Muslim Women “Cannot Be Considered Humans” As They Wear A “Black Cloak”: Karnataka Play Insults Hijabi Women
New Age Islam News Bureau
23 March 2022
• Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Distributes Leaflets in Afghanistan Seeking ‘Jihad’ Donations
• Egypt, UAE, Israel Hold Summit Talks In Red Sea
Resort
• Mullah Hebtullah Akhundzada Discusses Reshuffle in
Afghanistan Interim Cabinet Get Recognition
• Muslim Women “Cannot Be Considered Humans” As They
Wear A “Black Cloak”: Karnataka Play Insults Hijabi Women
• Rohingya Muslims Hail US Recognition of Genocide in
Myanmar
India
• The Kashmir Files: Yati’s Aide Swami Jitendranand Fuels Hatred to Create a Rift between Two Communities
• 'The Kashmir Files' Is Work of Fiction, Muslims Suffered More Than Pandits in 1990s: Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference
• Targeted killings will remain a challenge till terrorists are present in Valley: J&K DGP
• Jammu and Kashmir: 3 held for involvement in March 19 grenade attack
• UP: Mob lynches two Muslim brothers in Noorpur, one dead
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Pakistan
• Pakistan Day: Armed Forces Show Off Military Might
As OIC Officials Watch
• Many Muslim Leaders Lack Courage, But PM Imran Has
Plenty: Federal Minister
• Opposition parties doing jihad, says Owais Leghari
• Ulema say seminaries fortresses of Islam
• Ashrafi hails PM’s speech for addressing Muslim
Ummah issues through talks
• OIC and China should together find solution to
Ukraine conflict: Pakistan PM
• Ukraine war revealed global hypocrisy, FM Çavuşoğlu
tells OIC
• Pakistan asks Iran to open another trade gate at
border
• Delhi’s irresponsible attitude could lead to nuclear
escalation: speakers
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Arab
World
• Saudi Arabia Urges OIC States To Help Curb Houthi
Aggression
• Foreign children risk languishing in Syria for
decades: Charity
• Saudi Arabia welcomes ‘positive points’ in Lebanese
PM Statement
• Itikaf to Resume At Holy Mosques after a Two-Year
Hiatus
• Haram Presidency distributes bracelets among
children at Grand Mosque
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South
Asia
• All Schools Reopen in Afghanistan but For Teenage
Girls: MoE
• Several Embassies Handed Over To IEA, Taliban Closer
to Full Recognition: Foreign Ministry
• IEA’s FM Amir Khan Muttaqi meets UN special envoy to
Afghanistan
• Taliban Threaten Revenge Killings of Former Govt
Officials; Warn Residents Of Mass Arrests
• In Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, Strategic Depth
Remains an Illusion for Pakistan’s ISI
• Taliban Foreign Minister meets UN special envoy,
discusses human rights issues
• Call for Inquiry into Enforced Disappearances in Bangladesh
• Bangladesh welcomes US declaration that Myanmar army
committed genocide against Rohingya
• Taliban deploys artillery units near Pakistan
border: reports
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North
America
• NYPD's Top Official Faces Backlash for Downplaying
Muslim Surveillance
• US-Pakistan talks to focus on regional security
issues
• Riyadh gets US military help as Washington seeks
better ties
• MWL sponsors transformation within Muslim societies
in North, South America
--------
Southeast
Asia
• Beijing Investing Over $400B in 54 Muslim Countries,
Says Top Chinese Diplomat
• ‘Muslim-only class monitor’ issue at KL school
resolved
• PM wants to make Malay second language among Asean
members
• Urging a review, three NGOs say Kelantan Shariah
criminal law will further harm already marginalised groups in Malaysia
--------
Mideast
• Turkiye Calls for Joint Stance to Ease Sufferings Of
Muslims
• Iranian FM: Few Highly Important Issues Remain in
Vienna Talks
• Iranian Spokesman: Unity Key to Settle Problems in
Islamic World
• Iran Condoles with China over Tragic Plane Crash
• Iranian DM Felicitates Nowruz to Counterparts in Regional
States
• Four dead in stabbing, car-ramming in southern
Israel
--------
Africa
• Sudanese protesters block roads in Khartoum to
demand civilian rule
• Libyan domestic flights to resume after political
crisis closed skies
• Sudan denies reports on Russian Wagner presence in
country
• Troika countries say Russian Wagner Group's
activities in Sudan undermine rule of law
--------
Europe
• Erdogan Asks EU To Relaunch Membership Negotiations
• Russia’s envoy in Indonesia says Putin plans to
attend G20 summit in Jakarta
• US' envoy to UN welcomes Turkish, Israel presidents'
meeting in Ankara
• Terrorism threat level in Northern Ireland reduced
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/hijabi-women-karnataka-human-black-cloak/d/126637
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Muslim Women “Cannot Be Considered Humans” As They Wear A “Black Cloak”: Karnataka Play Insults Hijabi Women
(Sreengrab: Twitter)
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22nd March 2022
Udupi: Characters in a Yakshagana play during the Karkala Utsav in Karnataka’s Udupi passed derogatory comments on Muslim women who wear hijabs.
In a video that surfaced on Twitter, a character can be heard saying that Muslim women “cannot be considered humans” as they wear a “black cloak”, referring to the hijab.
Yakshagana is a folk performance of Karnataka where the artists perform theatre plays in elaborate costumes. The dialogues are often based on relevant social issues. On one of the days of the 10-day Karkala festival, a play was held where characters addressed the recent hijab ban in the state while mocking hijab-wearing women.
“They did not arrive as humans, they came shrouded in a thick, black cloak,” says one of the characters. Another replies that they donned saffron shawls in a protest against them.
“Today, the court’s judgment must have quashed it, no one should wear them. Where they (Muslim women) go, whom they meet- must be investigated by the intelligence department,” adds the character.
Another character says that the “activists” wore saffron shawls in a protest and created riots before the court passed its judgment. “If we hadn’t donned our shawls, the case wouldn’t have gotten this wild,” a character says proudly.
A video of this performance uploaded on Twitter brought to light how often Muslims are used as subject matter in Yakshagana plays.
“Time and again they are mocking Muslims in Yakshagana, years ago it was against Haji cherkala abdulla and Sania Mirza, today its in favour of govt decision these people have taken religion into play,” a Twitter user pointed out.
The hijab row:
The hijab controversy has been around since January, after students of a pre-university college in Karnataka’s Udupi were prohibited from wearing headscarves (hijab), as part of their religious obligation, in the college premises.
The high court pronounced its judgment on the row upholding the hijab ban of the Bharatiya Janata party-led government and said that wearing of hijab is not an essential religious practice, following which protests broke out in various parts of Karnataka.
Source: Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/they-didnt-come-as-humans-karnataka-play-insults-hijabi-women-2294580/
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Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Distributes Leaflets In Afghanistan Seeking ‘Jihad’ Donations
22 March, 2022
Kabul [Afghanistan], March 22 (ANI): Amidst a sharp
rise in terror incidents in Pakistan following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul
in August last year, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has been reportedly
circulating leaflets in Afghanistan seeking donations to support their “Jihad”
across the Durand Line.
Leaflets were found circulating on social media,
asking people in Afghanistan’s Khost province to donate to support their jihad
in Pakistan.
“We’re doing what our brothers (referring to
Afghanistan Taliban) used to do (collect donations) in Pakistan”, one TTP
personnel from Pakistan’s Waziristan was reported as saying by local vernacular
media.
TTP, a conglomerate of ethnic Pashtun Islamist militant
groups, operates from Pakistan’s north-western tribal area of North Waziristan
and has been fighting the Pakistani state in various forms since 2007.
“Despite massive military operations against the TTP
by the Pakistan military and US ‘droning’, this global jihadi organization of
anti-Pak orientation has survived. It has intensified offensive against the
government forces across the border ringing the first alarm bells that terror
outfits are leveraging the Taliban’s takeover in Afghanistan to launch cross-border
attacks,” said the International Forum for Rights and Security (IFFRAS), a
Canada based think tank.
The development comes at a time when terror incidents
in Pakistan are on a rise, with terror incidents in the country increasing by a
whopping 56 per cent in the year 2021, with the majority of the terror attacks
taking place in the later months, after the Taliban takeover of Kabul in
August.
At least 388 people died and another 600 were wounded
in terrorist attacks in the country in 2021, according to Islamabad-based think
tank Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies.
The recent links established between the TTP and the
Afghan Taliban pose another security challenge for Pakistan as low-level Afghan
Taliban cadres are said to maintain their links with the TTP, a fact recognized
by the senior Afghan Taliban leadership, an IFFRAS report said.
Afghan Taliban is infuriated by a fence Islamabad is
erecting along their 2,700-kilometre (1,600-mile) border, known as the Durand
Line. Taliban doesn’t recognise the Durand Line as the border between Pakistan
and Afghanistan.
Another headache for Pakistan’s security establishment
is the thriving weapons markets along the Afghan-Pakistan border and
terrorist/insurgent groups buying the weapons left behind by the US and its
allies.
As a result of these factors, Pakistan is sitting on a
tinderbox, the report said, adding that instability in Afghanistan is one
factor that will constantly impact Pakistan. (ANI)
Source: The Print
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original story:
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Egypt, UAE, Israel Hold Summit Talks in Red Sea Resort
Egyptian President Abdel
Fattah al-Sisi meets with Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed
al-Nahyan and Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the Red Sea resort of
Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt on March 22, 2022 Reuters
-----
22 March, 2022
Leaders of Egypt, Israel and the United Arab Emirates
met in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Tuesday for talks Egypt said
covered energy markets and food security.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hosted the
meeting with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed and Israel’s
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett - their first three-way summit since the UAE
normalized relations with Israel.
Egypt’s presidency said they discussed the stability
of energy markets and food security, as well as international and regional
issues, without elaborating.
“The leaders discussed the ties between the three
countries in the context of recent developments in the world and the region,
and the ways to strengthen them on all levels,” a statement from Bennett's
office said.
Source: Al Arabiya
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original story:
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Mullah Hebtullah Akhundzada Discusses Reshuffle in
Afghanistan Interim Cabinet Get Recognition
Mullah Hebtullah
Akhundzada
-----
23 Mar 2022
A 15-member team led by the supreme leader of the
Taliban Mullah Hebtullah Akhundzada is busy discussing in Kandahar province to
reshuffle their interim cabinet so that they get recognized, a source told BBC
Pashto.
This is the first meeting headed by the supreme Mullah
Hebtullah Akhundzada since the Taliban took over.
The source on the condition of anonymity told BBC that
the 15-member team includes ministers of the interim government and other
high-ranking officials of the IEA.
The Prime Minister Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund,
Deputy PM Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid,
Interior Minister Sarajudin Haqqani, Minister of Education, Minister of Health,
Minister Finance, Trade Minister, Mines and Petroleum Minister, Chief Attorney,
and several other high-ranking officials of the IEA have been meeting in
Kandahar.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has not officially
commented on the meeting yet.
The meeting comes as the Taliban’s government has not
yet been recognized by any country and inclusivity of government and respect
for women’s and human rights are the biggest preconditions for recognition by
the World Community.
On Tuesday, March 22, 2022, former Afghan president
Ashraf Ghani said that the Taliban need internal legitimization for regional
and global recognition.
Source: Khaama Press
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original story:
https://www.khaama.com/taliban-to-reshuffle-cabinet-to-get-recognized-meetings-ongoing-58756/
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Rohingya Muslims Hail US Recognition of Genocide in Myanmar
FILE - Rohingya refugees,
who crossed the border from Myanmar two days before, walk after they received
permission from the Bangladeshi army to continue on to the refugee camps, in
Palang Khali, near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, Oct. 19, 2017.
------
March 22, 2022
Forced to flee ethnic and religious persecution in
their own country, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are welcoming the formal
recognition by the United States that Myanmar's military regime committed
genocide against the Muslim minority.
"We are very happy on the declaration of the
genocide; many, many thanks," Sala Uddin, a 60-year-old refugee at a camp
in Bangladesh, told The Associated Press.
"It has been 60 years, starting from 1962, that
the Myanmar government has been torturing us and many other communities
including Rohingya," he said. "I think a path to take action by the
international community against Myanmar has opened up because of the
declaration."
"Rohingya nation will always remember the
declaration by the U.S. on Rohingya genocide," Abdul Gafur, another
refugee, told VOA's Bangla Service. "Meetings and gatherings are
prohibited at the camps because of the pandemic. That is why Rohingyas are not
able to observe any program to express their gratitude to the U.S."
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday announced
Washington's decision to recognize atrocities against Rohingya Muslims at the
hands of the military regime in Myanmar, a country also known as Burma.
Monday's formal declaration of genocide — only the eighth ever such statement
by the U.S. government — followed years of investigation and review.
"The United States has concluded ... that members
of the Burmese military committed genocide and crimes against humanity against
Rohingya," Blinken said during a speech at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial
Museum in Washington, whose Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide
provided key sources that informed the legal analysis leading to the State
Department's decision.
Min Aung Hlaing, who was the head of the military in
2016 and 2017 and who has led the government since the February 2021 coup, was
named in Blinken's speech. Monday's declaration said armed forces under Min
Aung Hlaing's direct command were responsible for killing more than 9,000
Rohingya and forcing 840,000 others to flee to neighboring Bangladesh over the
two-year period.
The commander of Myanmar's armed forces has been under
U.S. sanctions for his role in the atrocities since December 2019.
Myanmar's Foreign Affairs Ministry on Tuesday issued a
statement saying that "Myanmar has never engaged in any genocidal
actions" and holds no "genocidal intent" for any group. It
called Blinken's comments "politically motivated and tantamount to
interfering in the internal affairs of a sovereign state."
Various human rights groups have also documented and
reported on what they have called systematic and widespread killings, rape and
displacement of Rohingya minority in Myanmar, a majority of whom are displaced
in neighboring Bangladesh. Muslims make up about 4.3% of Myanmar's population
of 54 million.
"In 2016 and 2017, Burma's military unleashed a
wave of horrific violence in northern Rakhine state against predominantly
Muslim Rohingya that, at the time, the United States concluded constituted
ethnic cleansing," Ned Price, State Department spokesperson, said Monday.
Accountability
Human rights activists expect the U.S. move to bolster
an ongoing effort to hold perpetrators of genocide and other serious crimes
accountable and deliver justice and support for the victims. But others are
taking a wait-and-see approach.
"Just by saying that genocide had been committed
in Myanmar against the Rohingya is not good enough," said Imtiaz Ahmed,
director of the Centre for Genocide Studies at the University of Dhaka in Bangladesh.
"I think we need to see what would follow from that statement."
Khairul Islam, a Rohingya refugee in Bangladesh, told
VOA that "Myanmar should face trial for genocide. There should be economic
sanctions to control Myanmar. Otherwise, Myanmar will not listen to anyone.
They never did in the past."
The U.S. has imposed sanctions on elements of the
Myanmar military and has allocated nearly $1 million in support of
investigations and documentation of the most egregious crimes committed in
Myanmar.
"The United States is committed to pursuing truth
and justice for victims and accountability for those responsible for these
atrocities and for other human rights violations and abuses across Burma,"
Price said.
Last month, the Netherlands-based International Court
of Justice resumed its proceedings in a lawsuit accusing Myanmar's military of
ethnic cleansing and genocide.
Gambia, backed by the Organization of Islamic
Cooperation, filed the lawsuit in 2019.
In December 2019, Myanmar's previous civilian leader,
the Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, defended the military's actions in Rakhine
state as a response to "militancy."
Suu Kyi, who was Myanmar's de facto leader at the time
of the 2017 massacres, was arrested in the February 2021 coup. She is not named
in the decree.
Source: VOA News
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.voanews.com/a/rohingya-muslims-hail-us-recognition-of-genocide-in-myanmar/6496541.html
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India
The Kashmir Files: Yati’s Aide Swami Jitendranand Fuels Hatred to Create a Rift between Two Communities
23rd March 2022
New Delhi: Swami Jitendranand, aide of Haridwar hate speech accused Yati Narsinghanand has delivered an anti-Muslim speech in a theatre after the screening of the movie, ‘The Kashmir Files’.
In the video, he can be seen quoting the scenes of the movie to create a rift between two communities.
Levelling allegations against Muslim youths, he said, “some Salman will become Suresh, some Rahman will become Ramesh, and then they trap our women in love jihad”.
Showing the trishul, he can be heard saying, “What has Lord Shiva taught us? He didn’t teach us only to eat bhaang. He taught us that in order to defend ourselves, we should pick up…”.
Slogans at theatres
Ever since the release of the movie, many videos of people raising slogans went viral on social meida. In one of the videos, crowd can be heard raising slogans such as ‘Jai Shri Ram’, ‘Modi Modi’ etc.
In Bijnor, people were seen raising hate slogans after watching the movie. ‘Bharatiya Janata Party Zindabad’ slogans were also raised.
In yet another video, a man can be heard saying, “if every Hindu man under the age of 25 years marries a Muslim girl, then in three generations, their (Muslims) population will be reduced to half”.
Is ‘The Kashmir Files’ far from truth?
Breaking his silence over the movie, former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah has recently said that Farooq Abdullah was not the chief minister of the state when Kashmiri Pandit migration took place.
Source: Siasat Daily
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'The Kashmir Files' Is Work of Fiction, Muslims Suffered More Than Pandits In 1990s: Jammu And Kashmir People's Conference
23rd March 2022
ANANTNAG: Calling 'The Kashmir Files' a work of fiction, Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference chairman Sajjad Lone on Tuesday said that the maker of the film will drown the country in hatred while also stating that Kashmiri Muslims have suffered 50 times more than Pandits.
"There is no doubt about injustice to the Kashmiri Pandits. Kashmiri Muslims have suffered 50 times more than Pandits. You cannot document the pain of just one community. We are all in it together. I have lost my own father to bullets," Lone, a former minister in Jammu and Kashmir, said.
He further said that Kashmiri Muslims in the 1990s were as helpless as Pandits. "Everyone has suffered here, although they (the filmmakers) have exaggerated... But the main objective of Vivek Agnihotri (director of the film) is not to show the pain of Pandits but to only sow seeds of hatred between different communities. He doesn't know that Pandits are living with us even today. Has he thought about them? They are our brothers and we love them but in the 1990s we were as helpless as the Kashmiri Pandits," he added.
"I appeal to Prime Minister to make him (Vivek Aghintori) Rajya Sabha MP. Otherwise, I don't know what else he will make. There is a new trend now that people like Vivek Aghintori and Anupam Kher are desperate to go to Rajya Sabha. They should be sent to Rajya Sabha, otherwise, they will drown this country in hatred," Lone said while speaking to media persons here.
The film, which focuses on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley in the 1990s, has been mired in controversy since its release on March 11 with the BJP and Opposition parties sparring over the portrayal of the incidents.
Source: New Indian Express
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Targeted killings will remain a challenge till terrorists are present in Valley: J&K DGP
Mar 23, 2022
JAMMU: Jammu and Kashmir DGP Dilbag Singh on Tuesday said that targeted killings would continue to remain a challenge for security agencies till the time there were guns and terrorists in Kashmir Valley.
He, however, claimed that J&K Police had been quick to solve cases of targeted killings and action was being taken as per law.
Speaking on the sidelines of flagging off motorcycles for patrolling the bordering regions in Samba, Kathua and Jammu, DGP Dilbag Singh said, “This (targeted killings) will continue to remain a challenge for security agencies till there is presence of guns and terrorists in the Valley. Terrorists and their mentors are present everywhere. Such incidents (grenade attacks and targeted killings) take place due to their activities.”
Replying to a question about infiltration, the DGP said the border grid was alert to foil any such activity. “Any such attempt from across the border will not be allowed.”
Source: Times Of India
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Jammu and Kashmir: 3 held for involvement in March 19 grenade attack
Mar 22, 2022
SHOPIAN: Jammu and Kashmir police on Tuesday arrested three accused who were allegedly involved in a grenade attack that occurred on March 19 and recovered incriminating materials including arms and ammunition from their possession, said Jammu and Kashmir police.
During the investigation, Shopian police based on reliable sources picked up one suspect identified as Fazil-bin-Rashid, son of Abdul Rashid Alai, a resident of Melhura, read a press release.
During questioning, he disclosed that he was working with one active terrorist named Basit Ahmed linked with proscribed terror outfit LeT(TRF) of Frisal Kulgam and on his instructions, he threw a grenade on March 19, 2022, at Babapora camp (D-Coy of CRPF 178 Bn), in which one CRPF Jawan namely Amit Kumar got injured.
He further disclosed that he lobbed the grenade as a task given by the said terrorist in order to join terrorist ranks, as per the press release.
During further questioning, he disclosed the name of another accused person identified as Qaiser Zahoor Khan son of Zahoor Ahmed Khan of Nowpora Safakadal, Srinagar. On the disclosure of the name of accused Qaiser Zahoor Khan, incriminating materials, arms and ammunition including three Chinese pistols, six magazines, four grenades and 30 rounds have been recovered.
Source: Times Of India
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UP: Mob lynches two Muslim brothers in Noorpur, one dead
22nd March 2022
A Muslim man in Uttar Pradesh’s Noorpur village was lynched to death during an altercation with the villagers who attacked him and his brother in the Kaushambi district of the state on Monday.
The two Muslim men, Zafar and his younger brother Noor were brutally beaten up by the group of villagers during a scuffle.
According to a statement by the Superintendent of Police Kaushambi, the cops received a call on Monday morning that a fight broke out between some people and a few have been injured following which the police rushed to the spot and found the wounded victims.
As they two were rushed to the hospital, Zafar was declared dead on arrival however Noor is undergoing treatment at the hospital.
“When we investigated we got to know that two boys came to the area on a motorbike and fired gunshots into the air following which the altercation took place,” said Kaushambi, Superintendent of Police.
The police claimed that the duo belonged to the Asrauli village of the state who were frequent visitors of Noorpur and had threatened the villagers on various occasions.
While speaking to Siasat.com a police official stated that one of the two brothers was involved in a love affair in the village, explaining the frequent visits.
“The two brothers had gone to the village in connection with some love affair and when the villagers ran after them, they responded with gunshots. The villagers beat them up and one brother died,” said the police official, while ruling out the possibility of a communal angle in the incident.
Source: Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/up-mob-lynches-two-muslim-brothers-in-noorpur-one-dead-2294798/
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Pakistan
Pakistan Day: Armed forces show off military might as OIC officials watch
March 23, 2022
As the country celebrates Pakistan Day on Wednesday,
the armed forces displayed their might in the annual military parade in
Islamabad while dignitaries participating in the 48th Session of the Council of
Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) watched as
guests of honour.
Pakistan Day commemorates the passing of the Lahore
Resolution on March 23, 1940, when the All-India Muslim League demanded a
separate nation for the Muslims of the British Indian Empire.
According to Radio Pakistan, the day started off with
a 31-gun salute in the federal capital and a 21-gun salute in the provincial
capitals.
A change of guards ceremony was also was held at the
mausoleums of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Allama Iqbal in Karachi and
Lahore, respectively.
The report added that special prayers were offered in
mosques after Fajr prayer for Pakistan's progress and prosperity.
The main feature of the day was the grand military
parade in Islamabad in which the three contingents of the armed forces and
other security forces conducted a march while fighter planes presented
aerobatic manoeuvres.
Troops from other countries, including Azerbaijan,
Uzbekistan, Turkey, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, also participated in
the parade.
Prime Minister Imran Khan, President Arif Alvi, the
three services chiefs, federal ministers as well as officials and foreign
ministers of 57 Muslim countries that are members of the OIC were present for
the displays.
After the PAF fighters' mesmerising show, Pakistan
Army, PAF and Navy parachuters demonstrated their skills with free-falls from
10,000 feet. Major General Adil Rehmani, General Officer Commanding (GOC) of
the Special Service Group (SSG) – an elite unit of commandos from the army –
then presented the flag of Pakistan to President Alvi, after which the
parachuters were given a gun salute.
After the demonstration, floats, representing each
province, took a round of the venue. This year, for the first time ever, a
presentation was given by Jammu and Kashmir too. The region's float featured a
miniature structure of the famous Dargah Hazratbal located in Srinagar. It also
carried banners of freedom fighters who were martyred in Indian occupied
Kashmir.
In his address on the occasion, President Alvi said
Pakistan was a responsible atomic power that wanted peace with all other
nations and respected their sovereignty.
He made it clear that Pakistan would never compromise
on its security and sovereignty and would give a forceful response to any
aggression directed towards it. "I believe our nation won't hesitate from
any sacrifice for the country's security," Alvi added.
The president highlighted extremism and the spread of
fake news as among the biggest challenges facing society and called on
scholars, parents and teachers to play their part in tackling these societal
problems.
Multiple organisations and departments have planned a
number of activities including seminars, conferences and discussion programmes
to highlight the historical significance of Pakistan Day.
'Hard work, honesty and morality'
In his message to the nation, Prime Minister Imran
Khan stressed that the country came into being after a long democratic struggle
and the key to its development lay in "hard work, honesty and
morality".
Source: Dawn
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Many Muslim Leaders Lack Courage, But PM Imran Has
Plenty: Federal Minister
Syed Irfan Raza
March 23, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning and
Development Asad Umar suggested on Tuesday that many leaders of the Muslim
world did not have the moral courage to fight for the rights of Muslims, but
Prime Minister Imran Khan was different.
He said that being a truthful, faithful, brave and
confident leader, Mr Khan pleaded the Muslims’ case on Islamophobia at the
international level very effectively, which compelled the UN to declare March
15 as the International Day Against Islamophobia.
Mr Umar was talking to journalists after inaugurating
a camp of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) members here in Sector
I-10. The PTI camp Mr Umar inaugurated has been established in connection with
the party’s public meeting at the Parade Ground scheduled for March 27.
Criticising leaders of the opposition parties, the
minister said they were unable to plead the Muslims’ case at the international
level because their billions of rupees were stashed abroad. He said the
submission of a no-confidence motion against the prime minister would serve to
define the future of politics in the country.
Mr Umar claimed that a dissident PTI member, Ahmed
Hussain Dehar, had announced that he was returning to the ruling party.
However, Mr Dehar said in a television programme that he was not going back to
the party.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1681359/many-muslim-leaders-lack-courage-but-pm-imran-has-plenty-asad-umar
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Opposition parties doing jihad, says Owais Leghari
By Azam Butt
March 23, 2022
UJRANWALA: Punjab PMLN General Secretary Owais Khan
Leghari has said the PMLN and other opposition parties are doing jihad because
the current rulers have become a poison for the country’s economy and survival.
Addressing a press conference at the residence of
former federal minister Khurram Dastgir Khan on Tuesday, he said the PMLN long
march from Lahore to Islamabad will take its first stay at Gujranwala, second
at Jhelum and on March 26 will reach Rawalpindi. He said: “We do not want any
clash, but Imran Khan has started bringing workers to the streets and ministers
are abusing the opposition leaders. I want to tell them that every worker of
the PMLN is active and Imran Khan cannot compete with us.” He said PTI leaders
are busy with propaganda that the PTI dissidents will return in two days. He
said he personally knows four MNAs who are standing against Imran Khan. They
did not take a single penny from any one for this purpose. “Seeing a positive
response from the citizens, we are sure that people will give their full
support to us to defeat the selected PM,” he said.
In response to a question regarding holding a public
meeting in Islamabad, Leghari said a decision will be taken in this regard
soon.
Earlier, to finalize arrangements for the long march,
a PMLN meeting was held at the residence of Dastgir Khan, which was chaired by
Leghari, while Additional General Secretary Zeeshan Rafique, former MNA
Mudassir Qayyum Nahra, MPA Iqbal Gujjar, PMLN District President and MPA Qaiser
Iqbal Sandhu, MPA and PMLN Divisional General Secretary Taufiq Ahmed Butt, MPA
Abdul Rauf Mughal, MPA Nawaz Chauhan, MPA Waqar Ahmed Cheema, MPA Amanullah
Warraich, MPA Bilal Farooq Tarar, MPA Adil Bakhsh Chatha, MPA Talat Shaukat
Manzoor Cheema, MPA Akhtar Ali Khan, MPA Irfan Bashir Gujjar, President Chamber
of Commerce Shoaib Butt, PMLN District General Secretary Shoaib Altaf Cheema
and others participated. They discussed arrangements to welcome Maryam Nawaz
and Hamza Shahbaz in Gujranwala.
Source: The News
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https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/943875-opposition-parties-doing-jihad-says-owais-leghari
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Ulema say seminaries fortresses of Islam
March 23, 2022
HANGU: An impressive ceremony was held in connection
with the annual dastarbandi at Madrassa Al-Sherwai here on Tuesday.
Maulana Muhammad Idrees and Mufti Ubaidullah were the
chief guests on the occasion. The guests and other Ulema placed dastars or
turbans on the heads of 10 hufaz, who had learnt the Holy Quran by heart.
Speaking on the occasion, Maulana Muhammad Idrees and
other Ulema said that seminaries were the fortresses of Islam, which were also
playing a vital in spreading the religious education and the religion.
Source: The News
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Ashrafi hails PM’s speech for addressing Muslim Ummah
issues through talks
MARCH 23, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister and
Chairman Pakistan Ulema Council, Maulana Tahir Ashrafi on Tuesday hailed the
speech of Prime Minister Imran Khan at the OIC Conference for addressing Muslim
Ummah’s issues through talks.
Talking to PTV, he said the PM had stressed the need
for resolving the issues of Muslim countries in a peaceful manner.
Appreciating the role of security agencies during the
OIC Conference, he said the credit goes to Pakistan Armed forces, Rangers,
Police, and Law Enforcement Agencies for maintaining peace and security in the
federal capital.
He said organizing OIC Conference in Islamabad has
given a clear message to the world that all the Muslim nations had a great
desire in resolving the issues of Kashmir and Palestine through talks.
Source: Daily Times
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OIC and China should together find solution to Ukraine
conflict: Pakistan PM
Mar 23, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan PM Imran Khan on Tuesday warned
that the world was heading in the “wrong” direction characterised by a ‘Cold
War’ and the politics of rival blocs, as he suggested that the Muslim countries
and China should partner up to find a solution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Delivering the keynote address at the inaugural session
of the 48th Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) at the parliament, Khan also talked about his concept of
Muslim welfare state, Islamophobia and the global political affairs.
“The world is going to a Cold War and may be divided
into blocs…The world is moving towards a direction which is worrisome for all
of us,” Khan told the conference which is being attended by more than 600
delegates, including Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi as a special guest. Khan
suggested that the OIC foreign ministers should discuss how the body could
“mediate, try to bring about a ceasefire and an end to the conflict” in
Ukraine.
If the war continued, it would have “great
consequences for the world”, he cautioned. Khan said that he would talk about
it with Chinese foreign minister Wang about how the OIC, along with China, “can
influence the events in Ukraine and stop this and have some ceasefire and
resolve this conflict”. Khan also talked at length about the threat of
Islamophobia which had kept increasing after 9/11 because the Muslims countries
did nothing to combat the narrative of “Muslim terrorism” pedaled by the west.
Source: Times Of India
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Ukraine war revealed global hypocrisy, FM Çavuşoğlu
tells OIC
MAR 22, 2022
The war in Ukraine has revealed the international
community's double standards, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said Tuesday.
While addressing the 48th session of the Organisation
of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Foreign Ministers' Conference in the Pakistani
capital Islamabad, Çavuşoğlu said: "We heard those saying 'This is not the
Middle East, this is not Afghanistan. Why is blood spilled?' For us, the blood
spilled in Kharkiv and the blood spilled in Aleppo are equal."
The top diplomat also reiterated the need to adopt a
common stance against the challenges that the Muslim world faces.
"The theme of our meeting is 'Partnership for
Unity, Justice and Development.' This theme should not be just a slogan, it
should be filled with concrete steps. Because we only succeed when we are
united," he said.
Çavuşoğlu also called on the Muslim world to question
itself. "The 14 centuries-old culture, art, civilization, science and
wisdom of Islam are waiting to be rediscovered. The classical centers of our
civilizations, such as Jerusalem, Damascus, Aleppo and Kabul were destroyed.
They lost their identity. The names of many Islamic countries became associated
with war, terror, suffering and massacres," he said.
Underlining that Muslim Turks, who have been in
Western Thrace for seven centuries and in Cyprus for five, are deprived of
their basic rights in the 21st century, Çavuşoğlu said: "The fundamental
rights of our brothers and sisters in Kashmir are being violated. Islamophobia
is on the rise in Europe. In China, Uyghur Turks and other Muslims face
difficulties in protecting their religious rights and cultural identities. The
headscarf right is denied in India, one of the countries hosting the highest
number of Muslims. The Rohingya no longer even attract the attention of the
world. Brotherly blood continues to flow in Libya, Syria and Yemen."
Stating that one should not blame others for the situation
in the Islamic world, Çavuşoğlu said: “It is easiest to blame others. So what
does that change? What can we change by blaming others? We must first call
ourselves to account ... We say let's use our good relations to improve the
situation of Muslim societies. As the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, we
know that we all exist for our common cause. Its duty is to be the common voice
of the Islamic world in these cases."
On the sidelines of the meeting, Çavuşoğlu also held
face-to-face meetings to discuss bilateral ties and regional issues with top
diplomats of various countries including Turkmenistan, Thailand, Guinea and the
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).
Call from Pakistan
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan also called upon
the OIC and China to "step in" and "mediate" between Russia
and Ukraine to stop the ongoing war.
"We are all worried about what's going on there.
May I suggest that during their discussions, the foreign ministers, we should
think about how we can mediate? How we can bring about a cease-fire, and put an
end to the conflict," Khan said.
"I'm going to meet His Excellency Wang Yi
(Chinese Foreign Minister) after this (summit) and I want to discuss how they
(OIC) along with China can all step in and try to stop this (war)," Khan
went on to say.
"This conflict, which is going to have – if it
keeps going the way it is – it will have great consequences for the rest of the
world ... We are already suffering. Oil prices have gone up. Gas prices have
shot up, wheat prices have gone up because of this war," he said. He
further warned that if the war continues "this is only going to get
worse."
"So, therefore ... all the countries which are
non-partisan ... we are in a special position to be able to influence this
conflict," he added.
Voicing concern over the growing phenomenon of
Islamophobia and attacks on Muslims, the premier lamented that the Muslim world
has failed to counter this "wrong narrative."
"Where did this Islamophobia grow and was allowed
to keep growing after 9/11? What happened after 9/11? Unfortunately, this
narrative of Islamic terrorism, Islamic radicalization, radicalism. This
narrative went on unchecked," he said.
"I'm sorry to say that we the Muslim countries
did not do anything to check this wrong narrative. How can any religion have
anything to do with terrorism? How was Islam equated to terrorism?" he
said.
"Unfortunately, what should have been done – and
wasn't – was (that) the heads of Muslim countries should have taken a stand on
this. But instead, a lot of heads of state kept saying things like 'well, we
are moderate,'" he went on to say.
"And guess who suffered? Muslims living in
Western countries. They kept suffering because any incident would happen. Any
terrorist incident by a Muslim immediately meant that every Muslim became
branded," he said.
Source: Daily Sabah
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Pakistan asks Iran to open another trade gate at
border
Saleem Shahid
March 23, 2022
QUETTA: Pakistan has asked Iran to open a gate at Gar
— a border point in Makran division — for barter trade and supply of edible
items and LPG cylinders.
Various other issues were discussed at a meeting with
the Iranian border authorities in Panjgur on Monday. The Pakistani delegation
was led by the deputy commissioner of Panjgur, while the Iranian side was
headed by Marzaban Grade-I at the meeting, which was attended by senior
security officers from both sides.
Official sources said Pakistan suggested to the
Iranian authorities to open the gate at Gar border, along with border posts
169-170 and 171.
The issuance of Rahdari to the people who have
relatives on both sides of the border also came under discussion. The
permission for supply of edible items and LPG cylinders through the Gar gate
was a part of the agenda.
“We also discussed permission for import of spare
parts of Iranian vehicles plying in Makran and Rakhshan divisions,” the Panjgur
deputy commissioner said.
Most of these vehicles are being used for
transportation of petrol and diesel from Iran and their supply to other areas
of Balochistan.
Source: Dawn
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Delhi’s irresponsible attitude could lead to nuclear
escalation: speakers
March 23, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Voicing concern about India’s missile
incident, experts on Tuesday said New Delhi’s irresponsible attitude could lead
to nuclear escalation in the already fraught security environment in South
Asia.
Speaking at a seminar at the Centre for International
Strategic Studies (CISS) Islamabad, nuclear expert Dr Naeem Salik contended
that the March 9 incident of an Indian missile landing in Mian Channu had
highlighted the dangers of nuclear escalation.
He said India’s explanation that the missile was
accidentally launched during routine maintenance was a “fabricated story” and
urged the international community to look deeper into the incident.
Dr Salik said the incident had exposed the credibility
of the BrahMos missile.
CISS Executive Director Ali Sarwar Naqvi noted that
stability and peace in South Asia remained a core strategic interest of
Pakistan.
Balochistan Think Tank Network (BTTN) Executive
Director Dr Zafar Khan said it was unprecedented that a nuclear state had fired
a nuclear-capable missile on to the territory of another nuclear weapon state,
claiming that it was an accident. Only Pakistan’s pragmatism has saved the
region from a disaster, he added.
Dr Asma Shakir Khawaja, an academic, argued that the
incident reflected a profound level of incompetence in handling of sensitive
weapons among Indian forces.
This incapacity to handle advanced weapon systems,
along with multiple cases of nuclear theft in India, constitute irresponsible
behaviour that endangered regional as well as global security, Dr Khawaja said.
She questioned India’s commitment towards existing confidence-building
measures with Pakistan, as it chose not to timely share details of the
accidental launch.
“This could have led to escalation of the crisis to a
nuclear level,” she added.
Other speakers emphasised that the missile incident
spoke of India’s irresponsible nuclear behaviour.
While some countries continue to praise India’s
nuclear programme and its command and control system, the incident has busted
this myth, they added.
Source: Dawn
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Arab
World
Saudi Arabia urges OIC states to help curb Houthi
aggression
March 22, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister on Tuesday
condemned the aggression of the Houthis in Yemen and urged Muslim nations to
apply more pressure on the Iran-backed militia.
“In line with international resolutions, Saudi Arabia
calls for measures to neutralize the Houthi group and to stop the importing of
arms into Yemen,” Prince Faisal bin Farhan told the Council of Foreign
Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
“We reiterate the importance of the role of brothers
to apply more pressure on the Houthis so that they can be stopped from
jeopardizing the security of the Kingdom.”
More than 600 delegates from 56 OIC member states and
observer countries are taking part in the two-day meeting in Islamabad.
In his opening remarks, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran
Khan said the OIC could play a mediation role in the Ukraine war.
“We, like everyone else in the world, are all worried
about what’s happening there,” Khan said. “May I suggest that the OIC, during
its discussions, the foreign ministers, we should think how we represent 1.5
billion people, how we can mediate, how we can bring about a ceasefire, how can
we bring about an end to the conflict.”
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2048101/saudi-arabia
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Foreign children risk languishing in Syria for
decades: Charity
23 March ,2022
Children held in Syrian camps for relatives of
suspected extremist fighters may remain stuck there for another 30 years,
unless the pace of repatriations accelerates, Save the Children said Wednesday.
“It will take 30 years before foreign children stuck
in unsafe camps in North East Syria can return home if repatriations continue
at the current rate,” it said in a statement.
The charity’s call to quicken repatriations coincides
with the third anniversary of the final demise of ISIS’ self-proclaimed
caliphate.
The massive US-backed Kurdish military operation
landed tens of thousands of the extremist proto-state’s residents in detention
camps, including many foreigners.
Save The Children said that 18,000 Iraqi children and 7,300
minors from 60 other countries are stuck in the Kurdish-run al-Hol and Roj
camps, in northeastern Syria.
“The longer children are left to fester in Al-Hol and
Roj, the more dangers they face,” said the charity’s Syria response director,
Sonia Khush.
United Nations data shows that around 56,000 people
live in al-Hol, an overcrowded camp plagued by murders and escape attempts.
In 2021, 74 children died there, including eight who
were murdered, according to Save the Children.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Saudi Arabia welcomes ‘positive points’ in Lebanese PM
statement
22 March ,2022
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday it
welcomed the “positive points” in a statement by Lebanon’s prime minister.
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati stressed in a
statement on Monday the need to stop all Lebanon-originated activities that
affect the security and stability of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab
countries.
He added the Lebanese government is committed to
strengthen cooperation with Saudi Arabia, following a phone call with Kuwait’s
foreign minister, Sheikh Ahmad Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah.
The Saudi ministry said it welcomed Mikati’s
statement, adding it hoped that it will “contribute to the restoration of
Lebanon’s role and status on the Arab and international levels.”
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries expelled
Lebanese envoys last year in a diplomatic spat that has deepened Lebanon’s
economic crisis, following critical comments by Lebanon’s Information Minister
George Kordahi on the war in Yemen in late October.
Riyadh says the crisis with Lebanon had its origins in
a Lebanese political setup that reinforces the dominance of the Iran-backed
Hezbollah armed group and continues to allow endemic instability.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Itikaf to resume at Holy Mosques after a two-year
hiatus
March 23, 2022
MAKKAH — The ritual itikaf will resume at the Grand
Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah during the upcoming holy
month of Ramadan after a hiatus of two years. This was announced by Dr. Abdul
Rahman Al-Sudais, head of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two
Holy Mosques.
Al-Sudais said the presidency will start issuing
permits through its official website soon, and that will be in line with the
specific conditions and set criteria.
Itikaf, the ritual of staying in a mosque solely for
the purpose of worship and meditation, was suspended at the Two Holy Mosques
during Ramadan in 2020 following the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. The
suspension of itikaf continued during the Ramadan of 2021 as a precautionary
measure to stem the spread of coronavirus.
As many as 100,000 worshipers used to perform itikaf
in the two mosques during the last 10 days of Ramadan.
In 2019, the presidency had allotted rooftops of the
mosques for itikaf with separate shelves and safes. Each worshipper is given
their own locker with key for keep their belongings, which include a prayer
rug, pillow, light bed sheet and ihram clothes.
Source: Saudi Gazette
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Haram Presidency distributes bracelets among children
at Grand Mosque
March 22, 2022
MAKKAH - The General Presidency for the Affairs of the
Two Holy Mosques announced on Tuesday that it launched an initiative to distribute
bracelets among children who are accompanying their parents to perform Umrah in
order to avoid the prospect of getting lost in crowds at the Grand Mosque.
The presidency’s initiative comes in the wake of an
expected huge flow of Umrah pilgrims from within the Kingdom and abroad during
the upcoming holy month of Ramadan, the peak annual Umrah season.
The Presidency was represented by the Young Visitor
Service Department in implementing the initiative titled “Your Child is Safe
with Us” as part of the presidency’s social responsibility program.
The department staff will be deployed in the entire
premises of the Grand Mosque to distribute bracelets.
“This is out of the presidency’s utmost keenness on
the provision of the finest and best services for the pilgrims with the new
service for children to take care of their safety and comfort,” said Eng. Amjad
Al-Hazmi, deputy head of the presidency for social and voluntary services.
Source: Saudi Gazette
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South
Asia
All schools reopen in Afghanistan but for teenage
girls: MoE
23 Mar 2022
Hamal 3rd (March 23rd) marks the beginning of the new
educational year and the reopening of schools across Afghanistan but secondary
and high schools for girls were announced to be suspended until second notice.
The announcement was given by the Ministry of
Education of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan right on the very morning of
the resumption of schools.
The announcement is not yet seen by the media but the
ministry was quoted by Bakhtar News Agency (Government News Agency).
“All those schools that teach girls’ classes upper
than grade six are hereby informed that secondary and high schools are
suspended until second notice. The schools will reopen after the leadership of
the IEA make a decision over the uniform of female students. The uniform will
be in accordance with Sharia law and Afghan tradition.” Reads the piece of the
announcement made public by BNA.
Earlier, the Ministry of Education had said that all
schools both for boys and girls will reopen on Hamal 3rd asking the female
students and teachers to observe the hijab.
Source: Khaama Press
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Several embassies handed over to IEA, Taliban closer
to full recognition: Foreign Ministry
23 Mar 2022
Foreign Ministry of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
said that several embassies of Afghanistan have officially been submitted to
them and obey the rules and principles of the new Afghan government
The Ministry said that this type of diplomatic
relations is called quiet recognition and can be taken back anytime.
After Islamabad and Tehran, the interim government of
the IEA now controls activities of the Afghan embassies in the Turkish capital
Ankara and Turkmen capital Ashgabat.
Meanwhile, 15 countries along with the EU have their
embassies and diplomatic offices open in Kabul and their diplomats and representatives
conduct official and unofficial meetings with de facto authorities.
Deputy spokesperson of Foreign Ministry of the Islamic
Emirate of Afghanistan Zia Ahmad Takal said there are many embassies open in
Kabul and several Afghan embassies have been directed by the Ministry.
Source: Khaama Press
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IEA’s FM Amir Khan Muttaqi meets UN special envoy to
Afghanistan
22 Mar 2022
Foreign Ministry of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
in a press release said that acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met with
UN Secretary-General’s special representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA
Deborah Lyons on Tuesday, March 22, 2022.
The statement reads that both discussed human rights,
humanitarian assistance, development projects, the banking sector, economic
growth, and other relevant issues.
In the meeting, Deborah Lyons said that she presented
a positive report of Afghanistan in the UNSC’s latest meeting which is an achievement
for the interim government of the IEA.
Acting FM Amir Khan Muttaqi expressed hope that the
renewal of UNAMA’s mandate will not only be concentrated on the humanitarian
situation but will also help in the political sphere and will help Afghanistan
gain recognition. He added the extension of the mandate will be a positive step
in lifting sanctions on individuals and the economy of Afghanistan.
“Absence of Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to
the UN has led to violation of rights of the Afghan people both inside and out
of Afghanistan.” Said Muttaqi.
Source: Khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/ieas-fm-amir-khan-muttaqi-meets-un-special-envoy-to-afghanistan-57657657/
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Taliban threaten revenge killings of former govt
officials; warn residents of mass arrests
March 23, 2022
In response to the recent killings of Taliban
commanders, the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan's Helmand province have
threatened to kill activists and former government officials, Human Rights
Watch (HRW) said on Tuesday. The Taliban in Helmand have heightened
surveillance and said that they would take retaliatory action in response to
further attacks on Taliban officials.
International law prohibits reprisal attacks -
otherwise unlawful attacks taken as an enforcement measure - against civilians.
Commenting on Taliban's actions, Patricia Gossman,
associate Asia director at HRW said, "Taliban leaders in Helmand should
not be responding to attacks with threats of unlawful punishments."
"Taliban authorities need to prevent retaliatory
attacks and ensure that crimes are dealt with through a proper legal
process," added Gossman.
A Taliban police official in Gereshk, Helmand, told
residents that district-level authorities were calling for retaliation and
targeting former government officials. According to the rights group, residents
have reported an increase in patrols and night raids, along with warnings from
local Taliban officials that mass arrests will ensue if attacks continue.
Afghan activists told HRW that the Taliban in Helmand
have increased their surveillance of individuals and groups they accuse of
being "opposed to the Islamic Emirate."
The threats follow a spate of attacks in which Taliban
members have been abducted or killed.
The Taliban have previously carried out revenge
killings of former government officials and have been responsible for forced
disappearances or summarily executing former members of the security forces and
others they accuse of being their enemies.
Source: India TV News
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In Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, Strategic Depth Remains
an Illusion for Pakistan’s ISI
MARCH 22, 2022
The Taliban victory in August 2021 was heralded in
Pakistan as having broken the “shackles of slavery”. Subsequently, as the
fissures in the Taliban factions arose, the ISI moved into action and imposed
an interim government in Afghanistan. With its successful campaign against the
National Resistance Front in Panjshir valley, the Taliban has been able to
stabilise the government even though at the cost of growing humanitarian
disaster in the country. However, despite the Taliban’s success in stabilising
Afghanistan, Pakistan’s much-vaunted “strategic depth” is far from getting
realised.
The news of clashes between the Pakistan Army and the
Taliban has become frequent. Many of these incidents have involved artillery
fires across the border, dismantling Pakistan’s checkpoints on the
Afghanistan-Pakistan border, and growing terrorist attacks by Tehreek-e-Taliban
Pakistan (TTP).
On February 6, five Pakistani soldiers were killed in
Kurram district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in a cross-border firing from
Afghanistan. The statement released by the Inter-Services Public Relations
(ISPR) after the incident said that “terrorists from inside Afghanistan, across
the international border, opened fire on Pakistani troops”. It also condemned
“the use of Afghan soil by terrorists for activities against Pakistan” and
expected that the “interim Afghan government will not allow the conduct of such
activities against Pakistan in future”. The statement highlighted the growing
concern about the use of Afghan territory for terrorist operations in Pakistan.
With this, Pakistan became the first country to accuse the Afghan Taliban of harbouring
terrorists.
After the Taliban victory, some in Pakistan had become
prone to wishful thinking that the Taliban would act as a pressure group on the
TTP to limit its future offensives. The presence of Sirajuddin Haqqani as the
Minister for Interior in the interim government had also furthered these hopes.
Consequently, with the mediation of Sirajuddin, a month-long ceasefire was
announced in November 2021. However, Pakistan’s refusal to release the top
commanders of the TTP ultimately led to the collapse of the ceasefire in
December. Since then, the TTP has resumed its attacks on Pakistan’s military
forces. According to a Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies report, 207
terrorist attacks took place in Pakistan in 2021, leading to a loss of 335
lives. These attacks marked an increase of 42 per cent from 2020. The TTP
itself claimed 282 attacks in 2021 and an additional 42 attacks in January
2022, after the end of the ceasefire.
Among the most contentious elements of the TTP demand
have been the group’s insistence on imposing Sharia in Pakistan and opening its
political office in a third country. Particularly, the insistence on opening a
political office in another country shows that the TTP is seeking to mimic the
Afghan Taliban’s Doha experiment. In future negotiations, this will remain a
prominent sticking point between the two sides.
THE DISPUTED DURAND LINE
The issue of the Durand Line is also emerging as one
of the most significant conflicts between the two countries. In a January
interview to a YouTube channel, Afghan Deputy Information Minister and Chief
Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed that the fencing of the Durand Line by
Pakistan is tantamount to “dividing a nation”. Zabihullah’s statement came in
the aftermath of the social media videos that emerged in December 2021 showing
the Taliban forces dismantling the fencing in Nangarhar province. Terming the
border fence “illegal”, Afghan Defence Ministry Spokesman Enayatullah Khwarazmi
said the Taliban forces stopped the Pakistani military from erecting the border
fence.
The nation referred to by Zabihullah was the
historical nation of Pashtuns, the biggest ethnic group in Afghanistan, divided
by the British Empire in 1893. The Afghan Taliban’s identification of the
Durand Line as a national issue implies that Islamabad’s attempts to fence the
disputed border would continue to be resisted.
As Taliban’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sher
Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai claimed, “The Durand Line is an issue of the whole
nation, not the government. It doesn’t belong to the government. We will give
the responsibility to the nation, so the nation will make the decision.”
The disputed nature of the Durand Line creates a
structural disconnect between the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan. The
adoption of a “nationalist” framework in Taliban politics will also impact the
fortunes of ISI’s “veritable arm” – the Haqqani Network. After the Taliban
takeover in August 2021, the ISI intervention quelled the factional rivalry and
secured prominent positions for its allies in the Haqqani Network. The
selection of Sirajuddin Haqqani as the Minister of Interior was among the most
prominent positions allocated to the Haqqani Network. However, the resurgence
of the Durand Line dispute and the associated nationalist Pashtun discourse
would limit Sirajuddin’s influence on Pakistan’s strategic fortunes in
Afghanistan. The reports of the arrests of Pakistani soldiers even in the
Haqqani stronghold of Paktika province are an important pointer in this
direction.
The nationalist turn of the Taliban indicates that
much like the past Afghan governments, the issue of the Durand Line will
continue to haunt the Afghanistan-Pakistan relationship. In this regard, ISI’s
decades of jihadi investments in the Haqqani Network to acquire influence in
Afghanistan will become helpful for Pakistan. Also, Pakistan’s need to bring
the TTP to the negotiating table makes the support of the Haqqani Network quite
indispensable. With a range of licit and illicit business interests in Pakistan
and the deep-rooted backing for the ISI’s Islamisation project, Sirajuddin is
likely to follow his masters in Islamabad.
Nonetheless, the pressure on the Haqqani Network to
stand with the Pashtun nation will gradually increase and limit Sirajuddin’s
ability to extend Islamabad’s influence in Afghanistan. Since the Afghan
Taliban’s push against the TTP could provoke defections to the Islamic State,
it is unlikely that the group would be in a position to fulfil its assurances
to Pakistan. Thus, the rise of Pashtun nationalism among the Taliban and the
TTP insurgency in Pakistan will make Islamabad pay the cost of gaining its
strategic depth. This will become particularly true as the Taliban gradually
wean away from the ISI’s control.
Source: News18
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Taliban Foreign Minister meets UN special envoy,
discusses human rights issues
23 March, 2022
Kabul [Afghanistan], March 23 (ANI): Taliban acting
Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met UN Special Representative Deborah Lyons
and discussed human rights, humanitarian assistance, development projects, the
banking sector, economic growth, and other issues.
In a press release, the Foreign Ministry of the
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), said that Lyons stated that she presented
a “positive report” of Afghanistan in the UNSC’s latest meeting which is an
achievement for the interim government of the IEA, Khaama Press reported.
Earlier, the Taliban welcomed the renewal of the UN
mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) mandate for Afghanistan for a period of 12
months.
Last week, the UN Security Council extended the
mandate for Afghanistan. The resolution was confirmed by 14 votes, with Russia
abstaining.
During the meeting, Muttaqi expressed hope that the
renewal of the UN mission in Afghanistan’s (UNAMA) mandate will not only be
concentrated on the humanitarian situation but will also help in the political
sphere and will help Afghanistan gain recognition, Khaama Press reported.
Muttaqi further said the extension of the mandate will
be a positive step in lifting sanctions on individuals and the economy of
Afghanistan.
“Absence of Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to
the UN has led to violation of rights of the Afghan people both inside and out
of Afghanistan,” Khaama Press Muttaqi as saying.
During the meeting, both the parties agreed to
continue meeting for resolving issues.
Source: The Print
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Call for inquiry into enforced disappearances in
Bangladesh
By Stephan Uttom
March 23, 2022
A study on enforced disappearances in Bangladesh shows
that one-third of victims are from capital Dhaka and 7 percent are Islamic
preachers in the Muslim-majority South Asian nation.
These finding appeared in "Where are They?
Enforced Disappearances in Bangladesh," a 37-page research report
published this month by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS), a Dhaka-based
autonomous think tank.
Between 2019 and 2021, at least 71 people went
missing, and 7 percent were individuals involved with Islamic preaching and
clerical jobs, including one imam, two Islamic preachers, one madrasa teacher
and a khatib who delivered sermons during Friday prayers.
Of the 71 enforced disappearances, 23 percent are
still missing, 7 percent have been found dead, and 31 percent have been
arrested, detained or jailed.
Data about the professions of 51 individuals gathered
under this project show 15 percent of victims are politicians or businessmen
and 11 percent students.
The police’s Rapid Action Battalion is alleged to have
been involved in 40 percent of cases, followed by the Detective Branch at 31
percent.
According to the CGS report, a significant number of
people have gone missing in Bangladesh in the last decade. Human rights
organizations say 522 people went missing between 2009 and 2018.
"The government should set up an independent
commission to investigate cases of enforced disappearances," Professor Ali
Riaz, a professor of political science at Illinois State University, said in a
virtual discussion on March 21, the Daily Star reported.
"It must immediately provide information on the
victims to the United Nations Working Group on Enforced Disappearance and allow
the group to visit Bangladesh."
The report noted that the number of disappearances
increased during election years and it is feared that the number may increase
in the run-up to the 2023 national elections.
“It is the responsibility of the government to find
out who or what is causing these disappearances, otherwise the government will
have to take responsibility,” said Nur Khan, secretary-general of Ain o Salish
Kendra (Law and Arbitration Center), a Dhaka-based rights group.
“Those who believe differently or make any critical
remarks against the government or the government see them as a threat are being
disappeared. Again, many people are
facing the threat of disappearance. In an independent civilized country,
such incidents are totally unacceptable,” Khan told UCA News.
“We also do not know the reason why Islamic preachers
are also disappearing. However, I see that they can influence the people and
they have disappeared because of anti-government rhetoric.”
Holy Cross Father Liton Hubert Gomes, secretary of the
Bangladeshi bishops' Justice and Peace Commission, said the government should
take responsibility for all citizens of a state.
"When someone goes missing, the culprit has to be
caught or the government has to take responsibility itself,” he said.
Source: UCA News
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https://www.ucanews.com/news/call-for-inquiry-into-enforced-disappearances-in-bangladesh/96604
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Bangladesh welcomes US declaration that Myanmar army
committed genocide against Rohingya
23 Mar 2022
The Bangladesh government has welcomed the US
declaration that Myanmar's army committed genocide and crimes against humanity
in its violence against the Rohingya minority.
Making the announcement on Monday, US Secretary of
State Antony Blinken said the attacks against Rohingya were "widespread
and systematic" and that evidence pointed to a clear intent to destroy the
mainly Muslim minority.
“We welcome this,” Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen
told the media in Dhaka on Tuesday. “Although late, this is most welcome.”
A clear statement by the United States saying genocide
was committed could bolster efforts to hold the Myanmar generals accountable
and help prevent further atrocities, activists and US officials believe.
Myanmar's armed forces launched a military operation
in 2017 that forced at least 730,000 of the mainly Muslim Rohingya from their
homes and into neighbouring Bangladesh, where they recounted killings, mass
rape and arson.
In 2021, Myanmar's military seized power in a coup.
Blinken warned that as long as the junta was in power nobody in the country
would be safe.
Blinken's recognition of genocide and crimes against
humanity refers mainly to events in 2017, before last year's coup. The step
comes after two State Department examinations -- one initiated in 2018 and the
other in 2020 -- failed to produce a determination.
Some former US officials told Reuters those were
missed opportunities to send a firm message to the Myanmar generals who later
seized power.
In the last days of the Donald Trump administration,
some US officials urged then secretary of state Mike Pompeo to formally declare
that the Myanmar military’s campaign against the Rohingya minority was a
genocide. Pompeo never made that call. Less than two weeks after he left office
on Jan 20, Myanmar’s generals seized power.
Advocates say Monday's declaration, which does not
automatically unleash any punitive measures but carries political weight, could
help judicial efforts worldwide to hold the junta accountable, but say more
action needs to follow.
Momen also sees it as “good news” for Bangladesh
because he believes more pressure from the US may settle the Rohingya
repatriation issue. He urged Blinken to create more pressure on Myanmar to take
back the Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh, besides holding the generals
accountable for the atrocities against the Rohingya.
Momen blamed Myanmar for foiling Bangladesh’s efforts
to send back the Rohingya intentionally.
Source: Bdnews24
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Taliban deploys artillery units near Pakistan border:
reports
22 March, 2022
Kabul [Afghanistan], March 22 (ANI): The Taliban
regime in Afghanistan has reportedly deployed artillery units near the Pakistan
border in a development that can potentially raise the tensions on the Durand
line to new heights.
According to reports, the Taliban forces have positioned
their artillery units in the areas of Asmar and Nari in the Kunar province of
Afghanistan against the Pakistani border forces.
The development is significant considering the
increasing tensions between the Taliban regime and the Pakistani border forces
since the former’s takeover of Kabul in August last year. The Taliban doesn’t
recognise the British-era Durand Line as the official border between
Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Earlier this month, Afghan border security personnel
continued to display an aggressive attitude along the Durand Line even after
the Pakistan authorities on February 25 conveyed to Kabul that their Military
Liaison Officers were present at Kabul to provide military to military links
and facilitate day to day coordination, management of border issues and
provision of cross border support, local media had reported.
The Taliban forces have regularly committed cross
border violations and have displayed blatant disregard of mutually agreed and
established procedures along the Durand Line, local media reported.
Islamabad had already suggested to the Afghan
authorities to resolve all border alignment issues through the formulation of a
Joint Committee and requested to stop construction in contentious areas/divided
villages till the resolution of the issues, but no response had apparently been
received from the Afghan side.
On their part, Afghan authorities have expressed
concern over recent violations of Afghan air space and firing with heavy
weapons on Afghan security force by the Pakistani Army, reported the local
media.
Source: The Print
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https://theprint.in/world/taliban-deploys-artillery-units-near-pakistan-border-reports/884295/
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North America
NYPD's top official faces backlash for downplaying Muslim surveillance
By Zainab Iqbal
22 March 2022
The New York Police Department's top official on
counterterrorism and intelligence is facing criticism from segments of the
Muslim community after suggesting that the agency did not spy on Muslims post
9/11.
At an eight-hour council hearing on public safety on
Friday, Shahana Hanif, the first and only Muslim NYC council member, asked if
the NYPD could commit to fully disclosing the extent of its Muslim surveillance
programme and if the NYPD could also issue a formal apology or public
acknowledgement to Muslim New Yorkers for the "discriminatory, fruitless,
and damaging programme".
John Miller, who serves as the NYPD's deputy
commissioner on intelligence and counterterrorism, answered that the
surveillance was just a "perception".
"Perception allowed to linger long enough becomes
reality. I know from my own conversation with Muslim members of the community
and Muslim community leaders, that there are people… who will believe forever…
[that] there were spies in their mosques who are trying to entrap people,"
he said.
"There is no evidence that that occurred based on
every objective study that's been done."
In 2011, the Associated Press reported that since
2002, the NYPD had "subjected entire neighbourhoods to surveillance and
scrutiny, often because of the ethnicity of the residents, not because of any
accusations of crimes".
The AP investigation also found that the NYPD
religiously profiled and surveilled NYC Muslims in an attempt to find
"radicalisation", mapping out communities, conducting video surveillance,
recruiting informants, and generating intelligence databases.
A year later, the NYPD acknowledged in a testimony
that the unit in charge of the surveillance - the demographics unit- never
generated a lead or triggered a terrorism investigation. And in 2014, the unit
was discontinued.
Hanif, who later called on Miller to be fired, told
MEE she was dismayed that he refused to accept the intrusive and destructive
effect surveillance had on the Muslim community.
"The police department conducted this entrapment,
this racial profiling and sent informants into our communities to target and
violate innocent, innocent people," Hanif said.
"I wanted to take the opportunity to get him on
the public record because I think Muslims, and the broader New York City community,
ought to know how the NYPD frames this, how they hurt us and how they carried
out this project on Muslim communities."
'Surveillance of Muslims is common knowledge'
Lamis Deek, an attorney whose work spans international
human rights, criminal defence and appeals, said Miller's comments depict
"a deranged perception of the Muslim community".
"The NYPD and government surveillance of Muslims
is common knowledge easily accessible to the public and information fully
within Miller's purview," she told MEE, adding that the NYC mayor's office
needs to ensure he issues an apology.
"Miller appears to be sending a message to the NY
community, that the Muslim community - despite the city's own admissions - is
not credible and letting the Muslim community know that he and his department
neither respect nor see their humanity or the harm the NYPD has caused.
"Such patent knowing denial of the harm lays the
groundwork for its repetition."
At a press conference on Monday, Mayor Eric Adams, who
is a retired police captain, said surveillance would never happen under his
administration.
"It's up to the mayor to set the tone. I set it,
the tone, not only now saying it's wrong - I set it then when it was
happening."
According to Ahmed Mohamed, the legal director at
CAIR-NY, Adams still needs to apologise to the Muslim community and hold police
officials "accountable for their continual gaslighting".
In 2021, when Adams was a candidate for Mayor, he went
to a mosque and said: "When you speak with the Muslim brothers and sisters
here in Brooklyn, they're going to tell you about the days when I stood up when
your mosques were been infiltrated by police departments."
Now as the mayor, he has the authority to back up his
rhetoric with action, starting with an apology to the Muslim community for the
illegal spying and profiling conducted by the NYPD," Mohamed said.
"Mayor Adams can also hold officials accountable
for their continual gaslighting and prohibit Glomar responses which circumvent
FOIL [Freedom of Information Law] requests."
FOIL is a New York state law that gives the public the
right to access government records.
"Trust will never take root while the NYPD
continues to inflict trauma by lying about the harms perpetrated on our
mosques, community leaders, students, business owners, and organisations,"
Mohamed added.
'NYPD attempts to rewrite proven history'
Lamiya Khandaker, the project manager at Majlis
Ash-Shura: Islamic Leadership Council of New York, said she hopes Miller
rectifies his statements soon.
"Miller's denial of the NYPD's long-standing
egregious conduct and discrimination towards the Muslim community post 9/11 is
nothing short of abhorring," she said.
"The evidence of NYPD's discriminatory
surveillance programme is unquestionable, and we must never forget the racist
and Islamophobic NYPD White Paper report that identified faithfully practising
Muslims as indicators of radicalisation."
"To deny the history of law enforcement
discrimination is nothing but a pure insult to the Muslim community who has
endured so much injustice."
In 2012, Muslim Advocates and other organisations
filed a lawsuit against the NYPD on behalf of several individuals and groups
who were harmed by surveillance. They won the settlement, which eventually
forced the NYPD to pay more than a million dollars to the Muslims "they
denied spying on", Muslim Advocates interim legal director Naomi Tsu said.
"The NYPD filmed, tracked and monitored Muslims
in mosques, restaurants and schools with cameras and undercover officers in New
York, New Jersey and beyond - all without their knowledge," Tsu said.
Source: Middle East Eye
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US-Pakistan talks to focus on regional security issues
Anwar Iqbal
March 23, 2022
WASHINGTON: The United States and Pakistan will hold
bilateral talks on Wednesday, focusing on regional security developments,
Afghanistan and Ukraine.
US Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security,
Democracy and Human Rights Uzra Zeya arrived in Islamabad on Monday to
attend the OIC Foreign Ministers Conference, which began on Tuesday.
Islamabad is holding the two-day conference, despite
intense political instability triggered by a no-confidence move against the PTI
government. Both opposition and ruling parties agreed to pause their protests
and counter-protests for two days to allow OIC delegates to meet and disperse
before the infighting resumes.
Under Secretary Zeya is representing the United
States at the conference, which is also attended by Chinese Foreign Minister
Wang Wi.
In a statement issued on Monday evening, the US State
Department said Under Secretary Zeya will lead the US delegation to the 48th
session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers conference and meet senior
government officials, as well as members of civil society and international
organisations.
During her OIC engagements, the under secretary “will
highlight the deep and close ties between the United States and the OIC member
states, underscore the need for humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, and
advocate for human rights and freedoms for all,” the statement added.
In her meetings with Pakistani officials, Ms Zeya
“will address regional security developments, Pakistan’s generous hosting of
Afghan refugees and support for Afghan relocation efforts”.
The bilateral talks would also focus on “worldwide
condemnation of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine and celebrating the 75th
anniversary of US-Pakistan diplomatic relations”, the State Department said.
A department spokesperson told Dawn on Monday that “a
strong, prosperous and democratic” Pakistan was critical to US interests.
From Islamabad, Under Secretary Zeya travels to Tunis
where she will meet senior government officials to discuss inclusive political
and economic reforms, protecting human rights, and the integral role civil
society plays in a strong democracy.
During her meetings, the under secretary will also
discuss the economic challenges that Tunisia is facing because of the Russian
invasion.
Source: Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1681362/us-pakistan-talks-to-focus-on-regional-security-issues
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Riyadh gets US military help as Washington seeks
better ties
22 March ,2022
The United States has stepped up its military support
for Saudi Arabia over the past few months following missile strikes on the
kingdom by the Iran-backed Houthis, Western diplomats said, an indication that
Washington is trying to mend its strained ties with traditional Gulf allies.
The desire for improved relations has been made more
pressing by the Russian invasion of Ukraine last month, which has led to
economic sanctions on Moscow by Washington, the European Union and others. The
United States and other Western countries have been trying to persuade Saudi
Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, to pump more oil to offset potential
losses in Russian supplies.
For the latest headlines, follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
Even before the invasion on Feb. 24, US officials had
been beating a path to Riyadh as Russia built up its troops on the border. The
initial response from the Saudis had been cool.
Prior to that, their traditionally strong alliance had
hit a bad patch, due in part to the Saudi role in the war in Yemen and by the
killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul by Saudi agents in
2018.
The Arab coalition intervened in Yemen in 2015 to
fight Yemen’s Houthis, which had seized the capital Sanaa and large parts of
the country. For much of the conflict - also seen as a proxy war between
regional rivals Riyadh and Tehran - the United States provided intelligence,
training and technical support on weapons systems to the coalition, along with
refueling war planes carrying out air strikes.
But as the civilian toll from the strikes grew and a
humanitarian crisis gripped Yemen, the conflict became a point of tension
between Saudi Arabia and the United States under President Joe Biden.
Soon after taking office in 2020, Biden halted support
for coalition offensive operations, initiated a review of arms sales to Saudi
Arabia and tasked a special envoy to press Riyadh to lift a coalition blockade
on Houthi-held areas to secure a truce with the movement. Biden has also
refused to deal directly with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as Saudi’s de
facto ruler.
Since then, there have been a series of difficult
US-Saudi meetings in the Gulf state, including between US National Security
adviser Jake Sullivan and Prince Mohammed last September. Another top US
adviser Brett McGurk was in Riyadh last week to discuss oil supplies and Yemen.
But faced with new geo-political realities, Washington
has approved missiles and an anti-ballistic defense system sales to Saudi
Arabia, including 280 air-to-air missiles valued at up to $650 million, the
Pentagon said in November.
Two sources familiar with the matter said Washington
had sent Patriot missiles and other equipment over the last three months to the
kingdom.
A US State Department spokesperson said the United
States has been working with Saudi Arabia and its neighbors over the past
months to help them strengthen their defenses, through foreign military and
direct commercial sales and third party transfers which allow neighboring
countries to transfer US-made weapons as needed.
“With US support, Saudi Arabia currently intercepts
approximately 90 percent of these aerial (Houthi) attacks, but we need to aim
for 100 percent,” the spokesperson said.
The Saudi government and the Arab coalition have not
responded to Reuters’ questions on US arms shipments.
Unverified footage shared on social media by
pro-government Saudi commentators showed Patriot missile batteries intercepting
missiles targeting the Red Sea city of Jeddah on Sunday when the Houthis
unleashed a barrage of strikes on energy facilities, part of a broad assault on
Saudi infrastructure.
The attacks, which Washington condemned, temporarily
cut output at a refinery and caused a fire at a petroleum products distribution
terminal. Saudi Arabia called on the international community on Monday to do
more to preserve energy supplies and stand firm against the Houthis.
NGOs say tens of thousands of Yemenis have been
killed, mostly civilians, since the war started including by coalition air
strikes. More than 100 were killed in January alone. The coalition says it
respects humanitarian international laws when it conducts military operations
in Yemen.
Source: Al Arabiya
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MWL sponsors transformation within Muslim societies in
North, South America
March 22, 2022
WASHINGTON: The Muslim World League has sponsored a
qualitative transformation within Muslim societies in North and South America.
Mohammed bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, secretary-general of
the MWL and chairman of the Association of Muslim Scholars, is preparing to
witness an historic agreement between Muslim leaders in the Americas to
establish an independent body that brings together different sects to activate
the contents of the Makkah Charter, a turning point in contemporary Islamic
thought.
This agreement is the culmination of the first forum
to bring together Muslim leaders from the Americas, which Al-Issa launched from
Washington, D.C., and attracted prominent supporting partners, including
members and advisors in the US Congress, and an elite of non-Muslim religious,
community and governmental leaders.
Supporters described the forum as an “extraordinary
event that expresses awareness, responsibility and enlightenment.”
The forum’s workshops tackled several important
topics, foremost of which was the best ways to benefit from the Makkah Charter
on a wide scale in the Americas. They mainly focused on how the charter is a
comprehensive document issued by a mufti and senior scholars from all of
Islam’s sects to strengthen brotherly ties and address youth and women’s issues.
They also committed to building the capacities of religious leaders as well as
religious diplomacy.
Based on the outputs of the workshops, the conferees
approved the participation of non-Muslim religious, community, governmental and
parliamentary leaders in the Americas in the independent body.
They also agreed to establish an international forum
for the Makkah Charter to be subdivided from it.
The independent body will coordinate on common goals
and topics, promote the values of brotherhood and coexistence and build bridges
of understanding and alliance between followers of different religions and
cultures in the Americas to achieve common interests.
The Makkah Charter has received great global
appreciation because it calls for unifying Muslim ranks, strengthening the
bonds of brotherhood and love among all.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2048226/world
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Southeast
Asia
Beijing investing over $400B in 54 Muslim countries,
says top Chinese diplomat
Aamir Latif and Islamuddin Sajid
22.03.2022
China is investing over $400 billion in nearly 600
projects across the Muslim world under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the
Chinese foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Speaking at the meeting of the Organization of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) foreign minister in Islamabad, Wang Yi said Beijing has close
ties with Muslim world based on respect and mutual cooperation.
"China will continue to stand firmly on the side
of the Palestinian people and support the early convening of a more
authoritative and representative international peace conference on the basis of
the two-state solution so as to promote a comprehensive and just settlement of
the Palestinian issue," Wang said, according to the transcript of his
speech released by Pakistan’s Information Ministry.
Referring to the long-standing dispute of Jammu and
Kashmir, he said today he “heard the call of many Islamic friends” over the
issue, adding that Beijing “share the same aspiration.”
About the war between Russia and Ukraine, Wang said
that China supports peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv.
"We need to prevent humanitarian disasters and
prevent the spillover of the Ukrainian crisis from affecting or harming the
legitimate rights and interests of other regions and countries," he added.
He also spoke about the current humanitarian crisis in
Afghanistan and said Beijing would support Afghanistan in achieving inclusive
government and steady governance to open a new chapter of peace and
reconstruction.
"China is ready to work with Islamic countries to
promote a multi-polar world, democracy in international relations and diversity
of human civilizations, and make unremitting efforts to build a community with
a shared future for mankind," Wang concluded.
UN chief praises OIC
The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a video
message said that the UN enjoys close relationship with OIC based on trust and
solidarity.
"We are working together to counter the
challenges that abound, from the war in Ukraine and its global ramifications to
growing inequalities and proliferating assaults on human rights," the UN
chief said.
Guterres added that the two organizations have worked
together to nurture a culture of peace, tolerance, and understanding.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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‘Muslim-only class monitor’ issue at KL school
resolved
Tsubasa Nair
March 23, 2022
PETALING JAYA: The parent of a student at one of
Malaysia’s oldest schools has apologised for claiming that a teacher had barred
non-Muslims from being appointed class monitors.
This comes after a screenshot of the parent’s claim
went viral. The claim had been posted on a Facebook group for the Kuala Lumpur
school’s alumni.
According to the original posting, the parent said a
school teacher had told his son’s class through a WhatsApp group chat that a
non-Muslim cannot be a class monitor.
When contacted, the parent clarified that the matter
had been resolved.
“It is a misunderstanding on my part. I have posted an
apology to the school teacher and headmaster in the same channel that was
supposed to be private,” he said.
Source: Free Malaysia Today
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PM wants to make Malay second language among Asean
members
March 23, 2022
KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob will
confer with Asean leaders to propose the use of Malay as the grouping’s second
language, in efforts to elevate the mother tongue at the international level.
Ismail said that apart from Malaysia, Malay was used
as a medium of instruction in several neighbouring countries such as Indonesia,
Brunei and Singapore as well as in southern Thailand, southern Philippines and
in parts of Cambodia.
“So there is no reason why we cannot make Bahasa
Melayu as one of the official languages of Asean. We will coordinate on this
matter and I will discuss with the leaders of countries that do use Bahasa
Melayu so that they agree to make it the second language of Asean.
“After that, we will discuss with other Asean leaders
whose countries also have residents who use Bahasa Melayu as a spoken
language,” he said during question-and-answer time in the Dewan Negara today.
Ismail was replying to a supplementary question from
Zurainah Musa, who wanted to know whether the government would work with Asean
leaders to coordinate the use of Malay at the regional level.
Elaborating on the matter, Ismail said currently only
four out of the 10 Asean countries use English in official events at the
international level, while the others use their national languages in their
official affairs.
The prime minister said he himself had used Malay
during his official visits to Indonesia, Brunei, Cambodia and Thailand before
and most recently during his visit to Vietnam two days ago.
Source: Free Malaysia Today
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Urging a review, three NGOs say Kelantan Shariah
criminal law will further harm already marginalised groups in Malaysia
22 Mar 2022
BY ASHMAN ADAM
KUALA LUMPUR, March 22 — Three non-governmental
organisations today called on Putrajaya and the state government to pause and
review the recently passed Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code Enactment 2019, which
they insist are contrary to constitutional guaranteed freedoms in Malaysia.
According to Sisters in Islam (SIS), Legal Dignity,
and Justice for Sisters (JFS), the Enactment is an infringement of human rights
and causes more damage than good, legally-speaking.
Launching their joint study that analysed the Kelantan
Shariah law on the country’s existing legal framework and human rights, the
NGOs highlighted that the Enactment empowers the state to impose harsher
punishments will only encourage violence, potential abuse of power and
discrimination towards marginalised communities.
“This Enactment is problematic, redundant, unnecessary
and a waste of resources as it introduces 31 new areas of criminality, most of
which fall outside of state jurisdiction and infringe on the rights guaranteed
under the Federal Constitution.
“Among the sections that are covered by the new
Enactment are exposing aurat in public places, change of gender, anything
intoxicating — which overlaps with the Dangerous Drugs Act — disobedience to
parents and others,” said JFS founder Thilaga Sulathireh during the launch of
its report on the groups in depth analysis of the Enactment.
In Islam, aurat refers to certain parts of the human
body that must be covered by clothing. For Muslim men, it is between the navel
and the knees. For Muslim women, only her face and palms can be uncovered.
The group said that after analysing the Enactment
through human rights and constitutional frameworks, it found several overlaps
with the Federal Constitution and other existing Federal Laws such as Penal
Code, Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) and the Dangerous Drug Act.
It said that provisions under the new Enactment
overlap with existing laws at the federal level and items in the federal list,
which infringes the Federal Constitution.
“The Federal Constitution has divided the areas of law
that could be legislated by the federal Government and the state government.
“There are provisions under the 2019 Enactment that
clearly intrude on existing federal laws, such as the Penal Code, Dangerous
Drugs Act, and various Acts related to commercial and banking matters,” it
said.
Fundamental liberties guaranteed by the Federal
Constitution and international Human Rights laws are challenged by the
Enactment, the group said.
These include the right to freedom of religion and
belief, the right to life, and the right to live with dignity, among others.
“Further, new sections under the Enactment
criminalises the attempt of consensual sexual relations between persons of all
genders, as well as transgender and gender diverse persons based on their
gender identity. This contravenes the very basis of equality and
non-discrimination principles under international human rights law.
“The Enactment also maintains the corporal punishment
of caning, and further increased areas for whipping as a permissible
punishment. This is in contravention of international human rights law,” it
said.
The report by the group analyses the Kelantan Syariah
Criminal Code Enactment 2019, which was passed by the Kelantan state
legislative assembly on November 1, last year.
The state law has a total of 68 sections, 33 of which
are new sections added from the 1985 Enactment, which previously had 35
sections.
The Enactment also provides for harsher penalties,
listing the maximum punishment under the Shariah court jurisdiction is a fine
of RM5,000, three years of imprisonment and six lashes of the cane.
Source: Malay Mail
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Mideast
Turkiye calls for joint stance to ease sufferings of
Muslims
Aamir Latif
22.03.2022
The Turkish foreign minister on Tuesday called for
collective efforts to protect the rights of Muslims and ease the sufferings
they face across the globe, including in Palestine, Kashmir, and Cyprus.
Addressing the Islamabad meeting of foreign ministers
of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Mevlut Cavusoglu touched upon
a string of simmering issues ranging from Islamophobia to the plight of Uyghur
Muslims and from the war in Ukraine to the Palestine conflict.
The OIC, he said, exists for a common cause, and, it
is only when the Muslim bloc acts as a single identity that it helps protect
the rights of subjugated Muslim communities in different parts of the world.
It is "war, terror, pain, and suffering"
that come out of the seven-decade occupation of Jerusalem, Cavusoglu stated.
He also said Muslim Turks in Cyprus have been denied
their fundamental rights for five decades, as well as "Muslim brothers and
sisters" in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Drawing to the plight of Uyghur Muslims in China's
Xinjiang province, Cavusoglu said the persecuted Muslim community should not be
left alone just because "you have differences with Turkiye."
"In China, Uyghur Turks and other Muslims are
having difficulties in protecting their cultural identity and rights," he
said.
Citing a saying of Prophet Muhammad that calls for
unity among Muslims, he said the miseries of Uyghur Muslims and Turkish Muslims
in Cyprus must not be ignored just because "you have good relations with
that country," a thinly veiled reference to good relations between China
and some Muslim countries, including Pakistan.
"We don't want you to spoil your relations with
that country. But you should use these good relations to improve the situation
in which the Uyghur community is living," he maintained.
Also mentioning the recent hijab ban in some Indian
states, Cavusoglu regretted that Muslim women are denied the right to cover
their heads.
Islamophobia, war in Ukraine
The top Turkish diplomat said Islamophobia is on the
rise in Europe.
Referring to the racist reporting about the refugees
from the Middle East and Afghanistan during the ongoing war in Ukraine, Cavusoglu
said Russia's war in its neighbor has revealed the double standards across the
world while conflicts in Libya, Syria, and Yemen have continued for years.
"For us, blood in Kharkiv (Ukraine) and blood in
Aleppo (Syria) is the same because this is what our civilization
requires," he said.
The ongoing war in Europe, he went on to say, is
affecting everyone. "It's a period where ethical values are under
attack."
Cavusoglu urged self-criticism to solve the problems
of the Muslim worldwide.
"Who is responsible for the current conditions of
Muslim Ummah? Blaming others for that is very easy but it will not help. Today,
we should be self-critics, and try to see how can we fix ourselves," he
said.
Humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan
Speaking to Anadolu Agency after the meeting,
Cavusoglu said he met several counterparts on the sidelines, including Saudi
Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.
“We had a very constructive and fruitful meeting to
normalize our relations and even make our reviews better than before. We are in
terms to cooperate to work together,” he said.
On the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, Cavusoglu
said Turkish humanitarian organizations are already working there and Ankara
has sent humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and provided financial assistance
through the UN and non-governmental organizations.
“We have not recognized the Taliban administration but
we advise everyone to be engaged with it,” he said.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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Iranian FM: Few Highly Important Issues Remain in
Vienna Talks
2022-March-22
"We are close to the final stage of the
agreement. For the few remaining very important issues, we have presented
initiatives to the United States through the EU Coordinator. It is now up to
the American side to show its good faith in action," Amir Abdollahian said
in a phone conversation with his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein on Monday
night.
Washington has to remove the swinging sanctions which
it has imposed on Iran, with the remaining sticking points reportedly being a
guarantee in case a future US government abrogates the deal again and key
Iranian institutions to be delisted.
The negotiations began last April between Britain,
China, France, Germany, Iran and Russia, with EU Coordinator Enrique Mora
telling reporters last week that delegations were down to negotiating the
footnotes of the text.
"We are determined to reach a good, strong and
lasting agreement. Dr. Ali Baqeri, Iran's chief negotiator, is in direct and constant
contact with Enrique Mora, the coordinator of the talks," Amir Abdollahian
said on Monday.
Last Wednesday, Amir Abdollahian had said that
Washington needs to act realistically and stop raising new demands if it's
willing to have the Vienna talks end in an agreement.
“We are closer to the point of arriving at a final
agreement more than any other time,” Amir Abdollahian said in a phone
conversation with Britain’s Liz Truss.
“However, what can turn conclusion of a good and
stable agreement into a definite prospect is the United States’ realistic
behavior and its refusal from tabling new and wrongful demands,” he said.
Truss, for her part, expressed the hope that the
Austrian city would eventually be able to host conclusion of such a final
agreement.
The US unilaterally left the 2015 Iran deal in 2018,
and restored the sanctions that had been lifted under the accord. Washington’s
European allies in the deal—France, Germany, and the United Kingdom—have been
toeing the sanctions line closely by ending their trade activities with Iran.
The Vienna talks began last April between Iran and the
remaining parties to the JCPOA —Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China — on
the assumption that the US, under the Biden administration, is willing to
repeal the so-called maximum pressure policy pursued by former president,
Donald Trump, against Tehran.
Iran says it won’t settle for anything less than the
removal of all US sanctions in a verifiable manner. It also wants guarantees
that Washington would not abandon the agreement again.
Iran and the G4+1 group of countries earlier this
month announced a pause in the Vienna talks, with Tehran saying that all
relevant parties will concentrate on a “successful conclusion” of the
diplomatic process.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh
said on Twitter that the pause in the Vienna talks could provide a “momentum”
for resolving any remaining issues and a “final return” to the negotiations,
adding, “Successful conclusion of talks will be the main focus of all [the
parties involved].”
Also, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security
Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani said that his country will remain in Vienna talks
until it earns a strong agreement.
"All pillars of the Iranian state - in spite of
all external and internal hype - work hard to preserve and advance Iran's
national interests," Shamkhani wrote on his twitter page.
"We will remain in the Vienna talks until we
reach a 'strong agreement' that meets all our legal and logical demands",
he added.
Shamkhani warned that the Vienna talks are growing
even more complicated because the US continues to avoid making the necessary
political decisions.
Source: Fars News Agency
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Iranian Spokesman: Unity Key to Settle Problems in
Islamic World
2022-March-22
"Pleased to represent Iran in 48th OIC FMs
meeting in Pakistan. Palestine is and will remain top priority of Muslim world
and no one can compromise on the cause with the apartheid regime of
Israel," Khatibzadeh wrote on his twitter page.
"From Yemen to Afghanistan the Islamic world's
unity is the key to address the crises," he added.
Khatibzadeh traveled to Islamabad, Pakistan's capital
city, to take part in the 48th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers
(CFM) of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
The OIC is scheduled to hold the 48th Session of the
Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) under the theme (Building Partnerships for
Unity, Justice, and Development) in Islamabad on March 22-23.
Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan is due to make a
speech in the opening ceremony of the OIC meeting on Tuesday.
Source: Fars News Agency
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https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14010102000278/Spkesman-Uniy-Key-Sele-Prblems-in-Islamic-Wrld
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Iran Condoles with China over Tragic Plane Crash
2022-March-22
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh
extended condolences to the bereaved family members of Chinese plane crash
victims, government and people of China on Monday.
He sympathized with the Chinese nation and government
on the sad occasion.
A passenger plane with 132 people on board crashed on
Monday afternoon in a mountainous area in Southern China, sending rescue teams
rushing to the site in search of survivors.
Rescuers continue to search for survivors from the
plane crash in Southern China, as families of those onboard gather at a nearby
airport waiting anxiously for updates.
China Eastern Flight MU5735 was carrying 132 people
when it crashed into hills in Guangxi province.
The tragedy has sparked widespread grief in China.
President Xi Jinping has ordered a full-scale investigation.
Hundreds of responders have been dispatched to the
crash site in Wuzhou.
Source: Fars News Agency
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https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14010102000222/Iran-Cndles-wih-China-ver-Tragic-Plane-Crash
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Iranian DM Felicitates Nowruz to Counterparts in
Regional States
2022-March-22
General Ashtiani congratulated Nowruz to the
governments, people, Armed Forces, and specially the defense ministers, of
Armenia, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan,
Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
"I express my most sincere congratulations on the
occasion of the arrival of the ancient Nowruz, which coincides with the
beautiful resurrection of nature," he said in his message.
"I hope that in the New Year we will see the
consolidation of peace and tranquility in the region and the development and
expansion of cooperation," he said, expressing hope for the eradication of
COVID-19.
General Ashtiani also wished a year full of happiness
and prosperity for the governments, the Armed Forces and the nations of the
region.
Nowruz, the start of the year according to the Persian
calendar which marks arrival of spring was celebrated across Iran.
Nowruz, which coincides with the first day of spring
on the solar calendar (this year started on March 21), is mostly celebrated in
10 countries of Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, India, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Pakistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan.
The International Day of Nowruz was registered on the
UNESCO List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on February 23,
2010.
For Iranians, Nowruz is a celebration of renewal and
change, a time to visit relatives and friends, and pay respect to senior family
members.
Source: Fars News Agency
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https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14010102000265/Iranian-DM-Feliciaes-Nwrz-Cnerpars-in-Reginal-Saes
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Four dead in stabbing, car-ramming in southern Israel
22 March ,2022
A man wielding a knife stabbed several people and ran
over another in southern Israel on Tuesday, with the prime minister promising a
crackdown on “terrorists” after the incident which left four dead.
The unrest at a gas station and outside a shopping
center in the southern city of Beersheba began shortly after 4:00 pm (1400
GMT), police and emergency medical responders said.
After arriving at the gas station, the assailant left
his car and “stabbed a woman,” according to police.
He then returned to his car and rammed it into a
60-year-old man on his bicycle outside the shopping center.
The suspect then left his car again and began stabbing
others around the shopping center, according to police and the Magen David Adom
emergency medical response organization.
Police said that “civilians who were at the scene
fired [at the suspect] and neutralized him,” without specifying the suspect’s
condition.
An MDA spokesman told AFP that four people had been
killed.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s office said he held
“a consultation with the minister of internal security and the commissioner of
the police” following the attack.
He later praised those who shot the alleged assailant,
saying they “showed resourcefulness and courage and prevented further
casualties.”
“Security forces are on high alert. We will work hard
against terrorists. We will pursue them as well and those who help them,” the
Israeli premier tweeted.
Hamas, the Palestinian group that controls the Gaza
Strip, released a statement that did not claim the attack but blamed it on
Israel’s treatments of Palestinians.
Speaking to a Hamas-controlled radio station, group
spokesman Hazem Qassem said the “operation is a response to the policy of
ethnic displacement practiced by Israel against our Palestinian people inside
the occupied territories.”
Source: Al Arabiya
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Africa
Sudanese
protesters block roads in Khartoum to demand civilian rule
Buhram
Abdel-Men'em
22.03.2022
KHARTOUM,
Sudan
Sudanese
protesters blocked main roads in the capital Khartoum on Tuesday amid rallies
to demand full civilian rule.
Demonstrators
erected barricades and burned tires in main roads in the cities of Bahri and
Omdurman in protest of security crackdown on protests demanding the restoration
of civilian rule, according to an Anadolu Agency reporter at the scene.
The
demonstration was called by the Resistance Committees, a protest group that led
demonstrations against the military.
According
to eyewitnesses, security forces fired teargas canisters to disperse protesters
in Omdurman.
Sudan
has been in turmoil since Oct. 25, 2021, when the military dismissed Prime
Minister Abdalla Hamdok's transitional government and declared a state of
emergency, in a move decried by political groups as a “military coup.”
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Libyan
domestic flights to resume after political crisis closed skies
22
March ,2022
Libya’s
Global Air scheduled a Tripoli-Benghazi flight for Tuesday afternoon, signaling
resumption of domestic air travel after the country’s political crisis had
closed airspace for more than two weeks.
The
United Nations had urged the reopening of Libya’s skies in line with a 2020
ceasefire between the main warring factions to allow unhindered travel within
the country.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Sudan
denies reports on Russian Wagner presence in country
Buhram
Abdel-Men'em
22.03.2022
KHARTOUM,
Sudan
The
Sudanese government on Tuesday denied reports about the presence of Russian
paramilitary Wagner Group in Sudan.
In
a statement, the Foreign Ministry termed accusations by the ambassadors of the
US, Britain and Norway on the Wagner's activities in Sudan as "a blatant
interference in Sudan's domestic affairs."
On
March 21, the Troika for Sudan – the US, Britain and Norway – said the Wagner
Group was engaged in illicit activities that undermine the rule of law in
Sudan.
"In
Sudan, the Wagner Group, a Private Military Company closely linked to (Russian
President Vladimir) Putin, spreads disinformation on social media and engages
in illicit activities connected to gold-mining," the Troika said.
But
the Sudanese ministry denied the claims, saying the three envoys are trying to
drag Sudan into the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Russian
private security companies such as Wagner, Patriot, Sewa Security Service and
RSB are known to have a presence in Africa.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/sudan-denies-reports-on-russian-wagner-presence-in-country-/2542272
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Troika
countries say Russian Wagner Group's activities in Sudan undermine rule of law
Omer
Erdem
22.03.2022
KHARTOUM,
Sudan
Russian
private military contractor Wagner Group is engaged in illicit activities that
undermine the rule of law in Sudan, the Troika – the US, UK and Norway – for
the North African country said Monday.
British
Ambassador Giles Leifer, Norwegian Ambassador Therese Loken Gheziel and US
Charge d'Affaires Lucy Tamlyn made the accusation in a joint statement shared
by the US Embassy in Sudan on social media.
“In
Sudan, the Wagner Group, a Private Military Company closely linked to (Russian
President Vladimir) Putin, spreads disinformation on social media and engages
in illicit activities connected to gold-mining. Wagner Group activities
undermine the good governance and respect for rule of law that the Sudanese
people have been fighting for since the (2018-2019) revolution,” the statement
said.
“Sudan
has the sovereign right to decide on its own foreign relationships. We will
always respect that. We will continue to support the Sudanese people as they
strive to fulfil the aspirations of the revolution,” it added.
Russian
private security companies such as Wagner, Patriot, Sewa Security Service and
RSB are known to have a presence in Africa.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Europe
Erdogan
asks EU to relaunch membership negotiations
22
March ,2022
President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday asked the European Union to relaunch talks for
Turkey to eventually become an EU member, on the eve of a summit focused on
Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The
Turkish president's comments come as the war in Ukraine allows Ankara to return
to the international stage by offering its services as a mediator in the
conflict.
“We
expect the EU to open quickly the chapters of the membership negotiations and
to start negotiations on a customs union without yielding to cynical calculations,”
Erdogan said after talks with visiting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
Negotiations
for Turkey's accession one day to the 27-nation EU, which began in 2005, have
stalled in recent years over tensions between the two sides, with the EU accusing
Turkey of moving away from the rule-of-law and other values on which the bloc
is founded.
Relations
between Turkey and the EU worsened sharply after the July 2016 attempted coup.
The
EU has often criticised the crackdown and the attacks on freedom of speech
which followed the failed putsch, in which tens of thousands of people have
been arrested including journalists.
The
EU and Turkey had agreed a deal in March 2016 worth billions of euros in which
Turkey would take back migrants in exchange for visa liberalisation, which has
yet to be introduced for Turks.
EU
heads of state and government are set to meet Wednesday in Brussels for a
summit aimed at dealing with the fallout of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on
February 24.
NATO
is also to hold a crisis summit on Ukraine on Thursday.
The
Turkish president has hosted talks in the last week and a half with four EU
leaders and NATO.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Russia’s
envoy in Indonesia says Putin plans to attend G20 summit in Jakarta
23
March ,2022
Russian
President Vladimir Putin intends to attend a G20 summit being hosted by
Indonesia later this year, Russia’s ambassador in Jakarta said on Wednesday,
following calls by some members for the country to be barred from the group.
“Not
only G20, many organizations are trying to expel Russia....the reaction of the
West is absolutely disproportional,” ambassador Lyudmila Vorobieva told a news
conference on Wednesday.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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US'
envoy to UN welcomes Turkish, Israel presidents' meeting in Ankara
Servet
Gunerigok
22.03.2022
US'
Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield on Tuesday welcomed a meeting
between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli President Isaac
Herzog that took place in Ankara on March 9.
Speaking
at a UN Security Council session on the situation in the Middle East,
Thomas-Greenfield said the US believes that normalization agreements can
enhance regional cooperation.
"These
visits demonstrate that good-faith engagement can build mutual confidence and
create a path toward a greater security and prosperity," she said.
The
"historic visit" by the Israeli president aims to revive bilateral
political dialogue based on common interests between the two nations, Erdogan
said March 9.
Herzog
said the aim is to lay foundations for the development of friendly relations
between Turkiye, Israel and the peoples of the two countries.
Turning
to the Palestinian issue, the US envoy said normalization is not a substitute
for serious engagement between the Israelis and Palestinians.
"That
is why the Biden Administration has made a point of intensifying dialogue with
both Israeli and Palestinian leaders," she said. "We encourage all
those who look for peace in the Middle East to commit to constructive acts that
help Palestinians and Israelis coexist and prosper.”
Thomas-Greenfield
noted that the Ramadan, Passover and Easter holidays are approaching, saying
"we must aspire to peace, recognizing the heightened religious
sensitivities during this time.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Terrorism
threat level in Northern Ireland reduced
Karim
El-Bar
22.03.2022
LONDON
The
terrorism threat level in Northern Ireland was reduced on Tuesday from severe
to substantial for the first time in 12 years, Northern Ireland Secretary
Brandon Lewis said.
The
decision was made by the UK’s domestic intelligence service MI5 independently
of government ministers.
Lewis
said the decision “shows the significant progress that Northern Ireland has
made, and continues to make, towards a more peaceful, more prosperous and safer
society.”
“It
is a testament to the ongoing commitment to protecting the peace process and
tackling Northern Ireland-related terrorism, and the tremendous efforts of the
Police Service of Northern Ireland and MI5 for their hard won gains over the
past decade,” he said.
“However,
it is not a time for complacency. There is still a minority who wish to cause
harm in Northern Ireland. As ever, the public should remain vigilant and report
any concerns they may have to the police.”
Police
Service Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Simon Byrne said in a statement
that the decision signaled “a success in the long-term efforts made by police
officers and staff, our partners and in particular the community, in achieving
the kind of society we all want and deserve”.
“The
success that we have achieved over recent years, in preventing attacks,
investigating and pursuing groups including the new IRA has brought us to where
we are today,” he said.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/terrorism-threat-level-in-northern-ireland-reduced/2542498
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/hijabi-women-karnataka-human-black-cloak/d/126637