Marine Le Pen Party FN poor performance in Regional poll
Marine Le Pen Party FN poor performance in Regional poll
France’s far-right National Front party, headed by Marine Le Pen, has failed to win a single region in the second round of the regional elections after a solid lead in the first one. The conservatives won seven constituencies while the socialists claimed five.
With almost all of the ballots counted, the center-right Les Republicans, led by the former president, Nicolas Sarkozy, have secured seven of the country’s 13 regions. Five others have gone to the Socialists, headed by Francois Hollande. Despite a resounding success during the first round, none of the regions went to the Front National in the second.
France’s far-right National Front party, headed by Marine Le Pen, has failed to win a single region in the second round of the regional elections after a solid lead in the first one. The conservatives won seven constituencies while the socialists claimed five.
With almost all of the ballots counted, the center-right Les Republicans, led by the former president, Nicolas Sarkozy, have secured seven of the country’s 13 regions. Five others have gone to the Socialists, headed by Francois Hollande. Despite a resounding success during the first round, none of the regions went to the Front National in the second.
In the northern region of Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Le Pen was beaten by Xavier Bertrand from the center-right The Republicans (formerly the UMP). According to the election commission, Le Pen won 42.23 percent while Bertrand secured 57.77 percent.
Four dead, 10 missing in Indonesian boat sinking
Four people, including a baby, were killed and 10 others left missing after a speedboat sank in a river on the Indonesian part of Borneo island, a rescue official said Monday.
The boat was carrying 53 people up the Kapuas river Sunday when it hit a log and sank, Slamet Riyadi, the head of the local search and rescue office told AFP.
As well as the baby, three women were killed.
“We have been searching the river for the 10 missing people since yesterday but so far we have not found anything,” Riyadi said.
Among the missing were three children, aged five and six.
Riyadi said a dozen boats had been deployed to search the river near the site of the accident, but murky water, currents and floating logs had hampered rescue efforts.
Indonesia relies heavily on boats to connect its more than 17,000 islands, but has a poor maritime safety record.
Borneo, the world´s third-largest island, is shared between Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.GeoNews
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Brazilians protest against President @dilmabr, demand her to be removed from office http://dw.com/p/1HMmX
Trump ban on Muslims ‘endangers national security’
US Secretary of State John Kerry slammed Donald Trump Sunday, saying the Republican frontrunner’s calls to ban Muslims from entering the United States “endanger national security.”
“To outright ban people, because they belong to one particular religion? That´s just stunningly contrary to the fundamental values of our nation, which were built on tolerance,” Kerry said in an interview with ABC´s “This Week” program.
Trump called for the temporary ban earlier this week after a Muslim husband and wife allegedly killed 14 people in a shooting rampage in California that has been classified as a terrorist act.
The proposal, coming on the heels of other incendiary anti-Muslim remarks by the billionaire real estate tycoon, set off a firestorm both in the United States and abroad.
Kerry said Trump´s call “does endanger national security, because it exhibits an attitude by one American who is running for the highest office of our land about a willingness to discriminate against a religion.”
Speaking separately on CBS News´ “Face the Nation,” Kerry said Trump´s ban was “a very dangerous foreign policy.”
“It says to those in Islam who are trying to exploit people and recruit foreign fighters and otherwise, it says look, look at America. Here they´ve got a guy running for president who is waging war against Islam,” Kerry said.
“It´s exploitable, whether he intended it or not. And it allows for recruitment. It allows for America to seem like it is indeed discriminatory against Islam, against Muslims.”
The chief US diplomat appeared on the television talk shows a day after envoys from 195 nations approved a historic agreement in Paris to curb global warming.
Kerry said it was clear from his exchanges with other diplomats in Paris that Trump´s anti-Muslim comments were damaging to US foreign policy.
“I think it´s got a huge downside in terms of American foreign policy and I hear this from foreign ministers and others as I travel and engage with people in various countries,” he said on CBS.
Parachinar market bombing
At least 25 people were killed and 70 others sustained injuries in a bomb explosion triggered by a remote-controlled device in a second-hand clothes market here on Sunday, official sources said.
The sources said the people were busy buying used winter clothes when the blast took place. Buyers and shopkeepers, mostly poor people, were caught in the blast that devastated the area and caused death and destruction. The sources said the explosive device had been planted near the busy Eidgah Market located close to the Thall bus stand in Parachinar, headquarters of Kurram Agency.
Officials said that 25 persons were killed while more than 70 were wounded. The injured were taken to the Agency Headquarters Hospital in Parachinar, where the doctors initially said that 15 of them were in critical condition. An emergency was declared at the hospital, which due to its inadequate facilities was overwhelmed by the rush of patients.
The Army Aviation deployed two helicopters to fly 23 patients to Peshawar for treatment at the Lady Reading Hospital, where emergency had been declared beforehand. The security forces and personnel of the paramilitary Frontier Corps reached the spot after the blast and took control of the mostly Shia-populated Parachinar city.
Some of the dead were identified as Rasheed Ali, Hussain, Qaiser Ali, Nauman Hussain, Syed Asghar, Mukhtiar Ali, Rasheed Ali, Said Shah, Hashmat Ali, Nazar Ali, Baqir Ali, Arif Hussain, Johar Ali, Shabbir Hussain and Mohib Ali.
Political Agent Kurram Agency Amjad Ali Khan visited the hospital to inquire after the injured persons. He directed the hospital administration to provide the best possible treatment to the wounded. The political agent confirmed the death toll and said the blast was caused by an improvised explosive device (IED). An official of the Bomb Disposal Squad said 30 to 35 kilograms of explosives were used in the timed device bomb.
Sources said two suspects were arrested in Parachinar soon after the explosion and were shifted to an undisclosed location for interrogation.
Meanwhile, the sectarian militant group, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi Al-Alami claimed responsibility for the bomb blast. In an email and text messages sent on mobile phone to journalists, its spokesman Ali Abu Sufyan said the attack was launched to take revenge against those supporting the attacks by Iran and Bashar al-Asad against Syrian Muslims. He warned of more attacks against parents if they don’t stop sending their children to fight in the Syrian war.
Parachinar, located close to the Afghanistan border, has suffered terrorist attacks in the past as well. The Shia community elders announced three days of mourning over the incident and termed it a bid to sabotage peace in the region. They demanded the government bring the culprits to justice.
Meanwhile, KP Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan condemned the blast and expressed deep shock and sorrow over the loss of precious lives in the tragedy.
A handout said on the directives of the governor, all the critically injured people were transferred to Peshawar via helicopter and shifted to hospitals. An emergency was also declared in hospitals.
The governor directed the political administration to expedite the rescue efforts and relief activities and provide best medical treatment to the injured.
He announced a compensation package for the injured and the families of the slain persons and directed the political administration to make immediate payments. He directed that all victims should be provided the compensation amount within two days.
The governor assured that innocent people would not be left at the mercy of terrorists. Terming the terrorist attack as cowardly, the governor said such attacks could not deter the national resolve to eliminate militancy and terrorism.
Agencies add: President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif condemned the Parachinar blast, saying that such attacks cannot deter the resolve of the government and operation against terrorism will continue till its logical end.
In their separate messages, they expressed grief over the loss of life and property and commiserated with the bereaved families. The prime minister directed to provide special medical care to the injured.
They said the fight against terrorism is an irreversible process until terrorism is rooted out from the country.
Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Deputy Speaker Murtaza Javed Abbasi and patron-in-chief of the Supreme Shia Ulema Board and Quaid of the Tehreek Nafaz Fiqh-e-Jafariya Agha Syed Hamid Ali Shah Moosavi, also condemned the Parachinar blast.
They termed it a barbaric and shameful act of terrorism. They said the elements involved in such activities were the enemies of humanity and the country.Geonews
Khaleej Times 
Turkey, US failed to notify UNSC of ISIS oil smuggling
Turkey, US failed to notify UN SC of ISIS oil smuggling
“Under Resolution 2199, adopted on our initiative in February, countries are obliged to provide information (about financing terrorists) to the Security Council – if they have such information. That means the Americans had to provide such information, and of course Turkey, which should have reported any illegal [oil] trade going on there. They didn’t do it,” Churkin said.
Both Ankara and Washington were obliged to inform the UN Security Council about Islamic State illegally trafficking stolen oil, but didn’t, Russia’s UN envoy said in an interview, adding that this is against the UN resolution on financing terrorism.
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Russian anti-terror op in Syria
“We’ve got serious complaints about the implementation of [UN] resolution (#2199, banning financing of the terrorist organization),” Vitaly Churkin told RIA Novosti news agency.
“Under Resolution 2199, adopted on our initiative in February, countries are obliged to provide information (about financing terrorists) to the Security Council – if they have such information. That means the Americans had to provide such information, and of course Turkey, which should have reported any illegal [oil] trade going on there. They didn’t do it,” Churkin said.
Both Ankara and Washington were obliged to inform the UN Security Council about Islamic State illegally trafficking stolen oil, but didn’t, Russia’s UN envoy said in an interview, adding that this is against the UN resolution on financing terrorism.
Trends
Russian anti-terror op in Syria
“We’ve got serious complaints about the implementation of [UN] resolution (#2199, banning financing of the terrorist organization),” Vitaly Churkin told RIA Novosti news agency.
MID-DAY #NEWS The Headlines :
• Proceedings in both Houses of Parliament disrupted due to protests by Opposition over various issues.
• External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj says India hopes dialogue with Pakistan marks a new beginning for peace and development in the region.
• The President calls for safeguarding national integrity; says it is essential for India’s growth.
• Delhi High court reserves order on a plea against Juvenile’s release in Nirbhaya gang rape case.
• In Philippines, thousands of people evacuated after heavy rain triggered by typhoon Nona.
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