Author: Himalaya Post

GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories – Gaza militants halted fire Thursday after targeting Israel with some 180 rockets and mortars, provoking Israeli strikes across the enclave that killed three Palestinians, including a toddler, in another severe flare-up of violence. It was the third major escalation since July and came despite attempts by UN officials and Egypt to secure a long-term truce between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs the Gaza Strip. Two Palestinian officials said on condition of anonymity that Gaza militants halted rocket fire at noon on Thursday. One of the officials said “they consider this round of escalation over.” Israel’s military declined to comment. Beginning on Wednesday night and into Thursday, fireballs and explosions shook the Gaza Strip while plumes of smoke rose from the enclave. In nearby Israeli communities, residents were sent scrambling to bomb shelters. Most of the rockets fired by Palestinian militants landed in open areas, but at least two hit the Israeli town of Sderot near the Gaza Strip and sirens sounded throughout the night and into the morning. Medics reported at least four wounded taken to Israeli hospitals, including a 30-year-old Thai woman in moderate to severe condition after being injured in the Eshkol region bordering the Gaza Strip. Israel’s military reported seven civilians wounded. Those killed in the Gaza Strip included Enas Khammash, 23, and her 18-month-old daughter Bayan, according...

SANAA – An attack on a bus carrying children in rebel-held northern Yemen on Thursday left dozens of people dead or wounded, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. “Following an attack this morning on a bus driving children in Dahyan Market, northern Saada, (an ICRC-supported) hospital has received dozens of dead and wounded,” the organisation said on Twitter without giving more details. “Under international humanitarian law, civilians must be protected during conflict,” it added. The Huthi rebels’ Al-Masirah TV reported that 39 people had been killed and 51 wounded, “mostly children”. It accused the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Shiite rebels on the side of the government of hitting the bus in an air strike. It was not possible to verify the toll or who was behind it. There was no immediate comment from the coalition, which intervened in 2015 to try to restore the internationally recognised government to power after it was driven out of the capital Sanaa by the rebels. The UN children’s agency UNICEF said it was “very concerned with the initial reports of children being killed”. “I am watching with horror the images and videos coming from Saada in #Yemen and I have no words. How was this a military target? Why are children being killed?” tweeted UNICEF’s resident representative in Yemen, Meritxell Relano. Last Thursday, attacks on a hospital and a fish market...

Ernakulam/ Trivandrum (Kerala) [India] – At least 20 people died in rain related incidents in Kerala on Thursday. The incessant rains caused rivers in the region to swell, urging the authorities to open the shutters of as many as 22 dams. The inundation has been so severe that the administration was compelled to open the sluice gates of Cheruthoni dam on Idukki reservoir, a first in 26 years. The heavy downpour, caused by annual south-west monsoon, has also hampered several flight operations in the Cochin city. “Water is flowing into the operational area of Cochin International Airport (CIAL). The airport may close with short notice, no long-term parking in CIAL and no diversion from other airports will be permitted till further notification,” read the statement released by the Airport Director of CIAL. The deluge has ravaged several districts of the state, with National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) working in a fire-fighting mode. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan informed , “We have sought help from the Army, Navy, Coast Guard and NDRF. Three NDRF teams have arrived, two teams to arrive soon and six additional NDRF teams have also been called in. Nehru Trophy Boat Race has been cancelled.” District Collector of Ernakulam, Mohammed Y Safirulla said that all hands are on deck to tackle the situation. “Water was released from Edamalayar dam in the morning after which the water...

New Delhi/Patna (Bihar) [India] – United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Thursday said that the defeat in the election to the Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman post should not be perceived as lack of unity in the Opposition. She said, “Sometimes we win and sometimes we lose.” When media reporters asked whether the Opposition unity was falling apart, Gandhi said, “No…why?” The reaction of the former Congress president came a few hours after National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Harivansh Narayan Singh was announced as the new Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. Harivansh Narayan Singh polled 125 votes out of 332 whereas Congress candidate BK Hariprasad bagged 105 votes only. Two members of the Aam Aadmi Party abstained from voting. Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar congratulated Singh for being elected as the new Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman. “I congratulate Harivansh Narayan Singh for being elected as the new Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman,” Kumar tweeted. Soon after Harivansh Narayan Singh was announced as the winner, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other members of the House walked up to him and congratulated. The post of the Deputy Chairman has been lying vacant since June 2018 after the retirement of Congress leader PJ Kurien. At the farewell of Kurien, Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu had urged the ruling and opposition parties to find a suitable replacement...

NEW DELHI – As many as 22 people have been killed and several others missing in floods and landslides, triggered by heavy rains, in the southern Indian state of Kerala in the past 24 hours, officials said Thursday. The deaths were reported from the districts of Idukki, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Ernakulam. “With two more latest deaths reported from Ernakulam district, the toll has now risen to 22. Earlier 11 people died in Idukki, while six lost their lives in Malappuram, two in Kozhikode and one in Wayanad,” a disaster management official said. “Several low-lying areas have been flooded. Also a number of people are missing in Palakkad, Wayanad and Kozhikode districts. Several teams of National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) have been deployed in the state,” he added. Aviation officials said that such was the impact of heavy rains that flights operations had to be stopped for some time at the state’s Cochin International Airport that is close to the Periyar river due to fears of flooding because of opening of Idukki dam shutters. “But all flights have now resumed, considering an improvement in the situation,” an airport spokesperson said. Local TV channels reported that schools and colleges have been closed in large parts of the state and the annual Nehru boat race in Alappuzha district has been postponed because of the heavy showers lashing Kerala. State Chief Minister...