Hala Al-Tuwaijri, Head of The Women’s Empowerment Team at G20 Riyadh
New Age Islam
News Bureau
28 August 2020
• Muslim Female Secret Agent of Indian Origin Is Honoured with First Blue Plaque
• This Emirati
Is Dubai Police's First Woman Officer Who Can Defuse Bombs
• Berlin Teacher
Headscarf Ban Is Illegal, Rules Top Court
• Afghan Actress
Turned Police Officer Recovering After Ambush in Kabul
• Queen Rania Flaunts
Saudi Label for Her Birthday
• Emirati Women
Constitute 45% Of Abu Dhabi's Workforce
• 4 Saudi Women
to Judge as Archery Championship Kicks Off
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/hala-al-tuwaijri-head-womens/d/122739
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Hala Al-Tuwaijri, Head of The Women’s Empowerment Team at G20 Riyadh
August 27, 2020
Hala Al-Tuwaijri
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Hala Al-Tuwaijri
is the head of the Women’s Empowerment Team at G20 Riyadh and has been the
secretary-general of the Saudi Family Affairs Council since 2017.
In a recent
interview, she spoke about the impact on Saudi families of the social reforms
taking place in Saudi Arabia and the challenges surrounding the coronavirus
disease (COVID-19).
She said: “The
Saudi family is mostly intact and holding up well in most areas, but it is
greatly affected by the social and economic changes in the Kingdom.
“There are a lot
of changes that directly affect the family, such as the increase in job
opportunities for both sexes, urban sprawl, and migrating from rural areas to
cities.
“But under the
current situation, health, social, and economic challenges that were brought up
alongside COVID-19 were especially taxing on the Saudi family.”
“We are very
keen to unify all efforts to spread awareness and are activating initiatives
that help families overcome this crisis,” Al-Tuwaijri added.
Al-Tuwaijri
gained a bachelor’s degree in English literature in 1998, a master’s degree in
English literature/drama in 2004, and in 2011 a Ph.D. in American
literature/drama, all from King Saud University (KSU).
She started her
career as a teacher, but then joined KSU’s staff as a lecturer in 2004. She is
currently an assistant professor of English literature at the university,
teaching modern English literature and literary criticism.
Al-Tuwaijri was
appointed as the vice chair of the department of English language and
literature in 2012 and was the vice dean of KSU’s College of Arts from 2013 to
2015.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1725626/saudi-arabia
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Muslim Female
Secret Agent of Indian Origin Is Honoured with First Blue Plaque
28 August 2020
Noor Inayat Khan is the
first Indian-origin woman to be honoured with an English Heritage blue plaque
for her efforts as an undercover spy in Nazi-occupied Paris in the Second World
War
------
A Muslim spy who
was executed by the Nazis at Dachau concentration camp in 1944 is the first
Indian-origin woman to be honoured with a blue plaque.
Noor Inayat
Khan, of Indian and US descent, served in the Special Operations Executive
(SOE), which was set up by Sir Winston Churchill in 1940.
The English
Heritage tribute will mark her London family home on Taviton Street in
Bloomsbury.
The 'unlikely'
spy was the first female radio operator to be flown into Nazi-occupied France
in 1943 and was 'Britain's first Muslim war heroine in Europe', English
Heritage said.
For three
months, Khan single-handedly ran a cell of spies across Paris until she was
betrayed and captured by the Gestapo.
Khan, whose
codename was 'Madeleine', managed to escape from prison after her arrest, but
was recaptured shortly afterwards.
She was tortured
for information about SOE operations by the Gestapo for ten months, but she
refused to reveal anything to her captors - not even her real name.
Khan was
eventually executed at Dachau concentration camp on September 13, 1944, aged
just 30.
Shrabani Basu,
Khan's biographer, who is unveiling the plaque, said: 'When Noor Inayat Khan
left this house on her last mission, she would never have dreamed that one day
she would become a symbol of bravery. She was an unlikely spy.
'As a Sufi she
believed in non-violence and religious harmony. Yet when her adopted country
needed her, she unhesitatingly gave her life in the fight against Fascism.
For three
months, Khan single-handedly ran a cell of spies across Paris until she was
betrayed and captured by the Gestapo.
Khan, whose
codename was 'Madeleine', managed to escape from prison after her arrest, but
was recaptured shortly afterwards.
She was tortured
for information about SOE operations by the Gestapo for ten months, but she
refused to reveal anything to her captors - not even her real name.
Khan was
eventually executed at Dachau concentration camp on September 13, 1944, aged
just 30.
Shrabani Basu,
Khan's biographer, who is unveiling the plaque, said: 'When Noor Inayat Khan
left this house on her last mission, she would never have dreamed that one day
she would become a symbol of bravery. She was an unlikely spy.
'As a Sufi she
believed in non-violence and religious harmony. Yet when her adopted country
needed her, she unhesitatingly gave her life in the fight against Fascism.
Her biographer
previously managed to get Khan's bravery permanently recognised in England with
a bronze bust in central London.
The bust was
erected close to her family home and was the first memorial in Britain to
either a Muslim or an Asian woman.
When campaigning
for the bust, Shrabani Basu told the Independent: 'I feel it is very important
that what she did should not be allowed to fade from memory, particularly
living in the times that we do.
'Here was a
young Muslim woman who gave her life for this country and for the fight against
those who wanted to destroy the Jewish race. She was an icon for the bond that
exists between Britain and India but also between people who fought for what
they believed to be right.'
Khan was born on
New Year's Day 1914 in Moscow to an Indian father and an American mother.
She was a direct
descendant of Tipu Sultan, the renowned 18th century Muslim 'Tiger of Mysore'
who refused to submit to British rule and died in battle.
Her father, who
was an Indian Muslim preacher, moved his family to London and then to Paris,
where Khan was educated and later worked writing children's stories.
After the fall
of France to Nazi Germany, Khan and her brother Vilayat fled to England.
Despite having
no loyalty to Britain, she joined the Women's Auxiliary Air Force in November
1940.
Two years later,
her quiet dedication and training in radio transmitting attracted the attention
of the SOE and led to her being flown to France in June 1943.
There were
doubts about her suitability for the role, but nonetheless she became the radio
operator for the 'Prosper' resistance network in Paris, with the famous instruction
to 'set Europe ablaze'.
After many
members of the network were arrested, Khan remained in France and, frequently
changing her appearance and alias, she spent a summer moving from place to
place, trying to relay messages back to London.
She was eventually
betrayed by a Frenchwoman, supposedly the jealous girlfriend of a comrade, and
was arrested by the Gestapo.
The Nazi secret
police discovered that she had unwisely kept copies of all her secret signals
and the Germans used her radio to trick London into sending new agents -
straight into the hands of the waiting Gestapo.
In November
1943, she was sent to Pforzheim prison in Germany where she was kept in chains
and in solitary confinement.
She was
transferred to Dachau concentration camp in 1944 and was shot alongside three
other female SOE agents.
Khan was
posthumously awarded the George Cross in 1949 and the French Croix de Guerre.
The news of
Khan's plaque comes after English Heritage admitted the proportion of women
celebrated by the scheme is 'still unacceptably low'.
Only 14% of more
than 950 London blue plaques celebrate women.
Plaques planned
this year will include tributes to secret agent Christine Granville and artist
Barbara Hepworth.
The charity said
that 'if we are to continue to see a significant increase in the number of blue
plaques for women, we need more female suggestions'.
Noor Inayat Khan
was the last essential link between London and Paris after mass arrests by the
Gestapo had destroyed the Special Operation Executive's spy network in Paris.
Her position
became so dangerous that her commanders urged her to return. She refused and it
was a decision that was to cost Khan her life.
In November
1940, having fled France with her brother to fight Nazi tyranny, Khan joined
the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, and as an Aircraftwoman 2nd Class she was sent
to be trained as a wireless operator.
She was
recruited to join F (France) Section of the Special Operations Executive and
although her superiors held mixed opinions on her suitability for secret
warfare, her fluent French and her competency in wireless operation made her a
desirable candidate.
On June 16,
1943, codenamed 'Madeleine' and under the cover identity of Jeanne-Marie
Regnier, Khan was parachuted into Northern France.
She travelled to
Paris, and together with two other SOE radio operators, Diana Rowden and Cecily
Lefort, joined the Physician network led by Francis Suttill.
During the six
weeks immediately following her arrival, the Gestapo made mass arrests in the
Paris Resistance groups to which she had been detailed. She refused to abandon
what had become the principal and most dangerous post in France as she did not
wish to leave her French comrades without communications and also hoped to
rebuild her group.
Despite having a
full description of her and deploying considerable forces in their effort to
break the last remaining link with London, it was only her betrayal by a French
woman that led to her capture by the Gestapo.
Khan was taken
to their HQ where the Germans, now in possession of her codes and messages,
asked her to co-operate. She refused and gave them no information of any kind.
While she was
imprisoned in one of the cells on the fifth floor of the Gestapo HQ in Avenue
Foch, she made two unsuccessful bids to escape. She was asked to sign a
declaration that she would make no further attempts but refused and the Chief
of the Gestapo obtained permission from Berlin to send her to Germany for 'safe
custody'.
Khan was sent to
Karlsruhe in November 1943, and then to Pforzheim where her cell was apart from
the main prison. She was considered to be particularly dangerous and
uncooperative.
Finally Khan was
taken with three others to Dachau concentration camp on the September 12, 1944,
and on arrival was escorted to the crematorium where she was shot.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8671371/Muslim-female-secret-agent-executed-Nazis-honoured-blue-plaque-Indian-origin-woman.html
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This Emirati Is
Dubai Police's First Woman Officer Who Can Defuse Bombs
August 27, 2020
Ali Al Shouk
Emirati
Image Credit: Supplied
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Dubai: An
Emirati has become the first woman specialist in defusing explosives at the
Dubai Police headquarters.
Lt Al Reem Abdul
Rahman Abdullah, who joined the police bomb disposal department to defuse
bombs, illegal and expired fireworks, is the first female specialist in the
sector, a feat that is being celebrated this Emirati Women’s Day.
“Dubai Police is
a pioneer in empowering women. I decided to take the challenge and work on
defusing bombs, disposal of ammunition and illegal fireworks. I became the
first female officer in Dubai Police in this sector,” said Lt Al Reem.
“Dubai Police is
keen to develop my skills through workshops and training sessions. Last year, I
finished a diploma programme in the explosives field. I was the only woman in
the programme and came third place with a 90 per cent score.”
Lt Al Reem works
with her unit in handling expired and illegal fireworks as well as make sure
the disposal operation does not affect the environment.
Dubai Police
plans to send Lt Al Reem to Cranfield University in the UK to get a master’s
degree in explosives engineering.
“I’m proud to
get this chance for a higher education and gain more experience,” Lt Al Reem
added.
Major General
Abdullah Ali Al Ghaithi, Director of the General Department of Protective
Security and Emergency at Dubai Police, said they feel proud having ambitious
Emirati women in the force, taking on roles dominated by men.
“Lt Al Reem
became the first woman to work at the explosives unit in Dubai Police. She will
get a master’s degree from the UK following instructions from Lt Gen Abdullah
Khalifa Al Merri, Commander-In-Chief at Dubai Police. He is keen to encourage
women to join any field in the force,” Maj Gen Al Gaithi said in a statement.
https://gulfnews.com/uae/this-emirati-is-dubai-polices-first-woman-officer-who-can-defuse-bombs-1.73460600
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Berlin teacher
headscarf ban is illegal, rules top court
27.08.2020
Germany's
Federal Labor Court on Thursday ruled that a blanket ban on teachers wearing
headscarves in schools in the capital city Berlin was unconstitutional.
The court
decision was the latest in a case brought by a Muslim woman who was unable to
work as a teacher in state schools in the city because she wore a headscarf.
The woman had
been "discriminated against because of her religion," the court
ruled.
What was the
case?
The woman
initially brought a case to the lower Berlin-Brandenburg labor court after she
was told — following a job interview — that she would not be allowed to teach
in Berlin if she continued to wear a headscarf.
Teachers in the
city were banned from wearing headscarves under the Berlin's neutrality act
that forbids civil servants from wearing religious clothing and symbols.
The lower court
ruled that headscarves could only be banned if there was a concrete threat to
peace at school. In November 2018, the court ordered the city-state Berlin to
pay the woman €5,159 ($6,098) in compensation.
Then lawyers on
behalf of Berlin appealed the ruling by the Berlin-Brandenburg labor court,
citing the neutrality act.
Thursday's
ruling was the last stage in the ongoing lawsuit with the federal labor court
siding with the lower court's decision.
Both courts
referred to a 2015 ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court that ruled that a
general headscarf ban at public schools was illegal.
What was the
response?
Berlin's Senator
of Justice Dirk Behrendt called on Twitter for the law to be changed: "The
conflict about the neutrality law should not be allowed to be carried on the
backs of the women concerned."
"In a
multi-religious society, it must be about what one has in their head and not on
their head," he added.
Bernhard Franke,
head of the Federal Anti-Discrimination office also welcomed the ruling and
called for the neutrality law to be revised to avoid future conflict of
interest.
https://www.dw.com/en/berlin-teacher-headscarf-ban-is-illegal-rules-top-court/a-54722770
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Afghan Actress
Turned Police Officer Recovering After Ambush in Kabul
SAYED SALAHUDDIN
August 26, 2020
KABUL: Renowned
former actress Saba Sahar, one of Afghanistan’s first female film directors, is
recovering in hospital after sustaining four bullet wounds during an attack on
Tuesday, Aug. 25, when gunmen opened fire on her car in the capital Kabul.
“Sahar had just
left home and was heading for the office in her official car with one of her
kids, a bodyguard and her driver, when three gunmen in an alley in the eastern
part of Kabul opened fire on her before fleeing,” Aimal Zaki, her husband, told
Arab News.
Zaki, who was
home at the time of the incident, added that a short while after Sahar left
home on Tuesday, he “heard gunshots” and was told she had been wounded when he
called to check on her.
“We reached the
site, she had received four bullets in her abdominal area, the driver and
bodyguard were also wounded, my daughter was well, and we immediately rushed
Sahar to the hospital,” he said.
Describing it as
“a very dangerous ambush,” he added: “The gunmen, according to the driver of
the car, were armed with an AK-47. She was in a coma until early this morning,
but is out of danger now and in the recovery unit of the police hospital.”
Sahar, 44, is
one of Afghanistan’s most famous actors, a campaigner for women’s rights and is
considered a vocal critic of the Taliban.
After working as
an independent director for several years and with eight films to her name, she
finally retired from the film industry in 2015.
Her latest film,
released this year, depicted the role and significance of female police
officers during crackdown operations against insurgent groups such as the
Taliban and Daesh.
She is currently
serving as the deputy head of the gender department for the police’s special
force, after working as a police officer for more than a decade.
Officials
described Tuesday’s incident as the latest in a chain of targeted attacks by
the Taliban on security forces, despite no one claiming responsibility for
Tuesday’s attack.
“An assessment
is underway to nab the culprits,” Ferdaus Faramarz, a spokesman for Kabul
police told Arab News.
Tariq Aryan,
chief spokesman for the interior ministry, said the attack was “part of a
pattern of terrorist attacks,” accusing the Taliban of involvement.
“The Taliban are
behind such attacks as they have repeatedly warned government security
officials in the past to abandon their duties. A bigger picture of this attack
could be to frighten women who serve in security organs,” he told Arab News.
Tuesday’s attack
occurred amid the backdrop of the yet-to-start intra-Afghan talks — where the
Taliban have repeatedly pledged to uphold women’s rights — and takes place just
ten days after unidentified shooters attacked another prominent woman in the
country.
Former lawmaker
Fawzia Koofi, who is a women’s rights advocate and a member of the negotiating
team with the Taliban, sustained minor injuries in the attack on Aug. 16 which
took place when the gunmen attacked her car in the north of Kabul.
Authorities
investigating the incident said they had yet to ascertain the motive and
identity of the attackers, even as Koofi said that it was the “work of peace
spoilers.”
Other woman
lawmakers agreed.
“Their (the
Taliban’s) intention from such attacks is to frighten women from working in
government, especially in security. This has become a worrying matter for
some,” Nazifa Zaki, a legislator from Kabul, told Arab News.
She said the
attack on Sahar was part of similar targeted attacks by the Taliban on women
“who either worked as military or civilian officials” in various parts of
Afghanistan in recent years.
Reactions poured
in from across the world on Wednesday, with Amnesty International saying that
there had been an “extremely worrying” rise in attacks on film actors,
political activists and human rights defenders in Afghanistan recently, while
Ross Wilson, a top US diplomat in Kabul, described the attack as “despicable”
on Twitter.
“The attack was
part of a wave of growing violence and routine targeted killings in Kabul,
which show how much the city has become more insecure,” Shafiq Hapal, an
analyst and a university teacher, told Arab News.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1725046/world
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Queen Rania
Flaunts Saudi Label for Her Birthday
August 27, 2020
DUBAI: Queen
Rania of Jordan turned to Saudi couturier Mohammed Ashi of Beirut-based label
Ashi Studio for her 50th birthday look.
The Queen, whose
special day is on Aug. 31, wore a long-sleeved crepe gown with embroidery and
button detail in one of the shots.
The designer
took to Instagram to express his gratitude and to send the mother-of-four his
warm wishes. “I am very honored for Her Majesty Queen Rania chose to wear this
regal dress, which was designed to radiate power. I wish her Majesty a Happy
Birthday,” he wrote to his 833,000 followers.
The designer
recently made headlines when Beyonce wore one of his creations, earlier this
month, in her latest visual release, “Black is King.”
The look, which
took 70 hours to make, consisted of a black bustier embellished with exotic
black feathers.
Just last week,
British pop sensation Ellie Goulding wore one of the designer’s eye-grabbing
creations in her latest music video “Love I’m Given.”
The 33-year-old
star, who gave us “Love Me Like You Do,” “Burn,” and “On My Mind,” wore a
floor-length gold gown with puffed, off-the-shoulder sleeves.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1725411/lifestyle
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Emirati Women
Constitute 45% Of Abu Dhabi's Workforce
August 27, 2020
ABU DHABI — The
Abu Dhabi Pension Fund stated that the total number of female citizens working
in the public and private sectors in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, until last July,
reached 40,717, representing 45 percent of active employees in the emirate.
The fund pointed
out that the labor market in Abu Dhabi witnessed the appointment of 1,151 women
between January and July 2020, which constitutes 55 percent of those employed
during the same period.
The fund stated
that women now constitute 45 percent of the national workforce in the emirate,
while it did not exceed 11 percent in 2000 when the Abu Dhabi Retirement Fund
was established.
The total number
of female pensioners in the emirate reached 2,599, which represents 21 percent
of the total pensioners registered with the Fund, noting that the average
retirement age for women was 46 years, compared to 55 years for men.
The fund stated
that the most important reason for females retiring is "a married woman
with children".A law concerning the civil retirement pensions and benefits
in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi allows her to retire after 15 years of service or
10 years in case she reaches the age of 50.
The increasing
number of working women is a reflection of the empowerment of Emirati women and
their participation in the development process.
The fund emphasized
that the empowerment of Emirati women in the labor market is the fruit of the
leadership's support for them, especially since the late Sheikh Zayed believed
that women had a role no less important than that of men.
The fund
indicated that 40 percent of women work in the emirate’s government sector,
while five percent are in the private sector. The average years of service for
female citizens in Abu Dhabi is eight years, compared to nine years for males.
Khalaf Abdullah
Rahma Al Hammadi, Director-General of the Abu Dhabi Pension Fund, stated the
statistics related to registered citizens in the Abu Dhabi pension system
reflects a remarkable development in the number of working women who join the
emirate's labor market every year.
He added:
"The increase in the number of women in the labor market, along with the
long years of service recorded by Emirati women in the work sectors, is
evidence of the quality, proportionality and components of the work environment
in the emirate." — WAM
https://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/597185/World/Mena/Emirati-women-constitute-45-of-Abu-Dhabis-workforce
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4 Saudi Women to
Judge as Archery Championship Kicks Off
August 27, 2020
RIYADH — As many
as 27 female archers are participating in the preliminary rounds of Saudi
Women’s Archery Championship which kicked off at the Bow Square in Prince
Faisal Bin Fahd Olympic Complex here Wednesday.
The three-day
event is managed by four women judges for the first time at the level of the
federation championships. They are Asma Al-Shaban, Fatima Abdi, Hana Tafesh and
Asma Al-Zahrani.
They are among
the judges approved by the Saudi Arabian Archery Federation, which strives to
host women participants in all items of competitions at the women’s archery
championships.
Motaira
Al-Shammari participates in the compound bow competitions as the first Saudi
female archer to participate in the compound pulley bow competitions. Four
female archers are participating in the 60-meter competitions, five in the
30-meter distance and 18 archers in the 18-meter competitions.
https://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/597172/SAUDI-ARABIA/4-Saudi-women-to-judge-as-Archery-Championship-kicks-off
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/hala-al-tuwaijri-head-womens/d/122739