Jordan Requests Gender Confirmation of Female Iran Player, Claims Goalie Is a Man
New Age Islam News Bureau
16 November 2021
• Miss Universe Opens Online Voting Poll Ahead Of
Pageant to Be Held In Israel; So They Can Move On To the Semi-Finals
• Kuwaiti Official: Violence against Women Violates
Moral Principles and Infringes Upon Teachings of Islam
• Artificial Intelligence to Assist Police's Cyber
Support for Women Wing
• Turkish Woman, World's Tallest, Wants To Tour The
World
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/jordan-gender-female-iran/d/125779
--------
Jordan Requests Gender Confirmation Of Female Iran Player,
Claims Goalie Is A Man
15 November 2021
The player in question played in the goalkeeper’s
position and helped Iran defeat Jordan in penalties, securing Tehran’s spot in
the 2022 AFC
-----
Jordan’s Football Association has petitioned a formal
complaint to request a gender verification of an Iranian player after its
women’s team lost to the Iranian team, casting doubt whether Iran’s goalkeeper
is a man or a woman.
Former FIFA vice president Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein
of Jordan shared the formal complaint letter filed by the JFA dated November 5,
calling on the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to investigate the player in
question.
“Considering the evidence submitted by JFA and given
the importance of this competition, we request the AFC to initiate a
transparent and clear investigation by a panel of independent medical experts
to investigate the eligibility of the player in question,” read the letter.
The player in question, Zohreh Koudaei, played in the
goalkeeper’s position and helped Iran defeat Jordan in penalties, securing
Tehran’s spot in the 2022 AFC Women’s Asia Cup. Koudaei has been questioned
over her gender status, defending herself several times in Iranian newspapers
in the past.
“The widespread talk about the goalkeeper’s gender is
just an excuse not to accept defeat against Iranian women,” Maryam Irandoost
the coach of the Iranian women’s team, was quoted as saying in statements
carried by the Iranian Fars news agency.
“After the Jordanian team’s defeat, it was natural for
them to try to calm themselves under false pretexts,” she added. “I want to
confirm that before the start of our qualifying journey, we conducted the
necessary tests, as the medical staff carefully examined each player in the
national team so that we would not face any problem in this regard.”
Iran has in the past been accused of fielding male
players on its women’s national team. In 2015, eight players in the Iran
women’s football team were alleged to be men awaiting gender reassignment
operations.
“[Eight players] have been playing with Iran’s female
team without completing sex change operations,” Mojtabi Sharifi, an official
close to the Iranian league, said during an interview with the Iranian website
Young Journalists Club at the time.
There were also claims that four players on the
women’s team were men and in 2010 questions were raised about the gender of the
national team’s goalkeeper.
Source: Al Arabiya
--------
Miss Universe Opens Online Voting Poll Ahead Of
Pageant to Be Held In Israel; So They Can Move On To the Semi-Finals
Earmuffs are placed on the heads of first runner up,
Madison Anderson of Puerto Rico, and Miss Universe 2019, Zozibini Tunzi of
South Africa,
------
16 November, 2021
The organizers of the 70th Miss Universe competition
have officially opened the online voting poll which has headshots of each
participating country’s representative, including biographies, while some
nations, such as the United Arab Emirates, have been left with a blank space.
The online voting platform asks fans to pick their
favorites so they can move on to the semi-finals where they’ll compete in a
live show to be broadcast from Israel on December 12, 2021.
Israeli singing sensation Noa Kirel is set to open the
show which will be held in the Middle East for the first time.
“I’m so excited and honoured to be performing at Miss
Universe,” said Kirel, who will perform at the global beauty pageant in the
Israeli city of Eilat.
“By believing in themselves and fearlessly chasing
their dreams, these women from around the world live and breathe the values of
the Miss Universe Organization, and I can’t wait to share this celebratory
moment with all of them on this incredible global stage.”
UAE, Morocco at Miss Universe
This year’s competition is also set to feature two
other contestants from the region: Miss Universe United Arab Emirates and Miss
Universe Morocco.
This will mark the first time that a delegate from the
United Arab Emirates has competed in the competition, although organizers
behind the first-ever Miss Universe UAE canceled a planned coronation night for
the inaugural beauty contest earlier this month.
The event, which was supposed to be held on Sunday,
November 7, was called off “due to time constraints,” according to a statement
posted by organizers on their Instagram story.
No updates were posted on the organization’s dedicated
Twitter page and a new date has not been announced.
The names of 30 UAE finalists, which would have
included people of all nationalities living in the UAE, were to be announced
ahead of the historic coronation night.
Organizers have not responded to requests from Al
Arabiya English for an update on the Miss Universe UAE competition or its
participation in the Miss Universe final.
Additionally, Miss Universe Morocco returns to the
competition for the first time in over four decades.
In a statement posted on the Miss Universe website,
Israeli Tourism Minister Yoel Razvozov welcomed the countdown to the Miss
Universe competition.
“Despite the challenges the COVID-19 pandemic placed
in our path, we knew how to maintain the balance between health and the
economy, to bring tourism back to Israel,” he said.
“We needed to create tourism anchors that will promote
and present Israel to the world as a vaccination nation that invites tourists
to visit. The Miss Universe pageant is without doubt an important and
significant anchor of this plan.”
The organization also unveiled details for the
competition’s venue, a state-of-the-art, bespoke arena.
The custom “Universe Arena,” which was imported from
Portugal, rises to a height of 16.5 meters and has the capacity to hold over 70
tons of equipment.
The building is treated to accommodate television
filming and contains a stage and approximately 5,000 seats.
Senior members of the Miss Universe Organization were
in Israel throughout October to tour the country and attend planning meetings.
They met with Mayor of Eilat, Eli Lankri, and closely
supervised the infrastructure and construction work of the Miss Universe
complex.
“The choice of Eilat will continue to strengthen its
position as a leading international tourist city,” said Lankri. “Hundreds of
millions of spectators around the globe will be able to enjoy the rare beauty
of the city of Eilat and its spectacular sites.”
The contestants will arrive in Israel ahead of the
competition to explore all the host country has to offer, beginning in
Jerusalem and ending their trip in Eilat, where the competition will take
place.
The pageant, in addition to celebrating the past 70
years of championing strong women and their platforms, will also shine a
spotlight on the issue of global warming as part of a green agenda that
corresponds with the values of the host country.
Using the Miss Universe platform, the December 12
production will highlight both the contestants of the past and the social and
global issues they faced in their time, and the fact that climate change is on
the world agenda for the next generation of women.
The broadcast will aim to raise awareness amongst the
hundreds of millions of spectators, with the hopes of inspiring action in
contestants’ community.
Paula M. Shugart, president of the Miss Universe
Organization, said: “As a company that has the distinct advantage of bringing a
global spotlight to world issues, I look forward to showcasing both how our
contestants can make a difference in their communities and around the world.”
She continued, “I know that the city of Eilat will
provide a great space for our contestants to learn and grow together.”
Miss South Africa controversy
The competition in Israel has not been without its
controversy.
South Africa’s government is urging its national
pageant winner to boycott this year’s Miss Universe contest due to its location
in Israel.
Government officials said they would not support the
decision by Lalela Mswane, the winner of the country’s beauty contest, and the
organizers of the national pageant to participate in the contest in Israel.
The officials cited Israel’s “atrocities against
Palestinians” as the reason for their disavowal of the competition, according
to The Times of Israel.
South Africa’s ruling party, the African National
Congress, also called on organizers of South Africa’s pageant to discourage
Mswane from participating in the contest in Israel.
Source: Al Arabiya
--------
Kuwaiti Official: Violence against Women Violates Moral Principles and
Infringes Upon Teachings of Islam
15/11/2021
CAIRO: Assistant minister for human rights affairs at
Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry Ambassador Talal Al-Mutairi said yesterday that
violence against women violates moral principles and infringes upon teachings
of Islam. This came in his inaugural speech when chairing the meeting of the
‘open membership working group’; a group formed by the Arab League’s permanent
committee on human rights and designated for reviewing Arab declarations
opposing all forms of violence against women and girls.
Mutairi hoped a unanimously agreed upon formula would
be reached, because violence against women is a central issue in relation to
human rights. He also expressed appreciation for all member states for their
support of women within their communities, and stated that the meeting reflects
a deeply rooted interest in morals boosting rights, freedom and tolerance, as
they are key components in modern societies. Mutairi mentioned that the State
of Kuwait proposed issuing an Arab declaration against domestic violence,
during last human rights committee session, held in August.
Head of Social Sector in League of Arab States,
Ambassador Haifa Abu Ghazaleh, voiced appreciation to member states for
institutional and legislative efforts made to empower women. Abu Ghazaleh added
in a similar speech that this comes within positive privilege proposed by
Islamic and other Abrahamic religions, as well as regional and international
resolutions. She clarified that a proposed project is to be discussed in three
days, within the framework of the working group, adding that the meeting
represents a moral commitment to raising awareness in regards to the impact of
violence against women, on their psyche and their position within family and
community.
Abu Ghazaleh articulated that that meeting is considered
a stepping-stone in developing joint Arab work and accomplishing sustained
development goals. She also added that amongst Arab efforts is an initiative
proposed by a coalition of women MPs in Arab countries to combat violence
against Arab women in 2016. The initiative revolves around the Arab declaration
opposing all violence against girls and women, and subsequent developments in
this regard. – KUNA
Source: Kuwait Times
https://news.kuwaittimes.net/website/violence-against-women-violates-islam-kuwaiti-official/
--------
Artificial Intelligence to Assist Police's Cyber
Support for Women Wing
Mohammad Jamil Khan
Tue Nov 16, 2021
With an aim to provide quick support to victims of
cyber harassment, the police headquarters (PHQ) is going to introduce an
artificial intelligence (AI) tool with all-women special wing called
"Police Cyber Support for Women" (PCSW).
This AI controlled bot (software programme that
performs automated, repetitive, predefined tasks) will take complaints from
women 24/7.
If the allegation is serious in nature, the AI will
immediately ring an alarm bell for taking immediate action by an official of
the wing, according to officials.
On November 16 last year, the PHQ launched the wing to
contain the rising trends of cyber harassment. PHQ is set to hold a press
conference today marking one-year anniversary.
In last one year, around 17,280 service seekers has
communicated with the desk, out of them, around 12,641 were victims of cyber
harassment, according to database.
Of the service seekers, around 58 percent were aged
between 18 to 24 years and 16 percent were below 18, reads the database of PHQ.
The rest, around 8,221 victims, were provided
necessary legal support and advice from the wing.
Mir Abu Touhid, assistant inspector general of Lawful
Interception Cell (LIC) at PHQ, told The Daily Star yesterday that they have
already taken initiatives to introduce the AI and a smart database system in
the special wing.
"Presently, the officials take information and
make the database manually. Once introduced, then AI will automatically assign
officials making category of the complaints," he said, adding, "It
will speed up service of the wing and the victim will get assistance
fast."
"In the desk, we are receiving a huge number of
complaints daily. Error can be made by humans while working round the clock but
these will be addressed with introduction of AI," he explained.
For example, if the AI found any complaint's primary
information showing that the victim is in immediate danger or can harm
themselves due to cyber harassment, it will ring the alarm, added the AIG.
PHQ database shows, the wing mainly receives
complaints from victims of blackmailing -- with private photos, videos -- on
social media, harassment through objectionable picture or language, social
media ID hacking and harassing calls.
According to last one year's database, maximum 5,475
complaints were for publishing message and information from fake social media
ID, 1,451 complaints for blackmailing, 1,321 complaints for ID hacking and 992
complaints for sending objectionable picture, video and message.
Of the complaints, the maximum 64 percent service
seekers were from Dhaka division and 17 percent from Chattogram division.
Officials said, the majority of the service seekers
did not want to take legal action after primary investigation and
identification of the accused.
They only seek support to report the ID and delete the
objectionable content, they said. Database shows, only 12 percent of the
service seekers filed general diary or case.
So far, around 352 people's locations outside the
country were identified, who intended to commit crime using social media.
One can be seek service from PCSW through its Facebook
page or email: cybersupport.women@police.gov.bd and hotline number:
01320000888.
Source: The Daily Star
--------
Turkish woman, world's tallest, wants to tour the
world
NOV 15, 2021
Rümeysa Gelgi is the world's tallest woman, but this
title brings numerous health problems with it. Confined to a wheelchair and
walker, the 24-year-old Turkish woman dreams of traveling the world and
learning about diverse cultures.
Last month, Guinness World Records named Gelgi the
world's tallest living woman, standing at 215.16 centimeters (7.07 feet). She
first received the title of tallest teen living (female) in 2014, when she was
18 years old.
She has always traveled by road and has never taken a
flight, Gelgi told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Monday, adding that she has never
been abroad because of her condition – which requires her to use a wheelchair
most of the time but allows her to walk for a short period.
She said seeing different countries and cultures is
one of her strongest desires and that she had received invitations from Poland
and France when she first broke the record. "Unfortunately, I could not
go," Gelgi said. "This time, I received an invitation from Russia, of
course, I would like to this time."
She needs to rest lying down even though she can sit
for two hours straight, she informed, explaining that she cannot sit through a
plane journey. "There should be someplace for me to lie down. This is
where my physical characteristics play a part in my day-to-day life. I can't
sit in a seat that is lower than 50-55 centimeters because of my knee joint
problem," she said.
"I can't even lie down on reclining seats. The
only way for me to travel is on a stretcher, but that's a really exhausting
procedure," Gelgi remarked.
Underlining that her biggest supporter is her family,
Gelgi said: "I have physical challenges, and I am in need of support all
the time.”
"I don’t have a sickness. Even though Weaver
syndrome is defined as a disease ... I am not a sick person,” she argued,
adding that the syndrome's drawbacks are what she is concerned about.
"I've been coping with syndrome-related problems since I was born, and
I've undergone therapies and surgeries with no complications," she said,
adding: "My major issue is lack of physical movement."
"I want ramps built at a level where wheelchair
users can easily utilize them, and I don't want cars parked in front of them.
It would also be better if disabled parking places were not occupied by healthy
people,” she proposed.
Gelgi was born in Turkey, weighing over 5 kilograms
(about 11 pounds) and standing at 59 centimeters. Two months after her birth,
she was diagnosed with a hole in her heart, necessitating a heart operation. At
the age of 6, she stood 1.76 meters (about 5.77 feet) tall and weighed 65
kilograms (approximately 143 pounds). She had grown to 2.05 meters in height by
her 11th birthday.
Gelgi has Weaver syndrome, a disorder characterized by
skeletal abnormalities and developmental delay. The bones of affected individuals
grow and develop more quickly than usual before and after birth.
Source: Daily Sabah
https://www.dailysabah.com/turkey/turkish-woman-worlds-tallest-wants-to-tour-the-world/news
--------
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/jordan-gender-female-iran/d/125779
ew Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism