Tag: Netherlands

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-20

About: the world this week, 12 May 2024 to 18 May 2024: Israel tunnels on; Russia pushes in Ukraine; Darfur-a forgotten war; Netherlands swings right; Slovakia’s PM is shot; India’s Elections, and a Billboard crash; and the Eurovision 2024 results.

Everywhere

Israel in Rafah

Israel has amassed enough troops at the edge of Rafah in the Gaza Strip to move forward with a full scale invasion while conducting precision strikes in the region. Israel Defence Forces (IDF) attacked and destroyed a Hamas Command & Control Center, located within a United Nations (UN) Compound. Video footage showed Hamas Terrorists liberally using UN Vehicles, as if it belongs to them.

Meanwhile, Israel ordered evacuation of civilians in many areas of Rafah for the moves ahead. And the rockets kept coming into Israel from Lebanon, and from Hamas inside the Gaza.

In a turn-around, the United States (US) resumed supply of weapons to Israel, perhaps seeing the steely resolve of Israel to enter Rafah. Then, there is talk about the ‘Day After’, when all this is over, and what happens next in the Gaza Strip.

Across the world Jewish people – especially in America and Britain – continue to be targets of pro-Palestinians, preventing them from going about their work and even attacking them, only because they are Jews. Anti-semitism getting a stranglehold in these parts.

Towards the end of the week, on entering Rafah, the IDF recovered the decomposed bodies of three Israeli hostages who were kidnapped from the Nova Festival on 7th October 2023, and held by Hamas in Gaza, Amit Bouskila (28), Shani Louk (23), and Itzhak Gelerenter (53). Israel was shocked and devastated. The also found numerous tunnels, and 50 of them ‘effortlessly’ crossing the border into Egypt. More, next week.

Ukraine

In the other war, in Ukraine, Russia is pushing into north-eastern Ukraine after making major advances over the past week. This is Russia’s most significant gains since Ukraine re-captured the Kharkiv region in 2022. More than 7500 people have been evacuated from the region. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, made a surprise visit to Ukraine’s capital Kyiv to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky and reassure support. He announced that US military assistance has started arriving in Ukraine after months of delays.

The Forgotten Conflict

Over the past four years, the remote Sudanese region of Darfur has been the scene of a bloody conflict that has led to the death of thousands and the displacement of more than two million people.

The United Nations (UN) calls it ‘the world’s worst humanitarian crisis’ and the United States calls it ‘genocide’. Some 9 million people require humanitarian assistance and about 4,000 people have been targeted and killed because of their ethnicity. The UN says a staggering 24.8 million across Sudan-almost one in two people in the country-now require help from the UN and aid partners.

Darfur lies in the western part of the Sudan, Africa’s third largest country, bordering Libya, Chad, and the Central African Republic. The population of Darfur estimated in 2002 was about six million, 80% of whom live in the rural areas.

The name ‘Darfur’ is derived from the word, ‘dar fur ‘, meaning the ‘Land of the Fur’, in Arabic. The Fur tribe once ruled the Islamic Sultanate of Darfur until the killing of the last Sultan of Darfur in the year 1916, after which the Sultanate was incorporated into the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan and came under British-Egyptian rule. Today, Darfur is home to approximately 80 tribes and ethnic groups consisting of nomadic and sedentary communities.

Labelling the ongoing conflict as one between ‘Arabs’ and ‘Black Africans’ could be misleading: there are no visible racial or religious differences between the warring factions in Darfur. All parties involved in the conflict are equally indigenous, equally black, and equally Muslim. Darfurians represent a multitude of ethnic and linguistic groups that include non-Arabic speaking groups such as, the Fur, Masalit, Zaghawa, Tunjur, and Daju, as well as Arabic-speaking such as Rizaiqat, Missairiyya, Taisha, Beni Helba, and Mahamid, among others.

A long history of internal migration, mixing, and intermarriage in Darfur has created remarkable ethnic fluidity: ethnic labels are often used only as a matter of convenience. For instance, in the Darfur context, for the most part, the term ‘Arab’ is used as an occupational rather than an ethnic label, for the majority of the Arabic speaking groups are pastoralists. On the other hand, most of the non-Arab groups are sedentary farmers. However, even these occupational boundaries are often crossed.

For several centuries, the Fur was the dominant political power in the region, particularly in the pre-colonial era. In the seventeenth century they established a kingdom that shared many of the characteristics of other Muslim states in the Sahelian belt (the region south of the Sahara Desert, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west, to the Nile basin in the east.) From its capital at Al-Fasher, the Darfur kingdom established extensive political and commercial links with these states as well as with Egypt and North Africa.

The Darfur conflict began in 2003 when rebels launched an insurrection to protest what they claimed was the Sudanese Government’s disregard for the western region and its non-Arab population. The situation escalated when rebels, particularly the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), took up arms against the Government, protesting the unequal distribution of economic resources.

In response, the government headed by then President, Omar al-Bashir, equipped and supported Arab militia-which came to be known as Janjaweed-to fight the rebels in Darfur. The militias, however, also terrorised the civilians in the region and prevented international aid organisations from delivering much-needed food and medical supplies.

This conflict clearly pitted Sudanese Government forces, supported by the Janjaweed, against rebel groups resisting the autocratic rule of President Omar al-Bashir. The result was a devastating toll on Darfur. About 300,000 people lost their lives, and millions were displaced, including 400,000 refugees who were forced to flee to camps in the neighbouring country of Chad. In response to these atrocities, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants against several Sudanese senior officials, including Omar al-Bashir, on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur.

Despite a 2004 cease-fire and the presence of African Union (AU) troops that followed, by 2007 the conflict and resulting humanitarian crisis had left hundreds of thousands of people dead and more than two million displaced, internally as well as externally, as they were forced to flee from the fighting. In July 2007, the United Nations Security Council authorised a joint UN-AU peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) to replace the AU mission, although UNAMID troop deployment did not begin until 2008.

In July 2008, an International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor alleged that Bashir, as President of Sudan, bore criminal responsibility for the crisis in Darfur. The prosecutor accused Bashir of orchestrating genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in the region and sought a warrant for his arrest; the Sudanese government denied the charges and proclaimed Bashir’s innocence. In March 2009, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Bashir on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, but not genocide. The warrant marked the first time that the ICC had sought the arrest of a sitting head of state. A year later, in July, another warrant was issued for Bashir on the charge of genocide.

Bashir was removed from power in 2018, which led to the formation of a Transitional Government under a Transitional Military Council (TMC) in September 2019. It carried out ambitious economic reforms and engaged in peace negotiations with armed groups leading to the signing of the Juba Peace Agreement in 2020, with almost all opposition groups. However, a year later in October 2021 the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) took over the country in a military coup. The then Prime Minister of the Transitional Government stepped down in January 2022 after efforts to reach a political settlement failed. A second attempt was made in January 2023. However, a consensus could not be reached and the political deadlock continues. The failed political process saw an eruption of a yet another conflict between the SAF and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which continues to this day.

The RSF evolved from the Janjaweed militia in the year 2013, and was used as border guards. And in the year 2015 it was granted the status of a regular force. In the year 2017, a law was passed legitimising the RSF as an independent security force. The Army and pro-democracy voices have demanded the RSF’s integration in the regular Armed Forces, which the RSF has resisted as this would lead to loss of power. The RSF is commanded by General Mohamed Hamden Dagalo commonly know as ‘Hemedti’ or ‘Little Mohamad’. He is one for the most powerful persons in Sudan and was formerly Deputy-Head of the TMC.

The once emerging potential of Sudan now lies in tatters, with conflict after conflict consuming the country. For most of its independent history, Sudan has faced substantial internal conflict rending it unable to play a leadership role in the region. This includes some of the longest lasting civil wars in Africa running in the country. South Sudan seceded from Sudan in 2011 and became an independent state of Africa.

This week, heavy fighting in and around the Town of El Fasher between the SAF and the RSF resulted in death of dozens of civilians.

Netherlands

This week, anti-Islam firebrand and populist leader Geert Wilders announced that he has managed to form a coalition government with three other right-wing parties veering Netherlands towards the hard right. This is the culmination of almost 6 months of tumultuous negotiations – after the General Elections. It is still unclear who would be the next Dutch Prime Minister, but it will not be Wilders, who gave up the chance in a bid to secure a deal. Wilder’s, Party of Freedom (PVV), will go into government with the conservative Liberal Party (VVD), the centrist New Social Contract (NSC), and the Farmer Citizen Movement (BBB).

The PVV, led by Geert Wilders, won a shock victory in the Netherlands’ Parliamentary Elections, six months ago, winning 37 of the 150 seats, but it was not good enough to form a government on its own.

Slovakia

This week, Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico, 59 was shot and injured outside the House of Culture in the town of Handlova, where he had been meeting supporters. A suspect was quickly detained. Four shots were fired after a government meeting, with one hitting the PM in the abdomen. He was rushed to Hospital when Emergency services dispatched a helicopter to air-lift him to the nearest hospital where he was operated upon. He is out of danger and on the road to recovery.

Handlova is located some 150 kilometres north east of Solvakia’s capital Bratislava. Security personnel were quick to cart the PM to safety while others grappled with the attacker, later identified as 71 year old Slovak poet Juraj Cintula. The reason behind the attack appears to be a politically charged one, with Cintula blaming Fico’s media policies for his drastic action.

Robert Fico is known for his pro-Russia, pro-Putin stance and has been a controversial figure in European politics. He has opposed supporting Ukraine against Russia’s aggression. Starting his fourth term as PM, Fico stopped arms shipments to Ukraine. Critics were concerned that he might steer Slovakia – a NATO member – away from its pro-western trajectory towards a path similar to that of Hungary under populist PM Viktor Orban.

India Elections

India’s Lok Sabha General Elections meander to the upcoming last three Phases of 20th May, 25th May, and 1st June. Four Phases have been completed and the wait for counting day on 4th June is excruciating. The high-voltage campaigning dropped down a few volts but the charge was steady. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) continues to brim with confidence in a winning a third consecutive term and gathering numbers of over 400 seats in the 543 seated Lok Sabha.

India’s Billboard Crash

In India, 16 people were killed and dozens injured when a giant 30-metre-tall Billboard, located next to a busy road in the Chheda Nagar area of Mumbai City’s Ghatkopar, fell over a petrol station and adjoining buildings crushing cars and trapping over 100 people underneath. This was caused by strong winds and rains during a thunderstorm on Monday, which also uprooted trees in the area. The storm brought traffic to a standstill in parts of the city and disrupted operations at the Mumbai Airport with at least 15 flights diverted.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) issued a statement saying the Billboard was illegal – constructed without their permission and standing for over a year at the location. Previously, the Billboard had been red-marked by Civic Authorities due to various violations, but no action was taken. The first notice, issued in March 2023, addressed non-payment of license fees. A second notice, highlighted damage to trees caused by Installtion of the billboard. The third notice, issued on the same day the structure collapsed, cited ‘unauthorised advertisement panels’. While the agency was responsible for the hoarding’s structural stability, records showed BMC’s garden department had separately registered police complaints that the Agency ‘killed’ trees that were planted on the periphery. The complaint was filed after holes were found drilled in the trunks of the dead trees in an attempt to inject poison into them. This had led to around 40 trees losing their leaves and eventually dying…a slow death.

The director of Ego Media Agency, Bhavesh Bhinde, who owns the Billboard was later arrested after a man-hunt. The 120×120 feet holding defied the permissible size of 40×40 and was erected on a 10 year lease and its weight was an astonishing 250 tons. The company had applied to the Limca Book of Records to recognise it as the largest commercial Billboard in India.

Eurovision 2024

The Eurovision Song Contest – the 68th Edition – staged in Sweden’s Malmo city ended late last week with the finals held on Saturday.

The winner was Switzerland’s Nemo -Nemo Mettler-a Swiss singer, who plays the violin, piano, and drums. His song ‘The Code’ won the contest giving Switzerland their first win since 1988. The Runner-up was Marko Purisic, a Croatian singer-songwriter, and music producer, known professionally as Baby Lasagna for the song ‘Rim Tim Tagi Dim’. In the third place was Aliona Olehivna Savranenko, known by her stage name Alyona Alyona, a Ukrainian rapper and songwriter along with Yana Oleksandrivna Shemaieva, known professionally as Jerry Heil, a Ukrainian singer, songwriter and You Tuber for the song ‘Teresa & Maria’. The fourth place went to Slimane Nebchi, a French singer-songwriter known professionally by the mononym, Slimane for the song ‘ Mon Amour’. Coming in at fifth was Israel’s Eden Golan for her song, ‘Hurricane’.

More historical stories coming-up in the weeks ahead. Sing with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2024-16

About: the world this week, 14 April 2024 to 20 April 2024: Israel & Iran; knives out in Australia; UAE goes underwater; India begins voting; and keeping a Princess & Future Queen safe.

Everywhere

Israel – Iran

In an insane move and probably a serious miscalculation, Iran attacked Israel launching over 300 drones and missiles into Israel. But, in an unbelievable military defence operation almost 99% of them were knocked-out by the combined might of the United States (US), United Kingdom(UK), and Israel. Actually, it was a multinational coalition consisting of, among others-a huge surprise-Jordon and Saudi Arabia!

Obviously, Iran’s action is a follow-through on its vow to avenge Israel’s attack on a ‘building next to it Consulate in Damascus, Syria’, which had resulted in the killing of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps Commander and his deputy.

Iran’s strike began with over 100 ground-to-ground missiles being fired from Iran into Israel. Simultaneously, drones and ballistic missiles were fired from its partners-in-crime, Yemen, Iran, Iraq, and Syria.

Tens of Israel fighter jets were immediately scrambled, which included F15, F16, and F35 planes. The Israeli planes flew deep into the airspace of the Middle East and began hunting the missiles and drones, detonating them one after the other. In parallel, fighter jets from the US and UK, along with other countries also took off from various Bases, and began to ‘hunt down’ the missiles. Whatever survived the fighter jet attacks and managed to reach Israeli airspace were immediately taken out by Israel’s Air defence systems including the Iron Dome, Hetz (Arrow) 2, Hetz 3, and more.

Israel and its allies mostly shot down all the missiles and drones and there were no deaths, but Israel says it must retaliate to preserve the credibility of its deterrents. Iran says it views the matter as closed but will retaliate again if Israel does.

What Israel will do next is yet to be seen, but the Iranian regime was humiliated that night, and to top that off, they are now waiting in fear to see how badly Israel punishes them.

Then late in the week, Israel carried out a surprise attack deep inside Iran’s territory, hitting an Iranian military base at Isfahan. The base is used by combat aircraft and military transport planes, likely with air defence systems – which seems to have been ‘defanged’ by the surgical strike. It is also close to a major Iranian nuclear facility for uranium enrichment. This strike was symbolic, sending a message that Israel is capable of targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities or anywhere in Iranian soil.

Israel had a point to make and it made it. What next?

Australia: Knives Out

Last Saturday in Australia, a knife-wielding man went on a stabbing rampage at the Westfield Shopping Centre in Bondi Junction, in Sydney’s Eastern suburbs, before a woman police inspector shot him dead after he turned and raised a knife.

The attacker identified as 40-year-old Joel Cauchi, was known to police in the neighbouring state of Queensland. Cauchi, wearing shorts and an Australian national rugby league jersey, ran through the Westfield Mall with a knife. He fatally stabbed six people and injured at least 12 before he was killed by Inspector Amy Scott who ran into the shopping centre by herself, confronted the terrorist and killed him. Incredible heroism on display.

The man first stabbed a mother and her baby. The mother Ash Good, 38, died from her injuries while her baby who was also stabbed has undergone surgery and is in serious condition. The knife rampage lasted 15 minutes.

It was revealed that police knew the attacker and was and on their radar. He had mental health issues in the past and there is no indication ideology was a motive in the attack.

Quick on the heels of the knife attack on Monday another stabbing incident took place at a Sydney church, which Police have declared as religiously motivated and a terrorist act. A 16-year-old boy attacked a Bishop, a priest and churchgoers during mass at the Assyrian Christ The Good Shepherd Church, which was being streamed online.

Four people suffered ‘non-life-threatening’ injuries. The attacker was also hurt. Police arrested the boy after the stabbing at the Church that injured Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, 53, and a priest. Both are expected to survive.

The video online showed the Bishop being repeatedly stabbed in the head and upper body during the service. He sustained lacerations to his head after being lunged at. And underwent surgery. A 39-year-old man also sustained cuts and a shoulder injury while attempting to intervene.

Ordained by the Assyrian Orthodox Church in 2011, Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel is seen as a popular and a controversial figure. His sermons have received millions of views on social media. But the Bishop has had a turbulent relationship with the Assyrian Church, reportedly being suspended for disobeying canons and forming a breakaway church. In 2021, Mar Mari Emmanuel became a vocal opponent of Covid-19 restrictions, describing lockdowns in Australia as slavery and arguing that vaccines were futile.

The teenage boy arrested after the stabbing attack inside the Sydney church was placed on a good behaviour bond after facing Court for a knife crime just three months ago. Police know the identity of the 16-year-old boy, but have chosen not to publish his name. The boy was charged with a range of offences, including possessing a knife, in November last year after an incident at a Sydney train station involving other teenage boys. The boy was found in possession of a flick knife and charged with being armed with a weapon with intent to commit an indictable offence, stalking and/or intimidation and recklessly destroy or damage property. He was on bail until his last court appearance in January, where his case was ‘proven’ but dismissed with a good behaviour bond.

Police said the suspect’s comments pointed to a religious motive for the attack.

“We’ll allege there’s a degree of premeditation on the basis that this person has travelled to that location, which is not near his residential address, he has travelled with a knife and subsequently the Bishop and the priest have been stabbed,” Police said. “They’re lucky to be alive”.

Dubai: Desert Storm

How many times we have heard this often repeated line – almost a cliche-‘The whole year’s rain came down in a single day’. The rain, tired of conquering the seas, the costal areas, and fertile hills and valleys turned its sights on the Desert and United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) Dubai, and Oman ‘came under its wing’.

This week the UAE was drowned in unprecedented rains brought by a storm that brewed over the desert, the heaviest experienced by the country in the 75 years. It brought much of Dubai to a standstill and caused significant damage. The storm hit neighbouring Oman on Sunday and then pounded the UAE on Tuesday, with 20 reported dead in Oman and one in the UAE.

While some roadways in hard-hit communities remain flooded, delivery services across Dubai, whose residents are used to ordering everything at the click of a mouse, slowly began returning to the streets.

Rains are rare in the UAE and elsewhere on the Arabian Peninsula, which is typically known for its dry desert climate. Summer air temperatures can soar above 50 degrees Celsius. Following Tuesday’s rains, questions were raised whether cloud seeding-a process of manipulating clouds to increase rainfall- that the UAE frequently conducts, could have caused the heavy rain. A UAE government agency that oversees cloud seeding denied conducting any such operations before the storm. But climate experts blame global warming for such extreme weather events.

Researchers anticipate that climate change will lead to heightened temperatures, increased humidity and a greater risk of flooding in parts of the Gulf region. Countries like the UAE where there is a lack of drainage infrastructure to cope with heavy rains can suffer the most.

Dubai, a city in the desert proud of its modern gloss, faced the towering task of clearing its water-clogged roads and drying out flooded homes. Dubai International Airport, a major travel hub, struggled to clear a backlog of flights and many roads were still flooded in the aftermath of Tuesday’s deluge.

Inking India’s Finger

This week, Friday 19th April, marked the beginning of the biggest Festival of Democracy the world has seen. The first phase, of the seven-phase polls, decides 102 seats in 21 Indian States for India’s 543 member Lower House of Parliament, the Lok Sabha. And after meandering through the rest of April and May concludes on 1st June 2024.

An average of 60% of voters in various States got their finger inked with indelible ink – to mark that they have voted. The aggregate voter turnout till 9pm was 62.37 % with the highest percentage in Tripura at 80.17%. In the previous Elections in 2019 the aggregate was 69.43% in the first Phase.

The process was by and large peaceful, except for incidents in the State of Tamil Nadu, and others, that names have been left out of the Voters List despite having a valid Voter Identification. The Election Commission of India needs to get its tails-up to resolve this problem. Violence was reported in some parts of West Bengal and Manipur and the voter turnout fell from the figure in the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections.

Tough being a Princess and a Future Queen

The Netherlands, a country of 18 million people, has low rates of violent crime – a safe country. Its royal family are sometimes called ‘the bicycle monarchy’ for their informal approach to royal duties. But there is a problem. Princess Amalia, 20, the future Queen of the Netherlands, has been living outside her country for the past year over security concerns. Amalia is the eldest daughter of the Dutch King Willem-Alexander and his Argentine-born wife Queen Maxima and will one day ascend the throne as the country’s next monarch.

However, the young Princess has been forced to leave the Netherlands due to kidnapping threats. This is based on intelligence reports indicating Amalia was mentioned in communications by organised crime groups, sparking fears she could be a target of attacks. Amalia has been living in Madrid, Spain for the past year but recently relocated to the palace after new measures were taken to ensure her safety. She made a rare appearance at a state banquet at the royal palace in Amsterdam with her parents in honour of the Spanish royal family.

In September 2022, the Princess began studying at the University of Amsterdam and briefly lived on campus with other students as she pursued a bachelor’s degree in politics, psychology, law and economics. However, soon afterwards the royal family said she had been forced to leave her student housing, citing similar concerns for her safety, and she moved back into the palace and became a virtual recluse. “She can’t live in Amsterdam, and she can’t really go outside (the palace),” Queen Maxima told journalists at the time. The Netherlands needs a Princess Shield.

More Princess stories coming in the weeks ahead. Build your Palace with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2023-47

About: the world this week, 19 November to 25 November 2023; Hostage release; Two fiery far-right Politicians win in Argentina and The Netherlands; Tunnel rescue; World Cup Cricket; and the Emmys.

Everywhere

The Hostage Release Deal

Israel’s Operation Iron Swords fights-on, and this week Israel began unravelling the tunnels beneath the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Video footage showed hostages being dragged into hideouts inside the Hospital, and it’s become a talking point that the United Nations and the Hospital Authorities knew all along that the Hostages were being held in the Hospital. And that there are certain portions of the Hospital that are strictly no-entry zones, with guns and ammunition being stored in them, and a command centre of the terrorist Hamas. But the onus is on Israel to prove it.

Israel on its part, arrested the Director of the Al-Shifa hospital and some Hospital Officials for interrogation and being complicit in allowing Hamas an ‘underground run’ of the Hospital.

During the week, Israel and the terrorist Hamas closed in on a deal to free hostages taken by the latter in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israel and a temporary truce in the Gaza war. The State of Qatar brokered the deal.

The deal will see the release of 50 women and children hostages held captive in Gaza by Hamas. In exchange, Israel will release 150 Palestine women and children held in Israeli prisons. Most of the Palestinian prisoners listed as eligible for release are male teenagers aged between 16 and 18 and a handful as young as 14, about 33 are women. The names published by Israel also lists the charges under which the prisoners are being held. Throwing stones and ‘harming regional security’ are among the most common, but others include support for illegal terror organisations, illegal weapons charges, incitement, and at least two accusations of attempted murder. Israel is currently holding about 7,000 Palestinians accused or convicted of security offences, according to Israeli and Palestinian rights groups.

The deal includes a complete ceasefire on the ground for four days, with Israel allowed to fly sorties over Northern Gaza for 18 hours a day. The deal also provides for between 100 and 300 trucks of food and medical aid, as well as fuel, to enter Gaza.

The first hostage release is scheduled for Friday morning. The truce will begin at 7 am., local time, with an initial group of 13 civilian hostages set to be released around 4 pm. They will be handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross and escorted by Israeli soldiers.

As soon as they are out, Israel will release 39 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. If all goes well, this process will be repeated over three more days, until 50 hostages are released in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, and a substantial increase in aid and fuel for Gaza.

With Hamas and Israel having ‘absolutely no trust between them’ and not seeing eye-to-eye on anything at all, the deal was forged and hammered-in by experienced negotiators in Doha, Qatar.

Late on Friday, the truce held and hostages consisting of 13 Israelis, 10 Thai nationals and 1 Filipino were released in Egypt. And Israel released 39 Palestinian hostages on its part.

Making Argentina Great Again?

Argentina has a new President-elect and a very different one: swashbuckling in fact, with untamed hair that refuses the comb.

He is Javier Milei, a volatile far-right libertarian Politician, an Economist, an Author, who comes fully loaded with radical ideas such as, vowing to ‘exterminate’ inflation; using ‘a chainsaw’ to slash government spending; ‘blowing-up’ the Central Bank; and re-introducing the US dollar as Argentina’s official currency.

Javier Milei, often compared to America’s Donald Trump, secured 55.69% of the vote. Of course, Donald Trump was quick on the draw, congratulating him and saying he would ‘Make Argentina Great Again!’

Milei’s victory sends a clear message: Argentines wanted change, and he was the candidate most likely to deliver. His rise to the top was swift, and he was relatively unknown before winning the primaries back in August this year. But his brash manner, radical campaign proposals, as well as his unruly hairstyle, got the voters to notice him.

In a country mired in economic crisis, where annual inflation is now over 140% and two in five Argentines living in poverty, a drastic new approach to fixing problems is perhaps a clever move. Many Presidents before Milei have tried, and failed, to improve the situation, so there was nothing to lose. The challenge will be how Milei navigates a country in crisis, away from campaign promises, and deals with the reality of trying to improve the situation for millions of Argentines, not making it worse.

Milei is the son of a passenger transport businessman and a homemaker, and his childhood years were marked by a tense relationship with his father. The only family member with whom he has a close relationship is his sister, Karina Milei, who ran his campaign. He calls her ‘the Boss’, and has repeatedly characterised her as the architect of his rise to power.

When Javier Milei was growing up, kids called him ‘The Madman’ because of his energetic outbursts. At the age of 18, Milei, who was then a soccer player, gave up the sport to pursue a career in Economics. He became famous for debates where he would hurl insults at his rivals along with his ‘Madman’ energy.

In an incident in the year 2018, Milei called a journalist ‘a donkey’ and a local court ordered a psychological examination after he refused to apologise for exerting ‘gender violence’.

During his repeated television appearances, Milei didn’t just talk about Economics and Politics: he also delved into his personal life and once presented himself as an expert in tantric sex, openly discussing how he had repeatedly participated in group sex.

Milei hates wokeism, hates socialism, hates the media, hates excessive government spending, hates the political elite… and loves his country.

Javier Milei comes across as a snake-oil salesman who is promising to stare down inflation with drastic libertarian measures. Members of his party have already said they expect the drastic policies will result in massive protests.

The Netherlands

Quick on the heels of Argentina’s swing to the right, the Netherlands followed with its version of a ‘Dutch Trump’ – America’s Donald Trump, flowing hair ‘et al’, is indeed on an aggressive expansionist mode. And the Windmills are spinning.

This week’s General Election results in Netherlands shocked Europe and the world. Dutch voters have thrown their support behind the party of a far-right icon, Geert Wilders,60 years old, causing one of the biggest political upsets in Dutch politics since World War II, and one that is bound to send shockwaves through Europe. The Elections were held on 22 November 2023, for the 150 seated House of Representatives.

Geert Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom (PVV), has claimed victory. He is often called the ‘Dutch Trump’ because of his bouffant platinum blonde hair, his firebrand rhetoric, his far-right leanings, and his anti-Islam stance.

With nearly all votes counted, preliminary results saw Wilders take 37 seats with 23.6% of the vote in the 150-seat lower house of parliament, more than double the 17 he won in the previous election. A jubilant Wilders said on the win, “I had to pinch my arm.” The GreenLeft Labour Party alliance (GL/PvdA) led by former EU commissioner Frans Timmermans finished second with 25 seats, 15.5% of the vote, and the liberal-conservative Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) led by the outgoing Justice Minister got 24 seats.

While Wilders’ PVV has come out on top at the polls, he will need the support of ‘many others’ to reach the magic number of 76 to govern the country. And he is wasting no time to stitch-together a coalition. He called on other Dutch parties to work together to form a government stressing that his PVV can no longer be ignored.

In politics since 1988, Wilders founded the PVV – the third-largest party in the Netherlands in 2004, placing anti-Islam policies at the heart of his party. He was initially a member of the VVD, which he later left owing to the party’s mild stance on Islam and immigration. He attributes his profound disregard for Islam to the time he spent in a kibbutz in Israel and also the assassination of the radical anti-Islam film-maker Theo Van Gogh, in 2004.

Wilders was born in 1963 in Southern Venlo, close to the German border, in a Catholic family, and has two brothers and a sister. His mother is half-Indonesian.

While he is known for his hardline politics, Wilders is also known for his pets. His two cats, Snoetje and Pluisje, have their own account on X with nearly 23,000 followers.

The focus of Wilders’ PVV is all things anti-Muslim. His manifesto says, ‘The Netherlands is not an Islamic country. No Islamic schools, Qurans and mosques.’ He proposes banning the headscarf in government buildings. On immigration, he has maintains a sharp anti-immigrant tone. ‘Asylum-seekers feast on delightful free cruise-ship buffets while Dutch families have to cut back on groceries,’ his party’s manifesto reads. And he has proposed immigration measures such as restoring Dutch border control, detaining and deporting illegal immigrants, returning Syrian asylum-seekers and re-introducing work permits for intra-EU workers. On foreign policy, the PVV proposes a ‘Dutch first’ approach that includes closing its representation in Palestine’s Ramallah and strengthening ties to Israel, including moving its Embassy to Jerusalem.

A ‘binding referendum’ on a ‘Nexit’ – the Netherlands leaving the European Union – is also in the manifesto, along with an immediate halt to development aid. Wilders is an outspoken Eurosceptic. He has also demanded the Netherlands stop sending arms to Ukraine.

Geert Wilders has often courted controversy for his opinions and even been convicted for his stance. In the year 2017, he called some Moroccans ‘scum’. “There is a lot of Moroccan scum in Holland who make the streets unsafe,” he had said. “If you want to regain your country, make the Netherlands for the people of the Netherlands again, then you can only vote for one party.” He was convicted in a hate speech trial over his promise to reduce the number of Moroccans in the country. His remarks and stance have made him a victim of death threats, and he has been living under round-the-clock protection for years.

In 2009, the British Government had refused to let him visit the country, saying that he posed a threat to ‘community harmony and therefore public security.’ He had been invited to Britain by a member of the House of Lords, to show his 15-minute film ‘Fitna’, which criticises the Quran as a ‘fascist book’.

Geert Wilders, is very popular in the American far-right circuit. In April 2015, he was invited to speak at the Conservative Opportunity Society, a coalition of right-wing politicians in the United States House of Representatives. “There is no moderate Islam. Islam has changed Europe beyond recognition,” Wilders had told the audience. “Our duty is clear: In order to solve the problem, we have to stop mass immigration to the West from Islamic countries.”

In India, Wilders gained prominence last year when he extended his support to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s, Nupur Sharma, who had received flak for her comments on Prophet Muhammad. Wilders had said that Sharma was speaking “nothing but the truth about Prophet Muhammad and his wife Aisha” and even posted in her defence on X, hailing her as a hero. In one post, he wrote, “Appeasement never works. It will only make things worse. So, my dear friends from India, don’t be intimidated by Islamic countries. Stand up for freedom and be proud and steadfast in defending your politician Nupur Sharma who spoke the truth about Muhammad.”

Tunnel Trap

The 41 workers (updated from 40) trapped in the Silkyara Tunnel on the Yamunotri-Gangotri highway of the Char Dham, in Uttarkhand since 12 November are beginning to see light at the end of their tunnel of suffering.

This week a crucial development in the rescue mission was the successful construction of a 6-inch diameter pipeline through the debris in the collapsed portion of the under-construction tunnel. And in a breakthrough a video was captured using an endoscopic flexi camera sent through a 6-inch pipeline, showing workers in yellow and white helmets receiving food items and speaking to the rescue teams, providing assurance about their well-being. This pipeline facilitated the delivery of food and essential items to the trapped workers, marking a significant progress in the operation.

The rescue operations are being carried out on a war-footing, and it is confirmed that all 41 will be rescued in the next few days. The authorities have kept 41 ambulances, ready at the tunnel site, and facilities are in place to airlift workers in serious condition. The trapped workers will be pulled out on wheeled stretchers one by one through the pipe that is being drilled to reach them. Some of them are expected to crawl out on their own.

World Cup Cricket

This Sunday was pregnant with expectations in every Indian home, that the Indian Cricket Team would win the World Cup given their superb dominating form throughout the tournament – they never lost a match. But then, Australia showed the world how seasoned they were and it appeared that the struggle to stay alive in the tournament provided the strength in their wings for the final flight.

Australia comprehensively defeated India in the World Cup final, first restricting India to a score of 241 in 50 overs – when the famous Indian batting line-up failed to crack the fireworks when it mattered the most.

Australia made a poor start to their batting innings, losing three batsmen for 47 runs inside the first seven overs. And India had the whiff of a win in sight and tails were up! However, Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne then built a partnership, adding 192 runs in 36 overs. Australia were within two runs of victory when Travis Head was dismissed by Mohammed Siraj for 137. Glenn Maxwell was the next batsman in, and hit the winning two runs to give Australia a 6-wicket victory.

One of the silent wonders behind the Indian team is Head Coach, Rahul Dravid – The Wall – who brought a calm and authoritative approach to the Indian Team. His influence resulted in India dominating the tournament except for that one bad day in office, in the Finals.

This is Australia’s sixth win – a record that would be hard to beat – and they have lots of lessons to teach India and the others aspiring to hold the World Cup.

Please Yourself

Emmys

The Emmy Awards or Emmys are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit in the American and international Television Industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, and most popular are the Primetime Emmy Awards and the Daytime Emmy Awards.

This week the ceremony called the 51st International Emmy Awards 2023 was held in New York City and awards announced. The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presented the Emmys to television creators and performers from nine countries.

India’s Actor and stand-up comedian Vir Das made it a night to remember, in New York. He was nominated for an International Emmy for the second time for his Netflix special Vir Das: Landing. He was nominated alongside Le Falmbeau, El Encargado and Derry Girls Season-3 in the comedy category. Vir Das won and shared the prize with Derry Girls – Season 3.

Vir Das dives deep into his childhood in India, the perils of outrage and finding his footing in the world of his fourth Netflix stand-up special. Derry Girls – Season 3 is about a group of working-class teenagers coming of age in the 90’s in Northern Ireland.

India’s Amul Brand said it best in its typical special advertisement to mark such occasions, “Our Emmynent Comedian! AMUL wins everyday!” That’s the taste of India.

Vir Das is best known for his stand-up specials and has acted in films such as Delhi Belly, Go Goa Gone, and Shaadi Ke Side Effects.

India’s Ektaa Kapoor was presented the 2023 Directorate Award for her trailblazing career and impact on Indian Television. She is the co-founder of Balaji Telefilms. She received the award from the famous Indian-American author and alternative medicine advocate, Dr. Deepak Chopra.

More stories will be landing here in the weeks ahead. Taste the news, with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2023-28

About: the world this week 9 July to 15 July 2023. A Defence Alliance summit; politics in the Netherlands; a disease outbreak in Peru; floods all over the World; poll violence in India; onwards to the Moon; Hollywood strikes; Badminton and Tennis stories; and a transgender beauty.

Everywhere

NATO Summit

This week, leaders from the 31 countries in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) military alliance met in Lithuania’s Vilnius, on a two-day event. They discussed the war in Ukraine, defence spending, and Sweden and Ukraine’s membership. At least one of those is making progress. Sweden is now on its way to joining NATO, after finally gaining Turkey’s support. As for Ukraine, NATO’s Secretary General said that the NATO will extend an official invitation once the ongoing war with Russia is over with an accelerated process. And in the meantime Ukraine will be supported with arms, ammunition, and kind, to keep up their spirits.

Turkey’s argument for keeping Sweden out of NATO was that it is harbouring Kurdish separatists whom Turkey has designated as terrorists. Sweden has toughened its stance against the PKK (the Kurdish militant group) and lifted restrictions on arms sales to Turkey.

Go Dutch

Netherlands is heading to the polls in November 2023 following a collapse of the current four-party coalition Government headed by Prime Minister (PM) Mark Rutte of the VVD – People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy. The other coalition parties are, Democrats 66, Christian Democratic Appeal, and Christian Union.

The coalition parties disagreed over asylum policies and were split in crisis talks chaired by the PM, late last week. The PM had been trying to limit the flow of asylum seekers, following a row last year about overcrowded migration centres, which were opposed by other coalition partners. Asylum applications in the Netherlands jumped by over a third last year to more than 47,000, and about 70,000 applications are expected in 2023. PM Rutte tried to force through a plan, which included a cap on the number of relatives of war refugees allowed into the Netherlands at just 200 people per month. A compromise proposal, known as the ‘emergency brake’, which would only trigger the restrictions in the event of an excessively high influx of migrants, was not enough to save the government. The four parties could not reach an agreement on migration, and therefore decided to end the Government.

Mark Rutte at age 56, is the country’s longest serving Prime Minister. He has been in office since 2010 – heading different coalitions. The current government, which took office in January 2022, is his fourth coalition.

The Farmer-Citizen Movement, which became the biggest party in the upper house of parliament after a shock election win in March this year, said they will not serve in any future government led by Mark Rutte. Wait until November!

Gulliain-Barre Syndrome

Peru has declared a national emergency after an unusual outbreak of rising cases of Gulliain-Barre Syndrome (GBS), a rare autoimmune disorder triggered by an acute bacterial or viral infection. The serious, but rare neurological disorder affects the nerves and causes weakness in the muscles, and even paralysis. Symptoms include back pain, numbness or tingling sensation in feet and arms, loss of reflexes and breathing difficulties.

Four people have died and over 180 cases have been reported. Peru had a similar outbreak in 2019. And now the country is struggling with the worst dengue outbreak in its recorded history, this year.

What does GBS do to the human body?

In a person with GSB, the immune system starts attacking healthy cells instead of sick cells. The Myelin sheaths (a layer that wraps around the nerve cells/neurons) of the peripheral nerves are attacked and prevents neves from sending certain information, such as touch sensations, to the spinal cord and brain. This causes a feeling of numbness. In addition the brain and spinal cord can no longer transmit signals back to the body, leading to muscle weakness.

Causes are unknown but it normally sets in after an infection. Two in every three people with GBS had diarrhoea or a respiratory illness several weeks before developing GBS symptoms. There is no specific cure but symptoms can be treated and the disease managed. On the positive side, it is not contagious and cannot spread from one person to another.

Floods

Floods in North India watered the states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, and Delhi – an outcome of the Monsoon’s torrential rains.

The summer Monsoon brings South Asia 70-80% of its annual rainfall, as well as death and destruction due to flooding and landslides.

In the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, flash floods over the last weekend brought down a bridge and swept away several hutments. Many districts in the State received a month’s normal rainfall in a single day.

Streets across the northern states, including in Punjab, Delhi, and Uttarakhand, were flooded. In some areas, rescue personnel used rubber rafts to rescue people stranded inside their homes.

Roads in several parts of New Delhi were submerged in knee-deep water as it was inundated with 153mm of rain, the highest in a single day in July in 40 years. The River Yamuna has crossed the danger mark of 206 metres in Delhi, prompting the relocation of people residing in flood-prone areas to safer locations.

Delhi, Punjab, and Himachal Pradesh have received 112%, 100% and 70% more rainfall than average so far in the current monsoon season that started on 1st June.

Floods are flooding the news not only in India but in the United States where deadly floods stumped the north-east, while heatwaves set to boil much of the southern and western United States, kicking off a week of dangerous weather as warnings about the climate crisis intensify.

Flash floods overwhelmed New York’s Hudson Valley. And flood warnings were still in place in parts of nearby Vermont this week, as the state capital Montpelier’s downtown was under water and officials fear a local dam could fail for the first time since it was built, threatening further inundation.

Japan too joined the flood-bath. Three people were killed and three others are missing in flooding in southwest Japan caused by the region’s ‘heaviest’ rain ever. Rivers overflowed and hillsides collapsed as record amounts of rain were dumped on parts of Kyushu island. The national weather agency logged 402.5mm falling in Kurume this Monday, the highest ever recorded in the city. Roads and power-lines were cut, and thousands were ordered to evacuate as further downpours were expected. The Japanese Meteorological Agency, said the rains were perhaps ‘the heaviest ever experienced’ in the region.

Poll Violence

A democracy places at its cornerstone a simple mechanism for people to choose who will govern the country or their immediate locality and deliver on improving the quality of their lives: voting. Periodically, people vote for candidates of political parties in free and fair elections – ensured by the ruling Government- which is almost always followed by a peaceful transition of power, at least in India.

In perhaps one of the worst poll-related violence seen in recent times more than 25 people were killed during the civic body elections in India’s State of West Bengal. The mayhem, intimidation and ransacking that have accompanied the Panchayat Polls in the State last fly in the face of fundamental principles of democracy and underline a stark reality: the fairness of the election is under a cloud.

Several districts reported booth capturing, damaged ballot boxes, and attacks on presiding officers. This violence is not an aberration in West Bengal: It is entrenched in the state’s political culture, with parties in government — the Trinamool Congress (TMC) now, and the Communist Part of India (CPM) and Congress before it — wielding it to control the street, and thereby monopolise state power.

This time, in village after village, the ruling party systematically used bombs, barricades and cadres to ensure that opposition candidates and supporters were unable to move about on polling day. Where they have the clout to do so, some opposition parties have acted in a similar manner. As a result of the violence in the run-up to filing nominations last month, the High Court had ordered that central forces be deployed in the state. But the onus of ensuring a safe election is not on the uniformed personnel alone-the political class in the state, especially the ruling party and State Election Commission, bears a lion’s share of that responsibility. From the 1960s until the 1990s, tactics such as booth capturing and intimidation of voters and polling officials defined electoral politics in many states, including Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Most of India has rejected that form of politics and moved on. However, West Bengal still lives with it.

India heads to the Moon

India aims to put its man on the Moon in the future. And in the run-up it’s testing out end-to-end capability in safe landing and ‘moon-roaming’.

Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Chandrayaan-3 is a follow-up on Chandrayaan-2 which got to the moon and its Lander swooned just above the surface of the Moon and crash-landed when the Moon was expecting a soft kiss on its rugged cheeks. ISRO is now wiser and hopes to keep the Lander ‘in check’ and from ‘falling too quick’ to the charms of the Moon.

India launched Chandrayaan-3 it’s unmanned spacecraft to the Moon with a flawless lift-off from base Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, this friday afternoon using the time-tested launch vehicle LVM3.

Chandrayaan-3 consists of a Propulsion Module (PM), a Lander Module – Vikram, and a Rover – Pragyan. The PM will carry Vikram, with Pragyan safely ensconced inside, on an orbit around the Earth; and then gradually take it into a lunar transfer trajectory after which it will inject Vikram into the lunar orbit at about 100km from the Moon’s surface. After orbiting around the Moon and getting closer, Vikram will be de-boosted to land with the Propulsion Module separating and saying good bye. Vikram will then softly touch-down on the Lunar South Pole region – previously unexplored – and after giving the Moon a few winks, will open its doors for Praygan to roll out and roam the Moon.

The Moon Landing is scheduled on 23 August 2023. If successful, India will be the fourth nation to land on the Moon after the United States, Russia, and China.

Hollywood Strikes

Hollywood’s Actors and Writers are on a strike. And this is the first time two Unions – Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and the Writers Guild of America (WGA)- are doing this together. The last time was in 1960 when future United States President Ronald Reagan led the strike.

Actors Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp are card-holding members of the SAG-AFTRA and are lending their fire-power and magic.

The strike follows a row over pay and the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with film studios and streaming services and failing to reach an agreement on how to go about it. The Unions are worrying about contracts keeping up with inflation, residual payments in the streaming era and safeguards against the use of AI mimicking their work on film and television shows.

Sports

This week, India’s Lakshya Sen, ranked 19th in the World, won the men’s single title at the Badminton World Federation (BWF)’s 58th Canadian Open 2023. He defeated China’s Li Shi Feng, the reigning All England Champion, in straight games, 21-18 and 22-20.

This remarkable victory marks Sen’s second BWF World Tour Title. His previous triumph was at the India Open, in January 2022.

Sen displayed amazing talent and ability to excel under pressure outclassing his opponent. The match was filled with extraordinary rallies, characterized by fast-paced exchanges at the net. Sen saved four game points in the second game before clinching the championship point with a decisive smash.

The Wimbledon Tennis Tournament is rallying to a close in London and in the Women’s Singles Finals it’s Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur versus Czechoslovakia’s Marketa Vondrousova. Both reached the finals coming through enthralling semi-finals at the All England Club, and are seeking their maiden Grand Slam title having previously fallen short in major finals.

Meanwhile in the Men’s Singles, Serbia’s Novak Djokovic beat Italian Jannik Sinner to enter the finals. Djokovic will face either Carlos Alcaraz or Daniil Medvedev, in Sunday’s final where he is bidding to tie Roger Federer’s record by lifting an eighth Wimbledon crown.

Please Yourself

Rikkie Valerie Kolle has made history as the first transgender woman to win the Miss Netherlands Title. It’s the first time in the Dutch pageant’s 94-year history that a transgender woman has been crowned winner.

It means the 22 year old will be the second openly transgender competitor to take part in Miss Universe in December this year. Rikkie says she dreamed of winning pageants like this as a child. “The journey started as a super insecure little boy,” she said. “And now I’m standing here as a strong and empowering and confident woman. I’m really proud of that”.

More gripping stories will be launched in the weeks ahead. Roam the world with World Inthavaaram.

WORLD INTHAVAARAM, 2021-28

About: the world this week, 4th July to 10th July 2021, a wonderful cocktail of coronavirus, happily married-ever-after, spelling, killing, political, death of a tragedy king; and ball game-football and tennis-stories.

Everywhere

Cocktail

It’s July and we have climbed over half the mountain height of 2021. Many had to use Oxygen Cylinders to breathe, to reach this top.

It seems like just the other day, in early 2020, when we first learnt to wear nose & mouth covering face masks-while some specialised in wearing stylish chin masks – wash our hands endlessly, and keep a measured physical distance from one another. The hugs and kisses shrank to ‘cave levels’. And we invented a new form of cave living called ‘Lockdown’.

We then quickly got our outstanding brains to collaborate and challenged the SARS-CoV-2 induced COVID-19 pandemic with brilliant Vaccines in double quick time. Pfizer, Moderna, Sinopharm, Astra Zeneca-Covishield, Covaxin, Sputnik V, Johnson & Johnson… became household names. And suddenly, we all became Google Doctors: never knew being a Medical Doctor was so easy!

When we thought it was almost over, there appeared fresh kids on the block: Waves-we called them. The first outbreak became the first Wave, then the Second Wave…and now we are living in various stages of Waves. Some just cannot figure out which Wave, though!

Then came the Coronavirus Variants furiously mutating to hijack the next available Greek Alphabet: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and now the Delta Variant is the most famous of them all, while other Alphabets are struggling on the sidelines to get noticed. The latest is that the Lambda Variant, at the WHO ‘Variant of Interest’ level, is ‘coming soon’. I hope we don’t run out of Alphabets…and Vaccines.

Never mind the Greeks, and the pandemic, I would love to move on to dance with former US President Jimmy Carter, 96, and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, 93 who ringed in 75 years of rock-solid marriage. Is peanut farming, and all that came with it, the root of their enduring marriage? When Jimmy Carter left the Presidential White House in 1981, he was 56 years old and deep in debt. Forced to sell his Peanut Farm Business, Carter started writing books to generate income. He has published more than 30 books from a children’s book to reflections on his presidency. Maybe a Titanic Jim-Rose love-story is in the works.

There is support coming for Jimmy Carter’s writing:Zaila Avant-garde, a teenage basketball prodigy has become the first African American to win the US Scripps National Spelling Bee. The 14 years old from New Orleans, Louisiana, spelled her way to victory with the word ‘murraya’, a type of tropical tree. To get to that stage she had to spell out ‘querimonious’ (given to complaint) and ‘solidungulate’ (having a single undivided hoof on each foot, as in a Horse). The home-schooled girl said, “For spelling, I usually try to do about 13,000 words, and that usually takes about seven hours”. Despite practising for so many hours a day, she describes spelling as a side hobby. Zaila’s main focus is on becoming a basketball pro. I’m sure she can spell basketball!

Assassinations are back with a bang. Haiti’s President Jovenel Moise, who took office in 2017, was killed during an attack on his private residence early on Wednesday. The attackers, believed to be mercenaries, stormed Moise’s home at around midnight and fatally wounded him. The first lady, Martine Moise, was also shot and quickly evacuated to a hospital in Miami, USA, for treatment. Haitian Police have detained two suspects and killed four others-all foreigners-connected to the assassination. The country has been reeling from violence for weeks and the acting Prime Minister, Claude Joseph, declared a ‘state of siege’.

Haiti’s President of the Supreme Court would normally be next in line, but he recently died of Covid-19. The acting Prime Minister Joseph has to be approved by Haiti’s parliament for him to formally replace the slain President. But without recent elections, the Haitian Parliament is effectively defunct. Throughout his presidency, Moise had repeatedly failed to hold elections at local and national levels, leaving much of the country’s governing infrastructure empty. Haiti is one of the poorest countries in the world. And natural disasters like the 2010 earthquake have only worsened the situation. An estimated 60% of Haiti’s eleven million citizens live below the poverty line.

In another assassination-an attempt-prominent Dutch Crime Reporter-Journalist, and TV Presenter, Peter R de Vries, 64, was shot up to five times in a Central Amsterdam street on Tuesday and is fighting for his life in Hospital. He is famous in the Netherlands for exposing notorious criminals and speaking on behalf of crime victims. The attack has sent shockwaves through Dutch society, which has for years watched De Vries on Television, handling-and solving-notable cases, including some of the most illustrious judicial errors in Dutch crime history.

Even before these assassinations, Hackers went on the prowl. And Russian-linked hackers, attacked software provider Kaseya, affecting thousands of businesses in at least 17 countries. They impacted everything from grocery stores to schools. It could be the biggest global ransomware attack ever recorded. The group, which goes by REvil, is known for hacking Brazil based, American meat processor JBS (Jose Batista Sobrinho) back in May- and bleeding the company of USD 11 million. Now, it’s demanding USD 70 million from Kaseya.

Meanwhile, faraway in Space, USA’s NASA, keep flying Ingenuity, which made its ninth successful flight on Mars on Monday, when it remained in the Martian air for about 166 seconds and flew as fast as 5 meters per second.

In another part of Space, nearer Earth, China started space-walking its Taikonauts, outside its work-in-progress Space Station.

Back on Earth, India’s Prime Minister decided that cooperation was lacking in the country and started a brand-new ministry called ‘Ministry of Cooperation’ primarily to kick-off the Cooperative sector, best exemplified by the ‘utterly, butterly, delicious’, taste of India, Amul kind. His Ministers called it visionary: on our part, we need to taste the results to decide. Having bought the butter, the PM went on to re-slice his Cabinet bringing-in fresh faces, rewarding performers with better ‘butter’ positions, and sacking those who slipped on the butter, through the past years. It was a massive shake-up, bold and beautiful, with old-on-old-heads, old-on-young heads, and brilliant degrees-graduate, masters, doctorates… making the grade. Stirred & shaken, India should do ‘butter-well’ in the upcoming days, weeks, months, and years.

Yesteryears ace Indian Actor, Dilip Kumar (born as Mohammed Yusuf Khan) – The ‘Tragedy King’ of Hindi Cinema- gave-up his last breath this Thursday at the ripe age of 98. He is best remembered for the epic roles in the dramatic Devdas (1955) and the historical Mughal-e-Azam (1960). Dilip Kumar is considered one of the greatest actors in the history of Hindi cinema, holding the Guinness World Record for winning the maximum number of awards by an Indian actor. In total, he acted in 65 films over a period of 50 years. With his low-key, naturalistic acting style, he excelled in a wide range of roles augmented by his good looks, deep voice, and superb accent.

Dilip Kumar was romantically linked with famous Indian actress, the Venus of Indian Cinema, Madhubala, for over seven years until they broke-up. Madhubala went on to marry playback singer and Actor Kishore Kumar until her death at age 36, when illness related to a congenital heart disease took her away too soon and broke many an Indian heart.

Dilip Kumar then fell deeply in love with Actress Saira Banu, who was 22 years younger than him, and married her in 1966. The couple did not have children. And lost what could have been a son, in the eight month of a pregnancy, in 1972. Dilip Kumar later married Hyderabad socialite Asma Sahiba, taking her as a second wife in 1981. That marriage ended in January 1983. But he always had Saira Banu with him… till the last.

Over the past weeks Dilip Kumar had been in and out of Hospitals, and he must have seen this coming. RIP Dilip Kumar.

Ball Games

The Sporting World was kicking-up to Open Stadiums without spectators or space-out ones. The Euro 2020 Football Tournament saw some real kicking around and Italy has reached the finals. England beat Denmark, also to reach the finals, which is their first major final in 55 years. It’s an Italy- England showdown on Sunday, 11 July 2021. Time to take sides and cheer your team.

The Wimbledon Tennis Tournament is coming to a close and Swiss Legend Roger Federer,39, got mauled by world No 18, the 24 years old Polish Hubert Hurkacz, who played fluent tennis to win 6-4, 7-6, 6-0 in the quarter-finals. Roger exited quickly and gracefully, waving to the crowd on his way out of the stage where he acted many a winning game – but not this time. Will we see him again at Wimbledon? Au revoir?

Later, Hurkacz was felled in the semi-finals by Italy’s Matteo Berretini who is the first to reach the Wimbledon Gentlemen’s Finals. Berretini plays Serbia’s Novak Djokovic who on Friday funnelled-out Canada’s Denis Shapovalov in the other semi-finals. Djokovic remains on course for a sixth Wimbledon Crown, and a 20th Grand Slam Title to go level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

Coincidentally, it’s Italy’s ‘ball-run of the year’ reaching the finals of major Tournaments in Tennis and Football, both of which are being played on Sunday, 11 July 2021. It’s going to be a hard-working Sunday for many of us fans. What with our legs on a football and the hands on a tennis racquet (and the TV remote, and a glass of…).

While the great oldies battled the grass to try to whack that ball consistently over the net, without forgetting the drawn boundaries, 18 years old Emma Raducanu who entered the Tournament on a wildcard saw the tennis balls as big as footballs, in a dream run.

Ranked 336th in the world, and rated only the 10th best female player in the country, Raducanu became the youngest British woman to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon in more than 50 years, after beating the experienced, in-form Romanian Sorana Cirstea.

Emma Raducanu was born in Toronto and moved to the United Kingdom when she was two years old. Her parents are from Romania and China respectively. Two months ago, Raducanu was sitting her final A-levels, in economics and maths, at a grammar school in South London. She speaks Mandarin, but said in English, ‘I’m just trying to stay here as long as possible’.

The long was cut-short in the next match when Emma sadly lost the match to Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic, when she was forced to retire after suffering from breathing problems, while trailing 6-4, 3-0.

Ajla Tomljaovic went on to lose to fellow Australian Ashleigh Barty in the quarter-finals, who keep her own breath to meet Czech Republic’s Karolina Pliskova in the Finals clash, happening this Saturday.

Emma Raducanu has left us gasping for breath. Must have been a terrible time retiring hurt after getting this far. I hope she comes out stronger and ‘wilder’ in her next Tournament.

And, of course, I would love to see Roger Federer play again.

More stronger, breathing stories coming up in the weeks ahead.