Submariners World News Sitrep

Japan says new Chinese ships enter disputed waters

Tokyo has protested after it said four Chinese ships briefly entered what Japan considers its territorial waters near disputed islands in the East China Sea on Monday. China said in the morning that two civilian surveillance ships were undertaking a "rights defense" patrol near the islands. Two fishery patrol vessels were also detected inside waters claimed by Japan, Reuters reports. The row could be further complicated as a group of fishermen from Taiwan said as many as 100 boats escorted by 10 Taiwan Coast Guard vessels were headed for the area. Taiwan also claims the rocky isles.

Iran cinema agency urges boycott of Oscars

Javad Shamaghdari from Iran’s government-controlled cinema agency has said Tehran should boycott the 2013 Academy Awards in the wake of the anti-Islam film. Shamaghdari urged the committee in charge of selecting Iran’s choice to take a step back and “avoid” the Hollywood festival, Mehr news agency said on Monday. The Oscars should be boycotted until the organizers denounce the anti-Islam film, Shamaghdari believes. The committee already reportedly picked film called Yek Habbeh Ghand, or A Cube of Sugar, still to be endorsed by the government.

Greek Facebook user arrested for blaspheming a monk - reports

A 27-year-old who blasphemed a famous monk Elder Paisios using the mocking name Geron Pastitsios has been reportedly detained in Greece. Pastitsios is a Greek pasta dish, and the user’s Facebook page showed the monk with a big plate of pasta. Unconfirmed reports say the arrest was agitated by the Golden Dawn nationalist party. A Cyber Crime Unit of the police reportedly said it had arrested the blogger “for malicious blasphemy” following complaints coming from people in different countries.

Iran detains ex-President Rafsanjani son

Iran's authorities have reportedly detained the son of influential ex-President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. Mahdi Hashemi was detained on Monday, a day after he returned to Iran from Britain, IRNA reports. Hashemi was accused by Iranian authorities of fomenting unrest in the aftermath of Iran's disputed 2009 presidential election. He also faced corruption charges. On Saturday, Hashemi's sister, Faezeh, was taken into custody to serve a six-month sentence on charges of making propaganda against the authorities.

Gas leak causes huge explosion in Egypt, reports of injuries

­Four gas cylinders leaking in the kitchen caused a massive blast in a popular restaurant in the city of Alexandria Monday, reports Al-Ahram online. There are no official reports of deaths or wounds, but the web daily says at least 10 people have been injured. The incident occurred in Abu-Rabie restaurant in the city’s east.

Hundreds march against anti-Islam film in Nigeria

Hundreds of Muslims marched peacefully through the streets of a northern Nigerian city on Monday to protest the Innocence of Muslims film. The march took place in the city of Kaduna, where hundreds were killed in religious violence following Nigeria's 2011 presidential election, AP said. A series of protests have taken place in Nigeria, a nation split between a Christian south and a Muslim north. Most demonstrations have been peaceful, but one protest was broken up by soldiers firing into the air.

Israeli Defense Minister Barak calls for unilateral West Bank pullout

Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak has called for a unilateral pullout from much of the West Bank. He said in comments to the Israel Hayom newspaper on Monday that Israel must take "practical steps" if peace efforts with the Palestinians remain stalled. The minister called for uprooting dozens of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, but said Israel would keep major settlement "blocs," AP reports. The proposal is unlikely to be implemented in the near term as the governing coalition is dominated by opponents of the proposal. The comments also put Barak at odds with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Egypt sentences 14 militants to death over Sinai attacks

An Egyptian court sentenced on Monday 14 militant Islamists to death by hanging and four to life imprisonment. The men, who belonged to a militant group called Tawheed and Jihad, were charged with attacks on army and police forces in the Sinai Peninsula last year, Reuters said. Three police officers, an army officer and a civilian were killed in attacks carried out in June and July, 2011. Eight of the 14 death sentences were delivered in absentia, according to the court sources.

Three acquitted of plotting to murder Swedish artist over caricatures

The appeals court in Gothenburg has acquitted three men accused of plotting to murder a Swedish artist who had drawn caricatures of Prophet Mohammed. Upholding a lower court’s ruling, the judges said on Monday there was no conclusive evidence that the men of Iraqi and Somali origin had planned to kill Lars Vilks in September last year, AP said. The men were carrying knives when they were arrested after inquiring about Vilks at an art exhibition. Vilks lives under police protection after his 2007 drawing led to death threats from militant Islamists.

Population of Russia’s St. Petersburg reaches 5 million

Authorities in Russia’s second-largest city, St. Petersburg, have said the city now has a population of 5 million people. The symbolic number was reached after a girl was born on September 22, whose parents will be offered a new apartment. St. Petersburg is the biggest among European cities which are not national capitals. In 1988, St. Petersburg already had 5 million people, but the population reduced over ensuing years.

Miriam may become major Pacific hurricane – forecasters

US forecasters have warned Miriam has rapidly strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane well off Mexico's Baja California peninsula. However, it poses no threat to land, AP quoted forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami as saying. Miriam is packing top sustained winds of 165 kph and could become a major hurricane sometime later Monday, they warned. The hurricane formed a day earlier in the eastern Pacific.

Iran blocks access to Gmail as Tehran creates national intranet

Iran has blocked access to Google’s Gmail service on Monday as the country intends to establish a national intranet separate from the internet. Access to Google's search page was also restricted to its unsecured version, AFP cited web users in Iran as saying. “Due to the repeated demands of the people, Google and Gmail will be filtered nationwide,” said a mobile phone text message quoting Abdolsamad Khoramabadi, an adviser to Iran's public prosecutor's office. He is also the secretary of an official group tasked with detecting internet content deemed illegal.

Medvedev suggests toughening punishment for drink driving

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Monday that accountability for drunken drivers must be toughened and described the current legislation as “moderate enough.” He was commenting on the recent incident in which seven people were killed, including teens, after a drunk driver ran his speeding car into a bus stop in Moscow. The premier urged ministers and deputies to analyze he current laws and programs regarding safety on roads, saying that some of these programs are “ineffective.”

Thirty-three killed, 1 million displaced after India floods, landslides

Floods and landslides in northeast India have killed at least 33 people, officials said on Monday. More than a million were displaced over the past week, Reuters said. At least 21 people were killed in landslides and another eight were missing in the mountainous state of Sikkim. Eight people were killed and 20 were missing in Assam and four people were killed in mudslides in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, police said. Nearly 100 shelters have been opened to accommodate the displaced.

China to use drones in dispute over islands

Beijing will use unmanned drones to conduct marine surveillance over uninhabited East China Sea islands at the center of a dispute with Japan. The decision follows a successful pilot program conducted on Sunday, AP quoted Li Mousheng, a spokesman for the State Oceanic Administration, as saying. China plans to have drones and monitoring bases in place by 2015. The islands, called Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan, are controlled by Tokyo, but also claimed by China and Taiwan.

Palestinians warn 2-state solution in jeopardy over fiscal crisis

The Palestinian finance minister has warned that the two-state solution is in jeopardy if the Palestinian Authority does not solve its severe fiscal crisis. Nabeel Kassis said on Sunday the authority needs money to function to prepare for statehood. Donors have not paid $300 million that they pledged to the Palestinians, while some $200 million is owed by the US, the minister said, as cited by AP. The two state solution is “in jeopardy if the PA is not able to continue to function” and prepare it, Kassis said.

Three bloggers tried in Vietnam for 'anti-government propaganda'

Three Vietnamese journalists were put on trial on Monday for spreading anti-government propaganda. The two men and one woman could face up to 20 years in prison for criticizing the government in online postings, AP reports. The three were put on trial by the People's Court in southern Ho Chi Minh City, lawyer Ha Huy Son said. As Vietnam steps up a campaign against bloggers and other activists, US President Barack Obama has mentioned the case of one of the accused bloggers, Nguyen Van Hai. The mother of another defendant, Ta Phong Tan self-immolated in late July outside a government office to protest the treatment of her daughter.

Pakistan govt says bounty on anti-Islam film maker ‘not official policy’

A Pakistani foreign office said on Monday an offer by one of the ministers of $100,000 for anyone who kills the maker of an anti-Islam film does not represent the country’s official policy. The statement distanced the government from the reward announcement by Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmad Bilour made on Saturday, AP said. Bilour announced he would pay the money from his own pocket. The minister represents the secular Awami National Party, an ally in the government of President Asif Ali Zardari. The film Innocence of Muslims has sparked protests around the world.

Chinese former police chief got only 15 years in prison for corruption

­A Chinese police chief involved in the murder of the British businessman Neil Heywood was sentenced to 15 years in prison for abuse of power and defection. Ex-police chief Wang Lijun was accused of "bending the law for selfish ends, defection, abuse of power and bribe-taking.” Though bribery and treason are definitely capital punishment in China, Lijun got off with a long term in prison for informing investigation of the details of scandal Chinese politician Bo Xilai whose wife Gu Kailai killed Heywood to help husband’s political career. The ex-police chief was supposed to conceal the murder.

Chinese surveillance ships enter waters near disputed islands

Amid high tensions between Tokyo and Beijing, two Chinese patrol ships have entered waters surrounding the disputed islands in the East China Sea, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. The move prompted an official protest from Tokyo. Four Chinese ships are also patrolling just outside the contiguous zone. This comes after all Chinese patrol ships were seen to have left the waters over the weekend. Just one day earlier, China postponed a ceremony marking the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties with Japan over the territorial spat. Mass protests have been held throughout the week across both China and Japan, with some turning violent. The islands are uninhibited, but it is said to hold vast reserves of natural resources.

Polls close in Belarus parliamentary elections

Belarus held parliamentary elections on Sunday with the Central Election Commission announcing that all but one district had already elected their deputy. "Elections took place in the course of which 109 deputies were elected ," Lidiya Yermoshina, head of the central election committee, told a news conference early on Monday. The vote was boycotted by the country’s two main opposition parties amid suggestion of electoral fraud. Asked whether any opposition candidates had been elected, Yermoshina said it was "doubtful." The opposition parties, United Civic and the BPF, have urged the population not to participate in voting, claiming that Belarus’ parliament is merely a rubber stamp chamber for President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s commands.

Prisoners’ relatives protest in Saudi Arabia

Dozens of protesters staged a rally at a prison in Saudi Arabia, demanding freedom for their jailed relatives, Reuters reports. Such protests are rare in the ultraconservative kingdom, where demonstrations are banned. The protesters say police restricted them to a cordoned off area for six hours. According to activists, thousands of people were held without charge, human rights groups have accused the government of using its campaign against Islamist militants to imprison political dissidents. "We will stay here and not move until they listen to our demands and that is the release of our jailed relatives," protester Reema al-Juraish told Reuters.

Riot breaks out at Foxconn plant in China

A riot broke out in the Chinese city of Taiyuan at the factory of Foxconn – a Taiwanese electronics company that produces parts for Apple’s iPhone - reports spreading throughout China’s social networks suggest. Early on Monday users shared videos and photos from the Foxconn compound showing a large crowd and police in and around the factory. Other pictures showed debris strewn around the plant. According to tech blog engadget, the riot was triggered by security guards hitting a worker at 10pm local time. According to some reports the plant in Taiyuan processed the back casing of the iPhone 5. The plant had previously been in the spotlight in March, when workers rioted over salary disputes

Blast rocks Damascus as opposition hold meeting

An explosion has rocked central Damascus killing one and injuring two people, RIA Novosti reports citing local media. The incident occurred on Beirut Street, near the Four Seasons hotel, not far from where Syrian opposition groups held a conference on Sunday. Fifteen opposition groups and six movements participated in the National Conference for Rescuing Syria. The opposition figures have called for “the peaceful overthrow” of President Bashar al-Assad. The Free Syrian Army (FSA) has boycotted the forum.