Thousands protested in Australia's Perth on Sunday, kicking off a nationwide campaign for gender equality as anger swells over rape accusations that have rocked the country's halls of power.

The Western Australian city launched the #March4Justice with a packed rally where people chanted "enough is enough" and held up placards demanding action to address sexual violence against women, local media reported.
More than 40 protests will be held across the country Monday, including outside Parliament House in Canberra, where the government has been roiled by sexual assault accusations in recent weeks.
Former government staffer Brittany Higgins publicly came forward last month to allege she had been raped by a colleague in a minister's office weeks before the 2019 election and then treated like a "political problem" when she told her bosses.
Attorney-General Christian Porter, who is from Perth, was then accused of raping a 16-year-old girl in 1988 when they were both students. 
He denies the allegations, which she took to police before her death last year, and the investigation has been closed.
Growing public outrage at the cases, and a perceived failure by the government to address them, has prompted many to hit the streets calling for justice.
Indigenous Noongar woman Dallas Phillips was among those who spoke in Perth, describing the "red-hot anger" of those who have suffered abuse.
-I applaud Brittany Higgins and other young women for calling this out and making a brave stand- WAToday quoted her as saying.
-There is an epidemic of sexism, of misogyny, of male privilege and entitlement, of toxic masculinity in this country. Compared to this epidemic, COVID is trivial- she said.
Under growing pressure, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Sunday he was prepared to meet with a delegation from the movement, adding that his government was "very focused" on addressing their concerns.
-Right now, the issue of violence against women continues to be a very high priority of my government- he told reporters in Sydney.
Australia's parliament has been repeatedly criticised for a "toxic" workplace culture that has allegedly spawned persistent bullying, harassment and sexual assault.
The ruling coalition has been accused of not doing enough to support female party members, including after a spate of women quit parliament ahead of the 2019 election, with several citing bullying as a factor.
Porter remains on medical leave in the wake of the allegations, as is Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, who is accused of mishandling Higgins' case.
Morrison has ordered an independent inquiry into the workplace culture at parliament.

More than 40 protests will be held across the country Monday, including outside Parliament House in Canberra

People marching during the #March4Justice campaign in Perth

Thousands protest for gender equality as Australia-wide marches begin

Floods and ashfall from rumbling volcano Sangay have destroyed around 60,000 hectares (150,000 acres) of land and crops across Ecuador, affecting 350,000 people, the risk management service (SNGRE) said on Saturday.

-We support the population affected by the fall of ash from Sangay and floods nationwide- President Lenin Moreno tweeted.
Moreno also announced the restructuring of "agricultural loans" and the dispatch of "teams to assist our farmers."
About 16,320 hectares have been destroyed by floods that have affected several coastal and Andean provinces since the start of the rainy season on February 1, according to the most recent report on the SNGRE website. Six people have died with nearly 18,000 affected, it said.
Volcanic ashfall from Sangay, which has seen an increase in activity over the past week, spewing vast clouds of ash, has destroyed about 43,000 hectares of crops, affecting around 330,000 people, it said.
Ashfall from the 5,230 meter (17,160 feet) volcano, located in the southeast Amazon province of Morona Santiago bordering Peru, had eased with none recorded on Saturday in the six affected provinces.
The international airport at Guayaquil, capital of Guayas province, had to suspend operations the previous week due to the ash clouds.
Sangay, 195 kilometers (120 miles) south of Quito, has been in constant activity since 1628, according to the state geophysical institute.
Ecuador sits in a zone of high seismic activity, with about 100 volcanoes in an "avenue" along its slice of the Andes mountain chain.

The international airport at Guayaquil, capital of Guayas province, had to suspend operations the previous week due to the ash clouds

The volcano Sangay has seen an increase in activity over the past week, spewing vast clouds of ash

Floods and volcanic ashfall affect thousands in Ecuador

Dozens of protesters kicked and threw rocks at a minibus carrying Argentine President Alberto Fernandez on Saturday as he visited an area devastated by forest fires, TV footage showed.

As he left a community center in the town of Lago Puelo in the southern Patagonia region, Fernandez had to take refuge behind a wall of people as a crowd of demonstrators pushed toward him and his delegation.
The protesters later stopped the bus carrying the president, punching and kicking it and throwing stones that broke windows in the vehicle, according to footage broadcast by the TN network and the newspaper Clarin.
Fernandez sought to downplay the violence, saying it was the work of a small number of people.
-I am sure that this violence was not taken part in by the people of Chubut nor by those who inhabit our beloved Argentina- he wrote, referring to the province the surrounds the town.
With few police on hand, the crowd managed to halt the president's bus and other vehicles in his entourage for several minutes, with some protesters throwing themselves against the hood of Fernandez's vehicle.
Once it was freed, several other vehicles snaked their way through the crowd and sped away with the presidential bus.
Clarin reported that the demonstrators were angry over mining projects in Chubut province, which is part of Patagonia, and with the provincial governor.
The fires that have blazed through Patagonia for days have claimed one life, while 11 other people are reported missing, officials said Friday.
Dozens of people have been evacuated from the path of the advancing flames, and around 200 houses have been destroyed.
The government said some towns were left without water or power.
The fires, which authorities suspect were started deliberately early this week, have reached several towns near the foothills of the Andes mountains, and have consumed about 15,000 hectares (37,000 acres) of forest, media reported Saturday.
The charred body of a rural dweller, reported missing since Tuesday, was found near the town of El Maiten, they added.

Alberto Fernandez on Saturday visited an area devastated by forest fires

Demonstrators shouted slogans and hit the van carrying Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez

Protesters in Argentina attack bus carrying president

A Hindu man was arrested on Saturday for assaulting a Muslim boy for drinking water at a temple in a city near India’s capital New Delhi.

The attack took place in Ghaziabad, a town in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, some 33 kilometers (20 miles) from the capital.
The accused, Shringi Nandan Yadav, was apprehended after a disturbing video of the brutal assault was widely shared on social media.
The clip shows Yadav asking the victim, Asif, his name and mercilessly thrashing him.
-We have arrested one person after the video went viral on social media. We are investigating to find out the exact reason for such behavior- Varun Kumar, public relations officer for the Ghaziabad Police, told Anadolu Agency.
Violence against Muslims and other minority communities has become increasingly frequent in India since the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, came to power in 2014.
-Attacks continued against minorities, especially Muslims, even as authorities failed to take action against BJP leaders who vilified Muslims and BJP supporters who engaged in violence- Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in its World Report 2021.
A particularly jarring episode was the communal violence that broke out in New Delhi last February.
At least 53 people were killed – a majority of them Muslim – and over 200 were injured, properties destroyed, and communities displaced in targeted attacks by Hindu mobs, according to HRW.
-A July report by the Delhi Minorities Commission said the violence in Delhi was “planned and targeted- and found that the police were filing cases against Muslim victims for the violence, but not taking action against the BJP leaders who incited it,” read the report.
Earlier this month, American watchdog Freedom House downgraded India’s status from a “free” country to a “partly free” country.
The group’s Freedom in the World report noted the “rising violence and discriminatory policies affecting the Muslim population” in India.
It also highlighted the “crackdown on expressions of dissent by the media, academics, civil society groups, and protesters” during Prime Minister Modi’s tenure.

Hindu man arrested for attack in city near capital after video widely circulated online

The attack took place in Ghaziabad, a town in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh

Muslim boy thrashed for drinking water at temple

Eight patients died Saturday in the Jordanian capital, Amman, due to a shortage of oxygen supplies, according to the state television.

The deaths have caused a state of panic in Al-Salt New Hospital in the central Balqa province, where the incident occurred, Al-Mamlaka TV reported.
According to the broadcaster, several patients are in critical condition.
In a statement, Jordanian Prime Minister Bisher al-Khasawneh said he ordered an immediate investigation into the incident. He said those responsible for the incident will be held accountable.
Health Minister Nathir Obeidat tendered his resignation following the hospital deaths.
Speaking at a press conference in Amman, Obeidat said he bears the ethical responsibility for the incident.
It remains unclear whether the dead patients were receiving treatment for the coronavirus pandemic.
Jordan has so far confirmed 464,856 virus cases, including 5,244 fatalities.

Jordan premier orders investigation into deaths

According to the broadcaster, several patients are in critical condition

8 die in Jordan hospital due to lack of oxygen supplies

Four people died and two more were injured Saturday after a military plane crashed while trying to land in Kazakhstan's largest city Almaty, authorities said.

-According to preliminary data, four people died, and two injured were sent to the nearest hospital- the emergencies ministry said in a statement. 
The plane was traveling to Almaty from the capital Nur-Sultan, the ministry in the Central Asian country said.
The Russian news agency Interfax reported that the plane belonged to Kazakhstan's national security committee, a successor to the Soviet-era KGB that controls the national border service. 
In December 2019, a dozen of around a hundred passengers died during a crash landing in similarly foggy conditions near the same airport. 
The Bek Air carrier that operated the aircraft has not flown since and had its license revoked last year.

The plane was traveling to Almaty from the capital Nur-Sultan

In December 2019, a dozen of around a hundred passengers died during a crash landing in similarly foggy conditions near the same airport

Four killed in Kazakhstan military plane crash: official

Nine more students than originally thought are missing after gunmen stormed a forestry college in northwest Nigeria earlier this week, a government official in Nigeria’s Kaduna state said on Saturday.

The revision brings the total number of missing students to 39 following Thursday’s nighttime raid on the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, the fourth mass school abduction in northern Nigeria since December.
Samuel Aruwan, Kaduna state’s security commissioner, said the missing comprised of 23 females and 16 males.
-The Kaduna state government is maintaining close communication with the management of the college as efforts are sustained by security agencies towards the tracking of the missing students- Aruwan said.
The armed gang broke into the school in Kaduna state, located on the outskirts of Kaduna city near a military academy, at around 11:30 p.m. (2230 GMT) on Thursday.
Aruwan said on Friday that the army rescued 180 people after a distress call in the early morning hours.
Kaduna city is the capital of Kaduna state, part of a region where attacks by gangs of armed men, referred to as bandits, have festered for years.
Military and police attempts to tackle the gangs have had little success, while many worry that state authorities are making the situation worse by letting kidnappers go unpunished, paying them off or providing incentives.

Samuel Aruwan, Kaduna state’s security commissioner, said the missing comprised of 23 females and 16 males

A view shows one of the hostels where gunmen abducted students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, in Kaduna, Nigeria March 12, 2021.

Number of missing Nigerian students raised to 39 after armed raid

Sri Lanka will ban the wearing of the burqa and shut more than a thousand Islamic schools, a government minister said on Saturday, the latest actions affecting the country’s minority Muslim population.Minister for public security Sarath Weerasekera told a news conference he had signed a paper on Friday for cabinet approval to ban the full face covering worn by some Muslim women on “national security” grounds.
-In our early days Muslim women and girls never wore the burqa- he said. -It is a sign of religious extremism that came about recently. We are definitely going to ban it.-The wearing of the burqa in the majority-Buddhist nation was temporarily banned in 2019 after the bombing of churches and hotels by Islamic militants that killed more than 250.
Later that year, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, best known for crushing a decades-long insurgency in the north of the country as defence secretary, was elected president after promising a crackdown on extremism.
Rajapaksa is accused of widespread rights abuses during the war, charges he denies.
Weerasekera said the government plans to ban more than a thousand madrassa Islamic schools that he said were flouting national education policy.
-Nobody can open a school and teach whatever you want to the children- he said.
The government’s moves on burqas and schools follow an order last year mandating the cremation of COVID-19 victims - against the wishes of Muslims, who bury their dead.
This ban was lifted earlier this year after criticism from the United States and international rights groups.

Minister for public security Sarath Weerasekera told a news conference he had signed a paper on Friday for cabinet approval to ban the full face covering worn by some Muslim women on “national security” grounds

A Muslim woman wearing a hijab walks through a street near St Anthony's Shrine, days after a string of suicide bomb attacks across the island on Easter Sunday, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 29, 2019. i

Sri Lanka to ban burqa, shut many Islamic schools, minister says

Russia on Saturday accused the United States of using IT opportunities to engage in unfair competition and of social media platforms arbitrarily and indiscriminately censoring content.

Russia this week said it was slowing down the speed of Twitter in retaliation for what it described as a failure to remove banned content. It threatened to block the U.S. platform outright, a move which escalating a row between Moscow and U.S. social media firms.
Twitter currently labels some Russian media “state-affiliated media”, a move decried by Moscow. President Vladimir Putin signed laws in December handing Russia new powers to restrict U.S. social media giants.
-[The platforms] do not, in principle, have unified standards for managing themselves. This is a semantic and technological stalemate- Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova wrote on Facebook on Saturday.
-Digital content is arbitrarily and indiscriminately censored by certain moderators without the decision of a court or a relevant, competent authority.-Twitter on Tuesday said it was deeply concerned by increased attempts to block and throttle online public conversation and that it was worried about the impact on free speech of the Russian action to slow down its service.
-Washington’s goal is obvious - to use IT opportunities for unfair competition in all spheres- Zakharova said.

President Vladimir Putin signed laws in December handing Russia new powers to restrict U.S. social media giants

Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova attends a weekly news briefing in Moscow, Russia February 11, 2021.

Russia, after Twitter slowdown, accuses U.S. of using IT to engage in unfair competition

A powerful car bomb in western Afghanistan killed at least eight people and wounded dozens more, authorities said Saturday, as the United Nations condemned attacks on civilians in the country.

The blast targeted a police headquarters in the city of Herat around 10 pm on Friday, damaging dozens of houses and shops, Jailani Farhad, the spokesman for the Herat provincial governor, told AFP.
-The death toll from a car bomb in the city of Herat increased to eight, and 47 others are wounded- he said, adding that women, children and security personnel were among the dead.
The interior ministry spokesman, Tariq Arian, confirmed the death toll, adding that 54 had been wounded. 
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the blast in Herat had no links to their group. 
However, the group's insurgents are active in the western province and have carried out recent attacks against Afghan government forces. 
President Ashraf Ghani blamed the Taliban, adding in a statement the group "continued their illegitimate war and violence against our people" and "showed once again they have no intention for peaceful settlement of the current crises".
Violence has surged in Afghanistan in recent months -- including a wave of assassinations against journalists, activists and civil servants, despite the launch of peace talks between the warring Afghan government and Taliban.
On Friday, the UN Security Council "condemned in the strongest terms the alarming number of attacks deliberately targeting civilians in Afghanistan".
It comes as speculation is rife about the United States' future in Afghanistan after a two-decade military involvement in the country.
US President Joe Biden is wrapping up a review on whether to stick to an agreement with the Taliban negotiated by his predecessor Donald Trump who wanted to pull out the final US troops by May.
The Biden administration has signalled that it wants to take a hard look at Trump's deal and its repercussions for Afghanistan and regional stability.
Washington recently submitted a draft peace agreement to the authorities in Kabul and to the Taliban, including the creation of a "new inclusive government," according to a letter from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that was revealed by Afghan media. 
Russia has backed the initiative, as global powers ramp up efforts to secure a peace deal and end decades of war

The blast targeted a police headquarters in the city of Herat around 10 pm on Friday, damaging dozens of houses and shops

Residents stand amid the debris of a damaged house after a car bomb blast in Herat on March 13, 2021.

Car bomb kills eight, wounds 47, in western Afghanistan

Boeing Co said on Friday private investment firm 777 Partners has agreed to buy 24 737 MAX airplanes with an option to purchase a further 60.Boeing’s shares rose about 1.6% in premarket trading.

Miami-based 777 Partners, which has a stake in Canadian ultra-low-cost carrier Flair Airlines, said it plans to lease the 737-8s to its affiliated carriers.
The deal is expected to boost Boeing’s position and provide the much-needed support towards a financial recovery after two fatal 737 MAX crashes triggered a 20-month safety ban on the jet.
-The 737-8 aircraft are a fantastic addition to our aviation portfolio and will enable our partners to leverage the jets’ superior economic performance to deliver low fares for their passengers while reducing their carbon footprint- said 777 Partners founder Joshua Wander.
U.S. airlines that had to park and retire aircraft during the coronavirus crisis are beginning to position their business for a recovery as vaccine distribution gains pace.
Ultra low-cost carriers, or ULCCs, are seen as the winners of the COVID-19 crisis as they offer a no-frills experience at low prices and charge heavily for extras like bags. ULCCs are pervasive in Europe’s fragmented market but are yet to catch up in the United States.
Reuters exclusively reported on Wednesday that Boeing is close to a multibillion-dollar deal to sell dozens of its 737 MAX 7 jets to Southwest Airlines Co.
Alaska Airlines agreed in December to buy 23 737 MAX 9 jets and European budget airline Ryanair bought 75 jets.
The single-aisle 737-8 can fly 3,550 nautical miles, about 600 miles farther than its predecessor.

The deal is expected to boost Boeing’s position and provide the much-needed support towards a financial recovery after two fatal 737 MAX crashes triggered a 20-month safety ban on the jet

A Boeing 737 MAX airplane lands after a test flight at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington, U.S. June 29, 2020.

Boeing secures 24 737 MAX orders from investment firm 777 Partners

Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has been moved from a jail where he had been held in quarantine for the past several weeks, and the TASS news agency said he was now at the penal colony where he is meant to serve out a two-and-a-half year sentence.

One of Navalny’s lawyers confirmed that Navalny was no longer being held at the Kolchugino jail in the Vladimir region northeast of Moscow, but said the legal team had not been told where he had been taken.
TASS, quoting an unidentified law enforcement official, said it was to the nearby IK-2 penal colony. A spokeswoman for the Federal Penitentiary Service said she could not disclose information on Navalny’s whereabouts because of laws protecting personal information.
Navalny’s supporters used the Russian hashtag #WhereisNavalny, writing on Twitter that the move was designed to prevent his lawyers and family from reaching him.
Navalny, 44, one of President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critics, was jailed for parole violations in a decision that the West has condemned as politically motivated.
He returned to Russia in January from Germany where he had been recuperating after falling ill from what German authorities say was poisoning by a banned nerve agent. The Kremlin has denied involvement in his illness.
Vadim Kobzev, one of Navalny’s lawyers, said he had visited Navalny at Kolchugino on Thursday, but that another lawyer had tried to see him on Friday only to be told that he was no longer at the jail.
-The prison said he wasn’t there and that’s it- Kobzev told Reuters, adding that Navalny was in good health when he had visited him the previous day.
Western countries have called for Navalny’s release, and the United States and European Union have imposed sanctions against Russian officials over the case.

He was jailed for parole violations in a decision that the West has condemned as politically motivated.

Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny attends a hearing to consider an appeal against an earlier court decision to change his suspended sentence to a real prison term, in Moscow, Russia February 20, 2021.

Kremlin critic Navalny moved from jail; TASS says he is now in penal colony

One person has died and 11 are reported missing as forest fires have blazed through Argentina's Patagonia region for days, officials reported Friday.

Dozens of people have been evacuated from the path of the advancing flames, and some 200 houses have been destroyed.
The fires, which authorities suspect were started deliberately early this week, have reached several towns near the foothills of the Andes mountains, and have consumed about 1,500 hectares of forest, local authorities said.
The charred body of a rural dweller, reported missing since Tuesday, was found near the town of El Maiten, they added.
-The fire reached more than 200 homes and there are still 11 people whose whereabouts we do not know- Environment Minister Juan Cabandie told reporters.
Overnight rains brought some reprieve. But several fires, though contained, are still burning, he added.
Dozens of fire fighters, aided by fire trucks and helicopters are battling the remaining fires in the provinces of Chubut, Rio Negro and Neuquen.
-There are people left without a home, with nothing. A lot of people are in need- Marcelo Cardenas, who said he lost his house and a workshop, told AFP.
-I lost my house, my dogs, and 60 chickens- added Rosalinda Muena, 70, who makes a living selling jam and eggs to tourists in the affected region.
Cabandie said the fires started simultaneously in seven different places, leading investigators to suspect arson.
Last year, blazes devoured tens of thousands of hectares of forest in Argentina. These, too, were blamed on humans clearing land for farming or real estate, according to the environment ministry.

Dozens of people have been evacuated from the path of the advancing flames, and some 200 houses have been destroyed

The fires, which authorities suspect were started deliberately early this week, have reached several towns near the foothills of the Andes mountains, and have consumed about 1,500 hectares of forest

One dead, several missing in Argentina forest fires

British police holding a fellow officer on suspicion of kidnap and murder said Friday a body discovered in the woods is that of a missing woman at the centre of a high-profile case that has stoked national anger in the UK.

The woman, a 33-year-old marketing executive, vanished while walking home from a friend's flat in south London on the evening of March 3.
The case has sent shockwaves through the London force -- and the wider public -- and triggered a debate about women's safety.
The latest development came as detectives said they had been given more time to a question a serving member of the Metropolitan Police's elite diplomatic protection unit in connection with the case.
-The body has now been recovered and a formal identity procedure has taken place. I can now confirm that it is the body of Sarah Everard- Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner Nick Ephgrave told reporters.
Ephgrave said hundreds of officers were "working around the clock to establish the full circumstances of Sarah's disappearance and her murder.
-A man remains in custody at a London police station on suspicion of committing those crimes- he added.
The case has sparked widespread anger in the UK, and on Thursday MP Jess Phillips read out the names in parliament of 118 women and girls killed in Britain in the last year.
-Dead women is a thing we've all just accepted as part of our daily lives- said Phillips, reading the names of victims whose killings involve a man charged or convicted. 
-Killed women are not vanishingly rare. Killed women are common- she added. 
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), a watchdog dealing with policing complaints, is probing the police over its handling of the case.
That includes probing how the suspect ended up requiring treatment in hospital Thursday for a head injury, which police have said he sustained while in custody alone in a cell.
The suspect, whose identity has not been released by officials but has been widely named in the media, was originally detained in Kent, southeast England, late Tuesday on suspicion of kidnapping.
He was arrested for murder the following day and is also being questioned on a separate allegation of indecent exposure.
The IOPC watchdog has said it will probe whether Met officers responded appropriately to the indecent exposure accusation, which occurred several days before Everard disappeared.

33-year-old marketing executive, vanished while walking home from a friend's flat in south London on the evening of March 3rd

The suspect, whose identity has not been released by officials but has been widely named in the media, was originally detained in Kent, southeast England, late Tuesday on suspicion of kidnapping

UK police identify human remains in missing woman case

Organisers of Pakistan's International Women's Day rallies have received death threats after a "vicious smear campaign" saw doctored images of the event circulate online.

Thousands took part in marches across the country on Monday calling for women's rights, but fake images of the events quickly went viral in deeply conservative Pakistan, appearing even on popular television shows.
In one clip, the sound was altered to suggest participants in Karachi were chanting blasphemous slogans against the Prophet Mohammed -- an act which carries the death penalty in Pakistan.
Another photo was shared by a politician and shown on television with the false claim that women were waving a French flag -- when it was actually the banner of a Pakistani feminist organisation.
Anti-France sentiments remain rife in Pakistan after French President Emmanuel Macron defended the publication of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed -- a red line for many Muslims. 
-This is a way for the conservatives to push us back and the eventual goal here is for the Aurat March to not happen again- said Moneeza Ahmed, an organiser of the Karachi march, who described the threats as "traumatic".
Organisers in Karachi were threatened online, while more high-profile figures in Lahore said they had received "serious death threats" via email, telephone and in text messages.
They did not want to be named for fear of reprisal.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said the "deliberate, vicious campaign" amounted to "an incitement to violence".
The annual rallies calling for women's rights have received a fierce backlash since they first began in Karachi in 2018, including legal challenges to have them banned.
In a society where women have been shot, stabbed, stoned, set alight and strangled for damaging a family's "honour", supporters have been accused of promoting Western, liberal values and disrespecting religious and cultural sensitivities.
Last year, Islamist counter-protesters hurled stones at women as they marched through Islamabad. 
A statement signed by feminist journalists and supporters condemned the "malicious circulation" of misinformation against the march, and warned that “using religion and accusing people of blasphemy has serious consequences."
-We’ve seen in the past how such allegations have led to people taking the law into their own hands- feminist author Nighat Saeed Khan told AFP.
Blasphemy is a hugely sensitive issue in Pakistan and while nobody has been officially executed, vigilante mobs have killed people accused of it.
In 2011, a provincial governor was assassinated by his bodyguard for criticising Pakistan’s blasphemy laws and for supporting a local Christian woman who had been sentenced to death a year earlier for blasphemy.
The woman, Asia Bibi, was in jail until 2019 when she was released and allowed to leave for Canada.

Thousands took part in marches across the country on Monday calling for women's rights

In a society where women have been shot, stabbed, stoned, set alight and strangled for damaging a family's "honour", supporters have been accused of promoting Western, liberal values and disrespecting religious and cultural sensitivities

Pakistan women's day organisers receive death threats

Turkey on Friday said it had established its first diplomatic contacts with Egypt since 2013 and was ready to improve relations with other rivals as it seeks to break its isolation.

Ankara and Cairo had a dramatic falling out when Egyptian President Fattah al-Sisi ousted the Turkish-backed Islamist leader Mohamed Morsi.
The two regional powers have since sparred over a range of issues and found themselves on opposite sides of the war in Libya.
But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been extending olive branches to his rivals in the face of potential sanctions from the European Union and a tough new diplomatic line from US President Joe Biden.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu first signalled earlier this month that Ankara was prepared to negotiate a new maritime agreement for the eastern Mediterranean with Cairo.
He told Turkish state media on Friday that the two countries have now made "contacts both at the level of intelligence and foreign ministries with Egypt".
Erdogan later told reporters that he wanted these initial discussion to lay the groundwork for possible talks with Sisi.
-Our desire would be to extend this process and strengthen it much more- Erdogan said after attending Friday prayers in Istanbul.
-Therefore, after these intelligence, diplomatic and political contacts yield result, we will take this to much higher levels.-

Emerging markets economist Timothy Ash of BlueBay Asset Management said Turkey's shift on Egypt represented "an absolutely incredible turnaround for Erdogan".

-Shows the new world order under Biden, or a return to something more familiar- Ash said in a note.
Turkey and Egypt expelled each others' ambassadors and downgraded their relations in 2013.
Erdogan has repeatedly referred to Sisi as a "putchist president" he holds responsible for the deaths of thousands of civilians.
But the strong-willed Turkish leader has said little about Sisi of late while toning down his language on a range of international affairs.
Turkey's resumption of talks with Egypt could potentially worry Greece.
Athens last year signed a maritime agreement with Cairo that laid claim to some eastern Mediterranean waters covered in a separate pact Turkey struck with Libya around the same time.
Turkey and Greece resumed the first direct talks over the dispute in nearly five years in Istanbul in January and are set to continue them next Tuesday in Athens.

Cavusoglu said on Friday that Turkey was also ready to improve relations with the United Arab Emirates -- one of its biggest rivals in the Arab world -- as well as Saudi Arabia.

-We have been seeing more positive messages lately from Abu Dhabi- he said.
-We have had no problems with them anyway, but they have had a problem with us. We are now seeing a more moderate approach from them.-Turkey's relations with Saudi Arabia deteriorated sharply after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Riyadh's Istanbul consulate in 2018.
But Cavusoglu said on Friday that Turkey was not treating the death as a "bilateral issue".
-They turned it into a bilateral issue, but we never accused the government of Saudi Arabia- he said.
A Turkish court trying 26 Saudi suspects in absentia for Khashoggi's murder this month refused to admit a US report blaming the kingdom's Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the killing.
The declassified US report said Washington had grounds to conclude that Prince Mohammed "approved" the operations since it fit a pattern of him "using violent measures to silence dissidents abroad".
Cavusoglu stressed: -We see no reason not to improve relations with Saudi Arabia.-

Ankara and Cairo had a dramatic falling out when Egyptian President Fattah al-Sisi ousted the Turkish-backed Islamist leader Mohamed Morsi

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu attends a joint press conference following a tripartite meeting with his Russian and Qatari counterparts, on March 11th, 2021, in Doha

Thousands protest for gender equality as Australia-wide marches begin

Floods and volcanic ashfall affect thousands in Ecuador

Protesters in Argentina attack bus carrying president

Muslim boy thrashed for drinking water at temple

8 die in Jordan hospital due to lack of oxygen supplies

Four killed in Kazakhstan military plane crash: official

Number of missing Nigerian students raised to 39 after armed raid

Sri Lanka to ban burqa, shut many Islamic schools, minister says

Russia, after Twitter slowdown, accuses U.S. of using IT to engage in unfair competition

Car bomb kills eight, wounds 47, in western Afghanistan

Boeing secures 24 737 MAX orders from investment firm 777 Partners

Kremlin critic Navalny moved from jail; TASS says he is now in penal colony

One dead, several missing in Argentina forest fires

UK police identify human remains in missing woman case

Pakistan women's day organisers receive death threats

Turkey, Egypt hold first diplomatic contacts since 2013

World

Thousands protest for gender equality as Australia-wide marches begin

Floods and volcanic ashfall affect thousands in Ecuador

Protesters in Argentina attack bus carrying president

Muslim boy thrashed for drinking water at temple

8 die in Jordan hospital due to lack of oxygen supplies

Four killed in Kazakhstan military plane crash: official

Number of missing Nigerian students raised to 39 after armed raid

Sri Lanka to ban burqa, shut many Islamic schools, minister says

Russia, after Twitter slowdown, accuses U.S. of using IT to engage in unfair competition

Car bomb kills eight, wounds 47, in western Afghanistan

Boeing secures 24 737 MAX orders from investment firm 777 Partners

Kremlin critic Navalny moved from jail; TASS says he is now in penal colony

One dead, several missing in Argentina forest fires

UK police identify human remains in missing woman case

Pakistan women's day organisers receive death threats

Turkey, Egypt hold first diplomatic contacts since 2013