WASHINGTON: The United States on Monday blacklisted Russian President Vladimir Putin's reputed top enforcer and the prime suspects in the murder of ex-spy Alexander Litvinenko in London a decade ago.

The US Treasury added Russia's senior federal investigator Alexander Bastrykin and alleged assassins Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun to the Magnitsky Act sanctions list.

Announcing the decision, the State Department did not detail what the new targets are accused of, but the move comes at a time of increased diplomatic tension with Moscow.

"Each of the most recently added names was considered after extensive research," spokesman John Kirby said.

Kirby said the targeted names have "roles in the repressive machinery of Russia's law enforcement systems, as well as individuals involved in notorious human rights violations."

President Barack Obama's outgoing administration has accused the Kremlin of using cyber espionage, targeted leaks and propaganda in a bid to influence November's White House race.

US President-elect Donald Trump was angered when American intelligence agencies warned of the Russian hacking, alleging that they were behind a "witch hunt" to tarnish his win.
Moscow has scornfully rejected the charges, echoing Trump's "witch hunt" charge.

But Washington has already expelled 35 Russian diplomats in response and Monday's decision targeted a close Putin ally.

Asked why Obama's final update to the Magnitsky Act had still not included Putin himself, a senior administration official said Washington does not want a complete breakdown in ties.

Polonium-laced tea

"We need to preserve the possibility of working with Russia in areas in which it is in the US national interest," the official told AFP, on condition of anonymity.

"This includes pressing for diplomatic solutions to the crises in Syria and eastern Ukraine," he added.

"Our goal in imposing sanctions is to change behaviour," he said. "We have taken steps to make clear that interference in US democratic processes will not go unanswered."

Bastrykin is one of the Russian president's most powerful allies and is head of an investigative agency that had led crackdowns on domestic dissidents.

He famously once had to apologise to a journalist after allegedly threatening to have him killed, and he has targeted foreign NGOs accused of meddling in Russian politics.

Britain has identified Lugovoi and Kovtun as main suspects in the death of Litvinenko, who succumbed to radiation poisoning in London in 2006 after drinking polonium-laced tea.

In January last year, after a British inquiry, judge Robert Owen said he was sure that Lugovoi and Kovtun had put polonium-210 in Litvinenko's tea at a hotel on November 1, 2006.

Litvinenko was a former Russian agent turned freelance investigator who had collaborated with British intelligence.

The British inquiry concluded that the murder had probably been ordered by the then head of Russia's FSB intelligence agency and had been personally approved by Putin himself.

British intelligence

Lugovoi, a member of Russia's lower house of parliament, has denied the charge, which is based in part on still classified evidence gathered by the British security services.

Russia has refused to extradite the men for questioning.

The Magnitsky Act was originally passed to enable US officials to impose sanctions on Russians implicated in the 2009 prison death of Russian tax fraud whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky.

But more individuals have been blacklisted over the years.
The target list now includes 44 names of those whose assets under US jurisdiction are frozen, and who are barred from doing business with Americans or receiving US visas.

The act allows for the designation of those implicated in the murder, torture or persecution of those who reveal corruption in Russia, Kirby explained.

The US authorities also added two less well-known officials, Stanislav Gordievsky and Gennady Plaksin, to the list.

The Turkish parliament voted on Tuesday to press on with debate about a constitutional reform package that would expand the powers of President Tayyip Erdogan, taking another step on the path towards an executive presidency.

Erdogan and his supporters argue that Turkey needs the strong leadership of an executive presidency to prevent a return to the fragile coalition governments of the past, but opponents fear the reform will fuel authoritarianism.

The initial vote, an early indicator of support for the bill, was passed with 338 votes, indicating that some deputies from the ruling AK Party and the nationalist opposition MHP, which backs the reform, had not voted in favor.

The bill needs the support of at least 330 deputies in the 550-seat assembly to go to a referendum, expected in the spring. The AKP has 316 deputies eligible to vote and the MHP 39.

Under the reform, Erdogan will be able to appoint and dismiss government ministers, take back the leadership of the ruling party, and govern until 2029.

At Monday's debate on the 18-article bill, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the reform would resolve the problem of Turkey having two executive authorities.

"There needs to be one authority in the executive branch," he told the assembly. "Two captains sink the ship, there needs to be one captain."

Of the 550-member assembly, 480 lawmakers voted overnight, of whom 134 voted against the bill. The remaining votes were abstentions, unmarked or invalid voting slips.

Debate on the individual articles is set to begin on Tuesday and the AKP plans to complete debate of the package by Jan. 24.

The plans foresee presidential and general elections in 2019 with a maximum of two five-year terms.

JERUSALEM: Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank shot dead a Palestinian who attacked them with a knife overnight during an operation to arrest suspected militants, the army said on Tuesday morning.

A military statement said that no soldiers were injured in the incident at Al-Fara Palestinian refugee camp, northeast of the city of Nablus.

"An assailant, armed with a knife attempted to stab soldiers on operational activity to arrest suspects," the English-language statement said.

"Forces called the attacker to halt and, upon his continued advance, fired toward him, resulting in his death."

It added that others in the camp hurled explosives and shot at the soldiers.

Since October 2015, 248 Palestinians, 40 Israelis, two Americans, a Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese have been killed, according to an AFP count.

Most of the Palestinians killed were carrying out attacks, according to Israeli authorities. Others were shot dead during protests or clashes, while some died in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip.

Many analysts say Palestinian frustration with the Israeli occupation and settlement building in the West Bank, comatose peace efforts and their own fractured leadership have helped feed the unrest.

Israel says incitement by Palestinian leaders and media is a leading cause.

The Al-Fara incident comes less than 48 hours after a Palestinian rammed a truck into troops visiting a Jerusalem tourist site, killing four soldiers in a stark reminder of tensions despite a recent lull in violence.

The attacker was shot dead at the scene.

ISLAMABAD: A larger bench led by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa resumed hearing the Panama Leaks today.

In its remarks Supreme Court said that the apex court could not investigate and then give judgement like a trial court. "We have taken oath to uphold the constitution. We are not a trial court," it remarked.

Justice Ejaz Afzal, who is part of the bench,  said that disqualifying the Prime Minister over mere assumption will set a dangerous precedent. "How can the conflict be solved without recording evidence? Prime Minister's link to Panama and his speech are two different matters," he remarked.

The hearing was adjourned till January 11 (Wednesday).

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's lead counsel Naeem Bukhari continued with his arguments during the proceedings today. He said that finance minister Ishaq Dar's statement on money laundering was available in court records. "In September 1998 the report was sent to the Chief Justice and National Accountability Bureau (NAB). The report had been compiled by former FIA director Rehman Malik."

Justice Ejaz Afzal asked Bukhari to confine the case to the London Flats. "What is the point of bringing in Ishaq Dar? Is he among the respondents?" he asked. "Explain why NAB should have filed an appeal in the Hudaibya case."

Justice Asif Saeed Khosa said that the only way out is that the NAB chairman files an appeal in the court. He added that he should not have given an observation over Article 62 and 63, and he takes back his words.

Speaking to the media outside the Supreme Court, PTI leader said, "In 1999 Hussain Nawaz was a student. How did he become a billionaire in 2001?"

PTI spokesman Naeem-ul-Haque said that the Sharif family has been laundering money. "Hussain Nawaz sent Rs800 million to Nawaz Sharif. It's source should be revealed," he said.

In the last hearing, Naeem Bukhari presented evidence over beneficial ownership of the London Flats. He questioned Hussain Nawaz's source of income.

(GEO TV)

ISLAMABAD (AP TV): A parliamentary committee meeting over military courts led by the National Assembly speaker Ayaz Sadiq ended without any consensus.

All opposition parties demanded that the government brief them over performance of the military courts. 

Speaking to Geo News, leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah said the next session will held on January 17.

"The government will brief us over the performance of military courts," he added.

Sources told Geo News, that during the meeting the Pakistan People's Party opposed the extension of military courts.

Prior to the meeting earlier today, Khursheed Shah along with Naveed Qamar, met PTI’s Shah Mehmood Qureshi where they discussed their stance over the issue of military courts.

On January 6, this year military courts expired. After hearing 274 cases and awarding 161 death sentences in a two-year-long term, special military courts set up to try terrorism suspects in Pakistan have ceased to function, the ISPR announced on Sunday.

A total of 12 convicted terrorists have been executed since January 2015, when the courts were established through a constitutional amendment allowing them to try civilians on terrorism charges.

The constitutional amendment came in response to an attack by Taliban terrorists on the Army Public School in Peshawar that killed 134 children. The amendment included an expiry clause to keep the measure temporary.

The federal government has said it is in consultations for a constitutional amendment to continue with the military courts for a period agreed by all political parties in Parliament.

(Published by: GEo TV)

Democrats have called for US President-elect Donald Trump's naming of his son-in-law as a top adviser to be reviewed over concerns of nepotism and conflict of interest.

A group wants the Justice Department and Office of Government Ethics to scrutinise "legal issues" related to the appointment of Jared Kushner, 36.

His lawyer says the post does not breach anti-nepotism laws.

Mr Kushner is married to Mr Trump's daughter Ivanka.

The millionaire will step down as boss of his family's real estate business and publisher of the New York Observer newspaper in order to comply with ethics laws, his lawyer Jamie Gorelick said.

The influential Trump adviser will also divest "substantial assets", she said.

Mr Trump will be inaugurated as the 45th president on 20 January.

Several of his cabinet picks have business interests that will be scrutinised at confirmation hearings taking place this week.

Mr Trump's pick for attorney general, Alabama Sen Jeff Sessions, is first to face Senate confirmation hearings on Tuesday. He was turned down for a federal judgeship in 1986 because of alleged racist remarks.

Unlike cabinet positions, advisers are considered part of White House staff and do not not require approval from Congress.

Who is Jared Kushner?

Softly-spoken and usually camera-shy, Mr Kushner is a vastly wealthy property developer and publisher who played an influential role in Mr Trump's presidential campaign and has been included in key meetings with foreign leaders during the transition period.

An Orthodox Jew whose grandparents were Holocaust survivors, he was raised in Livingston, New Jersey, and went on to study sociology at Harvard.

His father, also a property mogul, was jailed for tax evasion, illegal campaign contributions and witness tampering in 2005 by Chris Christie - then the US attorney for New Jersey.

Jared Kushner is said to have played a key role in the ousting of Mr Christie, by then New Jersey governor, from Mr Trump's presidential campaign team last year.

Murderers and other criminals would be forced to give their superannuation pension to victims' families under a proposal in Australia.

The move would give victims more rights in the justice system, said Victoria's opposition leader Matthew Guy.

Mr Guy said he would take the policy to the state's next election in November 2018.

If legislated it would be an Australian first, Mr Guy's office said.

"When someone commits a murder, particularly in horrendous circumstances - takes the life of another individual - they forfeit their right to be treated like the rest of us," the opposition leader said on Tuesday.

Superannuation in Australia is money earned during a person's working life that can only be accessed in retirement.

Currently under Victoria state law, victims' families can claim money from seized criminal assets, but that excludes superannuation.

Reform recommendations

The announcement comes after the Victorian Law Reform Commission, a government-funded advisory body, tabled a report in November called The Role of Victims of Crime in the Criminal Trial Process.

The report made 51 recommendations, which did not include handing criminals' superannuation to the families of victims.

Victoria's Labor government, led by Premier Daniel Andrews, is still considering its response to the report, but Mr Guy said his party supported most of the recommendations.

Responding to the superannuation proposal, the government said existing laws allowed for families to be compensated.

"The accrued superannuation of a prisoner could not be used to compensate victims without substantial changes to Commonwealth legislation," state attorney-general Martin Pakula told The Age.

"It could also mean that victims wait decades for compensation and that ex-crooks rely more heavily on taxpayers to fund their retirement."

State or federal issue?

Mr Guy said if elected he would lobby the federal government for change, saying he had already briefly raised the issue.

"This would require a state-federal partnership to make it work," he said.

But a spokesperson for the federal attorney-general's department said it was a state issue.

"It is a matter for state and territory governments whether to seize the assets of criminals convicted of state offences," the spokesperson said in a statement to the BBC.

It has sent rockets into space, produced millions of the world's smartphones and built high-speed trains. But until now, one bit of manufacturing had perhaps unexpectedly eluded China: the ballpoint pen.

A year ago Premier Li Keqiang went on national television and bemoaned the failure of his country to produce a good quality version of this seemingly-simple implement.

Locally-made versions felt "rough" compared to those from Germany, Switzerland and Japan, Mr Li complained.

High precision

The problem was not the body of the pen, but the tip - the tiny ball that dispenses ink as you write.

It might be something we take for granted, but making them requires high-precision machinery and very hard, ultra-thin steel plates.

Put simply, China's steel has not been good enough. And it has struggled to shape its pen tips accurately.

Without that ability, China's 3,000 penmakers have had to import this crucial component from abroad, costing the industry a reported 120m yuan ($17.3m; £14.3m) a year.

But according to People's Daily, the state-owned Taiyuan Iron and Steel Co thinks it has cracked the problem, after five years of research.

The first batch of 2.3-millimetre ballpoint pen tips has recently rolled off its production lines, the paper says.

And once lab tests are completed, it's expected China could phase out pen tip imports completely within two years.

Symbolic

On one level, whether China can make a great pen is not hugely important in the scheme of things.

High-tech and innovative manufacturing lie at the heart of the central government's Made in China 2025 programme - designed to help domestic growth.

Relatively low-value items, like ballpoint pens, have not been a priority.

But the pen-conundrum is a symbolic one.

Despite producing more than half of the world's crude iron and steel, China has still heavily relied on imports for high-grade steel.

It was a failing that Mr Li said highlighted the need to upgrade China's manufacturing capabilities.

Different culture

"Historically, China has never been able to do precision engineering very well and the ballpoint pen is an example of that," says Professor George Huang, head of the University of Hong Kong's department of industrial and mechanical engineering.

"Its parts are so small and very precise, and it's not easy to solve this problem"

Precision engineering is thriving only in certain sectors such as aerospace and defence where the government has placed a high priority, says Prof Huang.

Even when it comes to smartphones and computers, the high end computer chips are usually imported from Japan and Taiwan.

Prof Huang says that China lacks a culture of excellence in precision engineering.

He uses the Mandarin term "fucao" or "floating grass", a euphemism for something that is not 100% solid or reliable.

"The culture is different from the Japanese and Germans," he says, who are known for innovation in engineering.

"We Chinese are supposed to be craftsmen, but somehow the spirit is not as good."

Additional reporting by the BBC's Tessa Wong.

SRINAGAR (News92World) – A Border Security Force (BSF) constable has posted a video on social media complaining about the low quality food served to the Indian troops and exposing the corruption in the army.

"We only get a ‘parantha’ and tea as breakfast without any pickle or vegetables... For lunch, we get ‘dal’ (pulses) which only has ‘haldi’ (turmeric) and salt... with roti. This is the quality of the food we get... we slog for 11 hours and at times we have to stand throughout the duty hours... how can a soldier do his duty?” he is heard saying in the video.

“At times, the personnel even go to bed on an empty stomach,” he added.

"The government of India supplies everything but it gets stolen by senior officials who sell it in the market to earn profit," Yadav further says.

He pronounced that his life could be under threat for speaking up against the "powerful" officials.

He also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order an inquiry into the matter as no one shows their plight.

While taking notice of the incident Indian Home minister Rajnath Singh has sought a report from the BSF and directed appropriate action.

Meanwhile, the Border Security Force (BSF) has initiated probe into the matter.