Document Shows Iranian Protester, 16-year-old Nika Shakarami, Raped Before Murder
New
Age Islam News Bureau
22 February 2024
·
Document Shows Iranian Protester, 16-year-old Nika
Shakarami, Raped Before Murder
·
Indian-Origin Sikh Woman, Jaspreet Kaur, from Germany
Converts o Islam, Marries Pak Man
·
TIME's Women of The Year: The Israeli, Palestinian
Planning for Peace
·
Once a Saudi King’s Guest, Sabiha, Allegedly Duped by
Agents
·
PTI’s Dr Yasmin Rashid Seeks Judiciary’s Attention:
Women in Jail For 9 Months ‘Without Any Evidence’
·
CAIR Calls on Biden Admin to Address Israeli Sexual
Violence, Arbitrary Detention and Abuse Targeting Palestinian Women and Girls
·
Iran Begins First Election Campaign Since The 2022
Mass Protests Over Mahsa Amini’s Death in Custody
·
Weaving Occupation: A Beacon of Hope Amid Poverty in Afghanistan
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/iranian-nika-shakarami/d/131775
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Document Shows Iranian Protester, 16-year-old Nika
Shakarami, Raped Before Murder
Nika Shakarami
-----
February 22, 2024
A recently unveiled document has revealed that
16-year-old Nika Shakarami was raped by state-backed security during the Women,
Life, Freedom protests.
The document, circulating on social media and
seemingly discovered among a trove of files accessed after a hacktivist group
breached the servers of the Iranian judiciary on Tuesday, contains evidence
confirming that Shakarami had been subjected to rape amid a state sanctioned
campaign of sexual violence as documented by rights groups.
The trove of documents obtained by the hacktivist
group Edalat-e Ali covers a wide range of sensitive topics, spanning from
internal discussions within the National Security Council following Mahsa
Amini's death to efforts aimed at curbing unauthorized VPN vendors, protests
against the 2020 employment examination, and cases related to economic
corruption.
Abbas Masjedi Arani, head of the Forensic Medicine
Organization has sent the "very confidential" letter to the Supreme
National Security Council, explicitly stating, "In the genital
examination, signs indicating assault or rough sexual intercourse were
evident."
Nika Shakarami, a 16-year-old, was abducted and
murdered by security forces during the anti-regime protests which swept Iran in
2022 following the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody.
Nika's final communication with a friend in September
detailed how security forces were pursuing her on Keshavarz Boulevard in Tehran
before she mysteriously disappeared. Her family identified her body ten days
later, revealing signs of torture, abuse, and beatings inflicted by security
forces.
Government agents later seized Nika's body from
Khorramabad and secretly buried her in a village in Lorestan, located in
western Iran.
The aftermath of Mahsa Amini's death saw over 500
civilians, including children and teens like Nika, lose their lives in the
ensuing uprising.
Source: iranintl.com
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202402215031
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Indian-Origin Sikh Woman, Jaspreet Kaur, from Germany
Converts To Islam, Marries Pak Man
Indian-Origin Sikh Woman,
Jaspreet Kaur, from Germany Converts o Islam, Marries Pak Man
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Feb 22, 2024
A Sikh woman of Indian origin from Germany has married
a man from Pakistan's Punjab province, the latest case of marriages between
people in the two estranged neighbouring countries, according to a media report
on Thursday.
Jaspreet Kaur, now known as Zainab, exchanged vows
with Ali Arsalan, as confirmed by the certificate of acceptance of Islam issued
by the Jamia Hanafia, Sialkot, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.
Kaur hails from Ludhiana in Punjab and embraced Islam
at Jamia Hanafia Sialkot before the marriage, where she adopted her new Islamic
name.
Reports suggest that the couple became acquainted
while abroad, leading to Arsalan extending an invitation for Kaur to visit
Pakistan, culminating in their marriage, according to the report.
The marriage took place during Kaur's visit to
Pakistan for a religious pilgrimage, which began on January 16.
Kaur, who also holds an Indian passport, was granted a
single entry visa until April 15.
Administrators of the Jamia Hanafia said that Kaur is
one of the over 2,000 non-Muslims who have embraced Islam at their institution.
Marriages between the nationals of Pakistan and India,
the two estranged neighbours, often make headlines as the two countries have
strained relations, especially over the issue of Kashmir.
Last year, an Indian girl, Anju, travelled to Pakistan
to marry a Muslim man. Before that, a Pakistani woman, Seema, went to India to
tie the knot with a Hindu man.
Source: indiatoday.in
https://www.indiatoday.in/world/indians-abroad/story/indian-origin-sikh-woman-from-germany-converts-to-islam-marries-pak-man-2505611-2024-02-22
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TIME's Women of The Year: The Israeli, Palestinian
Planning for Peace
FEBRUARY 21, 2024
Two women, an Israeli and a Palestinian, were honoured
this week by TIME Magazine, receiving recognition for organizing their
respective movements as well as their collaboration in the hopes of reaching
peace.
In an exciting announcement on Wednesday morning, TIME
released its slate of women of the year to celebrate International Women's Day
on March 8. These 12 women were selected for their contribution to building a
more equitable future for women, and this year's list includes two women - one
Israeli and one Palestinian - who founded and led movements for equality and
peace.
The first recipient is Dr. Yael Admi, who founded
"Women Wage Peace," a women-led movement dedicated to promoting peace
and finding a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The co-director of "Women Wage Peace," Orna
Shargai, stated, "In these difficult days, we are fighting against despair
and carrying the banner of hope for a better future. We were moved by the
choice of TIME magazine, and this gives members of the "Women Wage
Peace" movement the strength to continue this difficult journey,
especially during these terrible days when we are experiencing the suffering of
thousands of girls and children, mothers and fathers, grandparents, women, and
men, young and old. We join in the demands of our sister movement, "Women
of the Sun," to end this terrible conflict and work for the future of our
children and future generations."
The second recipient is Reem Hajajreh, the founder of
the Palestinian organization "Women of the Sun." "Women of the
Sun," like "Women Wage Peace," seeks nonviolent solutions,
dialogue, and coexistence among Israelis and Palestinians, with a special focus
on the role of women in leading such efforts. The two organizations have worked
in tandem and have called on decision-makers to end the cycle of violence and
seek peaceful and sustainable solutions for women and the people of the region.
Merely days before Hamas's October 7 attack on
southern Israel, the women of these two groups organized an event that saw
Israeli and Palestinian women convening in Jerusalem and the Dead Sea to demand
a peaceful future and action on the part of leaders. On October 7, co-founder
of "Women Wage Peace," Vivian Silver and two other women from the
organization were murdered by Hamas terrorists.
Despite the October 7 attack and ensuing bitter
conflict, the two groups have continued to work tirelessly in cooperation and
have not lost sight of their goals.
'The great majority of our people share mutual
ambition'
The two groups released a joint statement: "We
believe that the great majority of our people share mutual ambition. Therefore,
we demand that our leaders listen to our call and open talks and negotiations
as soon as possible with a determined commitment to achieve, within a limited
time frame, a political solution to the long and painful conflict."
Along with the prestigious recognition by TIME
magazine, the two groups have also been nominated as candidates for the Nobel
Peace Prize of 2024 by the Free University of Amsterdam.
The university commended "Women Wage Peace"
and "Women of the Sun" in a statement: "Their work stands out
tragically at this moment, considering their ability to continue building
peaceful relations between Palestinian and Israeli communities despite the
incredible obstacles they faced in the last two months."
Source: jpost.com
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/culture/article-788157
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Once a Saudi King’s Guest, Sabiha, Allegedly Duped by
Agents
21st February 2024
Irfan Mohammed
Jeddah: A Karnataka woman who was allegedly duped by
agents and stranded in a remote place in Saudi Arabia has finally left for home
with the help of workers Indian community workers in the area.
In an interesting twist, the woman, who was raised in
an orphanage in Bengaluru, was fascinated about the oil-rich country. As a
teenager, she was once a guest of the King of Saudi Arabia.
As a tradition, Saudi kings invite people from
different sections across the globe to be their guests and perform Hajj. Then a
teenager, Sabiha from Tumakuru district performed Hajj as state guest along
with other orphan girls as King’s Guest during late King Fahad era. She had the
privilege to spend time in royal palaces as a guest of the King.
She grew up, got married, and now is mother of four
children. Sabiha’s husband suddenly fell ill and was diagnosed with the cardiac
disease, which needed expensive medical procedure. She also needed money to
support her daughters’ education.
The financial conditions of the family forced now
30-year-old Sahiha to look for a job in Saudi Arabia. She approached a
Mumbai-based agent for a job. She was first taken to UAE, from where she was
brought into Asir province of Saudi Arabia on tourist visa. She was employed as
a domestic helper in a house where she was allegedly mistreated and made to
work long hours.
After a series of attempts, the woman escaped from her
workplace and approached police. She finally came in contact with Ashraf
Kuttichal, a noted Indian social worker in Asir region.
“Since her visa is valid and she did not violate any
rules, there was no reason to arrest or deport her,” said Ashraf, who
coordinated with local authorities and the Indian consulate in Jeddah to help
the woman.
“When she approached a shelter house, she was not
provided shelter as she did not have workers’ visa,” he explained.
Finally, with the help of police and local authorities
the woman was repatriated. LANA Indian Advanced School, a CBSE-affiliated
school in the region, also helped the distressed woman.
Before she boarded the flight to India, she expressed
gratitude towards Saudi authorities, the Indian consulate, and Ashraf.
Source: siasat.com
https://www.siasat.com/once-a-saudi-kings-guest-woman-returns-to-india-in-despair-2980944/
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PTI’s Dr Yasmin RashidSeeks Judiciary’s Attention:
Women in Jail For 9 Months ‘Without Any Evidence’
February 22, 2024
LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s incarcerated leader
Dr Yasmin Rashid has sent a message for judges that several Pakistani women are
behind bars for nine months “as a part of a political victimisation spree”.
A post on PTI’s official X handle, attributed to Dr
Rashid, said she was compelled to state that the “law was not only blind but
deaf and dumb too. Mothers, sisters and daughters are incarcerated without
evidence of any crime but as a part of political victimisation,” Dr Rashid
said.
Runner-up from NA-130, she said that the masses came
out to vote in an environment of intimidation on Feb 8 but their votes had been
stolen.
Urging the judges to respect their duty of
dispensation of justice, she stated that people had lost hope in the Election
Commission of Pakistan and were looking towards the judiciary for justice.
“The judges must protect the mandate of the people of
Pakistan,” Dr Rashid said.
Speaking to Dawn, PTI campaign organiser Sajid Nabi
Malik said the caretaker government had committed massive rigging in NA-130
that saw an election contest between Dr Yasmin Rashid and PML-N leader Nawaz
Sharif.
He said the PTI-backed candidate was winning with a
substantial lead as per Form-45 results. As the NA-130 returning officer was
finalising vote count, he said, the results were stopped and police led by a
senior officer entered the RO office. They threw out polling agents who were
there in place of the candidate herself.
“As the RO refused to change the results, the
policemen tortured him and compelled him to leave. Another RO was appointed
late in the night and in his presence, the process of rigging was completed,”
Mr Malik claimed.
Source: dawn.com
https://www.dawn.com/news/1816096/yasmin-seeks-judiciarys-attention-women-in-jail-for-9-months-without-any-evidence
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CAIR Calls on Biden Admin to Address Israeli Sexual
Violence, Arbitrary Detention and Abuse Targeting Palestinian Women and Girls
Ismail Allison
February 21, 2024
Muslim civil rights group also asks president to
condemn Israeli-Imposed Famine in Gaza, building of road to divide Gaza
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the
nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on
the Biden administration to address reported sexual violence, arbitrary
detention and abuse by the forces of the far-right Israeli government targeting
Palestinian women and girls.
CAIR also urged the president to condemn the growing
Israeli-imposed famine in Gaza and Israel’s building of a road designed to cut
Gaza in two.
In a new report, the Office of the UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights cited “credible allegations of egregious human
rights violations” against Palestinian women and girls in Gaza and the West
Bank by Israeli forces. CNN reports that the allegations “include extrajudicial
killing, arbitrary detention, degrading treatment, rape and sexual violence.”
The Wall Street Journal reports that Israel is
expanding a road across central Gaza as part of its plans to maintain control
over the enclave, effectively cutting Gaza in two and making the return of
civilians to the north more difficult. The road-building comes as Israeli is
demolishing Palestinian homes on a one kilometer “buffer zone” inside Gaza’s
border, where Palestinians would be barred from entry.
CAIR previously condemned a policy of the far-right
Israeli government to carry out its ethnic cleansing of Gaza by burning
unoccupied Palestinian homes from which residents have been forced to flee.
The World Food Program said Tuesday it has paused
deliveries of food to northern Gaza. The U.N. agency warned that one in six
children in northern Gaza are acutely malnourished. Many Gaza families limit
themselves to one meal a day and now mix animal and bird fodder with grains to
bake bread. More than 90 percent of children under five in Gaza eat two or
fewer food groups a day.
Israel has already killed almost 30,000 Gazans, mostly
women and children.
Yesterday, CAIR called the reported looting of Gaza by
the forces of the far-right Israeli government a “symptom of genocide and
ethnic cleansing” and condemned the United States veto on a UN resolution
calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.
Source: cair.com
https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-calls-on-biden-admin-to-address-israeli-sexual-violence-arbitrary-detention-and-abuse-targeting-palestinian-women-and-girls/
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Iran begins first election campaign since the 2022
mass protests over Mahsa Amini’s death in custody
Feb 21, 2024
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Candidates for Iran’s parliament
began campaigning Thursday in the country’s first election since the bloody
crackdown on the 2022 nationwide protests that followed the death of
22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody.
State television said 15,200 candidates will compete
for a four-year term in the 290-seat chamber that hardliners have controlled
for two decades.
That is a record number and more than twice the
candidates who contested the 2020 election, when voter turnout was just over
42%, the lowest since 1979.
Amini died on Sept. 16, 2022, after her arrest by
Iran’s morality police for allegedly violating the country’s strict headscarf
law that forced women to cover their hair and entire bodies. The protests
quickly escalated into calls to overthrow Iran’s clerical rulers. In the severe
crackdown that followed, over 500 people were killed and nearly 20,000
arrested, according to human rights activists in Iran.
On Wednesday, the Guardian Council election watchdog
sent the names of the 15,200 qualified candidates to the interior ministry,
which holds the election. Any candidate for elections in Iran must be approved
by the Council, a 12-member clerical body, half of whom are directly appointed
by the supreme leader.
The candidates include 1,713 women, which is more than
double the 819 who competed in 2020.
The election will be held March 1, and the new
parliament will convene in late May.
Current parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf
will run for election from his hometown, a constituency in the remote
northeast, after winning a seat in the capital Tehran four years ago. Such a
change in districts usually indicates shrinking popularity. In recent years,
his fellow hardline critics occasionally accused him of ignoring the rights of
other parliament members and disregarding reports of corruption while he was
Tehran mayor.
Incumbent assembly member President Ebrahim Raisi will
seek reelection to the assembly in a remote constituency in South Khorasan
province, competing against a low-profile cleric.
In a simultaneous election, 144 clerics will compete
for the all-cleric 88-seat Assembly of Experts that functions as an advisory
body to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state
matters. Their term of service is eight years.
Under Iran’s constitution, the assembly monitors the
country’s supreme leader and chooses his successor. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will
be 85 in April. He has been supreme leader for 34 years.
Source: fox5sandiego.com
https://fox5sandiego.com/news/world-news/ap-international/ap-iran-begins-first-election-campaign-since-the-2022-mass-protests-over-mahsa-aminis-death-in-custody/
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Weaving occupation: A beacon of hope amid poverty in
Afghanistan
Fidel Rahmati
February 22, 2024
Weaving by hand takes a lot of time; at least 3 to 4
hours, but Zinat’s hands are familiar with this difficulty. She now weaves
quickly and then takes her hand-woven mats/washcloths to the market for sale.
Each mat, woven with such effort and skill, sells for only five Afghanis.
Zinat, who is over 50 years old, lives in the
Kotal-e-Khair Khana area, one of the most crowded areas of Kabul. She used to
be a teacher and has over 25 years of teaching experience. According to
herself, she was retired from the previous government, but now she is forced to
turn to weaving out of necessity.
She has only one daughter who is fifteen years old.
Her daughter dropped out of school and they both live in Zinat’s brother’s
house. Zinat’s husband left during the ongoing crisis of unemployment in
Afghanistan and now works in Iran.
She has known weaving for a long time, but this is the
first time she thinks she can only work this way. Zinat usually weaves “mats”
and prepares its raw materials in her own special way.
Zinat says, “I come home with a large woollen jacket
from Lelami. I unravel it. From one jacket, I weave five or more mats.”
Preparing raw materials for weaving and the weaving
process itself are not difficult for her, but she always struggles in the
selling part of the woven mats. On one hand, she sells each mat, woven with all
that effort, for only five Afghanis, yet on the other hand, there is always a
customer willing to buy.
She says, “I live in my brother’s house. They
sheltered me, but I have to find my bread.”
According to Zinat’s belief, people can’t even afford
to buy mats. She weaves mats in various sizes and colors, but sadly remarks,
“The residents of Kotal-e-Khair Khana cannot afford to buy because they are all
poor.”
She says she has been weaving for two years: she buys
woollen jackets from Lelami, unravels them, weaves mats from the threads, and
handles all the stages of selling them.
For her, working in the market, going to shops, and
boasting about her woven mats are not difficult because, as she puts it, this
is her job. But the problem starts when her mats don’t sell.
Zinat recalls a day when her mats wouldn’t sell, and
she felt hopeless: “I got up from my place on Saturday morning; I had completed
many hand-woven mats for sale, but I knew I would return home empty-handed
again. So, I didn’t need to take the mats with me again and thought it would be
better to do something else than to return home empty-handed.”
She continues, “I went to the alley of Almari, threw
everything I had in the house, like clothes, scarves, shoes, and essentials,
into a bag and went to the market of Kotal-e-Khair khana.”
Zinat is in a situation where standing tall is
difficult for her, but she is still concerned about her 15-year-old daughter
who dropped out of school: “I feel ashamed in front of my daughter because,
like a mother, I could never fulfill her wishes. Now, what can I do with just
five Afghanis?”
She reflects on her feeling that she could work and
earn money: “I used to work passionately and love my profession. I felt like a
strong woman and worked sincerely, but I retired.”
She says Afghan women are resilient and want to work
shoulder to shoulder with men, and she also wants to work. Zinat intends to
continue her efforts and hopes to improve the living conditions of herself and
her family in the future.
Source: khaama.com
https://www.khaama.com/weaving-occupation-a-beacon-of-hope-amid-poverty-in-afghanistan/
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/iranian-nika-shakarami/d/131775