World

London, Nov 14 (IANS) One of the two men convicted of raping a teenage girl who was groomed and trafficked in the UK’s Rotherham 20 years ago is believed to have fled to Pakistan after absconding ahead of the trial, a report said.

According to Sky News, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said that Kamir Ifzal Khan, 37, who had been on conditional bail, flew to Qatar on September 22 and is believed to have gone on to Pakistan.

“Mudasar Hussain had been on conditional bail ahead of his trial and had been forced to give up his passport. The NCA said he could still be in the UK, but he may have left the country illegally,” the report said.

Khan and Mudasar Hussain, both 37, were found guilty along with Mudasar’s brother, Ghazanfar Hussain, 42, at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday.

Mudasar Hussain was convicted of 12 counts of rape, Khan of two counts of rape and one count of sexual exploitation, and Ghazanfar Hussain of one count of rape.

“The victim was 13 and 14 when she was groomed and sexually abused - first by Mudasar Hussain, then separately by Ghazanfar Hussain and Khan between 2008 and 2010,” the report stated.

According to the NCA, Khan began abusing the girl when she started going to a takeaway he worked at, giving her food, money and cigarettes and taking her out on deliveries.

“The NCA said he also took her to a house on a number of occasions and asked her to have sex with other men who were there. She always refused, but one day he took her to another address and left her alone with another man, who raped her,” the Sky News report detailed.

The three men were arrested as part of Operation Stovewood, established in 2014 in the wake of the Rotherham exploitation scandal, which has identified and supported around 1,150 potential victims and secured 60 convictions against 55 people, the report said.

The three were scheduled to be sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, while officers appealed for the public’s help to find the two who are on the run.

–IANS

ksk/as

Beijing/Tokyo, Nov 14 (IANS) China’s transnational repression in Japan highlights a growing challenge for liberal democracies, with the greatest threat lying not merely in the silencing of dissenting voices but in the climate of fear and self-censorship that grows deep within a “democracy-protecting” society, a report has stated.

According to a report in 'The Diplomat', China’s transnational repression (TNR) has come under growing international scrutiny in recent years, particularly after revelations of Chinese overseas police stations operating in locations ranging from Vina del Mar in Chile to Rome in Italy

It noted that these developments have exposed the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) attempts to exercise control beyond its national boundaries, with dissidents, ethnic minorities and political critics overseas among those targeted.

“Japan presents a particularly interesting case. Despite its geographical proximity to China, extensive economic relations, and large Chinese diaspora, the country has received comparatively little attention regarding the less visible forms of transnational repression. Japan’s democratic institutions and society reinforce the public assumption that individuals can safely express their political views, protected by academic freedom, the constitution, strong freedom of speech, and formal protection mechanisms,” The Diplomat detailed.

The report cited a study titled “Mapping CCP Transnational Repression in Japan: From Self-Censorship to Institutional Pressure,” which challenged the assumption that transnational repression (TNR) is largely absent in Japan.

Drawing on 14 interviews conducted between July and November 2024 with academics, journalists, students and activists, the study identified three key ways in which Chinese individuals and institutions exert pressure on critics in Japan: direct intimidation, institutional pressure and self-censorship.

“The findings suggest that TNR does not require direct intervention. It can operate through existing social relationships, institutional incentives, and the fear of possible consequences,” the report noted.

The most visible form of transnational repression involved surveillance, intimidation, and threats against individuals critical of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Several academics interviewed for the study also recounted professional repercussions for conducting research on politically sensitive issues concerning China, The Diplomat mentioned.

“These included difficulty organising events, colleagues’ reluctance to participate in research projects, and perceived obstacles to career advancement. One Chinese student even reported being advised to abandon a research topic because of its potential implications for China-Japan relations,” it added.

Citing the case of another academician whose colleagues declined to collaborate on sensitive research for fear of losing access to China, the report said, “These experiences point toward a mechanism that is particularly difficult to identify: institutional complicity without necessarily requiring direct coordination with Beijing.”

--IANS

scor/as

Naypyidaw, Nov 14 (IANS) China's sweeping internet restrictions block access to numerous foreign websites, news outlets and social media platforms through a system known as the Great Firewall. The mechanism combines technical censorship with legal obligations imposed on domestic digital platforms and internet service providers, a report has stated.

It referred to a 2026 assessment by the American think tank Freedom House, which gave China a score of 9 out of 100 for internet freedom, citing severe curbs on internet freedom and extensive state control over universities and civil society.

“For students entering a university library, the internet is meant to open doors to research, debate and ideas beyond the classroom. In China, however, access to information outside the country’s tightly controlled digital sphere can carry consequences extending from formal warnings to threats against scholarships and academic prospects,” a report in Myanmar media outlet 'Mizzima News' stated.

The report noted that universities across several Chinese provinces stepped up efforts to prevent students from using virtual private networks (VPNs) to access blocked foreign websites ahead of a major Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership meeting last month.

“The measures included mandatory security meetings, written pledges, warnings about academic penalties and instructions to report suspected violations. Their timing has fuelled concerns that universities were being mobilised to reinforce political control during a sensitive period for the ruling party,” it added.

According to the report, Central South University in China’s Hunan province had reportedly directed undergraduate and postgraduate students to attend meetings on October 23 to discuss the alleged illegality of circumventing internet restrictions.

Students were asked to sign a notice, while the university urged them to report any violations to counsellors, student affairs officials, cybersecurity authorities or the police.

Highlighting the similar measures across educational institutions in Chinese provinces, the report said, “Wanbei Health Vocational College in Anhui province issued a notice on 19 October warning that circumventing internet controls could threaten political security and expose users to recruitment by what it described as hostile forces. The notice warned of possible administrative penalties, university discipline or criminal prosecution".

“Other institutions issued similar messages. Northwest University in Shaanxi province said on 13th October that it would detect and restrict connections that bypassed the national firewall,” it highlighted.

The report explained that VPNs establish encrypted connections with servers outside a user's local network, potentially allowing access to websites otherwise blocked in China. However, it said, Chinese authorities have moved to curb unauthorised use of such services, with enforcement varying depending on the technology involved, the network and circumstances.

“The university notices described in October add another layer to this system: institutions themselves may monitor campus connections, demand declarations from students and threaten academic consequences. The result is that access to information can become not merely a technical issue but a matter of institutional discipline,” the report mentioned.

--IANS

scor/as

Washington, Nov 14 (IANS) Several international human rights organisations, including Freedom House, have called for the immediate and unconditional release of Pashtun human rights defender Idris Khattak, who has been detained in Pakistan since November 13, 2019 because of his human rights work.

The joint statement, issued on the seventh anniversary of Khattak’s detention, was signed by 31 organisations, including Freedom House, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Front Line Defenders, Physicians for Human Rights and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

“Idris Khattak is a well-known Pashtun human rights defender who spent decades documenting human rights abuses, including enforced disappearances, in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas. On November 13, 2019, he was abducted and disappeared. For the next seven months, his family did not know whether he was alive or dead,” the statement said.

It said that in June 2020, Pakistani authorities finally admitted that Khattak was in the custody of the country’s military intelligence service, and in late 2021, he was convicted by a military court of violating the Official Secrets Act and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

“His trial was marked by egregious due process violations - it was held in secret, he was denied access to counsel, a forced confession was introduced as evidence, the prosecution relied on secret evidence that was never shown to the defense, and he was not allowed to present key defense witnesses,” the statement mentioned.

The organisations expressed particular concern that Khattak has been denied adequate medical care, including for his diabetes, and as a result, his health has deteriorated significantly.

“Since then, Khattak’s health has deteriorated further, yet Pakistani authorities continue to deny him an independent medical exam and appropriate medication and treatment,” the statement noted, referring to the concerns raised by UN experts in April.

Calling on democratic governments to forcefully demand his release, the organisations requested that Pakistan be denied benefits that are conditioned on meeting human rights standards, such as participation in the European Union’s GSP+ trade programme, until it releases detained human rights defenders such as Khattak.

In November 2025, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention confirmed that Khattak has been arbitrarily detained, including in violation of his freedom of expression.

--IANS

ksk/as

Mogadishu, Nov 14 (IANS) India and Somalia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on consultations between the two foreign ministries during the visit of Secretary (Consular, Passport and Visa, and Overseas Indian Affairs) in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Sripriya Ranganathan, to Mogadishu.

The MoU was signed during Ranganathan’s meeting with Somalia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hassan Mohamed Ali.

“Secretary (CPV and OIA) Sripriya Ranganathan met H.E. Hassan Mohamed Ali, Deputy Foreign Minister of Somalia. They discussed broad contours of bilateral cooperation focusing on trade, medical cooperation, education and capacity-building. They also exchanged perspectives on recent geopolitical developments in the region,” the MEA posted on X.

Highlighting the significance of the agreement, the MEA said, “During the meeting, both sides signed an MoU on Consultations between the two Foreign Ministries. This would provide a structured mechanism of consultations to regularly review the state and prospects of bilateral ties.”

The MEA Secretary also called on Somalia’s Defence Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi and held discussions on strengthening bilateral defence cooperation.

“Secretary (CPV and OIA) Sripriya Ranganathan called on H.E. Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, Defence Minister of Somalia. Discussions pertained to strengthening bilateral defence cooperation, particularly in the fields of maritime security, counter-terrorism and capacity building. They also shared views on the evolving regional security environment,” the MEA stated.

According to the High Commission of India in Kenya, the visit is the first high-level bilateral visit from India to Somalia in recent years.

“Secretary (CPV and OIA) Sripriya Ranganathan arrived in Mogadishu today for engagement with the leadership of Somalia, the first high-level bilateral visit from India in recent years. The visit will build upon the longstanding and friendly ties between the two countries,” the High Commission posted on X.

--IANS

ksk/dan

Athens, Nov 14 (IANS) The recent violent crackdown on peaceful sit-ins by Pakistani security forces in the Rawalakot region of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), along with the refusal to hand over the bodies of the deceased, represents one of the cruellest manifestations of the Pakistani authorities’ inhuman treatment of the people in the occupied territory, a report has stated.

Three men identified as Atif Jardees, Ehtisham Younis and Adil Rashid were reported killed, while at least 18 others were seriously injured during the crackdown.

“Both the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) and the opposition alliance have demanded the dead be handed to their families. This tactic was started in June this year when relatives of Fahad Barkat were reportedly told they would receive his body only after signing a statement declaring him a ‘terrorist’ killed in a police encounter. Extracting a fake confession of terrorism from grieving family as the price of a funeral is a clear technique of forced occupation of PoJK,” according to a report in 'Greek City Times'.

The report stated that organisers of the protest and Kashmiri diaspora parties have accused Pakistani security forces of using heavy machine guns, armoured vehicles and drones to crush the protests in PoJK. It added that the suppression of independent fact-finding in the region makes it increasingly difficult to expose the brutality of Pakistani forces.

“Five months after it began killing civilians in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), the Pakistani state has settled on force as the whole of its policy there, and the emerging situation in Rawalakot confirms that the June crackdown was never an aberration but a working template to control the region. The sequence is now familiar enough to be predicted in advance,” the report detailed.

“Sit-ins across different parts of PoJK are cleared before dawn, communications are severed so nothing can be verified, bodies are held back until families accept Islamabad’s version, and the civilian movement is reclassified as ‘terrorism.’ What follows will not be accommodation but deeper centralisation, more paramilitary deployment, and a regional government in PoJK that is fully controlled by the military-backed government in Islamabad,” it mentioned.

Despite escalating human rights abuses in PoJK since June, the report said, there has been no investigation or inquiry to hold accountability of those responsible.

It highlighted that rather than addressing the alleged abuses, Pakistani authorities invoked anti-terrorism legislation to ban the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) on June 5 this year, cut internet and mobile connectivity for a week, directed outsiders to leave the region, arrested more than 100 people within 48 hours and shut JAAC’s Muzaffarabad office.

Pakistani Journalist Sohrab Barkat was also arrested under cybercrime laws for covering the incident in PoJK, while activist Shahzaib Habib was shot that night.

The report noted that Pakistani authorities’ use of violence has failed to break the resolve of civilians staging a sit-in at Dareek Eidgah in Rawalakot, which has continued uninterrupted since June 10 and witnessed another turnout of thousands this month.

--IANS

scor/as

Quetta, Nov 14 (IANS) Amid escalating atrocities against civilians in Balochistan, Pakistani forces, along with members of a state-backed death squad, assaulted women and children and set several houses on fire during raids in Balochistan’s Nushki district, local media reported on Saturday, citing sources.

The raids conducted on Friday in the Killi Jamaldini area of Nushki targeted the residences of relatives of a civilian named Altaf Jamaldini, who was recently killed in a shooting carried out by death squads.

The latest raids came two days after Pakistani forces and members of a death squad reportedly stormed Altaf’s residence during a condolence gathering.

Women were allegedly assaulted and houses set ablaze during the earlier incident as well, The Balochistan Post reported.

These incidents have triggered strong public outrage, with residents accusing the police and district administration of shielding criminal elements rather than protecting civilians and preventing such acts of violence.

Meanwhile, the body of a forcibly disappeared civilian identified as Imran was recovered on Saturday from the Tump area of Kech district in Balochistan.

According to his family, Imran had been subjected to enforced disappearance nearly 15 days ago by Pakistani forces and death squad personnel during a raid on his home, the Balochistan Post reported.

On Thursday, the bodies of two young men were recovered in Kech district, while at least three others, including a journalist, have been forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces in Mastung and Panjgur districts of the province, local media reported.

Reports suggest that the bodies of the deceased, identified as Jabir and Zubair, were recovered in the Tump region of Kech on Thursday, nearly two months after being subjected to enforced disappearance by Pakistani forces.

Both men belonged to the same family and were residents of Gomazi in Tump.

Citing sources, The Balochistan Post reported that journalist Niaz Baloch was forcibly disappeared by Pakistani forces on Wednesday night during a raid on his residence in Mastung district. Since then, his family remains unaware of his whereabouts and condition.

In a separate incident in Panjgur district, a 30-year-old shopkeeper, Qambar, was taken from his shop in the Chitkan area on the evening of November 1 by a state-backed death squad.

The following day, a 70-year-old farmer, Hayatan, a resident of the Parom area in Panjgur, was abducted by Pakistan’s Frontier Corps (FC) and taken to an undisclosed location, with his whereabouts remaining unknown.

--IANS

scor/ksk/dan

Bangkok, Nov 14 (IANS) New Delhi has raised concerns with the BNP government over Chinese vloggers allegedly using Bangladeshi territory to disseminate misleading content by portraying impoverished neighbourhoods in Dhaka as Indian capital, a report has stated.

It noted that following New Delhi’s intervention, Bangladeshi law enforcement agencies reportedly stepped up surveillance of the vloggers, leading to a reduction in their activities.

The Chinese vloggers allegedly filmed impoverished localities in Bangladesh’s capital and misrepresented them as New Delhi, aiming to damage India's image. Over a 100 Chinese nationals were reportedly involved in making such videos every day, with some allegedly paying Bangladeshi locals to help them, according to a report in Thailand's daily 'Page 3 News'.

Citing Bangladeshi newspaper Prothom Alo, the report said that Mohammed Khalid Mansur, officer-in-charge of Uttara West Police Station, confirmed a decline in the activities of the Chinese vloggers after law enforcement agencies intervened.

He said that police and intelligence personnel were maintaining close surveillance on them and their movements.

On Tuesday, India severely condemned attempts being made by the Chinese vloggers to portray impoverished neighbourhoods in Dhaka as New Delhi through misleading content, saying such efforts to peddle false narratives undermine the credibility of those undertaking and backing them.

Addressing a bi-weekly press briefing in New Delhi, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal urged the authorities concerned to take action against those involved.

"We have seen media reports in this regard. Such efforts to present a distorted picture of any country are unfortunate. Insofar as efforts to buy foreign elements to portray Dhaka as Delhi are concerned, the peddling of false narratives only undermines the credibility of those who are undertaking such actions and those who are behind them. And we would urge the authorities concerned to take action against such people," he said.

The remarks came amid reports that over 150 Chinese nationals have been filming and livestreaming from economically disadvantaged neighbourhoods of Dhaka, falsely depicting them as parts of New Delhi.

While recording footage from these locations, they made disparaging comments about India's living standards, sanitation, food habits, and poverty.

The misleading portrayal has sparked concerns over the deliberate distortion of geographical locations and the possible use of deceptive online content to create negative perceptions about India among international audiences.

The incident underscored the growing threat posed by misinformation and manipulated content on social media, where sensationalised posts can spread widely before their authenticity is established.

The activities have reportedly been taking place in Dhaka’s Tekpara and Uttara areas for several months, with streamers remaining active from early morning until late at night.

One Chinese woman identified as 'Mianmian', who claimed to be from China's Sichuan province, live streamed from beside a canal in Uttara Sector 12 of Dhaka on November 1. She reportedly presented the area to her online audience as New Delhi and described the residential buildings and surrounding areas as dirty, underdeveloped, and unhygienic.

“This is New Delhi. Their homes are extremely dirty. There isn't even a fan inside the tin-roofed houses. This place is quite underdeveloped, dirty and unhygienic, and the law-and-order situation is poor,” leading Bangladeshi daily 'Prothom Alo' quoted her as saying.

In another instance, a Chinese national was seen live streaming from tea stalls in the Tekpara locality of Dhaka, making the offensive remarks that the tea consumed by locals was made using “cow urine”.

“Look, they are drinking tea. Do you know what kind of tea this is? This is cow urine tea. They drink cow urine tea,” Prothom Alo quoted him as saying.

The footage also contained derogatory comments on the residents’ lifestyles, with repeated references to poor hygiene, lack of sanitation, and substandard living conditions.

These are not isolated incidents, as reports of Chinese content creators recording videos in Dhaka’s underprivileged neighbourhoods have been emerging since May 2026.

--IANS

scor/as

Washington, Nov 14 (IANS) With Democrats holding majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, growing discontent with President Donald Trump is likely to make negotiations with the executive difficult, raising the prospect of prolonged policy paralysis in the United States, a report has said.

The Democrat-controlled legislature is also expected to intensify scrutiny of Trump's decisions and his family's financial dealings. Meanwhile, the possibility of impeachment is once again gaining traction in the media, Sanjay Pulipaka, Chairperson of think tank 'Politeia Research Foundation', wrote in India Narrative.

“In the Senate, the Democratic Party controls about 54 seats, while the Republican Party holds 44. In the House of Representatives, the Democrats won about 254 seats, while the Republicans won about 162. The Democrats won not only in swing states such as Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire, and North Carolina, but also in Republican strongholds such as Iowa, Kansas, Texas, and even South Carolina. The scale of anti-incumbency is evident in the fact that, after a few decades, Texas has elected a Democratic senator and a Democratic governor, and Kansas has elected its first Democratic senator since 1932,” Pulipaka noted.

“What explains the electoral outcome? It appears that the Iran war has proved to be very costly for the Republican Party. During the 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump promised ‘no more wars.’ However, while the intervention in Venezuela turned out to be brief, the Iran War proved to be a different ball game altogether. In fact, Vice President J D Vance noted that the Iran War led to the midterm electoral defeat," he added.

According to the report, the Republican Party will reassess its approach after aligning with Trump's agenda before the midterm elections in view of his popularity and electoral success.

With Trump's governing style and political approach increasingly proving costly, it said, the Republican Party may reconsider its association with his agenda. Republican leaders with presidential ambitions are reportedly weighing the option of distancing themselves from the Trump administration.

The report noted that for the Democratic Party, the challenge now lies in consolidating its gains among voters who have traditionally aligned with the Republicans but recently voted for the Democrats.

Its ability to retain these voters remains uncertain, particularly if it reverts to a hardline position on cultural issues, potentially driving them back to the Republican fold.

The party's agenda will depend on a new generation of prominent leaders and possible presidential candidates, including Andy Beshear, Gavin Newsom, James Talarico, JB Pritzker, Jon Ossoff, Josh Shapiro, Pete Buttigieg and others, the report mentioned.

“Established leaders such as Barack Obama, Rahm Emanuel, Kamala Harris and others should nudge the young leaders to adopt a more prudent strategy. They will have to take note of the fact that many Democrats, such as Senator-elect Talarico (Texas), Senator-elect Adam Hamilton (Kansas) and others, have campaigned ‘around Christian faith and court a segment of voters who had drifted towards Republican’,” India Narrative stated.

“The Republicans may have lost this election, but for Democrats to win the Presidential election in 2028, agenda-setting will play a critical role,” it added.

--IANS

scor/

Islamabad, Nov 14 (IANS) Pakistan has nominated Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, Musadik Masood Malik, to represent the country at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Civilisational Dialogue to be held in New Delhi later this month, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Saturday.

“The Government of Pakistan has nominated Dr. Musadik Masood Malik, Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, to represent Pakistan at the SCO Civilisational Dialogue to be held in New Delhi from 20 to 22 November 2026,” the ministry said in a statement.

Elaborating on the event, the ministry said, “The event will bring together representatives from SCO member states to exchange views on issues related to civilisational dialogue and cultural understanding. The Government of Pakistan remains committed to promoting dialogue among civilisations and fostering people-to-people contacts within the SCO framework in a spirit of mutual respect.”

Malik’s visit would mark the first visit by a Pakistani minister to India since the SCO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Goa in 2023, which was attended by Pakistan’s then Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto.

On October 28, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India had invited all SCO members, dialogue partners and one observer to the SCO Civilisational Dialogue Forum.

When asked whether India had invited Pakistan for the SCO Civilisational Dialogue Forum, Jaiswal had said, “As per established practice, we have invited all SCO members. We have also invited dialogue partners and one observer to the SCO. They have been invited for the forum, Civilisational Dialogue Forum meeting, which will be held in New Delhi on 20th to 22nd of November, 2026.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to inaugurate the three-day forum, which will bring together representatives from more than 25 countries at Purana Quila, the historic 16th-century fort in the national capital.

The initiative was proposed by PM Modi at the SCO leaders’ summit in China’s Tianjin in 2025 and was subsequently adopted by the grouping.

--IANS

ksk/