In Beirut, Iran's foreign minister warns war could spread if Israeli bombardment of Gaza continues
Beirut (AP): Iran's foreign minister warned Friday that if Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip don't stop immediately, the violence could spread to other parts of the Middle East.
Hossein Amirabdollahian is on a tour that took him to Baghdad before Beirut, and later in the day he is scheduled to travel to the Syrian capital, Damascus.
Iran heads the so-called "axis of resistance" that includes powerful militant groups in the region, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Popular Mobilisation Forces in Iraq.
Amirabdollahian spoke to reporters in Beirut after a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart, during which the two officials called for an end to Israel's attacks on Gaza.
He also met with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as well as caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and the speaker of parliament.
There have been concerns that the war could spread to Lebanon's border where Hezbollah fighters have been on alert following Hamas' attack on southern Israel on Saturday that left hundreds of people dead.
On Thursday, Israel's military struck two of Syria's main international airports, in Damascus and Aleppo, putting them out of service. Flights were diverted to an airport in the coastal province of Latakia.
The strikes came after shells were fired from Syria into the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
Sporadic acts of violence along the Lebanon-Israel border over the past days left three Hezbollah fighters dead on Monday.
Israel's military said one Israeli soldier was killed in an anti-tank missile attack on Wednesday.
US President Joe Biden has warned other players in the Middle East not to join the conflict, sending American warships to the region and vowing full support for Israel.
"What is funny is that at a time when America is calling on parties for self restraint, it is allowing the criminals in the fake Zionist entity to kill women, children and civilians in Gaza," Amirabdollahian said.
He warned that "if these organis
ed war crimes that are committed by the Zionist entity don't stop immediately, then we can imagine any possibility." He did not elaborate but it was an apparent hint that Iran-backed groups could join the war.
Senior Hamas official Ali Barakeh told The Associated Press this week in Beirut that allies like Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah "will join the battle if Gaza is subjected to a war of annihilation."
Amirabdollahian said: "America cannot send weapons and bombs to kill women, children and civilians in Gaza and at the same time calls on all sides for self-restraint."
Amirabdollahian called on the foreign ministers and the leader of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, a grouping of 57 countries with important Muslim populations, to hold a meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza.
After meeting Mikati, Amirabdollahian said the aim of his visit to Beirut is to preserve security in Lebanon amid regional tensions. "What is important for us is security in Lebanon and how to preserve calm," Amirabdollahian said.
He added that what Hamas did over the weekend was in response to the policies of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (AP)
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Karnataka caste survey report likely to be submitted by April-end, says Minister Tangadagi
Bengaluru: The report of the caste survey conducted by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes is in the final stages of compilation and is likely to be submitted to the state government by the end of April, Backward Classes Welfare Minister Shivaraj Tangadagi said.
Tangadagi said the Commission is currently analysing the collected data. “Based on its findings, recommendations will be made to the government,” The Indian Express quoted him as saying.
The latest Socio-Economic and Educational Survey was conducted between September and October last year, making it the second such exercise commissioned by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah during his two terms in office.
On the implementation of the survey report, which was one of the assurances in the Congress manifesto, Tangadagi reportedly said that it would be implemented once it is submitted to the government. “We are hopeful that it will be submitted to the government by the end of March or early April,” he said.
Earlier, the government had expected the Commission to submit the report by the end of February.
The 2025 survey was commissioned after the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government decided to scrap the findings of a caste enumeration exercise carried out in 2015 under former Commission chairman H Kantharaj. The government had stated that the data from the earlier survey had become outdated, making its recommendations difficult to implement.
However, there had been speculation that the findings were dropped owing to pressure from dominant communities such as Lingayats and Vokkaligas.
The survey carried out last year was marred by protests from a section of teachers who objected to carrying out the survey. Mid-term school vacations were also extended for schools to allow teachers to complete enumeration. The latest survey covered around 6.14 crore people, compared to 5.98 crore people covered in the previous exercise.
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