In the latest, Pakistan’s former president and army chief General (retired) Pervez Musharraf, the architect of the Kargil War in 1999, passed away on Sunday morning at a hospital in Dubai. Large Chinese spy balloon believed to have been spying on vital military facilities across the nation has been shot down by the US near the east coast. In other news, the Indian government has blocked more than 200 betting, loan apps linked to China.
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Pakistan’s former president and army chief General (retired) Pervez Musharraf, the architect of the Kargil War in 1999, passed away on Sunday morning at a hospital in Dubai, according to media reports. The health of the 79-year-old, who was ill since 2019, had deteriorated recently after developing “heart- and blood pressure-related” complications. Musharraf was suffering from amyloidosis, a rare disease caused by a build-up of an abnormal protein called amyloid in the organs and tissues throughout the body and prevents them from working properly.
The US has shot down the giant Chinese spy balloon near the east coast that was said to have been spying on sensitive military sites across the country. The Department of Defense confirmed in a statement that the US fighter jets brought down the balloon over US territorial waters.
Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has pardoned “tens of thousands” of prisoners which include those arrested in recent protest against the government, state media reported.
“Prisoners not facing charges of spying for foreign agencies, having direct contact with foreign agents, committing intentional murder and injury, committing destruction and arson of state property, or not having a private plaintiff in their case will be pardoned,” state media said.
Ukraine war: China providing military assistance to Russia for its offensive, says report
China is militarily aiding Russia’s offensive in Ukraine which will soon complete its one year. A report by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on Saturday (February 4) said that China is providing the technology that the Russian military needs for its ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine despite sanctions and export controls imposed by the West. According to Russian customs data reviewed by the WSJ, Chinese state-owned defence companies have been shipping navigation equipment, jamming technology and fighter-jet parts to sanctioned Russian government-owned defence companies.
The Pentagon said on Friday (February 3) that a Chinese balloon was seen flying over Latin America also, a day after a similar balloon was seen in the United States skies. According to a statement, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said, “We are seeing reports of a balloon transiting Latin America. We now assess it is another Chinese surveillance balloon.”
The Narendra Modi government blocked 232 apps with Chinese links. An official familiar with developments told the news agency PTI on Sunday (February 5) that these apps were blocked for gambling and unauthorised loan service. “The order to block 138 apps that were involved in betting, gambling and money laundering was issued last evening. Separately, an order to block 94 apps engaged in unauthorised loan service has also been issued. These apps were being operated from offshore entities, including Chinese. They were posing a threat to the economic stability of the country,” the official said.
Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda has lauded New Delhi’s support to his country which came without “condition” and the package was “extremely flexible”. India last year gave financial support of USD 4 billion as the country underwent a major economic crisis. Speaking to our diplomatic correspondent Sidhant Sibal, High Commissioner Moragoda said, “India helped us to stabilise the economy and the country “reached out to the IMF and some of the bilateral partners like Japan.”
Anti-government protests in Israel against the controversial legal reforms continued for the fifth week on Saturday (February 4) with thousands of demonstrators, braving the rain, swarming Tel Aviv’s Kaplan Street, with signs criticising the establishment. One of the signs labelled the government as a “threat to world peace,” while another said “Save Israel’s democracy from Netanyahu,” news agency AFP reported early Sunday.
The United States is seeking to deliberately escalate the conflict between Russia and Ukraine by transferring increasingly powerful weapons to Kyiv, Russian ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on Friday. “Washington sees no boundaries in seeking to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. The transfer of increasingly powerful weapons to the Kiev regime is a deliberate escalation of the conflict by the United States,” the Russian embassy quoted Antonov as saying.
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