Wednesday, July 29, 2020
What Makes India's Rafale Fighter Jets So Potent Against China, Pakistan
The first five Rafales bought from France in a multi-billion-dollar deal landed in the country on Wednesday.
The ability to strike air-to-air targets from up to 150 km away and safely hit land targets 300 km within enemy territory make India's Rafales some of the deadliest fighter jets flying in the world.
Known for air-superiority and precision strikes, the French-made Rafales are India's first major acquisition of fighter planes in 23 years after the Sukhoi jets were imported from Russia.
The first five Rafales bought from France in a multi-billion-dollar deal landed in the country on Wednesday and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh used their arrival to launch a veiled warning to neighbouring China over territorial tensions.
"If it is anyone who should be worried about or critical about this new capability of the Indian Air Force, it should be those who want to threaten our territorial integrity," Mr Singh said.
Indian and Chinese forces were locked in a six-week-long standoff along their de-facto border that peaked with a hand-to-hand battle in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed last month. China also suffered casualties in the showdown but has not given figures.
The deadly clash has sharpened an intense nationwide spotlight on the combat jets that were greeted with a water-cannon guard of honour when they landed at the Ambala air base in Haryana.
The aircraft are capable of carrying a range of potent weapons. European missile maker MBDA's Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile, SCALP cruise missiles and MICA weapons system will be the mainstay of the weapons package of the Rafale jets.
Meteor is the next generation of BVR air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) designed to revolutionise air-to-air combat. The weapon has been developed by MBDA to combat common threats facing the UK, Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Sweden. The Meteor is powered by a unique rocket-ramjet motor that gives it far more engine power for much longer than any other missile, experts say.
The Meteor missile can target enemy aircraft from 150 km away. It can destroy enemy aircraft before they actually even get close to the Indian aircraft.
Had India had this capability a day of during the aerial encounter with Pakistan last year, the assumption is that many Pakistani F-16s would have been destroyed.
Rafales are also equipped to carry SCALP cruise missiles that can hit targets 300 km away. It means that an Indian Air Force Rafale taking off from Ambala, will be able to launch one of these weapons from well within Indian airspace to hit a target deep inside China.
The third weapon system is the MICA missile system. The MICA is a very versatile air-to-air missile. It comes with a radar seeker. It also comes with an infrared seeker and the reason which makes it very advanced is that it can be fired for the short-range to your long-range as well right up to a 100 km.
It's already in service with the Indian Air Force is Mirages and is the primary weapon system of Rafales as well.
The Indian Air Force is also procuring new generation medium-range modular air-to-ground weapon system Hammer to integrate with the Rafale jets.
Hammer (Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range) is a precision-guided missile developed by French defence major Safran. The missile was originally designed and manufactured for the French Air Force and Navy.
Apart from weapons, Rafales also fly with SPECTRA - widely considered the world's most advanced fighter-based electronic warfare suite, a system which is the cornerstone of the Rafale's survivability against a host of the latest threats.
SPECTRA is designed to detect threats and provides a multi-spectral threat warning capability against hostile radars, missiles and lasers. By detecting threats at long-range, SPECTRA allows the pilot to instantly select the best suited defensive measures combining radar jamming of ground and airborne radars and the deployment of infrared or radar decoying flares and chaff.
The fleet of five aircraft, comprising three single-seaters and two twin-seaters, are being inducted into the Indian Air Force as part of its Ambala-based No 17 Squadron, also known as the ''Golden Arrows''.
India has also received five more jets which are currently in France for training missions. The delivery of all 36 aircraft as part of the deal is set to be completed on schedule by the end of 2021, the government has said.
Pakistani Man Accused Of Blasphemy Shot Dead In Court
A Pakistani Muslim who was on trial for blasphemy has been shot dead in a courtroom in the northwestern city of Peshawar.
It was not immediately clear how the young assailant, identified as Khalid Khan, managed to get into the court on July 29 amid tight security. The attacker was subsequently arrested.
The suspect told police the prophet Muhammad had ordered him to kill the man standing trial, Tahir Nasim, because he had belonged to the Ahmadi faith.
Ahmadis, a 4-million-strong minority group in Pakistan, have faced death, threats, intimidation and a sustained hate campaign for decades.
Ahmadis insist they follow Islam. However, Pakistan declared the group non-Muslim in 1974 for regarding their sect's founder, Ghulam Ahmad, as a prophet. Orthodox Islam holds there can be no prophets after Muhammad.
Nasim was arrested two years ago on blasphemy charges after claiming he was Islam’s prophet.
Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy law carries an automatic death penalty for anyone convicted of insulting God, Islam, or other religious figures.
Crowds and individuals in Pakistan often take the law into their own hands.
While authorities have yet to carry out a death sentence for blasphemy, even the mere accusation can cause riots. Domestic and international human rights groups say blasphemy allegations have often been used to intimidate religious minorities and settle personal scores.
A Punjab governor was killed by his own guard in 2011 after he defended a Christian woman, Asia Bibi, who was accused of blasphemy.
Bibi was acquitted after spending eight years on death row in a case that drew international attention. Faced with death threats from Islamic radicals upon her release, she flew to Canada to join her daughters last year.
In December, a Muslim professor in Pakistan was also sentenced to death after being convicted of blasphemy.
A court in Multan found Junaid Hafeez, who had been held for six years awaiting trial, guilty of spreading anti-Islamic ideas.
Hafeez's lawyer said his client was wrongly convicted and he would appeal the verdict.
https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistani-blasphemy-accused-shot-dead-court/30755005.html
Millions in Pakistan face new Covid risk as they travel home for Eid
Experts warn of high chances of virus resurgence as starting Friday, Eid could attract millions into crowded fairs and religious and family gatherings.
Pakistan is at risk for a second wave of virus infections during the upcoming Eid holidays as millions travel to their home towns and mingle at family and religious gatherings.
The South Asian nation — with the second highest number of infections in Asia — has had some respite over the last few weeks with the rate of new infections slowing. But experts warn the chances of a resurgence are high, with Friday marking the start of the religious holiday. And they say it’s difficult to assess the path of the nation’s epidemic because its testing rate remains one of the lowest in the world.
“Eid al-Fitr will draw millions of people into crowded fairs and religious and family gatherings,” said Steve Hanke, professor of Applied Economics at Johns Hopkins University. “Masks and social distancing will be abandoned, and similar to the Chinese New Year in Wuhan, Eid al-Fitr could become a cataclysmic event for Pakistan and the region.”
Pakistan will also have to manage Muharram processions in late August, when large crowds of Shiite Muslims gather to praise and mourn Imam Hussain, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad killed in the battle of Karbala. Globally, religious gatherings have sparked several virus clusters.
Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government said last month its estimates showed the pandemic will reach its peak by the end of July with 1.2 million reported cases. As of Tuesday. the country had reported more than 275,000 confirmed cases with 5,900 deaths. The country’s cases rose by 3.7% last week, the slowest pace since the outbreak began in Pakistan.
Unreported infections
Qatar Airways and Emirates are among the airlines that have made it compulsory for travelers from Pakistan to get tested before travel. Meanwhile, Pakistan has stopped testing incoming travelers — one reason for a drop in testing rates and new confirmed cases.
“The significance of the drop is that cases are likely being highly underreported,” said Hanke in an emailed reply.
Khan has downplayed the seriousness of the virus, but his administration has advised caution.
“Any complacency and we will face the same increase we saw earlier,” said Faisal Sultan, the prime minister’s point person for Covid-19 strategy and an infectious disease expert. The reason for the recent drop in cases “is harder to know but is likely multi-factorial. The biology of the epidemic including interplay of host, pathogen and environment but also interventions have likely helped.”
The pressure on Pakistan’s hospitals has also eased with patients on ventilators and low flow oxygen dropping by more than 50% since June 20, Faisal said.
Data deficit
Pakistan’s largest pharmaceutical manufacturer Getz Pharma tested 24,210 people in mostly urban workspaces. Its study then extrapolated those findings to the urban, adult, working population of Pakistan and found active COVID-19 infections would likely reach 4.11 million, which is almost 15 times higher than the current tally. The positivity rate for those tested in the study was 17.5%, higher than government data that shows the rate dropping to below 5% from more than 20% in June.
Pakistan’s medical associations and experts have long warned that low testing and lack of data means there is an underbelly of virus cases that don’t appear in official figures.
Serology tests, private hospital data and many virus-related deaths are not being reported in the government’s official numbers, said epidemiologist Wajiha Javed, head of public health and research at Getz Pharma. “The initial peak was two weeks post Eid and we may expect second peak at two weeks post the second Eid.” –
UN: Too Early for Pakistan to Celebrate Improving COVID-19 Situation
The United Nations has commended Pakistan’s gains in the fight against the coronavirus but warned complacency during the coming Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha could lead to a new surge in cases.
The warning comes a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan said Pakistan was among the few countries in the world that have largely controlled the pandemic.
The outbreak hit the county of 220 million people in late February and the number of confirmed cases has since surpassed 275,000, including nearly 5,900 deaths. Almost 90% of patients have recovered, and COVID-19 infections have considerably dropped over the past month.
On Tuesday, health officials said there were 936 new cases and 23 deaths from the virus in the past 24 hours, representing a decline of about 86%. Pakistan had a peak of 6,825 cases on June 14.
“There is an improvement in the COVID situation in the country,” Aida Girma, UNICEF representative in Pakistan, told an online public event in Islamabad. “Across all indicators we are seeing improvement, and this is very encouraging. But it is too soon to celebrate. We can’t be complacent.”
The UNICEF country chief urged the government to redouble efforts ahead of the Eid festivities starting later this week to ensure the gains Pakistan has made in the past few weeks are not lost.
“We are at a critical juncture of the current pandemic, witnessing a significant decrease in the number of cases, and no way can afford slackness or complacence, as was observed during Eid-al-Fitr days”, Zafar Mirza, a special assistant to the Pakistani prime minister, told the online forum.
Mirza was referring to the Muslim festival in May when the government relaxed lockdown restrictions on the eve of the festivities and the number of cases shot up, putting pressure on hospitals in Pakistan and prompting severe criticism of the government.
The warning comes a day after Prime Minister Imran Khan said Pakistan was among the few countries in the world that have largely controlled the pandemic.
The outbreak hit the county of 220 million people in late February and the number of confirmed cases has since surpassed 275,000, including nearly 5,900 deaths. Almost 90% of patients have recovered, and COVID-19 infections have considerably dropped over the past month.
On Tuesday, health officials said there were 936 new cases and 23 deaths from the virus in the past 24 hours, representing a decline of about 86%. Pakistan had a peak of 6,825 cases on June 14.
“There is an improvement in the COVID situation in the country,” Aida Girma, UNICEF representative in Pakistan, told an online public event in Islamabad. “Across all indicators we are seeing improvement, and this is very encouraging. But it is too soon to celebrate. We can’t be complacent.”
The UNICEF country chief urged the government to redouble efforts ahead of the Eid festivities starting later this week to ensure the gains Pakistan has made in the past few weeks are not lost.
“We are at a critical juncture of the current pandemic, witnessing a significant decrease in the number of cases, and no way can afford slackness or complacence, as was observed during Eid-al-Fitr days”, Zafar Mirza, a special assistant to the Pakistani prime minister, told the online forum.
Mirza was referring to the Muslim festival in May when the government relaxed lockdown restrictions on the eve of the festivities and the number of cases shot up, putting pressure on hospitals in Pakistan and prompting severe criticism of the government.
Authorities have tightened lockdown restrictions ahead of Saturday’s Eid celebrations, banning visits to public places, restaurants and closing shopping malls in parts of Pakistan.
In his nationally televised speech on Monday, Prime Minister Khan urged Pakistanis to continue to strictly adhere to official guidelines on maintaining social distancing, avoiding big gatherings and using masks during Eid celebrations to help sustain the national gains against the pandemic.
“The world is acknowledging our smart lockdown strategy that has led to a gradual decline in our cases…But if we are not cautious during Eid… cases might rise again and the situation can worsen,” Khan said, citing the example of Australia and Spain where the virus cases had spiked after initially falling.
"It could prove harmful for our aged and ailing citizens and our economy as well,” the prime minister said.
UNICEF’s Girma noted that the coronavirus outbreak in Pakistan had disrupted the provision of essential health services for women and children, including immunization services.
“Over 40 million children had missed out on their polio vaccination since the outbreak (of the coronavirus) started,” she said.
Pakistan, one of the two countries in the world along with Afghanistan where polio remains endemic, resumed a national polio vaccination campaign last week after about four months of suspension.
In his nationally televised speech on Monday, Prime Minister Khan urged Pakistanis to continue to strictly adhere to official guidelines on maintaining social distancing, avoiding big gatherings and using masks during Eid celebrations to help sustain the national gains against the pandemic.
“The world is acknowledging our smart lockdown strategy that has led to a gradual decline in our cases…But if we are not cautious during Eid… cases might rise again and the situation can worsen,” Khan said, citing the example of Australia and Spain where the virus cases had spiked after initially falling.
"It could prove harmful for our aged and ailing citizens and our economy as well,” the prime minister said.
UNICEF’s Girma noted that the coronavirus outbreak in Pakistan had disrupted the provision of essential health services for women and children, including immunization services.
“Over 40 million children had missed out on their polio vaccination since the outbreak (of the coronavirus) started,” she said.
Pakistan, one of the two countries in the world along with Afghanistan where polio remains endemic, resumed a national polio vaccination campaign last week after about four months of suspension.