GRA submits request to Dr. Arati Krishna requesting financial assistance for retired Gulf workers
Mangaluru: The Deputy Chairperson of Karnataka NRI Forum, Dr. Arati Krishna, was met by a delegation from the Mangaluru Gulf Retirees Association (GRA) during her visit to the city. The delegation, led by the Association's President Hamza Mittur, submitted a request regarding financial assistance for retired Gulf workers facing health and educational challenges.
The petition highlights the plight of many individuals who, after working in small jobs in Gulf countries and contributing to the state's foreign exchange earnings, now struggle with health issues and lack financial resources for their children's education. The delegation pointed out that the state of Kerala annually provides grants of Rs. 350 crore to non-resident Indians for various projects, including pension schemes, health insurance, accident insurance, and scholarships for children.
The Gulf Retirees Association also requested her to take up this matter with the Hon'ble Chief Minister and request him to consider similar measures for Karnataka's non-residents and retirees in the upcoming state budget.
The delegation included Vice President Salih Koya Thangal, Satish Kumar Bajal KSA, Mohammad Hussain, Vice President Adam Beary, Secretary Jamaluddin, Treasurer Bawa Abdul Khader, Secretary Yusuf Aladka, and Advisors Sahul Hameed Thangal and Mohammad Beary Bollai.
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Trump says Islamic State group leader was killed in joint US-Nigerian mission
Washington (AP): President Donald Trump said US and Nigerian forces killed a leader of the Islamic State group in Nigeria in a mission carried out Friday.
Trump announced the joint operation in a late-night social media post that offered few details. He said Abu Bakr al-Mainuki was second in command of the Islamic State group globally and “thought he could hide in Africa, but little did he know we had sources who kept us informed on what he was doing.”
The US viewed Al-Mainuki as the key figure in IS organising and finance, and believed he was plotting attacks against the United States and its interests, according to an official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to share sensitive information.
Born in Nigeria's Borno province in 1982, al-Mainuki took the helm of the IS branch in West Africa after the group's previous leader in the region, Mamman Nur, was killed in 2018, according to the Counter Extremism Project, which tracks militant groups.
Al-Mainuki was based in the Sahel area, the monitoring group said, adding that it is believed that he fought in Libya when IS was active in the North African nation more than a decade ago. He was sanctioned by the US in 2023.
Trump in December directed US forces to launch strikes against the Islamic State group in Nigeria, though he released little detail then about the impact.
Nigeria has been battling multiple armed groups, including at least two affiliated with IS.
The Friday night operation was the latest instance in a string of covert missions abroad that Trump has announced this year, starting with the stunning overnight raid in January to capture and remove Venezuela's then-leader Nicolás Maduro and whisk him to the US, followed nearly two months later by the launch of strikes that kicked off the war with Iran.
