INTERNATIONAL APRIL 2015

INTERNATIONAL APRIL 2015

• More than 7000 died in Nepal earth quake: UN
  The earthquake, that hit Nepal on 25th April has killed more than 7,000 people and injured more than twice of that number. The magnitude of quake is 7.8M. Its epicenter lay in Barpak village of Gorkha district and its hypo center was at a depth of approximately 15 km (9.3 mi).
  
  It was the most powerful disaster to strike Nepal since the 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake. Some casualties have also been reported in the adjoining areas of India, China, and Bangladesh.
  
  The earthquake triggered an avalanche on Mount Everest, killing at least 19, making it the deadliest day on the mountain in history. It triggered another huge avalanche in Langtang valley, where 250 are now missing. Hundreds of thousands of houses were destroyed rendering people homeless with entire villages flattened, across many districts of the country. Centuries-old buildings were destroyed at UNESCO World Heritage sites in the Kathmandu Valley, including some at the Kathmandu Durbar Square, the Patan Durbar Square and the Bhaktapur Durbar Square. Geophysicists and other experts had warned for decades that Nepal was vulnerable to a deadly earthquake, particularly because of its geology, urbanization, and architecture.
  
• India started Operation Maitri
  India on 27th April gave a massive thrust to its rescue and relief mission in quake-devastated Nepal - 'Operation Maitri' - pressing into service 12 heavy-duty military aircraft and 18 helicopters besides opening up four land routes to connect to Kathmandu and Pokhara valley to reach out to the affected with men and material.
  
  The government has deployed 10 teams of the National Disaster Response Force, each comprising 45 well-equipped personnel trained in disaster rescue operations. Three more NDRF teams were rushed
  
  Indian soldiers were able to reach parts of the worst-affected Pokhra region, the epicentre of the temblor, by helicopters and dropped relief material. The Indian Army set up a camp at the epicentre.
  
  The focus was to restore the power in Kathmandu and other parts of the Himalayan state with the help of a team of Power Grid officials. New Delhi has also sent another team from Indian Oil to ensure continuous fuel supply.
  
  The government has sent one RO plant for restoring drinking water supply and oxygen regenerators. Army personnel on Monday reached interiors of the Himalayan country. While the main Taskforce Hq operated from Kathmandu, a sub-hq was set up at Barpak Village in Gorkha district, the epicenter of the quake. An engineering task force, consisting of 40 soldiers, five earth-movers and generators, is already operational 5-km outside Kathmandu. Ten more such taskforces are planned as Kathmandu-Pokhara road has been restored.
  
  Six choppers were inducted in Pokhara for rescue and relief operations with the rest operating in Kathmandu and surrounding areas. The Army is setting up three field hospitals, consisting of 18 medical teams with surgeons, with one already set up at Radalgrah, near Lalitpur. In addition the Air Force has airlifted a rapid aero-medical team.
  
  The Army has deployed six ambulances while the Shashtra Seema Bal is sending 10 more to the quake- affected areas. The home ministry has asked SSB to assist in rescue efforts through India's land routes to Nepal. Supply of relief material will be carried out through these land routes.
  
• UN Report on Nepal earth quake
  Up to eight million people have had their lives disrupted after a deadly earthquake shook Nepal, said the United Nations, adding there was an urgent need for relief materials ranging from tarpaulin sheets and clean water to soap and medicines.
  
  According to initial estimations and based on the latest earthquake intensity mapping, eight million people in 39 districts have been affected, of which over two million people live in the 11 severely affected districts. The 7.9 magnitude quake struck just before noon on 25th April, sending buildings crashing down in the capital Kathmandu and flattening mud-and-brick homes in outer villages. Over 3,700 people have died and at least 6,000 are injured.
  
  The U.N. Children`s Fund (UNICEF) said supplies of food and clean drinking water were dwindling after the quake, which was the worst to hit the Himalayan region in more than 80 years. The World Food Programme was providing food and trucks for distribution, UNICEF is sending tents and health care supplies, and the World Health Organization has distributed medical supplies for 40,000 people.
  
  Many international charities who were already working in Nepal, such as Save the Children and SOS Children`s Villages International, said they had pre-positioned emergency stocks such as baby food, hygiene kits and clothing and had begun delivery.
  
• USD 415 mn needed for Nepal quake relief: UN
  According to a UN estimate, over 5,000 people have been killed and over 10,000 others injured in the quake and the subsequent aftershocks in Nepal, hence the UN appealed to the international community for USD 415 million to provide quick relief to those affected by the Nepal earthquake in an effort to address a critical need for shelter, water, emergency health services and food security, over the next three months. According to estimates,
  • Almost 70,000 houses have been destroyed
  • Another 530,000 homes have been damaged across 39 of Nepal's 75 districts.
  
  According to the UN, Nepal needs USD 128 million for food security, USD 50 million for shelter and USD 63 million for water sanitation, to provide relief in the quake-hit country.
  
• 57 historic monuments destroyed in Nepal quake
  Nepal’s centuries of architectural heritage having historic importance in the Kathmandu Valley were reduced to rubble by recent earthquake. A total of 57 monuments of the Kathmandu Valley have been destroyed. Several historic temples and ancient palace complexes destroyed in a 7.9 magnitude quake on 25th April were also damaged in the 1934 temblor, and hastily rebuilt. The temples and palaces have frequently been destroyed every 100 years or so, and they have always been rebuilt.
  
• U.S., Japan agree on new defense rules
  The United States and Japan unveiled new rules for defense cooperation on 27th April in a historic move that will give Japanese armed forces a more ambitious global role amid concerns over China’s rising sway. Under the revised guidelines, Japan could come to the aid of U.S. forces threatened by a third country or, for example, deploy minesweeper ships to a mission in the Middle East.
  
  According to both nations, the new doctrine is not aimed at China, there has been increasing concern over moves by Beijing to try to scoop up disputed areas of the South China and East China Seas. But they pointedly made mention of North Korea as another source of tension in the region. Under the previous rules, Japanese forces could assist American troops only if they were operating in the direct defense of Japan. The amended guidelines were drawn up to reflect a reinterpretation of Japan’s Constitution by Mr. Abe’s government last year, which allows for “collective defence.”
  
  The new defence guidelines are part of Mr. Abe’s bid to soften Japan’s constitutional commitment to pacifism. Tokyo’s readiness to embrace what Mr. Abe calls “proactive pacifism” comes amid growing anxiety in Japan and across Asia over China’s rising military and economic might.
  
• Russia unveils new Armata tank for WW2 Victory Day celebrations
  Russia has unveiled a new-generation battle tank called Armata T-14 ahead of World War II Victory Day celebrations on 9 May. It is among several new weapons systems featuring in a vast parade on 9 May. It is 70 years since the Soviet and Allied armies defeated Nazi Germany in 1945. Most Western leaders will not go to Moscow because of the Ukraine crisis. Russia's former World War Two allies - the UK, France and US - will be conspicuously absent from the event. The Red Square spectacle is expected to be the biggest military parade ever held.
  
  The Armata tank has an unmanned turret and a 125mm smooth-bore cannon that can fire guided missiles as well as shells. Its computer technology, speed and maneuverability are said to be far superior to those of the T-90, the current mainstay of the Russian army. Russia plans to bring in about 2,300 Armatas, starting in 2020, to replace Soviet-era tanks.
  
• Sri Lanka adopts 19th Amendment
  The Sri Lankan Parliament on 28th April adopted the 19th Constitutional Amendment. The legislation envisages the dilution of many powers of Executive Presidency, which had been in force since 1978.
  
  The 225-strong Parliament cleared the Bill with 212 members voting in favor of the legislation. Ten members were absent. While one voted against the Bill, another member abstained from the voting. The 14-member Tamil National Alliance (TNA) also supported the Bill.
  
  Among the important features of the Bill are…
  • The reduction in the terms of President and Parliament from six years to five years
  • Re-introduction of a two-term limit that a person can have as President
  • The power of President to dissolve Parliament only after four and a half years [unlike one year, as prevalent now];
  
  The revival of Constitutional Council and the establishment of independent commissions
  
• 56% of world’s rural population has no health care access: ILO
  According to International Labor Organization, more than half of the world’s rural population (56 per cent) does not have access to health care facilities compared with 22 per cent of the urban population. ILO found the most extreme disparities in the Asia-Pacific region, which includes India.
  
  The stark neglect of the health care needs of the rural population, especially in developing countries, is also evident by the fact that only 23 per cent of health workers are deployed in these areas, where over 50 per cent of the world’s population lives, says the report “Global Evidence on Inequities in Rural Health Protection: New Data on Rural Deficits in Health Coverage for 174 Countries.”
  
  According to the report, in India, 87.5 per cent of the population did not have legal health coverage in 2010, with 93.1 per cent in rural areas alone.
  
  The lack of legal coverage, insufficient numbers of health workers, inadequate funding, and high out of pocket (OOPs) have created life-threatening inequities in many countries
  • The extent of impoverishing OOPs account for 46 per cent of total health expenditure in Asia.
  • According to World Bank estimates, OOPs in India stood at 85.9 per cent in 2013.
  • Also, the deficits in per capita health spending are twice as large in rural areas as compared to urban areas. The deficits observed result in unnecessary suffering and death, as reflected in rural maternal mortality rates that are 2.5 times higher than urban rates
  • In addition, the report found a global shortfall of about seven million health workers, such as midwives and nurses, in rural areas, compared with a lack of three million skilled staff in urban areas. ILO has identified the need for 41.1 health workers per 10,000
  
  Pointing out the sharp rural-urban disparity in health care as one of the key reasons for the rural population being unable to contribute to urgently needed economic growth, wealth and development, the report called for universal social protection through national health services and national and social health insurance schemes.
  
• Iran attempted to buy nuclear technology: U.K.
  Britain has informed the United Nations Iranian of attempts a year ago to buy uranium enrichment technology on the black market, it was reported on 30th April.
  
  Such procurement efforts would, if confirmed, represent a violation of UN security council resolutions placing Iran under sanctions, but analysts said they were unlikely to derail a comprehensive nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers.
  
  Under the agreement, due to be completed by 30 June, Iran would accept strict limits on its nuclear programme, particularly on uranium enrichment, in return for sanctions relief.
  
  In an annual report, obtained by the Reuters news agency, a UN panel of experts responsible for monitoring compliance with the sanctions regime, revealed:
  
  KEC is under Security Council sanctions while TESA is under American and European Union sanctions because of their suspected involvement in developing centrifuges for a uranium enrichment programme banned by the UN. The UN panel said the British report was too recent to have been assessed independently.
  
  According to the broad parameters of the nuclear deal provisionally agreed in Lausanne on 2 April, Iran would accept a 70% cut in its uranium enrichment capacity, and a reduction in its stockpile of low-enriched uranium of up to 97%, in return for the lifting of sanctions. The exact sequence of reciprocal steps is one of the main issues that have to be resolved before the deadline.
  
• Obama, Abe pledge to complete Pacific Rim Trade Pact
  US President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have pledged to complete a 12-nation Pacific Rim trade agreement even as the American leader acknowledged there was opposition to the deal which he said would be the most progressive trade bill in the history.
  
  The two leaders agreed that their nations would work to bring a quick, successful conclusion to talks over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal, despite the failure of US and Japanese negotiators to work out the final terms of a bilateral deal essential to any broader accord.
  
• Boat drowned carrying migrants off Libyan coast
  Hundreds of people are feared drowned after a boat carrying up to 700 migrants capsized in the Mediterranean Sea. The mishap occurred when the 70 feet long boat capsized some 17 miles off Libyan waters, 130 miles south of the southern Italian island of Lampedusa.
  
  The migrants reportedly fell overboard when they rushed on one side to draw the attention of a passing merchant vessel, causing their ship to capsize.A major rescue operation involving Italian ships, Maltese Navy and commercial vessels has been launched. When reports last came in, 28 people had been rescued and 24 bodies retrieved.
  
• China, Pak ink 51 agreements
  Pakistan and China on 20th April struck as many as 51 agreements including the multi billion dollar economic corridor through the PoK that will expand the communist giant's influence in India's neighbourhood. Chinese President Xi Jinping formally unveiled the ambitious 3,000 km-long China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) during his historic maiden state visit to Islamabad.The strategic corridor will link China's under developed far-western region to Pakistan's Gwadar deep-sea port on the Arabian Sea via PoK through a massive and complex network of roads, railways, business zones, energy schemes and pipelines.
  
  The corridor, expected to be ready in three years gives China direct access to the Indian Ocean and beyond. The agreements were signed after Xi held talks with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Both the leaders witnessed the agreements signing ceremony. The two leaders unveiled plaques of eight projects to be undertaken in Pakistan with Chinese assistance. The projects and agreements relate to energy, infrastructure, agriculture, research and technology, education and other fields.
  
• Former Egyptian President Morsi jailed for 20 years
  A court in Egypt has sentenced former President Mohammad Mursi to 20 years in prison over the killing of protesters while he was still in power. It is the first ruling he has faced since his ousting and is one of several upcoming trials he faces. Mursi was deposed by the army in July 2013 following mass street protests against his rule.
  
• Asian, African countries call for new world order
  Leaders from Asian and African countries called for a new world order to fight poverty and economic disparity. Representatives from more than 80 nations attended the Asian-African Summit that started on 22nd April in the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
  
  India spoken about terror: In the summit, Indian External Affairs Minister SushmaSwaraj participated. India stressed the emergence of the terror group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, ISIS was a matter of grave concern and must be countered as it challenges civilization. India has said that, the rise of extremist violence and terrorism has been one of the most disturbing security phenomena and several parts of the two continents are victim to a medley of terrorist groups.
  
• Japan's maglev train creates new world speed record with top speed of 603 km per hr
  Japan's state-of-the-art maglev train clocked a new world speed record on 21st April in a test run near Mount Fuji, smashing through the 600 kilometre per hour mark, as Tokyo races to sell the technology abroad. The seven-car maglev train short for "magnetic levitation" hit a top speed of 603 kilometres an hour, and managed nearly 11 seconds at over 600kph, operator Central Japan Railway said. The new record came less than a week after the company recorded a top speed of 590 kph, breaking its own 2003 record of 581 kph.
  
• At least 115 children killed in Yemen since March 26: UNICEF
  According to United Nations International Children Emergency Fund, at least 115 children have been killed and 172 injured in the violence raging in Yemen since Saudi-led air strikes began on 26 last month. The report was released on 24th April. The UN children's agency further said there are hundreds of thousands of children in Yemen who continue to live in the most dangerous circumstances. It also said, since war began, at least 140 children had been recruited by armed groups.
  
  Another UN agency, World Health Organisation said the over all death toll in Yemen had topped 1,000, and the UN's human rights agency said Friday at least 551 of the people who died were civilians.
  
• Switzerland tops World Happiness Index
  Switzerland topped the third annual World Happiness index produced by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, an initiative under the United Nations. It was closely followed by Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Canada. Togo, Burundi, Benin and Rwanda, with civil-war wracked Syria, were least happy. The World Happiness Report examined 158 countries and is aimed at influencing government policy.
  
  India @ 117th: India rated at 111 in 2014, but in 2015 the country dropped six places to 117 out of 158 countries ranked in the 2015 list, which took into account data from 2012-2015, and was as usual was dominated by wealthy Nordic countries.
  
  The bottom ten were what are broadly described as crisis states, wracked by disease or war: Chad, Guinea, Ivory Coast. Burkina Faso, Afghanistan, Rwanda, Benin, Syria, Burundi and Togo.
  
• Beijing International Film Festival concludes
  The 5th Beijing International Film Festival came to an end on 23rd April. The big winner of the night was Mexican director Bernardo Arellano, taking home the Best Feature Film award, for his movie 'Beginning of Time.' The movie is a black comedy about the troubled life of an odd couple and their sons who have been missing for years.
  
  Devastating quake leaves Nepal shaken, India stirred
  A powerful earthquake struck Nepal and sent tremors through northern India on Saturday, killing hundreds of people, toppling a historic 19th century tower in Kathmandu and sparking a deadly avalanche on Mount Everest.
  
  The tremors were felt as far away as New Delhi and other northern cities in India, with reports they had lasted up to a minute. A collapse in communications hampered relief efforts, raising fear of a humanitarian disaster across Nepal, a nation of 28 million people.
  
  The death toll in that country stood at 1,130. Another 36 deaths were reported in India, four in Bangladesh and 12 in Tibet.
  
  There were reports of devastation in outlying, isolated mountainous areas after the quake, which had a magnitude of 7.9 on the Richter scale, the highest in 81 years. Its epicentre was 80 km east of Nepal's second-largest city, Pokhara.
  
  Tourist trail
  Around 300,000 foreign tourists were estimated to be in Nepal for the spring trekking and climbing season.
  
  Tower toppled
  The revered Dharahara tower collapsed in Kathmandu when the quake erupted, shortly before noon. Built in 1832 for the queen of Nepal, the tower was a 60-metre-(100-foot)-high landmark open to visitors for the past 10 years. It also had a viewing balcony.
  
  A jagged stump just 10 meters high was all that was left of the lighthouse-like structure. Several bodies were extracted from the ruins. Kathmandu is home to ancient, wooden Hindu temples.
  
  The Everest avalanches, first reported by climbers, raised fears for those on the world's loftiest peak, a year after a massive snowslide caused the deadliest incident there yet.
  
  In India too…
  The earthquake that hit Bihar too claimed 38 lives and left 133 injured, mostly in border districts of the north-eastern part of the State. The earthquake hit those areas of north-eastern Bihar, bordering Nepal which, two days ago, were badly affected by a thunderstorm in which 48 people were killed and hundreds rendered homeless. The most number of casualties – six each — has been reported from Sitamarhi, Darbhanga and Champaran districts.
  
  Reports of death have also come from Darbhanga, Sheohar, Katihar, Madhubani, Forbesganj, Rohtas, Chhapra and Vaishali. 8 killed in U.P, due to tremors
  
• China to provide 110 jet fighters to Pakistan
  Pakistan will acquire 110 latest JF-17 Thunder fighter jets from China as the two countries forge closer economic and defence cooperation following President Xi Jinping's visit to Islamabad earlier this week
  
  China will deliver the first batch of 50 jets over a period of three years. The head of Chinese aircraft industry told a Chinese daily that under the contract signed between the two countries, Pakistan will receive a total of 110 JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft from China. It is not clear when the delivery of the remaining 60 jets will be completed.
  
• Russia lifts ban on missile delivery to Iran
  President Vladimir Putin on 13th April opened the way for Russia’s delivery of a sophisticated air defense missile system to Iran, a move that would significantly bolster the Islamic republic’s military capability. Russia signed the $800 million contract to sell Iran the S-300 missile system in 2007, but suspended their delivery three years later because of strong objections from the United States and Israel. Russia lifted that ban.
  
• UN imposes arms embargo on Yemen's Houthi rebels
  The UN Security Council has imposed an arms embargo on Yemen's Houthi rebels and its allies including former President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his son, Ahmed Saleh. It passed a resolution on 13th April calling on the rebels to withdraw from areas they have seized, including capital Sanaa. 14 countries voted in favor of the resolution while Russia abstained. Russia, one of the five permanent members of the Council, said the embargo should have been imposed on the whole country. The UNSC also imposed a global asset freeze and travel ban on Ahmed Saleh and rebel leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi.
  
  A Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign two weeks ago to stop the rebels from advancing and restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Air strikes and fighting on the ground have pushed Yemen towards collapse. The United Nations said, at least 736 people have been killed and 2,700 injured since the 26th of last month, but officials believe the actual death toll may be far higher.
  
  India had launched a massive rescue operation to evacuate its nationals from the war-ravaged country. Over 4,700 have been brought back home safely. Nearly 1,000 citizens from 41 countries were also evacuated by India. Yesterday, India evacuated all its staff from its embassy in Sanaa. It had closed down the embassy on the 9th of this month after winding up the air evacuation.
  
• Obama to take Cuba off US terror list
  The United States will remove Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. The move comes amid a normalization of relations between the US and Cuba. Cuba's presence on the list alongside Syria, Iran and Sudan was a sticking point for it during talks to reopen embassies.
  
  Obama noted that Cuba had not provided support for international terrorism over the last six months and had assured that it will not do so in the future as well. The move came amid a normalization of ties between the two countries. The Caribbean nation’s presence on the terror list had been a key sticking point for Cuba during talks to reopen embassies.
  
• Pakistan Supreme Court stays executions by military courts
  Pakistan Supreme Court on 16th April ordered a stay on execution of convicted militants sentenced by military courts. The petition was filed by the Supreme Court Bar Association
  Chief Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk ruled that the execution of military courts' death sentences to those already awarded is suspended. The Chief Justice added that those convicted by military courts could appeal against their sentences. According to the court’s order, the death warrants of terror convicts awarded by the military courts in future will also be suspended.
  
• Julian Assange agrees to questioning in London
  The WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has agreed to be questioned at Ecuador’s London embassy over allegations of sexual assault. His Swedish lawyer said that Assange has been in imposed house arrest in the embassy since June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over allegations of assaulting two women in 2010.
  
• Pakistan, Sri Lanka ink N-deal
  Pakistan and Sri Lanka on 6th April signed six agreements including one on nuclear cooperation, two months after Sri Lanka inked an atomic deal with India.
  
  The agreements were signed after Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had a meeting with visiting Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena. The two countries signed a Memorandum of Understating for cooperation between Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission and Atomic Energy Authority of Sri Lanka.
  
• UN sanctions Pakisthn Taliban chief
  The UN Security Council has slapped sanctions on Pakistan Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah, mastermind of the Peshawar school massacre, for perpetrating and financing terror acts. Fazlullah was added to the UN Security Council Al-Qaeda Sanctions list yesterday and will now be subject to assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo.
  
  The Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan commander, nicknamed the "Radio Mullah", was seriously injured in air strikes in Pakistan's restive Khyber tribal area late last month. There were unconfirmed reports of his death in the air strike. The US had in January designated Fazlullah as a global terrorist and had slapped sanctions against him. Fazlullah was the leader of the Taliban in Swat Valley and became the Taliban chief after the killing of his predecessor Hakimullah in a US drone attack in November 2013.
  
• Oklahoma set to become first US state to allow nitrogen gas executions
  Oklahoma is set to become the first state in the United States to allow the use of nitrogen gas as a method of execution. The State Legislature has passed a bill, which now awaits the Governor's signature to become law. Several US states are considering alternative execution methods as they struggle to obtain lethal injection drugs amid a nationwide shortage.
  
• Seoul won WWF’s Earth Hour City Challenge
  Seoul city, the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea, on 9 April 2015 was awarded the title of Global Earth hour Capital 2015 after it won the Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) of World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The challenge saw the participation of 163 cities from 16 countries. The award ceremony was held in Seoul, South Korea. The city of Balikpapan, Indonesia was recognized as the Most Loveable City for 2015.
  
• Obama and Castro sit for historic US-Cuba meeting
  US President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro have met on the fringes of the Summit of the Americas, the first formal talks between the two countries' leaders in half a century. This is their first full meeting since the thaw began in December. Castro has called for the lifting of the US economic blockade on Cuba, in place since 1959.
  
  According to Obama the immediate tasks include normalising diplomatic relationships between the two countries and opening a US embassy in Havana and a Cuban embassy in Washington DC.
  
• Crisis in Yemen
  Yemen is in the grip of its most severe crisis in years, as competing forces fight for control of the country. Impoverished but strategically important, the tussle for power in Yemen has serious implications for the region and the security of the West
  
  In recent months Yemen has descended into conflicts between several different groups, pushing the country to the edge of civil war. The main fight is between forces loyal to the beleaguered President, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, and those allied to Zaidi Shia rebels known as Houthis, who forced Mr Hadi to flee the capital Sanaa in February
  
  Yemen's security forces have split loyalties, with some units backing Mr Hadi, and others the Houthis and Mr Hadi's predecessor Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has remained politically influential. Mr Hadi is also supported in the predominantly Sunni south of the country by militia known as Popular Resistance Committees and local tribesmen.
  
  Both President Hadi and the Houthis are opposed by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which has staged numerous deadly attacks from its strongholds in the south and south-east.
  
  The picture is further complicated by the emergence in late 2014 of a Yemen affiliate of the jihadist group Islamic State, which seeks to eclipse AQAP and claims it carried out a series of suicide bombings in Sanaa in March 2015.
  
  After rebel forces closed in on the president's southern stronghold of Aden in late March, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia responded to a request by Mr Hadi to intervene and launched air strikes on Houthi targets. The coalition comprises five Gulf Arab states and Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Pakistan and Sudan.
  
  Western intelligence agencies consider AQAP the most dangerous branch of al-Qaeda because of its technical expertise and global reach. The US has been carrying out operations, including drone strikes, against AQAP in Yemen with President Hadi's co-operation, but the Houthis' advance has meant the US campaign has been scaled back.
  
  The conflict between the Houthis and the elected government is also seen as part of a regional power struggle between Shia-ruled Iran and Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia, which shares a long border with Yemen.
  
  Gulf Arab states have accused Iran of backing the Houthis financially and militarily, though Iran has denied this, and they are themselves backers of President Hadi.
  
  Yemen is strategically important because it sits on the Bab al-Mandab strait, a narrow waterway linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, through which much of the world's oil shipments pass. Egypt and Saudi Arabia fear a Houthi takeover would threaten free passage through the strait.
  
  Houthis: The Houthis are members of a rebel group, also known as Ansar Allah (Partisans of God), who adhere to a branch of Shia Islam known as Zaidism. Zaidis make up one-third of the population and ruled North Yemen under a system known as the imamate for almost 1,000 years until 1962.
  
  The Houthis take their name from Hussein Badr al-Din al-Houthi. He led the group's first uprising in 2004 in an effort to win greater autonomy for their heartland of Saada province, and also to protect Zaidi religious and cultural traditions from perceived encroachment by Sunni Islamists
  
  Other important points: 
  • The Gulf Cooperation Council, led by Saudi Arabia, launched air attacks against Houthi rebel positions in Yemen on March 26.
  • The Saudis have deployed a large force with help from Arab countries such as Egypt and Jordan and others such as Pakistan and Sudan.
  • This military action — without UN sanction — has also involved logistical help from the United States. The ostensible reason for the Saudi intervention is to temper the rising Iranian influence in its immediate neighborhood.
  • The U.S. involvement — which seems to have bipartisan support in the U.S. polity — is more of a reflexive reaction to register support for its Saudi allies and for the besieged transitional government in Yemen. Saudi Arabia and its allies who have joined the effort allege that the Houthis are being funded and armed by Iran.
  • The Houthis are a Zaidi Shia group that had participated in uprisings against former Yemeni President and long-time ruler Abdullah Saleh and who had felt left out from the transitional government that followed Saleh’s rule.
  • It is the failure of the transitional government — which was set up with help from the Gulf Cooperation Council in 2012 — to accommodate the Houthis’ interests that fueled the insurgency. The Houthis have a large degree of control over many areas of northwestern Yemen, including over the capital, Sana'a.
  • The Houthi-led insurgency is not the only military conflict raging in Yemen. The al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) leads another insurgency in the southeast along with the Ansar al-Sharia; this one is a Sunni Islamist rebellion.
  • The regional intervention against the Houthis is bound to strengthen the AQAP. The inability of the ineffectual transitional government to effectively govern a nation that has steadily been divided on sectarian lines, and the weakening of the economy, have helped the various insurgent forces strengthen themselves.
  • The Houthi forces’ consolidation in the south could have presented an opportunity for a new, more inclusive and legitimate government following a ceasefire, but that option is now ruled out as the conflict has been effectively regionalised with the Saudi intervention. Yemen increasingly appears to be heading towards Syria’s fate — a nation torn asunder into enclaves controlled by sectarian and fundamentalist groups and constantly at war among one another. What started as yet another promising chapter of the Arab Spring has now taken a turn that follows events elsewhere in the region — regression into a harsh Arab Winter.
  
  Yemen worst country for women to live in:
  The World Economic Forum (WEF) recently published a report according to which Yemen is the worst country in the world for women to live in. The WEF's Global Gender Gap Report 2014 measured economic and social disparities between men and women around 142 countries to arrive at the conclusion. The economic and educational opportunities, as well as political representation and health outcomes are far worse for women than for women in these worst scoring countries.
  
  Take a look at 10 worst countries in the world for women to live in
  • Yemen
  • Pakistan
  • Chad
  • Syria
  • Mali
  • Iran
  • Ivory coast
  • Lebanon
  • Jordon
  • Morocco
  
  
• China releases details of Silk Road plans
  China has provided details about its proposed Silk Road initiatives, which would impact 4.4 billion people and, within a decade, could generate trade above 2.5 trillion dollars.
  
  A vision document jointly prepared by a composite team from the Ministries of Commerce, Foreign Affairs and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) — a top organization that steers the Chinese economy — has with precision revealed the geographic parameters of China’s “One belt One Road” initiative.
  
  The “belt and road” have two components — the Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB) that would be established along the Eurasian land corridor from the Pacific coast to the Baltic Sea, and the 21st century Maritime Silk Road (MSR).
  
  The “belt and road” run through the continents of Asia, Europe and Africa, connecting the vibrant East Asia economic circle at one end and developed European economic circle at the other, says the government report.
  
  The SREB focuses on bringing together China, Central Asia, Russia and Europe (the Baltic); linking China with the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea through Central Asia and West Asia; and connecting China with Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Indian Ocean.
  
• Myanmar govt, rebel groups sign draft cease-fire deal
  Myanmar's President Thein Sein has witnessed the signing of a draft ceasefire agreement between the government and 16 rebel groups. The agreement, which came after seven rounds of talks, is a significant step towards ending decades of conflict. Negotiators from the armed rebel groups still have to consult with their leaders before giving final approval. Rebels from the newest and most active conflict in Kokang did not attend the talks. The United Nations said the move was a historic and significant achievement and provided a basis for genuine and lasting peace in the country.
  
• Make food safety a priority: WHO
  The World Health Organisation(WHO) on 31st March urged each nation in the South-East Asia region to make food safety a priority. It stated that over 700,000 children die in the South-East Asia region every year due to diarrhoea and several other diseases caused by the impure food and water.
  
  Bacteria, viruses, parasites, chemicals, and other contaminants in our food can cause over 200 diseases ranging from diarrhoea to cancer. New and emerging threats such as climate change and its impact on food production; emerging biological and environmental contamination -- all Apose challenges to the safety of our food, according to Poonam Khetrapal Singh, regional director, WHO South-East Asia
  
  She said the countries must put in place comprehensive food safety policies and stringently implement it across the food chain. Food safety has been set as the theme for the upcoming World Health Day.
  
• Iran, world powers reach n-accord
  Iran and world powers reached a framework agreement on 2nd April on curbing Iran's nuclear program for at least a decade, a step toward a final pact that could end 12 years of brinkmanship, threats and confrontation.
  
  The tentative agreement, after eight days of marathon talks in Switzerland, clears the way for negotiations on a settlement aimed at allaying Western fears that Iran was seeking to build an atomic bomb and in return lift economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
  
  The framework is contingent on reaching an agreement by June 30. All sanctions on Iran remain in place until a final deal.
  
  Under the outline deal, Iran would shut more than two-thirds of its installed centrifuges capable of producing uranium that could be used to build a bomb, dismantle a reactor that could produce plutonium, and accept intrusive verification.
  
  The negotiations between Iran and six powers - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States - blew past a self-imposed March 31 deadline with no certainty that they would not end in failure.
  
  Iran agreed to significantly reduce the number of installed uranium enrichment centrifuges it has to 6,104 from 19,000 and will only operate 5,060 for 10 years under the future agreement with the six powers, according to a U.S. fact sheet. Iran will only use first generation centrifuges during that time, it said. One of the most sensitive issues during the negotiations, Iran's research and development work, will also be limited.
  
  High enriched uranium can be used to make a weapon, which they aim to prevent, while low enriched uranium is used in power plants. Iran has insisted it wants it only for a peaceful nuclear energy program and denies it aimed to build an atomic bomb.
  
  Under agreement, Iran will gradually receive relief from U.S. and European Union nuclear sanctions if it complies with the terms of a final deal. Some U.N. Security Council sanctions would be gradually lifted, though others would remain in place, specifically those relating to proliferation.
  
  Other important points
  • The joint comprehensive plan of action (JCPOA) on Iran’s nuclear programme is a significant breakthrough that will have long-lasting implications globally.
  • The 18-month-long negotiations between the various parties finally bore fruit had much to do with the fact that Iran’s current regime is headed by a pragmatist in President Hassan Rouhani who was elected in 2013 on the premise of bringing about an entente with the West, among others.
  • Iran has always maintained that its nuclear programme was meant only for peaceful purposes and that as a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it was entitled to enrichment of uranium for energy generation.
  • But the unrelenting pressure from the West in the past decade, including recurring talk of open hostility from the U.S. and Israel, had led to defiance from the Mahmoud Ahmadinejad-led regime.
  • Iran went on to expand its nuclear programme by furthering enrichment capabilities and building clandestine nuclear facilities.
  • These actions had invited sanctions from not only the U.S. and the EU, but the UN as well, which had hurt Iran economically and also made it difficult for countries such as India to engage in trade with the country.
  • India’s imports from Iran — particularly petroleum products — had been severely curtailed due to the sanctions.
  • The nuclear agreement with Iran should also help ease the long-standing hostile ties between the U.S. and Iran eventually helping to change at least some equations in the conflict-ridden West Asian region.
  
  
• 46 nations to join AIIB as founding members
  The number of countries applying to be founding members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank rose to 46 by the April 1stdeadline.
  
  The AIIB is a multilateral development bank proposed by China to provide financing to infrastructure projects in the Asia region.
  
  The growing infrastructure demand in cash-strapped Asian countries will necessitate the need for more than 700 billion dollars each year by 2020. More countries are urging Washington to approve IMF quota reforms to allow a better balance of power, but previous attempts to give greater weight to rising states have stalled out of national interests.Focused as it is on infrastructure development in Asia, the AIIB offers abundant trade and investment opportunities also for developed countries with advanced technology.