World news today July 7: Conservative MPs threatens to thwart Boris Johnson’s government over Huawei dispute

	World news today July 6: Two planes collide in the US, 8 dies
	World news today July 5: WHO records world’s largest one-day COVID-19 cases increase
	World news today July 3: Russia referendum: Vladimir Putin now able to extend his rule until 2036

Around 60 Conservative MPs are threatening to thwart Johnson's legislative agenda if he doesn’t agree to accelerate the removal of the Chinese telecoms firm Huawei from the UK's 5G network (Photo: Daily Mail)

Conservative MPs threatens to thwart Boris Johnson’s government if he didn’t remove Huawei from UK 5G

Around 60 Conservative MPs are threatening to thwart Boris Johnson's legislative agenda if he doesn’t agree to accelerate the removal of the Chinese telecoms firm Huawei from the UK's 5G network.

Johnson's UK government currently intends to reduce Huawei's participation in the UK network over time before eventually removing the firm altogether by the year 2029.

However, a significant number of Conservative MPs want the prime minister to accelerate this process by committing to eliminating Huawei from the UK network by 2023. They argue that Huawei should not have a role in the UK network when Britain next goes to the polls for its next general election in 2024, according to Business Insider.

They plan to do this by tabling amendments on Huawei and China on multiple pieces of legislation put before the House of Commons until the Johnson agrees to take a more aggressive approach to Huawei. The UK prime minister riled MPs in the Conservative party when he struck a deal with Huawei earlier this year.

In March, he experienced a rebellion from Conservative MPs — and the first real challenge to his power since winning the UK's general election in December — when almost 40 voted against his government in Parliament.

Opposition to the deal has grown since then, with numerous Conservative MPs setting up a parliamentary bloc called The China Research Group that is calling for the UK government to loosen ties with Beijing.

India and China pull back troops from disputed area in the border

Six days after top Indian and Chinese military commanders agreed to work on an “expeditious, phased and step-wise de-escalation” of the ongoing border conflict “on priority,” the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has possibly moved back by 1 to 1.5 km from the friction site in Galwan Valley, people familiar with developments said on Monday, Hindustan Times said.

While Indian Express reported that both Chinese and Indian troops have moved back 1.8 km from the site of the June 15 clashes at Patrolling Point 14 in the Galwan Valley.

Disengagement will involve rival troops pulling back a few hundred meters from face-off sites, with further retreat taking place in phases as the complex plan progresses on a verifiable basis on the ground every 72 hours by both sides, as reported by Hindustan Times on Thursday.

Rearward movement of vehicles of the PLA was also seen at “General area Galwan, Hot Springs-Gogra Post,” said a second person. Specific distances can be confirmed only after verification, he said.

At the June 30 meeting, the Indian side reiterated its demand for the pullback of Chinese troops from several friction points along the LAC and sought the restoration of status quo ante (early April) in key areas including Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley and the strategic Depsang plains, apart from emphasizing the need for thinning the military buildup in the region.

India pulls back troops from one disputed border by at least a km (Photo: Al Jazeera)

Wuhan raises flood alert level following heavy rains

China’s Wuhan city, Hubei province, the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, has raised its emergency flood response level from level III to level II, the second-highest on its four-tier scale, after days of torrential rains and thunderstorms battering swathes of the country.

Earlier in March, authorities have warned that Wuhan, together with other flood-prone cities on the Yangtze’s middle reaches, Anhui province for example, faced higher than usual levels of rainfall this year.

Mayor Zhou Xianwang promised that crucial flood defense work would not be affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Wuhan once suffered devastating floods on the Yangtze in 1998, Reuters reported.

Meanwhile, heavy rains continue to batter in China from Chongqing to Shanghai, meaning the natural phenomenon has been spreading from the southwest to the east coast. Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces have all declared “yellow alerts”. The Ministry of Water Resources on Monday announced that water has exceeded warning levels at more than 50 locations along China’s rivers.

Wuhan has raised its emergency flood response level from level III to level II (Photo: Reuters)

Oversea students in the US may face deportation if classes go entire online this fall

International students will not be allowed to stay in the US if all classes are moved online this upcoming fall semester, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency said in a statement Monday.

According to the ICE, F-1 visas are issued to students pursuing academic coursework, while M-1 visas are for those pursuing "vocational coursework" while studying in the US.

Therefore, those foreign students wanting to stay in the country have to take steps, which might include transferring schools for a course with "in-person instruction," taking on a reduced course load, or applying for medical leave.

The restrictions are applicable for schools and courses that originally offered in-person classes but have moved to online instruction in the face of the coronavirus crisis. Foreign students can take only one class — three credit hours — online for these programs.

However, students enrolled in a hybrid program, which offers a mixture of both online and in-person classes, will be allowed to take more than one class online. In order to be eligible for this, the school needs to inform ICE's Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) that the course isn't entirely online, DW reported.

No new visas will be issued to students attending programs that have been moved online for the coming semester. They will not be permitted into the country.

International students will not be allowed to stay in the US if all classes are moved online this upcoming fall semester (Photo: The Denver Post)

Gold price falls to Rs 48,100 per 10 gm, silver is Rs 49,600 a kg

Gold prices on Tuesday fell to Rs 48,100 from Rs 48, 320 per 10 gram, while silver climbed to Rs 49,600 from Rs 48,510 per kilogram, according to Good Returns website.

Gold jewellery prices vary across India, the second-largest consumer of the metal, due to excise duty, state taxes, and making charges.

In New Delhi, the price of 22-carat gold slid to Rs 46,900 per 10 gram, and in Chennai to Rs 46,100. In Mumbai, the rate was Rs 47,950, according to the Good Returns website. The price of 24-carat gold prices in Chennai came to Rs 50,710.

On MCX, August gold futures jumped 0.37 per cent to Rs 48,225 per 10 gram. Silver July futures also climbed to Rs 49,790 per kilogram. MCX has decided to accept gold and silver bars refined at domestic refineries for deliveries, subject to final regulatory approval.

Gold prices on Tuesday fell to Rs 48,100 from Rs 48, 320 per 10 gram while silver climbed to Rs 49,600 from Rs 48,510 per kilogram (Photo: Business Standard)

MCX received approval of Sebi for the launch of Gold Mini options with Gold Mini (100 grams) bar as underlying, MCX said in a statement.

Gold Mini Option August 2020, September 2020 and October 2020 contracts will be available for trading with effect from July 10, it added. The maximum single order size will be of 100 lots, it notified.

Gold prices fell by Rs 42 to Rs 48,964 per 10 gram in the national capital on Monday, according to HDFC Securities. In the previous trade, the precious metal had closed at Rs 49,006 per 10 gram. Silver prices also declined by Rs 1,217 to Rs 49,060 per kg from Rs 50,277 per kg in the previous trade.

In the international market, gold was quoting higher at USD 1,776 per ounce, while silver was trading at USD 18.10 per ounce, Business Standard reported.

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