United States Vice President Joe Biden today slammed Donald Trump and said that the Republican presidential candidate does not have the 'basic fundamental sensibilities and values' that almost every American politician has.

"(Trump) does not have the basic fundamental sensibilities and values that almost every American politician, left, right,and center, I know, has. They disagree on how to make things better for people, but they don't take pleasure from knowing that they will benefit," Biden said.

"That's what Wall Street did. That's where Wall Street,the greatest allocator of capital in the history of the world,went awry, because it decided that they could take advantage,betting against the American people," he said at the Drexel University in Pennsylvania.

Referring to last night's debate, Biden said the 70-year-old real-estate tycoon acknowledged that he didn't pay taxes because he was smart.

"It makes him smart. Tell that to the janitor here who's paying taxes. Tell it to my dad who, when he was alive, busted his neck working 60 hours a week, paid all his taxes. Tell that to the mothers and fathers who are breaking their neck to send you here who are paying their taxes," Biden said.

"I really mean it. It angers me. It angers me. He acknowledge that when the housing market collapsed, and maybea lot of your parents, if they didn't lose their home, they lost the equity in their home," he said.

The International Criminal Court on Tuesday sentenced Islamic terrorist Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi to nine years of imprisonment for destroying ancient shrines in Mali.Mahdi, believed to be a member of Al Qaeda affiliate Ansar Dine in Mali, pleaded guilty to war crimes for destroying religious and historic monuments in the ancient city of Timbuktu.

The trial was a landmark one at The Hague, marking the first time the International Criminal Court tried cultural destruction as a war crime.

The court found Mahdi supervised the destruction of 10 of the most important historical sites at the UNESCO World Heritage site and participated in attacks on at least five.

Read more.

IMAGE: Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi appears at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands. Photograph: Patrick Post/
Reuters

The Centre today informed the Madras high court that a report of the Law Commission on enacting a stand-alone legislation to check honour killing is under its consideration.

This was conveyed by a central government counsel to the court when a batch of public interest litigations seeking a legislation against honour killing, came up for hearing.

'The law and justice ministry is examining the 242nd report of the Law Commission to bring a stand-alone legislation to combat honour killing,' the lawyer submitted.

He said that the law ministry and not the home ministry, is competent to bring a stand-alone legislation following which the court directed the law mMinistry be impleaded as a respondent.

The court also directed the ministry to keep it abreast of the progress made on the stand-alone legislation. The petitioners had sought a direction to central and state governments to bring a new legislation against honour killing and to provide arms to Scheduled Caste people, contemplated under Rule 3(1)(5) of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Rules, 1995 and to frame guidelines to prevent such killing.

Amid growing tension between India and Pakistan following Uri terror attack, Punjab has invited Pakistan -- along with other countries -- to participate in the 6th World Kabaddi Cup starting from November.

However, Punjab Kabaddi Association which is organising the event is not hopeful of granting visas to Pakistan players by the Centre in the wake of recent terror attack.

"We have invited Pakistan to participate in 6th World Kabaddi Cup. But the invitation was given to the neighbouring country two and half months back," Punjab Kabaddi Association president Sikandar Singh Maluka said.

"Given the current situation prevailing in the country post Uri terror attack, I do not think the players of Pakistan will be granted visas by the government of India," said Maluka, who is also a minister in Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party led government in the state.

"We will soon approach the Centre to know whether Pakistan players will be granted visas or not," said Maluka.

If Pakistan players were denied visas this time, then it will be for the first time that they will not play World Kabaddi Cup in Punjab.

Teams from several countries including Canada, the United States, Australia, Tanzania, England, Iran, New Zealand, Sierra Leone, Spain, Argentina are expected to participate in the 6th World Kabaddi Cup.

In 2015, World Kabaddi Cup was cancelled in Punjab because of several sacrilege incidents that caused tension in the state.

Pakistan says it has not received any official confirmation from India on its decision to not attend the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation summit.

'Pak has noted from Indian (foreign ministry) spokesperson's tweet about their refusal to participate in SAARC summit being hosted by us. We have not received any official communication in this regard, the Indian announcement is unfortunate,' Pakistan's ministry of foreign affairs said.

It said that 'Pak remains committed to peace and regional cooperation and will continue to work to that end in the larger interest of people of this region'.

MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup, meanwhile, said that in the prevailing circumstances, the government of India is unable to participate in the SAARC Summit in Islamabad.

Gautam Gambhir replaces injured KL Rahul for the second Test in Kolkata. Off-spinner Jayant Yadav comes in for Ishant Sharma.

Grenade attack on paramilitary SSB's camp in Srinagar; no casualities

Four suspicious persons have been reported in Pathankot in Punjab, reports ANI. 

In a major move to clamp down on terror financing in the country, Pakistan's central bank has directed all banks in the country to freeze accounts worth millions of rupees linked to 2,021 individuals listed on the Fourth Schedule of Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997.


According to a report in Dawn, "All banks, development finance institutions and microfinance banks have been advised to take immediate action as per requirement of the law against individuals, whose names are included in the lists of fourth schedulers provided by the National Counter-Terrorism Authority (NACTA),' a State Bank of Pakistan source was quoted as saying.


But the list of accounts to be frozen does not include accounts belonging to Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), or Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) of whom Hafiz Saeed is the leader. Kashmiri separatist and terrorist groups have been entirely excluded from the order.


Image: Bank accounts of terror group LeT, headed by Hafeez Saeed have not been frozen

Indus Waters Treaty explained in a jiffy. 

NIA takes custody of two people arrested in its probe in attack on army camp in Uri.

India summons Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit on the Uri attacks. This is the second time Basit has been summoned by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar over the terror attack.

Jaishankar presented proof of cross border terrorism and told Basit that the Uri attackers came from Pakistan.

India has provided information on the two guides from Muzaffarabad in Pakistan who helped the infiltrators.

Other information on the identity of the terrorists and the handlers have also been provided to Pakistan. One of the four terrorists has been identified as Hafiz from Muzaffarabad in PoK.

Results of the probe into the Uri attacks confirming Pakistan's role has been presented to the Pak envoy.


Last week, Jaishankar provided Basit with the content of GPS recovered from the bodies of terrorists with coordinates that indicate the point and time of infiltration across the LoC and the subsequent route to the terror attack site and grenades with Pakistani markings as evidence of Pakistan's role in Uri attack in which 18 jawans were killed.

Asserting that the latest terrorist attack in Uri only underlines that the infrastructure of terrorism in Pakistan remains active, Jaishankar demanded that Pakistan lives up to its public commitment to refrain from supporting and sponsoring terrorism against India.

He also reminded Basit that the Pakistan government had made a solemn commitment in January 2004 to not allow its soil or territory under its control to be used for terrorism against India. "The persistent and growing violation of this undertaking is a matter of very serious concern," he told Basit.

In a release, External Affairs Ministry said this year, beginning with the Pathankot airbase attack, there have been continuous attempts by armed terrorists to cross the LoC and International Boundary in order to carry out attacks in India.


Image: The arms and ammunition recovered from the Pakistani terrorists after the gun battle in Uri.

Cross-border trading resumed today between the divided parts of Kashmir along the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad route after remaining suspended for nearly two months due to the unrest in the valley.


While a dozen loaded trucks reached Salamabad Trade Facilitation Centre (TFC) in Uri sector from Srinagar, only one truck came from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, officials said.

Trade between the divided parts of Kashmir was suspended on August 4 after Pakistani traders reportedly stayed away from work for a week initially, to protest civilian killings in the valley and express "solidarity with the people of Kashmir".

Twenty-one items, including eatables, garments and handicrafts, are traded on the twin routes -- Srinagar-Muzaffarabad in Kashmir and Poonch-Rawalakote in Jammu - on which around 50 trucks ply for four days a week.

Trade between the divided parts of Kashmir is considered as the second major Confidence Building Measure (CBM) after the launch of historic bus service between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad on April 7, 2005. Although agreed upon by India and Pakistan in 2004, the trade became a reality on October 21, 2008.

The CBI today said the son of former DG Corporate Affairs B K Bansal, who allegedly committed suicide today, was neither an accused nor was he summoned by the agency in the case of alleged bribery against the officer.

Bansal and his son Yogesh allegedly committed suicide today barely two months after his wife and daughter ended their lives following the arrest of the officer in an alleged corruption case.

"We are deeply saddened to know the unfortunate demise of B K Bansal and his son today. The matter is being looked into by the local police," CBI Spokesperson R K Gaur said. He said Bansal, then DG in Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs, was an accused in a bribery case in which he was arrested on July 16, 2016.

Gaur said Bansal was granted interim bail from July 20, 2016 to August 21, 2016 and thereafter, he was granted regular bail on August 30, 2016.

Here's how the Pakistan media covered a post-Uri India.

Pakistan's Express Tribune choose to headline today's edition, 'Desperate Modi now plots to run Pakistan dry', a reaction to India's closed-door meeting on the Indus Waters Treaty.

The paper said,  "Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis reaction post-Uri assault has been full of flip-flops. First, he rattled his sabres only to back off later. Then, he talked about mounting a global campaign to isolate Pakistan diplomatically. And now he is threatening to undo the only achievement that has withstood periods of tensions and conflict between the two arch foes."

However, External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj's nuanced UNGA speech, berating Pakistan on its tryst with terror, did not even make it to page 1.

Pak Army chief General Raheel Shareefs statement in which he claimed that Indias intelligence agency R&AW was involved in spilling blood of innocent citizens also grabbed space.

The Dawn, one of the most popular newspapers in Pakistan, gave more importance to the joint session of Parliament sought by Pakistan to discuss ties with India. The Indus Waters Treaty also made it to Page 1. And Sushma was conspicious by her absence.

The US has asked Pakistan to close all terrorist safe havens and target all militant groups, including those that target neighbouring countries, after India made a strong pitch at the UN for isolating nations who nurture, paddle and export terror.


"Our focus with Pakistan is to enhance their capability and to deal with terrorist threats on their soil. They are fighting a serious and sustained campaign against violent extremism," White House Deputy spokesperson Mark Toner said.


"We do believe that they are making progress and taking steps to counter terrorist violence, but at the same time we have been very clear that they need to target all militant groups, including those that target Pakistan's neighbours, and close all safe havens," he said.

Supreme Court directs the Karnataka government to release 6000 cusecs of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu for two days. The next hearing on the case is on Friday.


Karnataka has said that it cannot release any more water from the River Cauvery to neighbouring Tamil Nadu till December, providing the latest installment in a war that involves the Supreme Court.


The Karnataka government, led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, has told the top court that Karnataka's major cities are on the verge of running out of drinking water.

"Make no mistake, depriving water deliberately to a nation of 190 million people is a repugnant idea. The world community won't forgive us," warns Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar. Read the column on Rediff.com. 

Pakistan tries to get its groove back. Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz weighs in on the Indus Waters Treaty, a day after PM Narendra Modi met with the Indus Water Commission and announced that "Blood and water cannot flow simultaneously."


India will now explore ways to use its share of water of rivers flowing into Pakistan, and has also hinted that it could revive construction of the Tulbul project in Jammu & Kashmir.


Aziz said today that Pakistan and India are bound to follow the Indus Waters Treaty.  "India can neither unilaterally abrogate nor alter the Indus Water Treaty. Pakistan will also approach the International Court of Justice. The treaty was not suspended even during the Kargil and the Siachen wars."

Actor Fawad Khan, who has been in Pakistan for a while now as his wife is expecting their second child, may not return in October to promote Ae Dil Hai Mushkil as planned.


Contrary to reports, GeoNews (Pakistan) said the actor had returned home in the wake of MNS threats, Fawad didn't leave for Pakistan after threats, but because his wife was pregnant.


The Indian Express reports that the actor may not return in October to promote his film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil in face of the current situation. The Karan Johar film starring Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma is the Diwali release.


MNS had issued a 48-hour ultimatum on Friday to all actors from across the border to leave India in the wake of Uri attacks.



Image: Fawad Khan with his wife Sadaf and their son Ayaan

The Commissioner of Income Tax, New Delhi, is believed to have issued a notice to Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal. The notice says that AAP has not shown its income received during the 2015 Delhi Assembly polls. The CBDT on Tuesday confirmed the notice but is not ready to divulge the contents. But AAP sources have neither denied nor confirmed the reports. Arvind Kejriwal, a former IRS officer, will have to reply to the notice in 21 days.

A mosque and an international congress center were attacked in two explosions in the German city of Dresden, but nobody was injured, police said. Dresden police said in a statement today, the explosions took place late yesterday, and there was no immediate report on the extent of damage. Police President Horst Kretschmar said, "Even though we do not have a letter of confession, we must assume there's a xenophobic background."

Police said they found pieces of a home-made explosive device in front of the congress center. They also increased the security in front of mosques all over Dresden. Dresden will hold Germany's national unification celebrations next week.

The curfew imposed in Kishtwar district following a stone pelting incident triggered by arrest of three separatists remained in force for the third day today. Three separatist leaders in the town were arrested on Saturday night and booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) for disrupting peace in the district following which some persons resorted to stone pelting prompting the authorities to impose curfew in the district.


The curfew continues for the third day today, but the situation is under control. There is no report of any untoward incident from anywhere, police officials said.

Representational image

BJP senior leader from Tamil Nadu, L Ganesan, will be the Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh, filling up the vacancy caused by the resignation of Najma Heptulla.  Ganesan is a critic of Jayalalithaa and a keen supporter of DMK chief M Karunanidhi.

His elevation was decided during the meeting of the Kozhikode BJP Central Committee. Ganesan will hold the Rajya Sabha term for a year, till October 2017. He will file his nomination papers in Bhopal on Monday.

Judicial custody of all the three accused in the Sheena Bora murder case extended till 5th October 2016.

Lunchtime read.

Italy's best known photographer of the Mafia reflects on her life-long battle against it and how the mob is changing to adapt to modern times.

Take a look.

Donald Trump, reacting to the recent terror attacks, called on the government and law enforcement to fight, McCarthy-like, the "cancer from within.' He then went on to exclaim: "How they came into the country in the first place is beyond me.' Obviously, he believes that these and thousands of other possible (and according to him, inevitable) assailants did not undergo the "extreme vetting' that he proposed as indispensable to keep Muslim terrorists and those advocating Sharia law from entering the United States. Whether this prospective weeding out of aliens antagonistic to American values at the border would bolster our security is doubtful.  Read more

President Pranab Mukherjee tweets pictures of the new Rashtrapati Bhavan museum that will be open to the public from October 2.

The image (alongside) shows the President with his cutout in the replica of the Study where he meets state guests or visitors. Either the camera angle is terrible, or the cutout is particularly bad. Seriously, couldn't we do better?

The new Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum Complex which now includes the Garages Museum and Clock Tower in addition to the Stables Museum will open for the public from October 2. The Museum Complex will be open all days from 9 am -4 pm except Mondays.

The entry and exit for visitors will be through Gate No. 30 on Mother Teresa Crescent Road.

Visits can be booked on-line at the website http://www.presidentofindia.nic.in. There will be nominal registration charges of Rs. 50/- per head (Children below the age of 8 years will be exempt from charges).

@DeShobhaa  US Presidential debate: Lady in red was dressed for power, but didn't exude it. Rottweiler with orange hair showed teeth.

Subramanian Swamy @Swamy39  tweets: I had suggested three halal items: Suspend Indus River Treaty, Scrap MFN and scale down Embassies to Third Secretary level. 2 down 1 to go.

PM Narendra Modi calls a meeting to review the Most-Favoured Nation status for Pakistan on Thursday. The PM will meet External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.   This comes a day after the PM held a high-level meet to review the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan.


The MFN status was accorded in 1996 as per Indias commitments as a
member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). According to the MFN principle of the WTOs General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to which India is a signatory/contracting party each of the WTO member countries (including India and Pakistan in this case), should treat all the other members equally as most-favoured trading partners.

According to the WTO, though the term MFN suggests special treatment, it actually means non-discrimination. Pakistan has not extended the MFN status to India.


In the wake of the deadly attack on Indian soldiers in Uri, an incident for which India is holding Pakistan responsible, there have been calls in India for tough action against its neighbour, including the revocation of the MFN status.


India decided on Monday to suspend the meeting of the Indus Water
Commission and explore ways to use its share of water of rivers flowing into Pakistan, besides hinting that it could revive construction of the Tulbul project in Jammu & Kashmir.


"Blood and water cannot flow simultaneously," Prime Minister Narendra Modi told a meeting where the decisions designed to make Pakistan pay for the terrorist attack on the Uri Army camp were taken, extending the retaliation against the strike beyond efforts to isolate Pakistan diplomatically.

Reliance Group chairman Anil Ambani speaks at the Annual General Meeting in Mumbai and says his son Anmol has brought 'tremendous luck' with a 40% rise in Reliance Cap stock since his induction. Anmol Ambani has been inducted into the Reliance board of directors.


Jai Anmol: Meet the low-profile Ambani scion. Read the profile on Rediff.com.

Monday night's presidential debate at Hofstra University, billed unironically and perhaps appropriately as the debate of the century, was also talked up as a chance for journalism to (belatedly) shine. After a year of endless criticism, much of it well-deserved, the press's reputation reached a nadir with Matt Lauer's pathetically soft interview of Donald Trump at a recent "commander-in-chief' forum. Would moderator Lester Holt, like Lauer an NBC newsman, challenge the candidates more forthrightly?  Read more

Former Director General Corporate Affairs B K Bansal, who was facing a CBI probe in a corruption case, allegedly committed suicide along with his son at their residence in East Delhi.

The development comes nearly two months after his wife and daughter committed suicide by hanging themselves from the ceiling fans at their residence in Nilkanth Apartments.

The two had left separate suicide notes, saying the "CBI raid" caused "great humiliation" and they did not want to live after that. They, however, held nobody responsible for their death.

Bansal and his son were found dead today in their apartment, sources said. Bansal, an additional secretary-rank officer in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, was arrested by CBI on July 16 for allegedly accepting bribe from a prominent pharmaceutical company.

CBI had carried out searches at eight locations in connection with the case during which the agency had claimed to have made cash recoveries. He was later arrested but released on bail.

So why is it that the US presidential debates are so important? On September 26, 1960, two men changed the modern political landscape, when they took part in the first nationally televised presidential debate.  Senator John F Kennedy and US Vice President Richard Nixon.

Do read thisstory to understand why the upcoming debates between Clinton and Trump can decide who goes to the White House.

There was ample evidence before Monday night that Trump does not take criticism well, but the debate stage -- and the absence of an audience to play off of -- underscored his lack of self-restraint in devastating fashion.


The Trump who performed was a haphazard mix of rally Trump, primary debate Trump, and Twitter Trump'"with a few minor guest appearances early in the night from teleprompter Trump, the version of the Republican nominee who's been semi-trained by his professional strategists and handlers.  Read more

Clinton-Trump debate: Polls indicate Hillary leads by over 60 per cent. US Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's probability of winning the White House gained in online betting markets following the first debate of the campaign between her and Republican Donald Trump.


Clinton appears to have edged out her opponent in the first presidential debate, based on analysts' take on the market reaction.

"Early indications suggest Hillary won the debate; at least didn't lose. Futures are higher and the peso is rallying," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank.


Clinton forced Donald Trump on to defense over his temperament, refusal to release his taxes and his past comments about race and women during a fiery debut presidential debate Monday -- a potentially pivotal moment in a tight election campaign.


Here are the highlights of the debate. Take a look.

Hillary Clinton's greatest political liability is simply that she is not a man. According to her Twitter bio, she is "wife, mom, grandma, women + kids advocate, FLOTUS, Senator, SecState, hair icon, pantsuit aficionado, 2016 presidential candidate.' Her list is both cumulative and compound.

So, will gender bias triumph in America or will Hillary be the country's first ever woman prez? Read more

Immediately following the first presidential debate, Donald Trump revealed to Fox News host Sean Hannity that he would have liked to have brought up Hillary Clinton's personal life, but "I didn't want to say -- her husband was in the room along with her daughter, who I think is a very nice young lady -- and I didn't want to say what I was going to say about what's been going on in their life," he ever-so-unsubtly hinted at Bill Clinton's alleged sexual misconduct throughout his career, reports the Daily Beast.

"I decided not to say it. I thought it would be very disrespectful to Chelsea and maybe to the family. But she said very bad things about me... it's a disgrace."

Several minutes later, while appearing on CNN, Trump said, "I was able to hold back on the indiscretions," and then suggested he will not do the same during the second presidential debate.

Top surrogate Rudy Giuliani echoed the narrative during a spin-room interview, telling reporters, "I know he would have liked to have said -- except for the fact that Chelsea Clinton was in the audience -- and that is that [Hillary Clinton] enabled and supported a president who is a disgrace to the White House."


Image: Former US president Bill Clinton with then White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Do we really need to tell you what happened?

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump went head-to-head for the first time and according to analysts at the Los Angeles Times, the Democrat nominee came out on top. 

Bill and Chelsea Clinton nervously watch as Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump lock horns at the Presidential debate

Here's an interesting facts about temperament. A poll conducted by Monmouth University last week found that 61 per cent if respondents didnt think Trump has the right temperament to be president while just 39 per cent said the same of Clinton.

OMG!! Breaking the rules, giggle break out at the Hofstra University. Even Clinton can't surpress her laughter. 

Allan Lichtman says he can predict the outcome of any US presidential election. He often does it months or even years ahead of time. Oh, and his predictions have been right in every presidential election since 1984.

When asked to comment about the African-American unrest, The African American community has really been let down by politicians... the community within the inner cities have been abused and used in order to get votes by Democratic politicians because thats where it is.

Clinton says, "It's unfortunate that Donald paints such a dire picture of our black communities." 

The moderator brings up police shootings of black men and asks about healing along lines of race and racism.

Donald Trump is really getting into the debate. On a criticism that he fleeces his workers and others who work with him, he responds saying that Trump International is a fantastic company and that he has used the countries' laws to get there. He says, "If I don't get to Pennsylvania Avenue one way, I'll get there another way," in reference to his new hotel, which he is building near the White House. 

Hey, guess who we spotted at the debate? That's Melania Trump and Former US President Bill Clinton shaking hands just before the first presidential debate at Hofstra University.

When asked about why he hasn't released his tax details, Donald Trump says, "Going against my lawyer's advice I will release my tax returns as soon as she releases the 33,000 emails that she deleted. 

As the debate goes on, the Republican and Democratic nominees are really getting under one another's skin. Both have scored some points with sarcasm, it seems. But Donald is more aggressive. Expected, isn't it?

The first US presidential debate of the 2016 general election campaign has begun in Hempstead, New York, where both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are hoping to re-shape a race that -- so far -- has been a contest about whom voters dislike the least.

An Aligarh Muslim University student died of dengue during treatment at Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital on campus following which police have booked five doctors on charges of negligence in treatment, the Indian Express reported.

Sabir Hussain, a final year engineering student from Ghazipur district, died Sunday morning. He was admitted to the hospital on Saturday..

Read more

Donald Trump has held discussions with Israel's Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu about the country's wall separating the West Bank. Over the course of a 90-minute meeting at Trump Tower in New York, the pair 'discussed at length Israel's successful experience with a security fence that helped secure its borders', according to a Trump campaign press release.

Proposals for a wall between the United States and Mexico have been among the most controversial policies suggested during Trump's presidential campaign.

The Republican front runner has promised to make the Mexican state pay billions for the construction of a concrete structure designed to keep out migrants trying to get into the US. To run the whole length of the southern border with Mexico, the wall would need to be almost 2,000 miles long.

Read more.

Journalists and editors at two Palestinian news outlets say their Facebook accounts have been suspended as the result of a new agreement between the social media company and the Israeli government.

Four editors at the West Banks Shehab News Agency, which reaches 6.3 million people through its Facebook page, and three journalists from Quds News Network, which reaches 5.1 million people, reported that their personal accounts were suspended last week, leaving them unable to update their professional pages.

Read more.

Nearly five years after the alleged rape of four tribal women by police in Tamil Nadu, a report of a Judicial Magistrate filed on Monday in Madras High Court said there are reasons to believe that they were sexually assaulted, but not raped.

The report of the Judicial Magistrate Thirukovilur in Villupuram District stated the medical reports did not suggest rape on the four women of the Irular tribal community.

'There are reasons to believe that sexual assault had occurred on the women by the police personnel who had taken them,' the Magistrate's report filed by the Government Pleader said.

It also stated that the enquiry with the victims revealed that police personnel who took them for questioning had asked them to remove their clothes. When they refused, the police allegedly removed them forcibly and molested them.

The report was filed in connection with the alleged incident of police personnel of Thirukovilur in Villupuram District raping tribal women after taking them in a jeep on November 22, 2011 for an enquiry though they were not required in any case.

It said no woman police accompanied the police team when the women were taken to a police station. Though rape was not confirmed, the victims statements, evidence of witnesses and circumstances lead to conclude and believe that sexual assault was done on victims, it said.

The report was filed when a Public Interest Litigation petition of advocate P Pugalenthi, came up for hearing before the court.

A court in Mumbai on Monday rejected the bail application of Financial Technologies (India) Ltd promoter Jignesh Shah and remanded him to judicial custody till October 10.

Shah was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation last week in connection with a case against him for allegedly suppressing facts to get an extension for the stock exchange MCX-SX from market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India.

As his CBI custody ended, he was produced before the special court for CBI cases on Monday which remanded him to judicial custody.

The court also rejected his bail application.

MCX-SX, promoted by Shah and others, had submitted an application in 2008 to SEBI, seeking extension of its recognition as an exchange for currency futures trade.

MCX-SX promoters had entered into a share buy-back arrangement with Punjab National Bank, L&FS and IFCI in violation of Securities Contract Regulation Act and Securities Contract (Regulation) (Manner of Increasing and Maintaining Public Shareholdings in Recognised Stock Exchanges) Regulation, 2006, according to the CBI.

India raising Pakistan's 'internal matter' Balochistan in the United Nations General Assembly is a 'blatant violation' of international norms, the Pakistani envoy to the UN said as she described Kashmir not as India's integral part but an 'internationally recognised dispute'.

'The Indian FM' speech is a litany of falsehoods and baseless allegations. The biggest falsehood is that Kashmir is an integral part of India. Kashmir is an internationally recognised dispute. It is the oldest item on the UN agenda. The whole world acknowledges this, Maleeha Lodhi said in a series of tweets after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's address during the 71st session of the UNGA.

In another tweet, Lodhi said raising Balochistan, 'an internal matter', is a 'blatant violation' of the principles of the UN charter and international norms.

Lodhi said it is 'untrue' that India imposed no preconditions for talks with Pakistan.

'India suspended talks more than a year ago, and has refused to resume these despite repeated offers from Pakistan. The latest offer of talks with India was made by Pakistans Prime Minister himself from the rostrum of the General Assembly on 21 September,' Lodhi said in the tweets.

Indian-origin shooter goes on rampage in Houston mall

India should exploit Indus treaty to its fullest: Experts

Sushma at UNGA: India seeks adoption of global treaty on terror, UNSC reforms

Shoe hurled at Rahul during roadshow; he pins the blame on BJP-RSS

Pakistan can abandon the dream of having Kashmir: Sushma@UNGA

Incursion by Chinese troops reported in Aruanchal

Uri aftermath: Army recalibrates tactics along LoC

Read yesterday's live commentary HERE