Fighters gain ground in battle for north Iraq town

BAGHDAD: Militants gained ground on Monday in a battle for a strategic enclave in northern Iraq that provides a corridor to Syria, officials and residents said.

Security forces insisted they had repelled an assault on Tal Afar, a Turkman-majority town in Nineveh province, but multiple officials and a resident said militants had entered it, with one saying they were in control.

"Armed groups managed to take control of Tal Afar," a Nineveh provincial government official told, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"They clashed with security forces and (tribal fighters), who had to withdraw from the town."

Resident Mohammed Khalil said militants had taken several districts but not the entire town, and added that families were fleeing to nearby Sinjar between Tal Afar and the Syrian border.

The local official responsible for the town and surrounding areas, Abdulal Abbas, declined to say whether it was now in militant control, but said Tal Afar was dealing with "martyrs, wounded, chaos and refugees".

Abbas said 200,000 people -- nearly half the area´s population -- had fled, and asked for international assistance.

Tal Afar, a major Shiite-majority town in otherwise Sunni Arab and Kurdish-dominated Nineveh province, had briefly held off a militant offensive that saw fighters led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group take control of vast swathes of territory of north and north-central Iraq in a matter of days.

The town has provided a crucial bulwark against militant-controlled territory on either side of Iraq´s border with Syria.

Interior ministry spokesman Brigadier General Saad Maan, however, insisted that militants had not encroached on the town, proclaiming that fighters "do not control one metre (yard) of Tal Afar".

Operation supporters should be sent to battle Taliban: Sami

 

ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Sami chief and head of the Taliban negotiating team Maulana Samiul Haq has said that the entire nation is fed up with war and wanted peace, respite and harmony to prevail.
Addressing a ‘Dastarbandi’ ceremony in Abbottabad on Monday, Maulana Sami berated the so-called religious factions, liberal and secular lobbies, defence and political observers, analysts, and columnists on ‘Wwestern payroll’, urging an imminent military operation within Pakistan.

“All these fantasy weavers should be made a brigade and sent to fight a war against the Taliban so that they should be able to satisfy their ‘lust for war’; instead of bothering the brave Army soldiers being ruthlessly sacrificed in the line of duty,” he said.

Maulana Sami lauded the nation and rulers for understanding the sensitive nature of the situation, opting for the prudent path of dialogue. He also called on all “to also pray fervently for saving the Federation from all kinds of conspiracies and odds”.

Sonam Kapoor to play a politician in Battle For Bittora adaptation

Sonam Kapoor

Sonam Kapoor can be expected to turn a politician, for the adaptation of Anuja Chauhan’s book, Battle For Bittora, whose rights have been bought by Anil Kapoor Productions.
When asked, Sonam said, “We’ve just bought the rights of the book, but haven’t begun work on the script. So, nothing has been finalised yet. Hopefully, I’m going to start shooting for that film by the end of the year.” Rhea Kapoor has also confirmed that they would be producing the film under Anil Kapoor Productions. Battle For Bittora is a humourous account of young India. It’s about a girl who lives in Mumbai and works in a animation studio, perfectly happy with her carefree, independent existence. That’s when her grandmother shows up and tells her to contest the upcoming elections from their hometown Bittora. She soon starts wearing cotton saris and frumpy blouses, battling accusations from
other politicians.
And while there’s still time for Kapoor to begin shooting for this film, she already seems to have begun the prep work for Arbaaz Khan’s Dolly Ki Doli where she’ll be seen opposite Pulkit Samrat and Rajkummar Rao. The actress has been speaking a lot more Hindi, and using words like ‘hum’ instead of ‘main’. “I already seem to be in the Dolly Ki Doli mode,” laughs Kapoor who is playing a Punjabi girl in the film. And about Sooraj Barjatya’s film opposite Salman Khan, she clarifies, “We’re still in discussions and it’s too early to talk about that film.”
Apart from these films, she’ll also be seen in Khubsoorat remake, the shooting of which has been wrapped up already.

Aditya Roy Kapur in Shuddhi?
After Hrithik Roshan’s exit from Shuddhi, there has been a lot of speculation about who will replace him. Though Ranveer Singh’s name had cropped up as a likely contender for the role, the actor denied that he is part of the film. Now, we hear that Aditya Roy Kapur is being considered to play the main lead in the Karan Malhotra helmed project. Though producer Karan Johar said that the final cast will be announced soon, the film is slated to release on Christmas 2015. The grapevine also suggests that Deepika Padukone has been finalised to play the female lead. Meanwhile, Johar also confirmed that the film will roll in a few months.  When we messaged Karan Johar, he did not revert.

How It All Began: A Cold War Battle Heats Up

The Ukraine Divide, Explained

Ukraine is being pulled in different directions: one toward Russia, the other toward Western Europe.

KIEV, Ukraine — Three months of civic unrest in Ukraine spiraled out of control last week with dozens of people dead, the center of this elegant city turned into a burning war zone and the eventual flight from the capital Saturday by the president. Puzzled about the conflict and how it got so bad? Here’s a primer.

There are three core factors that led to the chaos:

First is a broken promise between a leader and his citizens: President Viktor F. Yanukovych had long promised to integrate Ukraine with the European Union by signing sweeping political and trade agreements. In November, he refused to sign.

Second is a lingering Cold War-era fight between Russia and the West for influence over countries in Eastern Europe still suffering from political and economic problems rooted in the Soviet era. While Europe and the United States have made a priority of fostering democracy in the former Soviet republics, the Kremlin sees an ulterior motive: the expansion of Western military and economic power. Perceiving a threat to its big military and economic interests in Ukraine, Russia exerted enormous pressure to scuttle the accords with the European Union.

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Demonstrators rode a military vehicle to Independence Square in central Kiev. Protesters claimed control of the city’s security. Credit Louisa Gouliamaki/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Third is searing public outrage over the government’s sometimes brutal response to the street protests that followed the president’s about-face on ties with the European Union. The crackdowns deeply contradicted Ukraine’s post-Soviet national identity as a peaceful, pluralistic society. Even in the 2004 Orange Revolution, in which there were also huge street demonstrations, the authorities did not assault the protesters.

Now, a quick recap of how recent events unfolded.

In 2009, the European Union initiated an Eastern Partnership program to tighten ties with former Soviet republics, including Ukraine. Russia immediately registered alarm. “Some states view this partnership as a partnership against Russia,” said Dmitri A. Medvedev, then the president and now prime minister.

Russia had serious reasons for unease. Its Black Sea naval fleet is based in Ukraine, and crucial pipelines in Ukraine carry Russian natural gas to customers in Europe. European officials repeatedly dismissed Russia’s concerns in what in hindsight they viewed as a serious miscalculation given Russia’s control over Ukraine’s gas supply, and eastern Ukraine’s heavy dependence on Russia for business and trade.

Ukraine has long been caught between Europe and Russia, and Mr. Yanukovych, elected in 2010, had tried to strike a balance even as his own Eastern Ukrainian, Russian-speaking heritage seemed to place him personally closer to Moscow.

By January 2013, he said that he intended to join Russia’s Customs Union with other former Soviet Republics, as well as sign the political and economic agreements with the European Union.

Many Ukrainians, especially in the Western part of the country, saw the accords with Europe as symbolic of a larger push to improve their lives with much-needed reforms especially to the economy and the justice system. In March 2013, Mr. Yanukovych published a decree directing the government to work toward signing the accords.

Street protests erupted in late November, when it became clear that Mr. Yanukovych would not move forward. At several critical junctures, the rallies seemed about to taper off, especially after Russia gave Mr. Yanukovych $15 billion in loans and natural gas discounts, only to then be reignited by government missteps.

These included the beating by the police of young protesters on Nov. 30, which prompted demonstrators to seize public buildings and occupy Independence Square, as well as the ramming through of new laws severely restricting free speech and assembly.

The protests turned deadly as demonstrators, furious over the legislation, threw firebombs at the police and the authorities responded in some cases with gunfire. Mr. Yanukovych tried to stem the violence by firing the government, but calls for his own resignation grew louder anyway.

Tensions simmered until last week when it seemed Parliament might squelch a deal to reverse constitutional changes that had expanded presidential powers earlier in Mr. Yanukovych’s term. Demonstrators marched toward Parliament, setting off what quickly became the most violent clashes yet.