Feature
In showdown with Trump, Obama allows anti-Israel resolution in Security Council
United Nations: The conflicting world views of President Barack Obama and his successor-elect Donald Trump took the global stage on Friday when Obama refused to have an anti-Israel resolution vetoed in the Security Council in a signature departure from US policy of blocking measures critical of Israel. The Security Council condemned the Israel building of settlements on the West bank and East Jerusalem in a show of defiance by both the Council members and the Obama administration against Trump who wanted it vetoed.
The resolution, which called the constructions in the Palestinian territories, captured from Jordan in the 1967 war a “flagrant violation” of international law, passed on Friday with all the 14 Council members except the US voting for it. Rather than veto it, US Permanent Representative Samantha Power abstained, thus allowing it to pass. The resolution also called for a halt to settlement building and asked Israelis and Palestinians to de-escalate the tense situation and launch credible negotiations.
The two days of dramatic developments with Trump trying to actively influence US foreign policy foreshadow the nation’s posture at the UN when he becomes President and Indian American Nikki Haley takes over as the US ambassador, a cabinet-level position, and resistance it was likely to face. He tweeted after the resolution passed, “As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th,” the day he is sworn-in. The drama began with Trump tweeting a challenge to Obama on Thursday, “The resolution being considered at the United Nations Security Council regarding Israel should be vetoed.”
Trump called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and pressured him on the resolution originally proposed by Cairo that was to have been taken up Thursday. Egypt backed out and the Council meeting on the resolution scheduled for Thursday was postponed. The Egyptian President’s Office later acknowledged that this was done because Trump and al-Sisi wanted to allow the new administration to deal comprehensively with the Palestinian situation.
In the next dramatic twist, New Zealand, Senegal, Venezuela and Malaysia brought the resolution abandoned by Egypt before the Council which passed it. Washington has used its veto powers dozens of times to squelch resolutions criticising Israel. Three resolutions on the same topic as Friday’s resolution that related to Israeli construction activities were vetoed three times, most recently under Obama in 2011. US Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington had allowed it to pass because it wanted to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Some right-wing Israeli political groups and ultra-orthodox Jews have been building settlements on the West Bank and in East Jerusalem in hopes of preventing the handover of those areas to a Palestinian nation proposed under various plans for a two-state solution, which is backed by India.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
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