Top Stories Today – June 10, 2019
Top Stories Today – June 10, 2019
Six men jailed over India child rape
Three men have been jailed for life for the rape, torture and murder of an eight-year-old Muslim girl in Indian-administered Kashmir. Three police officers were found guilty of destroying evidence and sentenced to five years in prison. The victim, who belonged to a Muslim nomadic tribe, was found in a forest near Kathua city in January 2018.
The case sparked widespread anger and made headlines when Hindu right-wing groups protested over the men’s arrest. Eight people, including a former government official, four policemen and a minor, were charged in connection with the crime. One of them has been acquitted and the minor is set to be tried separately. All of them had pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. A child is sexually abused every 15 minutes in India, according to government crime figures up to 2016, and there has been a steady rise in offences against children. BBC
Russia probe remains focus for Democrats
Top Democratic leaders may be in no rush to launch an impeachment inquiry, but the party is launching a series of hearings this week on special counsel Robert Mueller’s report. The House Judiciary Committee plans to cover the first topic at a Monday hearing on “presidential obstruction and other crimes.” The House Intelligence Committee on Wednesday intends to review the counterintelligence implications of the Russian meddling. Mueller said there was not enough evidence to establish a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia, but he said he could not exonerate Trump on obstruction.
The hearing will feature John Dean, a former White House counsel who helped bring down President Richard Nixon’s presidency, and former US attorneys. On Tuesday, the House has scheduled a vote to authorize contempt cases against Attorney General William Barr and former White House counsel Donald McGahn for failing to comply with subpoenas from the Democratic-controlled House. The Associated Press
Attack on Mali village kills 100
Nearly 100 people have been killed in attack in a village in central Mali inhabited by the Dogon ethnic group, reports say. The attack happened in Sobale Kou, close to Sanga town, according to French-language news outlet RFI. The bodies of the dead have been burned, says a local official, and the search for more bodies is ongoing.
There have been numerous attacks in Mali in recent months, some ethnic, some carried out by jihadist groups. Clashes between Dogon hunters and semi-nomadic Fulani herders are frequent. In the same region in March, more than 130 Fulani villagers were killed by armed men wearing traditional Dogon hunters’ clothing. BBC
Protests over extradition bill sweep Hong Kong
Mass protests arose in the streets of Hong Kong on Sunday as hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered to oppose the government’s controversial extradition bill proposal. The bill, which goes to a vote on June 12, would allow the transfer of suspected criminals to mainland China — as well as Taiwan and Macau — for trial.
Supporters of the bill say there are safeguards in place to prevent anyone facing religious or political persecution from being extradited to China; opponents fear that it would expose Hong Kong residents to China’s flawed justice system, and harm Hong Kong’s judicial independence. BBC, South China Morning Post via The Week
US and Mexico get agreement on migrant flow
US President Donald Trump and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador are touting an accord to reduce the flow of Central American migrants to the US-Mexico border – a deal that led Trump to suspend threatened tariffs on Mexican exports to the United States. Many Republican lawmakers are expressing relief while Democrats are contesting Trump’s claims of victory.
An exultant Trump took victory laps on Twitter: “Everyone very excited about the new deal with Mexico!” “There is now going to be great cooperation between Mexico & the USA, something that didn’t exist for decades.” Speaking in Tijuana, Lopez Obrador hailed a trade war averted. The Voice of America
Trump happy to tax more Chinese imports
US Treasury chief Steven Mnuchin said Sunday President Donald Trump would be “perfectly happy” to tax more imports from China if he cannot reach a trade deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Both presidents are scheduled to meet later this month at the Group of 20 meeting in Japan.
Trump has already imposed tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, but now is thinking about taxing an additional $325 billion worth of Chinese products. That would include nearly everything China exports to the US The world’s two biggest economies have sparred for months over a trade deal, but have not been able to reach an agreement. Trump’s threatened tariff hike came as G-20 finance ministers meeting in Fukuoka, Japan, said trade and geopolitical conflicts are risking global economic growth, but at the US insistence, dropped a call to “recognize the pressing need to resolve trade tensions.” The Voice of America