United Nations, July 30 (IANS) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for “calm and restraint” as students resumed their protests that were suspended last week, according to his Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

Guterres “remains deeply concerned about the situation in Bangladesh”, Dujarric said on Monday at his daily briefing.

“He notes reports of the resumption of student protests today and reiterates his call for calm and restraint,” Dujarric said.

The UN has raised its concern with “relevant authorities, both in the capital, Dhaka, and here in New York, and we count on Bangladesh to respect and uphold human rights, including as a top troop-contributing country to United Nations peacekeeping missions”, he added.

The students had been protesting against a 30 per cent reservation in government jobs for relatives of freedom fighters who wrested independence for Bangladesh from Pakistan in a bloody civil war in which, according to Dhaka officials, 3 million people were killed in the genocide by Pakistani troops and their supporters.

After the Supreme Court slashed the reservations to 5 per cent, student leaders last week put the protests on hold.

But the demonstrations resumed on Monday because the students said that the government ignored their demand to release all their leaders.

More than 175 people, including police, have been killed and over a thousand injured in the upheaval that has shaken the nation.

Guterres is “alarmed by emerging reports about the excessive use of force by security forces and credible evidence of human rights violations” and “reiterates his call for all acts of violence to be investigated promptly, transparently, and impartially, and for those responsible to be held to account”, Dujarric said.

Last week, the UN said it had “serious concern” about reports that Bangladesh authorities had deployed vehicles with UN insignias during the riots.

Dujarric said on Monday that the UN had taken note of statements from Bangladeshi authorities that UN-marked vehicles are no longer being deployed within the country.

With 5,859 Bangladeshi troops deployed in UN peacekeeping operations, the nation is the third-largest contributor of personnel to current UN missions.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)

–IANS

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New York, July 30 (IANS) The Quad foreign ministers have said that they look forward to India hosting the Quad Leaders’ Summit later this year – a meeting with added symbolism because it will be one of Joe Biden’s last presidential travels abroad.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Foreign Ministers Penny Wong of Australia and Yoko Kamikawa of Japan welcomed the holding of the Quad summit in India in a joint statement after their ministerial meeting in Tokyo on Monday.

This year’s summit, which is India’s turn to host, was originally expected to be held in January, but did not happen because Biden reportedly wasn’t able to make it at that time.

White House National Security Spokesperson Advisor John Kirby confirmed last week that Biden would attend the upcoming summit in India.

“We’re still committed to there being a Quad leader summit this year, but there’s nothing on the calendar right now for it,” he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host the summit with the participation also of Prime Ministers Anthony Albanese of Australia and Fumio Kishida of Japan.

The timing and venue of the last summit in 2023 were also disrupted by Biden’s travel plans.

By rotation, it was scheduled to be held in Australia, but was cancelled when Biden pulled out at the last minute citing domestic compulsions as he was in the middle of negotiations with Congress on raising the government limits on borrowing.

It was later moved to Hiroshima, but with Australian Albanese acting as the host and held on the sidelines of a summit of the major industrialised countries, the G7.

Biden, who announced this month that he will not be seeking another term as president, last visited India in September for the summit of the major economies, the G20 hosted by Prime Minister Modi.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)

–IANS

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New York, July 30 (IANS) Warning against terrorists deploying new technologies, the Quad foreign ministers have reinforced their call for concerted international action against Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), as well as Al-Qa’ida and the Islamic State outfit.

After their meeting in Tokyo, the Quad ministers said in a joint statement on Monday that they were committed to working with international and regional partners to forestall “threats posed by the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes”.

“We reiterate the call for concerted action against all UN-listed terrorist groups including Al-Qa’ida, ISIS/Daesh, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), and their proxy groups,” External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Foreign Ministers Penny Wong of Australia and Yoko Kamikawa of Japan said in their statement.

“We deplore the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), drones, tunnels, and information and communication technologies by terrorists and terrorist entities,” they said.

Recalling the 26/11 Mumbai and the 2016 Pathankot terrorist attacks, they called for “bringing the perpetrators of these attacks to justice without delay”.

The ministers said the first meeting of the Quad Working Group on Counter-Terrorism established at the ministerial meeting in New Delhi last year had “fruitful discussions” at its first meeting and at the fourth tabletop exercise in Honolulu in December, and added that they looked forward to next exercise to be hosted by Japan in November.

The tabletop exercises look at scenarios to develop responses to an overwhelming terrorist incident in the Indo-Pacific region.

The 4,000-word joint statement ran the gamut from the conflicts in Ukraine and Palestine, and China’s regional threats to cooperation on undersea cable connectivity and environment.

On Ukraine, where there are differences in nuances between India and the other three Quad partners who are all in on aiding Kiev, the statement said unequivocally, “We reiterate the need for a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in line with international law, consistent with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

India reiterating, this time in this forum, its joint commitment to upholding international law and the UN Charter in Ukraine comes days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow which drew criticism from the West and Ukraine and underlined its independent stand on international relations.

The joint statement did not name Russia.

The ministers’ statement made pointed references to the dangers to regional peace and security posed by China, but again, without naming it.

They reiterated their fundamental “steadfast commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, which is inclusive and resilient, and are united in our commitment to upholding the free and open rules-based international order”.

They called for upholding “sovereignty and territorial integrity, and peaceful settlement of disputes and prohibition on the threat or use of force in accordance with the UN Charter”, while also committing to “the principle of freedom, human rights, rule of law, (and) democratic values”.

Regarding foreign manipulation through exploitation of the information infrastructure, the four ministers vowed to “leverage our collective expertise and capacity to respond” to those threats.

They warned of “foreign information manipulation and interference, including disinformation, which undermines trust and sows discord in the international community” which are tactics that are “intended to interfere with domestic and international interest”.

The ministers said they would promote human rights while “supporting media freedom, addressing online harassment and abuse, and countering unethical practices”.

(Arul Louis can be contacted at arul.l@ians.in and followed at @arulouis)

–IANS

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London, July 29 (IANS) At least eight people, including six to seven girls, were injured in a “horrendous” mass stabbing incident at a children’s club in the UK’s Southport town around noon on Monday.

Police responded to an attack on Hart Street in Southport, at around 11.50 a.m. BST and a man with a knife was arrested, the BBC reported.

The North West Ambulance Service said its crews had treated eight victims with stab wounds, it said.

Horror swept the area, with a woman living near the scene of the attack reporting hearing a scream for help from a mother whose daughter had been stabbed.

The woman, who did not want to be named, told the BBC that the mother said her daughter was “barely conscious”.

Another witness, who owns a corner shop on Hart Street, told local media that he saw “seven to ten kids” who were bleeding and they were “all aged about ten”.

He said armed police took a man out of the building where the attack took place – adding he had been told the attacker “arrived in a taxi and had a knife”.

Local journalist Tim Johnson, who arrived at the scene soon after the police had been called, reported that the incident happened at the Hope of Hart children’s club, which is down a back street, and the victims were children, including “one girl on a stretcher covered in blood”.

“Her parents were running after her. It was horrendous. I’ve never seen anything like it,” he said, as per the BBC.

“I saw ambulance men and women in tears. People were in tears in the streets.”

The injured were taken to the Alder Hey Children’s Hospital – which declared a “major incident” and asked people to bring their children only if it was an emergency. Some of the injured were also transported to Aintree University Hospital and Southport and Formby Hospital.

Merseyside Police, in a statement, said: “We can confirm that a 17-year-old male from Banks, who was arrested in connection to the stabbing in Southport this morning, Monday 29 July, remains in police custody and will be questioned about the incident.”

“At this early stage, enquiries are ongoing to establish the motive for this tragic incident and we would urge people not to speculate while the investigation is ongoing.”

“We can also confirm that the incident is not currently being treated as terror-related and we are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident,” it said, in the statement, adding that any updates will be provided to the public when available.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer termed the incident “horrendous and deeply shocking news”.

“My thoughts are with all those affected. I would like to thank the police and emergency services for their swift response,” he said in a social media post, adding that he is “being kept updated as the situation develops”.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she was “deeply concerned” over the incident in Southport.

“All my thoughts are with the families & loved ones of those affected,” she wrote on social media.

“I have spoken to the Merseyside Police & Crime Commissioner to convey full support to the police & thanks to the emergency services responding.”

Local MP Patrick Hurley said he was “deeply concerned” by the reports of the stabbing in Southport.

“I am hoping for the best possible outcomes to the casualties affected,” he said in a social media post.

“My thoughts go out to all those affected, their loved ones and to the entire community.”

–IANS

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Washington, July 29 (IANS) The top diplomats of the United States, Japan, India and Australia condemned North Korea’s rocket launches and its pursuit of nuclear arms, and renewed their commitment to the “complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” during their talks in Tokyo on Monday.

They issued a joint statement following a foreign ministerial meeting of the Quad forum, where they discussed a wide range of regional and global issues, including maritime security, emerging technologies and cybersecurity.

“We condemn North Korea’s destabilizing launches using ballistic missile technology and its continued pursuit of nuclear weapons in violation of multiple U.N. Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs),” they said in the statement.

“We express our grave concern over North Korea’s use of proliferation linkages, malicious cyber activity and workers abroad to fund its unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes,” they added.

They called for the North’s return to dialogue as concerns persisted that Pyongyang has been doubling down on its nuclear and ballistic missile programs in the absence of any meaningful diplomacy to at least limit its weapons programmes, reported Yonhap news agency.

“We reaffirm our commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula consistent with relevant UNSCRs, and we urge North Korea to abide by all its obligations under the UNSCRs and engage in substantive dialogue,” they said.

In an apparent allusion to growing military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow, the ministers touched on proliferation issues concerning the North.

“We stress the need to prevent any proliferation of nuclear and missile technologies related to North Korea in the region and beyond. In that context, we urge all UN Member States to abide by the related UNSCRs, including the prohibition on the transfer to North Korea or procurement from North Korea of all arms and related materiel,” they said.

They also stressed their commitment to continued implementation of anti-North Korea sanctions as they noted that the mandate of a sanctions-monitoring U.N. expert panel has expired due to Russia’s veto of a resolution on its renewal earlier this year.

–IANS

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