Iran Protests Cartoons Of Khamenei In French Satirical Weekly, Charlie Hebdo
New Age Islam News Bureau
05 January 2023
The French caricature
magazine "Charlie Hebdo" published a caricature of Khamenei. Photo:
Twitter/ @bemer_bahar
-----
• Terror Group Islamic State Calls On Muslims In
Singapore And Southeast Asia To Join Them
• Iraqi Kurdistan Has A Diverse
Array Of Religious Sites 5,800 Mosques, 145 Churches And 400 other Religious
Places: Ministry of Religious Affairs
• New York Machete Attacker Planned Murderous ‘Jihad’,
Say Prosecutors
• UN Security Council To Discuss Ben-Gvir's 'Storming'
Of Al-Aqsa Mosque
Mideast
• Palestinians decry settler attack on Christian
cemetery in Jerusalem
• Houthis acknowledge role in tortured inmate’s death
• Netanyahu Defends Ben-Gvir's Visit To Al-Aqsa Mosque
• Orthodox Jewish Newspaper Condemns Ben-Gvir For
Storming Al-Aqsa Mosque
• Leader Blasts West’s Fake Support for Women's Rights
as Sheer Brazenness
• Israeli military demolishes parts of West Bank hamlet
set for eviction
--------
Southeast Asia
• Indonesia Working Group condemns racist Israeli
aggression at Al-Aqsa Mosque
• Islamic State called on Muslims in Singapore to join
terror group: Report
• Malaysia asked to explain Pakistani journalist’s
deportation
• Sabah schools, non-Muslim religious bodies get RM54m
allocation for 2023
--------
Arab World
• Turkish, Russian forces could ‘expand’ Syria joint
patrols
• Syria opposition uneasy after Turkish, Syrian
defence ministers meet
• UAE President, Jordan’s King Abdullah discuss
fraternal relations
• UAE top diplomat back in Syria as relations continue
to thaw
• UAE’s foreign minister meets Syrian president in
Damascus
--------
North America
• Respect For Muslim Students 'Should Have Superseded
Academic Freedom' In Class Controversy: College President
• US looks at ways to further target Iranian drone
production, White House says
• United States celebrates 75 years of Pakistan-U.S.
bilateral relations
• Why Latin Americans are marching in solidarity with Iran’s
persecuted protesters
--------
Europe
• Swedish court convicts man of posing with bodies in
Syria
• Iran hands protest note to French ambassador over
Khamenei caricatures
• Germany condemns far-right Israeli minister's
Al-Aqsa visit
--------
Pakistan
• Pakistan Warns Israel Against Breaching Sanctity Of Al-Aqsa
Mosque
• PTI chief Imran Khan files petition in Lahore HC
against disqualification by ECP
• Banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Threatens To
Target Top Leaders Of PML-N And PPP
• Efforts afoot to bring TTP to talks, says Interior
Minister
• Soleimani believed integrity of Iran is linked to
integrity of Pakistan: Ambassador Hosseini
• Dar expects Saudi Arabia, China to beef up forex
reserves by Jan-end
• COAS Asim Munir, Saudi defence minister discuss
military cooperation
• Al Qaeda-linked group, TTP claim spies’ murder in
Khanewal
• Contractor’s house attacked after refusing to pay
ransom to ‘TTP member’
• Pakistan nominates President Erdogan for Nobel Peace
Prize
--------
India
• Kashmir-Born, Ahmad Ahanger, Chief Islamic State Recruiter Designated As
Terrorist By Centre
• Forget Devp Issues, Focus On Love Jihad, Says
Kateel; Congress Slams Remarks
• Maharashtra Interfaith Marriage Panel Got Sole
Muslim Member After Another Nominee Dropped Out
• Karnataka VHP Starts ‘Anti-Love Jihad’ Helpline In
Dakshina Kannada, Police To ‘Seek Legal View’
• 50,000 People Can't Be Uprooted Overnight: Supreme
Court Stays Haldwani Eviction
• Mass Marriage Venue Hosts 67 Muslim, Hindu Couples
• Intel unit seeks personal info of Aligarh Muslim
University students
• Lashkar hand suspected in Rajouri attacks, 1,800
more securitymen posted
• J&K sees bandh, protests over terror strikes
--------
South Asia
• Afghanistan Raids on Islamic State Hideouts Leave
Eight Dead, Says Taliban
• Islamic Emirate Rejects US Official’s Remarks on Its
Commitments
• Daesh militants involved in attack on Pakistan
Embassy in Kabul killed: Afghan spokesperson
• Uzbekistan, Pakistan to Conduct Technical Survey of
Trans-Afghanistan Railway
• UN Security Council To Meet Next Week On Taliban Ban
On Female Aid Workers
• Taliban threat dominates China’s policy towards
Afghanistan: Report
--------
Africa
• Yoruba Muslim Scholars Urge Nigerians To Shun
Religious Politics
• Death Toll In Somalia Twin Car Bombings Claimed By
Al-Shabaab Rises To 35
• Libya condemns the Israeli minister's storming of
the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque and considers it a provocation to the feelings
of Muslims.
• 2023: Reject politician who discriminate, tamper
with your rights – Group tells Muslims
• 35 dead as twin bomb blasts hit Somalia
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/iran-cartoons-khamenei-charlie-hebdo/d/128806
--------
Iran Protests Cartoons Of Khamenei In French Satirical
Weekly, Charlie Hebdo
The French caricature
magazine "Charlie Hebdo" published a caricature of Khamenei. Photo:
Twitter/ @bemer_bahar
-----
04 January ,2023
Iran warned France on Wednesday it would respond after
“insulting” cartoons depicting Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei were
published in the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.
The weekly had published dozens of cartoons on the
same day ridiculing the highest religious and political figure in the Islamic
Republic.
The magazine said the cartoons were part of a
competition it launched in December in support of the protests triggered by the
September 16 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian Kurd who was arrested
for allegedly violating the country’s strict dress code for women.
“The insulting and indecent act of a French
publication in publishing cartoons against the religious and political
authority will not go without an effective and decisive response,” tweeted Iran’s
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
“We will not allow the French government to go beyond
its bounds. They have definitely chosen the wrong path.”
The French magazine said the contest aimed “to support
the struggle of Iranians who are fighting for their freedom.”
Iranian authorities say hundreds of people, including
members of the security forces, have been killed and thousands arrested in what
they generally describe as “riots,” and have accused hostile foreign powers and
opposition groups of stoking the unrest.
Charlie Hebdo published the caricatures in an special
edition to mark the anniversary of a deadly attack on its Paris office on
January 7, 2015 by assailants who said they were acting on behalf of al-Qaeda
to avenge the magazine’s decision to publish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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Terror Group Islamic State Calls On Muslims In
Singapore And Southeast Asia To Join Them
An Islamic State fighter
raising its militant black flag over a building in Syria. (File photo:
AFP/Welayat Raqa)
-----
Hannah Martens
January 05, 2023
Terror group Islamic State (IS), also known as Daesh,
has called upon Muslims in Singapore, along with other Asian states, to come
forward and join them in an audiotape released on Sep. 13, 2022.
In an annual threat assessment report on
counter-terrorist trends and analyses put out by the S. Rajaratnam School of
International Studies (RSIS) on Jan. 3, RSIS dean Kumar Ramakrishna expressed
concerns about the contents of the audiotape, which was released by the pro-IS
Al Furqan media.
In it, he said the IS called on "Muslims in
Singapore, along with those in other Asian states, to come forward to join
it".
IS spokesperson Abu Umar al-Muhajir claimed in the
audiotape that Muslims in Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and India
are "especially oppressed and humiliated in this region", warning
that if they do not "adhere to Islam and join the ranks of ISIS",
they will "remain oppressed and humiliated".
Ramakrishnan further highlighted a suicide bombing
linked to pro-IS militant group Jemaah Ansharut Daulah (JAD) in December 2022,
which killed a police officer in Bandung, Indonesia, saying that
"continued vigilance" is needed to safeguard societies against the
evolving threat of terrorism and extremism in Southeast Asia and beyond.
Threat from terrorist groups continue to be
"high"
In a separate segment, analysts Kalicharan Veera
Singam and Abigail Leong drew attention to the Singapore's Internal Security
Department's (ISD) assessment that the
threat from Islamist extremism and terrorism continued to be "high"
in 2022.
Networks like IS, Al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiah remain
"resilient" as they show "tenacity and adaptability"
despite operational and organisational setbacks, the analysts wrote.
However, these groups' ability to operate and recruit
in Singapore or plot an attack has been limited.
That being said, cases of self-radicalisation have
continued to be detected by local authorities in 2022.
Since 2015, 45 self-radicalised individuals have been
dealt with under the Internal Security Act (ISA). Although figures have dropped
slightly in recent years, from 17 cases in 2016 to one case each in 2021 and
2022, such cases continue to persist.
The analysts also posited that the internet continues
to play a vital role in sustaining the global Jihadist movement.
In April 2022, authorities detained a 29-year-old Singaporean
man under the ISA after he prepared to travel overseas to conflict zones to
take up arms. Online sermons of foreign radical preachers had allegedly
radicalised the man, who believed it was his religious obligation to fight
alongside the Black Flag Army against the "enemies of Islam".
"The 'cyber jihad' waged on borderless virtual
battlefield, is a potential 'security minefield' in a highly digitally
connected society like Singapore," stated the report.
Need to stay alert to potential threats
While there is no specific or credible threat to
Singapore, the analysts say there is still a need to stay alert to any
potential threats.
With the easing of Covid-19 related travel
restrictions and cross-border travel resuming, this could prompt a surge in terrorist
movement and activities in Singapore, including around Southeast Asia, they
said.
"Singapore continues to feature in the propaganda
of Islamist terror groups such as IS and remain a high-value target for both
terrorist organisations and self-radicalised lone actors."
Race and religion as potential weak points
The report cites race and religion issues as potential
fault lines in Singapore that radicals of any creed can manipulate.
The report mentions the Australian national Andrew
Gosling, who threw a bottle from his condominium towards a group of Malay
Muslims gathered at a barbeque area below. His actions led to him killing an
elderly Muslim man, and Gosling was sentenced to five and a half years in jail.
Prosecutors described Gosling's actions as demonstrating hostility toward
Muslims and being religiously aggravated.
Another incident the report brought up was the senior
polytechnic lecturer who made racist remarks towards a mixed-raced couple where
the male was of Indian ethnicity and the female was Chinese.
These incidents might be isolated and one-off, but the
report stressed the importance of maintaining tolerance and harmony in
Singapore's society.
"Singapore continues to place great importance on
maintaining inter-communal harmony and social cohesion, in order to deny space
for dices and extremist ideologies to take root in society."
Source: Mother Ship
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://mothership.sg/2023/01/islamic-state-muslims-spore-join-is-rsis-report/
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Iraqi Kurdistan Has A Diverse
Array Of Religious Sites 5,800 Mosques, 145 Churches And 400 other Religious
Places: Ministry of Religious Affairs
Christians
in a church in Iraqi Kurdistan. Photo: Youtube
-----
January 4, 2023
HEWLÊR-Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan region,— Iraqi Kurdistan
region has a diverse array of religious sites, including 5,800 mosques, 145
churches, and 400 other places of worship. The ninth cabinet has created a plan
to renovate and restore these places of worship in Sulaimani, Lalish, and other
locations in Duhok, according to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)
website.
The Kurdistan region is home to seven officially
recognized religions, which are licensed by the Ministry of Endowments and
Religious Affairs of KRG.
The spokesperson for the Ministry of Endowments and
Religious Affairs, Nabaz Ismail, stated that according to Law No. 5 of 2015,
there are seven officially recognized religions in Iraqi Kurdistan that are
regulated by the KRG. These religions are represented within the Ministry of
Endowments and Religious Affairs.
There are a total of 5,800 mosques in the Kurdish
region, with 3,200 of them being used for Friday prayers, the spokesperson
said.
According to Ismail, both Christians and Yazidis have
their own general directorates and affairs within the ministry, but they are
still part of the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs and fall under
the jurisdiction of the general directorate. He also noted that the recognized
religions in the Kurdistan region, including Islam, Christianity, Yazidi,
Baha’i, Sabi’a Mandai, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism.
All of the recognized religions in the Kurdistan
region are active and have a strong relationship with each other, supporting
and benefiting from each other’s presence, Ismail added.
The ninth cabinet has developed a comprehensive plan
to repair various religious sites, with a particular emphasis on the shrine of
Sultan Muzaffar al-Din in Erbil, Ahmadi Sheikh Mosque, and the Great Mosque in
Sulaimani. In addition to this, there are ongoing restoration projects at the
Lalish base and other religious sites in the Duhok province.
In 2016 the Kurdish religious ministry said the number
of mosques in Kurdistan has increased from 5,010 in 2013 to 5,337 in 2016. Most
of the newly established mosques located in Erbil Province.
According to KRG government data in 2018,
philanthropists have built over 99% of mosques in Iraqi Kurdistan.
In contrast to the high percentage of mosques in the
region that were funded by philanthropists, only 1% of the more than 7,000
schools in the Kurdistan region received funding from philanthropists.
Source: E Kurd
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://ekurd.net/iraqi-kurdistan-5800-mosques-2023-01-04
--------
New York Machete Attacker Planned Murderous ‘Jihad’,
Say Prosecutors
The charges were brought
against Trevor Bickford, who police say attacked three officers just outside
the Times Square security zone where New Yorkers gathered by the tens of
thousands on New Year’s Eve. — Reuters file pic
-----
05 Jan 2023
NEW YORK, Jan 5 — The machete-wielding man who
allegedly attacked police officers near Times Square on New Year’s Eve was
motivated by Islamist extremism, New York City prosecutors said Wednesday.
Trevor Bickford, 19, travelled to New York “to kill
people and carry out Jihad,” the Manhattan District Attorney’s office told a
state court.
Bickford — from Wells, a small coastal town in Maine —
was remanded in custody Wednesday at the government’s request following his
arraignment on assault and attempted murder charges.
Assistant DA Lucy Nicholas told the hearing that
Bickford “specifically travelled” to New York via Boston with the intention of
murdering government employees.
He is accused of attacking three officers shortly
after 10:00pm just outside the Times Square security zone where tens of
thousands had gathered to celebrate the New Year.
Bickford allegedly hit two officers on the head,
without causing life-threatening injury, before another officer used his
service weapon to wound him in the shoulder.
Following his arrest, Bickford told detectives that he
shouted “Allahu Akbar” before the attack, according to the prosecutors’
complaint.
“I walked up and hit him over the head with a kukri. I
charged another officer but dropped the knife and I tried to get the police
officer’s gun but couldn’t,” Bickford told police.
Nicholas said Bickford also stated that “all
government officials” were a target for him “as they cannot be proper Muslims
because the United States government supports Israel.”
CNN, citing anonymous sources, reported that Bickford
was carrying a diary in which he had expressed his desire to join the Afghan
Taliban and die as a martyr.
The FBI had questioned him in mid-December after one
of his relatives warned the bureau of his jihadist statements, NBC News
reported. — AFP
Source: Malay Mail
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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UN Security Council to discuss Ben-Gvir's 'storming'
of Al-Aqsa Mosque
Al_Aqsa_Mosque
----
January 4, 2023
The UN Security Council is to hold an emergency
session to discuss the desecration of Al-Aqsa Mosque by far-right Israeli
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir. The session was called for by the
UAE and China on behalf of the Palestinian and Jordanian UN missions, and could
take place tomorrow, a diplomat told the Times of Israel.
The UAE, which normalised relations with Israel in
2020 in the Abraham Accords, condemned "the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque
courtyard by an Israeli minister under the protection of Israeli forces."
It went on to call on the Israeli authorities "to assume responsibility
for reducing escalation and instability in the region."
Jordan's foreign ministry also summoned Israel's
ambassador. "Jordan condemns in the severest of terms the storming of
Al-Aqsa mosque and violation of its sanctity," he was told by the
ministry.
The Noble Sanctuary of Al-Aqsa is the third holiest
site in the world for Muslims. Jews, on the other hand, refer to the area as
the Temple Mount. Ben-Gvir stormed the mosque complex yesterday with illegal
Jewish settlers under police protection, a day after he announced that he was
postponing the visit due to warnings about it creating unrest.
The far-right politician's visit was condemned by
Palestinians as an "unprecedented provocation". Israeli President
Isaac Herzog warned in November that "the whole world is concerned"
about Ben-Gvir's extremist views.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is
located, during the 1967 Six Day War. The occupation state annexed the entire
city in 1980, a move never recognised by the international community.
Source: Middle East Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
Mideast
Palestinians decry settler attack on Christian cemetery in Jerusalem
Abdel Raouf Arnaout and Nour Abu Aisha
04.01.2023
JERUSALEM
Palestinians on Wednesday condemned an Israeli settler
attack on a Christian cemetery in occupied East Jerusalem.
Stone graves were destroyed with crosses toppled at
the Protestant cemetery on Mount Zion, where Christians believe Jesus's Last
Supper took place.
"This is not only a cowardly act, but also
disgusting, and it is rejected by any human being,” Hosam Naoum, the Anglican
Archbishop in Jerusalem, told a press conference.
“This attack shows a clear hate speech against
Christians in the city of Jerusalem, which we completely reject,” he added.
According to the Evangelical Episcopal Church in East
Jerusalem, the attack was carried out by two young men on Jan. 1.
Naoum called on the Israeli authorities to bring the
perpetrators of the cemetery attack to justice.
"We hope that this matter will not be repeated,
because Jerusalem is a city of holy sites,” he added.
Israeli police said an investigation has been launched
into the attack.
The Chief Justice of Palestine, Mahmoud al-Habash,
said the attack reflects the “racist mentality” of Israel.
“This attack represents the racist and barbaric
mentality of the Israeli state, which does not differentiate between the living
and the dead,” he added in a statement.
Palestinian group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip,
held the Israeli government responsible “for the repercussions of the Israeli
extremists' attack on the Christian cemetery”.
Source: Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Houthis acknowledge role in tortured inmate’s death
SAEED AL-BATATI
January 04, 2023
AL-MUKALLA, Yemen: The Iran-backed Houthi militia has
admitted that its personnel in Yemen’s northern province of Saada kidnapped,
imprisoned, and brutally tortured to death a young man, in a rare
acknowledgment of human rights violations in its detention facilities.
The group said that four men who acted “on their own”
seized a young grocer, named Ibrahim Yahiya Hashool Al-Thamali, from the Sahar
district of Saada, and brutally tortured him in captivity, leading to his
death.
Yemeni activists and the victim’s relatives shared a
video of Al-Thamali’s semi-naked body, with multiple signs of torture, saying
that the man was kidnapped from his place of work, imprisoned, and brutally
tortured by the Houthis before his death.
Hussein Al-Ezzi, the Houthi deputy foreign minister,
accused “infiltrators” in the militia of human rights violations committed against
civilians.
Al-Ezzi’s attempts to absolve his organization of
abusing captives and kidnapping civilians were met with outrage from Yemeni
activists on social media, who accused the Houthis of routinely torturing
inmates to death.
“When will you awaken from your slumber and
acknowledge that your way of governing is flawed and that your conduct toward
people is unacceptable?” wrote Ibrahim Ismail, a Sanaa-based academic.
“Ibrahim Al-Thamali is one of the hundreds of innocent
Yemeni youths who have been slaughtered unjustly on a daily basis since the
seizure of the capital, Sanaa, by an evil gang,” Mohammed Anam, a Yemeni
journalist, said, adding that the Houthis acknowledged murdering the young man
out of fear that his strong clan might revolt against their rule.
The murder of Al-Thamali has once again attracted
attention to maltreatment in Houthi detention centers in regions under their
control, particularly in Saada, the militia’s stronghold.
Mutahar Al-Badhiji, executive director of the Yemeni
Coalition to Monitor Human Rights Violations, told Arab News that last year,
500 Yemenis were kidnapped by the Houthis from areas under their control, 50
were forcibly disappeared, and 40 were tortured.
Al-Badhiji said that Houthi torture tactics include
sleep deprivation, showering captives with cold water, particularly in the
winter, hanging by the feet, beating with batons and electric wires, and
isolating prisoners.
Muammar Al-Eryani, Yemen’s information minister, said
the Houthis have kidnapped thousands of Yemenis, including politicians,
journalists, activists, and ordinary citizens, and disappeared them while
subjecting them to brutal torture, resulting in the deaths of hundreds and
permanent disabilities of many others.
He urged international rights organizations and
mediators to identify and condemn the Houthis for their crimes and to exert
pressure on the militia to free all captives.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2226816/middle-east
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Netanyahu defends Ben-Gvir's visit to Al-Aqsa Mosque
January 4, 2023
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended on
Tuesday what the Palestinian Authority has called the "invasion" of
Al-Aqsa Mosque by his National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, Al-Quds has
reported.
Nevertheless, an official in Netanyahu's office said
that the newly re-elected prime minister is fully committed to the site's
decades-old status quo allowing only Muslim worship there. The official said
that Ben-Gvir's tour around the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque complied with an
arrangement that allows non-Muslims to visit but not pray.
The official said that several Israeli ministers have
entered Al-Aqsa Mosque during the past few years, including former National
Security Minister Gilad Erdan. "Claims of a change in the status quo are
groundless…" insisted Netanyahu's office. "Hamas will not dictate
what we shall do."
However, Ben-Gvir's visit to the Noble Sanctuary of
Al-Aqsa prompted local, regional and international criticism, even from close
allies of Israel.
"The United States stands firmly for preservation
of the status quo with respect to the holy sites in Jerusalem," said a
National Security Council spokesperson. "Any unilateral action that
jeopardises the status quo is unacceptable."
Source: Middle East Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230104-netanyahu-defends-ben-gvirs-visit-to-al-aqsa-mosque/
--------
Orthodox Jewish newspaper condemns Ben-Gvir for
storming Al-Aqsa Mosque
4 January 2023
A front-page condemnation by a newspaper affiliated
with Israel's religious Orthodox community on Wednesday exposed divisions over
the actions of Israeli far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir,
who stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque's courtyards a day earlier.
The editorial on Yated Neeman, a newspaper that caters
to Israel's Hasidic community, was titled: "Provocation on the Temple
Mount, world condemnation blitz."
Yated Neeman wrote that Ben-Gvir's visit was an
"unnecessary and dangerous provocation" that also resulted in global
condemnation.
The newspaper is closely affiliated with the United
Torah Judaism (UTJ) political alliance, which signed a coalition agreement with
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party last week.
The editorial said that storming Al-Aqsa Mosque would
"unnecessarily endanger the lives of Jews".
"What value does a 'victory lap' of a few minutes
in front of the cameras have - apart from the hope of a media gain?" the
newspaper said, adding that "these are futile acts full of folly".
The paper said Ben-Gvir's actions played into the
hands of groups such as Hamas, who would use such "futile and foolish
actions" to convince Palestinians that Jews were planning to destroy
Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Yated Neeman also pointed out that Ben-Gvir visited
the site despite "strict prohibitions" in Israeli laws on access to
Al-Aqsa, known as Temple Mount to Jews.
Following the condemnation, Israeli lawmaker Moshe
Gafni, a member of the UJT coalition, said, "Nothing was gained from this,
except taunting the whole world."
Gafni added that not entering the site did not mean
Jews were relinquishing their rights over the site.
"The fact that you don't go there doesn't mean
it's not mine, on the contrary, it's the Holy of Holies," he said.
Ben-Gvir's visit also drew condemnation from Sephardi
Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef.
"As a minister representing the government of
Israel, you should be acting according to Chief Rabbinate instructions, which
have long forbidden visiting the Temple Mount," said Yosef.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam and
the site of the Jewish temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE.
Source: Middle East Eye
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aqsa-mosque-ben-gvir-storming-orthodox-jewish-newspaper-condemns
--------
Leader Blasts West’s Fake Support for Women's Rights
as Sheer Brazenness
2023-January-4
Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in Tehran on
Wednesday while addressing a group of Iranian women in the run-up to the
celebrations commemorating the birthday anniversary of Hazrat Fatemeh Zahra (SA),
the beloved daughter of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).
Ayatollah Khamenei strongly dismissed the Western
governments' bogus support for women’s rights, stressing that fake gestures
come despite the fact that women and girls are subjected to different forms of
abuse.
"The absolute brazenness of the West comes into
sight when it presents itself as the forerunner of advocacy for women’s right,
whilst it is responsible for flurries of blows dealt to the dignity and
prestige of women. This could be explained as utter shamelessness," he
added.
Ayatollah Khamenei pointed out that one would feel
deeply ashamed to know about last year’s social movement, in which Western
women publicized their experiences of sexual abuse or sexual harassment.
“This is what they suggest by women’s rights and
freedom. This is by no means freedom, but rather utter slavery,” the Supreme
Leader said.
Ayatollah Khamenei noted that the intermingling of men
and women in Western societies, contrary to the propagated notion, has failed
to diminish men’s carnal desires and has instead amplified it, resulting in
women and girls being sexually harassed on streets, in workplaces, educational
centers and even in military facilities.
“Sex trade, sexual slavery, violation of all moral and
humanitarian principles, and legalization of issues that are forbidden in all
divine religions” are now widely prevalent across the West, Ayatollah Khamenei
pointed out.
He noted that Western women are being “alienated,”
describing the Western capitalist system as a patriarchal one.
The Supreme Leader, meantime, criticized Western
capitalism, saying people's capital has more value than humanity in the
economic and political system in Western countries.
Ayatollah Khamenei said that men, therefore, have
priority over women in terms of capitalism because they can earn more money
than women, Ayatollah Khamenei argued.
He also stressed he importance of employing efficient,
experienced, knowledgeable, and wise women at various levels of Iran’s
decision-making apparatus and expressed his satisfaction with the high number
of women scholars and scientists in the Islamic Republic.
Ayatollah Khamenei, meantime, referred to motherhood
and home-lovingness as the two main and primary roles of each and every woman.
He pointed out that caring and reformist thinkers have
voiced serious concerns over family disintegration in Western countries, but
the problem is getting complicated so quickly that nothing could be done either
to stop or remedy it.
Ayatollah Khamenei termed hijab as a religious and
inevitable duty for all Muslim women, emphasizing that no Iranian woman should
be labeled as non-religious or anti-revolutionary if she fails to fully honor
the obligation.
Source: Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Israeli military demolishes parts of West Bank hamlet
set for eviction
04 January ,2023
The Israeli military has demolished homes, water tanks
and olive orchards in two Palestinian villages in the southern West Bank where
some residents are at risk of imminent expulsion, residents and activists said
Wednesday.
One of the villages whose structures were demolished
on Tuesday is part of an arid area of the West Bank known as Masafer Yatta,
which the Israeli military has designated as a live-fire training zone.
Some 1,000 residents of the eight hamlets that make up
Masafer Yatta are slated for expulsion, an order Israel’s Supreme Court upheld
in May after a two-decade legal battle.
According to images shared by local residents and
activists, armored vehicles escorted construction equipment to the demolitions
in the villages of Ma’in and Shaab al-Butum, which is part of Masafer Yatta.
Guy Butavia, an activist with the Israeli rights group
Taayush, said the army razed five homes, animal pens and cisterns, spilling the
contents of people’s lives out onto the cold desert.
“They come and demolish your house. It’s winter. It’s
cold. What’s next? Where are they going to sleep that night?” he said.
Most residents of the area have remained in place
since the ruling, even as Israeli security forces periodically roll in to
demolish structures. But they could be forced out at any time.
Local officials and rights group said Israeli defense
officials have informed them that they would soon forcibly remove more than
1,000 residents from the area.
“There is a genuine concern that a grave war crime
will be committed,” said Roni Pelli, a spokeswoman for ACRI.
COGAT, the Israeli defense body that deals with
Palestinian civilian affairs, declined to comment.
Both villages are in the 60 percent of the occupied
West Bank known as Area C, where the Israeli military exercises full control
under interim peace agreements reached with the Palestinians in the 1990s.
Palestinian structures built without military permits — which residents say are
nearly impossible to obtain — are at risk of demolition.
Tuesday’s demolition comes against the backdrop of a
new government in Israel, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where
proponents of Israel’s West Bank settlement enterprise hold influential
portfolios and are expected to both drive up settlement building and suppress
construction for Palestinians in Area C.
The families living in Masafer Yatta say they’ve
herded their sheep and goats across the area long before Israel captured the
West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war.
But Israel says the nomadic Arab Bedouin had no
permanent structures when the military declared the area a firing and training
zone in the early 1980s. In November 1999, security forces expelled some 700
villagers and destroyed homes and cisterns.
A twenty-year legal battle began the following year
that ended in 2022 with the Israeli Supreme Court denying an additional hearing
in October over the expulsion.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Southeast Asia
Indonesia Working Group condemns racist Israeli
aggression at Al-Aqsa Mosque
January 4, 2023
Indonesia's Working Group for Al-Aqsa condemned on
Wednesday the "racist aggression" at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied
Jerusalem by Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir.
"This unjustified provocation constituted a gross
violation of human rights principles and must be confronted," said the
group. Members also slammed the composition of the cabinet formed by Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and their avowed commitment to the colonial
settlement of the occupied Palestinian territories.
With the inclusion of notorious far-right extremists
such as Ben-Gvir, Bezalel Smotrich and Avi Maoz, the Indonesian group warned of
an escalation of Israel's ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people,
particularly in occupied Jerusalem.
"We call on world leaders to stand against this
new racist and xenophobic regime, which poses a dangerous threat to regional
and international peace. Moreover, the Palestinians need to make every effort
to achieve national unity."
Source: Middle East Monitor
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Islamic State called on Muslims in Singapore to join
terror group: Report
Vanessa Lim
04 Jan 2023
SINGAPORE: The Islamic State group in September 2022
called on Muslims in Singapore - along with those in other Asian states - to
come forward to join the terror group, according to a report published by the S
Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) on Tuesday (Jan 3).
In an annual threat assessment as part of RSIS'
regularly published Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses, the think-tank's
dean Kumar Ramakrishna said to "take heed" of an audiotape released
last year by Islamic State's media affiliate Al-Furqan.
In the 36-minute recording, Islamic State spokesman
Abu Umar al-Muhajir called on Muslims around the world to join the ranks of the
militant group.
He "especially" called on Muslims in East
Asia - from the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and other
countries - to join Islamic State since they were "especially oppressed
and humiliated in this region", according to a transcript by the Meir Amit
Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center in Israel.
Abu Umar also called on Islamic State operatives in
East Asia to fight against "communists" and "infidels" in
their countries.
RSIS' 116-page report noted that Singapore's Internal
Security Department (ISD) had assessed that the threat from "Islamist
extremism and terrorism" - both from organised groups based overseas and
self-radicalised lone actors based locally - remained high in 2022.
In a section focused on Singapore, RSIS analysts
Kalicharan Veera Singam and Abigail Leong described the Internet as continuing
to play a "pivotal" role in sustaining the momentum of the global
jihadist movement.
"This ‘cyber jihad’, waged on a borderless
virtual battlefield, is a potential security minefield in a highly digitally
connected society like Singapore," they wrote.
Developments in the region and further abroad may also
reverberate closer to home, they said, citing how the Taliban's return to power
in Afghanistan has stirred lingering concerns of a resurgence in jihadist
activity in Southeast Asia.
"This is especially given the historical nexus
between the Taliban, Al-Qaeda and regional networks like JI (Jemaah
Islamiyah)," they said.
"More than a year on, however, there is limited
evidence of collaboration between the abovementioned terrorist groups, or of
Southeast Asian jihadists performing (migration) to the Afghan theatre."
While the RSIS report said there were no specific or
credible terrorist threats to Singapore currently, it warned that the country
continues to feature in the propaganda of terror groups like Islamic State, and
remains a high-value target for both terrorist organisations and
self-radicalised lone actors.
The report's authors added that issues around race and
religion remain potential fault lines in Singapore, which could be manipulated
by radicals.
They pointed to the case of Australian national Andrew
Gosling, who was sentenced to jail in April last year for throwing a wine
bottle from his condominium toward a group of Malay Muslims gathered on the
ground floor, and killing an elderly man in the process. His actions were
described by prosecutors as demonstrating religious hostility.
Last month, a former polytechnic lecturer was also
sentenced to jail for racist remarks against an interracial couple.
Source: Channel News Asia
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Malaysia asked to explain Pakistani journalist’s
deportation
January 5, 2023
KARACHI: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called
upon Malaysian authorities to explain how a Pakistani journalist who had been
living as a refugee in Malaysia for years — after allegedly being kidnapped and
tortured by an intelligence agency — came to be deported back to Pakistan.
RSF also called on the Pakistani government to
immediately state where the journalist is now.
According to an RSF press release, Syed Fawad Ali
Shah, also known as Fawad Shah, disappeared in Malaysia on Aug 23.
Malaysia’s home affairs minister acknowledged that he
was deported back to Pakistan in August at the request of the Pakistan High
Commission in Kuala Lumpur.
The Malaysian authorities said they had deported Mr
Shah because the Pakistani authorities told them he was a police officer who
was the subject of disciplinary proceedings.
But this is not true, RSF said, adding that Mr Shah
has never been a police officer and he had in fact been residing in a
completely legal fashion in Malaysia under the refugee status granted him since
2014 by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, because he had
previously been kidnapped for his work.
It said Mr Shah was held for three-and-a-half months
in a cellar and was tortured, probably as a result of his investigative stories
about enforced disappearances.
“Due to the fault of the Malaysian authorities, no one
knows Syed Fawad Ali Shah’s current whereabouts and in what circumstance he
survives,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk.
Source: Dawn
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Sabah schools, non-Muslim religious bodies get RM54m
allocation for 2023
05 Jan 2023
KOTA KINABALU, Jan 5 — The Sabah government has
allocated grants totalling RM54.05 million to schools and non-Muslim religious
bodies in this year's state budget, an increase of RM7.05 million compared with
last year's allocation.
Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor, said this
demonstrated that the Sabah government was very sensitive to the needs of the
people and serious in assisting them irrespective of race or religion.
He said this in his speech text, delivered by Deputy
Chief Minister, Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam, who is also Sabah Industrial
Development Minister, at the presentation ceremony of lion heads (for lion
dance) to various associations and temples in the state, here today.
This year, the Sabah government is presenting lion
heads worth RM1.5 million, which will be distributed through the respective
state and parliamentary constituencies.
Hajiji said the presentation of the lion heads to the
Chinese community in the state, in conjunction with the Chinese New Year
celebration, showed the commitment of the Sabah government to continue
supporting and assisting the multi-racial community.
“The state government will always assist the people,
of all races and religions, in ensuring that they will be able to celebrate
their respective celebrations,” he said, adding that the Sabah government is
committed to the policy of equality and fairness in all aspects.
Hajiji also hoped that the assistance would further
boost the spirit of the Chinese New Year celebrations and, at the same time,
continue to nurture the spirit of camaraderie and unity among the multi-racial
and religious people in the state.
Source: Malay Mail
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Arab World
Turkish, Russian forces could ‘expand’ Syria joint
patrols
04 January ,2023
Turkey’s defense minister said Wednesday that Turkish
and Russian troops could “expand” their joint patrols in northern Syria as part
of efforts to bring security to the region.
Hulusi Akar did not elaborate on the plans, which come
days after he held talks with his Syrian and Russian counterparts in a surprise
meeting in Moscow. Akar’s talks with Syria’s Mahmoud Abbas marked the first
ministerial level meeting between Turkey and Syria since relations broke down
with the start of the Syrian civil war more than 11 years ago.
“We can expand the joint patrols with Russia in (the)
north of Syria,” Akar told a group of reporters when asked about his
discussions in Moscow, according to a defense ministry statement.
More talks between Russian, Syrian and Turkish
officials would follow, Akar said, adding: “our hope is that this process will
continue in a reasonable, logical and successful manner, and the fight against
terrorism will be successful.”
Turkey has been threatening to carry out a new
military offensive into Syria against Kurdish militants it has blamed for a
deadly Nov. 13 bomb attack in Istanbul.
Moscow, which has been pressing for a reconciliation
between Ankara and Damascus, has made clear that it opposes a new Turkish
invasion. It was not immediately clear whether Russia may have proposed
expanded joint patrols between Turkish and Russian forces to avert a new
incursion.
Turkey and Syria have been standing on opposing sides
of the Syrian conflict, with Turkey backing rebels trying to oust Syrian
President Bashar Assad. Damascus for its part, has denounced Turkey’s hold over
stretches of territory in northern Syria which were seized in a series of
military incursions since 2016 to drive away Kurdish militant groups.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Syria opposition uneasy after Turkish, Syrian defence
ministers meet
04 January ,2023
Syria’s political and armed opposition are urging
their decade-long backer Turkey to reaffirm its support for their cause, after
the highest-level talks in public between Ankara and the Damascus government
since the Syrian war began in 2011.
Turkey has provided steadfast support and a home base
for political opponents of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad while
training and fighting alongside armed rebels against Syrian government troops.
But the Turkish and Syrian defense ministers met in
Moscow on December 28, with migration and Kurdish militants based on Syria’s
border with Turkey on the agenda, according to a Turkish official.
That has prompted unease within Syria’s armed and
political opposition.
The head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a hardline insurgent
group, said in a recorded video address published on Monday that talks between
Syria, Russia and Turkey were a “dangerous deviation.”
Ahrar al-Sham, another extremist faction, said that
while it “understood the situation of our Turkish ally,” it “cannot even think
of reconciling” with the Syrian government.
The Syrian National Coalition, an opposition umbrella
organization, met Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Tuesday.
He had assured it of Turkey’s continued support “to
Syrian opposition institutions and Syrians in the opposition-held areas,” said
Abdurrahman Mustafa, the head of the Turkey-backed opposition’s “interim
government.”
A senior Turkish official told Reuters that it had
seen the “reactions” of opposition factions to the meeting but that “Turkey
determines its own policy.”
“It is unrealistic to expect an immediate result from
the first meeting of ministers,” the official said.
Turkish-Syrian rapprochement seemed unthinkable
earlier in the conflict, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people,
drawn in numerous foreign powers and splintered Syria into various zones of
influence.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has called Assad a
terrorist and said there could be no peace in Syria with him in office, while
Assad has called Erdogan a thief for “stealing” Syrian land.
Source: Al Arabiya
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UAE President, Jordan’s King Abdullah discuss
fraternal relations
05 January ,2023
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and
Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Wednesday discussed cooperation between their
countries, state press agency WAM reported, during a visit by the king to
Sheikh Al Shati Palace in Abu Dhabi.
“During the meeting, the UAE President welcomed the
Jordanian King and exchanged with him New Year greetings and prayed to Allah
Almighty for further progress and prosperity for the two countries, region and
the world,” WAM reported on Wednesday.
The King of Jordan arrived in the country on Wednesday
on a “fraternal visit” and was welcomed into the UAE by Sheikh Mohamed and a
number of Sheikhs.
The UAE and Jordan have a history of strong ties, with
Jordan’s King Abdullah regularly visiting the Emirates.
Source: Al Arabiya
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UAE top diplomat back in Syria as relations continue
to thaw
04 January ,2023
The United Arab Emirates’ top diplomat met with Syrian
President Bashar Assad on Wednesday, his second visit to Damascus as relations
continue to thaw between the two countries.
According to a statement from Assad’s office, he and
UAE’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed boosting
economic ties between their nations. It quoted Assad as saying that the
restoration of ties between the two countries is in the interest of regional
stability.
The UAE’s state-run WAM news agency said they also
discussed developments in Syria and the region, with Sheikh Abdullah expressing
support for a political solution to end the conflict. The UAE foreign minister
was joined by a delegation of economic and security officials.
Sheikh Abdullah’s visit is the second to Syria since
his first trip to the war-torn country in November 2021.
It also comes 10 months after Assad paid a rare visit
to the UAE — his first in several years to a foreign country other than his
allies Russia and Iran. The UAE reopened its embassy in Syria in 2018.
Syria was expelled from the 22-member Arab League and
boycotted by its neighbors after its uprising turned conflict broke out in
2011.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in
the war, which displaced half of Syria’s pre-war population of 23 million.
Large parts of Syria have been destroyed, and reconstruction will cost tens of
billions of dollars.
With the war mostly stalemated in recent years and
after Assad regained control over much of Syria’s territory thanks to military
assistance from Russia, Iran, and the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group, Arab
countries have inched closer toward restoring ties with the Syrian leader.
Source: Al Arabiya
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UAE’s foreign minister meets Syrian president in
Damascus
January 05, 2023
LONDON: The UAE’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and
International Cooperation Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed and Syrian President Bashar
Assad met on Wednesday and discussed ways in which bilateral relations might be
enhanced through cooperation at all levels to serve the interests of both
countries, the Emirates News Agency reported.
The meeting took place in the Syrian capital,
Damascus, during the Emirati minister’s official visit to Syria. He passed on
greetings from Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, the UAE’s president, and Sheikh
Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the vice president, prime minister and ruler of
Dubai, along with their wishes for stability, progress and prosperity for Syria
and its people.
The Syrian president in turn sent his greetings to the
Emirati leaders, along with his best wishes for the further prosperity,
development and progress of their country.
In addition to bilateral relations, the two officials
discussed a number of regional and international issues of mutual concern,
including the latest developments in Syria and the wider Middle East.
Sheikh Abdullah affirmed his country’s “commitment and
keenness to support efforts made to find a political solution to the Syrian
crisis that restores the security, stability and unity of Syria and meets the
aspirations of the brotherly Syrian people for development and prosperity,” the
news agency reported.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2226951/middle-east
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North America
Respect for Muslim students 'should have superseded
academic freedom' in class controversy: College president
January 4, 2023
The president of a small liberal arts college in
Minnesota issued an apology for offending Muslim students after they were shown
depictions of the Prophet Muhammad.
Hamline University in Minnesota is at the center of a
religious firestorm after a professor shared "two depictions of the
Prophet Muhammad in class," according to The Oracle, Hamline’s student
newspaper.
One of the paintings by medieval Islamic scholar
Rashid al-Din showed Muhammad receiving divine revelation from the angel
Gabriel.
But Hamline University President Fayneese Miller went
viral on Twitter for her letter to the campus in December apologizing for the
incident.
"It is not our intent to place blame; rather, it
is our intent to note that in the classroom incident—where an image forbidden
for Muslims to look upon was projected on a screen and left for many
minutes—respect for the observant Muslim students in that classroom should have
superseded academic freedom."
Miller acknowledged that many subjects contain
controversial subject material but said that kindness for others was more
important than academics.
"Academic freedom is very important, but it does
not have to come at the expense of care and decency toward others."
The professor who showed the medieval images of
Muhammad was reportedly fired after students complained that any depictions of
their prophet were disrespectful.
The incident occurred in a college class on
"Islamic art."
The president continued to argue to that
"academic freedom" would not suffer, even after the decision to fire
the professor.
"Our response to the classroom event does not
disregard or minimize the importance of academic freedom," Miller said.
"It does state that respect, decency, and appreciation of religious and
other differences should supersede when we know that what we teach will cause
harm."
Hamline University explained the controversy and the
apology in comments to Fox Digital.
"Students do not relinquish their faith in the
classroom. To look upon an image of the prophet Muhammad, for many Muslims, is
against their faith. Questions about how best to discuss Islamic art have been
raised by many academics and is certainly an issue worthy of debate and discussion.
For those of us who have been entrusted with the responsibility of educating
the next generation of leaders and engaged citizens, it was important that our
Muslim students, as well as all other students, feel safe, supported, and
respected both in and out of our classrooms."
But the university also emphasized that it wanted to
clear up any misunderstandings about the professor who was reportedly fired at
Hamline.
Source: Fox News
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US looks at ways to further target Iranian drone
production, White House says
04 January ,2023
The US is looking at ways to target Iranian drone
production through sanctions and export controls, and is talking to private
companies whose parts have been used in production, the White House said on
Wednesday.
“We are assessing further steps we can take in terms
of export controls to restrict Iran’s access to technologies used in drones,”
White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a
statement.
Source: Al Arabiya
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United States celebrates 75 years of Pakistan-U.S.
bilateral relations
January 4, 2023
ISLAMABAD: The United States Embassy in Islamabad is
marking 75 years of bilateral partnership with Pakistan by illuminating the
building at One Constitution Avenue in the capital.
The illumination starts the evening of January 3rd and
will continue through January 11th, said a press release issued here by the
U.S. Embassy in Islamabad on Wednesday.
Using innovative technology pioneered by partner
organization 3D Illumination, the three-dimensional, moving projection
highlights key themes and images of Pakistan-U.S. relations from the past 75
years. Previously used with famous landmarks such as the Washington Monument
and Eiffel tower, this type of projection has rarely been seen before in
Pakistan.
On the occasion, U.S. Mission Chargé d’Affaires Andrew
Schofer said, “Through 75 years of diplomatic relations, the United States has
worked with Pakistan to support energy, agriculture, public health, education,
infrastructure, and people-to-people connections. We are proud to use this
unique technology to show the Pakistani people the breadth and depth of our
longstanding bilateral partnership and look forward to exploring opportunities
for future collaboration and partnership, including through the U.S.-Pakistan
Green Alliance framework.”
Over the past 75 years, the United States and Pakistan
have created a relationship based on mutual respect and shared values, building
a partnership that has been advantageous to both countries, he added.
Source: Pakistan Today
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Why Latin Americans are marching in solidarity with
Iran’s persecuted protesters
EDUARDO CAMPOS LIMA
January 05, 2023
SAO PAULO: Many in Latin America have been
demonstrating against Iran’s brutal crackdown on nationwide protests sparked by
the death in September of Mahsa Amini, 22, at the hands of the country’s
morality police for allegedly wearing her hijab incorrectly.
Activists — especially women — have marched and
gathered in front of Iranian embassies, denouncing Tehran’s repression and
human rights violations.
Demonstrations across Latin America have been
galvanized by the fact that hundreds of Iranians are now facing long prison
terms and even death sentences for protesting.
In Mexico protesters assembled in front of the Iranian
embassy in the nation’s capital on Dec. 19.
“The demonstration’s catalyst was the death sentence
issued against footballer Amir Nasr-Azadani,” activist Paola Schietekat, who
co-organized the protest, told Arab News.
But that was not the only reason, she said. “We were
horrified by the large list of people currently facing death sentences. The
message that the Iranian government wants to convey is that citizens must be
afraid of expressing their political opinions.”
According to Human Rights Iran, an NGO based in
Norway, at least 100 people have been charged or sentenced to death so far.
Feminist activists and Iranians living in Mexico
organized a protest in the capital in September.
Schietekat said some of the Iranian-born participants
were identified by the embassy’s surveillance cameras and later had problems
renewing documents.
“Now, some of them were obviously afraid of
retaliation and preferred not to attend. It was important for them that we,
Mexicans, showed our solidarity,” she added.
Laura Vazquez, one of the protesters, told Arab News:
“I heard about it on social media and decided I should go. It’s an important
cause. Nowadays, people can easily ‘support’ a protest but not show up.”
She added: “The most valuable thing was to be present
and to show our solidarity. The problems in Iran didn’t begin in September.
They’re historic.”
Mexico abstained in the UN vote that resulted in
Iran’s removal from the organization’s women’s rights agency in December.
In Schietekat’s opinion, that was a serious mistake:
“The (Mexican) government based its decision on the principle of
non-intervention, but we can’t have diplomatic relations with a country that
systematically violates human rights.”
There was a “disproportionate” police presence during the
demonstration on Dec. 19, she said, but no incidents were reported.
There have also been recent demonstrations in
Argentina, but the most visible action coming from the country has been an
online petition against Nasr-Azadani’s execution.
Created by Natalia Marcellino, the campaign has
already been supported by 1.8 million people worldwide.
“I don’t have any particular experience with Iran’s
political situation. I’m a psychologist who manages a school for children with
special needs. But I was very impacted by the news and I decided to do
something,” she told Arab News.
“I was surprised by the massive reaction to the
petition. I’m glad to see that we can come together and do something.
Nasr-Azadani has defended Iranian women and now has to be helped by us.”
A number of celebrities have publicly supported the
petition, including Colombian-born singer Shakira, Argentinian actor Ricardo
Darin and Spanish musician Alejandro Sanz.
“I think the World Cup may have given more visibility
to his case, given that people were more connected to football and he’s a
well-known player,” Marcellino said.
Uruguayan footballer Luis Suarez and Colombian Radamel
Falcao Garcia are among the professional athletes who have expressed their
solidarity with Nasr-Azadani.
A report published in 2021 by the Arab News Research
and Studies unit, titled “Border wars: Iran’s terror haven in Latin America,”
noted that since the 1979 Iranian revolution, the Islamic Republic had worked
tirelessly to strengthen its ties with Latin American countries, while also
seeking out political allies among the region’s leftist governments that shared
its hostility toward the US.
The report shed light on the nature of the political
and economic cooperation between Iran and Paraguay, and analyzed the suspicious
activities and operations of by Iran and its proxies, such as Hezbollah, in the
Tri-Border Area in general and Paraguay in particular.
In the 1990s, a leading Paraguay political and
religious figure, Fernando Lugo, made a historic visit to Iran, a gesture
repaid by Tehran through its support for his successful presidential bid in
2008, according to Dr. Hamdan Al-Shehri, a political analyst and international
relations scholar.
“Nevertheless, diplomatic and economic relations
between the two countries remained somewhat modest compared with Iran’s ties
with other Latin American countries,” he wrote.
“However, in the years after it became the target of
international sanctions, Iran realized that it needed a haven for its illegal
activities that was out of sight of the global community and immune from legal
action.
“In some Latin American states, it found the ideal
staging ground for its illicit operations, especially within the so-called
Tri-Border Area of Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil. According to several
investigations, Iranian activities being closely monitored in this frontier
region range from drug and arms smuggling to money laundering and terrorist
training.“
Fast-forward to the present and prominent political
leaders in Latin America are condemning Iran’s repression. When Colombian
President Gustavo Petro congratulated Argentina on its World Cup victory on
Twitter on Dec. 18, he urged Iran to not execute the footballer.
Colombia has endorsed criticism of Iran in the
international arena over the past few months.
Tehran formally complained to Colombia over its vote
to oust Iran from the UN women’s rights agency.
In September, Chilean President Gabriel Boric
condemned Iran for Amini’s death in his speech at the UN General Assembly.
Chilean feminist movements have been following events
in Iran, and have organized several initiatives against the regime.
“We have solidarity ties with several women’s groups,
including with Iranians. We’ve protested against Iran and produced videos about
it with Farsi subtitles so they can see there that we’re supporting them here,”
Javiera Manzi, a spokeswoman for the feminist group CF8M, told Arab News.
“We’re now releasing a declaration condemning the
crackdown on protesters and gathering support from several human rights
organizations.”
Mahmonir Nadim, an Iranian-born singer who has lived
in Brazil since 2012, told Arab News: “Many people in Brazil say they don’t
know enough about the Iranian situation so they can’t give an opinion.
“What else must they know when people are being
arrested and killed for protesting against the government?”
Nadim said she had always dreamt of being an artist,
but that would be too difficult in Iran after the 1979 revolution. “That’s why
I decided to come to Brazil.”
She and her sister organized a protest in Brazil in
September, and are now planning another one. They want more Brazilians to join
them.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2226896/world
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Europe
Swedish court convicts man of posing with bodies in
Syria
04 January ,2023
A Swedish court said on Wednesday it had found a man
guilty of violating international law by posing with dead or severely injured
bodies in war-torn Syria in 2012 while participating in a militant group.
Ubai Julaybib Benoitzon, 44, a Swedish citizen who has
changed his legal name several times, had denied the charges against him, his
lawyer Thomas Olsson said on Wednesday.
The court statement said the crimes included posing
for pictures and video footage with dead or severely injured bodies while
making victory signs and derogatory statements, with the aim of spreading the
material as war propaganda online.
“The district court has assessed that the action
constituted a serious violation of international humanitarian law,” the
statement said.
The court said it had not been able to definitively
establish whether the bodies seen in the images were dead or alive.
The verdict said Ubai Julaybib Benoitzon, who has also
been known as Bherlin Gildo and Nathan Benoitzon, at the time of the crimes was
a member of a violent extremist group, which it did not name.
The court sentenced Benoitzon, who had returned to Sweden,
to four months in prison.
Olsson did not immediately reply to the question of
whether his client would appeal the verdict.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Iran hands protest note to French ambassador over
Khamenei caricatures
Haydar Şahin
05.01.2023
Iran summoned France’s ambassador Wednesday and handed
him an official note of protest from the Foreign Ministry over the publication
of “insulting” caricatures in the French magazine Charlie Hebdo of the
country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Nicolas Roche was summoned over the insults, according
to according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran brooks by no means any
insults to its sanctities and Islamic, religious, and national values,” it said.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani expressed
Iran's strong protest against the unacceptable action to the French ambassador,
saying that “France has no right to justify insults to other countries’ and
Muslim nations’ sanctities under the pretext of freedom of expression.”
Kan’ani, who delivered the protest note to Ambassador
Roche, said that Tehran reserves the right to respond appropriately to this
behavior.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry also said that it expects
the French government to issue a statement criticizing the magazine’s action
and to take remedial measures.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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Germany condemns far-right Israeli minister's Al-Aqsa
visit
Oliver Towfigh Nia
04.01.2023
BERLIN
Germany on Wednesday criticized Israeli National
Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s “provocative” visit to the Al-Aqsa Mosque
compound.
“Yesterday’s visit is a provocation, and that’s why we
clearly reject this action,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told
journalists in Berlin.
“The federal (German) government opposes unilateral
steps that endanger the historic status quo on the Temple Mount.”
Burger called on the Israeli government “to put a stop
to further deliberate provocations,” urging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
to preserve the status quo at the holy site.
The far-right official’s controversial visit on
Tuesday has drawn international outcry, among them the US, Jordan, Türkiye,
Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.
In the face of mounting condemnation of the visit,
Netanyahu has said he remains committed to the status quo at the flashpoint
site.
For Muslims, Al-Aqsa represents the world’s
third-holiest site. Jews, for their part, call the area the Temple Mount,
saying it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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Pakistan
Pakistan warns Israel against breaching sanctity of
Al-Aqsa mosque
Baqir Sajjad Syed
January 5, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has joined the international
community in condemning Israel’s new far-right national security minister’s
provocative visit on Tuesday to Al-Aqsa mosque compound, warning that breaching
the sanctity of the holy site could inflame tensions in occupied Palestinian territories.
“Al-Aqsa is a holy site revered by Muslims around the
world. Violation of its sanctity offends the religious sensitivities of Muslims
and inflames an already tense situation in the occupied Palestinian
territories,” Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said on Wednesday
while condemning the visit of Itamar Ben-Gvir to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound.
She said the visit by the Israeli minister was
“insensitive and provocative”. “Israel must cease its illegal actions and
respect the sanctity of Muslim religious sites in the occupied Palestinian
territories,” she added.
While reiterating Pakistan’s support for the
Palestinian cause, she underscored Islamabad’s stance on the issue, which
calls for the establishment of a viable, independent, and contiguous
Palestinian State, with pre-1967 borders, and Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,
in accordance with the relevant United Nations and OIC resolutions.
Palestinians mull next moves
Meanwhile, Ben-Gvir’s tour stirred protests from
across the Arab world and Western concern about long-standing understandings on
non-Muslim access, add agencies.
Palestinians in Gaza are holding urgent talks on their
next moves after the Israeli minister visited Al-Aqsa mosque compound, a step
so far met with stern words rather than violence.
There have been fears controversial visit by Itamar
Ben-Gvir could spark a war.
Palestinian group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip,
had earlier warned such a move would be a “red line”.
Hours after Ben-Gvir’s appearance at the sensitive
site, Hamas and other militant groups held emergency meetings to discuss a
“proportionate” response, sources within the movement told AFP.
In a related development, leading ultra-Orthodox
Jewish figures supporting Israel’s coalition government on Wednesday criticised
the minister’s visit to the flashpoint holy site in Jerusalem, adding internal
religious dissent to a cascade of foreign censure.
One lawmaker accused Itamar Ben-Gvir of “goading the
entire world”.
“It is forbidden to go up to the place of the Holy of
Holies,” senior United Torah Judaism lawmaker Moshe Gafni said in parliament,
referring to a part of Jewish temples that stood at the site in ancient times
and was off-limits to most people.
Gafni said he had advised Ben-Gvir of this.
“Besides the aspect of religious law, there is nothing
to be gained from just goading the entire world,” he said.
Source: Dawn
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Banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Threatens To Target
Top Leaders Of PML-N And PPP
Jan 4, 2023
ISLAMABAD: The banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)
on Wednesday threatened to target the top leaders of the two major political
parties in the ruling coalition if they continued to support tough measures
against the militants.
The TTP, which is believed to be close to al-Qaida,
has warned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)
and foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari led Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) -
the two major parties of the ruling coalition.
"If these two parties remain firm on their
position and continue to be slaves of the army, then action will be taken
against their leading people," a statement issued by the militant group
said.
The group warned that "people should avoid
getting close to such leading people."
It claimed that the TTP was only waging what it called
"jihad" in Pakistan and "our target is the security agencies
occupying the country".
It especially warned foreign minister Bilawal, whose
mother former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was killed in a terrorist attack in
2007.
"Although Bilawal is still young, this poor man
has not yet witnessed the state of war," the statement said, adding that
the PPP leader had declared an open war on TTP.
The group also said that it had not taken action
against any political party for a long time but "unfortunately ... Bilawal
Bhutto Zardari gave the US the status of mother to quench the thirst of his
mother's love".
The terrorist outfit also said that PM Sharif had
committed the support of his entire party in the war against TTP to please the
US.
The TTP spared the religious political parties, saying
there is no scope for action against them in TTP's policy. However, it said
that "we also request you (religious parties) to refrain from activities
against us."
The warning comes just days after the civil-military
leadership of the country met under the banner of the National Security
Committee and vowed to show "zero tolerance" for terrorism in the
country.
"NSC reiterated its resolve to have zero
tolerance for terrorism in Pakistan and reaffirmed its determination to take on
any and all entities that resort to violence. This will be dealt with full
force of the state. Pakistan's security is uncompromisable and the full writ of
the state will be maintained on every inch of Pakistan's territory," said
a statement issued by the PM Office after the meeting.
Prime Minister Sharif chaired the meeting while
Bilawal, who had advocated a new policy against the rebels, also participated.
The NSC is the highest body to finalize decisions
about key security and strategic matters relating to national security.
The foreign minister earlier also opposed talks with
the militants, saying the government would not follow the policy of appeasement.
In November, the TTP called off an indefinite
ceasefire agreed with the government in June and ordered its militants to carry
out attacks on the security forces.
The TTP, also known as the Pakistan Taliban, was set
up as an umbrella group of several militant outfits in 2007. Its main aim is to
impose its strict brand of Islam across Pakistan.
Pakistan had hoped that the Afghan Taliban after
coming to power would stop the use of their soil against Pakistan by expelling
the TTP operatives but they have apparently refused to do so at the cost of
straining ties with Islamabad.
The TTP has been blamed for several deadly attacks
across Pakistan, including an attack on army headquarters in 2009, assaults on
military bases and the 2008 bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad.
In 2012, Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai was attacked
by TTP. She suffered bullet injuries and was admitted to the Military Hospital
(CMH) Peshawar and then taken to London for further treatment. The TTP claimed
responsibility for the attack, saying that Yousafzai was a "Western-minded
girl".
Source: Times Of India
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Efforts afoot to bring TTP to talks, says Interior
Minister
January 5, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Amid an uptick in terrorist activity in the
country, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah on Wednesday assured the nation that
the government was taking steps to counter terrorism.
Pakistan has seen a rise in terrorist attacks across
the country, believed to have been planned and directed by the outlawed
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leaders based in Afghanistan.
The TTP, which has ideological linkages with the
Afghan Taliban, executed around more than 100 attacks last year, most of which
happened after August when the group’s peace talks with the Pakistan government
began to falter. The ceasefire was formally ended on Nov 28 by the TTP.
Addressing a press conference here, Sanaullah said the
state’s efforts against terrorism could not be publicised as it would
compromise its success.
“But this should not be taken to mean that nothing is
being done,” the minister said, adding that tremendous efforts against
terrorism were underway and the nation should rest assured about the matter.
Commenting on the recent meeting of the National
Security Committee (NSC), he said that the forum had resolved to adopt a “zero
tolerance” policy against terrorism with “no mixed messages and no
differentiation between good or bad terrorists”.
“Whoever is involved in terrorism is a terrorist,” he
asserted.
Sanaullah further said that authorities would take
pre-emptive action against terrorist schemes and those involved would be
apprehended in order to prevent such incidents from occurring in the first
place.
He said that the NSC had also decided that the
provincial counterterrorism departments (CTDs) would be provided training by
the federal government in order to make them more effective.
The minister said that the forum had also discussed
setting up of a national body for coordinating with the various CTDs in an
effort to make them more efficient.
‘Efforts underway to bring TTP to table’
At the same time, Sanaullah said that efforts were
underway to bring the outlawed TTP to the negotiation table but the group would
first have to set aside arms and surrender before the law and the Constitution.
He said Pakistan needed to deal with the situation in
such a manner as to keep the TTP at the “lowest level” and keep the number of
terrorist incidents to a minimum.
“You will see the decisions that were made in regards
to this being implemented in the coming days.”
His remarks come after the NSC on Monday reiterated
its intent to crush terrorist groups operating inside the country with full
force.
Afghan Taliban’s remarks and TTP’s threat
During the press conference, the minister was also
asked about the recent remarks from the Afghan Taliban and the explicit threat
issued by the TTP to the PPP and the PML-N for “openly declaring war against
the TTP to appease America”.
The TTP statement pointedly mentioned PPP Chairman
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif by name, as well as
their respective parties, and warned religious parties against “activities
against us”.
“I never said that we want to attack Afghanistan or
someone there,” Sanaullah said. However, as stated before, if any terrorist is
planning to attack Pakistan or stage a terrorist attack then, as part of
international law, “we can and should engage”.
Sanaullah said the NSC meeting had concretely decided
that talks about any concerns or issues would only be held with the Afghan
government.
Source: Pakistan Today
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Soleimani believed integrity of Iran is linked to
integrity of Pakistan: Ambassador Hosseini
January 4, 2023
RAWALPINDI: Seyyed Muhammad Ali Hosseini, the
Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Pakistan, on Wednesday said that
martyr Qasim Soleimani believed that the integrity of Pakistan is actually the
integrity of Iran, and if there is any kind of attack on Pakistan, the survival
of Pakistan is supreme and he himself will not hesitate to shed his blood for
it.
The envoy expressed these views while addressing a
reception held to pay homage to the martyrs of Islam, especially the martyrs
who defended Palestine and Kashmir, a program titled “Martyrs of Islam, Axis of
Islamic Unity” was organized at the Khana Farhang Cultural Center, Islamic
Republic of Iran, here in Rawalpindi.
The speakers who addressed mentioned the eternal
martyrdom of martyr Haj Qasim Soleimani and paid glowing tribute to his
services for the unity of the Muslim world. The notable guests also appreciated
the courageous stand and strategy of the Supreme Leader of Iran, Sayyed Ali
Khamenei, on the issue of Kashmir.
The secret of Shaheed Soleimani’s success was
steadfastness and sincerity. He showed steadfastness during his life in the
face of anti-Islamic forces and dangerous Takfiri groups like ISIS.
Speaking at the event, Abdullah Gul, head of Pakistan
Youth Movement, said that I know martyr Qasim Soleimani personally. The martyr
derived his vision from the incident of Karbala. He said that Shaheed Soleimani
was clear in that where the human being is subjugated, the message of the
Islamic Revolution reaches there. Shaheed Soleimani sacrificed his today for
the tomorrow of the new generation. Abdullah Gul said that by killing an
official guest of a country, America not only committed state terrorism but
also violated international laws.
Addressing the ceremony, DG Khana Farhang Iran
Rawalpindi Mr. Farmarz Rehmanzad said that if it were not for the sacrifices of
the martyred Sardar Hajj Qasim Soleimani, Abu Mahdi Al Muhandis and other
martyrs, the right to live would have been taken away from us today, and we
would have seen division Islamic countries and witnessing the massacre of
Muslims in all the countries of Asia every day.
Maulana Gulzar Naeemi while addressing the ceremony
said that Shaheed Soleimani kept the resistance alive. He further added that
the enemies are using various tactics to destroy the unity and consensus of
Muslims, to counter these tactics all Islamic countries need to follow in the
footsteps of Shaheed Soleimani.
Speaking at the ceremony, Allama Arif Hussain Wahidi,
Vice President of Shia Ulema Council, said that elements hostile to Islam are
trying to create division among Muslims, sometimes in the name of Sahaba,
sometimes in the name of Imams. He said that the credit of uniting Hezbollah
and Hamas belongs to Shaheed Soleimani.
Speaking at the ceremony, renowned religious scholar
Allama Syed Iftikhar Naqvi said that if it were not the courageous actions of
Shaheed Soleimani, Islamic countries would have suffered massively today.
Source: Pakistan Today
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Dar expects Saudi Arabia, China to beef up forex
reserves by Jan-end
Khaleeq Kiani
January 5, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia and China were set to beef up
Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves much before the close of this month,
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Wednesday and announced that the government
would be shortly imposing flood levy on the affluent and a significant gain tax
on banks’ foreign exchange earnings to ramp up revenue.
“Our foreign exchange reserves by end-June would be
much better than you can think,” Mr Dar said while speaking at a joint news
conference with five other PML-N ministers.
He said the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
programme would be completed at all costs, China and Saudi Arabi would enhance
their support, government-to-government (G2G) disinvestments would be
completed, and the current account deficit would be about $3 billion less than
earlier projections.
The presser had been called in response to a “white
paper” launched a day earlier by the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI),
suggesting that Pakistan was on the verge of anarchy because of hyperinflation
and unemployment.
Mr Dar repeatedly snubbed questions about the
possibility of the country defaulting on its foreign debt, insisting that such
speculation was being pushed by the PTI, whose white paper was “a pack of lies”
and was allegedly based on selective data, misleading numbers, factually
incorrect and devoid of economic context.
The minister disagreed that a threshold committed with
the IMF under the eighth quarterly review for contingency budgetary measures
had been crossed, as revenue collection during the first five months (July to
November) of this fiscal year was above target.
However, he hastened to add that a heavy revenue
ticket of Rs270-290bn super tax pitched for December could not yield results
because of stay orders, resulting in a revenue shortfall in December.
“We are in any case planning to beef up revenues and
considering a flood levy and a substantial recovery on account of unprecedented
foreign exchange windfalls” earned by the banking sector, but there would be no
measure that adds up to the burden on common people already suffering a lot of
hardship, he said.
He noted that petroleum prices had not gone up for
over three months and instead dropped by Rs19-20 per litre for petrol and
diesel and by Rs29-30 for kerosene and light diesel.
Responding to a question, the finance minister said
many countries had imposed taxes on foreign exchange earnings.
He said various agencies were already in action to
combat the smuggling of foreign exchange and other commodities like wheat and
fertiliser.
The minister recalled that during the prime minister’s
visits in September, China and Saudi Arabia had agreed to increase their
support to Pakistan, and the Saudi finance minister later confirmed this to
international news agencies.
He said the process got delayed, but Saudi Arabia
would increase its support much earlier than the end of this month, while the
Chinese loan rollover was also being processed. He said the privatisation
transactions, particularly the sale of LNG plants and others on a G2G basis,
were also progressing and would be completed within six months.
Responding to a question, the minister said the IMF
delay was because of the credibility gap caused by “reckless decisions” of the
PTI government on the eve of the no-confidence vote.
Resultantly, the Fund raised questions not only about
the quarter ending December instead of the original end-October performance but
also sought details about the subsequent 11th and 12th reviews (until June),
particularly on how Pakistan would finance $16.3bn flood-related requirements.
“We have provided these things” and would be meeting
the IMF on the occasion of a donors’ conference in Geneva on Jan 9, Mr Dar
said.
Inflation ‘major concern’
On inflation, he conceded that it was a major cause of
concern for the government and it would now focus on gradually bringing it
down. He insisted that inflation and other economic indicators would be much
better by June 30, 2023.
Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said the major factor
for higher prices of essential commodities was a total lack of support from
Punjab, besides massive devaluation, PTI’s package for force energy price cuts
and the global inflationary cycle.
Mr Dar said it was a dishonest presentation of the
country’s economic situation by the PTI leaders, adding that they did not
present what they inherited except the current account deficit, which too was
being depicted out of context and even the PTI failed to show any improvement
on that count by the end of its government.
He said the economic situation since April 2022 was
strongly influenced by the legacy that the new government got from the previous
administration.
He said the IMF managing director had recently noted
that one-third of the globe would be facing a serious recessional problem in
2023, with Pakistan being no exception.
The finance minister said the PTI’s claim of about
100pc to 200pc increase in prices was incorrect because “authentic data” showed
the prices of wheat rose by 33pc, cooking oil 21pc, masoor pulse 19.5pc, mash
pulse 35pc, tomato 13.7pc, petrol 47pc, and vegetable ghee by 14.9pc.
Mr Dar also dismissed the PTI’s figure of creating
5.5m jobs during its government and said that official data finalised by the
party itself put this number at 3.2m between 2019 and 2022.
He said the PML-N’s previous government had increased
revenue collection from Rs1.938 trillion to Rs3.844tr in the last year, while
the PTI administration reduced it to Rs3.829tr in its first year and reached
Rs6.1tr in five years despite promising to double it from Rs3.9tr in 2018 to
8tr in its first year in office.
Source: Dawn
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COAS Asim Munir, Saudi defence minister discuss
military cooperation
Naveed Siddiqui
January 5, 2023
Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir on
Thursday met Saudi Arabia’s Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and
discussed the ways of strengthening cooperation between the two countries.
According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the army
chief arrived in the Kingdom in the early hours of Thursday where he was
received by Prince Khalid.
At the outset of the meeting, the Saudi defence
minister congratulated Gen Munir on his appointment as the army chief.
The SPA said that the two leaders, during the meeting,
emphasised the strength and durability of bilateral relations between the two
fraternal countries.
They discussed military and defence cooperation, and
ways to support and enhance them, along with important regional and
international issues of common interest.
Meanwhile, in a tweet today, Prince Salman said he was
pleased to meet Pakistan’s army chief.
“We emphasized the strategic partnership between our
brotherly countries, reviewed the bilateral military and defence relations, and
discussed ways of strengthening our cooperation,” he added.
Earlier, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR)
said Gen Munir would be visiting Saudi Arabia and UAE from Jan 4 to Jan 10.
“The COAS will be meeting the senior leadership of
both brotherly countries to discuss matters of mutual interest,
military-to-military cooperation and bilateral relations focusing on
security-related subjects,” the military’s media wing stated.
Source: Dawn
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Al Qaeda-linked group, TTP claim spies’ murder in
Khanewal
Imran Gabol
January 5, 2023
LAHORE: The Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) on
Wednesday registered a case under terrorism charges against a suspect involved
in the murder of two intelligence agency officials in Khanewal on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, two groups, including the banned
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the so-called Lashkar-i-Khorasan, have
claimed responsibility for the attack.
According to the first information report (FIR), a
copy of which is available with Dawn, Inter-Services Intelligence Multan region
director Naveed Sadiq and inspector Nasir Abbas met a source at a roadside
hotel on the National Highway near Pirowal in Khanewal district.
After having tea, they all walked to the parking lot
when the source himself, identified as Umar Khan of Kacha Khoo, pulled out his
gun, shot the officers dead and fled from the scene.
The suspect reportedly executed the attack on the
directions of his group leader, Asadullah.
CTD official says raids being conducted for suspect’s
arrest
The CTD Multan police station registered a case under
murder and terrorism charges on the complaint of the officers’ driver and
started an investigation.
CTD Punjab chief Imran Mahmood told Dawn that the
suspect had been identified and raids were being conducted to arrest him.
He said action would be taken against the terrorist
network involved in planning and executing the attack on the intelligence
officials.
Meanwhile, the TTP claimed responsibility for the
attack. Earlier, a group calling itself Lashkar-i-Khorasan, said to be linked
with Al Qaeda, had also made a similar claim.
“Yesterday, a secret squad of TTP killed ISI Deputy
Director Multan Naveed Sadiq along with his colleague Inspector Nasir Butt at
Bismillah Highway in Khanewal district of Punjab,” TTP spokesman Mohammad
Khorasani said in a statement to the media, as reported by Reuters.
The CTD, in a statement reported by Reuters on
Wednesday, confirmed the killings but not the TTP’s role. It said the two
officers had met the suspected killer at the hotel and had a cup of tea with
him. After tea, the suspect shot the two officers in the hotel’s parking lot
and fled on a motorcycle, the CTD added, releasing security camera footage of
the incident.
A senior officer on conduction of anonymity told Dawn
that the intelligence officers were working on terrorism-related cases and
meeting a source from the banned Al Qaeda and militant Islamic State group. The
incident led to mistrust between the intelligence agency and their sources.
“Officers cultivated sources among terrorist networks
operating in the country to know about their operations, which may have
resulted in several achievements against terrorism,” he maintained.
Source: Dawn
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Contractor’s house attacked after refusing to pay
ransom to ‘TTP member’
Mohammad Asghar
January 5, 2023
RAWALPINDI: A member of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban
Pakistan (TTP) in Rawalpindi demanded a ransom of Rs15 million from a
government contractor and after he refused to pay the money, allegedly attacked
his house with a cracker in Dhoke Lakhan in Dhamial area.
After a first information report (FIR) was registered
with the police on Tuesday, the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) was also
involved in investigation of the case.
Mohammad Nisar, a government contractor and resident
of Dhoke Lakhan Chakri Road, lodged an FIR with police saying that he received
a voice message on his mobile phone on Oct 7, 2022 in which the caller
identified himself as a representative of TTP and demanded ransom of Rs15
million.
He said when he ignored and did not attend his
message, the man turned towards his brother Mushtaq Ali’s mobile phone and sent
a voice message to him asking him to show it to his brother. Nisar had been
working as a government contractor for the last 20 years.
He further said he was sleeping in his home, while his
wife and children had gone to their village when he woke up upon hearing an
explosion from outside his house on Dec 28, 2022 at 4am.
He said in the FIR that he went to the rooftop of his
house to see what had happened but could not see anything due to darkness. He
came down to his room and slept. On the following day, his brother received
another voice message, in which the suspect could be heard saying that he had
shown a glimpse to his brother last night.
“I shall destroy your brother’s house by hurling hand
grenades,” the complainant said in the FIR while quoting the suspect.
Nisar said he plunged into distress upon hearing the
threatening voice messages. After this, he went to the rooftop of his house and
found exploded pieces of a cracker and some spots on the compound wall of the
roof.
After collecting evidence, he contacted the relevant
law enforcement agency. An FIR was registered subsequently.
According to sources, it was discovered during the initial
investigation that the suspect was using a foreign gateway to make WhatsApp
calls, which made it difficult to determine his location. This issue will be
resolved with the assistance of other law enforcement officials, and the
suspect will be arrested, the sources said.
Earlier on Tuesday, police have agreed to
institutionalise coordination between the two departments through regular
meetings and decided to adopt a joint plan of action in the fight against
terrorism and crime.
It was also decidaed to set up joint checkpoints,
conduct joint operations based on intelligence and take combined action against
terrorists and criminal groups.
Source: Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1729949
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Pakistan nominates President Erdogan for Nobel Peace
Prize
January 4, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani on Wednesday
officially nominated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the Nobel Peace
Prize over his hectic efforts to resolve the Ukraine crisis.
In a letter addressed to the Norwegian Nobel
Committee, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani officially registered the nomination
in favour of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the Nobel Peace Prize
for efforts to resolve the Ukrainian crisis.
Through the letter, the Chairman Senate has officially
registered the nomination in favour of Turkish President @RTErdogan for the
“Nobel Peace Prize” over untiring efforts to resolve the Ukrainian crisis.
Sanjrani said, “Russia-Ukraine war had quickly turned
into a nuclear flashpoint that could have ended in catastrophe for the whole
world. Due to his untiring efforts, timely & effective interventions with
both sides, he singlehandedly averted a global disaster.”
He further added that President Erdogan is a true
statesman & leader, who always strives for the betterment & prosperity
of not just his country, but the region & the world in general.
Source: Pakistan Today
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India
Kashmir-Born, Ahmad Ahanger, Chief Islamic State Recruiter Designated As
Terrorist By Centre
Jan 5, 2023
The Centre on Wednesday designated Ahmad Ahanger, who
heads the Islamic State’s recruitment cell in India, as a terrorist under the
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Ahmad Ahanger, alias Abu Usman Al-Kashmiri, was born
in Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir. He is presently based in Afghanistan and is
one of the chief recruiters of Islamic State Jammu and Kashmir (ISJK).
Ahanger is a wanted terrorist in Jammu and Kashmir for
more than two decades and has contacts with al-Qaeda and other global terrorist
groups, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a notification.
He is working towards providing traction to militancy
in Kashmir and has started the process of identifying people for inclusion in
his Kashmir-based network.
Source: India Today
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Forget Devp Issues, Focus On Love Jihad, Says Kateel;
Congress Slams Remarks
Jan 5, 2023
Bengaluru/Mangaluru: Congress came down heavily on
state BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel for urging party workers to “focus on
love jihad and not on drains, roads, and development”. At a recent event,
Kateel told party workers not to engage voters in discussions over roads and
drains, but instead tell them that only a BJP government can stop "love
jihad" by bringing a law against it. A video of his speech was widely
shared on social media. Reacting to the comments, UT Khader, deputy opposition
leader in the legislative assembly, on Wednesday said the BJP government does not
have the “capacity, dignity, or eligibility” to develop roads, fill potholes or
develop infrastructure and that’s why it is falling back on emotional issues
such as love jihad. “Even after four years at the helm, BJP has not been able
to ensure development,” said Khader, Congress MLA from Ullal constituency. “We
have to go back to the promises they [BJP] made during the election. Leave out
the big projects; they are not able to deliver even on small ones... Those who
can’t give rice to people talk about love jihad.” In the video, Kateel is
purportedly heard saying, “Don’t talk about roads or gutters. There is a
question regarding the lives of your children. Considering this, you must talk
about love jihad. People need BJP to stop love jihad.” Karnataka Congress
president DK Shivakumar described the comments as an “utterly bad message”.
“Instead of prioritising development, BJP is spreading hatred and trying to
divide the country. This statement is testimony for their intentions,” he said.
However, Y Bharath Shetty, Mangaluru City North MLA, defended Kateel, saying
since all elected representatives are engaged in various development works,
Kateel asked party workers to also pay attention to other issues and to work
towards creating a healthy atmosphere. “It is elected representatives who
undertake development works, not party workers,” he said.
Source: Times Of India
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Maharashtra Interfaith Marriage Panel Got Sole Muslim
Member After Another Nominee Dropped Out
January 5, 2023
The Interfaith Marriage-Family Coordination Committee
— set up by the Maharashtra government to gather details about couples in such
marriages – appointed its only Muslim member, social worker Irfan Ali Pirzade,
after one of the 13 members initially appointed by the state government dropped
out.
The committee was set up by the state Women and Child
Development (WCD) Department on December 13 under the chairmanship of Mangal
Prabhat Lodha, the WCD minister.
Pirzade was named a member on the committee after the
original choice, advocate Yogesh Deshpande, resigned from the committee citing
personal and professional commitments.
Pirzade was brought on board by the state government
on December 15. The committee is yet to hold an official meeting, but a few
members have met each other informally during the past two weeks. The committee
will hold its meeting after the department sets up a helpline for women in
interfaith marriages, who are in distress.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Pirzade said, “I am a
social worker and have worked in the field for the protection of women’s
rights. Due to my work, the government brought me on the committee.”
Meanwhile, Yogesh Deshpande, who resigned from the
panel, said, “I resigned because I had other personal and professional
commitments that were clashing. I resigned on December 13, immediately after
the first GR announced the formation of the committee.”
The WCD department had initially set up a committee
named ‘Intercaste/Interfaith Marriage – Family Coordination Committee’,
comprising 13 members including the chairman, Mangal Prabhat Lodha. After two
days, the department issued a revised GR, dropping intercaste marriages from
its purview and retaining interfaith marriages, renaming the committee as
‘Interfaith Marriages – Family Coordination Committee’.
According to government officials, Pirzade is a social
worker who has worked toward helping women who are in interfaith marriages, but
who are in distress due to their marriage, across the state in many prominent cities.
Before appointing members to the committee, the department had called for
resumes of all members.
Source: Indian Express
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Karnataka VHP Starts ‘Anti-Love Jihad’ Helpline In
Dakshina Kannada, Police To ‘Seek Legal View’
January 5, 2023
Amid Hindutva groups’ demand for a law against “love
jihad” and Karnataka BJP chief Nalin Kumar Kateel’s call for voters to
prioritise the “concern” over “roads, gutters, drains and other small issues”,
the Vishwa Hindu Parishad has launched a “helpline” in the communally sensitive
coastal district of Dakshina Kannada.
Speaking to The Indian Express, VHP state
vice-secretary Sharan Pumpwell said that at least 20 members of the
organisation would work for the helpline against “love jihad”, whereby Hindutva
activists claim Muslim men lure women of other religions into marrying them and
converting to Islam.
“There have been cases of ‘love jihad’ in Dakshina
Kannada district. Incidents show that women in schools, colleges and workplaces
are their targets. We want to stop it. We have started a helpline in Dakshina
Kannada district,” he said.
Sharan said the helpline would provide information,
legal assistance and also counselling for the “victims of love jihad”. “We are
also planning to distribute 2 lakh pamphlets across Dakshina Kannada district
in order to raise awareness,” he added.
Reminded that police already act against forcible
conversions, Sharan said the helpline would aid people who do not want to go to
police stations. “Many of them seek information and are scared to go to the
police station. Our team will help them to solve the issue,” he said.
When contacted, Mangaluru city police commissioner N
Shashi Kumar said, “We have come across such a helpline. Upon checking, we
found that the number was active in the Shivamogga region. I will seek legal
opinion to take further action,” he told The Indian Express.
District superintendent of police Rishikesh Bhagawan
Sonawane was not available for comment.
S Umapathi, an advocate, said the setting up of such a
helpline amounted to bypassing the government and police. “It is the duty of
the state government to provide a helpline. The existing helplines are run by
the state or have the state’s permission,” he said.
Source: Indian Express
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50,000 People Can't Be Uprooted Overnight: Supreme
Court Stays Haldwani Eviction
India News
Jan 05, 2023
The Supreme Court stayed the Uttarakhand high court
order of Haldwani eviction and asked for a workable arrangement to address the
'land encroachment' issue. The matter will be heard next on February 7.
By Poulomi Ghosh
Reported by Utkarsh Anand
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the planned
eviction of the railways in the 'encroached' land in Uttarakhand's Haldwani and
said a workable arrangement has to be devised as 50,000 people can't be
uprooted overnight. In its order, the Supreme Court said the government will
have to provide full rehabilitation of the people of the area. "In the
meantime, there shall be a stay of the directions passed in the impugned
order," the Apex Court said barring any new construction or development on
the land.
The bench of Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Abhay S
Oka said 50,000 people can not be uprooted in seven days. As Justice SK Kaul
heard the matter, he said there are many aspects in the case and people have
been staying in the land for years; and there are establishments. "How can
you say in seven days clear them off?" Justice Kaul said, as reported by
LiveLaw
The eviction was supposed to begin from January 10
based on the Uttarakhand high court order against which massive protests were
going on in Haldwani. The protests by the residents who have been living in the
area for decades gathered support from political parties like the Congress,
Samajwadi Party, and AIMIM.
The case has now been listed for its next hearing on
February 7.
Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami reacted
to the stay order and said the government will proceed as per the court's
order.
As the ASG contested that freeing the 'railway land'
is crucial for the development of the state, Justice Kaul said a workable
arrangement is necessary to segregate people "who may have rights/no
rights couples with schemes of rehabilitation which already exists while
recognising the need of the railways".
Source: Hindustan Times
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Mass marriage venue hosts 67 Muslim, Hindu couples
Jan 4, 2023
Vadodara/Anand: Tuesday became a turning point in the
lives for both Shivani Mali and Khushbu Shaikh – two girls from Vadodara who
got married at the same mass wedding venue. While Shivani tied the nuptial knot
with Rohit Mali, Khushbu exchanged wedding vows with Mansuri Munaf, both grooms
too residents of Vadodara.
The unique mass marriage was organized at Umeta
village in Anand district by Zaryaah Foundation, an NGO.
The third such event to be hosted by the NGO, this
time a total of 67 such couples including 57 Muslim and 10 Hindu couples
exchanged wedding vows with traditional ‘nikaah’ and ‘lagn’ ceremonies.
“We had organized the first mass wedding programme in
2019, in which 13 Muslim couples got married through ‘nikaah’ ceremony. In
2020, we had organized ‘nikaah’ ceremonies for 32 couples. But this year, we
decided to support marriage of 67 couples including Muslims and Hindus so that
all the deserving daughters and their parents can celebrate the occasion
regardless of any barriers of religion or socio-economic background,” said
Allarakha Vohra, founder of Zaryaah Foundation.
The applications for the mass wedding ceremony were
invited online from girls who had attained marriageable age but were facing
financial constraints.
“The applications were scrutinized based on financial
status of the families. For instance, our first preference was to support those
daughters, who were either orphans or did not have parental support. Our second
preference was for those daughters who had lost the sole bread earner in their
family,” Vohra explained. The foundation not only printed the invitees for the
to-be-brides but also gifted them with 15 set of clothes, basic furniture for
their new houses and kitchen utensils. “We also provided them Rs 5,000 cash so
that they can go and shop footwear of their choice. The choice of ‘cholis’ was
also left on them,” he said.
Before the marriage ceremonies, the girls underwent a
counselling round through which they were asked whether they wanted to get
marriage or study further. “We have assured them that we will provide them all
the support if they want to study courses like graphic designing, accounting,
coding or tally after their marriage,” he said.
Source: Times Of India
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Intel unit seeks personal info of Aligarh Muslim
University students
Jan 5, 2023
AGRA: The local intelligence unit of Aligarh police
has sought personal details of students belonging to J&K, Northeast and
foreign countries enrolled at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), said university
officials.
After receiving a letter from the intelligence unit,
AMU assistant controller (admission) of the university Faisal Waris issued a
circular to the deans of faculties, chairman of departments of studies and
principals of schools and colleges of AMU seeking information on such students.
AMU proctor Mohammad Waseem Ali said, "They have
sought data of students from Jammu & Kashmir, Northeast and foreign
countries. We provided information about such students, including their name,
father's name, home district, class, and permanent and current addresses in the
format provided by the agency. I will speak to the students and explain why
this exercise is for their security." Earlier, the deans of the faculties
of various departments had received a form, along with a circular, from the
office of the controllers of examination, asking them to get it filled by the
students. "I am directed to request you to kindly furnish the Information
with regard to (i) total number of students studying in your faculty/centre
etc. (male/female) and (ii) total number of J&K students admitted
(male/female, with complete detail) on the following format during the session
2022-2023 to the proctor, AMU, under intimation to this office," read a
'time-bound' notice issued on December, 29, 2022.
This circular instilled fear among J&K students as
the collected information had to be provided to the Aligarh superintendent of
police. They termed this circular a "breach of privacy" and
"discriminatory".
Notably, on December 26, protests broke out on AMU
campus after a PhD scholar from Kashmir was allegedly thrashed by other
students for asking them not to play badminton at 1 am on the hostel premises.
Around 150 Kashmiri students protested against the incident.
DSP, Aligarh (3), Shiv Partap Singh, said, "Our
local intelligence unit sought this data. Details of students from Kashmir,
Northeast and foreign countries are sought from time to time. It has nothing to
do with the latest clash on AMU campus."
He said the matter was taken up by the varsity
administration and no formal complaints were received.
Source: Times Of India
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Lashkar hand suspected in Rajouri attacks, 1,800 more
securitymen posted
Jan 5, 2023
NEW DELHI: The initial needle of suspicion in the two
attacks at Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir seems to be pointing towards
Lashker-e-Taiba, with sources indicating that killing of six persons, all
Hindus, was aimed at creating a communal divide.
J&K Police also see the latest civilian killings
as part of LeT’s larger plan to get a foothold in the Pir Panjal area,
particularly in view of terrorists facing the heat in Kashmir region and local
LeT commander Talib Hussain’s disclosure after his arrest in July 2022 that he
was tasked by Pakistan-based LeT handlers to carry out terror recruitment in
Pir Panjal districts including Rajouri.
To scuttle such designs, the J&K administration
has moved in around 1,800 central para-military troops to Rajouri and Poonch to
aid J&K Police in protecting minority-dominated pockets. Village defence
committees (VDCs) have been asked to mount an alert and seek arms for families
of which any member volunteers for VDC duty. Upgrade of arms and training of
volunteers have been offered to improve the response of VDCs in Rajouri and
Poonch districts.
“The entire security grid in Rajouri has been
strengthened. Special operations Group (SOG) have been pressed for scaling up
counter-terror operations in Jammu division” a senior J&K government
official told TOI.
It is suspected that the terrorists who killed four
civilians on January 1 may have freshly infiltrated from across Pakistan.
“LeT has been trying to scale up its presence in Pir
Panjal for some time by targeting minorities in Rajouri. But it has so far not
been successful in driving a communal wedge,” said a J&K government
functionary.
A J&K Police source said that Pakistan-based jihadi
terrorist outfits are frustrated at the overwhelming response and crowds
received by home minister Amit Shah’s public rally in Muslim-dominated Rajouri
on October 4, 2022. Shah had, while addressing the rally, announced the
government’s intent to grant reservation to the Pahari community under the
Scheduled Tribes category, on par with Gujjar and Bakarwal communities. “A
section of Muslims may be unhappy at the traction and public support BJP seems
to be getting in Rajouri. It seems LeT is trying to channelise this sentiment,
by going after the ‘minority’ Hindus. Any backlash by the Hindus is bound to
cause communal tension, creating conditions conducive for radicalisation and
recruitment of locals for terror acts, thus fitting into LeT’s designs for Pir
Panjal,” an official told TOI.
Incidentally, LeT local commander Talib Hussain, who
was arrested in Tukson Dhok village of Reasi in July last year, had during his
interrogation unveiled LeT’s plans to carry out terror recruitment in Pir
Panjal region. Two AK-series rifles, seven grenades, one pistol and a huge
cache of ammunition was recovered from the possession of Hussain and another
terrorist arrested with him. Hussain was in touch with Qasim, an LeT terrorist
based in Pakistan, and also Pakistani LeT handler Salman. He was involved in at
least three cases of IED blasts in Rajouri district, besides civilian killings
and grenade blasts.
Source: Times Of India
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J&K sees bandh, protests over terror strikes
Jan 5, 2023
JAMMU: The bandh against the twin terror attacks in
Rajouri that killed six people and injured 11 others entered its second day in
the border town of Poonch on Wednesday while protests were held across the
Jammu region.
Security was beefed up in the border districts of
Poonch and Rajouri in view of the bandh, officials said.
Shops and business establishments remained closed in
the district as hundreds of people, braving cold weather, came out to hold
protests.
Raising anti-Pakistan slogans, the protestors burnt
tyres and demanded enhancement of security in and around minority places in
districts of the Jammu region.
Source: Times Of India
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South Asia
Afghanistan Raids on Islamic State Hideouts Leave
Eight Dead, Says Taliban
JANUARY 05, 2023
Eight people were killed and seven arrested following
raids on hideouts of the Islamic State militant group in Afghanistan, a Taliban
spokesperson said on Thursday.
”These members had a main role in the attack on the
Chinese hotel and paved the way for foreign ISKP members to come to
Afghanistan,” the spokesperson, Zabiullah Mujahid, said on Twitter, describing
Wednesday’s raids.
Source: News18
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Islamic Emirate Rejects US Official’s Remarks on Its
Commitments
By Fatema Adeeb
The Islamic Emirate rejected the remarks by US State
Department spokesman Ned Price and said that the Islamic Emirate is committed
to all its promises.
The deputy spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, Bilal
Karimi, said there is no evidence to show that Afghan soil will be used against
any other country.
“All territory of the country is controlled by the
Islamic Emirate and there is no evidence to show that there is any action from
our country towards other countries and their activities,” Karimi said.
Price said at a press conference that “Taliban have repeatedly
broken” their promises.
“And meanwhile, we continue, just as I said a moment
ago, to call on the Taliban to uphold the very commitment they have made to see
to it that Afghan soil is never again used as a launchpad for international
terrorist attacks. These are among the very commitments that the Taliban have
been unable or unwilling to fulfill to date,” Price said.
Analysts expressed mixed views on the commitments of
the Islamic Emirate and the US remarks.
“The US still interrupts Afghan borders. The US
aircraft are still in the Afghan air space,” said Omid Safi, head of the
Rawand-e-Pishraft Mili.
“The Islamic Emirate has fulfilled all of its
commitments and has not yet violated them. And terrorist groups have not yet
acted against any neighboring country or another country,” said Kamran Aman, a
political analyst.
Source: Tolo News
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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-181468
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Daesh militants involved in attack on Pakistan Embassy
in Kabul killed: Afghan spokesperson
Tahir Khan
January 5, 2023
Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said on
Thursday that a network of Daesh militants involved in the attack on Pakistan’s
embassy in Kabul has been killed in an operation.
On December 2, the embassy in Kabul came under attack
with Chargé d’Affaires (CdA) to Afghanistan Ubaidur Rehman Nizamani targeted.
Nizamani was unscathed but his guard was critically wounded.
The banned Islamic State group’s Khorasan chapter
(IS-K) had claimed responsibility for the attack, confirming that it was
targeting the Pakistani envoy.
Subsequently, the Foreign Office had said that they
remained in active contact with the Afghan authorities and expressed the
confidence that the Dec 2 incident would be fully investigated and the
perpetrators and their abettors would be brought to account.
In a statement issued today, Mujahid said Afghan
security forces carried out operations in Kabul against a “dangerous network”
of the Islamic State group or Daesh who were involved in attacks on the
Pakistani embassy and on a hotel where Chinese nationals were staying.
On December 12, Beijing had said that five of its
nationals were wounded in a bombing-and-shooting attack. China had later asked
its nationals to leave Afghanistan over security concerns.
The Afghan government spokesperson confirmed today
that the militants killed in the operation were also involved in a bomb attack
near a military airfield in Kabul and several other areas.
He said that a similar operation was also conducted
against Daesh in the Western Nimroz province.
Eight Daesh members were killed in the operations on
Wednesday, he stated, adding that several foreigners were among those killed.
Mujahid went on to say that the killed terrorists had
planned more attacks on key targets. “They planned to bring Daesh members from
other countries and launch coordinated attacks.”
The spokesperson said the operation in Kabul was
carried out in the Shuda-e-Saliheen and Qalacha areas as well as Zaranj, the
capital of Nimroz. Three hideouts were “eliminated” during the operation.
Small arms, hand grenades, mines, suicide jackets and
explosives were recovered from the hideout and seven Daesh members were
arrested. Some other suspects were also taken into custody for questioning.
The operation in Kabul has once again raised concerns
about the activities of Daesh in the capital city and other parts of the
country. Taliban rulers usually downplay the threat of Daesh in Afghanistan
despite international reports about the growing activities of the group.
Embassy attack
The Foreign Office, in a statement released last
month, had confirmed that the target of the attack was Nizamani, who remained
unhurt.
The FO had “strongly condemned” the attack, but added
the embassy would continue to function normally and there were no plans to
withdraw diplomats from Kabul. The Afghan chargé d’affaires was also summoned
to the foreign ministry to formally protest over the attack.
According to an official, Nizamani was walking in the
Pakistan mission’s lawn in Kabul’s Kart-i-Parwan neighbourhood when terrorists
shot at him.
The shots hit a security guard, identified as Sepoy
Israr Mohammad, who was “critically injured” while attempting to save Nizamani,
according to the FO.
Mohammad, who was hit by two bullets, was shifted to a
hospital and later moved to Peshawar via helicopter.
Source: Dawn
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Uzbekistan, Pakistan to Conduct Technical Survey of
Trans-Afghanistan Railway
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
January 4, 2023
Pakistan and Uzbekistan will conduct a technical
survey of the Trans-Afghanistan railway, while jointly bearing the costs of the
survey, sources said.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan administration on
Tuesday’s newsletter announced that the head of the Afghanistan Railway
Authority (ARA), Bakhtul Rahman Sharaft, had visited Pakistan and aimed at
initiating talks with his Pakistani authorities on the ‘Trans-Afghanistan
Railway project.
In a meeting with Zafar Zaman Ranja, Pakistan’s Deputy
Minister of Railways, he assured the commitment of the Taliban to lay the
groundwork for conducting technical studies of the Trans-Afghan railway line,
according to the new newsletter.
It is also stated that the costs of these technical
studies will be jointly paid by Uzbekistan and Pakistan, the primary beneficiaries
of the project.
The Trans-Afghanistan railway line starts from
northern Mazar-e-Sharif province on the southern border of Uzbekistan and leads
to Torkham port between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Business experts believe that the successful
implementation of this railway is of significant importance for all
stakeholders including Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Afghanistan. The railway links
South Asia to Central Asia, a unique project of its kind in over 40 years to be
established, leading to economic prosperity and trade connectivity in the
region.
Source: Khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/uzbekistan-pakistan-to-conduct-technical-survey-of-trans-afghanistan-railway/
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UN Security Council To Meet Next Week On Taliban Ban
On Female Aid Workers
January 05, 2023
United Nations: The United Nations Security Council is
due to meet privately next week to discuss a decision by Afghanistan's
Taliban-led administration to ban female humanitarian aid workers, diplomats
said Wednesday.
The closed-door meeting was requested by the United
Arab Emirates and Japan for Jan. 13. The UAE announced the request in a tweet.
The ban on female aid workers was announced by the
Islamist Taliban-led administration on Dec. 24. It followed a ban imposed
earlier last month on women attending universities. Girls were stopped from
attending high school in March.
U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths is due to visit
Afghanistan in the coming weeks to meet with Taliban officials.
At least four major global groups have suspended
operations because they said they were unable to run their programs without female
staff.
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Source: ND TV
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Taliban threat dominates China’s policy towards
Afghanistan: Report
5 January, 2023
Kabul [Afghanistan], January 5 (ANI): Concerned over
the potential spillover of militants from Kabul into the country’s western
Xinjiang, China has stepped in and engaged with the new Taliban government,
promising trade and investment, Afghan Diaspora Network reported.
More than a year after the United States and NATO
pulled out of the Central Asian country, China is one of the few countries that
kept their embassies open in Afghanistan even after the Taliban took over in
August 2021.
It is worth mentioning that the Taliban during its
first rule in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 had harboured a number of foreign
extremist groups, including Uyghur militants.
China is primarily interested in Afghanistan for
security related and specifically preventing any breach of militancy in the
Uyghur areas of China. Still, the Taliban’s attack kept Beijing from
maintaining its relationship with them.
On December 12, 2022, the attack on Kabul’s hotel,
which is frequently visited by Chinese nationals, further aggravated Beijing’s
concerns. The Chinese government responded by advising its citizens and
companies “to leave and evacuate the country as soon as possible.”
During a regular press conference, Chinese foreign
ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that China was “deeply shocked” and
“demands the Afghan side spare no efforts in searching for and rescuing Chinese
individuals, and at the same time open a comprehensive investigation, severely
punish the attackers, and earnestly strengthen the protection of Chinese
citizens and organisations in Afghanistan,” Reuters quoted Wang as saying at a
news conference in Beijing.
After this, Taliban spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi
informed that the Chinese Ambassador had called on the Taliban “to pay
attention” to the security of Beijing’s diplomatic mission in Kabul, according
to Afghan Diaspora Network.
Earlier, in 2021, the report noted that the Uyghur
militants of the Turkistan Islamic Party, widely accepted as an alias of the
Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), have been active in both Afghanistan
and Syria
They seek to establish an Uyghur state in Xinjiang,
China, and towards that goal, facilitate the movement of fighters from
Afghanistan to China. Chinese officials, who have met the Taliban on a number
of occasions, have emphasized that Afghanistan take “resolute” measures to
crack down on “all terrorist forces, including the East Turkestan Islamic
Movement” (ETIM). While the U.S. removed the ETIM from its terror list in 2020,
China continues to designate it as a threat, as per the Afghan Diaspora Network
report.
While China is concerned about the spillover of
extremism from Afghanistan, the Taliban are “frustrated” by the empty Chinese
economic and development promises. In 2016, China signed a BRI agreement with
the former Afghan government and promised to fund USD 100 million in projects,
but so far no BRI projects have been implemented in Afghanistan.
Source: The Print
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https://theprint.in/world/taliban-threat-dominates-chinas-policy-towards-afghanistan-report/1298547/
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Africa
Yoruba Muslim scholars urge Nigerians to shun
religious politics
05 January 2023
A Group, the Concerned Yoruba Muslim Scholars (CYMS)
in Nigeria, yesterday, urged Muslim adherents to reject candidates that would
deny them their fundamental human rights during the general elections.
It urged Muslims to reject candidates who would
discriminate against them during the 2023 general elections.
The scholars made the call, while addressing
journalists at the premises of Ibadan Central Mosque in Oja-Oba area of Ibadan.
Secretary General of the group, Prof. Abideen Olaiya,
who addressed journalists on behalf of President-General, Shaykh Abdur-Rasheed
Mayaleke, condemned the purported invitation of the Director of Muslim Rights
Concern (MURIC), Prof. Ishaq Lakin Akintola, by someone claiming to be calling
from the Ibadan office of the Department of State Services (DSS) over a press
statement criticising the government of Oyo State for allegedly infringing on
the rights of Muslim students.
The group advised the DSS to be professional in its
dealings and understand that religious matters are very sensitive and volatile.
In another development, the Nigerian Baptist
Convention (NBC), yesterday, urged the Federal Government to take decisive
action to address the challenges of economy, migration of young Nigerians
overseas and insecurity in the country.
President of the Convention, Rev. (Dr.) Israel Akanji,
in a statement, tagged: “Press release on the New Year for Nigeria,” expressed
optimism that the sorrow of insecurity, terrorism, economic depression, social
vices and religious bigotry would eventually be averted.
Akanji stated this, yesterday, in a statement tagged:
“Press release on the New Year for Nigeria, while praying that the country
should never experience what happened at the time of the Academic Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU).
He said that the government should ensure job
availability for the unemployed graduates for the future of the nation to be
preserved.
The cleric said that experienced professionals had
deserted the hospitals owing to poor remuneration.
Source: Guardian Nigeria
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https://guardian.ng/news/yoruba-muslim-scholars-urge-nigerians-to-shun-religious-politics/
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Death toll in Somalia twin car bombings claimed by
Al-Shabaab rises to 35
04 January 2023
Death toll in twin car bombings in central Somalia
claimed by the Al-Shabab terrorist group has risen to 35, including eight
members of a single family, reports cited a senior police officer as saying on
Wednesday.
"Most of the dead are civilians. They are women
and children," Hassan-Kafi Mohamed Ibrahim, deputy police commissioner of
Hirshabelle State, was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency.
"Only one child survived from a family of nine
members. Other families also lost half of their members. The two suicide car
bombs burnt many civilian homes to ashes."
Mahas District Commissioner Mumin Mohamed Halane told
state radio that one bomb targeted his house and the other hit the home of a
federal lawmaker.
Al-Shabab terrorist group claimed responsibility for
the deadly attack. Its media office said it targeted "apostate militias
and soldiers" and put the number of dead at 87, more than the official
figure.
Earlier, a mander of a local militia allied to the
government was quoted as saying in reports that 19 people were killed in the
bombings.
"Nineteen people, including members of the
security forces and civilians, died in the explosions. The terrorists blew up
two cars near a military base in Mahas," said Mohamed Moalim Adan.
A police spokesman said the vehicles exploded in a
neighborhood full of civilians just after the dawn prayer and the victims
included members of security forces, civilians, and journalists who were
embedded with soldiers.
Mahas has been at the heart of the Somali government's
continuous fight against terrorist groups affiliated with al-Qaeda, which has
controlled parts of central and southern Somalia for years.
In July 2022, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud promised
his government would launch a full-scale war against terrorist groups in the
region.
Al-Shabaab continues to wreak havoc in the African
country. Besides bombings, kidnapping local people has been a tactic employed
by the group.
Some news sources reported that al-Shabaab militants
kidnapped dozens of people on Monday in the village of Beerhana and Dhogor in
Hiran.
The kidnappings largely target farmers, who are
critical to food production in a country embroiled in drought and potential
famine.
Al-Shabaab has been fighting Somalia’s central
government for more than 15 years in an attempt to establish its own rule in
the African country.
Source: Press TV
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of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/01/04/695723/Somalia-Shabaab-car-bombings-Hiran
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Libya condemns the Israeli minister's storming of the
courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque and considers it a provocation to the feelings of
Muslims.
2023-01-04
Tripoli, January 4, 2023 (LANA) – Libya condemned the
extremist minister of the Israeli occupation government’s storming of the
courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque, with the protection of the occupation forces, in
an attempt to change the historical and legal status quo in Al-Aqsa Mosque.
In a statement posted on its Facebook page today,
Wednesday, the ministry denounced this "disgraceful" act and
considered it a provocation to the feelings of all Muslims and a flagrant
violation of the relevant international resolutions.
In its statement, the ministry held the "Israeli
occupation" fully responsible for the repercussions of the continuation of
such daily attacks on the city of Jerusalem, its people and its sanctities.
The Ministry reaffirmed Libya's firm stance towards
the Palestinian cause, and called on the international community to assume its
responsibilities towards putting an end to these Israeli violations that would
fuel conflict, extremism and instability in the region.
Source: LANA
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of the original story:
https://lana.gov.ly/post.php?id=266513&lang=en
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2023: Reject politician who discriminate, tamper with
your rights – Group tells Muslims
January 4, 2023
By Musliudeen Adebayo
The Concerned Yoruba Muslim Scholars, CYMS, in Nigeria
have advised Islam adherents to reject candidates who will deny their fundamental
human rights during the general elections.
The group tasked Muslims to reject candidates who will
discriminate against them during the 2023 general elections.
The scholars made the call on Wednesday while
addressing newsmen at the premises of Ibadan Central Mosque, Oja Oba area of
Ibadan.
Secretary General, CYMS, Professor Abideen Olaiya, who
addressed journalists on behalf of President-General, Shaykh Abdur-Rasheed
Mayaleke, said the group aligns with the position of the Supreme Council for
Islamic Affairs and Supreme Council for Sharia in Nigeria that Muslims should
vote for candidates that can guarantee their fundamental human rights without
discrimination.
Olaiya condemned the purported invitation of the
Director of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) Professor Ishaq Lakin Akintola, by
someone claiming to be calling from the Ibadan office of the Directorate of
Security Services (DSS) over a press statement criticising the government of
Oyo State over infringement on the rights of Muslim students.
The group advised the DSS to be professional in its
dealings and understand that religious matters are very sensitive and volatile.
It cautioned the organisation not to be used to test
the strength of Muslims in the South-West.
It added that injustice against the MURIC director
would be considered an attack on Muslims in Yorubaland and Nigeria as a whole.
The group maintained that the security outfit should
also remember its purposes of creation and not dabble in matters that could
attract hatred to the security outfit.
The group said, “It is unfortunate that religious
leaders that should be busy propagating righteousness are now being drawn
full-blown into murky waters of partisan politics.
“We hereby align with the position of the Supreme
Council for Islamic Affairs and Supreme Council for Sharia in Nigeria that all
Muslims should go out and vote for candidates that can guarantee their
fundamental human rights without discrimination and for the good governance of
the country.
“Our attention was drawn to the purported invitation
of the Director of Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) Professor Ishaq Lakin
Akintola, on Friday, December 16, 2022, by someone claiming to be calling from
the Ibadan office of the Directorate of Security Services (DSS) over a press
statement criticising the government of Oyo State over infringement on the
rights of Muslims, especially Muslim Students.
“We also appeal to the DSS to be professional and
understand that religious matters are very sensitive and volatile. The DSS
should not be used to test the strength of Muslims in the South-West as an
injustice against the MURIC director would be considered an attack on Muslims
in Yorubaland and Nigeria as a whole. The security outfit should also remember
its purposes of creation and not dabble into matters that could attract hatred
to the security outfit.
Source: Daily Post Nigeria
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of the original story:
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35 dead as twin bomb blasts hit Somalia
January 04, 2023
JEDDAH: At least 35 people, including eight members of
a single family, died on Wednesday when Al-Shabab terrorists detonated two car
bombs in central Somalia.
The attack in the town of Mahas in the Hiran region
was the latest in a series by the Al-Qaeda affiliate since government forces
and allied clan militias began pushing the insurgents out of territory they had
long held.
“Most of the dead are civilians. They are women and
children,” said Hassan-Kafi Mohamed Ibrahim, deputy police commissioner of
Hirshabelle state.
“Only one child survived from a family of nine. Other
families also lost half of their members. The two suicide car bombs burnt many
civilian homes to ashes.”
Mahas District Commissioner Mumin Mohamed Halane said
one bomb targeted his house and the other hit the home of a member of the
Federal Parliament.
Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has declared
“all-out war” against Al-Shabab, which has been waging a bloody insurgency against
the frail internationally-backed federal government for 15 years.
In July, local clan militias known as Macawisley
launched a revolt against Al-Shabab in parts of central Somalia, and Mohamud
sent in troops in September to support the fightback.
In recent months, the army and the militias have
retaken large tracts of territory in the central states of Galmudug and
Hirshabelle, where Hiran is, in an operation backed by US airstrikes and an
African Union force.
However, the insurgents have frequently retaliated
with bloody attacks, underlining their ability to strike at the heart of Somali
towns and military installations despite the offensive.
Although forced out of the country’s main urban
centers about 10 years ago, Al-Shabab remains entrenched in large parts of
rural central and southern Somalia. It has carried out frequent attacks in
recent months, including several in the capital Mogadishu against government
installations and hotels.
Al-Shabab’s activities have also restricted deliveries
of international aid, compounding the impact of the Horn of Africa’s worst
drought in four decades.
On Oct. 29, 121 people in the capital Mogadishu were
killed in two car bomb explosions at the education ministry, the deadliest
attack in five years. Eight civilians died on Nov. 27 in a 21-hour siege at a
hotel in Mogadishu popular with politicians and government officials.
Source: Arab News
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of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2226511/world
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/iran-cartoons-khamenei-charlie-hebdo/d/128806
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