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Kamis, 19 Desember 2019

Vladimir Putin says Trump was impeached for 'made-up reasons' - CNN

The House of Representatives voted almost exactly along party lines Wednesday to impeach Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Trump was the third president in US history to be impeached, and he now faces a trial in the Senate that is expected to start next month.

"Regarding the continuation of our dialogue till the end of Trump's presidency, you make it sound as if it's already coming to an end," Putin said answering a question about whether Russia has a strategy for continuing the dialogue with the US until the end of Trump's presidency.

"I actually really doubt that it is ending, it still has to go through Senate where as far as I know the Republicans hold the majority so it's unlikely they will want to remove the representative of their party for some made-up reasons."

President Putin speaks during his annual press conference in Moscow on Thursday.

Putin's defense of Trump is in line with the unusually-warm relationship the two leaders have formed since 2017. Last year, Trump sided with the Russian President when he declined to endorse the US government's assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election, saying instead that he believed Putin's denial that his government meddled. Trump has also dismissed credible allegations that Putin uses violence against his opponents, saying in 2015: "I haven't seen any evidence that he killed anybody, in terms of reporters."

Putin added on Thursday: "This is just the continuation of the internal political battle, one party that lost the elections, the Democrats, and are now trying to find new ways by accusing Trump of collusion with Russia. But then it turns out there was no collusion, this can't be the basis for the impeachment. Now they came up with some pressure on Ukraine, I don't know what is the [pressure] but this is up to your congressmen."

The question was asked by Dmitry Simes, head of the Washington-based think tank Center for the National Interest, mentioned in the Mueller report for providing advice to Trump's campaign on Russia.

The two articles of impeachment passed against Trump charged him with abuse of power for withholding nearly $400 million in US military aid and a White House meeting while pressuring Ukraine's president to investigate a potential political rival, and obstruction of Congress for thwarting the House's investigative efforts.

CNN's Devan Cole contributed to this report.

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2019-12-19 12:38:00Z
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Vladimir Putin says Trump was impeached for 'made-up reasons' - CNN

The question was asked by Dmitry Simes, head of the Washington-based think tank Center for the National Interest, mentioned in the Mueller report for providing advice to Trump's campaign on Russia.

CNN's Devan Cole contributed to this report.

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India protests: Internet shut down, protesters detained in Delhi - The - The Washington Post

Adnan Abidi Reuters Demonstrators gather for a protest against a new citizenship law, in New Delhi on Thursday.

NEW DELHI — Indian authorities clamped down Thursday on demonstrations against a contentious citizenship law, prohibiting public gatherings in two major states and parts of the nation’s capital that are together home to more than 260 million people.

A coalition of civil society groups called for rallies across the country on Thursday to voice opposition to the law, which opponents say is discriminatory and violates India’s constitution. The law creates a fast-track to citizenship for migrants from six religions who arrived in India by 2014, but excludes Muslims.

In Delhi, hundreds of peaceful protesters gathered near one of the city’s major monuments to begin a march, but police invoked a measure that forbids gatherings of four or more people, effectively making protests illegal. Police detained protesters and took them away in buses.

[Why protests are erupting over India’s new citizenship law]

Internet and phone service was also suspended in some parts of the city. A police order reviewed by The Washington Post instructed cellular companies to shut down service in five areas on Thursday, including the locations of planned protests. India leads the world in the number of Internet shutdowns, which authorities say are a way to prevent violence and unrest.

Pavan Duggal, an attorney and cyberlaw expert, said he could not recall a previous instance when Internet service was cut in India’s capital. Resorting to such severe tactics to control protests is “counterproductive” and sends a signal of panic, he said.

The Delhi police also restricted movement in the capital. More than 15 metro stations were shuttered, and vehicles were prevented from entering the city on several roads from the neighboring suburb of Gurgaon, leading to monumental traffic jams.

Protests against the citizenship law have roiled India in recent days, and some have turned violent. On Sunday, police stormed a university campus in Delhi, striking unarmed students and firing tear gas into the library. The protests are the most sustained show of opposition to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi since he came to power in 2014.

Adnan Abidi

Reuters

Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest against a new citizenship law at the Red Fort in Delhi on Thursday.

In Bangalore, capital of the state of Karnataka, protesters holding signs were taken into custody by police after authorities invoked the same measure, known as Section 144, to disallow public gatherings. Among those detained was Ramachandra Guha, one of India’s most distinguished historians.

“This is totally wrong,” he said in a video from the scene. “Our paranoid rulers in Delhi are scared” of a peaceful protest.

All of Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state and home to 200 million people, was placed under Section 144 restrictions on Thursday. The state’s director general of police, O.P. Singh, told reporters that no protest would be permitted in the state.

[India passes controversial citizenship law excluding Muslim migrants]

“Parents are advised to counsel their kids and ask them not to participate in any kind of protest, and if they do, police will take action against them,” he said.

Despite the warning, hundreds of protesters took to the streets Thursday afternoon in the old city area of Lucknow, capital of Uttar Pradesh. They threw stones at officers, burned several vehicles and torched two police outposts. Police responded by firing tear gas and smoke grenades.

In Delhi, the demonstrations were peaceful through Thursday afternoon, but police in riot gear were present in large numbers. Police detained hundreds of protesters from several locations, including the city’s renowned Red Fort.

The citizenship law is “unconstitutional,” said 24-year-old student Swati Khanna before she was taken away by police officers. “India is becoming a police state, but we will reclaim it.”

Protests took place Thursday in at least six other cities. A large march was expected in the financial capital of Mumbai later in the day. The government of the state of Maharashtra, where Mumbai is located, is not controlled by Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, and authorities there have allowed the demonstration to proceed.

Tania Dutta in New Delhi and Saurabh Sharma in Lucknow contributed to this report.

Why protests are erupting over India’s new citizenship law

India’s Internet shutdown in Kashmir is the longest ever in a democracy

Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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2019-12-19 11:16:00Z
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Citizenship Act protests: Thousands held across India for defying ban - BBC News

Indian police have detained thousands who defied a ban on protests against a controversial new citizenship law.

The ban has been imposed in parts of the capital Delhi, and throughout the states of Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka.

Mobile data services are suspended in some parts of Delhi close to protest sites. There have been days of protests across India, some violent.

The new law offers citizenship to non-Muslim illegal immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan.

Among those detained are Ramachandra Guha, a prominent historian and outspoken critic of the government, in the southern city of Bangalore; and political activist in Yogendra Yadav in Delhi.

But tens of thousands of people have still taken to the streets in Uttar Pradesh, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Patna, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Delhi and other cities - civil society groups, political parties, students, activists and ordinary citizens took to social media platforms such as Instagram and Twitter, asking people to turn up and protest peacefully.

The law - known as the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) - has sharply divided opinions in India.

The federal government, led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), says it will protect people from persecution, but critics say it's part of a "Hindu nationalist" agenda to marginalise India's more than 200 million Muslims.

The police chief of Uttar Pradesh, OP Singh, has asked people to stay away from protests. The police order, based on a severely restrictive law, prohibits more than four people from gathering in a place.

Police in other places - such as Chennai (formerly Madras) - denied permission for marches, rallies or any other demonstration. Officials say the restrictions have been imposed to avoid violence.

Police also put up barricades on a major highway connecting Delhi and the city of Jaipur and are checking all vehicles entering the capital. This has led to massive gridlock and many commuters have missed their flights.

A number of metro stations in Delhi have also been shut.

What is the law about?

It expedites the path to Indian citizenship for members of six religious minority communities - Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian - if they can prove that they are from Muslim-majority Pakistan, Afghanistan or Bangladesh. They will now only have to live or work in India for six years - instead of 11 years - before becoming eligible to apply for citizenship.

The government says this will give sanctuary to people fleeing religious persecution. But critics say its actual agenda is to marginalise India's Muslim minority.

The fears are compounded by the government's plan to conduct a nationwide register of citizens to ensure that "each and every infiltrator is identified and expelled from India" by 2024. The National Register of Citizens (NRC) has already been carried out in the north-eastern state of Assam and saw 1.9 million people effectively made stateless.

The NRC and the Citizenship Amendment Act are closely linked as the latter will help protect non-Muslims who are excluded from the register and face the threat of deportation or internment.

Why are people protesting against it?

Given that the exercise relies on extensive documentation to prove that their ancestors lived in India, many Muslim citizens fear that they could be made stateless.

Critics also say the law is exclusionary and violates the secular principles enshrined in India's constitution. They say faith should not be made a condition of citizenship.

However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the law "will have no effect on citizens of India, including Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Jains, Christians and Buddhists".

The prime minister also told his supporters at a rally on Tuesday that the opposition was "spreading lies and rumours", "instigating violence" and "used its full force to create an atmosphere of illusion and falsehood".

Home Minister Amit Shah told media that "both my government and I are firm like a rock that we will not budge or go back on the citizenship protests".

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2019-12-19 09:33:45Z
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Australia declares state of emergency as heatwave fans bushfires - Al Jazeera English

Australia set a record for its hottest day ever for a second straight day with an average national temperature of 41.9 degrees Celsius (107.4 Fahrenheit), a full degree higher than the previous mark.

The Bureau of Meteorology said on Thursday the new nationally averaged maximum was reached Wednesday, topping the 40.9 degrees hit Tuesday, which beat the previous record of 40.3 C in January 2013.

The heatwave has exacerbated an unprecedented, drought-fueled series of bushfires ravaging large areas of Australia.

As the heatwave continued Thursday saw the highest December temperature ever reached in Australia when the West Australian town of Eucla hit 49.8 degrees celsius (121.6 Fahrenheit).

The previous hottest December day was 49.5 degrees celsius in Birdsville, Queensland, in 1972.

Authorities in Australia on Thursday declared a seven-day state of emergency in New South Wales, the second in as as many months, as a record heatwave fanned unprecedented bushfires raging across the region.

Some 100 fires have been burning for weeks in the country's most populous state. Half are uncontained, including a "mega-blaze" ringing Sydney and covering Australia's biggest city in a haze of toxic smoke.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the state of emergency was due to "catastrophic weather conditions".

"The biggest concern over the next few days is the unpredictability, with extreme wind conditions, extremely hot temperatures," Berejiklian told reporters in Sydney.

A State of Emergency is declared in NSW from today giving Commissioner Fitzsimmons additional powers to deal with the bushfires. Severe weather conditions are forecast for today and will worsen on Saturday. Listen to warnings and be prepared. #NSWfires pic.twitter.com/iIqfFpIQIW
— Gladys Berejiklian (@GladysB) December 18, 2019

There are 2,000 firefighters battling the blazes with the support of teams from the United States and Canada as well as the Australia Defence Force.

New South Wales Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said five 100-person "strike teams" were on standby to deploy to the most dangerous fires, "given the enormity of some of these fire complexities and the severity of the forecast weather conditions that are expected to unfold throughout today".

"The worst of the fire weather conditions, the extreme fire danger ratings we are expecting today, are centred around the greater Sydney environment," he added.

Shrouded in smoke

The extreme weather is also causing significant health concerns, with leading doctors this week labelling the smoke haze shrouding Sydney a "public health emergency".

More than 70 fires are also raging across Queensland state to the north of New South Wales, including one at Peregian, near the coastal tourist hub of Noosa, that forced people to flee their homes on Wednesday. Bushfires are also burning in South Australia and Western Australia.

The fires have ravaged at least three million hectares (7.4 million acres) of land across Australia in recent months, with six people killed and more than 800 homes destroyed.

Scientists say the blazes have come earlier and with more intensity than usual due to global warming and a prolonged drought that has left the land parched and many towns running out of water.

The fires have sparked climate protests aimed at the conservative government, which has resisted the pressure to address the root causes of global warming in order to protect the country's lucrative coal export industry.

Climate protesters plan to march on Prime Minister Scott Morrison's official residence in Sydney to demand curbs on greenhouse gas emissions and draw attention to his decision to holiday overseas holiday even as large parts of the country burn.

Thick smoke from the fires has turned once blues skies grey, shrouding the city in a toxic smog [File: Rick Rycroft/AP Photo]

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2019-12-19 08:21:00Z
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Rabu, 18 Desember 2019

It's sizzling: Australia experiences hottest day on record - NBC News

SYDNEY — Australia experienced its hottest day on record on Wednesday and temperatures are expected to soar even higher as heatwave conditions embrace most of the country.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology said the average temperature across the country of 40.9 degrees Celsius (105 Fahrenheit) Tuesday beat the record of 40.3 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) from Jan. 7, 2013.

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“This hot air mass is so extensive, the preliminary figures show that yesterday was the hottest day on record in Australia, beating out the previous record from 2013 and this heat will only intensify,” bureau meteorologist Diana Eadie said in a video statement.

The weather bureau said temperatures in southern and central Australia on Thursday may reach between 8 and 16 degrees higher than normal.

On Wednesday temperatures soared to 47.7 Celsius (118 Fahrenheit) in Birdsville, Queensland, 46.9 Celsius (116 Fahrenheit) in Mandora, Western Australia and similar levels in southern and central Australia.

The highest temperature reliably recorded in any location in Australia was 50.7 Celsius (123 Fahrenheit) in January 1960, at Oodnadatta, a desert settlement in outback South Australia .

High temperatures and strong winds are also fanning bushfires around Australia, including more than 100 in New South Wales state where heat and smoke have caused an increase in hospital admissions.

Cooler conditions are forecast from Friday.

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2019-12-18 10:58:00Z
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Australia heat wave brings hottest day on record, and it's getting even hotter today - CBS News

Sydney — Australia this week experienced its hottest day on record and the heatwave is expected to worsen, exacerbating an already unprecedented bushfire season, authorities said Wednesday. The average nationwide temperatures of 105.6 degrees on Tuesday beat the previous record of 104.5 degrees in January 2013, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

"This heat will only intensify further today," meteorologist Diana Eadie Said.

Parts of the eastern state of New South Wales, of which Sydney is the capital, were forecast to reach around 110 Fahrenheit on Thursday. On Saturday parts of Sydney are forecast to tip over 115 degrees.

Climate Change More

Heat fuels anger, too

The heatwave is another alarm bell about global warming in Australia, where this year's early and intense start to regular summer bushfires has heaped pressure on the Australian government to do more to tackle climate change.

The fires have sparked climate protests targeting the conservative government, which has resisted pressure to address the root causes of global warming in order to protect the country's lucrative coal export industry.

AUSTRALIA-CLIMATE-ENVIRONMENT-FIRE-PROTEST — Demonstrators participate in a climate protest rally in Sydney, December 15, 2019. WENDELL TEODORO/GETTY

Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week made a rare admission that climate change was one of the "factors" behind the fires.

But he defended the government's record on emissions reduction and failed to announce further measures to address the issue.

Climate protesters plan to march on Morrison's official residence in Sydney this week to rally for change and highlight his absence as large parts of the country burn.

Morrison is holidaying at an undisclosed location overseas.

"Challenged with a new threat"

Hundreds of bushfires have been raging across Australia for months, including a "mega-blaze" burning north of Sydney, the country's biggest city.

Smoke from the fires has engulfed Sydney, raising air pollution to levels so hazardous that leading doctors have labelled the event a "public health emergency." At least 7.4 million acres of land has been torched across Australia, with six people killed and about 700 homes destroyed.

AUSTRALIA-FIRE-CLIMATE-HEALTH-POLLUTION — A firefighter douses a bushfire in Dargan, about 80 miles northwest of Sydney on December 18, 2019. SAEED KHAN/Getty

The fires have also ravaged koala bear habitats, leading to dramatic rescue efforts to save the iconic marsupials. Hundreds have been killed.

Scientists say the blazes have come earlier and with more intensity than usual due to global warming and a prolonged drought that has left the land tinder dry and many towns running out of water.

Turbulent winds of up to 60 miles an hour are forecast to also hit the east coast at the same time and worsen the blazes.

"Over the next few days we are going to see firefighters, the emergency services and all those communities close to fires... challenged with a new threat," New South Wales fire commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said Wednesday. Embers carried by the winds can travel almost 20 miles from a blaze, authorities said.

"We are going to have a number of fronts that are going to fuel, or escalate the fires burning, but also the potential to have spot fires and embers travelling very long distances," NSW Premier Gladys Berejinklian warned.

Bushfires turn world's attention to plight of koalas in Australia

On Wednesday police evacuated residents from dozens of homes in the coastal area of Peregian near the popular tourist hotspot if Noosa in the northeastern state of Queensland, as an out of control fire threatened properties.

"Fire crews and waterbombing aircraft are working to contain the fire but firefighters may not be able to protect every property," Queensland Fire and Emergency services said.

"You should not expect a firefighter at your door. Queensland Police Service are door knocking in the area. Power, water, and mobile phone service may be lost."

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2019-12-18 09:53:00Z
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Kamis, 19 Desember 2019

What is the law about?

Why are people protesting against it?

More:

Shrouded in smoke

Rabu, 18 Desember 2019

Heat fuels anger, too

"Challenged with a new threat"