Bhagwat's 'True Independence' Remark Akin To Treason, We Are Now Fighting BJP, RSS And The Indian State Itself: Rahul Gandhi
New Age Islam News Bureau
16 January 2025
Rahul Gandhi
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· Bhagwat's 'True Independence' Remark Akin To Treason, We Are Now Fighting BJP, RSS And The Indian State Itself: Rahul Gandhi
· Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s Trailer and Masjid Bilal: NY Times Falsifies Link Between Anti-Semitic Imam And Terrorist’s Mosque
· Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl Accuses Institutions Of Manipulating Polls To Strengthen Grip On Power
· Palestinians Secured ‘Dignified’ Cease-Fire Agreement: Islamic Jihad Movement
· France Muslims Decry Government Actions Against Islamic Schools
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India
· Supreme Court To Hear Godhra Train Burning Case On February 13
· Sambhal Logs 1,400 Power Theft Cases; Rs 11 Crore Fines Hit Mosques, Madrasas, And MP
· Aligarh Muslim University Gets 24cr House Tax Arrears Notice
· Mathura Shahi Idgah Row: SC Defers Hearing On Mosque Panel's Plea To March
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North America
· North Carolina Man Tried To Board Flight To Join Islamic State Group, Authorities Say
· Concerns Raised Over Comments Referencing Muslims Reposted By Tory Leadership Hopeful
· Muslim Heritage Month quickly gaining ground in US
· Biden warns 'dangerous' oligarchy taking shape in farewell address
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Pakistan
· Supreme Court Questions Rationale For Not Holding Military Trial Of APS Attack
· PTI Wants New Chief Election Commissioner As Govt Insists On Status Quo
· 'Muslim Actors Facing Life Threats': Pakistan Ex-Minister Fawad Chaudhry On Saif Ali Khan Attack
· Implementation Committee of SIFC discusses completion of various projects
· Govt committed for accelerating financial inclusion: Aurangzeb
· More than 10,000 Pakistani nationals languishing in Saudi jails, NA told
· Security forces gun down four terrorists in North Waziristan
· Grand jirga vows to work for peace in GB
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Mideast
· Hamas, Islamic Jihad approve Gaza truce deal: Palestinian sources
· A look at the Gaza ceasefire deal
· Netanyahu says Gaza ceasefire is still not complete, hours after US and Qatar announce deal
· UN Security Council calls on countries to stop arming Houthis as Red Sea attacks continue
· UN Chief Calls For Major Aid Boost To Ease ‘Immense’ Palestinian Suffering, As He Welcomes Gaza Ceasefire
· Joy mixed with fear for Israelis awaiting Gaza hostage release
· Biden nods to Trump team in Israel-Hamas ceasefire announcement
· Spain pledges 10 million euros for Lebanon army
· "Islamic Jihad" condemns enemy's crime in Jenin, martyrdom of six Palestinians
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Europe
· ‘Safe’ Labour Seat Calwell The Ultimate Test Case For The Muslim Vote This Election
· Rural Lancashire cemetery could be extended with special Muslim burial section
· Violent Crime Is Out Of Control In France, But It Has Nothing To Do With Muslim Headscarves
· Caucasus Muslims Office receives state finances in Azerbaijan
· Islamic Development Bank’s role in Azerbaijan’s sustainable growth
· Moscow and Kiev hold ‘limited talks’ – Bloomberg
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Africa
· Zulum Warns Communities Against Collaborating With Boko Haram
· Hold The Islamic Movement Accountable For War Crimes In Sudan’s Al-Jazira State
· ‘External And Internal Non-State Players Are Deeply Entrenched In Banditry In Northern Nigeria’
· Mozambique: Daniel Chapo sworn in as president
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Arab World
· International Conference Celebrates The Camel As A Pillar Of Arab Culture
· Saudi Arabia Welcomes Ceasefire Agreement In Gaza
· Thriving Lavender In Saudi’s Northern Borders Has Environmental Benefits
· Manga Productions, Koei Tecmo unveil new Dynasty Warriors game in Riyadh
· Saudi crown prince, French president discuss bilateral relations, regional developments
· New Health Regulations For Umrah Pilgrims
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South Asia
· Russia Calls For SCO Cooperation To Combat Terrorism In Afghanistan
· Explosion occurs in Mazar-e-Sharif, Balkh Province
· 57 new historical sites registered in Maidan Wardak amid preservation concerns
· Zia Orphanage Trust: Apex Court Clears Khaleda, Tarique
· Hamid, Hasina sued over attack on protesters
· Rights bodies, student orgs slam attack
· Won’t tolerate delay in July proclamation
· PCP condemns attack on indigenous protesters at NCTB
· Afghanistan never was a threat to others
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Southeast Asia
· Indonesia Asks Saudi for Bigger Hajj Officer Quota
· MINDEF allocates RM12 billion for asset acquisition this year - Mohamed Khaled
· Failure to fly out Umrah pilgrims: Couple who owns travel agency arrested
· Why speak to 1MDB chairman via Jho Low’s phone? Najib says for ‘convenience’, I was ‘using’ Jho Low for Middle East ties
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/bhagwat-independence-fighting-indian-state/d/134353
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Bhagwat's 'True Independence' Remark Akin To Treason, We Are Now Fighting BJP, RSS And The Indian State Itself: Rahul Gandhi
Jan 16, 2025
Rahul Gandhi
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NEW DELHI: Slamming RSS chief's claim that India did not gain true independence in 1947 but with the inauguration of the Ayodhya temple, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said Mohan Bhagwat's remark is tantamount to "treason" and in any other country, he would be arrested and tried.
"BJP and RSS have captured every single institution of the country. We are now fighting BJP, RSS and the Indian state itself," he said.
Gandhi said RSS-BJP want "India to be run by a shady, hidden, secret society", adding that Congress, with Shiva, Guru Nanak, Kabir and others as symbols, is in a "civilizational war" with the RSS ideology. He underlined that only Congress has the courage and the capability to fight RSS. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge condemned Bhagwat's statement, warning that such claims will make it difficult for him "to travel around the country".
In his remarks after the inauguration of the new Congress headquarters, Rahul said, "What Bhagwat said is treason because he is stating that the Constitution is invalid, that everything, the fight against the British is invalid, and he has the audacity to say it in public... To say that India did not get true independence in 1947 is an insult to our freedom fighters, every single Indian citizen and an attack on our Constitution... and it is time we stopped listening to this nonsense that these people think they can keep parroting out, shouting and screaming."
He added, "Bhagwat has the audacity to inform the nation every two to three days about what he thinks of the freedom movement, about the Constitution."
As he drew the Congress roots to the freedom movement and painted the RSS-BJP as those "who don't salute the tricolor or respect the Constitution", the Gandhi scion said it was "symbolic" that Bhagwat's statement was made on the eve of the unveiling of the Congress office which is "not an ordinary building" but has "emerged from the soil of our country and as a result of the sacrifice of millions of people". The Constitution is the "fruit" of the freedom struggle, he said.
"That spirit was attacked by Bhagwat when he said the Constitution was not a symbol of our freedom," he remarked, with the party brass, including Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, senior leaders and CMs in attendance. Kharge said BJP-RSS did not participate in the freedom struggle and are talking of Ayodhya temple as independence because Bhagwat and PM Narendra Modi inaugurated it.
Rahul's no-holds-barred attack, in the first speech of the auditorium of the Kotla Marg office, saw him revert to his known charge about "capture of the institutions" by BJP, which has rendered the fight as "unfair", but also to underline that only Congress can halt the ruling combine.
Source:indiatimes.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/bhagwats-true-independence-remark-akin-to-treason-rahul/articleshow/117279356.cms
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Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s Trailer and Masjid Bilal: NY Times Falsifies Link Between Anti-Semitic Imam And Terrorist’s Mosque
JANUARY 15, 2025
Imam Eiad Soudan speaks at Masjid Bilal’s Youth Night.
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The terrorist who killed 14 people in a New Year’s Day car-ramming attack in New Orleans lived near Houston’s Masjid Bilal mosque, whose imam has spewed antisemitism.
Several media outlets, including the New York Times, reported on the proximity between attacker Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s trailer and Masjid Bilal. But the New York Times might be the only one to falsify the link between mosque and its imam, in an apparent attempt to downplay the degree of the antisemitism problem.
According to a front-page story in the Times, the mosque “has drawn attention of its own, as on at least one occasion, it hosted a speaker who made inflammatory remarks denouncing Jews.”
The inflammatory remark in question, spoken in 2023 and documented by MEMRI, was the bigoted charge that the Jews were persecuted and are despised because, wherever they go, they stop at nothing to take over the economy and spread corruption. The speaker behind those remarks — the man said to have been “hosted” by the mosque maybe on “one occasion,” maybe more — is Eiad Soudan.
The New York Times, though, is aware that Soudan was no passing visitor. Editors have been informed, with copious documentation, that he was in fact the mosque’s imam, who has preached there countless times.
Source:camera.org
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.camera.org/article/ny-times-falsifies-link-between-antisemitic-imam-and-terrorists-mosque/
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Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl Accuses Institutions Of Manipulating Polls To Strengthen Grip On Power
By Web Desk
January 15, 2025
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman addresses a press conference in Lahore on January 15, 2025. — YouTube/ Geo News/screengrab
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Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Wednesday slammed the state institutions for allegedly manipulating election results to tighten their control on power in the country.
The JUI-F chief has repeatedly been calling the February 8, 2024, general elections more rigged than that of 2018 in his addresses to public gatherings. Last week, the Fazl-led party observed a wheel-jam strike in Balochistan against alleged rigging in the January 5 by-election for the provincial constituency PB-45 (Quetta-8), in which the PPP’s candidate was declared the winner by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
Addressing a press conference in Lahore, the maulana said: “Institutions manipulate election [results] to consolidate their authority, while politicians also make compromises [on their principles] to come to power.”
Authoritarian forces continue to grow stronger due to politicians’ weaknesses, the JUI-F leader added.
“Any institution that exceeds its Constitutional limits [the boundaries of the roles assigned to them under the Constitution] should review its behaviour.”
He added that JUI-F won the by-poll in Balochistan as per the Form-45.
“The tragedy is that this is the second election that people are not happy with.”
The cleric asserted that all institutions must stay within their Constitutional ambit, adding: “Today, parliament is useless.”
Stressing the need for fresh elections in the country, Fazl asked: “If there is room for a rigged election, then why not early elections.”
Responding to a question, the JUI-F leader expressed satisfaction over the ongoing negotiations between the ruling coalition and the embattled PTI.
He said: “I am a politician and always support negotiation. There are good hopes from the talks between the government and the PTI.”
The maulana said that politicians should not be behind bars.
“I wish that the issues are resolved through negotiations,” the JUI-F added.
Source:thenews.com.pk
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1272586-jui-fs-fazl-accuses-institutions-of-manipulating-polls-to-strengthen-grip-on-power
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Palestinians secured ‘dignified’ cease-fire agreement: Islamic Jihad Movement
16.01.2025
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement said late Wednesday that Palestinians successfully secured a “dignified agreement” to end Israel’s aggression in Gaza, marking a cease-fire, Israeli withdrawal and prisoner exchange.
“Today, our people and resistance impose a dignified agreement to cease aggression, ensure withdrawal and execute an honorable prisoner exchange, made possible by their legendary resilience and our brave fighters,” it said in a statement.
The movement pledged continued support for the people of Gaza and readiness to tackle upcoming challenges.
Islamic Jihad extended gratitude to Palestinians everywhere and commended the collective efforts of resistance factions throughout the war.
Earlier in the day, Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani announced at a press conference in the capital Doha that mediators had facilitated a cease-fire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas.
The deal includes a prisoner exchange and sustained calm, aiming for a permanent truce and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Al Thani said the agreement consists of three phases, beginning Sunday with a 42-day first phase.
This stage includes the release of 33 Israeli detainees in exchange for an unspecified number of Palestinian prisoners.
Israel is currently detaining over 10,300 Palestinians, while Gaza factions are reportedly holding 98 Israeli captives.
Hamas has said that dozens of Israeli hostages were killed in indiscriminate Israeli airstrikes.
Details of the second and third phases will be finalized later.
Mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the US will monitor the agreement's execution, establishing mechanisms to address any violations.
The announcement comes on day 467 of Israel's genocide against Gaza, which with US backing has killed and wounded more than 156,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
The war has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters in recent times.
Source:aa.com.tr
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/palestinians-secured-dignified-cease-fire-agreement-islamic-jihad-movement/3452072
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France Muslims decry government actions against Islamic schools
January 15, 2025
People march against racism and Islamophobia in Paris, France on 21 April 2024 [Mohamad Salaheldin Abdelg Alsayed/Anadolu via Getty Images]
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The French Council of Muslim Worship (CFCM) has expressed “a profound sense of injustice and discrimination” following administrative decisions impacting several private Islamic schools in France, Anadolu Agency reports.
In a statement issued Tuesday, the Council criticised the recent termination of state contracts with Lycee Averroes in Lille and the Al Kindi school network in Lyon.
These measures, according to the CFCM, are “widely perceived as disproportionate and unjustified” by the affected communities.
The CFCM highlighted concerns over unequal treatment, drawing attention to what it described as leniency shown to other institutions in similar situations.
“For example, the lyceeStanislas de Paris, which makes headlines for multiple controversies, has not faced comparable sanctions,” the statement noted.
This comes amid what the Council described as “a broader and worrying trend of generalised suspicion towards Muslims in France.”
The CFCM warned that terms such as “separatism” and “communitarianism” are often “instrumentalised to discredit the entire Muslim community.”
Citing a recent legal victory in Nice, where a court overturned the closure of College Avicenne, the Council called on affected schools to pursue justice through legal channels.
“This precedent shows that the justice system remains an essential and effective recourse for defending the rights of these institutions,” the statement emphasized.
The CFCM urged public authorities to “make decisions that are just, proportionate and based on established facts” to avoid escalating tensions and further alienating communities.
Source:middleeastmonitor.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250115-france-muslims-decry-government-actions-against-islamic-schools/
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India
Supreme Court To Hear Godhra Train Burning Case On February 13
January 16, 2025
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday said it will hear on February 13 the appeals filed by the Gujarat government and several other convicts in the 2002 Godhra train burning case.
A bench of Justices J K Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar made it clear that no adjournment will be given in the matter on the next date of hearing.
On February 27, 2002, 59 people were killed when the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express was burnt at Gujarat’s Godhra, triggering riots in the state.
Several appeals have been filed in the apex court challenging the October 2017 verdict of the Gujarat High Court which had upheld the conviction of several convicts and commuted the death penalties of 11 people to life term.
The Gujarat government had in February 2023 told the apex court that it will be seeking death penalty for the 11 convicts whose sentences in the case were commuted to life imprisonment by the high court.
When the matter came for hearing on Thursday, a lawyer, appearing for a convict, submitted that no evidence has been put on record.
“We don’t know. We will hear the matter and we had clarified this earlier. We will not adjourn this case. This case has been adjourned at least five times. (For the) last one year, I have been adjourning this matter,” Justice Maheshwari said.
The lawyer told the court that some of the convicts have filed remission pleas that are pending.
Refusing to adjourn the matter, the bench said, “We have instructions from the Chief Justice’s office that the cases of criminal appeal and remission need not to be heard together.”
Senior Advocate Sanjay Hegde, appearing for one of the convicts, submitted that the appeal filed by Gujarat against commutation of death penalty to life has to be heard first.
“Twenty-two years have passed… My clients have not been awarded death. This bench will have to first confirm the guilt. Once that is confirmed, then comes the sentencing part. When we go through that, that will possibly take time. There will be repercussion if you were to send to three judges,” Hegde said.
The court then deferred the matter for hearing to February 13 after the lawyers appearing for the convicts sought time.
During the hearing before the apex court earlier, the state’s counsel said the 11 convicts were sentenced to death by the trial court and 20 others were awarded life term in the case.
The high court had upheld the 31 convictions in the case and commuted the death penalties of the 11 convicts to life term, the counsel had said.
While the state has appealed against the commutation of death penalty to life term for the 11 convicts, several convicts have challenged the high court’s verdict upholding their convictions in the case. — IANS
Source:muslimmirror.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://muslimmirror.com/supreme-court-to-hear-godhra-train-burning-case-on-february-13/
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Sambhal logs 1,400 power theft cases; Rs 11 crore fines hit mosques, madrasas, and MP
anuary 16, 2025,
Since the violence during a court-ordered survey at the Shahi Jama Masjid here on November 24, 2024, the district has seen an intensified crackdown on electricity theft, resulting in the registration of more than 1,400 cases, implicating 16 mosques and 2 madrasas.
Superintending Engineer Vinod Kumar shared the details with reporters on Wednesday, saying, "We have registered more than 1,400 cases of power theft in Sambhal so far, which include allegations against 16 mosques and 2 madrasas."
"A fine of ₹11 crore has been imposed in these cases, and nearly ₹20 lakh has been recovered as of now," Kumar added.
He highlighted the broader impact of the crackdown, saying, "Following the initiation of this campaign, applications for new electricity connections have been received from 22 mosques and one church."
"During our inspections, we noticed unusual load patterns -- load dropped from feeders early in the morning but surged between 10 pm and 4 am. This led us to identify key locations and conduct nighttime checks. Just two days ago, we registered 42 more cases of electricity theft," he added.
Earlier, an FIR was lodged against Samajwadi Party leader and Sambhal's Lok Sabha MP Ziaur Rahman Barq also for alleged power theft at his home in the city following an inspection by the electricity department officials.
The last year's violence had left four people dead and several injured.
Source:cnbctv18.com
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https://www.cnbctv18.com/india/sambhal-logs-1400-power-theft-cases-rs-11-crore-fines-hit-mosques-madrasas-and-mp-19540985.htm
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Aligarh Muslim University gets 24cr house tax arrears notice
Jan 16, 2025
Agra: Aligarh Municipal Corporation (AMC) on Monday issued a notice to Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), demanding the clearance of pending house tax dues totaling Rs 24.4 crore within 15 days, with a warning of legal action under Municipal Corporation Act if the payment is delayed.
Officials at AMC said that the dues pertain to 40 properties owned by the university. Tax payments for 22 properties had been cleared earlier, leaving Rs 24.4 crore unpaid for 18 properties, the officials added.
AMC's revenue assessment officer Rajendra Prasad said, "The dues have been pending since 2017. We issued them bills, followed by a demand notice. The municipal commissioner met with the AMU registrar, who informed him that AMU had applied for a grant from the UGC. Once the grant is received, the payment will be made."
"If the dues are not cleared by the end of the 15-day deadline, the university will receive a reminder, after which their accounts will be attached. In cases involving govt departments, buildings are not sealed and instead, accounts are attached," he added.
AMU's public relations officer Asim Siddique said, "Part of our pending dues have already been paid. Efforts are being made to address the remaining balance. There is a provision that allows the UGC to reimburse such payments, and the university is in communication with the commission regarding this. The issue is expected to be resolved soon."
Source:indiatimes.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/aligarh-muslim-university-gets-24cr-house-tax-arrears-notice/articleshow/117276095.cms
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Mathura Shahi Idgah row: SC defers hearing on mosque panel's plea to March
January 15, 2025
The Supreme Court on Wednesday (January 15, 2024) deferred hearing to March the plea of the mosque management committee against an order rejecting its petition in the Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah dispute in Mathura, U.P.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar said it had to hear another case in the day and couldn't take up the mosque committee's plea.
The bench was hearing a hundred petitions against the Calcutta High Court verdict invalidating the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in government and aided schools in West Bengal on January 15.
"We are in another case today. List the plea in March, 2025," the CJI said.
A single judge of the Allahabad High Court on August 1, last year, rejected the plea of the Committee of Management, Trust Shahi Masjid Idgah, challenging the maintainability of 15 cases related to the temple-mosque dispute in Mathura, and ruled the “religious character” of Shahi Idgah needed to be determined.
The top court, on December 9, last year commenced the final hearing in the case.
One of the Hindu parties, represented by advocate Barun Sinha, had argued the mosque committee could have moved the Allahabad High Court against the single judge's order over the dispute.
He said the plea of the mosque committee was not maintainable in the top court at the present stage.
The lawyer referred to the Allahabad High Court rules and argued, "In view of Chapter 8 of the Allahabad High Court Rules, a special appeal before the division bench of the high court would be maintainable.” Seeking its dismissal, he said an appeal in the Supreme Court was not "maintainable against the order of a single judge bench of the high court" and an intra-court appeal in the high court ought to be filed.
The mosque committee said the lawsuits filed by Hindu litigants over the dispute over the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple, and the adjoining mosque, violated the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, and were therefore not maintainable.
The 1991 Act prohibits changing the religious character of any shrine from what existed on the day of the country's Independence. The Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute was however kept outside its purview.
The cases filed by the Hindu party side seek the “removal” of the Aurangzeb-era mosque, claiming it was built after the demolition of a temple that once stood there.
The high court said the 1991 Act did not define the term “religious character” and the "disputed" place couldn't have a dual religious character— of a temple and a mosque, which are “adverse to each other”— at the same time.
"Either the place is a temple or a mosque. Thus, I find that the religious character of the disputed place as it existed on August 15, 1947, is to be determined by documentary as well as oral evidence led by both the parties,” the high court said.
The high court concluded the cases did "not appear to be barred by any provisions of the Wakf Act, 1995, the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, the Specific Relief Act, 1963, the Limitation Act, 1963 and Order XIII Rule 3A of the Code of Civil Procedure Code, 1908".
Hindu side's advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain had said his client would move the Supreme Court for vacating its stay on a previous Allahabad High Court order allowing the mosque's survey.
The mosque management committee and the U.P. Sunni Central Waqf Board argued the suits were barred under Places of Worship Act and other laws.
On May 31, 2024, the Allahabad High Court reserved its judgment on the maintainability plea after hearing both sides.
But the court reopened the hearing at the request of Shahi Idgah counsel Mehmood Pracha.
The Mathura dispute mirrors the legal tussle in Varanasi, where the Gyanvapi mosque and the Kashi Vishwanath temple are located next to each other.
Source:thehindu.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/mathura-shahi-idgah-row-sc-defers-hearing-on-mosque-panels-plea-to-march/article69100459.ece
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North America
North Carolina man tried to board flight to join Islamic State group, authorities say
ByMAKIYA SEMINERA
January 15, 2025,
A North Carolina man was arrested while trying to board an overseas flight so that he could join the Islamic State group, according to a federal complaint that was unsealed Tuesday.
Alexander Justin White, a U.S. citizen from Durham, is accused of providing, attempting and conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization by federal prosecutors. White's Dec. 4 arrest came after a monthslong investigation into numerous pro-IS messages that prosecutors say the 29-year-old sent to various Facebook users and an undercover FBI agent.
White, who went by Sulaiman Al-Amriki — which means Sulaiman the American — on social media for part of last year, posted pro-IS content several times on Facebook between June and October 2024, prosecutors said. Some of the content included IS and other Islamic extremist propaganda videos.
During this period, federal prosecutors said White spoke to several social media users who claimed to be from the Middle East and North Africa about his support for IS. He told several users that he wished to travel to Africa to join IS as well, according to court documents. White also lamented missed opportunities to join the militant group in previous trips — such as in a 2018 visit to Egypt — in conversations online, authorities said.
White also conversed frequently with a covert FBI agent over several months, which included several mentions of wanting to join IS and a staged video call that White believed was with an IS commander's spokesperson, prosecutors said.
During text conversations with the agent, officials said White expressed his willingness to be a mujahid, the Arabic word for “holy warrior,” and discussed fundraising for detained IS members and their family members.
After several months of discussing his plans to travel abroad and join IS, White sent the agent a screenshot of his upcoming travel itinerary, which showed a Dec. 4 flight departing from the Raleigh-Durham International Airport to Rabat, Morocco, court records show.
To not raise suspicions about the flight, White purchased a round-trip ticket, prosecutors said.
White later arrived on Dec. 4 with three bags at RDU Airport, where he checked in for his connecting flight to Paris and proceeded through security, authorities said. He was then arrested a few hours later while attempting to board the plane.
A federal public defender who was appointed to represent White declined to comment about the pending case on Wednesday.
Source:abcnews.go.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/north-carolina-man-board-flight-join-islamic-state-117709163
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Concerns raised over comments referencing Muslims reposted by Tory leadership hopeful
Jan. 15, 2025
WINNIPEG - One of the two candidates for the leadership of the Manitoba Progressive Conservatives is under fire over a social media post that referred to his opponent’s Muslim faith.
Wally Daudrich’s campaign Facebook page recently reposted a message from a user named Vicki Poutine. Poutine’s post quoted a newsletter from the Daudrich campaign that condemned antisemitism and attacks on Jews. Poutine added to the end of the post: “We must stop Muslim Obby Khan from becoming the Conservative leader.”
Daudrich’s campaign manager says the message was reposted by a staff member who did not notice the wording at the end, and the post was taken down as soon as it was brought to the team’s attention.
“This is nonsense. The reference to Mr. Khan’s Muslim faith was made at the end of a long post written by an individual not associated with our campaign,” Joseph Ben-Ami said in a written statement.
“It was reposted by one of our staff who did not notice it. As soon as it was brought to our attention it was immediately removed. This was an honest mistake to which our campaign responded quickly and appropriately.’
The National Council of Canadian Muslims called on Daudrich to publicly apologize.
“Targeting (Khan) solely because of his Muslim faith, as implied in the (post), is a clear example of Islamophobia,” the group wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Officials at the provincial Progressive Conservative party asked Daudrich to clear the air.
“It is a principle of the PC Party that membership and participation in the party is open to all Manitobans regardless of religion and the leadership election committee strongly disavows any suggestion to the contrary,” committee chair Brad Zander said in a written statement Wednesday.
“The (committee) has no reason to believe the post wasn’t inadvertent. However, given the nature of Mr. Daudrich’s repost content, the (committee) has asked that Mr. Daudrich confirm his commitment to the principle that membership and participation in the party is open to Manitobans regardless of their religion.”
Khan said the Daudrich campaign’s explanation does not go far enough.
“I think that an apology must be made and that that type of language must be disavowed and condemned,” Khan said in an interview.
“If the post is done in accident, then an apology is still needed and that language still needs to be condemned.”
The Tories, who are in Opposition after losing the 2023 election, are to choose a new leader April 26.
Khan is a former pro football player, business owner and cabinet minister who represents the Fort Whyte area of Winnipeg in the legislature.
Daudrich is a longtime Tory board member and hotel owner from the northern town of Churchill.
Source:thestar.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/manitoba/concerns-raised-over-comments-referencing-muslims-reposted-by-tory-leadership-hopeful/article_df8c639b-ad1e-589c-b629-68c3e0e7ab2a.html
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Muslim Heritage Month quickly gaining ground in US
15 January, 2025
US Muslim groups are hoping that Muslim Heritage Month, an annual celebration of the faith in January, will reach nationwide recognition, with a growing number of states and localities making it official on their calendars.
So far, states marking the month include Michigan, New Jersey, Utah, Connecticut, in addition to a growing number of states, towns and districts. A congressional resolution was introduced several years ago to give the month national recognition.
The goal for community leaders is to make Muslim Heritage Month as much a part of the American cultural fabric as other cultures that are honoured throughout the year.
"Muslim Heritage Month is like anything that celebrates a community. It doesn't happen overnight," Robert McCaw, political affairs directors for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told The New Arab.
"It's to educate and expand the awareness of the Muslim community," he said, adding that he'd like to see it recognised by the White House as they do with history and heritage months for African Americans, Arabs, Pacific Islanders, Hispanics and others. "There are so many rich traditions to explore."
In 2021, a House resolution was introduced to recognise a month for Muslim Heritage, which continues to gain traction with a reintroduction of the initiative in 2024. A similar resolution was also introduced in the Senate. The date was originally set for July, but then changed to fit with the academic school curriculum.
According to the Muslim American Heritage website, January was chosen as the month to honour the anniversary of the death of Yarrow Mamout, an African American Muslim former slave, who purchased his own freedom and became a financier.
According to the website, "The national observance spotlights Muslims embracing freedom to pursue the American Dream and celebrates Muslim contributions to American society."
Source:newarab.com
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https://www.newarab.com/news/muslim-heritage-month-gaining-ground-us
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Biden warns 'dangerous' oligarchy taking shape in farewell address
16 January, 2025
Outgoing US President Joe Biden warned of a "dangerous" oligarchy taking shape in America, as he delivered his farewell address and brought a decades-long career in politics to an end.
"Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that really threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedom," he said on Wednesday.
Biden, 82, took aim at an ultra-wealthy "tech-industrial complex" which he said could wield unchecked power over Americans.
He also used his final televised speech from the White House to issue warnings about climate change and social media disinformation.
Speaking from the Oval Office where his family had gathered to watch, he touted his single-term administration's record, referencing job creation, infrastructure spending, healthcare, leading the country out of the pandemic, and making the US a safer country.
He added, however, that "it will take time to feel the full impact of all we've done together, but the seeds are planted, and they'll grow and they'll bloom for decades to come".
Biden wished Donald Trump's incoming administration success, but then issued a series of pointed warnings, with the president stating "so much is at stake right now".
On climate change, he said "powerful forces want to wield their unchecked influence to eliminate the steps we've taken to tackle the climate crisis to serve their own interests for power and profit".
On misinformation, Biden warned that "Americans are being buried under an avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling the abuse of power".
He also took a swipe at social media companies such as Meta, which has recently announced it will get rid of independent fact checkers. "Social media is giving up on fact checking. The truth is smothered by lies told for power and for profit," Biden said.
And his attack on an ultra-wealthy "tech-industrial complex" was a veiled reference at Silicon Valley executives such as Elon Musk, the world's richest man who is close to Trump and provided huge financial backing to his campaign.
Other tech bosses such as Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg have made efforts to improve relations with Trump ahead of his return to the White House.
Closing his speech, Biden called on Americans to "stand guard" of their country: "May you all be the keeper of the flame."
His farewell address came on the same day he announced a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, which he referenced in his opening remarks.
Biden said the negotiations had been some of the toughest of his career, and took credit for helping get the deal over the line.
The deal will see a ceasefire take effect on 19 January, a day before Trump is due to take office. The incoming president has also taken credit for the agreement, saying it was only possible because he won the election in November.
Source:bbc.com
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https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1weqzl3ydro
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Pakistan
Supreme Court questions rationale for not holding military trial of APS attack
By Abdul Qayyum Siddiqui
January 15, 2025
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Wednesday inquired the government regarding the rationale behind not holding a military trial of the infamous Army Public School (APS) attack despite the existence of the Army Act and the crimes' link to it.
Hearing the intra-court appeals on the issue of civilians' trial in military courts, the constitutional bench also questioned why an amendment in the Constitution was required to conduct terrorism trials in military courts.
The development comes as the bench, headed by Justice Amin-Ud-Din Khan, heard the intra-court appeal against the decision to try civilians in military courts, with Khawaja Haris representing the Ministry of Defence.
During the hearing, Haris said the nature of the crime determines where the trial would take place. If a civilian's crime is related to the armed forces, the trial will proceed in a military court, he said.
Justice Jamal Mandokhail responded, asking whether the intent behind the crime could also be considered — whether the purpose was against the country's interests.
The judge also raised the question about why the cases of attacks on the General Headquarters (GHQ) and Karachi airbase did not proceed in military courts.
He said that the answer to this question was provided in the 21st Amendment case. The defence ministry’s counsel explained that the 21st Amendment case mentioned the attacks on the GHQ, airbases, military, and places of worship.
The counsel further said that the Army Act mandates that if the crime is related to the military, the trial will be held in a military court. Justice Mandokhail asked for clarification on what "related to the military" meant, to which Haris said that it referred to crimes directly tied to the Army Act.
Justice Mandokhail then asked whether the intent behind the crime would be examined if the crime was related to the Army Act. Justice Amin remarked that the accused could raise a defence by arguing the lack of intent during the military trial.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar added that intent could be evaluated during the trial. The counsel for the Ministry of Defence maintained that if the crime was related to the Army Act, a military court would then conduct the trial.
Justice Mandokhail then inquired whether such a link existed in the APS attack. In response, Haris confirmed that there was indeed a connection at the time of the APS attack and noted that one connection is related to an army officer while the other is concerned with the military.
Justice Mandokhail questioned why the APS attack was not trialled in a military court, despite the link and the Army Act being in place at the time and questioned why was an amendment needed to conduct terrorism trials in military courts?
To this, the defence ministry’s counsel replied that the amendment included a wide range of crimes beyond those related to discipline and duties.
The judge further asked where the trial for terrorist acts committed in the name of a terrorist group or religion would be held.
In response, Haris said that such cases would be tried in military courts under the Army Act and could proceed in military courts without constitutional amendments.
After hearing the lawyer's arguments, the constitutional bench then adjourned the hearing till Thursday (tomorrow).
The APS attack refers to the massacre of students of the Army Public School in Peshawar on December 16, 2014, which saw 147 people, mostly school children, being killed in a horrific terrorist attack.
Source:thenews.com.pk
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PTI wants new chief election commissioner as govt insists on status quo
Ikram Junaidi
January 16, 2025
ISLAMABAD: While the government has already legislated through the 26th amendment to keep the serving Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja till the appointment of next CEC, the PTI has approached National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq to initiate the process for appointment of new CEC as the incumbent’s tenure will end in 10 days.
In a letter to the National Assembly speaker, Leader of the Opposition Omar Ayub Khan has demanded formation of a parliamentary committee for appointing the next CEC.
“In accordance with the Article 215(1) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the tenure of the incumbent CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja is set to expire on Jan 26, 2025. In pursuant of Article 213 (2A) and (2B) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, it is kindly requested to constitute the Parliamentary Committee on the appointment of the CEC at your earliest convenience to facilitate this important constitutional requirement. This will ensure a smooth and timely appointment as mandated by the Constitution,” he stated.
On the other hand, PTI chief whip in the assembly Malik Mohammad Amir Dogar, while speaking on the floor of the house on Wednesday, said the Election Commission of Pakistan remained the most controversial institution in country’s history.
The five-year term of CEC and two members of the ECP will end on Jan 26, but they will indefinitely continue to hold their offices under the controversial legislation.
Under the 26th Amendment, the tenure of CEC and two members, namely Nisar Ahmad Durrani (Sindh) and Shah Muhammad Jatoi (Balochistan), will be automatically extended until the posts are filled under a procedure that may take months.
The tenure of the commissoin members from Sindh and Balochistan will end on Jan 26.
Under the 26th Amendment, they will continue to work even after the completion of their term, as Article 215 of the Constitution allows them to remain in their offices until the appointment of a new CEC and members is made.
The notification for the appointment of Sultan Sikandar Raja was issued on Jan 25, 2020, but he took the oath of his office on Jan 27, 2020.
Under Article 215, it is mandatory to appoint a new CEC or members of the commission within 45 days after the expiry of their term.
The procedure for appointing the CEC and members of the commission is explained in Article 213 under which the prime minister and the opposition leader will send three names to the president by consensus.
If there is no agreement on the names between the two, then the prime minister and the leader of the opposition will send their respective names to a parliamentary committee. After this, the NA speaker will form a 12-member parliamentary committee, which will send one name from among these to the president for approval.
Source:dawn.com
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1885519/pti-wants-new-chief-election-commissioner-as-govt-insists-on-status-quo
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'Muslim Actors Facing Life Threats': Pakistan Ex-Minister Fawad Chaudhry On Saif Ali Khan Attack
16 Jan 2025
The attack on Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan is gaining religious colours now with former Pakistan minister Fawad Chaudhry citing the incident to claim that the Muslim community's actors are under threat. "Muslim actors are facing serious life threats since the rise of Hindu Mahasabha. Pakistan must rise for the rights of Indian Muslims," the aide of former PM Imran Khan posted on X.
Saif Ali Khan hospitalised: Actor stabbed six times by intruder… Muslim actors are facing serious life threats since the rise of Hindu Mahasabha …. Pakistan must rise for the rights of Indian Muslims https://t.co/GxwkYPpDKO
When an X user replied that Chaudhry should help Saif migrate to Pakistan, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Shareef leader said: "Why India is His country you should leave elsewhere if you have problem with Indian Muslims [sic]."
Saif Ali Khan was attacked at his Bandra home at 2:30 AM on January 16. A maid at Saif Ali Khan's residence was also injured in the late-night attack that unfolded at the Bandra society. She is undergoing treatment at Lilavati Hospital where Saif, too, was operated on for six injuries he sustained during the attack.
The investigation so far has indicated that the attacker entered Saif Ali Khan's residence at least two hours before the attack. The assailant could have scaled the walls and entered the society. The attacker later used the fire escape to enter the actor's home. Police have identified the attacker and believe he could be hiding in the Prabha Devi area.
KarniSena's 'Islamisation' Comment
In India, Hindu religious organisation Karni Sena too, made a similar claim: "Salman Khan and Saif Ali Khan have been targeted because filmmakers are being instructed to target Hindu actors and not give them work in the industry," Sengar said.
Source:abplive.com
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Implementation Committee of SIFC discusses completion of various projects
January 16, 2025
The 10th meeting of the Implementation Committee of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) discussed completion of various projects and policy actions related to the performance of provinces.
During the meeting, key points related to the health, industry, and energy sectors were discussed.
The Ministries updated the committee on the progress of ongoing projects and policy-level initiatives.
The role of the Drug Regulatory Authority in facilitating the export of both medicines and plasma collected from blood was highlighted.
Provinces expressed confidence in the practical role of SIFC, which has successfully brought together all government entities on one platform.
The committee appreciated the role of the Punjab government in collaborating with SIFC to attract investments from Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Company and Three Gorges China Company.
The committee issued directives to federal and provincial stakeholders to accelerate the completion of ongoing projects, aiming to facilitate investments in priority sectors.
Source:radio.gov.pk
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https://www.radio.gov.pk/16-01-2025/implementation-committee-of-sifc-discusses-completion-of-various-projects
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Govt committed for accelerating financial inclusion: Aurangzeb
January 15, 2025
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has reiterated the government's commitment to accelerating financial inclusion as a cornerstone of sustainable economic development.
He was talking to a delegation of the Pakistan Microfinance Investment Company led by its Chairman Naveed A. Khan in Islamabad today.
During the meeting, the PMIC team presented a detailed overview of the microfinance landscape, highlighting key challenges and opportunities. It was noted that Pakistan significantly lags behind regional counterparts, such as Bangladesh, India, and the Philippines, in terms of financial inclusion, with a potential microcredit market of 41 million, of which only 7.4 million clients are currently served.
The discussion included a comparative analysis of Microfinance Institutions and Microfinance Banks. The PMIC team highlighted that Microfinance Banks primarily lend against gold and offer nano loans, while Microfinance Institutions focus on rural communities and cater to underserved segments, particularly women.
The meeting outlined several key challenges to financial inclusion.
The Finance Minister appreciated the insights shared and stressed the importance of addressing these challenges with realistic and practical solutions. He encouraged PMIC to propose innovative funding mechanisms, such as equity endowment funds and targeted government-mandated allocations, to increase the sector's capacity and outreach.
The meeting concluded with a shared resolve to work collaboratively towards enhancing access to financial services, especially for rural and underserved populations, in alignment with the NFIS goals.
The delegation included CEO PMIC Yasir Ashfaque, CEO Karandaaz Pakistan Waqas ul Hassan and Head of Portfolio & Sector Development PMIC Saqib Siddique.
Source:radio.gov.pk
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https://www.radio.gov.pk/15-01-2025/finance-minister-reiterates-govts-commitment-to-accelerating-financial-inclusion
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More than 10,000 Pakistani nationals languishing in Saudi jails, NA told
By Web Desk
January 15, 2025
Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday told the National Assembly session that more than 10,000 Pakistani nationals are imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for various crimes.
"The number of Pakistanis detained in Saudi Arabia for various crimes stands at 10,279," Dar, who also serves as the deputy prime minister, stated while providing details of Pakistani inmates during the question break.
According to foreign ministry data, at least 19,997 Pakistanis are languishing in foreign jails.
Speaking about the process of repatriation of the prisoners, Dar said that upon the completion of their sentences, emergency travel documents were provided to the Pakistani nationals if their passports had expired.
"Pakistani community pays the fines of prisoners who have completed their sentences," Dar asserted and added, "There is no obstacle in the repatriation of prisoners to Pakistan."
Saudi Arabia, according to Dar, has agreed to transfer 570 prisoners to Pakistan under the agreement.
Aa total of 19,997 Pakistanis are in foreign jails, while 68 were on death row in 10 countries on charges of terrorism, murder and drug trafficking, as per data obtained from 88 Pakistani missions across the world.
Saudi Arabia has the highest number of imprisoned Pakistanis, followed by 5,292 in the UAE, 598 in Greece, 578 in Oman, 463 in Malaysia, 387 in Turkiye, 371 in Bahrain, 321 in the UK, 194 in Chengdu, 106 in Beijing, 84 in Guangzhou, 90 in Frankfurt, 63 in Washington, 48 in New York, 17 in Los Angeles, and 10 in Australia.
Major charges/allegations are illegal immigration/border crossing, overstay, murder, possession/use of narcotics & drugs, working without a work permit, sexual assault and harassment, human trafficking, extortion, kidnapping for ransom, robbery/theft, embezzlement/fraud, forgery, possession of counterfeit currency, money laundering, charges of espionage, smuggling (mostly narcotics), illegal possession of firearms, cybercrime and fighting/physical assault.
Source:thenews.com.pk
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https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1272554-more-than-10000-pakistani-nationals-languishing-in-saudi-jails-na-told
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Security forces gun down four terrorists in North Waziristan
By Zarmeen Zehra
January 15, 2025
RAWALPINDI: Security forces, on night between January 14-15, conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in North Waziristan's Spinwam killing four terrorists.
"During the conduct of the operation, own troops effectively engaged khawarij's location and after an intense exchange of fire," said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement on Wednesday.
The security forces, added the military's media wing, also recovered weapons and ammunition from the killed militants who were actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against the security forces as well as target killing of innocent civilians.
The ISPR further said that a sanitisation operation was being carried out to eliminate any other terrorists found in the area.
The latest anti-terror operation comes a day after as many as eight terrorists were killed in two separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Six of these militants were neutralised in an IBO in the Tank district whereas two were killed in the Khyber district's Tirah Valley.
Prior to that, 27 terrorists were killed in an IBO in Balochistan's Kacchi district.
With the security forces continuing their efforts to root out terrorism, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir, during his Peshawar visit, said that the hostile elements continue to suffer heavy losses, and their capacity to inflict harm would be decimated.
The army chief's warning came against the backdrop of a surge in terrorist attacks ever since the Taliban rulers returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, particularly in the bordering provinces of KP and Balochistan.
The year 2024 turned out to be the deadliest for Pakistan's civil and military security forces in a decade with at least 685 fatalities and 444 terror attacks, according to "CRSS Annual Security Report 2024" issued by the Centre for Security and Strategic Studies.
The overall fatalities recorded the previous year were a record 9-year high and over 66% more than in 2023. On average, nearly seven people lost their lives daily, with November emerging as the deadliest month across all metrics, compared to all other months of the year.
The violence took the heaviest toll on KP which topped in human losses with 1,616 fatalities, followed by Balochistan with 782 fatalities. In 2024, the country suffered 2,546 violence-linked fatalities and 2,267 injuries among civilians, security personnel and outlaws.
This tally of casualties stemmed from 1,166 incidents of terror attacks and counter-terror operations, marking a grim year for the country’s security landscape.
Source:thenews.com.pk
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https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1272473-security-forces-gun-down-four-terrorists-in-north-waziristan
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Grand jirga vows to work for peace in GB
Jamil Nagri
January 16, 2025
GILGIT: The participants of a grand jirga on Wednesday discussed issues related to law and order, development, health and education in Gilgit-Baltistan and vowed to work for peace in the region.
The jirga held in Chilas was attended by Chief Minister Haji Gulbar Khan, GB Force Commander Maj Gen Imtiaz Hussain Gillani, members of the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly, secretaries, district officers, religious scholars, and a large number of local community elders and students.
The participants agreed to work towards maintaining law and order, fostering development in the area and actively contributing to these goals.
Speaking on the occasion, Maj Gen Gillani highlighted that the attendance of senior civil and military officials at the jirga demonstrated their accountability to the public.
He assured that Pakistan Army would play its full role in addressing the region’s issues and continue to support relevant institutions to ensure their resolution.
He emphasised the importance of local community involvement in the region’s development, encouraging collaboration between the community and institutions.
To achieve this, he suggested introducing community-based systems to empower people to contribute actively to development initiatives.
Religious scholars and community leaders expressed their full support for Pakistan Army in maintaining peace and promoting development in the region.
Later, Maj Gen Gillani visited the Vocational Training Centre in Chilas and met the youth hailing from different areas of Diamer.
He encouraged them to play an active role in fostering peace and development in Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan, urging them to use modern technology and social media positively.
The students appreciated Pakistan Army’s efforts in ensuring peace and development in the region.
Source:dawn.com
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1885516/grand-jirga-vows-to-work-for-peace-in-gb
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Mideast
Hamas, Islamic Jihad approve Gaza truce deal: Palestinian sources
January 15, 2025
CAIRO: Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad have approved a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal, two Palestinian sources close to negotiations in Doha said on Wednesday.
"The resistance factions reached an agreement among themselves and informed the mediators of their approval of the [prisoner] exchange deal and ceasefire," one source told AFP on condition of anonymity. Another Palestinian source confirmed their approval of the deal.
Hamas will free 33 hostages held in Gaza, while Israel will release about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in the first stage of a Gaza truce agreement, Israeli and Palestinian sources reported Tuesday.
Mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the United States have intensified efforts to finalise the deal in recent days. Qatar said the agreement was in its "final stages".
Any agreement would likely require approval from Israel's cabinet.
Source:gulfnews.com
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https://gulfnews.com/world/mena/hamas-islamic-jihad-approve-gaza-truce-deal-palestinian-sources-1.500016639
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A look at the Gaza ceasefire deal
January 16, 2025
DOHA: Key mediator Qatar said on Wednesday that 33 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza would be released in the first stage of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the war in the Palestinian territory.
Two sources close to Hamas earlier told AFP that Israel would release about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, while an Israeli government spokesman said hundreds would be released.
Below are the key details of the expected initial phase of the deal according to Qatari, US, Israeli and Palestinian officials and media reports:
Qatar said Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza starting on Sunday and a hostage and prisoner exchange after 15 months of war.
Thirty-three Israeli hostages will be released in the first, 42-day phase of the agreement that could become a “permanent ceasefire,” said Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani.
Those first released would be “civilian women and female recruits, as well as children, elderly people... civilian ill people and wounded,” he said.
Israeli government spokesman David Mencer said on Tuesday Israel was “prepared to pay a heavy price — in the hundreds” in exchange for the 33 hostages.
An anonymous Israeli official said “several hundred terrorists” would be freed in exchange for the hostages, with the final number depending on how many of the 33 hostages are alive.
Two sources close to Hamas told AFP that Israel would release about 1,000 Palestinian prisoners, including those with “lengthy sentences.”
Sheikh Mohammed said the number of Palestinian prisoners to be released in exchange for the Israeli hostages in the second and third phases would be “finalized” during the initial 42 days.
The 33 are among the 94 hostages held in Gaza since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which triggered the ongoing war. The total includes 34 captives the Israeli military has declared dead.
According to the Times of Israel, Israeli officials believe the 33 hostages are alive, though confirmation from Hamas is pending.
Gaza humanitarian situation, by the numbers
At least 1.9 million people are displaced
92 percent of housing units are destroyed
68 percent of the road network is destroyed or damaged
There are “zero” fuel reserves to operate generators at hospitals
88 percent of school buildings need rebuilding or major repairs
Food aid amounting to three months’ of rations for Gaza’s population are waiting to enter
During the initial, 42-day ceasefire Israeli forces will withdraw from Gaza’s densely populated areas to “allow for the swap of prisoners, as well as the swap of remains and the return of the displaced people,” Qatar’s prime minister said.
Negotiations for a second phase would commence on the “16th day” after the first phase’s implementation, an Israeli official said.
This phase would cover the release of the remaining captives, including “male soldiers, men of military age, and the bodies of slain hostages,” the Times of Israel reported.
Israeli media reported that under the proposed deal, Israel would maintain a buffer zone within Gaza during the first phase.
Israeli forces were expected to remain up to “800 meters inside Gaza stretching from Rafah in the south to Beit Hanun in the north,” according to a source close to Hamas.
Israeli forces would not fully withdraw from Gaza until “all hostages are returned,” the Israeli official said.
Haaretz newspaper reported that Israel would allow the movement of residents from southern Gaza to the north.
The source close to Hamas said Israeli forces would withdraw from the Netzarim corridor westward toward Salaheddin Road to the east, enabling displaced people to return through an electronic checkpoint equipped with cameras.
“No Israeli forces will be present, and Palestinian militants will be barred from passing through the checkpoint during the return of displaced persons,” he said.
Joint mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt will monitor the ceasefire deal through a body based in Cairo, Sheikh Mohammed said, urging “calm” in Gaza before the agreement comes into force.
There was “a clear mechanism to negotiate phase two and three,” Sheikh Mohammed added.
“We hope that this will be the last page of the war, and we hope that all parties will commit to implementing all the terms of this agreement,” Qatar’s prime minister said as he unveiled the deal.
Under the arrangements outlined by Qatar, the details of phases two and three will be “finalized” during the implementation of phase one.
US President Joe Biden said the as-yet unfinalized second phase would bring a “permanent end to the war.”
Biden said phase two would comprise an exchange for the release of remaining hostages who are still alive, including the male soldiers. Then all remaining Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza, the US president said.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586611/middle-east
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Netanyahu says Gaza ceasefire is still not complete, hours after US and Qatar announce deal
January 16, 2025
JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the ceasefire agreement with Hamas is still not complete and final details are being worked out.
“An official statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be issued only after the completion of the final details of the agreement, which are being worked on at present,” his office said in a statement released at midnight.
Netanyahu has not said explicitly whether he accepts the deal announced hours earlier by Qatar’s prime minister and President Joe Biden.
In a statement, Netanyahu said he would only issue a formal response “after the final details of the agreement, which are currently being worked on, are completed.”
Netanyahu’s statement comes hours after the United States and Qatar announced the deal, which would pause the devastating 15-month war in Gaza and clear the way for dozens of hostages to go home. The conflict has destabilized the Middle East and sparked worldwide protests.
Egyptian, Qatar and US negotiators will head to Cairo on Thursday for further talks on implementing all aspects of the ceasefire deal, according to a senior US official.
The official said the negotiators are focused on making sure expectations are clear to both Israel and Hamas, and that implementation of the agreement is carried out as smoothly as possible.
The official was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Gaza’s second-largest militant group after Hamas, hailed the ceasefire deal as “honorable.”
Hamas had needed the group’s support for the deal in order to avoid a potential disruption in the process.
“Today, our people and their resistance imposed an honorable agreement to stop the aggression,” Palestinian Islamic Jihad said in a statement.
The group said the deal between Israel and Hamas includes the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza as well as an “honorable” prisoner exchange. It said that militant groups in Gaza “will remain vigilant to ensure the full implementation of this agreement.”
Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s fighters took part in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and have since been battling Israeli forces in Gaza.
Gazans celebrate
Large crowds of joyful Palestinians took to the streets in Gaza when the agreement was announced, cheering and honking car horns.
“No one can feel the feeling that we are experiencing now, an indescribable, indescribable feeling,” said Mahmoud Wadi in central Gaza’s Deir Al-Balah before joining a chanting crowd.
The Israel Hamas-war has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to health authorities there. The Health Ministry does not distinguish between fighters and civilians, but says women and children make up more than half the fatalities.
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants stormed into southern Israel and killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250. A third of the 100 hostages still held in Gaza are believed to be dead.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586610/middle-east
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UN Security Council calls on countries to stop arming Houthis as Red Sea attacks continue
EPHREM KOSSAIFY
January 16, 2025
NEW YORK CITY: The UN Security Council on Wednesday adopted a resolution that extends by six months the requirement for the secretary-general to provide monthly reports on attacks by the Houthis in Yemen against ships in the Red Sea.
The reporting obligation was established by the adoption of Resolution 2722 in January 2024, which was introduced in response to the repeated attacks on commercial shipping. The Iran-backed Houthis vowed to continue targeting vessels until Israel ended its war in Gaza.
The attacks prompted retaliatory strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen by the US, UK and Israel. Meanwhile, the EU launched Operation Aspides, a defensive mission based in Greece that aims to safeguard and escort vessels in the Red Sea but does not participate in any offensive action.
The text of the extension resolution was drafted by Greece and the US, the co-penholders on the issue of the Red Sea crisis. Twelve members of the Security Council voted in favor, while Algeria, China and Russia abstained.
A source at the Russian mission in New York told Arab News that although the safety of maritime navigation is of the utmost importance to Moscow, it considered the language of Resolution 2763 to be “highly politicized and unbalanced” because it failed to mention “the attacks on the sovereignty of Yemen” in the form of airstrikes by the US, UK and Israel.
The text of the resolution, which was seen by Arab News, demands that the Houthis immediately cease all attacks against merchant and commercial vessels and release the cargo ship Galaxy Leader and its crew. The Houthis hijacked the vessel in November 2023 and 25 crew members remain detained by the group.
The new resolution also emphasizes the need “to address the root causes of these attacks, including the conflicts contributing to regional tensions and the disruption of maritime security.”
It notes the use of advanced weaponry by the Houthis and demands that UN member states stop supplying the group with arms.
Greece’s permanent representative to the UN, EvangelosSekeris, told fellow council members that the “Houthis’ constant attacks against vessels are still disrupting international commercial shipping. Maritime security conditions remain degraded and are expected to further deteriorate, while rerouting of shipping companies continues in favor of safer but costlier alternative maritime routes.”
Sekeris lamented that fact that “we are still witnessing the Houthis’ ongoing aggressiveness and escalatory actions through launching unjustified attacks, with the systematic use of advanced weaponry such as anti-ballistic missiles and drones, even against civil infrastructure, including oil terminals under the control of the government of Yemen.”
He added: “The humanitarian repercussions are severe. We need to put an end to this, by looking thoroughly into the origins of the use of advanced weaponry and by preserving the applicability of the targeted arms embargo.”
This year, Greece, which has a keen interest in maritime security, took over from Japan as the co-penholder on the issue of the Red Sea crisis.
Maritime security is also a key concern for Denmark, Pakistan, Panama and Somalia, who took their seats as newly elected nonpermanent members of the Security Council at the start of this year.
Ships owned or operated by companies from Denmark, Greece and Panama have been targeted by the Houthis in the Red Sea, while Pakistan has participated in maritime-security operations in the Western Indian Ocean. Somalia has been dealing with piracy off its coast for several years.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586609/middle-east
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UN chief calls for major aid boost to ease ‘immense’ Palestinian suffering, as he welcomes Gaza ceasefire
EPHREM KOSSAIFY
January 16, 2025
NEW YORK CITY: Following the announcement on Wednesday of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, the secretary-general of the UN said the primary focus now must be efforts to alleviate the “immense suffering” of civilians in the territory.
Antonio Guterres called for a “major increase” in the amount of urgent, lifesaving humanitarian aid for “the countless Palestinians” who continue to suffer.
“It is imperative that this ceasefire removes the significant security and political obstacles to delivering aid across Gaza so that we can support a major increase in urgent, lifesaving humanitarian support,” he said. “The humanitarian situation is at catastrophic levels.”
After weeks of painstaking negotiations in Doha, the ceasefire agreement was announced by the prime minister of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, who said it would come into effect on Sunday.
The deal includes the phased release of dozens of hostages held by Hamas and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners in Israel, and will enable hundreds of thousands of displaced people in Gaza to return to what is left of their homes.
It also promises to clear the way for a surge in the amount of much-needed humanitarian aid entering the enclave, which has been devastated by 15 months of conflict.
As he welcomed the announcement of the ceasefire agreement and hostage deal, and praised the mediators for their “unwavering commitment,” Guterres called on all parties to ensure the agreement is fully implemented.
The deal is a “critical first step,” he said as he stressed the need to intensify efforts to achieve broader objectives, such as maintaining the unity, contiguity and integrity of the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Palestinian unity is vital for lasting peace and stability, he added, and ensuring unified Palestinian governance must remain a top priority.
“I urge the parties and all relevant partners to seize this opportunity to establish a credible political path to a better future for Palestinians, Israelis and the broader region,” Guterres said.
“Ending the occupation and achieving a negotiated two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security, in line with international law, relevant UN resolutions and previous agreements, remain an urgent priority.
“Only through a viable two-state solution can the aspirations of both peoples be fulfilled.”
Guterres paid tribute to the civilians who lost their lives during the conflict, including UN personnel and humanitarian workers.
“The United Nations is steadfast in its commitment to supporting all efforts that promote peace, stability and a more hopeful future for the people of Palestine and Israel, and across the region,” he added.
Source:arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586607/middle-east
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Joy mixed with fear for Israelis awaiting Gaza hostage release
January 15, 2025
TEL AVIV: Israelis expressed both joy and apprehension at the announcement of a Gaza ceasefire and hostage exchange deal on Wednesday, fearing that not all those held captive would come home.
“On one hand, of course, I’m very happy, but I’m also preoccupied because I want to see the deal continue until the last hostage is back at home, in his bed, the living and the dead,” Ornit Barak, 59, told AFP.
“We are very preoccupied that at some point it will, for some reason, stop and we will continue back to war,” she said at a protest calling for an end to the war and a release of all hostages.
Qatar’s prime minister announced that Israel and Hamas had agreed Wednesday to a ceasefire after over 15 months of war.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, cautioned that some issues in the framework remained “unresolved,” though it hoped the “details will be finalized tonight.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who holds a largely ceremonial role, said the deal was the “right move” to bring back hostages seized during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war.
Arnon Cohen, a chef from Nahal Oz kibbutz — one of the Gaza border communities hardest hit by the attack — said he would not be satisfied until all the hostages were freed.
“For us, it’s only the beginning, we want them all here. It doesn’t end, it’s not enough if just some of them come back,” said the chef, noting that two people from the kibbutz were still being held in Gaza.
“We want them here, with all the other hostages, dead and alive.”
Ifat Kalderon, the cousin of the hostage OferKalderon, said: “I have mixed feelings. On one hand, it’s joy, (but) mixed with terrible anxiety that it will, actually, happen.”
“If the deal does happen, I don’t know how Ofer will return — whether he is alive or not — but I do believe he is alive,” she said, hoping her relative is among those released.
“I truly, truly hope it won’t end with just the 33 hostages returning home, but that everyone will return.”
The Qatari PM said the deal agreed by Israel and Hamas involves a first stage in which 33 hostages will be released, beginning with women and children, in exchange for a thousand Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
A second stage, requiring further negotiation, is expected to follow.
Palestinian militants took 251 people hostage during Hamas’s surprise October 7 attack, of whom 94 are still being held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.
“The pain is very great, I can’t imagine what the families (of the hostages) are going through,” said Tamar, a 38-year-old from Jerusalem.
“We need to do everything to get them home.”
Source:arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586597/middle-east
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Biden nods to Trump team in Israel-Hamas ceasefire announcement
January 15, 2025
WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire-and-hostage deal that will end fighting in Gaza, and added it was reached by working alongside the incoming Donald Trump administration.
“I can announce a ceasefire and a hostage deal has been reached between Israel and Hamas,” Biden said at the White House. The deal was reached after 15 months of suffering, he said, and will be followed by a surge of humanitarian aid in Gaza.
“Fighting in Gaza will stop, and soon the hostages return home to their families,” Biden said.
The deal was reached after months of negotiations by the Biden administration, Biden noted as he thanked his national security adviser Jake Sullivan and other officials.
However, its terms will be mostly implemented by the incoming Trump administration, Biden said.
“In these past few days, we have been speaking as one team,” he said.
Asked by a reporter whether he or Trump deserved more credit for getting the deal done, Biden quipped, “Is that a joke?“
Trump, in a statement on social media, said the deal would not have happened if he had not been elected.
“This EPIC ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our Historic Victory in November, as it signaled to the entire World that my Administration would seek Peace and negotiate deals to ensure the safety of all Americans, and our Allies,” he wrote.
Biden did not provide specifics outside the broad outlines of the deal that were already known, but indicated he thought it could set the stage for an independent Palestinian state.
“For the Palestinian people, a credible, credible pathway to a state of their own. And for the region, a future of normalization, integration of Israel and all its Arab neighbors, including Saudi Arabia,” he said.
In a separate statement, the White House quoted Biden as saying: “Today, after many months of intensive diplomacy by the United States, along with Egypt and Qatar, Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire and hostage deal. This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much-needed humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity.”
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586594/middle-east
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Spain pledges 10 million euros for Lebanon army
January 15, 2025
BEIRUT: Spain’s top diplomat announced Wednesday a €10 million aid package for Lebanon’s army, in a boost for the armed forces who have a crucial role in implementing a fragile Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire.
“This announcement of 10 million euros for the United Nations Development Programme” will contribute to “supplement the salaries of the Lebanese Armed Forces” as well as finance “solar panels and logistical aspects” of the army, Jose Manuel Albares said during a visit to Beirut.
Lebanon has struggled for years to finance its public institutions including the army following a 2019 economic crisis.
It now also faces the challenge of rebuilding the country after more than two months of war between Hezbollah and Israel that the group had initiated over the Gaza conflict and ended in November.
“Aid for... the reconstruction especially of south of Lebanon, will be necessary to stabilize the country,” Albares told reporters after meeting Lebanon’s new president, former army chief Joseph Aoun.
Spain has contributed more than 650 personnel to the UN peacekeeping force in the country’s south (UNIFIL) with force chief Aroldo Lazaro hailing from Spain.
A committee composed of Israeli, Lebanese, French and US delegates, alongside a representative from UNIFIL, has been tasked with monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire deal.
On Wednesday, the US army official on the committee said the Israeli army was on a “very positive path” to withdraw from Lebanon’s south ahead of the deadline for implementing the truce later this month.
Lebanese army “checkpoints and patrols operate effectively throughout south-west Lebanon, and the soldiers are dedicated to their mission as Lebanon’s sole security guarantors,” said Major General Jasper Jeffers during a visit to the checkpoints.
“We are on a very positive path to continue the withdrawal of the IDF as planned, and the LAF is providing for the security and stability of Lebanon,” he added.
Under the November 27 ceasefire accord, the Lebanese army has 60 days to deploy alongside UN peacekeepers in the south of Lebanon as the Israeli army withdraws.
At the same time, Hezbollah is required to pull its forces north of the Litani River, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure it has in the country’s south.
Source:arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586591/middle-east
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"Islamic Jihad" condemns enemy's crime in Jenin, martyrdom of six Palestinians
15 Jan 2025
The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine condemned the crime of the Zionist enemy by targeting a civilian house in Jenin camp with warplanes, which led to the martyrdom of six innocent Palestinian civilians.
The Jihad Movement said in a statement today, Wednesday, that this brutal attack reflects the ongoing criminal approach of the occupation that targets innocent civilians and persists in committing war crimes without deterrence.
The movement stressed that these crimes in Jenin and the entire occupied West Bank "will not erase the shame of the humiliating defeat that the occupation is suffering in Gaza," stressing that the Palestinian people, with their will and steadfastness, are stronger than all the tools of killing and destruction used by the occupation.
The movement mourned the martyrs who were killed in this treacherous crime, namely: the child Mahmoud Gharbia (15 years old), HussamQanuh, Ibrahim Qaniri, and the martyr brothers Moamen, Amir and Bahaa Abu Al-Haija, offering its deepest condolences and sympathy to their families and relatives. At the end of the statement, the movement renewed its call to the Ramallah Authority to end its siege of the Jenin camp and stop its security campaign, and resort to unity in confronting the enemy's crimes against the Palestinian people.
Source:saba.ye
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https://www.saba.ye/en/news3424403.htm
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Europe
‘Safe’ Labour Seat Calwell The Ultimate Test Case For The Muslim Vote This Election
JAN 16, 2025
There are a few key things to know about Calwell, the safe Labour seat covering Melbourne’s outer north.
First, it is thoroughly working class, with education and income levels below the national average. Roughly a third of residents live within the lowest socioeconomic areas in Australia, while around 90% are in the lower half.
Second, it is multicultural, and often socially conservative, with a large religious migrant community. It has the highest Muslim population in Victoria (around 24%), putting it firmly in the sights of groups like The Muslim Vote and Muslim Votes Matter — the latter of which held its launch at the Broadmeadows Town Hall.
Third, popular sitting MP Maria Vamvakinou is retiring after 24 years, with Labor running former adviser BasemAbdo, a Palestinian-Australian, to replace her. The Coalition and Greens also preselected Muslim candidates, each engaging with Muslim Voices of Calwell, an informal group set up to ensure the community is heard.
For independent candidate SamimMoslih — an Afghan refugee who came to Australia in 1986, and an outspoken advocate for Gaza — Labor preselecting a Palestinian-Australian, presumably to head off a Muslim backlash, is an insult.
“It’s very visible in terms of how tacky the strategy is,” he tells me over a coffee in Roxburgh Park. The former VicRoads director has a warm, friendly vibe, but his anger with Labor is palpable. “I think a lot of Muslims, they see it for what it is. It’s so brazen, which is offensive.”
Moslih doesn’t believe having Abdo in Labor’s caucus will help the Palestinian cause, especially after what happened to Fatima Payman — “the canary in the mines”. “When she saw the injustice, and she flapped her wings, Labor turned the guns on her rather than listening,” he says. He doesn’t expect Abdo, who acts as a “conduit” between Labor and the community, to suddenly stop toeing the party line.
Moslih, who announced his run in December, is one of several independents popping up in Muslim-heavy Labor seats — most notably in Watson and Blaxland, held by Tony Burke and Jason Clare respectively. He is highly critical of the Albanese government’s response to Gaza, finding it “abhorrent” that it hasn’t condemned Islamophobia with the same force as it has antisemitism. Even with a ceasefire on the table (the government released this statement just this morning on the new deal), he doesn’t believe the Muslim community will forgive Labor for spending months “enabling a genocide”.
But while it’s a driving force, Moslih is adamanent he’s more than just a pro-Palestine candidate (his website doesn’t mention Gaza, though his Facebook regularly does). The 47-year-old’s frustrations with Labor run far deeper, accusing the party of moving to the right, following “the playbook of Tony Blair”.
“I feel Labor’s done that, not only with the Muslim community, with its old battler homeground, because it’s trying to appeal for the right, and it’s left a lot of people in the lurch,” he says. “They’re gloating about how great the economy is, when I just spoke to a gentleman over there” — he points to an elderly man he was seated with when I arrived — “the guy’s in pain. You speak to every second person, they’re saying they’re finding it hard to live.”
As with many independents, it’s hard to get a read on Moslih’s fiscal politics. I suggest that his answer implies he is left-wing, a notion he rejects, telling me he believes “in a leg up, not a hand out” — looking after those in need, while respecting that “an individual’s wealth is their wealth.”
He also speaks passionately about how migrants have been excluded — told to “be grateful” to be here. He wants to foster a sense of power and belonging, particularly among the young and disenfranchised, arguing many are tapping out of the system by not voting at all.
“That defeatist mindset is what politicians actually thrive on,” he argues. “It’s basically paradise for the current politicians. The more disengaged we are, the more we’re playing into those hands.”
And he’s eager to ensure Calwell gets a better deal, arguing Labor has taken it for granted.
“Maria was a beautiful person. She said many things that were very kind. The question is, what has the community got to show for it in terms of actual investment in Calwell?” he asks. “What has she done? What has Labor done at a federal level?”
“The only way that it can be actually listened to is if, in a minority government, you have an independent sitting in for Calwell,” he adds. “You can be a kingmaker in a minority government, or you can be the jester in the king’s court. And I think that’s the option that the community has.”
Calwell does indeed have options. There is at least one other independent running, Joseph Youhana, a member of the Assyrian community; there may soon be others. Greens candidate Mohamed El-Masri will be appealing to similar voters to Moslih on Gaza, though Moslih reckons the progressive party is an incorrect fit for socially conservative Calwell.
It remains to be seen whether The Muslim Vote and Muslim Votes Matter (separate entities, although they collaborate on events) will officially “endorse” candidates. The Muslim Vote UK did so last year, flipping four Labour seats to pro-Palestine independents (including one held by a member of Labour’s shadow cabinet).
Muslim Voices of Calwell, however, will not be endorsing, with founder Nail Aykan saying it’s about “bridging the community with the candidates”. The group has held forums with the party nominees, and will organise more for independents, demanding buy-in from whoever gets up.
Aykan, a former director of the Islamic Council of Victoria, agrees Labor has taken Calwell for granted, even as he praises Maria Vamvakinou as a “good friend of the Muslim community.”
“Now it’s a new chapter in Calwell’s history, it’s really open season,” he adds, pointing to Labor’s dwindling primary. “Basem and Labor can’t rely on Calwell being a safe Labor seat anymore. They’re gonna have to really earn the Muslim votes.”
As will Moslih, who insists he’s in it to win it. Challenging a major party from a standing start is a tall order, with pollsters so far dismissive of Muslim independent chances — though this will surely be one of the least predictable elements of the 2025 federal election.
Moslih believes if he can come in at least third, there is a chance he can win on preferences.
As for his own stipulated preferences, the independent candidate has some thinking to do.
“Enabling genocide cannot be rewarded,” he says, adding Labor will not be his second, third or even fourth choice. “I would strongly be contemplating Labor as last.”
Source:crikey.com.au
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https://www.crikey.com.au/2025/01/16/calwell-muslim-independent-samim-moslih-labor-fight/
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Rural Lancashire cemetery could be extended with special Muslim burial section
January 15, 2025
A Ribble Valley cemetery could be extended into an adjoining field - with a section for Muslim burials created too.
Ribble Valley Council's Health & Housing Committee is being asked to decide whether the current operational part of Clitheroe's Waddington Road Cemetery should remain strictly non-denominational or if this system should stop, to allow for religious grouping.
The Waddington Road cemetery is the only operational council-owned burial site in the Ribble Valley and has been used since 1861. Services there provide for traditional burials, woodland burials and burial of cremated remains.
In the late 1990s, the borough council extended the cemetery to provide additional space. This newer area is currently designated as non-denominational, so does not have any restrictions to particular religions or denominations within faiths.
Grave plots are currently sold systematically, typically moving from one plot to the next. The process is simple to manage and makes efficient use of available space, according to a report for councillors. However, the old, historic part of the cemetery, which is now full, had specific areas for Roman Catholic, Methodist and Church of England denominations.
Regarding future space, the report states: "There is currently space in the operational part of the cemetery for 180 burial plots and 90 ashes plots. it will take around seven or eight years to fill these. There are 25 spaces left in the woodland area."
An adjoining field, bought in 2011 by the council, is 7.7 acres in size and would allow for around 800 graves per acre. To progress its development , a planning application would be needed, looking at details such as drainage, ground water, environmental issues and cemetery design.
Separately, Ribble Valley Council has been contacted by local Muslim representatives, requesting a Muslim burial area for around 60 plots, the report adds.
There would be additional costs associated with Muslim burial areas, such as different spacing of plots and the need for hand-mowing of grass to avoid vehicles crossing plots. However, extra costs would be recovered through specific fees.
The report adds: "The requesters say that there is currently nowhere in the Ribble Valley borough suitable for Muslim burials. So local Muslim residents have to be interred in cemeteries in neighbouring authorities such as Blackburn, Hyndburn and Pendle, where dedicated Muslim burial areas exist."
According to the 2021 Census, the population in the Ribble Valley was 61,907 and 1.3 per cent of resodents are Muslim, just under 800 people, according to the report.
Councillors are being asked to consider current and future arrangemenbts. This includes whether up to 60 Muslim graves can be reserved in the current operational part or if an area for Muslim burials can be designed in new extension plans.
Also, councillors have to decide if Muslim graves can be dug perpendicularly to face the east, so the head of the interred, deceased person faces Mecca. Also, if a border, such as a path or a line of shrubs, can be used to separate the Muslim section.
Source:lancs.live
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https://www.lancs.live/news/lancashire-news/rural-lancashire-cemetery-could-extended-30786024
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Violent Crime Is Out Of Control In France, But It Has Nothing To Do With Muslim Headscarves
January 15, 2025
by Nabila Ramdani
A new year is always a time of reflection, and France’s interior minister certainly has a lot to think about.
Bruno Retailleau is responsible for law and order in a country where crime rates are spiralling.
Offences including murder and robbery dominate the news, but there are also episodes which expose the often hidden depravity of French society.
This was highlighted by the horrific multiple rape trial in Avignon at the end of 2024, when a so-called “ordinary Joe” was found guilty of allowing scores of Frenchmen just like him to defile his wife for up to a decade.
One might have thought that such abhorrent sexual violence by traditionally macho Gallic males would have dominated Retailleau’s pronouncements in early 2025, but no.
As usual, Retailleau has been speaking out against peaceful Muslim women who dare to wear headscarves in public places. In deeply disingenuous comments made on the 10th anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo shootings of 2015, he tried to portray all of them as potential terrorists.
“The threat of attack has never been so great as it is now,” said Retailleau, before calling for the strengthening of clothing bans.
Specifically, he wants women to be barred from wearing headscarves when they accompany children on school outings.
He also called for such garments to be banned from universities – institutions that are meant to uphold France’s values of ‘Liberty, Equality and Fraternity’.
Such ideals are regularly ignored in a republic where some six million Muslims – the largest community in western Europe – have become a useful scapegoat for almost all ills.
If Retailleau had cast his mind back to the horrific Charlie Hebdo attacks, and indeed the subsequent atrocities in France carried out by Al-Qaeda and Daesh, he would have recalled that all were perpetrated by drugged-up male criminals dressed like special forces commandos, and not women in headscarves.
The killers’ motivation was ostensibly to take revenge for Charlie Hebdo having pilloried the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him), but multiple Muslims died in the slaughter too.
This made a mockery of Retailleau’s implication that everyone linked to Islam was partly to blame for atrocities committed by outlawed groups based in the war-torn Middle East.
If it sounds like there might be a racial element to Retailleau’s discourse then it is backed up by his words about the millions of French citizens – many of them dark skinned Muslims – who live in neglected housing estates on the edges of major cities including Paris, and who can trace their origins back to former French colonies.
When there were protests following the shooting dead of teenager Nahel Merzouk – whose family originally came from Algeria and Morocco – by a policeman in 2023, Retailleau spoke of “ethnic regression” among those whose forebears were immigrants.
In summary, he suggested that those of Arab and Berber stock linked to France’s old North African Empire, for example, were going backwards in terms of acceptable behaviour and all round integration.
Such blatant racism clearly extends to Retailleau’s views on headscarves, which in his mind are associated with inferior races. In fact, the headscarves – which come in all shapes, colours and sizes – are not specifically anything to do with the Islamic faith. It just happens that a lot of Muslim women wear them.
In turn, Retailleau spoke of the garment being a symbol of a “political Islam” that “threatens our institutions and national cohesion”.
He conjured up a “slow conquest, which aims to infiltrate all sectors of society”. One of the ways to stop this – went his argument – was to ban the headscarf because it had become “a standard for Islamism, and a marker of the inferiority of women compared to men.”
The truth is that there are plenty of women in France who choose to wear headscarves independently. They are just like those who regularly wear them when out in the countryside (as the late Queen Elizabeth II did), or Roman Catholics who wear a mantilla, or Jews who who wear a tichel.
As with all the other headwear, Muslims see the headscarf as an expression of their cultural conservatism and it makes them feel respected. In terms of faith, they believe it expresses a humble nature before God.
Whatever the case, the vast majority of wearers are ordinary wives, mothers, or single women leading conventional lives. That’s why you see them looking extremely unthreatening with their children and working in all kinds of perfectly normal jobs.
If they are indeed the victims of oppressive males, as men like Retailleau allege, then ample legislation exists to see their tormentors tried and punished.
In which case, projecting the garments as detested symbols of an enemy within simply highlights the abject bigotry of reactionaries like Retailleau.
Moreover, there are millions of Muslims – the vast majority – who have enough economic and social problems to worry about, without having time to “conquer” anything, least of all France.
Many are company employees, or civil servants, while plenty more are unemployed and poor thanks to a France that discriminates against them.
In short, Muslims are not the powerful civilisation-threatening monsters that Retailleu alludes to.
Another of Retailleau’s new year pronouncements included warm words for Jean-Marie Le Pen, the convicted racist and Holocaust denier, who died aged 96 on the same day as the Charlie Hebdo commemorations.
Praising Le Pen for leaving “his mark on his era”, Retailleau said nothing about his fearsome prejudice against ethnic and religious minorities; especially Muslims.
The Rassemblement National party Le Pen founded as the Front National in 1972 with fellow Nazi sympathisers and colonial nostalgists who had tortured Algerians during the war of independence is currently in the ascendancy in France.
One of the main reasons it is doing so well is because the poisonous prejudices of men like Bruno Retailleau are now accepted as mainstream.
Source:middleeastmonitor.com
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250115-violent-crime-is-out-of-control-in-france-but-it-has-nothing-to-do-with-muslim-headscarves/
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Caucasus Muslims Office receives state finances in Azerbaijan
15 January 2025
BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 15. As previously reported, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree providing financial assistance to religious institutions in Azerbaijan, Trend reports.
The decree allocates 3 (three) million manat ($1.7 million) from the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Reserve Fund in the state budget of the Republic of Azerbaijan for 2025, as specified in the state budget of Azerbaijan, to the Caucasus Muslims Department.
Notably, the decree is designed to bolster the operational frameworks of established religious entities within the nation, cultivate interreligious cohesion, elevate the standards of religious and educational initiatives in accordance with contemporary exigencies, and amplify endeavors aimed at advancing progressive spiritual and ethical paradigms.
Source:.trend.az
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https://en.trend.az/azerbaijan/politics/3993489.html
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Islamic Development Bank’s role in Azerbaijan’s sustainable growth
15 January 2025
Having celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has been one of Azerbaijan's leading donors for over 32 years. In January 2024, the government of Azerbaijan and the IsDB signed a memorandum on the preparation of a framework cooperation program, with priorities including financing for the "green" energy sector, transport, ICT, participation in projects for the reconstruction of Karabakh, and more.
Recently, as part of a visit to Saudi Arabia, the First Deputy Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan, ElnurAliyev, met with IsDB President Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser and also took part in the "Board of Governors" meeting of the IsDB. During the meetings, the prospects for implementing projects in Azerbaijan were discussed, along with the development of the bank's framework document.
Since Azerbaijan became a full member of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) in 1992, the bank has approved over seventy projects aimed at developing transport, energy, agricultural, and social infrastructure. These projects also cover the financial sector, social services, water supply, and environmental protection, with total funding exceeding $1.3 billion. Additionally, with the bank's support, access to preferential financing for trade entities and small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) has improved. Specifically, through IsDB’s financial assistance, Azerbaijan has built electricity generation capacities of 1,060 MW, with 230 MW in the "green" energy sector. Furthermore, 287 km of power lines and distribution networks have been laid, and 400 transformer stations have been installed or upgraded, enhancing energy security and boosting electricity exports.
Loans in the water supply and sanitation sector have enabled the construction from scratch or the reconstruction of over 100 small regional water supply networks in rural communities, benefiting 75,000 people.
In the agricultural sector, loans from the Islamic Development Bank have supported the implementation of irrigation projects across 85,000 hectares of land, as well as the purchase of modern agricultural equipment for farmers.
Over the course of more than thirty years, the majority of the funding — $956 million — has been provided directly by the Islamic Development Bank. The remaining portion of the country’s portfolio, totalling $391 million, was supported by the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC), as well as other funds and divisions of the IsDB.
"In May 2024, the IsDB Board of Governors marked this year’s 50th anniversary of the Islamic Development Bank by adopting the Riyadh Declaration. This historic declaration celebrates the IsDB’s legacy, reaffirms its ethos, and clarifies its vision for the future. It lays out IsDB’s vision towards promoting economic cooperation, investment, and intertrade, and to mobilizing and channelling funds and other resources flowing from within and beyond the member countries to drive economic and social development, build capacities, and respond to challenges and emergency crises locally and globally, while embracing innovative tools, approaches and technologies," said Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser, Chairman of the IsDB Group, in a recent interview with Azerbaijani media.
As part of this concept, a new country strategy for Azerbaijan is being implemented by the IsDB. Notably, since 2023, there has been a significant increase in the activity of the IsDB Group's structures, which have sought to discuss key priorities and ensure the bank’s involvement in these initiatives through numerous delegations visiting Azerbaijan and meetings at both government and departmental levels.
In particular, the memorandum of understanding signed between the IsDB and the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan in January 2024 on preparing a framework cooperation programme outlined the key priority areas. These include financing environmentally sustainable infrastructure, supporting the reconstruction of Karabakh, developing renewable energy sources (RES), and promoting the sustainable extraction of hydrocarbons. The IsDB is committed to supporting the growth of competitiveness and the diversification of the non-oil sector of the economy, including export promotion and innovation in agriculture, as well as the halal ecosystem. Priorities also include digital transformation, Islamic finance, and more.
For example, in the autumn of 2023, the IsDB Group’s subsidiary, ICIEC, explored financing prospects for the "green energy corridor" project, which involves laying a power cable on the seabed of the Black Sea to connect Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania, Hungary, and Bulgaria.
As mentioned earlier, the financing of projects for the reconstruction of Azerbaijan's liberated territories is among the IsDB's priorities, and the bank has been one of the first global donor organisations to begin implementing specific initiatives. Notably, during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) in November of the previous year, an agreement was reached with the IsDB to finance the construction of a main irrigation canal from the "GizGalasi" reservoir.
During the same period, a meeting took place in Baku between the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, and the head of the IsDB, Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser. They signed an agency agreement, as well as grant and framework agreements for the project to build the main irrigation canal from the “GizGalasi" reservoir. These agreements outline the provision of technical assistance and the opening of a $96.73 million credit line to construct a 52-kilometre irrigation canal in East Zangezur. "As the Islamic Development Bank, we are very proud to have signed the first loan for the 'GizGalasi' reservoir project in Karabakh, which will provide water to about 1.6 million people," emphasized the IsDB President.
The importance of implementing this project was once again highlighted during the recent visit to Saudi Arabia by Azerbaijan's First Deputy Minister of Economy, ElnurAliyev. He held meetings with IsDB President Muhammad Sulaiman Al-Jasser, Türkiye's Deputy Minister of Finance and Treasury Osman Çelik, and also participated in the IsDB Board of Governors meeting. It was noted that the construction of the irrigation canal is the first project financed by international financial organisations (IFOs) in Azerbaijan's liberated territories.
A key focus of the bilateral meetings and the Board of Governors' meeting was the discussion of the aspects involved in the formation of the IsDB’s strategic framework document for the upcoming decade (2026–2035). The document emphasises the importance of addressing the reconstruction and infrastructure needs of member countries, including addressing issues such as mitigating the effects of drought in climate-sensitive regions. The significance of investing in large-scale infrastructure projects was also highlighted, including transport corridors and energy networks, green infrastructure projects aligned with global sustainable development goals, and supporting the implementation of digital transformation initiatives.
Source:caliber.az
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https://caliber.az/en/post/islamic-development-bank-s-role-in-azerbaijan-s-sustainable-growth
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Moscow and Kiev hold ‘limited talks’ – Bloomberg
15 Jan, 2025
Russia and Ukraine are holding “limited talks” in Qatar, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing sources on the Russian side. The negotiations are focused on preventing threats to nuclear facilities amid the ongoing conflict between the two neighbors, the media outlet claimed.
Bloomberg’s Ukrainian sources maintained that the only talks held between the two nations are linked to prisoner exchanges. Earlier on Wednesday, Moscow and Kiev confirmed the latest POW swap, which involved 25 servicemen from each side.
According to Bloomberg, the Kremlin did not respond to a request for comment.
In August 2024, the Washington Post claimed that Moscow and Kiev were holding talks on a potential moratorium on striking energy infrastructure in the summer of that year, allegedly also mediated by Qatar. The negotiations were reportedly thwarted by the Ukrainian incursion into the Russian Kursk border region in early August, the US media outlet stated.
Moscow then refuted the report, saying that “no one has derailed anything.” Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov brushed the information off as mere “rumors.”
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at that time that no “security regimes” for critical infrastructure had been discussed by the two sides. According to Zakharova, Moscow and Kiev have not engaged in any talks since spring 2022 when peace talks collapse, which Russia blamed on Western interference.
In November 2024, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman, Majed bin Mohammed al-Ansari, told journalists that his nation’s mediation efforts in the Ukraine conflict go beyond the humanitarian efforts aimed at helping children affected by the hostilities to reunite with their families.
According to al-Ansari, Qatar has always pursued a policy aimed at “reaching peace.” The spokesman also stated that time that Doha was supporting all the efforts aimed at achieving a peaceful resolution to the crisis.
Kiev has refused direct talks with Moscow ever since Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky banned direct talks in autumn 2022. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrey Sibiga confirmed in an interview with European Pravda published on Wednesday that the moratorium is still in place. He also said that Kiev would wait for further contacts with the US before making any moves.
Moscow has repeatedly stated that it is ready for peace talks at any moment without any preconditions other than those agreed upon in Istanbul in 2022. The draft treaty involved Kiev agreeing to a neutral status and accepting restrictions on foreign weaponry deployment on Ukrainian territory.
Source:rt.com
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https://www.rt.com/russia/610965-moscow-kiev-limited-talks-bloomberg/
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Africa
Zulum Warns Communities Against Collaborating With Boko Haram
16 January 2025
By Justina Otio
The Governor of Borno State, BabaganaUmaraZulum, has warned fishing and farming communities in Baga not to collaborate with Boko Haram insurgents.
He gave the warning on Wednesday while addressing residents at the palace of the District Head in Baga town.
Zulum expressed sympathy over the recent tragic event in the community, but emphasized the importance of abiding by military regulations to ensure the safety of the area.
He said, “I urge the people of Baga and surrounding communities to conduct their farming activities only within areas approved by the military. While we encourage agricultural efforts, it is crucial that our people remain law-abiding and adhere to the rules set forth by both the Nigerian military and Borno State government.”
He further condemned the actions of individuals colluding with insurgents, calling it “unacceptable” and a direct threat to the region’s stability.
He also inspected the 2,000-hectare solar-powered surface irrigation system being used for the cultivation of wheat and cassava in Mile 3.
The governor emphasised that this irrigation project marks a significant milestone in efforts to enhance farming activities and achieve food security not only in Borno State but across the nation.
Zulum highlighted the transformative potential of the solar irrigation system.
“This irrigation scheme will be a game-changer in our efforts to boost agricultural production and ensure food sufficiency. Similar projects have already been launched in Damasak, Ngala, and other parts of the state,” he stated.
Source:naijanews.com
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https://www.naijanews.com/2025/01/16/zulum-warns-communities-against-collaborating-with-boko-haram/
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Hold The Islamic Movement Accountable For War Crimes In Sudan’s Al-Jazira State
15 January 2025
BCOMMENTS Hold the Islamic Movement accountable for war crimes in Sudan’s Al-Jazira y Yasir Arman What is happening now in Al-Jazirah state, perpetrated by groups of the so-called “Special Operations,” the Islamic Movement, the National Congress Party, and their influential members within the state apparatus, including the regular forces and security agencies, constitutes wide-ranging war crimes and deliberate, systematic terrorism. These actions are intended to eradicate any form of political or social resistance. This is a group driven by fanatic sentiments, believing that they can crush the December Revolution anToday’s events are merely a continuation of what has happened in South Sudan, the Nuba Mountains, the Blue Nile, Darfur, the ghost houses, and the widespread executions and purges that have scarred our entire society. The desecration of the graves of the Sufi Sheikhs, the beheading of civilians, the assassination of emergency committee members, and the sweeping campaigns in Al-Jazirah and previousl in Sennar and other parts of Sudan, along with the documented evidence of these atrocities, place an obligation on all of us, both within Sudan and abroad, to launch a regional and global campaign. This international campaign must strive to designate the Islamic Movement of Sudan, including its affiliated organizations and leadership figures instigating this conflict, as terrorist entities. This designation will ensure accountability for their crimes dating back to June 30, 1989. When confronting them, we must unite and not allow ourselves to be divided. The unity of Sudanese society and its vibrant civil, political, and social forces is our path toward a better future.
Source:sudantribune.com
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https://sudantribune.com/article295984/
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‘External And Internal Non-State Players Are Deeply Entrenched In Banditry In Northern Nigeria’
16 January 2025
By EnioluwaAdeniyi
Retired generals from the Nigerian Army, Navy, and Air Force have attributed the persistent insurgency and violent crimes in the country to the activities of certain non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international agencies, and other vested interests.
These revelations come as the nation grapples with the prolonged war against Boko Haram and other terror groups.
The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, recently urged the Federal Government to involve the United Nations in investigating the inflow of arms into Nigeria.
Naija News reports that he emphasized the need to determine how sophisticated weapons continue to reach terrorists and bandits despite the military’s sustained efforts.
“The armed forces have neutralized many terrorists and recovered thousands of weapons, yet their armory seems replenished. It’s imperative to unravel the supply chains,” Musa stated.
The CDS’s comments were in response to criticisms from segments of society questioning the effectiveness of military operations against insurgency, given the substantial budgetary allocations.
In a statement on Tuesday, retired military officers, including former theatre commanders, General Officers Commanding (GOCs), and operational commanders of the Nigerian Air Force, weighed in on the issue.
They identified the roles of certain NGOs and international agencies as contributing factors to the prolonged conflict.
A former GOC, I Division who spoke Vanguard said, “Having been involved in the fight against terrorism and banditry that spilt into the North-West, Niger and Kogi states which were my Divisional Area of Responsibility as at then, I would say what the CDS said is quite true.
“It’s a known fact that external and internal non-state players are deeply entrenched in the spate of violence and banditry in Northern Nigeria.
“In the recent past, several arrests of financiers of insurgency and terrorism were made. Their funding source was traced to the Middle East.
“The UAE government was pivotal in assisting Nigeria in apprehending quite a number of them. Unfortunately, these arrests were enmeshed in political controversy, as they were not prosecuted and punished.
“That aside, Boko Haram has festered for almost 15 years, largely due to religious indoctrination of young, uneducated men and women. The end game is to destabilize the country, especially the North West and North-East to control vast space full of valuable human and mineral resources to fund and expand terrorism across the country.
“We must also recognize that these criminal organizations with networks across the globe are bent on having a foothold in the Sahel region, especially Nigeria.”
The former GOC lamented that the lack of jobs, under-development and other social inadequacies provide oxygen for terrorists to keep recruiting the youths.
He lamented over the number of out-of-school children and the highest levels of illiteracy in Nigeria.
He said, “There is also gross social inadequacies or failures of some sort by the sub-nationals in the region. Lack of jobs, under-development, poor healthcare and education for the millions of young people provides oxygen for these terrorists to keep recruiting the youths.
“It is estimated that the Northern region harbours millions of out-of-school children and the highest levels of illiteracy in Nigeria.
“While the military continues to effectively contain and degrade these organizations, the state governments must marshal resources to rapidly improve the people’s economy so they could have good alternatives to earning a living, rather than be recruited by criminal organizations.
“The military, CBN and security agencies must continually apply technology to keep blocking funding which is not easy to do without international support and assistance.
“The CBN’s decision to revoke thousands of licenses of several bureaux de change was a good step. The National Financial Intelligence Unit must aggressively step up tracking of terrorists’ funding into the country. Interpol and the contiguous countries must continually be engaged to destroy terrorist cells.
“I have often argued that there must be regulation of religious teachings across the country. We have a lax system which enables any group to set up mosques or churches without regulatory approval. It is a dangerous trend that must be legislated on by NASS or a Presidential Executive Order to check it.
“The Ministry of Justice and the Office of the National Security Adviser must prosecute all criminals and make it public. Additionally, Nigeria must speedily introduce state police to expand security coverage across the country. Our current central policing cannot address the insecurity of over 250 million people.”
Source:naijanews.com
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https://www.naijanews.com/2025/01/16/external-and-internal-non-state-players-are-deeply-entrenched-in-banditry-in-northern-nigeria/
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Mozambique: Daniel Chapo sworn in as president
15 January 2025
Daniel Chapo of Mozambique's long-ruling Frelimo party was inaugurated as president at a ceremony in the capital on Wednesday.
Chapo succeeds Filipe Nyusi, who served the maximum two terms.
The inauguration followed an October election decried as rigged by opposition parties and after months of violent protests against the vote results.
International rights groups believe more than 100 people were killed by security forces, but some local groups put the death toll at more than 200.
Authorities said the protests were violent and needed to be subdued, but rights groups said security forces fired live bullets at peaceful protesters.
International observers reported irregularities in the vote and the alteration of some results, but the Constitutional Council upheld Frelimo’s victory last month.
Frelimo is a leftist party that was once a guerrilla movement that liberated Mozambique from colonialism.
It has often been accused of rigging elections since the nation's first democratic vote in 1994.
That election followed a bloody 15-year civil war Frelimo fought after independence against rebel group Renamo, which is now an opposition party.
The street protests that rocked several major cities since October were the biggest threat to Frelimo's rule since the 1977-1992 civil war.
Source:africanews.com
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https://www.africanews.com/2025/01/15/mozambique-daniel-chapo-sworn-in-as-president/
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Arab World
International conference celebrates the camel as a pillar of Arab culture
HEBSHI ALSHAMMARI
January 16, 2025
RIYADH: Scholars at a Riyadh conference this week underscored the fundamental role the camel has played in shaping Arab heritage, emphasizing the profound link between camels and the Arabic language.
King Saud University, in partnership with the King Salman Global Academy for Arabic Language, is hosting the Fifth International Conference, titled “Camels in Arab Culture,” which ends on Thursday.
Prominent scholars and specialists from Saudi Arabia and abroad are participating in the conference, which is exploring key topics related to camels, including heritage, history and geography, and archaeological findings.
Hajed Al-Harbi, conference chairman, said: “Honoring camels is a tribute to our deep-rooted values and rich heritage, reflecting our pride in our origins and historical legacy.”
Ibrahim Al-Furaih, conference secretary, told Arab News how the conference underscores the central role camels have played in shaping Arabic literature and intellectual thought throughout history.
“Camels are a fundamental element of our national identity and Arab culture, with a significant presence in our heritage.
“Whether through literature, poetry, inscriptions, or the daily life of early Arabs, they have left an indelible mark. Their influence endures, continuing to shape the lives of Arabs to this day,” Al-Furaih said.
Bedoor Al-Fassam, chair of the public relations committee for the conference, said organizers spent months preparing for the event.
Dr. Al-Fassam, who is also an assistant professor of literature and criticism in the Arabic language department at the university, confirmed that conference participation requests exceeded 300, from which 40 research papers were selected. The submitted papers covered a wide range of fields, including literary, linguistic, historical, and social studies, in addition to anthropology research.
Alongside participants from Saudi universities, the conference features academics from Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Canada.
The attendees discussed the definition of camels in language and lexicography, as well as their effect on cultural and national identity.
Additionally, they explored the role of camels in Arabic poetry, narrative storytelling and biographies, highlighting their significance in other literatures and cultures.
The conference further delved into the role of camels in the national economy, addressing sectors such as investment, tourism, and entertainment, in addition to camel festivals, sports and racing events.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586601/saudi-arabia
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Saudi Arabia welcomes ceasefire agreement in Gaza
January 15, 2025
RIYADH: Saudi authorities welcomed the announcement of a Gaza ceasefire agreement on Wednesday and expressed the Kingdom’s appreciation for the efforts of mediators from Qatar, Egypt and the US.
The Kingdom stressed the need for adherence to the deal, an end to Israel’s aggression against Gaza, and the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory and all other occupied Palestinian and Arab lands.
It also highlighted the importance of building on the agreement by addressing the underlying reasons for the conflict and enabling the Palestinian people to secure their rights, the foremost of which is the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Saudi Arabia expressed hope that the ceasefire deal would mark a permanent end to a brutal Israeli war that claimed the lives of more than 45,000 Palestinians and wounded more than 100,000.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586596/saudi-arabia
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Thriving lavender in Saudi’s Northern Borders has environmental benefits
January 16, 2025
ARAR: The Northern Borders region of Saudi Arabia, spanning approximately 104,000 sq. km, boasts an aromatic, seasonal and annual plant biodiversity, with lavender emerging as a prominent species.
These plants play a crucial role in sustainable development, combating desertification, increasing vegetation cover, stabilizing soil, and fostering ecotourism, the Saudi Press Agency reported recently.
Lavender, characterized by its fragrant scent and vibrant purple hue, has been observed on the edge of the Nafud Desert, signaling its potential expansion throughout the region.
This emergence highlights the region’s ecological significance and capacity to support diverse plant life.
Nasser Al-Majlad, head of the Aman Environmental Association, told SPA that the lavender species is Horwoodiadicksoniae.
This annual herbaceous plant features branching stems, typically reaching about 30 centimeters in height, and large, lobed leaves. Its dark lilac flowers, gathered in spike inflorescences, release a distinctive fragrance.
The plant thrives in shallow sandy loam and is valued for its ornamental qualities, making it suitable for cultivation in both homes and gardens. Its smooth brown seeds further contribute to its propagation.
Al-Majlad emphasized the positive impact of nature reserves and the Saudi Green Initiative on the region’s ecology.
These initiatives have facilitated afforestation, land reclamation, and the protection of wild areas, contributing to the resurgence of numerous trees and plants, including lavender, within the environmental landscape, he added.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586620/saudi-arabia
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Manga Productions, Koei Tecmo unveil new Dynasty Warriors game in Riyadh
RAHAF JAMBI
January 15, 2025
RIYADH: Manga Productions celebrated the launch of Dynasty Warriors: Origins at an event here recently.
The AAA-rated game, developed by Koei Tecmo Games, will be published by Manga Productions across the Middle East and North Africa on Jan. 17. An Arabic-language version is expected in the second quarter of the year.
The event marks the first visit to Saudi Arabia of series producer Oba Masatomo and the development team behind Dynasty Warriors: Origins.
The event attracted content creators and key figures from the entertainment industry. And attendees were able to experience game demos and participate in a panel discussion with the development team.
In an interview with Arab News, Masatomo said: “I heard from the staff at Manga Productions when we visited Diriyah yesterday that there were many comments from local Saudi people expressing their love and excitement for the franchise and the game Dynasty Warriors: Origins.
“It’s wonderful to hear that so many fans in Saudi Arabia, as well as across the Middle East and North Africa, are eagerly anticipating this game. We are grateful to Manga Productions for their wholehearted support in localizing the game to provide a greater experience for players in Saudi Arabia.”
EssamBukhary, CEO of Manga Productions, said: “This partnership is a strategic step toward empowering Saudi youth in the gaming industry and fostering regional and global expansion.
“We aim to provide a unique experience to our partners in the Middle East and North Africa, contributing to the development of the creative content ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.”
Masatomo added: “Achieving success with globally recognized titles requires acceptance not just in Western markets but also in emerging regions like MENA.
“The Dynasty Warriors series is vital to our company, and it is significant that Dynasty Warriors: Origins represents our first event in Saudi Arabia and our initial localization into Arabic.
“We felt the enthusiasm from both media and fans, reinforcing the value of our efforts. We hope to use this title as a springboard to further elevate our initiatives with Manga Productions and continue creating compelling titles for everyone to enjoy.”
The game will be available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, with Manga Productions collaborating with Koei Tecmo Games to localize the game for Arabic-speaking audiences.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586593/saudi-arabia
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Saudi crown prince, French president discuss bilateral relations, regional developments
January 16, 2025
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received a call from French President Emmanuel Macron, the Saudi Press Agency said.
The pair also reviewed bilateral relations and cooperation, as well as the latest regional and international developments.
Source:arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2586617/saudi-arabia
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New Health Regulations For Umrah Pilgrims
Jan 16, 2025
The Saudi government has announced new health regulations for people travelling to Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah in Makkah or visiting the Prophet's Mosque in Madina, according to Gulf News.
All travellers -- adults and children aged one year or older -- are required to receive the quadrivalent Neisseria meningitidis vaccine (ACYW-135), said the report published on January 15.
The vaccine has to be administered 10 days before the arrival in Saudi Arabia and the vaccination certificate must also be obtained, according to a notice published by the Saudi health ministry recently.
The new rules are based on instructions issued by Saudi authorities. This regulation will come into effect from February 1, reports Gulf News.
Meningitis is inflammation of the tissue layers around the brain and spinal cord, usually caused by infections. It can be bacterial, viral, or other types. Viral meningitis, for example, spreads through sneezing, coughing, or poor hygiene.
Source:thedailystar.net
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https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/new-health-regulations-umrah-pilgrims-3800601
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South Asia
Russia calls for SCO Cooperation to combat Terrorism in Afghanistan
ByFidel Rahmati
January 16, 2025
Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, has called for cooperation among the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), particularly urging collaboration between Pakistan, India, and Iran to combat terrorism in Afghanistan.
During a press conference, Lavrov emphasized the need to establish what he referred to as a “Center for Combating New Threats.”
He stressed that “a center to combat new threats, including terrorism, drug trafficking, organized crime, and human trafficking, could be established in 2025 with the participation of SCO member states.”
TASS news agency reported that the Russian Foreign Ministry intends for this center to include membership from SCO countries, especially Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, and India.
Lavrov also defended India’s participation in the quadrilateral group with China, Pakistan, and Iran, calling it important for Moscow, Beijing, Islamabad, and Tehran.
It is worth mentioning that the third joint meeting of China, Pakistan, Iran, and Russia on Afghanistan is set to take place in October, and it is expected that India will also be added to this group.
The Russian Foreign Minister further stated that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Moscow format provide the platform for interaction with the Taliban regime.
This initiative highlights the increasing concern over the security situation in Afghanistan, particularly with the rising threats posed by terrorist groups such as ISIS. The formation of such a center could play a key role in strengthening regional security.
The cooperation of regional powers, including Pakistan, India, and Iran, is crucial for addressing the multifaceted challenges in Afghanistan. Collaborative efforts will not only help combat terrorism but also support stability and peace in the broader region.
Source:khaama.com
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https://www.khaama.com/russia-calls-for-sco-cooperation-to-combat-terrorism-in-afghanistan/
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Explosion occurs in Mazar-e-Sharif, Balkh Province
ByFidel Rahmati
January 16, 2025
Local sources in Balkh province, reported that an explosion in the city of Mazar-e-Sharif, the provincial capital, has resulted in two deaths and eight injuries.
The sources indicated that the explosion occurred around evening on Wednesday, January 15, in the Mandawi area located in the second district of Mazar-e-Sharif.
According to the sources, the sound of ambulance sirens was immediately heard from the scene after the explosion.
The Taliban have not yet commented on the incident.
No individual or group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
Recently, regional and international organizations have expressed concerns about the presence of ISIS in the region.
This explosion comes amid growing security concerns in Afghanistan, especially as ISIS has increasingly expanded its presence in the country. The rise of ISIS in Afghanistan poses a serious challenge to the Taliban’s control and their ability to maintain security.
The growing influence of ISIS in Afghanistan is leading to heightened violence, with attacks targeting both Taliban forces and civilians. The international community must pay closer attention to this development and consider how to support peace and stability efforts in Afghanistan.
Source:khaama.com
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https://www.khaama.com/explosion-occurs-in-mazar-e-sharif-balkh-province/
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57 new historical sites registered in Maidan Wardak amid preservation concerns
ByKhaama Press
January 15, 2025
Taliban Officials in Maidan Wardak province say that 57 new historical sites have been registered in the province this year.
Habibullah Mujahid, the Taliban director of Information and Culture in Maidan Wardak, stated that some of these newly registered sites date back hundreds of years. The sites include shrines, forts, mosques, and stupas from the Kushan era. As a result, the total number of registered historical sites in the province has now reached 75.
These historical sites are located in the districts of Narkh, Jalrez, Sayedabad, Dai Mirdad, Chak, and Jaghatu.
Earlier, some residents of Maidan Wardak expressed concern that many historical sites in the provincial capital, Maidan Shar, and districts such as Narkh, Jalrez, Sayedabad, Chak, and Behsood are at risk of being destroyed.
It is also reported that many archaeological sites in the country are at risk of destruction due to a lack of preservation and maintenance. Recent floods and earthquakes have further exacerbated these concerns.
Experts believe that Maidan Wardak is one of Afghanistan’s historical and cultural provinces, rich in historical landmarks. These sites hold significant value from various periods in country’s history and reflect the diverse civilizations that have shaped the region.
Source:khaama.com
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https://www.khaama.com/57-new-historical-sites-registered-in-maidan-wardak-amid-preservation-concerns/
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Zia orphanage trust: Apex court clears Khaleda, Tarique
Jan 16, 2025
The Supreme Court yesterday acquitted BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, her son, BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman, and four others of corruption charges in the Zia Orphanage Trust case.
With the Appellate Division scrapping the verdicts of the High Court and a trial court in the case, there is no legal bar now for Khaleda to contest the next national elections, Fahima Nasrin Munni, a pro-BNP lawyer and former deputy attorney general, told The Daily Star.
On February 8, 2018, the trial court sentenced Khaleda to five years imprisonment and others, including Tarique, to 10 years in jail in the graft case.
The HC doubled the jail sentence of Khaleda to 10 years and upheld the trial court's verdict on the others on October 30, 2018.
Tarique has been in London since 2008 while Khaleda travelled there this month for treatment.
The Appellate Division's verdict said, "All the appeals are, hereby, allowed by this division's unanimous decision."
"Accordingly, the judgements of both the High Court Division and the trial court are, hereby, set aside. Consequently, all the appellants having not been found guilty of the charges levelled against them, stand fully acquitted".
"The proceedings constituting the subject matter of these appeals are found to manifest contrived misapplication of the law as tantamount to malicious prosecution," a five-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Refaat Ahmed observed.
The verdict, read out by the chief justice, added, "This judgement shall also extend to other convicted persons who, however, did not prefer any appeal. This decision shall, resultantly restore the appellants' and all other convicts' dignity, reaffirm their innocence, and thereby, put an end to the unwarranted proceedings initiated against them".
"All appellants on bail shall necessarily stand discharged from their respective bail bonds," the apex court said, ordering authorities concerned to communicate and send down the records immediately.
Detailed observations will be available when the complete verdict is released.
The top court delivered the judgement after holding hearings on two appeals filed by Khaleda and one each by SaleemulHuq alias Kazi Kamal and businessman Sharafuddin Ahmed challenging the HC verdict.
"There was no merit in the case. Sadly, the High Court Division had extended Khaleda Zia's five-year jail sentence to 10 years. … The High Court verdict was given on the fascist government's instructions," Khaleda and Tarique's lawyer Zainul Abedin told reporters after the Appellate Division's verdict.
"However, things are different now. It seems that the judiciary works independently. Those who could not appeal, including Tarique Rahman, have been acquitted," he said.
Kayser Kamal, another lawyer for Khaleda and Tarique, said his clients and all the other accused have been served justice by the Appellate Division verdict.
"The verdict has proven that Sheikh Hasina implicated Khaleda Zia, Tarique Rahman and other accused in the case to achieve her political ambitions and establish fascism. Everything was part of a political scheme," the lawyer added.
When contacted, the Anti-Corruption Commission's lawyer Ashif Hassan said he would convey the SC verdict to the commission.
The commission will take its decision accordingly, he said.
Source:thedailystar.net
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https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/crime-justice/news/zia-orphanage-trust-apex-court-clears-khaleda-tarique-3799621
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Hamid, Hasina sued over attack on protesters
Jan 16, 2025
A case was filed against former president Abdul Hamid, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and 122 others for their alleged involvement in an attack on anti-discrimination students during the recent mass uprising in Kishoreganj.
Tohmul Islam Mazharul, 27, of Kishoreganj Sadar filed the case with Kishoreganj Sadar Model Police Station, said Abdullah Al Mamun, officer-in-charge of the police station.
Sheikh Rehana, Sheikh Hasina's son SajeebWazed Joy and daughter Saima WazedPutul, Awami League General Secretary ObaidulQuader and several AL leaders have also been named as accused.
Since the fall of the AL government on August 5 last year, approximately 50 political cases have been filed in the district, with 11 of these filed with the Kishoreganj Sadar Police Station, the OC said.
Around 4,000 named and more than 10,000 unnamed persons have been made accused in the cases.
This is the first time Hamid has been named in such a case.
The case statement alleged that the accused, both in the country and abroad, planned a mass killing to suppress the uprising sparked by Hasina's regime.
It said the accused in Kishoreganj supplied firearms, local weapons, and funds to suppress the protests and ordered the massacre.
The incident reportedly occurred on August 4 last year at noon when the complainant and several others joined a student-led protest.
Tohmul, who identifies as a BNP member, said he was among those injured during the protest.
He cited being preoccupied with medical treatment for the delay in filing the case.
Source:thedailystar.net
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Rights bodies, student orgs slam attack
Jan 16, 2025
Several organisations yesterday strongly condemned the attack on indigenous students and their supporters protesting the removal of the term "adivasi" (indigenous) from textbooks.
They urged the interim government to take tough action, demanding the arrest and prosecution of those responsible for the attack.
Law Adviser Asif Nazrul and Adviser Mahfuj Alam also condemned the incident.
In separate Facebook posts, they said two persons have been detained over the incident already. The advisers also pledged action after a thorough investigation.
The incident occurred in front of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) office in Dhaka's Motijheel, where witnesses reported that members of the group "Students for Sovereignty" assaulted the protesters, using cricket stumps. The attack left over a dozen people injured.
The indigenous protesters had gathered to demand the reinstatement of the term "adivasi" in textbooks.
The Jatiya Nagorik Committee denounced the violence, describing it as an attack on the right to peaceful assembly.
"This incident reflects tactics reminiscent of a banned fascist organisation. Law enforcers must immediately hold the perpetrators accountable," it stated.
Students Against Discrimination also condemned the violence in a Facebook post, labelling it an "assault by extremists".
Hasnat Abdullah, convener of the group, said, "We demand the immediate arrest and punishment of those responsible, regardless of their affiliations."
In its statement, ManusherJonno Foundation (MJF) expressed outrage over the assault.
"We support the rightful demands of indigenous communities and strongly urge the interim government to arrest and prosecute those involved in this heinous attack," said MJF Executive Director Shaheen Anam.
Protests denouncing the violence were also held across the capital including at the Central Shaheed Minar.
Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal also condemned the attack, terming it "deeply alarming".
In a statement, signed by its central committee President Rakibul Islam Rakib and General Secretary Nasir Uddin Nasir, JCD called for a thorough investigation and arrest of those involved.
The ParbatyaChattagram Pahari Chhatra Parishad (PCP) questioned how the attack could occur in the presence of police.
"We believe some students from settler communities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, supported by radical and fundamentalist groups, orchestrated this attack. We express grave concerns over this incident," said Ankan Chakma and Amal Tripura, PCP president and general secretary, respectively.
The PCP alleged that the attack was premeditated, noting that "Students for Sovereignty" had issued threats on social media before the incident. They also claimed the attackers brought cricket stumps and sticks wrapped with national flags to the site and launched their assault in the presence of police.
The PCP claimed that radical communal groups, including Bangalee settlers from the CHT, were using this issue to spread propaganda suggesting that the hill people sought secession and the creation of an independent state.
"They are attempting to incite ethnic hatred across the country," the leaders added.
The PCP called for immediate legal action against the perpetrators.
Source:thedailystar.net
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Won’t tolerate delay in July proclamation
Jan 16, 2025
Students Against Discrimination and its platform for citizens, the Jatiya Nagorik Committee, have said they will not tolerate any more delay in making the proclamation of the July uprising.
At a press conference at the organisation's offices in the capital last night, they threatened to launch a nationwide movement if the government continued to drag its feet on the issue.
"The issuance of the July proclamation is not merely an organisational issue for the Students Against Discrimination; it is directly tied to the present and future security and existence of our entire nation," they said.
They called for an immediate announcement of the proclamation date and assurances that it would serve as the foundation for the future constitutional and legal framework.
The interim government had earlier said it would make the proclamation based on consensus among political parties.
Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus would hold an all-party conference over the proclamation at the Foreign Service Academy between 4:00pm and 7:00pm today, his press wing said last night.
Reading out a statement, Arif Sohel, member secretary of the student body, demanded the government announce a date for the proclamation immediately after these discussions.
He criticised the government for a lack of visible action on the proclamation over the last 15 days.
"The government must remember, for its own legitimacy, the July proclamation is urgent. An article like Section 106 of the existing constitution, which lacks any legal binding, cannot be the full basis of this government's legitimacy," he said.
"No more delay or procrastination will be tolerated by the student community. If there is a delay, we will quickly build a mammoth movement with students from all levels across the country," Arif said.
Appealing to political parties, Arif said, "Let us set aside differences and unite on the issue of Bangladesh. In the current geopolitical reality, unity is essential to ensure the survival and development of the political community. Unity is required on the question of issuing the July Student Uprising Proclamation."
Source:thedailystar.net
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PCP condemns attack on indigenous protesters at NCTB
Jan 15, 2025
The ParbatyaChattagram Pahari Chhatra Parishad (PCP) has strongly condemned the recent attack on a group of indigenous people protesting the removal of the image of a graffiti featuring the word "adivasi" (indigenous) from a textbook.
Ankan Chakma, president of the parishad, and its general secretary Amal Tripura expressed concerns in a statement issued minutes after today's attack in front of NCTB in Dhaka.
The leaders questioned how an organisation named "Students for Sovereignty", with a radical communal agenda, could launch an attack on a peaceful rally of indigenous and minority students and the hill people in the presence of police.
"We believe some students from the settlers in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the backing of radical and fundamentalist groups are behind this incident. We express our deep concern and anxiety over this attack," the leaders said in the statement.
The leaders also claimed that the attack was not random but rather a planned assault, adding that Students for Sovereignty had been issuing threats on social media since yesterday and had gathered at the spot holding cricket stumps and sticks with national flags tied to them. They attacked the Indigenous group after they arrived for the sit-in amid police presence.
"Radical communal groups, including Bengali settlers from the Chittagong Hill Tracts and other parts of the country, are using this issue to propagate that the hill people are seeking separation from Bangladesh to form their own state. They are trying to create ethnic hatred among the people of the country. We suspect that some government agency personnel are inciting this," their statement read.
They demanded immediate legal action against the perpetrators.
Source:thedailystar.net
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Afghanistan never was a threat to others
January 16, 2025
The incumbent U.S. President, Joe Biden, has recently described the current situation in Afghanistan as satisfactory, saying that the country would no longer pose a threat to America. Reports quoted Biden as saying in his final speech as president that Afghanistan has not been a safe haven for terrorists or a threat to the U.S. since the withdrawal of American forces. He referred to the murder of the al-Qaeda leader by the American forces saying: “…the primary objective of war has been accomplished” and that threat would no longer be from Afghanistan “but, from elsewhere.” So, they do not need to station a sizable number of American forces in Afghanistan. “Contrary to assumptions, Afghanistan did not become a safe haven for terrorists after the U.S. withdrawal, and the United States has maintained its capability to manage Afghanistan remotely over the past three years.” “Remember, critics said if we ended the war it would damage our alliances and create threats to our homeland from foreign-directed terrorism out of a safe haven in Afghanistan. Neither has occurred. Neither has occurred. Our alliance has stayed strong,” Biden said describing his country’s forces’ withdrawal from Afghanistan as one of his administration’s significant achievements as he believed ‘there was no justification for the extensive U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.’ One thing should also be admitted by the incumbent and future U.S. administrations that Afghanistan has never been and would never be a threat to other countries nor is the country now being managed by the Americans but by its real Afghan leaders, under an Islamic system. Afghanistan has been ‘managed’, led and controlled by the Americans and their NATO alliance for the past 20 years. But now, the Americans acknowledge the facts and realities that their way of fueling war and patricide in Afghanistan was wrong and that they were in the fight against real freedom fighters instead of what they claimed terrorists in the country. There were no terrorist groups in Afghanistan, but certain powers were seeking excuses to turn the country into a proxy battlefield. Afghanistan will never be a safe haven for any militant groups posing threats against other countries nor does the Islamic Emirate allow militant militancy to influence Afghanistan’s borders shared with other nations. The U.S. should also stand by its promises and make sure that it never interferes in the internal affairs of Afghanistan nor does it support and strengthen the past government’s corrupt regimes to once again fuel war and bloodshed in the country. Afghanistan welcomes any positive interaction, viewpoints, and bilateral relations and is impatiently waiting for a future U.S. leadership to resume powerful bilateral diplomatic relations with the Islamic Emirate. The Islamic Emirate once again calls on the international community, particularly the upcoming U.S. administration and other world powers to resume their diplomatic and economic relations with Afghanistan in line with bilateral interests and most importantly based on Islamic principles.
Source:thekabultimes.com
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Southeast Asia
Indonesia Asks Saudi for Bigger Hajj Officer Quota
January 15, 202
Jakarta. Indonesia is nudging Saudi Arabia into letting the Southeast Asian country send more Hajj officials this pilgrimage season.
About 221,000 Indonesians are set to go on Hajj -- a major pilgrimage that a Muslim has to perform at least once in their lifetime -- this year. Saudi Arabia has also allowed the world’s largest Muslim-majority country Indonesia to send 2,210 Hajj officers. However, this is only half of the officer quota that Indonesia had last year.
Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar is currently in talks with Saudi Hajj Minister Tawfiq Al Rabiah so Indonesia can deploy more officers. For context, an officer is in charge of assisting the pilgrims during the pilgrimage. Their presence is vital considering how the elderly make up a large part of Indonesian pilgrims.
“With the current quota, we would only be able to assign 3 officers to take care of each flight group. And a plane can carry between 300 and 400 pilgrims. Of course, it would be difficult,” Nasaruddin said in Jakarta on Wednesday, as reported by the state news agency Antara.
The lack of officers amidst the high number of elderly pilgrims could become a major challenge. The ministry’s data shows that there are over 42,000 pilgrims who are older than 65 who may go to Hajj this year. Indonesia plans to allow 10,000 more elderly to go on Hajj in 2025.
“We also need to take into account the distribution of the officers based on their gender. It is impossible for a male officer to accompany a female pilgrim and vice versa,” Nasaruddin said.
Source:jakartaglobe.id
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MINDEF allocates RM12 billion for asset acquisition this year - Mohamed Khaled
BERNAMA
16-01- 2025
KUALA LUMPUR: A total of RM12 billion has been allocated to the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) for the acquisition of assets to enhance the country’s defence capabilities this year, said Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin.
According to him, among the major asset acquisitions approved this year include 105 mm cannons, surface-to-surface missiles (SSM) for KD Jebat frigate and three units of Medium Altitude Long Endurance Unmanned Aerial System (MALE UAS).
The Defence Ministry, he said, will ensure that the construction of other important assets progress as scheduled, such as the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) 1 which is now 96.52 per cent complete and has commenced Harbour Acceptance Test (HAT) and Sea Acceptance Test (SAT).
“LCS2 has also been launched and is undergoing work requirements, while LCS3 is in final preparations for its planned launch in January 2026.
“As for the construction of the Second Batch of Littoral Mission Ships (LMS), work progress for all three ships is expected to reach 13.8 per cent overall by June 2025,” he said when delivering the minister’s 2025 New Year Message at WismaPerwira here, today.
Also present were Chief of the Armed Forces Gen Tan Sri Mohammad Ab Rahman, Deputy Minister of Defence AdlyZahari and secretary-general of the Ministry of Defence Datuk Lokman Hakim Ali.
Commenting further, Mohamed Khaled said the construction of FA-50M (Block 20) light fighter aircraft (LCA/FLIT) acquired from Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has reached 48 per cent progress with the first two aircraft to be received by the country in October 2026.
The Ministry of Defence signed a contract to procure 18 FA-50M light fighter aircraft worth approximately RM4 billion in 2023.
Mohamed Khaled also said that the Ministry of Defence will receive two Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) for the purpose of monitoring the country’s maritime areas in June and September 2026.
According to him, the plan to increase the capabilities of MAF assets is among the 10 main focuses outlined in the Ministry of Defence’s 2025 plan in ensuring that the country’s defence system meets current needs and challenges.
Source:thesun.my
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Failure to fly out Umrah pilgrims: Couple who owns travel agency arrested
BERNAMA
16-01- 2025
SHAH ALAM: A husband and wife, who own a travel agency, were arrested in Kuala Lumpur at 7 pm yesterday in connection with allegations of failing to fly out a group of umrah pilgrims yesterday.
Selangor police chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) of the Selangor police contingent headquarters (IPK) also seized several computers, passports and related documents.
He said the arrest of the 31-year-old couple was carried out after his department received a police report in Sepang regarding an umrah fraud case involving the agency at 10.39 pm yesterday.
“The complainant is a 39-year-old woman who reported losing RM11,000 because she was stranded and unable to perform umrah yesterday.
“Following that, police opened an investigation paper under Section 420 of the Penal Code,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Hussein said further checks revealed that 379 victims had dealt with the company and were also stranded on the same date, involving an estimated total loss of RM2.1 million.
He said initial investigations found that the agency opened business two years ago and moved to a three-storey building in Sepang last October.
“The modus operandi used by the suspects was to enlist prospective pilgrims through advertisements on the company’s TikTok app about umrah packages and to contact agents appointed by them,” he explained.
Earlier, a Bernama investigation found that police, through the Selangor CCID IPK team, began investigating the agency’s office in Sepang and Selangor CCID head Datuk SaimanKasman was seen arriving at the office at 2 pm.
The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) said in a statement today that it was investigating a licensed tourism agency that allegedly failed to fly umrah pilgrims yesterday.
Yesterday, media reports said more than 300 umrah pilgrims were stranded when they were promised to be flown out but were stood up on departure day.
Source:thesun.my
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Why speak to 1MDB chairman via Jho Low’s phone? Najib says for ‘convenience’, I was ‘using’ Jho Low for Middle East ties
By Ida Lim
16 Jan 2025
PUTRAJAYA, Jan 16 — Datuk Seri Najib Razak today said that he did not call 1Malaysia Development Berhad’s (1MDB) chairman Tan Sri Mohd Bakke Salleh directly regarding a US$1 billion (RM4.4 billion) deal, but had instead spoke to the chairman through Low TaekJho’shandphone because it was “convenient”.
Testifying in his own defence over RM2 billion of 1MDB’s funds which allegedly entered his personal bank accounts, Najib confirmed that Low was at the 1MDB board meeting on September 26, 2009 when the phone call was made, but said Low was not there on his invitation.
Just before that 1MDB board meeting could start, Low spoke to Najib over the phone, and then handed his mobile phone to 1MDB’s chairman Bakke. Najib confirmed this and also confirmed that he spoke with Bakke using Low’s phone.
Deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Mustaffa P Kunyalam then asked: “Why didn’t you choose to speak to Tan Sri Bakke through his phone number, obviously you have his phone number by then?”
Najib replied: “It is a matter of convenience, he handed, I didn’t think there was anything wrong.”
Responding to Mustaffa’s suggestion that he chose to speak to Bakke through Low’s phone showed that he was comfortable with Low at that time, Najib said: “At that time, I didn’t think he was up to all the mischief at that time.”
Mustaffa: At that time, you were comfortable letting Jho Low know you were close to him?
Najib: I didn’t want people to think I was beholden to him, I wanted people to think I was using him specifically for Middle East connection.
Mustaffa: You were using him?
Najib: Yes, I was using him, I wanted to tap into his connection there.
Bakke had previously told the High Court that Low had passed the phone while saying “PM on the line, want to speak to you”, and that Najib had asked the board to quickly firm up a decision on the US$1 billion deal. He said the 1MDB board then agreed in its meeting to approve the deal.
Najib previously denied that his phone call was meant to pressure the 1MDB board into approving the deal.
Among other things, Najib today confirmed that Low was seen at his private residence and at his offices at the Defence Ministry, Finance Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office over the years, saying that Low “came to see me and also members of my family, because he was quite close, especially to Riza”. Riza Aziz is Najib’s stepson.
Asked to confirm that Low’s presence at those places were true and that there was nothing wrong about it, Najib replied: “Yeah, there were times that he came, but not to say he was there all the time, takadalah (don’t have lah).”
In this trial, the prosecution has said it would show that Low — better known as Jho Low and now a fugitive wanted for his role in the 1MDB scandal — was the alter ego and mirror image of Najib in 1MDB affairs.
Source:malaymail.com
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/bhagwat-independence-fighting-indian-state/d/134353