Latest news with #separatists
The Independent
13 hours ago
- Business
- The Independent
Mystery of country's most expensive airport that has no planes or passengers
With no passengers and no planes, Pakistan's newest and most expensive airport is a bit of a mystery. Entirely financed by China to the tune of $240 million, it's anyone's guess when New Gwadar International Airport will open for business. Located in the coastal city of Gwadar and completed in October 2024, the airport is a stark contrast to the impoverished, restive southwestern Balochistan province around it. For the past decade, China has poured money into Balochistan and Gwadar as part of a multibillion dollar project that connects its western Xinjiang province with the Arabian Sea, called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor or CPEC. Authorities have hailed it as transformational but there's scant evidence of change in Gwadar. The city isn't connected to the national grid — electricity comes from neighboring Iran or solar panels — and there isn't enough clean water. An airport with a 400,000 passenger capacity isn't a priority for the city's 90,000 people. 'This airport is not for Pakistan or Gwadar,' said Azeem Khalid, an international relations expert who specializes in Pakistan-China ties. 'It is for China, so they can have secure access for their citizens to Gwadar and Balochistan.' CPEC has catalyzed a decadeslong insurgency in resource-rich and strategically located Balochistan. Separatists, aggrieved by what they say is state exploitation at the expense of locals, are fighting for independence — targeting both Pakistani troops and Chinese workers in the province and elsewhere. Members of Pakistan's ethnic Baloch minority say they face discrimination by the government and are denied opportunities available elsewhere in the country, charges the government denies. Pakistan, keen to protect China's investments, has stepped up its military footprint in Gwadar to combat dissent. The city is a jumble of checkpoints, barbed wire, troops, barricades, and watchtowers. Roads close at any given time, several days a week, to permit the safe passage of Chinese workers and Pakistani VIPs. Intelligence officers monitor journalists visiting Gwadar. The city's fish market is deemed too sensitive for coverage. Many local residents are frazzled. 'Nobody used to ask where we are going, what we are doing, and what is your name,' said 76-year-old Gwadar native Khuda Bakhsh Hashim. 'We used to enjoy all-night picnics in the mountains or rural areas." 'We are asked to prove our identity, who we are, where we have come from,' he added. "We are residents. Those who ask should identify themselves as to who they are.' Hashim recalled memories, warm like the winter sunshine, of when Gwadar was part of Oman, not Pakistan, and was a stop for passenger ships heading to Mumbai. People didn't go to bed hungry and men found work easily, he said. There was always something to eat and no shortage of drinking water. But Gwadar's water has dried up because of drought and unchecked exploitation. So has the work. The government says CPEC has created some 2,000 local jobs but it's not clear whom they mean by 'local' — Baloch residents or Pakistanis from elsewhere in the country. Authorities did not elaborate. Gwadar is humble but charming, the food excellent and the locals chatty and welcoming with strangers. It gets busy during public holidays, especially the beaches. Still, there is a perception that it's dangerous or difficult to visit — only one commercial route operates out of Gwadar's domestic airport, three times a week to Karachi, Pakistan's largest city, located at the other end of Pakistan's Arabian Sea coastline. There are no direct flights to Balochistan's provincial capital of Quetta, hundreds of miles inland, or the national capital of Islamabad, even further north. A scenic coastal highway has few facilities. Since the Baloch insurgency first erupted five decades ago, thousands have gone missing in the province — anyone who speaks up against exploitation or oppression can be detained, suspected of connections with armed groups, the locals say. People are on edge; activists claim there are forced disappearances and torture, which the government denies. Hashim wants CPEC to succeed so that locals, especially young people, find jobs, hope and purpose. But that hasn't happened. 'When someone has something to eat, then why would he choose to go on the wrong path," he said. 'It is not a good thing to upset people.' Militant violence declined in Balochistan after a 2014 government counterinsurgency and plateaued toward the end of that decade, according to Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies. Attacks picked up after 2021 and have climbed steadily since. Militant groups, especially the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army, were emboldened by the Pakistani Taliban ending a ceasefire with the government in November 2022. Security concerns delayed the inauguration of the international airport. There were fears the area's mountains — and their proximity to the airport — could be the ideal launchpad for an attack. Instead, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his Chinese counterpart Li Qiang hosted a virtual ceremony. The inaugural flight was off limits to the media and public. Abdul Ghafoor Hoth, district president of the Balochistan Awami Party, said not a single resident of Gwadar was hired to work at the airport, "not even as a watchman.' 'Forget the other jobs, how many Baloch people are at this port that was built for CPEC,' he asked. In December, Hoth organized daily protests over living conditions in Gwadar. The protests stopped 47 days later, once authorities pledged to meet the locals' demands, including better access to electricity and water. No progress has been made on implementing those demands since then. Without local labor, goods or services, there can be no trickle-down benefit from CPEC, said international relations expert Khalid. As Chinese money came to Gwadar, so did a heavy-handed security apparatus that created barriers and deepened mistrust. 'The Pakistani government is not willing to give anything to the Baloch people, and the Baloch are not willing to take anything from the government,' said Khalid.
Reuters
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Cameroon's Biya, 92, brushes off health fears in bid for new term
YAOUNDE, July 14 (Reuters) - In June 2004, on returning from yet another extended stay abroad, Cameroon President Paul Biya came down from his plane and poked fun at rumours he was dead. "People are interested in my funeral," he told reporters. "I'll see them in 20 years." That was 21 years ago, and the world's oldest serving head of state still has no plans to go anywhere. On Sunday he announced on X he would run in Cameroon's presidential election scheduled for October 12, seeking an eighth term that could keep him in office until he is nearly 100. Biya has held a tight grip on power since taking over as president in 1982 from his one-time mentor Ahmadou Ahidjo, whom he later sidelined and forced into exile. Now, an unprecedented public outcry in the press and on social media since his announcement suggests cracks in that power base, and doubts in his ability to keep going, may be growing. "Nous sommes foutus" ("We are screwed!") was the front-page headline in Monday's edition of Le Messager newspaper next to a picture of Biya. The cocoa- and oil-producing Central African nation faces a host of economic and security challenges, notably a conflict with Anglophone separatists and threats from Nigeria-based Islamist fighters in the north. Meanwhile Biya, 92, remains largely out of public view, spurring widespread speculation over who is really in charge. "Most of us don't believe Biya is actually running the country anymore. His decision to run again, if it's really his, shows just how out of touch the system is," tech entrepreneur Rebecca Enonchong told Reuters. Communications Minister Rene Emmanuel Sadi did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday. He has previously said Biya is in good health and that speculation to the contrary was "pure fantasy and imagination" by critics aiming to destabilise the country. Last year, the government banned public discussion of Biya's health - though that order has been largely ignored by Cameroon's vociferous press. Cameroon has had just two presidents since independence from France and Britain in the early 1960s and is likely to face a messy succession crisis if Biya becomes too ill to remain in office or dies. In 2008, Biya signed a constitutional amendment removing a two-term limit for the presidency. That paved the way for landslide wins in 2011 and 2018, according to official figures, though his opponents complained of irregularities including ballot stuffing and intimidation, which the government denied. Not much has changed since the last vote, both on the security front and for Cameroonians grappling daily with poor access to basic amenities from roads and water to electricity and waste management. "These issues are not new. They have simply intensified because the situation keeps worsening," said Pippie Hugues Marcelline, research policy analyst at the Yaounde-based Nkafu Policy Institute, a think tank. What is different this year, Marcelline said, is "the level of engagement and awareness" about Biya's performance. "A president needs to be seen in charge and in control. The absence of the president from the public is enough evidence that age is not on his side." Prominent human rights lawyer Alice Nkom published a video last week on YouTube appealing to Biya to step aside. "The legs are no longer holding up, the brain is no longer working. I'm telling you this because I'm in this situation, because I'm in my 80s," she said. "I know what has changed in me and what I can no longer give to Cameroonians." Perhaps more worrying for Biya, two former allies have recently quit the ruling coalition and announced plans to run in the election separately. Enonchong, the tech entrepreneur, told Reuters she did not think Cameroonians would accept another Biya term. But analyst Raoul Sumo Tayo said that, despite the many obstacles, Biya should not be counted out. "The ruling party can successfully rally the administrative elite and utilise outdated electoral practices," he said, referring to what he described as fraudulent tactics. "It might just secure an eighth term for Paul Biya."
LBCI
09-07-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
Top European rights court finds Russia committed abuses in Ukraine
A top European court on Wednesday ruled Russia committed human rights violations in backing anti-Kyiv separatists in eastern Ukraine in 2014, the downing of the MH17 flight that year, and invading Ukraine in 2022. The European Court of Human Rights, part of the Council of Europe's rights body, is tasked with implementing the European Convention on Human Rights in 46 signatory countries. AFP
Al Arabiya
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Top European rights court finds Russia committed abuses in Ukraine
A top European court on Wednesday ruled Russia committed a string of human rights violations in backing anti-Kyiv separatists in eastern Ukraine from 2014, in the downing of the MH17 flight that year and in invading Ukraine in 2022. The European Court of Human Rights, part of the Council of Europe rights body, is tasked with implementing the European human rights convention in signatory countries. Wednesday's largely symbolic ruling comes after the Council of Europe excluded Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and Moscow dropped out of the European rights convention in September that year. The ECHR however still handles cases against Russia that were brought before that date. A panel of 17 judges found Russia violated the convention through 'extrajudicial killing of civilians and Ukrainian military personnel' outside of combat, 'torture,' 'forced labor,' 'unlawful and arbitrary detention of civilians' as well as looting. The judges also ruled that Russia had violated the European rights convention through 'the transfer to Russia and, in many cases, the adoption there of Ukrainian children.' The court said Russia 'must without delay release or safely return all persons who were deprived of liberty on Ukrainian territory under occupation by the Russian and Russian-controlled forces.' It added that Moscow should cooperate in the establishment of an international and independent mechanism to help identify 'all children transferred from Ukraine to Russia and Russian-controlled territory' before September 2022 to restore contact between them and their families, and enable their safe reunification. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday said Russia had no intention of complying with the decision of the court, whose rulings it considered to be 'null and void.' 'Historic' The court issued its verdict in response to four complaints. Ukraine had filed three of these over events from 2014 to 2022, and the Netherlands had filed a fourth over the downing over eastern Ukraine of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014. The UN's aviation agency has blamed Moscow for the tragedy that killed all 298 on board. The ECHR found that 'the suffering of the next of kin of the victims of the downing of flight MH17' violated the right to freedom from torture and punishment. Ukraine celebrated what it said was a 'historic decision.' Its justice ministry said the court's recognition of 'systematic and widespread human rights violations committed by Russia' was a 'victory on the international stage.' Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof said it was 'an important step toward justice.' 'The court has designated Russia as responsible for the downing of MH17 and the death of its passengers, including 196 Dutch nationals,' he said. Piet Ploeg, who lost his brother, step-sister and nephew in the tragedy, said it was an 'important day.' 'I don't think Russia will pay anything but it is not about money today,' he said. 'It is about getting justice and recognition and maybe getting apologies... You never know.' Usually, individuals file cases at Europe's top human rights court, appealing to it as a last resort in cases where they have exhausted all domestic legal avenues. But governments also can file complaints in what are known as inter-state cases.
Arab News
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Militant violence in Pakistan drops 32% in second quarter of 2025 — report
KARACHI: Pakistan witnessed a decline in militant violence by nearly 32% during the second quarter of 2025, an Islamabad-based think tank said in its report this week, pointing out that the attacks have spread to the country's 'new or less prepared regions.' Pakistan has seen an uptick in violence in its Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, both bordering Afghanistan, in recent months. The Pakistani Taliban or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) regularly target security forces in their bid to impose their strict brand of Islam across the country. In Balochistan, separatist ethnic militants demand independence from the center, whom they accuse of exploiting the province's natural resources. Islamabad denies the allegations. The Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) said in its report on Monday that the number of casualties during the second quarter dropped to 615 from 900 in the first quarter. 'With at least 615 fatalities and 388 injuries — among civilians, security personnel, and outlaws — in about 273 incidents of violence, including terror attacks and counterterror operations, Pakistan witnessed a nearly 32% decline in overall violence, and several other promising trends in its security landscape for the second quarter of 2025,' the report said. The report pointed out that the casualties suffered by security personnel and civilians combined during the second quarter, 282, were still less than the total number of outlaws' fatalities, 333, in the same period. It said this amounted to over 15% less comparative losses among civilians and security officials. The CRSS report also said Pakistan's Balochistan and KP provinces saw 40% and 32% less violence, respectively, compared to the first quarter. It added that violence-linked fatalities dropped from 567 to 389 in KP and from 317 to 190 in Balochistan, indicating a possible strategic breakthrough on the back of a 'proactive hunt-neutralize-capture campaign.' 'While the terrorism and insurgency-induced violence receded in these conflict-hit provinces, both regions continued to bear the brunt of violence, accounting for over 94% of the total fatalities and 93% incidents of violence recorded in this quarter,' the report said. The CRSS said that while the TTP continued to lead the violence in KP, Balochistan remained a 'parallel epicenter of unrest' marked by a mix of separatist militancy and targeted violence, particularly against state forces. 'The spread of militancy into previously calmer areas is also concerning,' the report said, pointing out that Punjab recorded a surge in fatalities by 162% during the second quarter. The number of casualties in Punjab rose from 8 in the first quarter to 21 in the second one. The Azad Kashmir region, which reported zero fatalities in the first quarter, recorded six casualties in the second one while Islamabad and Sindh remained largely unaffected. 'While the intensity of violence has eased in traditional hotspots, its spread into new or less prepared regions will require continued attention and policy adjustments,' the report said. The outlaws suffered the majority of all fatalities in this quarter, over 54%, which the report said amounts to 333. Civilians suffered 153 casualties or 25% of the total while security and government officials suffered 129 fatalities at 21% during the second quarter. Civilians suffered 107 terror attacks compared to security officials who suffered 91 while the outlaws were targeted in 75 security operations. Moreover, civilians suffered 249 injuries compared to security officials, who suffered 120 injuries and outlaws with only 19, the report shared. CRSS said that the least amount of injuries suffered by militants indicates 'a high degree of lethal precision in state-led counter-terrorism operations.'
