German president asks Poland to forgive Nazi ‘tyranny’

AFP, Wielun

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier yesterday asked Poland’s forgiveness for history’s bloodiest conflict during a ceremony in the Polish city of Wielun, where the first World War II bombs fell 80 years ago.

“I bow before the victims of the attack on Wielun. I bow before the Polish victims of German tyranny. And I ask your forgiveness,” Steinmeier said in both German and Polish. Poland suffered some of the worst horrors of World War II: nearly six million Poles died in the conflict that killed more than 50 million people overall.

That figure includes the six million Jews who died in the Holocaust, half of them Polish.

Netanyahu renews pledge to annex WB settlements

AFP, Jerusalem

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday renewed his pledge to annex Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank as he sought to shore up right-wing support ahead of a September 17 election.

Netanyahu and his Likud party have been working to maximise turnout and wrest votes from other right-wing parties close to the influential settlement movement.

“With the help of God we will apply Jewish sovereignty to all communities, as part of the (biblical) Land of Israel, and as part of the state of Israel,” he told an audience at the West Bank settlement of Elkana.

He made the same promise ahead of the last election in April, but the results left him unable to form a viable governing coalition and he opted for a fresh poll for September 17.

Pakistan hosts Sikh convention

India Today, Lahore

Pakistan on Sunday hosted the first International Sikh Convention at the Governor’s House in Lahore, inviting over 50 Sikh scholars from across the world, and urged the scholars to raise their voice against alleged “India’s human rights violations in Kashmir”, reports India Today.

The convention was aimed at showcasing Pakistan’s “readiness to safeguard the rights of the minorities” and stand by them through thick and thin. However, it fast turned into a platform where Pakistan called on the dignitaries to raise their voices against the abrogation of provisions of Article 370 that gave a special status to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).

Punjab Governor Chaudhry Sarwar, who was the host of the three-day convention, said, “Kashmir issue could be solved through dialogue if India shows seriousness.”

Lanka bans protests against Shiite pilgrims

AFP, Colombo

A Sri Lankan court Sunday banned two ultra-nationalist Buddhist organisations from demonstrating against a major Shiite holy day, the first on the island since the deadly Easter Sunday suicide bombings.

Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said Colombo Magistrate’s court issued restraining orders against the two groups led by Buddhist monks who planned to disrupt a gathering in Colombo of Dawoodi Bohra, a Shiite sect.

An estimated 25,000 adherents from around the world have been meeting in Colombo since Saturday for a 10-day religious event culminating with Ashura.