IDF kills one of the masterminds of Hamas attack
Tel Aviv, Nov 7: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Tuesday announced that it has killed Hamas commander Wael Asafa, one of the masterminds of the October 7 attack. In a post on X, the military said: “The IDF eliminated Wael Asefa, Commander of Hamas’ Deir al-Balah Battalion. Asefa aided in the dispatch of thousands of terrorists to assault, abduct and murder Israeli civilians on October 7th.” In a separate statement, the IDF also said that the Hamas militant was killed in an airstrike on Sunday following proper intelligence received from the after Shin Bet internal security service and the military. According to the Shin Bet, Asafa was imprisoned during 1992 to 1998 for terror activities against Israel. The IDF’s announcement comes after Israel has intensified its ground offensive in Gaza. (IANS)
Canadian Sikh poet rejects Biden admin’s invite
New York, Nov 7: Indo-Canadian Sikh poet Rupi Kaur has declined an invitation for a Diwali event on Wednesday from US President Joe Biden’s administration over its response to the situation in Gaza. “I decline any invitation from an institution that supports the collective punishment of a trapped civilian population – 50 per cent of whom are children,” Kaur, 31, wrote in a statement posted on X on Monday. “I’m surprised this administration finds it acceptable to celebrate Diwali, when their support of the current atrocities against Palestinians represent the exact opposite of what this holiday means to many of us,” the author of “Milk and Honey” said. Gaza’s Ministry of Health said on Monday that the Palestinian death toll has crossed 10,000, including 4,104 children, with no signs of a ceasefire in the besieged enclave. Kaur implored other South Asians in the US to do the same and hold the Biden administration accountable in the wake of the spiralling civilian death toll. (IANS)
PML-N, MQM-P to contest Feb 8 Pak polls jointly in Sindh province
Lahore, Nov 7: In a surprise development, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Karachi-based Muttahida Qaumi Movement on Tuesday announced an electoral alliance to contest the general elections against Bhuttos’ Pakistan People’s Party in Sindh province. Both the PML-N and MQM leadership after their meeting in Lahore on Tuesday announced that they would jointly contest the February 8, 2024 general elections. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif-led PML-N needs the MQM, which has a strong base in the Karachi and Hyderabad districts of Sindh province, to give a tough time to the PPP in the province, a stronghold of Bhuttos. Both the PML-N and PPP were allies in the previous PDM (Pakistan Democratic Movement) coalition government in which Shehbaz Sharif was the prime minister. However, since the incumbent military establishment reportedly struck a deal with PML-N supremo Nawaz regarding bringing his party into power after the February polls, the relations soured between the two main political parties that have been repeatedly in power when the powerful military was not ruling the country. (PTI)