Rabu, 20 November 2019

Israel carries out ‘wide-scale strikes’ on Iranian forces in Syria - BBC News

Israel says it has hit dozens of targets in Syria belonging to the government and allied Iranian forces.

The Israeli military says the "wide-scale strikes" responded to rockets fired by an Iranian unit into Israel.

Syria says two civilians died and that Syrian air defences shot down most of the missiles over Damascus. Other reports say the death toll was higher.

Local reports said loud explosions were heard in the capital. Pictures on social media showed a number of fires.

On Tuesday morning, the Israeli military said it had intercepted four rockets fired from Syria towards northern Israel. It said the rockets did not hit the ground.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria since the civil war broke out in 2011.

It has been trying to thwart what it calls Iran's "military entrenchment" there and block shipments of Iranian weapons to Lebanon's Hezbollah movement.

But the latest operation was one of the broadest attacks to date, says the BBC's Barbara Plett Usher in Jerusalem.

A senior Israeli security official said the Israelis had decided on a powerful retaliatory strike to signal they were "changing the rules" - that even a small attack from Syria would trigger an extensive response, our correspondent reports.

What did Israel say?

Early on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tweeted that the strikes targeted positions of Iran's Quds Force and Syria's armed forces.

"During our strike of Iranian & Syrian terror targets, a Syrian air defence missile was fired despite clear warnings to refrain from such fire. As a result, a number of Syrian aerial defence batteries were destroyed," the IDF said.

The IDF also said it held "the Syrian regime responsible for the actions that take place in Syrian territory and warn them against allowing further attacks against Israel".

Iran's Quds Force is the external operations wing of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC).

Israel did not target the Russian-made advanced S-300 surface-to-air missile systems deployed near the positions of Russian troops, Israeli media report.

Russia, whose forces have helped turned the tide of Syria's civil war in favour of President Bashar al-Assad, condemned the Israeli strikes.

What did Syria say?

Syria's state news agency Sana said that the country's "air defence confronted the heavy attack and intercepted the hostile missiles".

It said that Syria destroyed "most" of the Israeli missiles.

The news agency added that the strikes on Syrian territory were carried out from "Lebanese and Palestinian territories".

Israel has a number of times hit targets inside Syria from war planes in Lebanese airspace.

Danny Makki, a British-Syrian journalist based in Damascus, posted footage of what he said he believed were Israeli missiles hitting targets south of Damascus.

Syria said two civilians were killed in the Israeli strikes.

Meanwhile, a UK-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), said that 11 fighters, including seven foreigners, died.

The SOHR said that the Israeli missiles hit sites in and around Damascus in Kiswa, Saasaa, Mezzeh military airport, Jdaidat Artouz, Qudsaya and Sahnaya.

And what about Iran?

The Iranian authorities have so far made no public comment.

What is the Quds Force?

The Quds (Jerusalem) Force answers directly to Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamanei.

It is led by Maj Gen Qasem Soleimani, who is believed to be more than a mere military commander.

Since the US-led overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq in 2003, the Quds Force has intensified its operations across the Middle East, providing training, funding and weapons to non-state groups allied to Tehran.

It has also developed forms of asymmetric warfare, such as swarm tactics, drone and cyber-attacks, that have allowed Iran to undermine its enemies' superiority in conventional weapons.

In April, US President Donald Trump designated the IRGC, including the Quds Force, a "foreign terrorist organisation" (FTO). It was the first time the US had named a part of another government as an FTO.

The Quds Forces has about 5,000 personnel, a recently published report by the US military says.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50485521

2019-11-20 11:10:11Z
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Israel carries out ‘wide-scale strikes’ on Iranian forces in Syria - BBC News

Israel says it has hit dozens of targets in Syria belonging to the government and allied Iranian forces.

The Israeli military says the "wide-scale strikes" responded to rockets fired by an Iranian unit into Israel.

Syria says two civilians died and that Syrian air defences shot down most of the missiles over Damascus. Other reports say the death toll was higher.

Local reports said loud explosions were heard in the capital. Pictures on social media showed a number of fires.

On Tuesday morning, the Israeli military said it had intercepted four rockets fired from Syria towards northern Israel. It said the rockets did not hit the ground.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria since the civil war broke out there in 2011 in an attempt to thwart what it calls Iran's "military entrenchment" there and shipments of Iranian weapons to Lebanon's Hezbollah movement.

What did Israel say?

Early on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tweeted that the strikes targeted positions of Iran's Quds Force and Syria's armed forces.

"During our strike of Iranian & Syrian terror targets, a Syrian air defence missile was fired despite clear warnings to refrain from such fire. As a result, a number of Syrian aerial defence batteries were destroyed," the IDF said.

The IDF also said it held "the Syrian regime responsible for the actions that take place in Syrian territory and warn them against allowing further attacks against Israel".

Iran's Quds Force is the external operations wing of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC).

Israel did not target the Russian-made advanced S-300 surface-to-air missile systems deployed near the positions of Russian troops, Israeli media report.

Russia, whose forces have helped turned the tide of Syria's civil war in favour of President Bashar al-Assad, condemned the Israeli strikes.

What did Syria say?

Syria's state news agency Sana said that the country's "air defence confronted the heavy attack and intercepted the hostile missiles".

It said that Syria destroyed "most" of the Israeli missiles.

The news agency added that the strikes on Syrian territory were carried out from "Lebanese and Palestinian territories".

Israel has a number of times hit targets inside Syria from war planes in Lebanese airspace.

Danny Makki, a British-Syrian journalist based in Damascus, posted footage of what he said he believed were Israeli missiles hitting targets south of Damascus.

Syria said two civilians were killed in the Israeli strikes.

Meanwhile, a UK-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), said that 11 fighters, including seven foreigners, died.

The SOHR said that the Israeli missiles hit sites in and around Damascus in Kiswa, Saasaa, Mezzeh military airport, Jdaidat Artouz, Qudsaya and Sahnaya.

And what about Iran?

The Iranian authorities have so far made no public comment.

What is the Quds Force?

The Quds (Jerusalem) Force answers directly to Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamanei.

It is led by Maj Gen Qasem Soleimani, who is believed to be more than a mere military commander.

Since the US-led overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq in 2003, the Quds Force has intensified its operations across the Middle East, providing training, funding and weapons to non-state groups allied to Tehran.

It has also developed forms of asymmetric warfare, such as swarm tactics, drone and cyber-attacks, that have allowed Iran to undermine its enemies' superiority in conventional weapons.

In April, US President Donald Trump designated the IRGC, including the Quds Force, a "foreign terrorist organisation" (FTO). It was the first time the US had named a part of another government as an FTO.

The Quds Forces has about 5,000 personnel, a recently published report by the US military says.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50485521

2019-11-20 11:03:45Z
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Hong Kong protesters, police enter final phase of showdown as China slams US - The - The Washington Post

Vincent Yu

AP

FILE - In this Aug. 21, 2019, file photo, a supporter holds a poster outside of the British Consulate in Hong Kong during a rally in support of an employee of the consulate who was detained while returning from a trip to China. A former employee of the British Consulate in Hong Kong says he was detained and tortured by Chinese secret police trying to extract information about massive anti-government protests in the territory. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu, File)

HONG KONG — A former employee of the British consulate in Hong Kong said on Wednesday he was repeatedly tortured by Chinese secret police over a two-week period, and accused of inciting pro-democracy protests in the territory on behalf of the British government.

Simon Cheng, in an account of his treatment published on Facebook, described being handcuffed and shackled, blindfolded and hooded, deprived of sleep, made to sit absolutely still or hung in a uncomfortable spread-eagled position for hours on end, and constantly threatened during incessant interrogations.

British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said his government was shocked and appalled by the “brutal and disgraceful treatment” to which Cheng was subjected after being detained during a business trip to Shenzhen in mainland China in August, and said it had summoned the Chinese ambassador in London to protest.

But China said its ambassador would never accept Britain’s “false allegations.”

Cheng’s detention reflects the growing bitterness between China and the West over the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, but his alleged treatment also reflect Beijing’s increasing willingness to flout diplomatic norms as it becomes more assertive in projecting its power around the world.

Meanwhile in Hong Kong, police and protesters braced for a final showdown at a university campus in Hong Kong Wednesday as a small group of anti-government demonstrators continued to hold out against a police encirclement.

Cheng’s account was released just a day after the Senate unanimously passed legislation aimed at protecting human rights in Hong Kong and threatening sanctions against officials who have violated human rights there.

Cheng said he was arrested at the border between Hong Kong and mainland China. He soon found himself shackled to a steel “tiger chair” unable to move his arms or legs, and threatened with indefinite criminal detention for inciting the protests, while being denied access to a lawyer or to contact relatives.

He was later transferred to the secret police, when he says he was handcuffed, shackled, blindfolded and hooded.

“I was hung (handcuffed and shackled) on a steep X-Cross doing a spread-eagled pose for hours after hours,” he said. “I was forced to keep my hands up, so blood cannot be pumped up my arms. It felt extremely painful.”

They forced him to do “stress test” exercises for hours on end, beaten with what felt like a sharpened baton if he failed to do so, including on his “vulnerable and shivering body parts,” such as his knee.

His treatment left him seriously bruised on his ankles, thighs, wrists and knees, he said.

“Sometimes, they instructed me to stand still (handcuffed, shackled, blindfolded, and hooded) for hours after hours,” Cheng wrote. “I was not allowed to move and fall asleep, and if I did, then I would be punished by being forced to sing the Chinese national anthem, which they said can ‘wake me up’. This was the nonphysical torture – sleep deprivation - they used against me.”

Cheng said he had been asked by the British consulate to collect information about the protests in Hong Kong, to evaluate travel alerts and ascertain whether British citizens were involved. That work involved joining messaging and discussion groups and establishing contacts with protesters.

However, that appeared to have drawn the attention of China’s surveillance state. He said he was accused of being a British spy and an enemy of the Chinese state, and told to confess that the British government is instigating the protests in Hong Kong by donating money, materials and equipment.

Cheng said he had visited a massage parlor in Shenzhen “for relaxation” after finishing work there. China accused him of soliciting prostitution. He says he was ultimately forced to record a video confession admitting to this offense, as well as a separate confession for “betraying the motherland.”

Britain’s Raab described Cheng as a “valued member” of the consulate’s team. “We were shocked and appalled by the mistreatment he suffered while in Chinese detention, which amounts to torture,” he said in a statement.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang referred questions on the subject to the Shenzhen police but said Cheng’s rights had been guaranteed during his detention “and he himself admitted fully to his offenses.”

Since being released from detention, Cheng has negotiated his exit from the British Foreign Service and is applying for asylum in an undisclosed location.

Cheng’s case has echoes of the treatment received by former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig, who is among two Canadian citizens detained in China for almost a year and denied access a lawyer or family visits.

[Small group of protesters holds out at Hong Kong university after mass arrests]

Back at Hong Kong’s PolyU, some increasingly desperate protesters even staged a dawn attempt to escape through the sewers, but were beaten back by the fumes. Others tried to flee by climbing a wall near a bridge but were spotted by the police and retreated to the campus.

Billy H.C. Kwok

AFP/Getty Images

Police detained protesters and students who tried to flee the Hong Kong Polytechnic University campus late Tuesday.

In the streets nearby, hundreds of pro-democracy protesters blocked roads and paralyzed public transportation during the morning commute and at lunchtime, in an attempt to show the movement still had momentum despite this week’s mass arrests.

But city authorities reopened primary and secondary schools after a six-day shutdown, in their own bid to restore a sense of normalcy to the traumatized territory after some of the worst days of violence, arrests and injuries since the protests began.

Police said they had arrested more than 1,100 people the previous day — the single biggest day of arrests since the protests began more than five months ago — as hundreds of demonstrators turned themselves in or were captured after leaving the standoff. Hospital authorities said they had treated 435 casualties from the protests on Tuesday and Wednesday morning alone, and another 145 on Monday.

“We strongly appeal to those who are still inside the campus to surrender as soon as possible,” Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security John Lee told a news conference. “The situation is unable to continue forever.”

Inside the campus, Student Union acting president, Ken Woo Kwok-wang, said most of the remaining protesters wanted to leave, but were reluctant to hand themselves over to police and being charged with rioting, an offense that carries a potential jail sentence of up to 10 years.

“What we need the most are the supplies and the medical help. The stock is going to running out, and it was really cold for the protesters slept outdoors,” he said, adding that some people suffering from hypothermia had already been evacuated by first-aid teams.

“We are afraid of the police breaking into the campus and arresting us,” he said. “The longer we stay, the less chance there is for us to escape. This has placed a huge psychological burden on us, which made us really depressed.”

A diplomatic showdown was also brewing between China and the United States over the Senate bill passed Monday. 

The bill would require the secretary of state to certify annually whether Hong Kong is sufficiently autonomous from China to justify its special trading status.

Failure to do so would effectively deal a massive blow to Hong Kong’s status as a global financial and trading hub, and the American Chamber of Commerce warned of possible “unintended, counterproductive” consequences that could undermine the territory’s unique place in the world.

Nicolas Asfouri

Afp Via Getty Images

A gymnasium used by protesters inside the Hong Kong Polytechnic University on Nov. 20, 2019.

China said Wednesday it “strongly condemns and firmly opposes” the bill, which it said blatantly interfered in China’s domestic affairs.

To become law, the bill needs to be combined with a separate bill passed by the House of Representatives, as well as President Trump’s assent. The Senate separately passed a second bill banning the export of items such as tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets and stun guns to the Hong Kong police.

The American Chamber of Commerce said it was concerned the bill could have adverse effects on American business “and its ability to continue exercising a strong positive influence in support of Hong Kong’s traditional core values.”

[China’s ominous warning to Hong Kong: Less tolerance, more patriotic education]

It says it was worried that the bill could lose sight of Hong Kong’s “unique circumstances and its extraordinary, continuing achievements as a bastion of free expression, free flow of information, free markets, individual liberty, rule of law and judicial independence.”

That could diminish Hong Kong’s autonomy under “one country, two systems” — the governance formula that grants the territory a measure of distance from mainland China — and damage its role as an international business center. “Hong Kong is just too special to fail,” AmCham said.

Gerry Shih in Beijing contributed to this report.

Read more

Small group of protesters holds out at Hong Kong university after mass arrests

China’s ominous warning to Hong Kong: Less tolerance, more patriotic education

Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/hong-kong-protesters-police-enter-final-phase-of-showdown-as-china-slams-us/2019/11/19/6b571fb2-0b10-11ea-8054-289aef6e38a3_story.html

2019-11-20 10:52:00Z
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Two US service members died in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan - CNN

"The cause of the crash is under investigation, however preliminary reports do not indicate it was caused by enemy fire," the office said.
The names of the service members who were killed have not been released.
At least 19 Americans have been killed in combat in Afghanistan in 2019.
This is a developing story. More details to come.

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https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/20/us/us-service-members-helicopter-crash-afghanistan/index.html

2019-11-20 08:43:00Z
52780441106320

Israel strikes Iranian targets in Syria after rocket attack - NBCNews.com

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military on Wednesday said it struck dozens of Iranian targets in Syria, carrying out a “wide-scale” strike in response to rocket fire on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights the day before. Syrian state media reported that two civilians were killed.

The military said its fighter jets hit multiple targets belonging to the elite Quds force, including surface-to-air missiles, weapons warehouses and military bases. After the Syrian military fired an air defense missile, the military said a number of Syrian aerial defense batteries were destroyed.

Syria’s SANA news agency said the two people were killed by shrapnel when an Israeli missile hit a house in the town of Saasaa, southwest of Damascus.

The report also said several others were wounded in the airstrikes near the capital, Damascus, including a girl in a residential building in the suburb of Qudsaya, west of the Syrian capital. It claimed that Syrian air defenses destroyed most of the Israeli missiles before they reached their targets.

The strikes further burst into the open what’s been a long shadow war between Israel and its archenemy Iran. The two foes have increasingly clashed over what Israel says is Iran’s deeper presence along its borders.

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“Yesterday’s Iranian attack towards Israel is further clear proof of the purpose of the Iranian entrenchment in Syria, which threatens Israeli security, regional stability and the Syrian regime,” the military said in a statement.

Israel intercepted the four rockets on the Golan Heights on Tuesday which came amid heightened tensions between Israel and Iranian proxies along its borders. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has issued a series of warnings recently about Iranian aggression throughout the Middle East and has vowed to respond firmly.

“I made it clear: whoever harms us, we will harm them. That’s what we did tonight,” he said early Wednesday. “We will continue to aggressively protect Israel’s security.”

Israel’s new hard-line defense minister, Naftali Bennett, issued an equally firm statement.

“The rules have changed: whoever fires on Israel during the day will not sleep at night,” he said. “Our message to the leaders of Iran is simple: you are no longer immune. Any place you dispatch your tentacles, we will chop them off.”

The rare rocket fire comes a week after an Israeli airstrike against a top Palestinian militant based in Syria. Akram al-Ajouri, a member of the leadership of the militant Islamic Jihad group who is living in exile, survived the attack but his son and granddaughter were killed.

Israel frequently strikes Iranian interests in Syria. But last week’s airstrike appeared to be a rare assassination attempt of a Palestinian militant in the Syrian capital. It came the same day as another Israeli airstrike killed a senior Islamic Jihad commander in Gaza, settling off the fiercest round of fighting there in years.

Iran has forces based in Syria, Israel's northern neighbor, and supports Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. In Gaza, it supplies Islamic Jihad with cash, weapons and expertise.

Netanyahu also has claimed Iran is using Iraq and far-off Yemen, where Tehran supports Shiite Houthi rebels at war with a Saudi-led coalition backing the government, to plan attacks against Israel. Hamas also receives some support from Iran.

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https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/israel-strikes-iranian-targets-syria-after-rocket-attack-n1086491

2019-11-20 05:20:00Z
52780441047238

Selasa, 19 November 2019

Protesters and police locked in tense standoff at Hong Kong university - CBS News

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgljHI8faW8

2019-11-19 14:51:23Z
52780440301298

Taliban releases 2 kidnapped American University of Afghanistan professors - NBC News

WASHINGTON — The Taliban has freed two Western hostages, American Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks, after holding them in captivity for more than three years, a U.S. official and the prime minister of neighboring Pakistan said Tuesday.

A U.S. official with knowledge of the release said the American University of Kabul professors, who were kidnapped at gunpoint in August 2016, were now in U.S. hands. Their health was being evaluated and the two were being debriefed, added the official who was not authorized to speak to the media on the subject.

"We appreciate steps taken by all involved to make it possible," Prime Minister Imran Khan said via Twitter. "As part of the international community working to bring peace and end the suffering of the Afghan people, Pakistan has fully supported and facilitated this release as part of its policy of supporting initiatives for a negotiated political settlement of the Afghan conflict."

Taliban sources said the two hostages had been handed over in Zabul province, on the border with Pakistan. The Taliban said ten Afghan soldiers had also been released.

King, the American hostage, was suffering from “serious” and “multiple” health issues, according to a Taliban leader in Zabul province.

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“The American teacher was having some serious health problems when we handed him over to the U.S. and Afghan officials,” he added, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press.

Nov. 12, 201903:50

On Nov. 12, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani announced a deal to release the two hostages in exchange for three Taliban members.

The Western hostages were released in exchange for Taliban members Anas Haqqani, Haji Maali Khan and Hafiz Rasheed Ahamd Omari, according to the Taliban.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed the professors' release too.

“Tim’s family has asked for privacy. They have asked the Australian Government to convey their relief that their long ordeal is over, and their gratitude to all those who have contributed to Tim’s safe return,” he added on Twitter.

The American University of Afghanistan welcomed the news soon after the announcement.

“The AUAF community shares the relief of the families of Kevin and Timothy, and we look forward to providing all the support we can to Kevin and Tim and their families,” the statement said.

The exchange raises hopes that negotiations between the U.S. and the Taliban may restart after President Donald Trump pulled the plug on a potential deal to begin withdrawing U.S. troops from the country and end America's longest war. Negotiations broke down on Sept. 7 and it remains unclear if and when they will start again.

“These actions are a step forward in good-will and confidence building measures that can aid the peace process,” the Taliban said in a statement Tuesday.

Abigail Williams reported from Washington; Ahmed Mengli reported from Kabul; Mushtaq Yusufzai from Peshawar, Pakistan; and Saphora Smith from London.

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https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/taliban-releases-2-kidnapped-american-university-afghanistan-professors-n1085411

2019-11-19 13:15:00Z
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