January 3, 2024

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has ordered local authorities and police to refrain from creating any hindrance or using force to remove the Baloch marchers staging a sit-in outside the National Press Club since December 20. Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani heard a petition filed by a Baloch activist Sammi Deen Baloch, who is also among the protesting families in Islamabad, against harassment and attempts to remove marchers by force. Taking notice of complaints, the high court ordered Islamabad’s deputy commissioner (DC) and senior superintendent police (SSP) Operations to ensure in-person in the next hearing. Sammi’s lawyer Ataullah Kundi Advocate apprised the court that the sit-in of the Baloch families was peacefully continued outside Islamabad’s press club since December 20. He added that the Capital authorities had made multiple attempts to forcedly remove the marchers from the venue. He continued that they attempted to vacate the sit-in venue by forcing women to sit in buses, adding Islamabad policemen were continuously harassing them by seizing speakers and sometimes by creating tense situations of relaunching crackdowns. The police had arrested several women and children after lodging cases before the court ordered their release, he added. The judge questioned whether the protestors were advancing to somewhere other than their venue. The lawyer replied that Baloch marchers were not advancing anywhere. The judge remarked that Shahra-e-Dastoor, in other words, Constitution Avenue has a history of hosting big demonstrations and sit-ins. Some people had used the same spot to stage months-long sit-ins on Shahrah-e-Dastoor and hurled abuses at the courts, he continued. While reprimanding the federal capital’s authorities, Justice Kayani observed that Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) was responsible for handling the situation but the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) apparently had no interest in holding local government (LG) polls despite court orders. He added an administration was now running Islamabad’s municipal authority and no one had an interest to accept the constitutional rights of the citizens. Later, the IHC judge issued orders, barring authorities from harassing and removing the Baloch marchers by force besides ordering DC Islamabad and SSP Operations to ensure their personal appearance in the next hearing. The hearing was adjourned till January 5. Police crackdown Last month, the long march participants led by Baloch women were detained by authorities during a demonstration in Islamabad against the enforced disappearances of Baloch missing persons. The march began from Turbat on December 6 and reached Islamabad’s press club on December 20 when the police intercepted them. An advance party of Baloch Yakjehti Council (BYC) reached Islamabad through the Motorway, but the police intercepted it at Chungi No. 26 and barricaded all the main and artery roads, including Kashmir Avenue, leading to the Red Zone. When they arrived in the capital, cops launched a crackdown against the protesters and dismantled their camps set up outside the National Press Club. Most of the protesters were arrested by the police, a move that sparked anguish across the country. On December 21, IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq warned the capital city’s top cop against any hindrance in the protest staged by the Baloch marchers, saying that they have the constitutional right to demonstration. Following the court directives, all protestors were released in phases after several rounds of talks with the caretaker government’s negotiation team Source:https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1144406-ihc-bars-islamabad-authorities-from-removing-baloch-protesters-by-force

Explosions have been reported at an event near the tomb of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps general Qassem Soleimani. At least 20 people have been reported killed at the event marking the fourth anniversary of Soleimani’s death. Videos show ambulances arriving at the scene and taking away the injured on stretchers. Blasts ‘were caused by terrorist attacks’ Iranian state media, quoting a local official in the Kerman province, said the blasts “were caused by terrorist attacks”. Earlier, the semi-official Nournews said that “several gas canisters exploded on the road leading to the cemetery”. Click here to share on social media At least 20 killed in twin explosions Explosions have been reported in the vicinity of the cemetery in the Iranian city of Kerman during a ceremony marking the fourth anniversary of the death of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) General Qassem Soleimani, who was killed by a US drone strike. At least 20 people are reported to have been killed with many others wounded. Source:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/1/3/iran-blasts-live-deadly-explosions-target-soleimani-killing-anniversary

Israel’s military says it is on “high readiness for any scenario” after the assassination of Hamas official Saleh al-Arouri and six others in Lebanon. Al-Arouri was killed in a drone strike in southern Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold. Israeli has not claimed responsibility. Hezbollah says the attack “will not pass without punishment”. At least 22,313 people have been killed and at least 57,296 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7. The revised death toll from Hamas’ October 7 attack in Israel stands at 1,139. Yemen’s Houthis claim to target Israel-bound ship Houthi spokesperson Yahya Sarea said the group targeted the CMA CGM Tage container ship, claiming it was headed for Israel. Sarea also warned the US, which leads a naval coalition patrolling the waters, against interfering, saying any US attack “will not pass without a response or punishment”. The statement comes three days after US naval forces killed 10 Houthi fighters and sunk three Houthi boats while they said they were responding to the group’s attack on a separate container ship — the Maersk Hangzhou. Click Sisi tells US Congress delegation the priority is to secure a ceasefire in Gaza Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has told a delegation from US Congress that the current priority is to secure a ceasefire in Gaza. In a presidency statement, Sisi stressed the importance of “responsible action” to avoid widening the conflict in the region. Click here to share on social media Unclear if Hezbollah ‘willing to drag Lebanon into major conflict’ Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati says the killing of Hamas official Saleh al-Arouri “aims to draw Lebanon” deeper into the Gaza war. During the almost three-month-old war, Israel has traded almost daily cross-border fire with the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah – an Iranian-backed ally of Hamas – while so far avoiding a full-scale war. But after the assassination in Beirut, which Israel has not claimed, all eyes are on what happens next. Al-Arouri’s killing is “a significant escalation”, says Maha Yahya from the Carnegie Middle East Center. “[But] I don’t think Hezbollah will be willing to drag Lebanon into a major conflict at this particular moment and time, given the situation regionally,” Yahya added. Israel has also labelled Hamas’s Gaza leader Yahya Sinwar a “dead man walking” and promised to kill other commanders. Hezbollah fighters in Aaramta, bordering Israel [Anwar Amro/AFP] Click Israel’s government shows it will target Hamas leaders ‘no matter where’ Sara Khairat After Saleh al-Arouri’s killing, Israel’s government has made it clear that it will go after Hamas leaders no matter where they are. It wants to show that it is taking this war seriously at a time when the public still supports it. The government also aims to ensure Hamas never returns, either militarily or politically. Hezbollah has made it clear it will retaliate. The group has already been carrying out strikes on Israel’s northern border daily since the war started. We’ve seen some of the group’s mortar attacks this morning on the northern border. Hezbollah has stronger capabilities than Hamas and they have grown in recent years. They now have long-range missiles that can hit here in Tel Aviv as well as other areas in Haifa. We haven’t seen a major escalation yet and when that could happen is still unclear. Click here to share on social media Palestinian prisoners group: 11,000 arrested in 2023 The Palestinian Prisoner’s Society (PPS) says that 11,000 Palestinians were arrested in 2023, including 1,085 children and 300 women. The numbers of those detained are similar to those detentions that took place in the early years of the second Intifada in 2001-2002, the PPS said. At least 5,500 Palestinians were arrested after October 7, including 355 children and 184 women. Currently, there are 8,800 Palestinians in Israeli jails, including 3,291 Palestinians detained without charges. Source:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/1/3/israel-hamas-war-live-hezbollah-vows-revenge-for-israeli-strike-on-beirut