Ex president nasheed nominated as speaker of maldives

The former President of Maldives Mohamed Nasheed has been nominated as speaker of new parliament or Majlis which will hold its first sitting today. Nasheed, who leads the  Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) was unanimously elected speaker by its newly elected MPs last night. MDP had won a record 65 out of 87 seats in parliamentary elections held last month.  Nasheed after his nomination said that the 19th parliament proceedings will be lawful and that the public will see a difference. The former President said that he accepted his nomination after considering the difficult situation within the party and out of respect to the wishes of party MPs. His comments came as there were reports that party was headed for a split as five MPs including two strong contenders had shown interest for the post of speaker. However, both of them proposed the name of Mr. Nasheed during the MDP meeting. President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih congratulated both saying that he looks forward to work with the new Majlis on behalf of all Maldivians. Meanwhile, the newly elected MPs will take the oath of office today. As per the constitution, the new MPs are supposed to elect a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker from its members by secret ballot.Another MDP MP Eva Abdulla has been nominated for the post of deputy speaker.

Taliban attacks kill 10 Afghan troops, 4 police Officials

One of the roadside bombings claimed by the Taliban killed 10 Afghan soldiers in the country's west while insurgent attacks on security checkpoints in northern Afghanistan killed four policemen, local officials said Monday.The soldiers were driving back to base after picking up their salaries in the country's western Farah province. They were travelling in a Humvee when the explosion took place on Sunday afternoon in the Bala Buluk district, said Shah Mahmmod Nahimi, a provincial councilman."The blast was so intense that no one in the Humvee survived," he added.Elsewhere, the Taliban targeted several checkpoints in northern Sari Pul province on Sunday night, killing four members of the security forces and wounding 22, said Zabiullah Amani, the provincial governor's spokesman.The attacks took place on the outskirts of the provincial capital of Sari Pul and triggered gunbattles that lasted for hours, he said, adding that 15 Taliban fighters were also killed.The Taliban claimed responsibility for the Farah attack in a statement on their website but did not make any announcements about the Sari Pul attack.

Wickremesinghe vows to stop Islamic State terrorism raising its head again in Lanka

Sri Lankan Premier Ranil Wickreme singhe has vowed to take security measures to prevent the Islamic State terrorism raising its head again in the country as he appealed to people not to support extremism or religious fanaticism. The premier after meeting with a group of representatives of civil societies and trade union collective at Temple Trees on Saturday said the security forces and police have been able to apprehend everyone involved in the Easter Sunday attacks that killed 258 people, the Colombo Page reported. But this doesn't mean that this is the end of this type of terrorism. We now have to take certain measures of counterterrorism to ensure that the country will not face terrorism again, he cautioned. He said the government is discussing the counterterrorism measures that are being taken, with the country still on edge after the attacks on three hotels and three churches that were blamed on a local jihadi group, the National Thowheeth Jama'ath (NTJ). The Islamic State group has also claimed a role in the attacks. He pointed out that the attacks in Sri Lanka is one instance that the ISIS did not have the support of the local Muslim community for their actions and that should be maintained. Prime Minister Wickreme singhe requested not to drive people to extremism by supporting religious fanaticism and racism."We have also had the help of the Muslim community in bringing about many changes and suggestions - Madrasa education bill not allowing sharia universities, ensuring name boards in only the three national languages," the premier said. The premier responded, saying the parliamentary select committee (PSC) has been appointed to investigate the issue. "We must maintain it that way and not allow extremism to come in, racial and religious hatred to come in, whereby driving some people to the other side," he said. Christians make up 7.6 per cent and Muslims 10 per cent of mainly Buddhist Sri Lanka. 

At least 29 inmates killed in clashes at Venezuela jail

The bloodshed incident occured at the police station jail in the town of Acarigua, in Portuguesa state, occurred when police special forces (FAES) tried to stop a "massive prison break" which resulted in the deaths of 29 inmates, according to Portuguesa public security secretary Oscar Valero.The prisoners received the officers with "a hail of gunfire" while detonating three grenades, which injured 19 police, Valero told reporters.The Una Ventana a la Libertad NGO, which defends prisoner rights, director Carlos Nieto said the clashes broke out when the FAES attempted to rescue visitors who had been taken hostage Thursday by the "pran" – the leader of the inmates – at the jail."This morning (authorities) sent the FAES and there was a clash. The detainees had weapons, they shot at the police. Apparently they also detonated two grenades," Nieto told press.The inmates’ leader, Wilfredo. The prisons ministry did not comment on the incident, saying police station jails are not under its control.A video shared on social media shows an inmate – believed to be Ramos – with his face partly covered while brandishing a pistol and what appears to be grenades, and threatening two women."It’s our lives (on the line) and those of the visitors here," he says, as a woman pleads for help, while warning the police to stay out because "I’m prepared to die."There are around 500 of them in the country, holding 55,000 people even though their total capacity is just 8,000, the NGO added.The Acarigua jail has capacity for 60 inmates but was holding 500, according to the police report.Venezuela has one of the worst records for prison violence in the region.In March 2018, 68 inmates died in a fire at a police jail in the northern city of Valencia.And in August 2017, a riot at a facility in the southern Amazonas state left 37 prisoners dead.More than 400 people are believed to have been killed in Venezuelan jails since 2011, while human rights organizations also say they face a lack of food and medicines – like much of the country – while the facilities are beset by corruption.