Acceptance of Necessity by the DAC, are likely to be announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France this week, the sources said. As per the proposals, the Indian Navy will get 22 single-seated Rafale Marine aircraft along with four trainer aircraft. The Navy has been pressing for acquiring these fighter aircraft and submarines urgently as they have been facing shortages in view of the security challenges around the country.

The aircraft carriers INS Vikramaditya and Vikrant have been operating the MiG-29s and need the Rafales for operations on both carriers. Meanwhile, the three Scorpene class submarines would be acquired under the repeat clause by the Navy as part of Project 75 where they would be built in the Mazagon Dockyards Limited in Mumbai. The deals are estimated to be worth over Rs 90,000 crore but the final cost would be clear only after the contract negotiations are completed which will be held after the deal is announced. India is likely to seek price concessions in the deal and would be insisting on having more 'Make-in-India' content in the plan, sources said. Indian envoy Ashraf also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending Bastille Day celebrations in France is a sign that the India-France strategic partnership is very close, strong and its role will increase in time to come. PM Modi will be the Guest of Honour at the Bastille Day Parade of France on July 14, where the tri-services of the Indian armed forces contingent would be participating. French National Day, or Bastille Day, occupies a special place in French consciousness.

This day commemorates the Storming of the Bastille Prison in 1789 during the French Revolution. The Bastille Day Parade is the highlight of the Bastille Day Celebrations. Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra on Wednesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave for his France, UAE visit on Thursday. The Prime Minister will first visit France from July 13-14 at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron.

   

Hamas says 'yes' to Gaza ceasefire



International Desk, Barta24.com, Dhaka
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Hamas has accepted a ceasefire proposal brokered by Qatar and Egypt. But so far nothing has been reported from Israel in this regard. They are looking into the matter.

On Monday (May 6), Qatar-based media Al Jazeera reported this information.

According to a statement by Hamas leader Ismail Haniya, the head of Hamas' political wing, Ismail Haniya, called Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and informed him that Hamas had approved the proposal for a ceasefire agreement. Ismail Hania also said the same thing to the Minister of Intelligence of Egypt, Abbas Kamal.

Meanwhile, the residents of Gaza expressed joy at the news of Hamas agreeing to a ceasefire.

It should be noted that at least 34 thousand 737 people have been killed and 78 thousand 108 people have been injured in the Israeli attack on Gaza since October 7. And the number of dead in Israel is 1 thousand 139 people.

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Campuses can be battlegrounds around graduation ceremonies in the United States



International Desk, Barta24.com,Dhaka
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Protests against the Israeli attack on Gaza have erupted in several US universities. The student protests there have entered their second week. Last Saturday (May 4), police arrested at least 25 more pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Virginia.

Al-Jazeera reported that more than two and a half thousand students have been arrested from campuses across the United States. In the meantime, graduation ceremony in universities is approaching.

It is feared that various university campuses in the United States may turn into battlefields around graduation ceremonies in the coming days.

At 47 US universities, students are protesting against Israeli aggression and genocide in Gaza. This protest has been going on since April 17. Since the beginning, the police have used excessive force to suppress this peaceful protest.

In this way, the rights activists protested the suppression of the protest and the arrest of the protesting students. They demanded to ensure the freedom of expression of the students.

Graduation ceremonies are scheduled for the end of this week at four universities hit by protests. The event is scheduled to take place this month or next June at several other universities, including New York's Columbia University, the epicenter of the protests.

The university authorities fear that the protesting students may disrupt the graduation ceremony. For this reason, the authorities are taking initiatives to strengthen the security system.

The protesting students have threatened that if their demands are not met, they are thinking of alternative programs including boycotting these events and walking out of the venue. In such circumstances, some universities have canceled these programs. Some are procrastinating.

The peaceful protests at the University of Virginia continued until Saturday morning. At that time a video spread among the students. In the video, police are seen detaining some protesting students from the campus lawn.

Apart from this, the police are using chemical sprays to quell the protests. After that the protest turned into a riot.

In a statement, University President Jim Ryan said that the protesters were detained when campus security informed the police that they would be protesting in tents last Friday night. However, it is not clear how many university students are among those detained.

Pro-Palestinians protest in front of the stage at the graduation ceremony at the University of Michigan. But this protest was peaceful. Campus police quickly surrounded the protesters and escorted them to the back of the stadium. But dozens of students dressed in flags, kaffiahs and graduation caps staged a university graduation ceremony.

A day later, Northeastern University and Ohio State University were supposed to hold the closing ceremony on Sunday, but the commencement ceremony was disrupted.

Meanwhile, apart from the United States, this protest has now spread to new countries. Students from France, UK, Italy, Australia, Canada, Japan, India, Lebanon, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland and Mexico have come to protest for the Palestinians.

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Israel launched a ground attack in Rafah amid ceasefire talks



International Desk, Barta24.com, Dhaka
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Israel launched a ground attack in Rafah in the midst of Israel-Hamas ceasefire talks in Gaza.

A delegation from the Palestinian group Hamas is in the Egyptian capital for ceasefire and prisoner-release talks. Sources said Ceasefire talks have progressed.

International media Al Jazeera reported in a report that despite the negotiations, Israel continued its ground attack on Rafah, the southernmost city of Gaza.

A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Saturday to meet with mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States to negotiate a 40-day ceasefire, according to reports published by the United Kingdom.

The talks are at a critical stage, sources told Al Jazeera, as a Qatari technical team is working out the details of a potential deal with the Egyptians.

As technical teams indicate, we are moving into the operational side of a deal. They are monitoring the issues in detail in this agreement.

A senior Hamas spokesman, Osama Hamdan, told Al Jazeera, "It is clear that we are moving forward. There are some good points.

"So far we are still talking about the main issue, which is a complete ceasefire and a complete withdrawal from Gaza," he said. We hope to find some good and positive answers today.

Israel said it will continue to attack Rafah despite talk of a possible deal with Hamas. UN agencies and aid groups have long warned that the ground operation would spell disaster for the 15 lakh people taking refuge there.

Hamdan said, "Unfortunately, Netanyahu has made a clear statement that no matter what happens, if there is a ceasefire or not, he will continue to attack." That means there will be no ceasefire, and that means that the offensive will continue.

Al Jazeera's Ahlbara said the talks were focused on convincing Hamas that it should refrain from demanding a permanent ceasefire from Israel during the first phase of the deal because it is unlikely to happen.

On October 7, Hamas fighters attacked southern Israel, killing more than 1,100 people. During this time, more than 240 people were captured by Hamas.

Later, more than 34,600 Palestinians have died in Israel's attack on Gaza. More than 70 percent of Palestinian territory has been reduced to rubble, pushing the region toward famine.

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Attacks on environmental journalists are on the rise worldwide: UN



News Desk, Barta24.com
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According to a recently published report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO, 44 environmental journalists from 15 countries around the world lost their lives in violent attacks from 2009 to 2023; And 24 people managed to return alive.

This information was reported in the report of the news agency Reuters on Friday (May 3).

According to the report, attacks on environmental journalists are increasing around the world. UNESCO representatives interviewed 905 environmental journalists from 129 countries to prepare the report.

In the interview, 749 out of 905 journalists (more than 70 percent) said that they had to face physical attacks or intimidation, threats, and pressure at some point in their lives to perform their professional duties. Many have also had to deal with the legal problems of detention and defamation cases.

Analyzing the cases of assault-harassment, it has been found that the cases of physical assault have occurred more among male journalists. On the other hand, women journalists are more victims of harassment.

Journalists have been attacked and harassed while reporting on various environmental issues. These issues include various mining irregularities, land tenure conflicts, deforestation, extreme weather related disasters, pollution and environmental damage, fossil fuel sector and its trade etc.

All of these attacks and harassment have come from individuals and groups associated with the power structure of the state. In this context, the UNESCO report said, 'Police, army, government officials and employees, people of local government authorities are responsible for these attacks and harassment. 

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