London: According to reports, Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie has resigned from a charity made famous by Diana, Princess of Wales, in a dispute over trustees paying themselves up to £500 a day.
Two trustees received more than £120,000 in the previous financial year at the Halo Trust, the charity that came to prominence when the late princess visited an Angolan minefield in 1997. This included tens of thousands of pounds for a review of the charity’s “structural, remuneration and governance arrangements”.
Kerry tells Putin to back off
Washington: The United States has formally warned Russia against military activity in Syria, saying it could lead to confrontation with the American-led coalition against Isis. Secretary of State John Kerry called Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and expressed concerns about “an imminent enhanced Russian military build up.” American officials had seen signs of preparations for a mass deployment of Russian military advisers and assets, including sending an advance Russian military team, prefabricated housing units for service personnel and a portable air traffic control station. As the refugee crisis worsens across Europe, more European countries are in plans of operations against Syria.
Bangladesh court rejects petition on state religion
Dhaka: Bangladesh High Court has rejected a petition questioning the declaration of Islam as the state religion in the constitution as legal. Justice Emdadul Haque and Justice Muhammad Khurshid Alam Sarkar scrapped the petition, said Deputy Attorney General Khorshedul Alam. Supreme Court lawyer Samendra Nath Goswami, the petitioner, questioned the legality of declaring Islam the state religion through the 1988 constitutional amendment. He also asked for justification of retaining the clause after the 15th amendment restored secularism as a key pillar of the constitution. Goswami urged for a ruling from the court asking to be shown reasons for not declaring the clause as conflicting with the constitution. The law secretary was made the respondent.
Former Pak cricketer driving taxi in Sydney
Sydney: A post on Facebook has claimed that former Pakistan offspinner Arshad Khan now drives Uber Taxi around Sydney. “He was the driver of our cab and we started chatting, he told me that he is from Pakistan and lives in Sydney. Also that he has been to Hyderabad many times when he was playing for Lahore Badshahs something in ICL. After which I asked him his full name and then I was shocked to see his face which I could partially recognise. I shook his hand and left,” Ganesh Birle posted on his Facebook account. “He was avoiding the conversation all the time, but at the same time he couldn't help but talk about his India connection.” Khan had made his debut for Pakistan in 1997-98 against West Indies and has played 9 Tests and 58 ODIs.
11 Indians under detention in UAE for having ISIS links
New Delhi: Around 11 Indians are under detention in the UAE on charges of planning to join the Islamic State, and recruiting, financing and providing logistics to those who wish to join the Jihadi extremists. As per Intelligence sources, the UAE security services came across two groups of people hailing from India, based in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, involved in sharing and discussing ISIS related issues on the social media. They have also allegedly tried to establish contact with the ISIS leaders online. The groups also include a couple of Pakistanis and Bangladeshis. Reports suggest that UAE authorities suspect those 13 Indians were planning to travel to Syria, possibly via Yemer or Turkey and were in the process of organising funds and logistics. The rising number of Indians joining the extremist group will once again become the topic of debate on how to deal with those returning after a short stint with the group. Meanwhile, the government and the security establishment will have to consider whether to prosecute the caught Indians or treat them as misguided youth and de-radicalise them.
Drowned Syrian boys and their mother buried in home town Kobani
Kobani (Syria): Their journey was supposed to take them to a new life in Europe. Instead, it ended in three dusty cemetery plots in Kobani, the bombed-out Syrian border town.
Aylan Kurdi, three, whose lifeless image shook consciences worldwide, was buried in Kobani, the bombed-out Syrian border town, along with his brother Galep, five, and mother Rehan, 35. Their bodies were sent back to their mainly Kurdish home town just days after they had washed up along the shore of the Turkish resort of Bodrum. The Syrian Kurds were among thousands of people, mostly Syrian, Iraqi and Afghani, trying to cross the sea from Turkey and begin the long trek to northern Europe. A photograph of Aylan’s tiny body in the sand, the waves lapping at his face, has come to symbolise the tragedy of Syria’s five-year war and the mass migration of people it had caused. It is also viewed widely as evidence of the world’s failure to help refugees who feel compelled to risk their lives in perilous journeys across the sea.
King Salman of Saudi Arabia makes first visit to US
Washington: King Salman of Saudi Arabia arrived in Washington with four aeroplanes carrying hundreds of officials for his first visit to the US since taking the helm of the oil-rich nation in January. As his entourage fans across the capital to meet politicians and officials, King Salman will meet Barack Obama in the Oval Office, just days after the US president clinched crucial support in Congress for the Iran nuclear deal, which Saudi Arabia has publicly supported despite private concerns. The two leaders will seek to reaffirm the historic importance of the Saudi-American partnership, despite complex shifts in regional dynamics resulting from the Iran deal and increasingly sectarian internal conflicts in Syria and Yemen. While Obama has secured enough congressional support for the Iran deal, he wants to retain Saudi support to help counter the backlash from opponents in Congress who will continue efforts to castigate the agreement.
Af couple given 100 lashes for adultery
Kabul: An Afghan man and woman found guilty of adultery received 100 lashes in front of a crowd who filmed their punishment, TV footage showed. The footage, taken in the western province of Ghor, showed a woman in a veil and a man each receive the punishment from a man in a turban wielding a leather whip, watched by a group of mostly seated men. The sentencing was backed by the government in Ghor province, where the trial took place.
