The Daily Upvote - 2016-11-05

Leader of Basque terrorist group ETA detained in France

(EFE) French police in collaboration with Spain's Civil Guard detained early Saturday the alleged leader of Basque terrorist group ETA, security sources told EFE.

Mikel Irastorza was detained as part of a police operation in Ascain in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department of southern France.

As part of an operation against the organization's leadership, Irastorza _ who, according to Spain's Ministry of the Interior, could be tasked with carrying out the highest responsibilities within the group _ was arrested at a house in the French commune, along with a couple.

Following the detention of ETA leaders David Pla and Iratxe Sorzabal in France in Sept. 2015, security forces have considered Irastorza to be the group's leader.

A recent operation against the terrorist group saw members of the Spanish Civil Guard uncover a hideout in France of some 145 weapons, which the authorities believe belonged to the organization.

Source: http://www.efe.com/efe/english/portada/leader-of-basque-terrorist-group-eta-detained-in-france/50000260-3088271

More than 2,200 migrants rescued in Mediterranean, 10 bodies recovered

(Reuters) More than 2,200 migrants were rescued in the Mediterranean on Saturday as they tried to reach Europe and 10 bodies were recovered, Italy's coast guard said in a statement.

The migrants were picked up from 13 rubber dinghies, two small boats and one large vessel in 16 separate rescue operations.

The International Organization for Migration's said this week that 4,220 migrants had died in the Mediterranean so far this year, compared with 3,777 in the whole of 2015.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-italy-idUSKBN1300RV

2 Italians, Canadian freed after weeks of captivity in Libya

(AP) Two Italians and a Canadian citizen kidnapped in southern Libya in September were freed unharmed and brought to Italy early Saturday, authorities said.

Italian authorities said the intelligence services of Libya, Italy and Canada cooperated in securing the release of the three men after nearly seven weeks of captivity. The men, technicians working on an airport construction project, were seized Sept. 19 by armed, masked men who blocked their vehicle in Ghat, a Sahara Desert city in southwestern Libya near the border with Algeria.

Italy identified the Italians as Danilo Calonego and Bruno Cacace and the Canadian citizen as Frank Poccia. Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said the two Italians had not been mistreated during their captivity and were in good health.

Libya was once an Italian colony and Italy continues to have a strong commercial presence in the North African nation. Libya has fallen into chaos since former dictator Moammar Gadhafi was toppled in 2011 and killed by Libyan rebels.

Source: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ae7112b4eb94468ea98d5f9aacb223b8/italy-says-2-kidnapped-italians-1-canadian-freed-libya

Thousands of Israelis at peace rally honouring Rabin

(AFP) Thousands of people attended a memorial rally for slain Israeli premier Yitzhak Rabin on Saturday, despite earlier fears it would be cancelled, an AFP journalist said.

Organisers put the number at around 50,000, while Israeli media said 20,000. Police did not give an official estimate.

There had been fears that lack of funding would for the first time in 21 years prevent the annual event in the central Tel Aviv square which bears the name of the Nobel peace laureate shot dead at the site by a Jewish extremist on November 4, 1995.

The rally has traditionally been a display of respect for Rabin and of support for peace with the Palestinians, which he sought.

Rabin won the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize jointly with Shimon Peres and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for his role in negotiating the Oslo peace accords, which envisioned an independent Palestinian state.

Rabin's killer, Yigal Amir, was opposed to the Oslo accords. He is serving a life sentence in prison.

Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/thousands-israelis-peace-rally-honouring-rabin-211346309.html

Turkey orders trial for newspaper staff, detains more pro-Kurd officials

(Reuters) Turkish authorities ordered on Saturday that the editor and senior staff of a leading opposition newspaper be arrested pending trial, as more pro-Kurdish officials were detained sparking protests against the widening state crackdown.

Police fired tear gas and water cannon on a crowd of around 1,000 protesters in central Istanbul who were trying to get to the offices of the secularist Cumhuriyet newspaper. Nine of its journalists and executives were detained on Monday

Prosecutors said staff at the paper, one of the few still critical of President Tayyip Erdogan, were suspected of crimes committed on behalf of Kurdish militants and U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused of instigating a coup attempt.

Since the failed coup in July, more than 110,000 judges, teachers, police and civil servants have been detained or suspended in a crackdown that Erdogan's critics say is quashing legitimate opposition.

"The international community is outraged. What are you trying to do? Are you trying to create a Turkey where everyone is in jail?" the head of the main opposition party, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, said.

"What has the Cumhuriyet newspaper done? Have they planted bombs somewhere?"

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-newspaper-idUSKBN13007Y

Pro-Kurdish supporters march in Greece against arrests in Turkey

(Reuters) About 1,000 Kurds and pro-Kurdish supporters marched to the Turkish embassy in Athens on Saturday, chanting "Fascist Erdogan!" to protest against the detention of Kurdish leaders in Turkey.

The leaders of Turkey's pro-Kurdish opposition Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) were jailed pending trial on Friday as part of a terrorism investigation, drawing condemnation in the West of a crackdown on dissent under President Tayyip Erdogan.

In Athens, demonstrators unfurled large Kurdish flags and held up banners depicting HDP co-leaders Selahattin Demirtas and Figen Yuksekdag. "No to Erdogan's dictatorship," a banner read.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-greece-protests-idUSKBN1300MI

Tens of thousands in South Korea rally for Park's resignation

(Yonhap) Tens of thousands of protesters holding lit candles rallied in central Seoul on Saturday, demanding President Park Geun-hye's resignation amid an influence-peddling scandal involving one of her acquaintances.

The anti-government protest, one of the largest held in the capital in recent years, came a day after Park offered an apology for the mysterious woman who allegedly meddled in state affairs and pursued unlawful benefits for herself.

Police estimate around 50,000 protesters gathered in central Seoul in the latest series of rallies that began a week earlier.

Organizers, on the other hand, insist up to 200,000 people from all walks of life took part in the rally, citing the public's escalating anger towards the presidential office.

On Friday, local pollster Gallup Korea said Park's approval rating crashed to 5 percent this week, marking the lowest-ever rating for an incumbent South Korean president in the country's history.

Some 17,600 officers were deployed to the site, police said, noting that they were specifically instructed to not provoke protesters.

Source: http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2016/11/05/0301000000AEN20161105001354315.html

UK police arrest 53 at Anonymous protest in London

(Telegraph) Thousands of people descended on central London for the Million Mask March which saw police make 10 arrests.

Walking from Trafalgar Square, where the march started, protesters holding flares chanted "Whose streets? Our Streets!" as they made their way to Westminster.

Clad in Guy Fawkes masks, thousands of supporters of Anonymous, the anarchic hacking collective, carried placards as they made their way through the Capital while scores of police officers maintained a tight perimeter around them.

Scotland Yard said there had been 53 arrests, including three for possession of an offensive weapon, 14 for drugs and two for the non-removal of a face mask.

"Whilst the majority of those taking part were peaceful, there were pockets of disorder and a number of fireworks thrown which thankfully did not result in injury," Scotland Yard said.

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/05/hundreds-of-protesters-attend-million-mask-march

Anti-government protesters clash with police in Florence

(Reuters) Hundreds of hooded anti-government protesters clashed with police in Florence on Saturday just weeks before a referendum on a constitutional reform on which Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has staked his political future.

There have been protests against the Renzi government and the referendum before, but these were the first involving violence.

The young protesters were marching through the center of Florence trying to reach the premises where 41-year-old Renzi, also a former mayor of the Tuscan city, was expected to attend his Democratic Party's annual convention called "Leopolda".

Television pictures showed officers in riot gear and with batons charging hundreds of protesters who threw smoke bombs, stones and firecrackers and tried to separate from the police by dragging metal fences into the streets. One officer was hurt in the leg during the clashes, Italian media said.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-clashes-florence-idUSKBN1300QT

Government orders India's NDTV off air for 24 hours

(Al Jazeera) Indian government has ordered a popular news channel to be taken off air for a day as a penalty for its coverage of an attack on Indian soldiers in January.

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said on Friday that NDTV Hindi revealed strategically sensitive details during the attack on the Pathankot airbase, allegedly carried out by the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed group.

Seven soldiers and six armed fighters were killed in the attack. Officials said that the channel would go off air from Wednesday as an inter-ministerial panel found the channel had revealed details of the government operation and locations within the base.

NDTV rejected the accusation, saying its coverage was "particularly balanced" and it had been "singled out since every channel and newspaper had similar coverage."

Source: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/11/government-orders-india-ndtv-air-24-hours-161105045004374.html

China to weigh up Hong Kong allegiance rules amid independence row

(Reuters) China's top parliamentary panel will discuss Hong Kong's mini-constitution and how it should be interpreted, the Chinese-ruled city government said on Friday, to try to end a crisis over a fledgling independence movement but raising fears of legal interference.

The Hong Kong government confirmed that the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress would consider provisions of Hong Kong's Basic Law related to political allegiance this weekend.

The move comes as the Hong Kong government tries to disqualify two newly elected legislators promoting independence from China, amid growing speculation that Beijing would intervene.

Hong Kong, a former British colony that returned to Chinese rule with wide-ranging autonomy in 1997, was rocked by street protests calling for democracy in 2014 and more recently by calls for independence, an idea that is anathema to Communist Party rulers in Beijing.

A separate legal system, along with extensive personal freedoms, is part of the "one country, two systems" formula under which Britain handed Hong Kong back to China.

The move is likely to pre-empt a court case under way that could disqualify the two pro-independence lawmakers yet to be sworn in to the Legislative Council.

Yau Wai-ching, 25, and Baggio Leung, 30, had their swearing-in oaths invalidated last month over language and a banner that was deemed derogatory to China.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-politics-idUSKBN12Z0DL

Bombs hit convoy of displaced people fleeing Mosul battle

(DW) Two roadside bombs destroyed a truck carrying people from Hawija, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Mosul, as they were being taken to the town of Al Alam near Tikrit on the Tigris River. Authorities said as many as 26 people were killed, most of them civilians fleeing the fighting as IS digs in near the city of Mosul. Pictures published on social media accounts linked to Iraq's Defense Ministry showed blackened corpses next to the twisted metal remains of the truck.

Most of the dead were from displaced families, authorities said. A policeman in a vehicle escort was also reportedly killed.

The explosion took place on Friday, as the convoy from the IS-held town of Hawija was moving away from the fighting around Mosul, where Iraqi special forces - backed by US-coordinated airstrikes and artillery attacks - are attempting to recapture the city from "Islamic State" fighters.

Source: http://www.dw.com/en/hawija-civilians-killed-fleeing-mosul-battle/a-36274600

Al Shabaab claims fatal car bomb attack near Somali parliament

(Reuters) Two Somali soldiers died and five others were injured when a car bomb claimed by Islamist group al Shabaab exploded on Saturday near the parliament in the capital Mogadishu, police said.

Al Shabaab has stepped up its campaign of bombings and gun assaults in Mogadishu in recent months ahead of parliamentary elections which are expected to take place within weeks.

Col. Abdiqadir Hussein, a police officer, told Reuters the explosion had occurred near the parliament building, while another police officer, Major Hussein Nur, said the car bomb hit a military vehicle at a junction checkpoint.

"2 soldiers died and 5 others were injured," Nur said, adding police, military and security forces were on the scene when the attack occurred.

Al Shabaab, which once ruled much of Somalia, wants to topple the Western-backed government in Mogadishu and drive out African AMISOM peacekeepers made up of soldiers from Kenya, Djibouti, Uganda, Ethiopia and other African nations.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-somalia-war-idUSKBN1300MO