Indian doctors begin 24-hour strike to protest brutal rape of medic
Indian doctors begin 24-hour strike to protest brutal rape of medic/node/2567730/world
Indian doctors begin 24-hour strike to protest brutal rape of medic
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A closure notice is posted aththe entrance of a hospital in Mumbai on August 17, 2024, at the start of a nationwide strike called by the Indian Medical Association to protest the rape and murder of a trainee medic at a government-run hospital in Kolkata. (REUTERS)
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A closure notice is posted aththe entrance of a hospital in Mumbai on August 17, 2024, at the start of a nationwide strike called by the Indian Medical Association to protest the rape and murder of a trainee medic at a government-run hospital in Kolkata. (REUTERS)
Indian doctors begin 24-hour strike to protest brutal rape of medic
Updated 17 August 2024
Reuters
MUMBAI: Indian medical professionals started a 24-hour shutdown of non-emergency services across the country on Saturday in protest against the brutal rape and murder of a doctor in the eastern city of Kolkata.
The shutdown, which began at 6 a.m. (0030 GMT), will cut off access to elective medical procedures and out-patient consultations in the world’s most populous nation, according to a statement by the Indian Medical Association.
Casualty departments at hospitals, which deal with emergencies, will continue to be staffed.
A 31-year old trainee doctor was raped and murdered last week inside a medical college in Kolkata where she worked, triggering nationwide protests among doctors and drawing parallels to the notorious gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a moving bus in New Delhi in 2012.
Anger at the failure of tough laws to deter a rising tide of violence against women has fueled protests by doctors and women’s groups.
“Women form the majority of our profession in this country. Time and again, we have asked for safety for them,” IMA President R. V. Asokan told Reuters on Friday.
More than a million medics were expected to join the strike.
Flash flood sweeps away hamlet as Vietnam storm toll rises to 141 dead
Torrent of water buried Lang Nu hamlet with 35 families in mud and debris
Rescuers have recovered 16 bodies and are continuing the search for about 40 others
Updated 51 min ago
AP
HANOI, Vietnam: A flash flood swept away an entire hamlet in northern Vietnam, killing 16 people and leaving dozens missing as deaths from a typhoon and its aftermath climbed to 141 on Wednesday.
Vietnamese state broadcaster VTV said the torrent of water gushing down from a mountain in Lao Cai province Tuesday buried Lang Nu hamlet with 35 families in mud and debris.
Only about a dozen are known so far to have survived. Rescuers have recovered 16 bodies and are continuing the search for about 40 others.
The death toll from Typhoon Yagi and its aftermath has climbed to 141 as 69 others remain missing and hundreds were injured, VTV said.
Yagi was the strongest typhoon to hit the Southeast Asian country in decades. It made landfall Saturday with winds of up to 149 kph (92 mph) and despite weakening on Sunday, downpours have continued and rivers remain dangerously high.
Floods and landslides have caused most of the deaths, many of which have come in the northwestern Lao Cai province, bordering China, where Lang Nu is located.
Anti-war protesters clash with police at Melbourne defense expo
Police were pelted with rocks, horse manure and bottles filled with liquid as they tried to protect attendees of the expo
Two dozen police officers required medical treatment and 33 people had been arrested for offenses
Updated 55 min 52 sec ago
Reuters
SYDNEY: Anti-war protesters and police clashed outside a defense exhibition in Australia’s second-largest city of Melbourne on Wednesday, with police using sponge grenades, flash-bang devices and irritant sprays to control parts of the hostile crowd.
Police were pelted with rocks, horse manure and bottles filled with liquid as they tried to protect attendees of the expo, some of whom were assaulted by protesters, a Victoria state police spokesperson said in a statement.
Two dozen police officers required medical treatment and 33 people had been arrested for offenses including assaulting, obstructing or hindering police, arson and blocking roads, police said.
“Victoria police is appalled at the behavior of some of the protesters in attendance,” the police spokesperson said.
“Some police have been spat at by protesters, whilst other officers have been sprayed with a liquid irritant, some of which has been identified as acid.”
Protesters lit fires in the street, disrupted traffic and public transport, while missiles were thrown at several police horses but no serious injuries were reported, police said.
About 1,200 people attended the protest outside the venue hosting the biennial Land Forces International Land Defense Exposition, authorities said.
Many chanted pro-Palestine slogans through loud speakers and waving Palestine flags while dumpsters were pushed toward police lines, video showed. One protester climbed on top of a truck that was stopped at traffic lights.
Australian media reported it was the largest police operation in Melbourne since 2000 when Australia’s second-largest city hosted the World Economic Forum.
About 1,000 exhibiting organizations from 31 countries are expected to attend the event through Friday, which the organizers said was Australia’s largest defense expo.
Some attendees were doused in a red liquid by protesters, ABC News reported.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said people had the right to protest but had to do it in a peaceful manner.
“You don’t say you’re opposed to defense equipment by throwing things at police. They’ve got a job to do and our police officers should be respected at all times,” Albanese told Channel Seven.
Key takeaways from the Harris-Trump presidential debate
Republican Donald Trump and Democratic VP Kamala Harris clashed over abortion, economy, immigration and Trump’s legal woes
Harris appeared to get under Trump’s skin with a series of sharp attacks, prompting Trump to deliver stream of falsehood-filled retorts
Updated 46 min 56 sec ago
Reuters
PHILADELPHIA: Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump met on Tuesday for their first and perhaps only debate, a square-off that could have a significant impact on the Nov. 5 election as polls show a tight race.
Here are takeaways from the debate:
RILING HER RIVAL
Harris made a point to get under Trump’s skin, as her campaign had forecast.
She urged viewers to attend a Trump rally, where she said Trump would say bizarre things such as windmills cause cancer (something he has, in fact, said) and where, she taunted, attendees would leave out of exhaustion and boredom.
Trump, who prides himself on the crowds he draws, was clearly riled.
“My rallies, we have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics,” he said. He accused Harris of busing in attendees to her rallies.
Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump returns from a commercial breaks during a presidential debate with US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 10, 2024. (AFP)
Trump then falsely claimed that immigrants in the country illegally were killing and eating people’s pets in the city of Springfield, Ohio, an unsubstantiated claim that has circulated on social media and been amplified by Trump’s vice presidential running mate JD Vance.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs! The people that came in, they’re eating the cats!” Trump said. “They’re eating the pets of the people that live there.”
City officials in Springfield have said those reports are untrue, which the ABC moderators pointed out after Trump’s comments.
“Talk about extreme,” Harris responded, laughing.
PLAYING DEFENSE
Another of Harris’ goals, as a former California prosecutor, was to call Trump out for his past actions, particularly his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
An hour into the debate, her strategy appeared to be paying off. Trump was continually on the defensive.
Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris gestures as she speaks during a presidential debate with Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, hosted by ABC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., on September 10, 2024. (REUTERS)
Asked about the Jan. 6, 2021, siege of the US Capitol, he insisted he “had nothing to do with that, other than they asked me to make a speech.” He also maintained, falsely, that he had won the 2020 election.
Harris used Trump’s actions as an argument for the country to turn the page.
“Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people, so let’s be clear about that, and clearly he is having a very difficult time processing that, but we cannot afford to have a president of the United States who attempts as he did in the past to upend the will of the voters in a free and fair election,” Harris said.
The vice president dug at Trump a little more, saying world leaders were “laughing” at him and calling him a disgrace – language that Trump has employed himself at rallies in reference to how he says other countries view President Joe Biden.
A few minutes later, Trump erupted, claiming Harris had received “no votes” in claiming the Democratic nomination and suggesting she replaced Biden as part of some sort of coup.
“He hates her,” Trump said of Biden. “He can’t stand her.”
The exchanges may have aided Harris’ argument that Trump, as she put it, lacks the “temperament” to be president.
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump reacts in the spin room on the day of his debate with Democratic presidential nominee and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., on September 10, 2024. (REUTERS)
RACIAL DIVIDE
Deep into the debate, the long-simmering topic of race came up. Trump was asked why he had publicly questioned Harris’ dual heritage as a Black and South Asian woman.
“I don’t care what she is,” he responded. “I read that she was Black. Then I read that she was not Black.”
Asked to respond, Harris accused Trump of using race to divide Americans throughout his career. She cited how he and his father turned away Black renters in the 1970s and how Trump led the public outcry against five young Black and Latino men who were wrongly convicted of assaulting a jogger in New York City’s Central Park in 1989.
More recently, he openly questioned whether President Barack Obama was a US citizen, Harris noted.
“I think it’s a tragedy that we have someone who wants to be president who has, consistently, over the course of his career, attempted to use race to divide the American people,” she said.
“I think the American people want better than that,” Harris added. “We don’t want a leader who is constantly trying to have Americans point their fingers at each other.”
Instead of trying to defend his record, Trump pivoted back to the economy and tried to pin Biden’s economic policies on Harris. “She’s trying to get away from Biden,” he said.
Harris used the attack to pitch herself again as a change agent.
“Clearly, I am not Joe Biden, and certainly not Donald Trump,” Harris said, “and what I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country.”
HANDSHAKE
Heading into the debate, there was a question as to how Harris and Trump, who have never met, would greet each other.
Harris settled the issue, definitively. She walked over to Trump at his podium, extended her hand and introduced herself as “Kamala Harris.”
It was a disarming way for Harris to approach a man who has spent weeks insulting her race and gender.
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (R) shakes hands with former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a presidential debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 10, 2024. (AFP)
SPARRING ON THE ECONOMY
In the debate’s opening minutes, Trump and Harris went to battle on one of the issues that is top of mind for voters: the economy.
Harris detailed the economic policies she has rolled out in recent weeks, which include a substantial tax credit for small start-ups. Trump focused his comments on tariffs, saying he would protect the American economy from unfair foreign competition.
While both sides got their jabs in, Harris got to speak first on a topic where she trails Trump in terms of voter trust. She appeared to force the former president onto his back foot, and Trump essentially played defense on one of his strongest issues.
“She doesn’t have a plan” Trump said, after Harris’ opening comments. “It’s like Run, Spot, Run.”
A SCHISM ON ABORTION
The two candidates also engaged in a fractious debate about abortion, an issue where polls show Harris has the upper hand.
Trump defended the US Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling that ended constitutional protection for abortion and sent the issue back to individual states, arguing, incorrectly, that it was an outcome desired by both Republicans and Democrats. Democrats have long supported a constitutional right to abortion.
“I did a great service in doing it. It took courage to do it,” Trump said.
A member of the media uses phone as a screen displays the presidential debate, as Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris attend a presidential debate hosted by ABC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., on September 10, 2024. (REUTERS)
Trump contended that some states allow babies to be aborted after birth, a point corrected by ABC News moderator, Linsey Davis.
Harris flashed some outrage at Trump’s assertion that abortion becoming a states-rights issue was a popular result, referring to states that have passed restrictive bans.
“This is what people wanted?” Harris asked. “People being denied care in an emergency room because health care providers are being afraid of being hauled off to jail?“
Trump was asked whether he would veto a federal abortion ban if one were passed by Congress. He insisted it would never happen, but refused to answer the question definitively.
WORLDS APART
One of the most heated policy discussions came when Trump and Harris clashed over how they would handle Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
The candidates’ responses revealed the degree to which their views on America’s role in the world fundamentally differ.
Trump refused to say he wanted Ukraine to win the war, even as ABC moderator David Muir pushed him on the point, saying only that he wanted to wrap up the conflict as soon as possible.
Harris shot back, arguing that what Trump really wanted was Ukraine’s quick and unconditional capitulation.
“If Donald Trump were president, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin would be sitting in Kyiv right now,” Harris said.
'WEAPONIZED’ JUSTICE
In one heated exchange, Trump and Harris accused each other of conspiring to “weaponize” the Justice Department in a bid to go after their enemies.
Trump said the indictments he faces for conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss and for his mishandling of classified documents — as well as his conviction for forging documents related to hush money payments to a porn star — are all the result of a conspiracy cooked up by Harris and Biden. There is no evidence for that assertion.
Harris shot back by pointing out that Trump has promised to prosecute his enemies if he wins a second term.
“Understand this is someone who has openly said he would terminate, I’m quoting, terminate the Constitution,” Harris said.
The exchange underlined how Harris and Trump see the stakes of this election as existential. Both see their opponent as a threat to democracy itself.
IMF agreement could give Ukraine access to $1.1 bn
It would raise to $8.7 billion the amount of funds dispersed so far to Ukraine as part of an IMF program tallying about $15.6 billion
Updated 11 September 2024
AFP
SAN FRANCISCO: The International Monetary Fund late Tuesday said it has reached an agreement with Ukraine on an aid program review that could open the door to $1.1 billion for the war-battered country.
A staff-level agreement on the fifth review of the four-year Extended Fund Facility Agreement, subject to approval by the IMF executive board, would clear the way for Ukraine to access the money, according to the IMF.
It would raise to $8.7 billion the amount of funds dispersed so far to Ukraine as part of an IMF program tallying about $15.6 billion.
“Russia’s war in Ukraine continues to have a devastating impact on the country and its people,” IMF team leader Gavin Gray said in a release.
“Skillful policymaking, the adaptability of households and firms, and robust external financing has helped support macroeconomic and financial stability.”
Real gross domestic product grew 6.5 percent in Ukraine in the first quarter of this year, while inflation in July was deemed low at 5.4 percent year-over-year, according to the IMF.
Gray noted that an economic slowdown is expected in Ukraine due to repeated attacks on its energy infrastructure and the effect of the war on labor markets and overall confidence, but growth should be about three percent for this year.
Inflation is expected to rise to about nine percent by the end of 2024, with risks to the financial outlook considered high, according to Gray.
Kyiv in July said it had struck a preliminary deal with international creditors to restructure government debt worth more than $20 billion, giving the war-torn country some financial breathing room.
Ukraine’s economy has been decimated by Russia’s invasion and the government is reliant on international aid to help it fund both its military and day-to-day government spending.
The deal will see creditors — including BlackRock, Pimco and other major institutional investors — write billions off the nominal value of their holdings, and agree to a new payment schedule on terms more beneficial to Kyiv.
“The financial sector is stable and liquid, with reforms continuing apace despite challenges under Martial Law,” Gray said.
Blinken set to arrive in Ukraine in show of support for Kyiv
The top US diplomat, who is traveling to Ukraine alongside Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy, said he will use his visit to hear directly from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky
Updated 11 September 2024
Reuters
WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to arrive in Ukraine on Wednesday, where he will meet with senior government officials at what he said was a critical moment for supporting the country in its fight against Russia’s invasion.
The top US diplomat, who is traveling to Ukraine alongside Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy, said he will use his visit to hear directly from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and others what Kyiv’s current goals in the war are and what Washington can do to help it achieve them.
“I think it’s a critical moment for Ukraine in the midst of what is an intense fall fighting season with Russia continuing to escalate its aggression,” Blinken said in London at a news conference with Lammy.
Zelensky has been pleading for Western countries to supply longer-range missiles and to lift restrictions on using them to hit targets such as military airfields inside Russia.
On the battlefield more than 2-1/2 years since the invasion, Ukrainian forces are being stretched by a better armed and more numerous foe, as they try to fend off creeping Russian gains in the east where Moscow is focusing its attacks.
In a bid to seize back some of the initiative and divert Russian forces, Kyiv sent troops into Russia on an audacious large-scale cross-border incursion last month, but Moscow’s troops have continued to inch forward in the east.
The visit also comes a day after Blinken in London said Russia has received ballistic missiles from Iran and will likely use them in Ukraine within weeks, warning that cooperation between Moscow and Tehran threatens wider European security.
The deepening military cooperation between Iran and Russia is a threat for all of Europe, Blinken said, and added that Washington had privately warned Iran that providing ballistic missiles to Russia would be “a dramatic escalation.” The US issued sanctions on Iran later on Tuesday over the transfer.
Blinken declined to say whether Washington will allow Ukraine to use long-range weapons deep inside Russia but said multiple factors went into the consideration of this decision rather than just looking at it as a weapons system.
“It’s not just the system itself that counts. You have to ask: Can the Ukrainians effectively use it, and sometimes that requires significant training, which we’ve done. Do they have the ability to maintain it?,” Blinken said.
Zelensky has long pushed back against allies who have supplied long-range weapons but told Kyiv they cannot use them deep inside Russia for fear of instigating a direct conflict between the West and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.
Thousands of civilians have died in the war, which Russia started with a full-scale invasion on Ukraine in February 2022. Millions of Ukrainians have also been displaced, while their cities and villages have become piles of rubble.
Russia has escalated its drone and missile attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks, while Ukraine has also sent hundreds of long-range attack drones deep into Russian territory.
Later this month, Zelensky travels to the United States and will present a plan to President Joe Biden and his two potential successors in Novembers election that he hopes will bring the end of the war closer.
