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ITV News
2 hours ago
- ITV News
India rejects UK parliament report on transnational repression
India has launched a blistering counterattack against a UK parliamentary report that accused it of waging 'transnational repression' on British soil and misusing global policing tools like INTERPOL to silence political dissidents. In a strongly worded statement on India's foreign ministry denounced the allegations as 'baseless,' 'politically motivated,' and 'drawn from dubious and discredited sources.' 'The deliberate reliance on unverified inputs from proscribed entities with a long record of anti-India hostility calls into question the credibility and objectivity of the entire report,' said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, dismissing the claims as an orchestrated smear. The rare diplomatic rebuke was triggered by the release of a hard-hitting report titled 'Transnational Repression in the UK' on July 30 by the UK Parliament's Joint Committee on Human Rights — a powerful cross-party body comprising lawmakers from both the House of Commons and House of Lords. The report accuses multiple foreign governments of targeting exiled dissidents, activists, and journalists who have sought refuge in the UK, creating what it describes as a 'chilling effect' on diaspora communities. India was named among 12 countries, including China, Russia, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, allegedly involved in such practices. While the report reserves its sharpest criticism for what it terms the 'three most flagrant perpetrators' — China, Russia, and Iran — India's inclusion, particularly the accusation of abusing INTERPOL's Red Notice mechanism for political ends, has sparked sharp pushback from New Delhi. The committee's findings draw heavily from evidence submitted by UK-based Sikh advocacy groups, including the Sikh Federation (UK) and Sikhs for Justice. These groups allege that Indian authorities have sought to weaponise international policing tools to harass and intimidate diaspora voices, especially those supporting the Khalistan separatist movement — a claim India has long dismissed as misinformation propagated by extremist elements. While the report has reignited debate within Britain over how to protect residents from foreign interference, India's sharp reaction signals a potential diplomatic flashpoint — particularly amid already sensitive ties following the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada last year, which also raised questions around cross-border intelligence operations. As both countries navigate a delicate relationship shaped by strategic partnerships and domestic political pressures, the fallout from this latest allegation is likely to echo beyond Westminster and Raisina Hill.
The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
In wartime, demonstrations in Ukraine can never be more than a peaceful protest
Once a decade, Ukraine has a moment in which street protests redefine the country's political direction. The Orange revolution of 2004; the Maidan revolution of 2014; and now, over the past 10 days, the first major wave of protest since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. A series of unexpectedly boisterous and well-attended demonstrations forced Volodymyr Zelenskyy to execute a swift U-turn on his decision to scrap the independence of two anti-corruption bodies. On Thursday, MPs reversed the contentious changes they had adopted a week previously. Outside the parliament building, crowds whooped and cheered as the result of the vote was announced. The size, scope and demands of this latest protest movement have been much more modest than those of its revolutionary predecessors, but the spectacle has been no less remarkable, given the context of full-scale war in which it has taken place. The final, celebratory gathering came only hours after the latest massive Russian airstrike had hit Kyiv, killing at least 28 people including three children. Hardly anyone had managed a good night's sleep before arriving at parliament armed with banners and high spirits. This wartime context to a large extent inspired the protests: a common sentiment that when people are laying down their lives for the country on the frontline, the government has to live up to a certain set of values. But it also limited their scope. There was none of the revolutionary enthusiasm of Maidan present here; instead, there was a sober acknowledgement that all-out political unrest would only play into Russia's hands. 'There were some people chanting for impeachment and the vast majority of others said, 'Shut up, we do not undermine the legitimacy of the president, what happened is that the legitimate president made a mistake,'' said Inna Sovsun, an MP from the opposition Holos party who attended several protests. Dmytro Koziatynskyi, whose post on social media provided the initial spark for the protest, dismissed any comparisons to Maidan for exactly this reason. 'Even if they don't pass the law, this will never become anything other than a peaceful protest,' he said, in an interview before the parliamentary vote. Koziatynskyi was a masters student in the Czech Republic before returning to Ukraine after the full-scale invasion in 2022 and signing up to become a combat medic. After three years on various parts of the frontline, he left the army in May and now works for an NGO. When he saw the news last week that parliament had rushed through a law curtailing the independence of two bodies specially designed to go after high-level corruption, he found it 'insulting', he said. 'People are not fighting so that our government can do some crazy stuff, that destroys all our achievements since 2014,' he said. He penned an angry post on social media calling on people to protest against the new law. He expected 'maximum 100 people, mostly friends and acquaintances' to join the protest. By the second night there were about 10,000 people outside the Ivan Franko theatre, the nearest point to the presidential office that is accessible to the public. Most of those who came out were young – this has been a protest wave dominated by gen Z, with friends competing for the wittiest slogan or meme reference on their handwritten placards. On Wednesday evening, a man leading the singing of the Ukrainian national anthem through a loudspeaker was holding a sign that bore a single word: 'Cringe'. Suddenly, the fate of two relatively small institutions – the national anti-corruption bureau, known as Nabu, and the specialised anti-corruption prosecutor's office, Sapo – had become the issue of the day among Ukrainian teenagers. Nabu and Sapo were established after the Maidan revolution as part of a drive against the long-running scourge of corruption in Ukraine, financed partly with US money. Some western observers agree that there are problems with Nabu and Sapo: too many cases opened and not enough of them brought to a conclusion, for one. In theory, some streamlining would make sense; in practice, Zelenskyy's move looked a lot like bringing independent investigators under political control. With the Trump administration no longer pushing an anti-corruption agenda, and Europe on summer holidays, Zelenskyy's team appears to have felt they could push the bill through quickly, without anyone paying much attention. That might have been the case were it not for the protests. But the images of thousands of young people demanding the law's repeal forced European politicians to take a stand, and several leaders spoke privately to Zelenskyy to tell him he needed to find a way out of the self-inflicted mess. Sign up to Headlines Europe A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion 'This became a major breach of trust. It's problematic both from an EU accession point of view and in that it makes it much harder for friends of Ukraine to continue making the case that the country needs support,' said one diplomatic source in Kyiv. Zelenskyy's response was swift and decisive, even if somewhat embarrassing for the MPs of his Servant of the People party, who were instructed to vote against the very thing they had been ordered to vote for the previous week. Now that the status quo has been re-established, there are two very different readings of the whole episode. One sees a leader using wartime powers to try to stifle independent institutions, too out of touch to predict the obvious backlash. Another reflects on how, even in wartime, Ukrainian society is still capable of expressing democratic sentiment, and its leaders still able to react swiftly to it. Koziatynskyi, whose post started off the protest wave, leans towards the second view. 'The protests showed that Ukrainian democracy is as strong as possible in times of a full-scale war, and our society is mature enough to have a dialogue with the government, and the government is able to listen,' he said. Zelenskyy's five-year presidential term should have ended last year, but almost all Ukrainians, including his fiercest opponents, agree that elections are both legally and technically impossible during wartime. With Russia's nightly attacks continuing, and a hope that Donald Trump might finally start getting tougher on Russia, that consensus has not changed. Nobody wants upheaval, but the outburst of protest may yet change the political atmosphere. 'Legally, everything will go back to how it was; politically, it's more complicated,' said Sovsun. 'It's unpredictable what this might have done to Ukrainian society. We have basically lifted the unspoken rule that we don't protest during martial law.'
The Herald Scotland
4 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Glasgow Friends of Israel hits back over anti-racist ban
However, on July 17, SUTR published a statement saying the group was no longer welcome at marches due to their support for Israel and 'the far-right'. GFI chairman Sammy Stein told The Herald he was surprised by the announcement as a leading member of SUTR had previously defended the group's right to attend marches. He said: 'They're afraid about what other groups might say. They've always tried to keep behind the stewards, but they did tolerate us, albeit in a non-friendly manner. 'I think they're threatened by a number of groups who don't want us to be there.' Glasgow Friends of Israel are no longer welcome at SUTR events, in a about face from five years ago. (Image: NQ) Stein pointed The Herald to a recording of a 'Islamaphobia, Anti-Semitism, and the Rise of the Far-Right' discussion hosted by SUTRS in 2020, in which the group's convenor, Talat Ahmed, said: 'Stand Up to Racism is not a political football for anyone with agendas to mess around with, under any circumstances whatsoever… Stand Up to Racism never has done, and never will do, have a position on the Middle East. 'What do you think my job should be as the convenor of Stand Up to Racism? Should I stand there policing who I like the look of? 'Should I let some in and tell the others they are not welcome? Get real. That is not what Stand Up to Racism is about. We welcome everyone, irrespective of what their positions are on a whole myriad of other politics and positions. '[That applies] if you are Jewish or Palestinian, irrespective of any politics you may hold.' Left-wing groups such as Scotland Against Criminalising Communities and Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign have long criticised SUTR for this stance. Reform councillor Thomas Kerr (L)'s support for the group has caused controversy. (Image: Getty Images)Stein said: 'At this meeting, Talat Ahmed made a very clear and courageous statement about welcoming everyone regardless of their politics. She criticised those who were trying to keep anyone out of the march. 'I thought she was very brave and sincere about her words and hence my huge disappointment about her decision to no longer stand up for these principles.' However, five years later, as war rages in Gaza, SUTR's neutral position on the Middle East appears to have been firmly abandoned. SUTR Scotland secretary Héctor Sierra told The Herald: "It is telling that Glasgow Friends of Israel are accusing us of hypocrisy instead of addressing the reasons why we have said they are not welcome at our events. These reasons are: their support for the ongoing genocide in Gaza, and their friendly relationships with far-right organisations here in Scotland. 'Glasgow Friends of Israel continues to justify the slaughter in Gaza, with much of its social media content this week being devoted to casting doubt over the horrific scale of mass starvation in the Strip.' One post on the GFI Facebook page refers to 'the lies of starvation in Gaza,' while another accused media organisations of creating 'fake news and propaganda at the expense of a sick child.' Sierra continued, calling the group a 'toxic organisation on the wrong side of history.' He said: 'On the second point, Glasgow Friends of [[Israel]] responded to our statement rejecting them by reaffirming their sympathy for Reform UK, a party focused on demonising refugees and migrants. Nick Tenconi led a 'mass deportations' march through Glasgow last week. (Image:) 'As if that were not enough, last weekend when SUTR organised an anti-racist protest to oppose fascist Nick Tenconi's 'mass deportation' march through Glasgow, they described SUTR, not Tenconi, as 'the problem'. SUTR is engaged in building a mass movement to resist the racist, Islamophobic and antisemitic far-right.' A post on the GFI Facebook from last Saturday states: 'Today on Buchanan Street, a group called Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) had rallied a mob with a call to arms to oppose a march by Nick Tenconi, the leader of UKIP. 'SUTR has branded him a racist and fascist and called on the masses to oppose what was probably to be a perfectly peaceful march. 'SUTR are an extremely unpleasant bunch of individuals, supported by black clad, mask wearing militant Antifa thugs and the usual Israel haters and they were there in force today for one reason and one reason only and that was to cause trouble.' Read more: 'Our community is being attacked': Queer Glaswegians to call out Israel during Pride Large group of anti-fascist protestors oppose 'mass deportation' rally Scottish anti-racist campaigners bar pro-Israel groups from events Speaking to The Herald, Stein denied that GFI had any connection to right-wing groups, after leading Reform councillor Thomas Kerr was photographed visiting their stall on Buchanan Street. 'We are not racist and neither is Zionism. A Zionist is someone who believes a Jewish person should have a home in Israel. 'Many members of my family were killed in the Holocaust,' Stein added. 'I march to remember them. We will not stop taking part, as we believe we must stand up to racist and especially anti-Semitism. 'We will make every effort to participate in the marches, despite the obstructions and pushing.'
