Instructed Congress members and leaders to not indulge in politics over Pulwama attack: Rahul Gandhi
Immediate depositing of minimum income into people’s account, top priority after coming to power
Dhule: Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday while addressing a public rally in Dhule in Maharashtra said that he had strictly instructed his party-men to refrain from politicizing the Pulwama attack and stand united with the government.
Rahul targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he can't leave aside his public relations exercise even for five minutes.
"India's prime minister can't leave aside his public relations (exercise) even for five minutes. That is the difference between him and us," Rahul said.
"He (Modi) does the same (engage in PR exercise) at the war memorial opening," Gandhi said, referring to Modi opening an all-out attack on the Congress during the opening ceremony of the National War Memorial in Delhi recently.
He further added that he has in his 15 years of Political career never made a false promise and took a dig at Narendra Modi adding that the latter has never had fulfilled his promises in his political career.
Speaking of Rafale deal, Rahul questioned the assigning of deal to Anil Ambani while HAL was serving the country for 70 years and its product was safeguarding the country for 70 years efficiently.
“I don’t know what the mistake of HAL was. The deal went to a company which was registered merely a few days before the deal was bagged” he noted.
“After giving so much of money to some of his friends, now Modiji wants to grab lands from farmers and Adivasis and give it to those friends. The bill which was brought by UPA government safeguarding the rights of Adivasis on their land is in place. It says the government cannot take land from Adivasis. But Modiji doesn’t care”.
“I want to make it clear , we will not let the government to take away land from Adivasis and farmers at any cost. Congress party will defend the rights of Adivasis and farmers” Rahul added.
Speaking of Congress’ manifesto for general elections Rahul said “We have been working on Manifesto for last four months, and I assure you that we will not let people of the country down. We will immediately deposit the minimum income of people directly into their account, as soon as we come into power”.
He also addressed the issue of unemployment and compared the rate of creating employment in the country with China.
“The employment rate is at 45 years’ low, India is creating only 450 jobs in a day whereas China on the same day creates fifty thousand jobs for its citizen, we have to compete with them if we want to maintain pace with them in terms of development”.
Only Congress party can do that and we are hopeful from the people of this country, the farmers, the Adivasis and everyone that they will bring us back to the power for better and united India, unlike Modiji’s India which is divided into two. One for the poor and farmers the other for the rich and friends of Modiji” Rahul said.
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Trump says Iran eager to make deal after Tehran dismisses ceasefire plan
Dubai, Mar 26 (AP): US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that a deal to end the Iran war is near, after Tehran dismissed his 15-point ceasefire plan and issued its own sweeping demands to stop fighting as it launched more attacks on Israel and Gulf Arab countries.
Two officials from Pakistan described the 15-point US proposal broadly, saying it included sanctions relief, a rollback of Iran's nuclear programme, limits on missiles and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil is normally shipped.
Iran issued its own plan via state TV, which includes a halt to killings of its officials, means to make sure no other war is waged against it, reparations for the war, the end of hostilities, and Iran's sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.
“No negotiations have happened with the enemy until now, and we do not plan on any negotiations,” Iran's foreign minister later told state TV.
Trump insisted at a Republican fundraiser Wednesday night that talks were underway with Iran's leaders.
ALSO READ: Iranian military mocks Trump's claim of US-Iran negotiations
“They are negotiating, by the way, and they want to make a deal so badly, but they're afraid to say it because they figure they'll be killed by their own people,” Trump said.
The death toll from the war has risen to more than 1,500 people in Iran, nearly 1,100 people in Lebanon, 20 in Israel and 13 US military members, as well as a number of civilians on land and sea in the Gulf region.
Millions of people in Lebanon and Iran have been displaced.
Here is the latest:
Iran's parliament working on bill to impose fees on ships in Strait of Hormuz
Iran's parliament is working on a bill to formalise the fees it is reportedly charging on some ship transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, local media reported.
ALSO READ: Pakistan ‘relaying messages’ between Iran and US for peace in West Asia: official
The Fars and Tasnim news agencies, both close to Iran's Revolutionary Guard, quoted lawmaker Mohammadreza Rezaei Kouchi as saying that “parliament is pursuing a plan to formally codify Iran's sovereignty, control and oversight over the Strait of Hormuz, while also creating a source of revenue through the collection of fees”.
“This is entirely natural, just as goods pay transit fees when passing through other corridors, the Strait of Hormuz is also a corridor,” he reportedly said.
“We provide its security, and it is natural that ships and oil tankers should pay such fees.”
The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, is considered an international waterway open to all shipping.
Imposing fees would end that and likely be strongly opposed by the Gulf Arab states, the United States and others.
ALSO READ: Indian deputy chief of mission meets lawmakers; India-US ties discussed
Emirati oil executive calls Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz economic terrorism
The comment by Sultan al-Jaber, who leads the massive state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., signalled the hardening rhetoric of the United Arab Emirates as the war nears its one-month mark.
“Weaponising the Strait of Hormuz is not an act of aggression against one nation,” al-Jaber said in a speech for an event hosted by the Middle East Institute in Washington.
“It is economic terrorism against every consumer, every family that depends on affordable energy and food. When Iran holds Hormuz hostage, every nation pays the ransom, at the gas pump, at the grocery store and at the pharmacy. No country can be allowed to destabilise the global economy in this way. Not now. Not ever.”
Sirens sound in central Israel
Sirens sounded about an hour after sunrise across a large swath of central Israel, including areas around Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, and in the occupied West Bank.
ALSO READ: Philippines president declares national energy emergency amid global fuel supply risks
Israel's military said early Thursday morning that Iran had launched missiles toward the country.
The first such alert of the day came after an unusually long lull of more than 14 hours.
Hezbollah rocket fire, however, remained constant overnight in northern Israel, and once reached the Tel Aviv area overnight.
Iran running a toll booth' regime in Strait of Hormuz, experts say
Iran is running a “de facto toll booth' regime” in Strait of Hormuz, controlling which ships come through and getting payment for their safe passage, a leading shipping intelligence firm said Thursday.
Lloyd's List Intelligence published an analysis highlighting Iran's practices through the strait.
It described vessels having to provide manifests, crew details and their destination to Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
The information goes to the Guard's “Hormozgan Provincial Command for sanctions screening, cargo alignment checks that currently prioritises oil over all other commodities, and for what is described as geopolitical vetting”, Lloyd's List said.
“While not all ships are paying a direct toll at least two vessels have and the payment is settled in yuan,” Lloyd's List said, referring to China's national currency.
Such payments likely would run afoul of American and European sanctions on the Guard, a key power centre within Iran that controls its ballistic missile arsenal and was key in suppressing nationwide protests in January.
Iran has not directly explained the process for ships to go through the strait, though a Foreign Ministry spokesperson appeared to acknowledge Tehran was receiving payments for some ships in an interview.
Fuel prices surge in Thailand
Fuel prices in Thailand surged Thursday after the government lifted a cap on diesel prices and reduced fuel subsidies.
The majority of fuel types rose by 6 baht (USD 0.18) per litre. Diesel prices jumped by about 18 per cent.
The increase is expected to hit the industrial and transportation sectors particularly hard and has raised concerns about a ripple effect on the cost of goods.
Videos and photos shared on social media showed long lines forming at gas stations after the price hike was announced late Wednesday night.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said earlier this week the government would allow fuel prices to adjust in line with global market rates, aiming to manage demand following a surge in panic buying.
Australia restricts some Iranians from travelling to the country
Australia has temporarily restricted some Iranians from travelling to the country for fear that they would be unwilling or unable to return to their homeland because of the war.
The restrictions apply from Thursday for six months to Iranian Visitor (Subclass 600) visa holders.
These visas have been issued to more than 7,000 Iranians who intend to visit Australia for tourism, business or to see family.
“When you get a sudden conflict like has happened with Iran, who have a large number of people who've been issued visas who, if they applied now, would in fact not be eligible,” Immigration Minister Tony Burke told Parliament on Thursday.
Authorities will use the six months to reassess visa applicants. An unknown number will be exempt.
Heavy strikes reported around Isfahan
Activists in Iran reported heavy strikes early Thursday morning around Isfahan, a city some 330 kilometres south of Iran's capital, Tehran.
The pro-reform newspaper Ham Mihan reported online about strikes in the area.
Isfahan is home to a major Iranian air base and other military sites, as well as one of the nuclear sites bombed by the United States during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran in June.
The semiofficial Fars news agency, close to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, described the attacks as targeting “two residential areas”, without elaborating.
Earlier, Israel's military said it had completed “a wide-scale wave of strikes” across Iran, including in Isfahan.
Latest reports of live fire
A missile alert sounded on mobile phones in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Thursday morning.
Saudi Arabia's Defence Ministry said it intercepted multiple drones over its oil-rich Eastern Province on Thursday morning.
Kuwait reported it was working to intercept incoming Iranian fire early Thursday morning.
Bahrain sounded its missile alert sirens early Thursday morning.
The United Arab Emirates air defences early Thursday also worked to intercept incoming fire.
