Iran Executes Four Political Prisoners from Iran’s Ahvazi Arab Minority, Iran Human Rights Monitor Strongly Condemns the Executions
New
Age Islam News Bureau
11
March 2021
Ahvazi Arab political prisoners Naser Khafajian,
Ali Khasraji, Hossein Silawi and Jasem Heidar were executed on Februaru 28,
2021, at Sepidar prison of Ahvaz, capital of Khuzestan Province.
----
•
A Report Has Held China Responsible For Committing Genocide against the Uyghurs
in Xinjiang
•
Iraq’s Prominent Shia Cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s Wise Remarks in Meeting
with Pope Showed Dignity of Islam
•
US Blacklists Islamic Extremist Groups in Congo, Mozambique as Terrorist Units
•
Indonesia Ramps up Diplomacy to Solve Myanmar Crisis
•
Pakistan Set To Get 45 Million India-Made Doses
•
Police Officer Sachin Vaze is Not Osama Bin Laden, Wait Till Probe is Over: CM
Uddhav Thackeray
•
Ethiopia’s Government Faces Mounting Pressure to End Tigray War
•
Putin, Erdogan to Step up Cooperation, Launch Expansion of Turkish Nuclear
Plant
Mideast
•
Iran Executes Four Political Prisoners from Iran’s Ahvazi Arab Minority, Iran
Human Rights Monitor Strongly Condemns the Executions
•
Iran: Unlawful killings of destitute fuel porters must be independently
investigated
•
FM: Iran to Reverse Remedial Steps If US Lifts Sanctions
•
Commander: Israelis’ Rhetoric against Iran out of Fear
•
Yahya Sinwar re-elected as Hamas chief in Gaza
•
Ansarullah leader warns of US-Israeli plots to exploit Yemeni people, resources
•
Yemeni minister urges UN to prevent humanitarian catastrophe
--------
Southeast Asia
•
A Report Has Held China Responsible For Committing Genocide against the Uyghurs
in Xinjiang
•
Malaysia Uses Mosque Sermons to Overcome Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy
•
Islamic finance players should take charge of digital economy, says Bank Islam
CEO
--------
Arab World
•
Iraq’s Prominent Shia Cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s Wise Remarks in Meeting
with Pope Showed Dignity of Islam
•
Mohammed bin Salman Orders House Arrest of Father-in-Law over Meeting with US
Security Official
•
Detained children beaten, threatened with rape by Bahrain police: Rights groups
•
Saudi Drone Attacks Highlight A New Era Of ‘War-By-Remote’ In The Middle East:
Expert
•
UAE, Israel Discuss Establishing Quarantine-Free Travel Corridor
•
Israel’s Netanyahu cancels planned UAE visit: Reports
•
Arab Coalition destroys Houthi missile launcher in Yemen’s Marib: SPA
•
Lebanese Actors Hold Play In Theater Razed By Beirut Blast To Help Heal Divided
City
•
Iran, Turkey slam controversial Kurdish stamp marking Pope’s visit to Iraq
--------
North America
•
US Blacklists Islamic Extremist Groups in Congo, Mozambique As Terrorist Units
•
US, Israel to hold first strategic consultative group meeting: White House
•
US Secretary Blinken says ‘ball is in Iran’s court,’ denies releasing frozen
funds
•
US Capitol reminds me of Kabul, Senate Minority Leader says amid heightened
security
•
Iran-Cuba vaccine cooperation sends signal of independence to White House
•
Biden reviewing Trump's listing of Cuba as terrorism sponsor -White House
--------
South Asia
•
Indonesia Ramps up Diplomacy To Solve Myanmar Crisis
•
Security will remain crucial with or without peace: SIGAR
•
KSA promises to vaccinate Bangladeshi migrants
--------
Pakistan
•
Pakistan Set To Get 45 Million India-Made Doses
•
Mosque built by Turkish Red Crescent in Pakistan opens
•
US-Based MQM-L Activist Planning Killings to Trigger Sectarian Rift In Karachi:
Officials
•
Bajwa, ISI chief participate in Bahrain talks on Afghan issue
•
Uzbekistan offered access to Pakistani ports
•
PML-N leader booked for thrashing woman constable in Lahore
•
Capt Safdar gets pre-arrest bail in sedition case
•
PML-N starts preparations for PDM’s anti-government long-march
--------
India
•
Police Officer Sachin Vaze is Not Osama Bin Laden, Wait Till Probe is Over: CM
Uddhav Thackeray
•
Right-Wingers Tweet Morphed Video of AIUDF Chief Saying 'India Will Become
Islamic Nation'
•
Telangana Muslim Advocates Forum backs TRS candidate
•
Two terrorists killed in encounter with security forces in Anantnag
•
J&K Police averted Pulwama-like suicide attacks in south Kashmir: IGP
Kashmir
•
Sopore encounter: Al-Badr chief’s killing a big success, says J&K Police
•
In Assam, Ban on State-Run Madrassas May Force Girls To Drop Out
--------
Africa
•
Ethiopia’s Government Faces Mounting Pressure to End Tigray War
•
Libya’s lawmakers approve interim unity government
•
25 Killed As Soldiers, Boko Haram Clash In Borno
--------
Europe
•
Putin, Erdogan to Step up Cooperation, Launch Expansion of Turkish Nuclear
Plant
•
Allow British-Iranian aid worker to return home, UK PM Johnson tells Rouhani
•
French schoolgirl lied about teacher who was beheaded in terror attack
•
Manchester Arena attack: 'Chaotic' response after bomb blast
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/iran-executes-four-political-prisoners/d/124517
--------
Iran
Executes Four Political Prisoners from Iran’s Ahvazi Arab Minority, Iran Human
Rights Monitor Strongly Condemns the Executions
Ahvazi Arab political prisoners Naser Khafajian,
Ali Khasraji, Hossein Silawi and Jasem Heidar were executed on Februaru 28,
2021, at Sepidar prison of Ahvaz, capital of Khuzestan Province.
----
March
1, 2021
Iranian
authorities on Sunday executed four political prisoners from Iran’s Ahvazi Arab
minority.
The
political prisoners, Naser Khafajian, Ali Khasraji, Hossein Silawi and Jasem
Heidary were executed at Sepidar prison of Ahvaz, capital of Khuzestan
Province.
Ahvaz
Intelligence Ministry agents contacted the families, instructing them to the
Ahvaz’s Chaharshir Square. Intelligence agents blindfolded the families and
transferred them to Sepidar Prison, where they visited their loved ones for
half an hour.
The
families of the four Ahvazi Arab political prisoners said that they brought
their children to visit with handcuffs and shackles. The political prisoners
told their families that they were going to be executed.
However,
the authorities told them that they were not going to be executed and that they
would be transferred to Sheiban Prison.
Their
families were waiting outside the prison for half an hour, when they saw the
executed bodies of the prisoners being carried out. Prison authorities then
confirmed the execution had taken place.
The
Ahvazi Arab political prisoners, Ali Khasraji, Hossein Silawi and Jasem
Heidary, sewed their lips together and went on hunger strike in January 2021 in
Sheiban prison in Ahvaz, Khuzestan province, in protest at their prison
conditions, denial of family visits, and the ongoing threat of execution. The
fourth Ahvazi Arab prisoner, Naser Khafajian, had been forcibly disappeared
since April 2020.
Another
Ahvazi Arab prisoner Ali Motairi was on hunger strike when he was executed on
January 28, 2021. He was also sentenced to death despite serious due process
violations, including allegations of torture and forced “confessions”. Ali
Motairi’s family were not notified or granted the right to visit him for the
last time.
Naser
Khafajian, Ali Khasraji and Hossein Silawi were sentenced to death by a
Revolutionary Court in Ahvaz in connection with an armed attack on a police
station in Ahvaz on 14 May 2017 that resulted in the death of two law
enforcement officials.
They
were held for months in solitary confinement in a ministry of intelligence
detention centre in Ahvaz without access to their families and lawyers.
According to informed sources, they were subjected to torture and other
ill-treatment, resulting in their ribs or hands being broken.
Security
and intelligence officials tortured them to make confessions, which were
broadcast shortly after their arrests in May 2017 and then used by the court to
convict them.
The
men were not allowed to appoint a lawyer of their choosing. In April 2020, they
were forcibly disappeared after being transferred to an undisclosed location.
Hossein Silawi and Ali Khasraji were returned to Sheiban prison around November
2020.
An
eyewitness who saw Ali Khasraji and and Hossein Silawi in quarantine at the
Sheiban prison at the time of their arrest said, “Hossein and Ali were severely
injured at the time of their arrest. Each of them was shot several times.
Hossein was taken to prison directly from his hospital bed and was tortured. He
had no elbow in one hand due to the severity of the bullet wounds he has
sustained, so his arm was attached to his wrist with a metal rod and he was in
a very painful condition… For nearly two or three months, the two political
prisoners were held in a small cell with their wounds infected and were not
cared for, so that the stench of blood and their infection bothered others.”
Jasem
Heidary was arrested in December 2017, after returning to Iran from Austria,
where he had refugee status. He was detained in Tehran and transferred to Evin
Prison.
Jasem,
31, was tortured and beaten by prison authorities and was forced into making
“confessions” against himself. Due to the severity of the tortures, he was
confined to a wheelchair for some time. In March 2018, Jasem was transferred to
Ahvaz. His mother, Marzieh Heidary was also detained in March to increase
pressure on Jasem.
The
Ahvaz Revolutionary Court sentenced Jasem to death for “cooperation with
opposition groups” in November 2020, which was confirmed by the Supreme Court.
Jasem was arrested for the first time when he was 17 years old and had served a
seven-year prison term.
Iran
Human Rights Monitor strongly condemns the executions of the four Ahvazi Arab
political prisoners and once again urges the United Nations Security Council,
the UN Secretary-General, the UN High Commissioner for human rights as well as
the UN Human Rights Council, and the European Union, to take urgent actions to
save the lives of death row prisoners, especially political prisoners. It also
reiterates the need for an international fact-finding mission to visit Iranian
prisons and visits prisoners. The case of human rights violations in Iran must
be referred to the UN Security Council, and the regime’s leaders must be
brought to justice for four decades of crimes against humanity..
https://iran-hrm.com/index.php/2021/03/01/iran-executes-four-ahvazi-arab-political-prisoners-in-southwest-province/
--------
A
Report Has Held China Responsible For Committing Genocide against the Uyghurs
in Xinjiang
Representational Photo
-----
Mar
10, 2021
NEW
DELHI: A report has held China responsible for committing genocide against the
Uyghurs community in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
The
report is the first independent expert application of the 1948 Genocide
Convention to the ongoing treatment of the Uyghurs in China.
While
violating just part of the convention can qualify as genocide, the report
alleges Chinese authorities are in "breach of every act prohibited"
by the definitions.
Here
is a look at what the report said
1
'Break
their lineage, break their roots, break their connections, and break their
origins'
In
2014, President Xi Jinping launched the “People’s War on Terror” in XUAR, where
Uyghurs are 90 per cent of the population. High-level officials followed up
with orders to “round up everyone who should be rounded up,” “wipe them out
completely … destroy them root and branch,” and “break their lineage, break
their roots, break their connections, and break their origins." Officials
described Uyghurs with dehumanizing terms and repeatedly likened the mass
internment of Uyghurs to "eradicating tumours."
2
Rape,
torture and humiliation
The
community has been subjected to serious mental and physical torture, including
rape, sexual abuse, exploitation, and public humiliation.
Internment
camps contain designated “interrogation rooms,” where Uyghur detainees are
subjected to consistent and brutal torture methods, including beatings with
metal prods, electric shocks, and whips.
3
Rupturing
of family bonds
Since
2014, the report says, Beijing has "deployed" Han cadres to
"reside" in Uyghur homes as "monitors". The government
coerce, incentivise, and actively promote Han-Uyghur marriages to rupture
Uyghur family bonds.
4
Mass
internment camps
In
2017, under the "De-Extremification" regulations, mass internment of
Uyghurs was legalised. A manual was issued with orders to "police"
Uyghurs, speed up the construction and expansion of internment camps, increase
discipline and punishment within the camps and maintain utmost secrecy.
5
Mass
birth-prevention strategy
The
Chinese government has also employed a well-documented, state-funded mass
birth-prevention strategy to biologically destroy the Uyghur community. The
Uyghur women are sterilised, subjected to abortions and Uyghyur men of child-bearing
age are sent to internment camps.
China
explicitly admits the purpose of these campaigns is to ensure that Uyghur women
are “no longer baby-making machines.”
6
Children
separated from parents
Children,
including infants, who have lost both their parents to internment or forced
labour, have been confined to a vast network of massive State-run, highly
securitized boarding schools.
7
Destruction
of cultural symbols
The
Chinese government has eliminated Uyghur education, destroyed Uyghur
architecture and household features, and damaged, altered, or completely
demolished the vast majority of mosques and sacred sites in the region while
closing off other sites or converting them into commercial spaces, the report
said.
8
Detention
of community leaders
Intellectuals
and community leaders have been selectively targeted via detention or death
sentences.
There
are reports of mass death and deaths of prominent Uyghur leaders selectively
sentenced to death by execution or, for elders in particular, by long-term
imprisonment, the report added.
9
International
community slams China's actions in Xinjiang
Former
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions of the United Kingdom Iain Duncan
Smith has called for "much tougher action" to combat human rights
abuses in China as Beijing continues to impose severe crackdowns on Uyghurs and
the citizens of Hong Kong.
The
United States has not seen any developments that would change its determination
that China committed genocide and crimes against humanity in its treatment of Uighur
Muslims in the western region of Xinjiang, State Department spokesman Ned Price
said.
"We
have seen nothing that would change our assessment," Price said. The Biden
administration has endorsed a last-minute determination by the Trump
administration that China has committed genocide in Xinjiang.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/rape-internment-camps-mass-sterilisation-how-china-is-committing-genocide-of-uyghurs/articleshow/81430955.cms
--------
Iraq’s
Prominent Shia Cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s Wise Remarks in Meeting with
Pope Showed Dignity of Islam
Pope Francis, right, meets with Shia Muslim leader
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in Najaf, Iraq, on Saturday. (The Associated
Press)
----
10
March 2021
A
senior official at the office of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah
Seyyed Ali Khamenei says "wise" remarks by Iraq’s prominent Shia
cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani during his recent meeting with the Pope
showed "the dignity of Islam."
Hojjatoleslam
Mohsen Qomi, the vice president for international relations at the office of
Ayatollah Khamenei, praised Ayatollah Sistani’s vigilance in his meeting with
the head of the Roman Catholic Church in Iraq last week.
The
official said on Wednesday that Ayatollah Sistani’s emphasis on major global
issues, including the occupation of Palestine, was actually his “rejection of
the plot of normalization” with the Israeli regime.
He
added that the Ayatollah’s dissatisfaction with poverty, deprivation,
discrimination, and sanctions and his emphasis on the fact that religious
leaders should fulfill their duties to counter such challenges can be a clear
example of the Quranic teaching of common understanding between the leaders and
followers of the Abrahamic religions.
He
also expressed hope that the meeting would help boost cooperation between Islam
and Christianity.
A
statement released by Ayatollah Sistani’s office said that during the meeting
with the Pope, the top cleric talked about “the injustice, oppression, poverty,
… suppression of basic freedoms and the absence of social justice, especially
the wars, acts of violence, economic blockade, displacement and so on, especially
the Palestinian people in the occupied territories.”
Ayatollah
Sistani also “indicated the role that the great religious and spiritual leaders
should play in curbing these tragedies, and what is hoped for by urging the
concerned parties - especially those with great powers - to prioritize reason
and wisdom and to reject the language of war” while stressing the importance of
“concerted efforts to consolidate the values of harmony, peaceful coexistence
and human solidarity in all societies, based on fostering rights and mutual
respect among followers of different religions and intellectual trends.”
Pope
Francis held closed-door talks with Ayatollah Sistani on Saturday on the second
day of his visit to the Arab country.
The
meeting took place at Ayatollah Sistani’s residence in the holy city of Najaf
on Saturday morning.
The
Pope concluded his four-day trip to Iraq on Monday.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/10/646995/Ayatollah-Sistani-Pope-meeting-Iraq-
--------
US
blacklists Islamic extremist groups in Congo, Mozambique as terrorist units
MAR
11, 2021
The
United States on Wednesday blacklisted two Islamist extremist groups in the
Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique as foreign terrorist organizations
over accusations of links to Islamic State (ISIS).
The
Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) in Congo and its leader Seka Musa Baluku and
Mozambique's Ahlu Sunnah Wa-Jama and its leader Abu Yasir Hassan were also
named "specially designated global terrorists."
The
designations prevent travel by members to the United States, freeze any
US-related assets, ban Americans from doing business with them and make it a
crime to provide support or resources to the movements.
The
United States dubbed the groups ISIS-DRC and ISIS-Mozambique.
"The
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) announced the launch of the Islamic
State Central Africa Province (ISCAP) in April 2019 to promote the presence of
ISIS associated elements within Central, East, and Southern Africa," the
State Department said in a statement.
"Although
ISIS-associated media portray ISCAP as a unified structure, ISIS-DRC and
ISIS-Mozambique are distinct groups with distinct origins," it said.
"These groups have committed or pose a significant risk of committing acts
of terrorism."
The
Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan insurgent faction active in eastern
Congo since the 1990s, has committed a spate of brutal reprisal attacks on
civilians since the army began operations against it in late 2019.
The
ADF has been blamed for the killing of over 140 people since the start of the
year, in almost weekly attacks in Congo’s restive east. The group killed around
850 people last year, according to UN figures.
Islamic
State funding and recognition has driven the ADF into a new phase of deadly
expansion, said Laren Poole from the Bridgeway Foundation, a US based
thinktank.
"We
believe that targeting the group's financial and recruitment networks will
provide the most effective way to reduce the Islamic State in DRC's capacity
for violence," Poole told Reuters.
Some
analysts, though, have questioned links between the ADF and Islamic State.
"These
new sanctions probably won't have much effect on the ground, just as the
sanctions on ADF in 2014 changed nothing," said Dan Fahey, a former member
of an independent group of experts charged with monitoring UN sanctions on DRC.
"It
is a symbolic act, and a bit surprising because the group of experts has
consistently downplayed the nature and strength of the ISIS influence in
Congo," he added.
Ahlu
Sunnah Wa-Jama, known in Mozambique as Al-Shabaab, staged its first attack in
2017. First known mainly for beheadings, the fighters declared allegiance to
Islamic State in 2019 and have since increased attacks in scale and frequency.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-blacklists-islamic-extremist-groups-in-congo-mozambique-as-terrorist-units-101615428128675.html
--------
Indonesia
Ramps up Diplomacy to Solve Myanmar Crisis
March
11, 2021
BANGKOK
-- Myanmar's military attended an international conference for the first time
since the February coup d'etat.
Military-appointed
Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin attended an online ministerial meeting of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on March 2. Some participants
urged Myanmar to exercise restraint in cracking down on anti-coup protestors
and immediately release Aung San Suu Kyi, de facto leader of the country until
the coup.
During
the conference, Wunna Maung Lwin reportedly expressed his irritation and said
he would not attend another such meeting.
"We
expressed our concern on the situation in Myanmar ... and ASEAN's readiness to
assist Myanmar in a positive, peaceful and constructive manner," said host
country Brunei in a statement.
Indonesian
Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi called for adherence to non-interference in
internal affairs but stressed the importance of respecting democracy, human
rights and the rule of law.
The
ASEAN charter, adopted by the 10 member states in 2008, stipulates that nations
should respect the principle of noninterference in the internal affairs of
others as well as adhere to "the rule of law, good governance, the
principles of democracy and constitutional government."
The
non-interference policy occasionally conflicts with the other principles,
because when constitutional governance is ignored, non-interference prevents
corrective action from member states.
ASEAN
has historically leaned toward non-interference. Founded by five countries in
1967, the bloc took more than 30 years to become the current union of 10
countries, with widely different political systems, levels of economic
development, ethnic groups and religions.
The
rule of non-interference is wise if the group is to move forward by finding
common ground rather than squabble over differences.
When
regional customs crystallized into a formal ASEAN charter, there were moves to
review the noninterference policy. A group of elder statesmen from member
states even advocated for the punishment of those who violated the charter.
The
charter, however, has retained the noninterference policy because of late ASEAN
entrants such as Vietnam and Laos, who have had issues with human rights and
democracy, in addition to Myanmar under military rule.
The
coup in Myanmar -- which has rolled back a decade of progress toward democracy
-- has exposed a weakness in ASEAN, which some mockingly refer to as NATO,
short for no action, talk only.
ASEAN
should be praised for "managing to hold a meeting that Myanmar
joined," a diplomat said. "It's unrealistic for ASEAN as a whole to
continually convene meetings on Myanmar. A focal point will be how individual
countries act in cooperation with the United Nations and countries outside the
region."
Indonesia
looks to play a key role. President Joko Widodo proposed the ASEAN ministerial
conference during his meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on
Feb. 5 following the coup.
Instructed
by Joko, Retno flew to Brunei, Singapore and Thailand to arrange the
conference. She canceled a visit to the Myanmar capital of Naypyidaw, as a
media report of her trip beforehand provoked a strong backlash from anti-coup
protestors thinking that the trip was de facto approval to new elections
demanded by the military.
On
Feb. 24, however, Retno met Wunna Maung Lwin for 20 minutes at Thailand's Don
Mueang International Airport. He agreed to attend the online ministerial
meeting.
With
a population of 260 million, Indonesia considers itself a de facto ASEAN leader
and has played coordinating roles to address regional problems.
Myanmar
joined ASEAN in 1997 just after the U.S. imposed economic sanctions. Its
membership was due in large part to the support of then Indonesian President
Suharto, who stressed that Myanmar should not be isolated. When a
Thailand-Cambodia border dispute erupted in 2011, Indonesia mediated the ceasefire.
In
2017, Retno visited Bangladesh, where Rohingya Muslim refugees had fled from
Myanmar.
Indonesia's
interventions have been partly attributable to itself. In 1996, before
Myanmar's ASEAN entry, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded jointly to East Timorese
politician Jose Ramos-Horta and Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, a Roman Catholic
bishop, for their work towards independence for East Timor. Ramos-Horta
subsequently served as the president and prime minister of East Timor.
Suharto
feared that if the U.S. and Europe were allowed to intervene in Myanmar, they
would turn their criticism toward Indonesia for repression in East Timor.
Indonesia
was the ASEAN chair during the Thailand-Cambodia border conflict. Being an
overwhelmingly Muslim nation, it is now closely watching the Rohingya
situation.
But
Retno's frequent media updates to domestic news outlets following the Myanmar
coup appear to be staged. Joko "should be motivated enough to get actively
involved in the Myanmar problem in a bid to eliminate an image that his
administration is growing authoritarian," said Ken Miichi, professor at
the Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies of Waseda University.
His
administration has taken a hardline against opposition forces such as radical
Muslims. The coup in Myanmar is a good opportunity for the president to fend
off criticism that Indonesia is "backing down from democracy ... and
returning to the Suharto era," according to Miichi.
But
public reaction to the administration's stance is a different matter.
"For
the Indonesian public, there is very little sympathy with Suu Kyi... Many in
Indonesia believe that in order to stay in power, Suu Kyi allowed the Tatmadaw
[Myanmar military] to persecute the Rohingya," said Rizal Sukma, senior
research fellow of the Indonesian Center for Strategic and International
Studies.
Joko
has been forced into a corner in coping with the pandemic, said Bachitar Alam,
representative of Indonesian think tank Asiaconsult Associates, adding that the
biggest task for the president is to halt the spread of Covid-19 infections and
revive the economy. Myanmar is not a high-priority issue for Joko, Alam said.
While
Joko may want to use the Myanmar crisis to score political points, one misstep
and he could face a major backlash.
The
U.S., Europe, and Japan are trying to formulate strategies to protect their
economic interests in Myanmar while keeping China at bay. Indonesian is in the
same situation.
Joko,
a furniture maker-turned politician, became president after serving in local
governments. He once admitted that he is not good at diplomacy -- since
assuming office in 2014, he has absented himself from the U.N. General Assembly
held every September. He delivered his first speech to the body last year
through a prerecorded video streamed online.
But
the crisis in Myanmar is an ASEAN crisis. As a major power in the region, Joko
needs to step up and assume the main role to promote cooperation and achieve a
diplomatic breakthrough.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Comment/Indonesia-ramps-up-diplomacy-to-solve-Myanmar-crisis
--------
Pakistan
set to get 45 million India-made doses
Mar
10, 2021
ISLAMABAD:
The international vaccine alliance, GAVI, will provide 45 million doses of
India-manufactured Covishield vaccine to Pakistan. These vaccine doses are among
those bought by GAVI, which works to increase access to immunization in poor
countries, from India.
Pakistan
is the only Saarc country to not seek Covid-19 vaccine from India, choosing to
rely instead on Chinese vaccines.
As
has been reported, Pakistan aims to tackle the Covid-19 challenge through herd
immunity and donated vaccines.
China
pharmaceutical company Sinopharm has committed to providing one million doses
of Covid-19 vaccine to Pakistan.
Reports
from Islamabad had said last week that Pakistan will also get 16 million free
doses of India-made Oxford-AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine through GAVI and that
would give cover to 20 per cent of the population of Pakistan.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/pakistan-set-to-get-45-million-india-made-doses/articleshow/81422619.cms
--------
Police
Officer Sachin Vaze is Not Osama Bin Laden, Wait Till Probe is Over: CM Uddhav
Thackeray
MARCH
10, 2021
Maharashtra
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday said the guilty in the Mansukh
Hiran death case will be punished, but police officer Sachin Vaze should not be
targeted until his alleged involvement is established. Facing heat over
Assistant Police Inspector Vaze’s alleged link to Hiran’s mysterious death, the
government earlier in the day announced his transfer from the Mumbai crime
branch.
Hiran,
who was in possession of the vehicle which was later found with explosives
outside residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani, was found dead in a creek in
Thane last week. His wife has made allegations against Vaze in her statement.
”Sachin
Vaze is not Osama Bin Laden. It is not right to target a person and hang him
and then investigate,” Thackeray said here. ”Let the probe be over. The guilty,
whoever they are, will not be spared,” he said, speaking to reporters after the
end of the Budget session of the Maharashtra legislature.
On
Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis’ claim that Vaze was a member of
Thackeray’s party, the Shiv Sena, the chief minister said the officer had
become a party member in 2008 and he had not renewed the membership. ”Now he
has nothing to do with the Shiv Sena,” he said.
”Dadra
Nagar Haveli administrator Praful Kheda Patel , who has been named in the
suicide note of (Lok Sabha member) Mohan Delkar, too was with the BJP earlier,”
Thackeray said. The state government has sought the Call Detail Record (CDR) in
the Hiran case which Fadnavis possesses, he said.
Thackeray
denied the BJP’s allegation that Mumbai police were probing Mohan Delkar’s
alleged suicide in the city last month for deflecting attention from Vaze’s
complicity in the Hiran case. ”The FIR in the Delkar case was filed after a
complaint was received from his family members. We are not indulging in
politics,” he said.
https://www.news18.com/news/india/police-officer-sachin-vaze-is-not-osama-bin-laden-wait-till-probe-is-over-cm-uddhav-thackeray-3520430.html
--------
Ethiopia’s
government faces mounting pressure to end Tigray war
11
March ,2021
Ethiopia’s
government on Thursday faced mounting pressure to withdraw troops from the
northern region of Tigray amid growing reports of war crimes in an embattled
area that now faces a humanitarian crisis.
Criticism
of the conduct of government troops and their allies from neighboring Eritrea
grew after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken asserted Wednesday that “ethnic
cleansing” has happened in parts of Tigray.
“The
challenge in Ethiopia is very significant, and it’s one that we are very
focused on, particularly the situation in Tigray, where we are seeing very
credible reports of human rights abuses and atrocities that are ongoing,”
Blinken told the foreign affairs committee of the US House of Representatives.
Although
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed expressed concerns about the actions of the
fugitive leaders of Tigray, Blinken said, “the situation in Tigray today is
unacceptable and has to change, and that means a few things. It means making
sure that we are getting into the region, into Tigray. Aid workers and others
... to make sure that the people are cared for, provided for and protected.”
Eritrean
troops as well as fighters from Amhara, an Ethiopian region bordering Tigray,
“need to come out,” he said, adding that the region needs “a force that will
not abuse the human rights of the people of Tigray or commit acts of ethnic
cleansing, which we’ve seen in western Tigray. That has to stop.”
There
was no immediate comment from Ethiopian authorities.
But
the fugitive leaders of Tigray seized on Blinken’s comments, issuing a
statement on Thursday condemning what they called “the genocidal campaign”
targeting their people.
“Thousands
of civilians have been massacred, hundreds of thousands forcibly displaced from
their homes, civilian installations and Infrastructures systemically
destroyed,” said the statement posted on Twitter by Getachew Reda, one of the
fugitive leaders of Tigray. “Despite shamelessly protesting its innocence and
profusely promising to allow access to humanitarian agencies and international
investigation into allegations, Abiy Ahmed’s regime and its partners in crime
have only stepped up their war crimes and crimes against humanity in recent
weeks and days.”
A
senior Ethiopian diplomat on Wednesday quit his post in Washington over
concerns about the reported atrocities in Tigray. Berhane Kidanemariam, who served
as the deputy chief of mission at the Ethiopian embassy in Washington, slammed
Abiy as a reckless leader who is dividing his country.
Accounts
of atrocities by Ethiopian and allied forces against residents of Tigray have
been detailed in reports by The Associated Press and by Amnesty International.
Ethiopia’s
federal government and regional officials in Tigray both maintain that each
other’s governments are illegitimate after the pandemic disrupted elections.
The
conflict began in November, when Abiy sent government troops into Tigray after
an attack there on federal military facilities. No one knows how many thousands
of civilians have been killed in the conflict.
Humanitarian
officials have warned that a growing number of people might be starving to death
in Tigray. The fighting erupted on the brink of harvest in the largely
agricultural region and sent an untold number of people fleeing their homes.
Witnesses have described widespread looting by Eritrean soldiers as well as the
burning of crops.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/world/2021/03/11/Ethiopia-s-government-faces-mounting-intense-pressure-to-end-Tigray-war
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Putin,
Erdogan to step up cooperation, launch expansion of Turkish nuclear plant
10
March ,2021
Russian
President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed Wednesday to
improve cooperation as they launched the construction of a new reactor at
Turkey’s first nuclear power plant.
The
two leaders each pressed a button on their office desks in Moscow and Ankara in
a video link ceremony unveiling the third phase of Akkuyu station’s
construction project.
Russia’s
Rosatom state nuclear energy firm began building the first of four planned
reactors on Turkey’s south coast in 2018.
Erdogan
hopes to put the plant online by the time Turkey celebrates its centenary as a
post-Ottoman republic in 2023.
Putin
said he expected the project to “improve the Russian-Turkish partnership in all
its facets, helping strengthen friendship and mutual understanding between our
countries’ peoples.” Erdogan echoed similar thoughts.
“The
close dialogue that we established with my esteemed friend (Putin) is playing a
key role not only in bilateral relations but also in preserving regional peace
and stability,” Erdogan said.
Putin
and Erdogan have enjoyed a complex relationship while leading their countries
for most of the past 20 years.
They
found themselves on opposite sides of the war in Syria but are now working
closely together on a peace plan that could bring an end to a decade of strife.
Their
ties plunged to a nadir when Turkish forces shot down a Russian warplane near
the Syrian border in November 2015.
But
they recovered quickly and Putin attended the launch of the Akkuyu plant’s
construction in April 2018.
Russian
news reports estimate the cost of the entire project at around $20 billion (17
billion euros).
Turkey
is heavily reliant on oil and natural gas imports – including from Russia.
Erdogan
said he expected the plant to supply 10 percent of Turkey’s electricity needs
when completed.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/world/2021/03/10/Putin-Erdogan-to-step-up-cooperation-launch-expansion-of-Turkish-nuclear-plant
--------
Mideast
Iran:
Unlawful killings of destitute fuel porters must be independently investigated
2
March 2021
Iran’s
Revolutionary Guards unlawfully used lethal force against unarmed fuel porters
near the city of Saravan, in Sistan and Baluchestan province, on 22 February,
flagrantly violating the absolute prohibition on the arbitrary deprivation of
the right to life under international law, said Amnesty International today.
Testimony
from eyewitnesses and victims’ families, coupled with video footage geolocated
and verified by the organization’s Crisis Evidence Lab, confirms that on that
day, Revolutionary Guards, stationed at Shamsar military base, used live
ammunition against a group of unarmed fuel porters from Iran’s impoverished
Baluchi minority causing several deaths and injuries.
“By
opening fire on a group of unarmed people, Iranian security forces have
displayed a callous disregard for human life. There must be urgent, independent
criminal investigations into these unlawful killings, in line with
international law and standards. Anyone against whom there is sufficient
admissible evidence must be prosecuted in a fair trial, without resorting to
the death penalty,” said Diana Eltahawy, Deputy Director for the Middle East
and North Africa at Amnesty International.
By
opening fire on a group of unarmed people, Iranian security forces have
displayed a callous disregard for human life.
Diana
Eltahawy, Amnesty International
At
least 10 people, including a 17-year-old boy, were killed on 22 February,
according to Baluchi human rights activists who interviewed primary sources.
In
a media interview on 23 February, the deputy governor of Sistan and Baluchestan
province, Mohamad Hadi Marashi, said that the security forces stationed at
Shamsar base “were forced to resort to shooting” because their “honour” was at
risk due to fuel porters’ “attempts to enter the base”, stone-throwing and other
“destructive action,” inadvertently confirming that there was no imminent
threat to life.
“The official justification the Iranian
authorities have given for their deadly use of live ammunition reflects their
complete disregard for international standards on the use of firearms. It also
shows a shameless contempt for their obligations to respect and preserve human
life and to ensure that public officials do not carry out extrajudicial
executions by illegal use of firearms,” said Diana Eltahawy.
Under
international law, firearms should only be used to defend against the imminent
threat of death or serious injury and intentional lethal use of firearms is
only justified when strictly unavoidable to protect life. It is unlawful to use
lethal force to defend property, prevent entry into a military base, or in
response to stone-throwing when there is no threat to life or serious injury.
On
26 February, following a public outcry, the Military Prosecutor of Sistan and
Baluchestan province announced that a criminal case had been opened into the
“accidents that occurred” on 22 February. Under international human rights law
and standards, the jurisdiction of military courts must be restricted to
breaches of military discipline by military personnel, to the exclusion of
human rights violations.
Furthermore,
due to the lack of an independent judiciary in the country, which has resulted
in an appalling track record of impunity, Amnesty International has serious
concerns about the compliance of this investigation with international law and
standards.
A
relative of one victim who was killed and another who was injured told Amnesty
International that intelligence and security officials had not allowed his
family to examine the body of their loved one or secure an independent autopsy
and pressured them to have the body buried immediately. He also said that at
the hospital his injured relative, other members of his family and other
victims’ families were asked by intelligence and security officials to sign
statements saying the Revolutionary Guards were not responsible for the deaths
and injuries.
Evidence
of unlawful use of lethal force
Verified
video footage, testimony from eyewitnesses and victims’ relatives, as well as
credible information gathered from human rights defenders, and official
statements, confirm that the fuel porters were unarmed and posed no serious
threat. It is, therefore, clear that the Revolutionary Guards’ use of lethal
force against them on 22 February was unlawful.
Days
earlier, on 20 February, Revolutionary Guards stationed at Shamsar base blocked
a road leading to the city of Saravan with metal chains, without explanation.
This left scores of fuel porters, who regularly travel between Iran and
Pakistan to sell fuel for meagre sums, stranded near the border on the Iranian
side, with little food and water.
Amnesty
International reviewed and cross-checked the accounts of six individuals
relating to the events. They included three eyewitnesses, a relative of two
victims (one was killed and the other injured); and two local human rights
defenders who had interviewed three further eyewitnesses. According to these
accounts, after 48 hours of failed negotiations, on 22 February, a group of
fuel porters unblocked the road by breaking the metal chains and attempted to
drive their vehicles through the barrier. In response, the Revolutionary Guards
first fired warning shots into the air. Witnesses said that when the drivers
did not retreat, and moved towards the barrier, the Revolutionary Guards fired
live ammunition at them, killing and injuring multiple drivers.
An
eyewitness in an audio-recorded testimony obtained by Amnesty International
said: “We begged the Revolutionary Guards to open the road, but they made false
promises and kept us waiting. People felt pushed to break the metal barrier
themselves, and when doing so, the Revolutionary Guards began shooting at them.
The drivers of five or six cars who were passing through were shot dead. After
seeing this scene, other fuel porters began screaming and yelling and the
Revolutionary Guards fired towards them as well, leaving many dead or injured.”
People
felt pushed to break the metal barrier themselves, and when doing so, the
Revolutionary Guards began shooting at them. The drivers of five or six cars
who were passing through were shot dead.
Eyewitness
On
24 February, Balochistan News Channel (BNC) aired a video clip in which an
injured fuel porter, being treated at a medical facility in Pakistan, described
how the Revolutionary Guards opened fire at the drivers who attempted to drive
through: “The driver of a car in front of me was hit by a bullet. There were
about 35 to 40 people who were hit by bullets… We were only there trying to
make a living.”
Amnesty
International was able to speak to a relative of two victims who were shot
while in their cars. One was killed at the scene after sustaining multiple
gunshot wounds in his legs; another was shot in his abdomen and is currently in
a critical condition. The relative said that eight of his cousins, who were also
present at the scene, all reported that the Revolutionary Guards had
deliberately aimed their fire at the drivers who attempted to pass through the
barrier.
The
accounts are supported by video footage showing the inside of a car covered in
bloodstains. In the clip, the person filming is heard saying that five drivers
were shot dead. Amnesty International also obtained verified video footage
showing two victims lying on the ground, bleeding from wounds in their legs.
One of the victims is seen lying on the ground motionless with his eyes wide
open.
“When
security forces wilfully and unlawfully use firearms against unarmed people,
they either intend to kill or do not care whether their actions are likely to
cause death. In either case, under international law, the killings resulting
from their unlawful actions are considered not accidental, but deliberate, and
should, therefore, be investigated as extrajudicial executions,” said Diana
Eltahawy.
When
security forces wilfully and unlawfully use firearms against unarmed people,
they either intend to kill or do not care whether their actions are likely to
cause death.
Diana
Eltahawy, Amnesty International
Eyewitness
accounts, as well as verified video footage, indicate that following the deadly
shootings described above, many fuel porters raised their voice in anger, with
some chanting “Down with the Revolutionary Guards”. Human rights defenders
interviewed by Amnesty International said that a number of fuel porters also
moved towards Shamsar base, throwing stones. This time, the Revolutionary
Guards responded with reckless fire.
These
accounts are consistent with verified video footage reviewed by an Amnesty
International weapons expert, which shows multiple guards on the hills inside
Shamsar base recklessly firing semi-automatic rifles near a crowd of unarmed
people, who are seen running away and seeking shelter in trenches.
Iranian
authorities have refused to disclose the real number of deaths. Top provincial
officials have only acknowledged three deaths, and attempted to attribute
responsibility to Pakistan’s border guards, which both Pakistani officials and
fuel porters present at the scene have denied.
Given
the systematic impunity prevailing in Iran for serious human rights violations
and other crimes under international law, Amnesty International urges members
of the international community to push for truth and justice for the grave
violations of the right to life committed by Iran’s security forces on 22
February.
Background
Iranian
security forces also used unlawful and excessive force, including live
ammunition, pointed metal pellets, and tear gas, against men, women and
children protesting the deaths of their loved ones and bystanders during
protests which erupted across Sistan and Baluchestan province between 23 and 25
February in response to the 22 February killings. According to Baluchi human
rights defenders, at least two, including a child, were shot dead on 24
February during the protests. The authorities also announced the death of one
law enforcement official during the protests.
Fuel
porters, called “Soukhtbar” in Persian, generally live in extreme poverty in
Sistan and Baluchestan province. They try to earn a living by selling fuel in
border villages in Pakistan. While some have an official license to transport
fuel, the vast majority do so irregularly through peripheral border routes and
report that they are asked to pay regular bribes to Revolutionary Guards
officials who control the border crossings.
Every
year, Iranian security forces fatally shoot or injure dozens of fuel porters in
the name of confronting “fuel smuggling”.
Iran’s
Baluch minority face entrenched discrimination that curtails their access to
education, health care, employment, adequate housing and political office.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/03/iran-unlawful-killings-of-destitute-fuel-porters-must-be-independently-investigated/
--------
FM:
Iran to Reverse Remedial Steps If US Lifts Sanctions
2021-March-11
“If
the US lifts its illegal sanctions [against Iran] and implements its
obligations as per the JCPOA (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), Iran
will also reverse all its remedial steps,” Zarif said in a phone conversation
with his Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto on Wednesday.
He
added that despite the US’s breach of the JCPOA, its imposition of “cruel and
illegal” sanctions on Iran and inaction of the European parties to the deal,
Tehran remained fully committed with the nuclear agreement for one year.
The
Islamic Republic’s countermeasures in response to Washington’s pullout were in
conformity with the JCPOA and meant to restore its balance, the top Iranian
diplomat said.
Zarif
said on Wednesday that his country distrusts the western states, specially the
US, as they have not complied with their nuclear deal undertakings.
“Iran
has always fulfilled its undertakings and it is the US that has withdrawn from
the nuclear deal,” Zarif told reporters in Tehran.
He
noted that Iran’s situation is quite clear and for a year after Trump left the
nuclear deal, the US administration, itself, confirmed that Iran was
implementing its nuclear deal undertakings, adding that five reports by the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have also confirmed the same.
"If
the problem is distrust, it is Iran that is distrustful of the Western
countries that have never implemented the nuclear deal properly and correctly,”
Zarif said.
He
said that Iran has always wanted full implementation of the nuclear deal,
adding that if the West resolves this problem and fulfills its undertakings,
Tehran will also implement the agreement immediately.
Iranian
Government Spokesman Ali Rabiyee said on Tuesday that the US is not in a
position to set conditions for implementing its nuclear deal undertakings,
saying that lifting sanctions is the only solution to revive the agreement.
“The
US is not in a position to set conditions for implementation of its
international undertakings. Unlike the US, which is avoiding returning to the
nuclear deal, Iran is ready to fulfill all its undertakings as soon as possible
and in companionship with other members of the nuclear deal and the US. Based
on the policy announced by the Supreme Leader (Ayatollah Khamenei), the only
way to revive the nuclear deal is lifting sanctions and return of all parties
to the full implementation of their undertakings,” Rabiyee told reporters in a
press conference in Tehran.
“Once
again, we recommend the White House to return to the nuclear deal
unconditionally, just as the previous US president suddenly left the nuclear
deal, and not to further complicate and harden diplomacy. I should remind you
that in the last 4 years we, and not them (the US), have kept the way of
diplomacy open, and today it is them who should take the first step in the way
of diplomacy, not us,” he added.
Rabiyee
noted that today, many countries are trying in good will to revive the nuclear
deal, and added, “We are confident that this goal will be achieved in the near
future because it is the only way to ensure world peace and guarantee the
interests of all countries; the nuclear deal is international law and the US
has no choice but to abide by the law.”
Asked
about Iran’s position on exchanging prisoners with the US, he said, “There is
nothing new about the exchange of prisoners; Iran's position has already been stated
by the Foreign Minister, and we are ready to exchange all prisoners between
Iran and the US. If this has not happened yet, it is because of the
unpreparedness of the US government."
Elsewhere,
Rabiyee referred to reports about releasing Iran’s US-blocked assets in a
number of countries, and said, “These measures are insufficient. The Iranian
government will no doubt strive to release what belongs to the Iranian people
to the last cent, and it should be able to trade freely and gain access to its
financial resources like all countries.”
Tehran
had on Monday dismissed media reports about direct or indirect contacts between
Iran and Washington, saying that close talks are being held, but with other
parties to the nuclear deal.
“We
have not and do not have any direct or indirect contact with the US about
issues related to the nuclear deal or other subjects,” Foreign Ministry
Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh told reporters in a press conference in Tehran.
“We
have had very close talks with the (other) parties to the nuclear deal and we
have not had any talks with the US. Inside Iran, some points are being reviewed
and completed,” he added.
Asked
if Iran will accept the US proposal to implement undertakings in a step-by-step
plan, Khatibzadeh said, “Iran has neither received any step-by-step plan nor is
such a plan in line with Iran’s declared policy.”
“No
direct or indirect talks are being held between Iran and the US because the
nuclear deal has clarified the path,” he said.
Zarif
said on Sunday that the US should lift all sanctions against Tehran before
rejoining the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
The
US must remove the sanctions that it has imposed against Iran if it wants to
return to the nuclear deal, Zarif said during his meeting with the Irish
Foreign Minister Simon Coveney in Tehran.
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13991221000157/FM-Iran-Reverse-Remedial-Seps-If-US-Lifs-Sancins
--------
Commander:
Israelis’ Rhetoric against Iran out of Fear
2021-March-10
“The
Zionists’ prates are out of fear because they are aware of our capabilities and
know that any threat and act by them will be followed by such a reaction that
they will not be able to stand on their feet after it,” General Dadras said on
Wednesday.
He
also underlined Iran’s military power in different fields, and said all these
capabilities, including production of fighter jets, vessels, radars and
missiles, with high standards have been achieved while the country was under
the harshest-ever sanctions.
Iranian
Government Spokesman Ali Rabiyee had also on Tuesday played down Israeli
officials’ recent threats against Iran as “ridiculous”.
“The
Zionist regime benefits from psychological insecurity in the region and it
might take some moves in the region in this regard,” Rabiyee told reporters in
a press conference.
“Of
course, we do not take serious the Zionist regime’s ridiculous threats,” he
added.
Rabiyee
said that the leaders of the Israeli regime are well aware of the catastrophic
consequences of such a mistake, and added, “Our response is the response given
earlier by our Minister of Defense. This (Israeli) rhetoric is aimed at
threatening and extortion (of financial aid) from the US and dissuading the US
from returning to the nuclear deal.”
His
remarks came after Israeli officials warned to attack the Iranian nuclear sites
in case of the country’s further development of its peaceful program.
Also,
reports said earlier this week that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
has reached out certain Persian Gulf Arab states’ leaders, calling on them for
formation of a coalition against Iran.
In
response, Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami said Israel is
too weak to speak of attacking Iran, but meantime, warned that any wrong move
by Tel Aviv would meet Tehran's response which would raze down Tel Aviv and
Haifa.
“Although
sometimes their dogs speak bigger than their mouths out of desperation and
raise threats that are clearly out of desperation, the Supreme Leader of the
Islamic Revolution has responded well to the Zionists many years ago by saying
that the Zionist regime is not an arch foe of our size and is too small to show
hostility to the Islamic Republic. The Zionist regime knows, and if it does not
know, it should know, that if it makes a mistake, the Islamic Republic will
raze down Tel Aviv and Haifa,” General Hatami said on Sunday.
“This
order of the Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces (the Leader) has been precisely
implemented by the Armed Forces, and it has turned into a plan and will be
implemented with a single command of the Commander-in-Chief. I advise them (the
Israelis) not to make this mistake, even in words,” he added.
General
Hatami also referred to Iran and the resistance groups’ power in the region,
saying that the Islamic Revolution has blocked Israel's schemes and made the
regime build a wall around itself.
Meantime,
Iran's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Vienna-based
International Organizations Kazzem Qaribabadi criticized the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for inaction towards the nuclear threat posed by
Israel, stressing that Tel Aviv enjoys the advantages of Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT) while it is has never signed the pact.
Israel
enjoys more preferential advantages compared to the nuclear-armed states
because the latter are NPT members and have special commitments, while Israel
is out of it, is free of any commitments, and enjoys all the advantages of the
Agency which are relevant to the NPT, Qaribabadi said on Friday.
He
said that all regional countries are members of the NPT and have committed
themselves to accept the IAEA’s safeguards, adding, “Developing a secret
nuclear weapon program by the Zionist regime is a serious persisting threat not
only to the security and stability of the region and the world, but also for
the effectiveness of NPT and the Agency’s safeguards.”
“Needless
to mention, the Zionist regime is not a member of any of the other disarmament
and WMD non-proliferation treaties,” the envoy noted, adding, “the nuclear
capabilities of the Zionist regime and its threats have been put on the agenda
of the UN General Assembly while the IAEA has issued several resolutions in
this regard.”
“But
the Zionist regime has neglected the international community by ignoring the
NPT, avoiding to join it, and refusing to put its facilities and nuclear
activities under IAEA’s safeguards inspections,” Qaribabadi stated.
He
warned that such conditions have emboldened Israel to ridicule the IAEA
authority and the mission for preventing deviation of materials and nuclear
activities.
“Most
importantly, it has been so emboldened that it distorts realities and
criticizes some of the NPT members, while they are committed but it is not,”
the diplomat added.
He
termed it ironic that the IAEA, its secretariat, Board of Governors, and
general conferences all focus on NPT members, while ignoring the materials and
the activities of the Zionist regime in the volatile West Asian region is a
chronic strategic mistake.
“In
such a condition, what is the advantage of being a NPT member and implementing
the safeguards? How can the global community see the IAEA as a serious,
professional, impartial partner while the comprehensive safeguards regime is
not applied to its members identically and justly and it doesn’t even seriously
discuss the necessity of verification and inspections of Israel’s nuclear
activities? Does the silence about the Israeli nuclear deal not send a message
to the NPT members that membership means accepting the strongest verification
and monitoring systems and staying out of it means freedom of any commitments
and even receiving bonuses?” he asked the IAEA.
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13991220000305/Cmmander-Israelis%E2%80%99-Rheric-agains-Iran-f-Fear
--------
Yahya
Sinwar re-elected as Hamas chief in Gaza
10
March ,2021
Hamas
firebrand Yehiyeh Sinwar was re-elected on Wednesday as the Palestinian
militant group’s leader in the Gaza Strip, leaving a figure closely aligned
with the hard-line military wing in charge of the group’s strategy in its main
stronghold.
Sinwar,
58, fended off a challenge from Nizar Awadallah, one of Hamas’ founders. Sinwar
will serve another four-year term.
His
victory could have deep implications for Hamas’ relations with Israel and other
regional players. It also could impact upcoming Palestinian elections, the
first in 15 years.
Hamas’
supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, congratulated Sinwar on his victory and praised
both candidates for the “high confidence” they had gained.
Haniyeh,
a former Gaza leader who now lives in exile in Qatar, said the vote was “real,
not phony,” and that tens of thousands of Hamas members had participated. He
said the results “demonstrate the seriousness of the movement in the upcoming
Palestinian national and presidential elections.”
Sinwar
is a former member of the group’s militant wing who spent over two decades in
an Israeli prison after being convicted of abducting and killing two Israeli
soldiers. He was released in a 2011 prisoner swap. Sinwar maintains close ties
to the militant wing and has often promoted a confrontational approach toward
Israel.
The
Gaza Strip is Hamas’ most important area of activity. The Islamist group, which
opposes Israel’s existence, violently seized control of the territory from the
internationally recognized Palestinian Authority in 2007.
Since
then, it has fought three wars and numerous skirmishes against Israel, holding
on to power despite a crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade that has devastated
the economy.
Awadallah
was one of Hamas’ founders in the late 1980s and has closer ties to the group’s
political leaders.
The
political wing has closer ties to Qatar and Turkey and tends to be more
pragmatic in its dealings with Israel. The militant wing has closer ties with
Iran and favors a more confrontational approach toward Israel.
Sinwar,
however, has also shown himself to be pragmatic on some issues by preventing
tensions with Israel from boiling over into war.
After
taking up his position in 2017, he encouraged mass protests along the
Gaza-Israel frontier as an alternative to its traditional tool of firing
rockets into Israel.
The
protests were aimed at drawing attention to Gaza’s poor living conditions and
easing Israel’s blockade. But the protests often turned violent, with
protesters setting tires on fire and storming a separation fence. Scores of
Palestinians were killed and wounded by Israeli fire.
The
protests fizzled out in 2019 under an unofficial truce in which Qatar provided
tens of millions of dollars to Hamas for employee salaries, aid projects and
cash payments to poor families in exchange for calm.
Sinwar
has not been afraid to push for tougher confrontation. Last year, he threatened
to go to battle if Israel didn’t allow respirators and other medical aid to the
impoverished territory to fight the spread of the virus.
“If
we found that corona patients in Gaza (are) unable to breathe, we will prevent
6 million Zionists from breathing and we will get what we want from you by
force,” he said at the time. Israel has allowed humanitarian supplies into Gaza
throughout the pandemic.
Sinwar
also has helped improve tense relations with neighboring Egypt. He tightened
security along Gaza’s border with restive north Sinai to help the Egyptian
military there, where it faced an insurgency by the Islamic State group’s local
allies.
The
measures helped to quiet the situation in Sinai and as a result, Egypt opened a
passageway for goods such as fuel and tobacco to enter Gaza. It also has
increasingly opened more regularly the Rafah border crossing, Gaza’s main gate
to the outside world.
People
close to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who administers autonomous areas
of the West Bank, said the Palestinian leader had been hoping for an Awadallah
victory.
The
officials said Abbas believes the political wing is more pragmatic as the
Palestinians prepare to hold elections in May aimed at bringing reconciliation
between the rival governments.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/10/Yahya-Sinwar-re-elected-as-Hamas-chief-in-Gaza
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Ansarullah
leader warns of US-Israeli plots to exploit Yemeni people, resources
10
March 2021
Leader
of Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement Abdul-Malik al-Houthi has warned about
US-Israeli plots against Yemen, saying Washington wants to exploit Yemeni
people and resources, as well as take control of its strategic position.
Houthi,
who was speaking on the martyrdom anniversary of Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, a
former Ansarullah leader, said the United States was hatching a plot to target
his country, just like what it did with Iraq and Afghanistan.
“Yemen
is one of the countries targeted by the US conspiracy and as admitted by US
leaders, they put Yemen on the list of target countries after Afghanistan and
Iraq,” he said.
He
added that the strategic position of Yemen and its resources prompted the US to
target the country, noting “US invasion of our country is …. full-fledged and
if our nation abdicates its responsibility to counter this conspiracy, it means
that it has surrendered.”
Houthi
said the US came to Yemen under the pretext of training the Yemeni Army troops
and then it started building bases to increase its dominance over the
country.
The
Yemeni leader also slammed Israel and the West for propagating Takfiri
terrorism with the aim of gaining control in the region.
He
said “Takfiri groups are operating in parallel with a US-led Western scheme to
deceive nations under the guise of fighting terrorism.”
“Takfiris
are created to help achieve the US hegemonic goals and they operate according
to American goals,” he added.
Pointing
to the crimes committed by the al-Qaeda Takfiri terrorist group in different
countries, including Syria, Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq, the Ansarullah leader said
only the Israeli regime has been immune to their attacks, arguing that the
Takfiris have been operating according to the wishes of the Zionist regime.
Houthi
also criticized some regional countries for pursuing Washington’s policies,
expressing regret that they are willfully accepting US hegemony.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/10/647011/Ansarullah-leader-warns-about-US-Israeli-plots-to-exploit-Yemeni-people,-resources--
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Yemeni
minister urges UN to prevent humanitarian catastrophe
10
March 2021
Yemen’s
Minister of Oil and Minerals Ahmad Abdullah Dares has urged the United Nations
to pressure the Saudi-led coalition into releasing ships with petroleum
products vital for services.
Dares
met with UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen William David
Gressly, Lebanon's al-Mayadeen news network reported Tuesday.
The
minister hoped that the UN would shoulder its responsibility and work to ensure
that the oil products are available for the Yemeni people in order to “avoid a
humanitarian catastrophe.”
He
said the current situation had “become dangerous” and that the release of the
fuel ships “has become an urgent necessity that requires an immediate
intervention to prevent the suspension of the service sectors.”
The
UN, he said, had a duty “to find a mechanism to ensure the cessation of acts of
maritime piracy” by the coalition countries and “to prevent the detention of ships
carrying oil products.”
The
Yemeni minister also stated that the coalition had been “detaining 14 oil
tankers, including a vessel loaded with Mazut and a ship carrying natural gas
for varying periods of time, up to a maximum of 11 months.”
The
amount of fine the Yemeni people incurred due to the continued seizure of the
vessels “reached more than $ 33 million in 2021.”
At
the beginning of this year, the Yemen Petroleum Company (YPC) said the economic
losses caused by the seizure of the oil tankers “exceeded $ 10 billion.”
The
YPC organized a protest in front of the UN office in the capital Sana’a in
January to denounce the continued seizure of the ships.
The
executive director of the YPC, Ammar al-Adraei, has said the seizure of the
ships led to the suspension of “more than 50 percent of the operational
capabilities of the service, industrial and commercial sectors.”
More
than 24 million Yemenis are in dire need of humanitarian aid, including 10
million suffering from extreme levels of hunger. That is according to UN data.
The
US-based Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a nonprofit
conflict-research organization, estimates that the war on Yemen has claimed
more than 100,000 lives since March 2015.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/10/646996/Yemeni-minister-UN
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Southeast Asia
Malaysia
uses mosque sermons to overcome Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy
Nadirah
H. Rodzi
March
11, 2021
KUALA
LUMPUR - As a committee member at his local mosque in Malaysia's Selangor
state, Mr Rasdi Zin is more than familiar with the imam's sermons during Friday
prayers advising Muslims on how to go about their daily lives during the
coronavirus pandemic.
In
recent weeks however, he has noticed an emphasis on vaccination, with the imam
encouraging the congregation to register for and receive inoculations.
"For
the past two weeks, we received insightful knowledge on how to respond to a
deadly pandemic. We were told... to take preventive measures like stay at home,
wear a mask and take the Covid-19 vaccine," the 64-year-old retiree told
The Straits Times.
"We
were reminded not to be selfish or reckless, and to always protect each other,
as we live in a society," he added.
These
sermons are part of a ground-level effort by many mosques and suraus across the
country to overcome vaccine concerns among the majority Muslim Malay
population.
Mr
Hairol Azmi Khairuddin, Selangor Islamic affairs department's assistant
director of the khutbah (sermon) unit, confirmed that sermons were targeted at
vaccination.
"Sermons
on the Covid-19 vaccine have been delivered twice (in Selangor) - the first was
read to the congregation when the country received its first batch of vaccine
(on Feb 20). We pay attention to issues that require further
clarification," he told ST.
Mr
Rasdi said his hesitancy was partly driven by doubts about the vaccines'
efficacy rate, as well as some Muslims' belief that vaccines are haram, or not
permissible in the religion.
"I'm
not anti-vaccine but I was hesitant partly because I do not know whether it is
okay to take it. I was confused. So having someone like the imam, who is a
respected figure and well-versed in the Islamic law, advising on it helps to
address my concerns and also restores my confidence," he said.
The
Malaysian government began efforts to allay these concerns months ago, with
Religious Affairs Minister Zulkifli Mohamad Al-Bakri announcing on Dec 23 that
the Covid-19 vaccine is permissible for Muslims.
The
religious authorities also issued a national fatwa ruling that the vaccine is
"harus" (a must) and "wajib" (compulsory) for those people
designated by the government.
The
country hopes to achieve herd immunity against Covid-19 by February 2022, its
target date for inoculating 80 per cent of its 32 million population.
But
while Malaysia is ramping up its vaccine portfolio, vaccine registrations have
moved at a slower pace than expected. Only 3.8 million people have registered
for vaccination so far, just 14 per cent of the total target.
Religious
officials in Perak state have taken it upon themselves to educate the masses
and combat misinformation by anti-vaccine groups.
Last
Sunday (March 7), state executive councillor Mohd Akmal Kamaruddin said the
Perak government would cooperate with the state's Islamic religious department
to deliver sermons on the importance of vaccination.
"We
will continue to ensure the topic is emphasised to create awareness of taking
the vaccines to protect ourselves and others around us," he told
reporters. "This is among the efforts taken by the state government to
provide accurate information on vaccines, against false news spread by
anti-vaccine groups," he added.
Perlis,
the country's northernmost state, has followed suit.
"The
state has several times included the topic and Covid-19 in our (Friday prayer)
sermons. This is a command from the state ruler, Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Putra
Jamalullail, who wants the matter to be raised," Perlis mufti Mohd Asri
Zainul Abidin told ST.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/malaysia-uses-mosque-sermons-to-overcome-vaccine-hesitancy
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Islamic
finance players should take charge of digital economy, says Bank Islam CEO
10
Mar 2021
KUALA
LUMPUR, March 10 — The Islamic finance industry can play a more significant
role in the global digital economy by experimenting and employing new
technology solutions, said Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd chief executive officer
(CEO) Mohd Muazzam Mohamed.
Noting
that the current Covid-19 pandemic had accelerated digital shifts, he urged
industry players to play a significant role in and take charge of the digital
economy.
“We
need to be agile in responding to the digital shifts. All of us should always
keep in mind that we should not get caught failing to recognise new disruptive
trends and technology, unwilling to pivot due to complacency or even not trying
to spot the emerging opportunities,” he said during a session on “Global Update
on Islamic Digital Banking and Islamic Fintech” at the 16th Kuala Lumpur
Islamic Finance Forum (KLIFF) held virtually today.
Mohd
Muazzam said Bank Islam, being the first Islamic bank in the country, had taken
charge to establish the Centre of Digital Experience (CDX) and was now working
to lay a foundation to set up a sub-brand digital banking window to help
harness the growing digital economy.
He
said the CDX would be able to innovate and push new boundaries.
“Our
digital bank window will then feed, not replicate, what Bank Islam is doing. it
will provide a platform-based solutions so that more people can have
Shariah-compliant products,” he added.
Mohd
Muazzam said the bank would provide an ecosystem to empower the underserved
such as the gig workers, independent contractors, and solopreneurs.
Shariah-compliant
mobile application HelloGold’s CEO and co-founder Robin Lee said the move to
digitalise the Islamic finance industry would benefit the end-users and
financial technology players like the company.
“We
want to look for a segment in the landscape that we believe that we can
fundamentally change and compete in successfully, where we see inefficiency or
an ability to create access and therefore get customers to generate profits,”
he added.
Lee
said the company’s motivation in Islamic finance or traditional sectors was to
exploit the opportunities it saw and create products and services, which in
turn provided a challenge to traditional providers to react to.
“They
should react because they also see the opportunity to get (into) the space,
which would lower their cost and improve their margins,” he added. — Bernama
https://www.malaymail.com/news/money/2021/03/10/islamic-finance-players-should-take-charge-of-digital-economy-says-bank-isl/1956664
--------
Arab World
Mohammed
bin Salman Orders House Arrest of Father-in-Law over Meeting with US Security
Official
2021-March-10
MbS
issued the house arrest order after Mashour bin Abdulaziz had met with an
"important US security official" without the "knowledge of Saudi
security officials", the Saudi source told the Saudi Wikileaks website.
Mashour
is the half-brother of the Saudi king, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Five
children of Ibn Saud, the founder and first king of Saudi Arabia, the
"third Saudi state", are still alive and all younger than King Salman
and could pose a threat to the MbS ascending to the throne after his father.
The
United States government recently confirmed reports that the public had long
identified as true. MbS personally ordered the execution of Khashoggi. The
Washington Post columnist was kidnapped in the Saudi Arabian embassy in Turkey
in October 2018 and strangled to death before being chopped to pieces.
While
Washington released the report, President Joe Biden failed to reprimand the
crown prince, apparently to maintain relations between the two countries. Biden
was adamant that he would treat Saudi Arabia very differently to ex-President Donald
Trump. But his response to the findings of the report into Khashoggi’s death
shows that righteousness often disappears when in office.
Yet,
Khashoggi's case has not been the only gaffe unveiling the primitive and savage
traits of the MbS as an autocrat. There have also been other cases that have
troubled Washington in area of human rights and legitimacy. In November 2017,
dozens of Saudi princes, ministers and former ministers were detained and
placed in a luxury hotel under tight security guard over allegations of money
laundering, bribery, extorting officials, and misappropriation of public funds
for personal benefits.
The
detentions had been ordered by Saudi Arabia’s so-called Anti-Corruption
Committee headed by MbS, in a crackdown widely believed to be aimed at
consolidating his power.
The
majority of those high-profile figures later agreed to monetary settlements in
exchange for their freedom and paid colossal sums of money.
Another
case of disreupte is the war on Yemen which has implicated the Saudi regime,
specially the MbS, in war crimes, genocide and crime against humanity.
Saudi
Arabia and a number of its regional allies launched the war on Yemen in March
2015, with the goal of bringing the government of former President, Abd Rabbuh
Mansur Hadi, back to power and crushing the popular Ansarullah movement. The
war has taken a heavy toll on Yemen's infrastructure, destroying hospitals,
schools, and factories.
The
United Nations estimated in late 2020 that the war had caused as many as
233,000 deaths in Yemen since 2015, including 131,000 from indirect causes such
as lack of food and deadly disease.
According
to the UN, at least 80 percent of Yemen’s 30 million people need some form of
aid or protection.
The
Houthi Ansarullah Movement, backed by the Yemeni Armed Forces and allied
popular groups, has gone from strength to strength against the Saudi-led
invaders, and successfully defended Yemen against the aggression, leaving
Riyadh and its allies bogged down in the county.
Several
human right groups and charities have accused the Western governments of
prolonging the war in Yemen by permitting the sale of weapons and military
equipments to the kingdom and its allies.
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13991220000433/Sadi-Crwn-Prince-Orders-Hse-Arres-f-Faher-in-Law-ver-Meeing-wih-US
--------
Detained
children beaten, threatened with rape by Bahrain police: Rights groups
11
March 2021
Bahrain’s
police forces have beaten children they arrested on the anniversary of the 2011
pro-democracy uprising, threatening them with rape and electric shocks,
according to two human rights groups.
Human
Rights Watch (HRW) and the London-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and
Democracy (BIRD) said in a joint statement on Wednesday that Bahraini
prosecutors and judges enabled the abuses, urging the Manama regime to drop
abusive charges against children.
Governments
that support Bahrain and its police and security forces, including the United
States and the United Kingdom, should ensure their aid is not funding abuses
and publicly demand accountability, the statement said.
“A
police officer who threatens a 13-year-old with rape or electric shocks from a
car battery is an abominable stain on Bahrain’s reputation,” said Sayed Ahmed
Al-Wadaei, advocacy director at BIRD. “Bahraini police officers treated
children as enemies who must be terrorized into confessing, while prosecutors
and judges shut parents and lawyers out of proceedings.”
Bahraini
police arrested and detained 13 children in early to mid-February, some of whom
could face sentences of up to 20 years in prison, the statement said.
February
14 marked the 10th anniversary of the popular uprising in Bahrain, with
thousands of people staging nationwide demonstrations across the country,
demanding that the Al Khalifah regime relinquish power and allow a just system
representing all Bahrainis to be established.
Manama,
however, has so far brutally clamped down on any sign of dissent.
According
to the report, five children, who were arrested on February 14 and 15, said
that police from the station beat, insulted, and threatened them with electric
shocks from a car battery.
An
officer hit a 13-year-old on the head and threatened to rape him, gave him
electric shocks, and beat his genitals, his father said. The officer repeated
the rape threat even after his father was allowed to join him.
“These
abuses by Bahrain’s criminal justice system are the latest entry in a long
record of harming children to send a repressive message,” said Bill Van Esveld,
associate children’s rights director at Human Rights Watch. “The UK, US, and
other governments should ensure that their security support to Bahrain is not
being used to torture and humiliate kids.”
The
report comes two months after Human Rights Watch said the human rights record
of the Bahraini regime has not improved, because authorities failed to
prosecute officials and police officers who allegedly committed serious human
rights violations, including torture.
“Bahraini
authorities use the many repressive tools available to them to silence and
punish anyone who criticizes the government,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle
East director at Human Rights Watch. “Bahrain has escalated its use of the
death penalty, targeted people for their social media activity, and denied
medical treatment to prominent opposition figures in detention.”
Last
month, the February 14 Youth Coalition, a movement named after the date of the
beginning of the Bahraini uprising, called for unity among all political groups
and people of the Arab country to topple the country’s ruling family.
The
movement also called for bringing about “fundamental changes” in the country’s
political system, saying such reforms are the most important demand of the
Bahraini people.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/11/647036/Bahraini-children-beaten-threatened-with-rape-Rights-groups
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Saudi
drone attacks highlight a new era of ‘war-by-remote’ in the Middle East: Expert
Jennifer
Bell
10
March ,2021
A
recent barrage of drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabia highlights a growing era
of “war by remote” in the Middle East as terrorists utilize unmanned aerial
vehicles (UAVs) to commit acts of violence across the region, experts say.
Yemen’s
Iran-backed Houthi militia regularly launches unmanned missiles into Saudi
Arabia, many of which Riyadh says it intercepts, and in recent weeks more than
a dozen attacks using drones have been reported across the Kingdom. The attacks
have drawn worldwide condemnation.
Yossi
Mekelberg, a former professor of international relations at Regent’s University
London, and a fellow at Chatham House, has been following warfare in the Middle
East for decades.
He
told Al Arabiya English the Middle East is “seeing more and more unmanned
vehicles” being deployed by terrorists in the region.
“If
you think about it, it is a cheap way to construct warfare if you have the
technology,” he said.
They
also have another huge advantage; deniability.
“It
is effective, terrorists do not have to risk their own military personnel and
it provides the ability for plausible deniability for those behind the
attacks,” said Mekelberg.
Drones
are not as “obvious” as tanks or traditional air force, meaning terrorists can
hide behind a cloak of anonymity until they – if they choose – take credit for
such attacks, according to Mekelberg.
“It
is a time of war by remote – drones, unfortunately, is the way forward (for
terrorists),” he added. “We will see home incidents of it across the region, be
in Saudi, be it Syria, Israel, Lebanon, in Afghanistan.”
On
Monday night, the Arab Coalition announced it had intercepted and destroyed a
ballistic missile fired by the Houthi militia targeting Khamis Mushait. Another
explosive drone was also intercepted and destroyed.
The
attacks on Monday came one day after the Arab Coalition confirmed that Iran
supplied the weapons that were used in the attack on Aramco’s oil port and
facilities in Saudi Arabia.
Some
attacks have previously hit Abha International Airport which is about 120
kilometers (75 miles) from the border with Yemen.
Last
week the Arab Coalition intercepted two explosive-laden drones launched by
Yemen’s Houthis towards Saudi Arabia’s Jazan and Khamis Mushait, raising the
number of such drone attacks to eight over a 24-hour period; attacks which left
at least seven civilians injured, according the Saudi authorities.
In
February, the Houthis claimed an attack on the Abha airport which caused a
civilian plane to catch fire. The militia said the airport was a military
target, according to AFP.
The
Houthi’s explosive-laden unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) were the latest in a
series of escalated cross-border aerial attacks on the Kingdom by the
Iran-backed militia in Yemen.
Mekelberg
said while drones were traditionally viewed of as “something small and
innocent” this is no longer the case.
“They
are definitely not small anymore and they are definitely not innocent.”
Mekelberg
said drones or UAVs are now known as a “loitering munition,” autonomous and
unmanned technology that can loiter around a target before striking. UAV refers
to all types of small and mid-sized autonomous devices with no pilot in them.
They can be controlled remotely by a ground-based pilot or can fly following a
pre-defined flight plan.
Some
drone models, using the latest technology, can use GPS signals from satellites
to connect as well as communicate their location to the pilot. Terrorists can
use such drone technology for surveillance, reconnaissance or for crashing into
targets.
Drones,
depending on their type, can travel between tens and hundreds of thousands of
miles.
Technology
in warfare
“It
is the closest thing to artificial intelligence (AI) in warfare – and it is
scary,” said Mekelberg, adding that the threat has been growing for years.
“These
drones are commanded and guided by human beings – pilots in essence – but those
who sit outside than inside a vehicle.”
“Just
imagine, in a hypothetical situation, that Iran is targeting a country. It can
use a drone without risking one of their own human lives.”
Not
risking their own army, can mean terror groups ramp up such attacks, said Mekelberg.
“If
you are only risking equipment – not human lives - it can push (terrorists) to
escalate the frequency of attacks as losing equipment does not have the same
impact as losing one of their own.”
Mekelberg
pointed out that it only takes one drone attack to cause significant impact.
In
2019, Saudi Arabia shut down half its oil production after a series of drone
strikes hit Saudi Aramco - the world’s largest oil processing facility - in an
attack claimed by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
“This
is a clear example of how heavy the price of drone attacks can be,” he said.
To
combat the threat, many countries in the region are now investing heavily in
drone technology.
Every
piece of drone technology sends some sort of signal and can be intercepted if
the right technology is there, said Mekelberg. Once detected, drones can be
destroyed instantaneously.
“More
emphasis now on developing drones and developing technology to protect
borders,” he said, adding: “At the end of the day, electronic warfare is all
about who is one step ahead.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/gulf/2021/03/10/Saudi-drone-attacks-highlight-a-new-era-of-war-by-remote-in-the-Middle-East-Expert
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UAE,
Israel discuss establishing quarantine-free travel corridor
Tuqa
Khalid
10
March ,2021
The
UAE and Israel are discussing establishing a quarantine-free travel corridor,
the Emirati Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday.
“The
travel corridor, which would apply to passengers who are fully vaccinated
against COVID-19, will facilitate travel for commercial, tourism, and official
purposes,” the UAE’s statement read.
The
two countries aim to finalize and implement the agreement in April 2021.
“As
the two countries leading the world’s fastest vaccination campaigns, the UAE
and Israel expressed their shared commitment to demonstrating that ending the
pandemic requires widespread, effective vaccination and coordination between
countries,” the statement added.
The
UAE signed the US-brokered Abraham Accord, agreeing to normalize relations with
Israel last September. In December, the Gulf country activated tourist entry
visas through airlines and travel and tourism offices for Israeli passport
holders until the ratification of mutual visa waivers.
The
Head of Israel’s embassy in Abu Dhabi, Eitan Naeh, said recently Israel was
looking into potential road traffic with the UAE to further develop the
bilateral trade corridor.
Naeh
told UAE’s state news agency WAM in February around 130,000 Israeli tourists
visited the UAE since air traffic was launched between the two countries, with
air and sea links enabling goods traffic on flights within a few hours and
ships within 16 days.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/10/Coronavirus-UAE-Israel-discuss-establishing-quarantine-free-travel-corridor
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Israel’s
Netanyahu cancels planned UAE visit: Reports
11
March ,2021
A
planned visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United Arab
Emirates on Thursday was cancelled, Israel’s public radio Kan said, citing a
source involved in the planning.
Neither
Israel nor the UAE have formally confirmed that such a visit - the first by the
prime minister to the Gulf power - was to have taken place, nor that it was
being reviewed.
Israeli
media reported the planned visit on Wednesday, saying Netanyahu would meet Abu
Dhabi’s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan. Commentators deemed
it as a chance for Netanyahu to flourish his diplomatic credentials ahead of
Israel’s March 23 election.
Earlier
on Thursday, Israeli media said the planned visit could be held up or cancelled
by questions over an illness suffered by Netanyahu’s wife.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/11/Israel-relations-Israel-s-Netanyahu-cancels-planned-UAE-visit-Reports
--------
Arab
Coalition destroys Houthi missile launcher in Yemen’s Marib: SPA
11
March ,2021
The
Arab Coalition destroyed on Wednesday a “hostile aerial target,” belonging to
the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen's Marib, Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
The
Coalition released video footage showing what it said was an airstrike
targeting a Houthi SAM-6 missile-launcher at a warehouse in Marib.
The
Coalition’s strike comes after a series of escalated cross-border aerial
assaults on Saudi Arabia by the Houthis in Yemen.
The
Saudi authorities said on Sunday Iran-backed Houthis fired an explosive-laden
drone at the Ras Tanura Port, site of a refinery and the world’s biggest
offshore oil loading facility.
And
shrapnel from a ballistic missile launched towards the Kingdom fell near a
residential area in the city of Dhahran, used by the world’s biggest oil
company, Saudi Aramco.
Saudi
Arabia has also recently reported intercepting dozens of Houthi drones launched
towards civilian areas in the Kingdom.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/gulf/2021/03/11/Arab-Coalition-destroys-Houthi-missile-launcher-in-Yemen-s-Marib-SPA
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Lebanese
actors hold play in theater razed by Beirut blast to help heal divided city
11
March ,2021
Rawaa
Talass
An
ensemble of stage actors from Lebanon have come together to express solidarity
with Beirut’s theater community after it was rocked, along with the rest of the
city, in the deadly explosion on August 4.
The
explosion at the port last year caused significant damage to the city, with
over 200 people confirmed dead. Survivors from the explosion continue to endure
a psychological toll, while protests continue against a government-led
investigation into the cause of the blast.
Last
November, the stage group held an online and charitable theater play called
“Whispers” (or ‘Hamasat’ in Arabic), telling the narrative of actors rehearsing
for a play on the day of the explosion.
In
the play, the actors finished rehearsing at 6:00 pm, making their way to the
Mar Mikhael neighborhood, where they hear the sound of a fire erupting at the
port. A suspenseful blackout occurs and the audience quietly knows what happens
next.
The
idea started with the Lebanese actor and producer Agatha Ezzedine, who,
although is based in London, was devastated and felt the need to do something when
Beirut was torn apart in a matter of seconds. The city’s artistic landscape
endured a massive blow that day, with museums, galleries, and theater venues in
close proximity to the port gutted.
“All
the theaters got destroyed in some shape or form. It’s so sad because
originally they never get help as it is from the government,” she said.
While
some might view the arts as non-essential, Ezzedine, as a cultural worker,
nevertheless emphasizes its importance in the long run.
“When
you’re in a crisis of that scale, naturally the first things you want to
maintain are keeping a roof above people’s head, keeping the hospitals and
small businesses going. The first thing that gets cut out is culture because
it’s not a necessity for life. But it was important to still think that we need
to maintain our culture because I believe culture is a big part of a country’s
identity,” she states.
As
director of the fundraising NGO ‘Impact Lebanon’, Ezzedine decided to also
contact theater producer Josyane Boulos and theater director, Professor Lina
Abiad shortly after the explosion. In a time when the country is on its knees
due to the coronavirus pandemic, an unprecedented financial crisis, and a
negligent government, the trio’s aim was to raise funds to restore the impacted
venues and support fellow theater professionals.
Among
those damaged, most are located in the areas of Achrafieh, Mar Mikhael, and
Gemmayze, including the well-known Black Box Beirut, Al Madina Theatre, Theatre
Gemmayze, Melkonian Theater and Theatre Monnot, which opened in 1997.
The
presence of these intimate and underground spaces affirms Beirut’s long held
status of a vibrant theater life in the region.
“Lebanon
had such a strong theater because from all the Arab countries, this is one of
the [few] countries that had freedom of speech, where all the Arabs would come
to Beirut to write, paint, speak and publish. It’s still there. I really admire
the audience in Beirut – they’re open-minded and ready to be challenged,” Abiad
said, who teaches performing arts at Lebanese American University.
Making
it a transnational project, Ezzedine consulted with six British playwrights
such as Angela Harvey and John Jesper, to donate different monologs (later
translated into Arabic), free of rights and charge to the cast.
“Since
I heard about the Beirut explosion, I really wanted to do something to help and
especially help my fellow theater artists,” contributing actor and writer
Geraldine Brennan wrote in a post on Instagram.
Filmed
in one of the destroyed venues, Whispers is composed of a cast of twelve
reputable performers of the Lebanese scene: Badih Abou Chakra, Bernadette
Houdeib, Sany Abdul Baki, Nada Abou Farhat, including Nadine Labaki and Georges
Khabbaz.
This
group stands as a rare collaboration of actors in the country, none of them
received payment, and were committed to the producers’ vision of granting 100
percent of the funds to those affected by the blast. On a simple set, they
delve into a multitude of topical themes, such as feminism, relationships, mental
health, loneliness caused by COVID-19, and other socio-political issues.
Abiad
admits that directing Whispers was an emotionally difficult endeavor, as the
pain hasn’t subsided from all that has been lost on August 4.
“It’s
as if you’re learning how to speak and think again,” she explained. “That’s why
we called it ‘Whispers’ – we are just whispering these texts and we are
learning again how to be creative, to write, to laugh.”
In
a single pre-recorded online showing the Whispers team raised over 70 million
Lebanese pounds, which was then distributed to the destroyed venues. Screened
on YouTube, it attracted more than 3,500 viewers from all around the world.
According to the theater’s organizers, the first screening deemed successful,
which is why a second one will be launched by late March/early April 2021. They
hope to gain more viewers by including English and French subtitles, and
eventually support young local production professionals.
Whispers
started as a project to bring artists together, and raise funds for repair, but
organizers later realized that the project could also bring people together in
camaraderie and heal.
“We
thought we were saving the theater, but it ended up that the theater saved us,”
Abiad said.
https://english.alarabiya.net/features/2021/03/11/Lebanese-actors-hold-play-in-theater-razed-by-Beirut-blast-to-help-heal-divided-city
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Iran,
Turkey slam controversial Kurdish stamp marking Pope’s visit to Iraq
11
March 2021
Iran
and Turkey have strongly censured the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) for
its reported plans to print a contentious postage stamp commemorating Pope
Francis’ recent trip to the Iraqi semi-autonomous region.
On
March 5-8, the head of the Roman Catholic Church made a historic visit to Iraq
and its northern Kurdistan region, where he met with senior officials and held
prayers and masses.
The
KRG’s Ministry of Transportation and Communication issued six stamps to mark
the visit. One of the stamps depicts a map of the so-called “Greater
Kurdistan,” which includes the Kurdish-majority parts of Iraq, Iran, Syria, and
Turkey, behind a likeness of the pontiff.
“It
is crystal-clear that what is published is against international principles and
rules,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Wednesday.
“The
Islamic Republic of Iran has issued a protest to the Iraqi government over the
matter and demanded that the stamps be recalled and this unfriendly act be
immediately corrected.”
Additionally
on Wednesday, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said that one of the KRG’s
commemorative stamps shows a map that “includes some provinces in our country,”
calling on Kurdish authorities to “correct the grave error.”
“Certain
presumptuous authorities in the KRG dared to abuse the mentioned visit, to
express their unrealistic aspirations against the territorial integrity of
Iraq’s neighboring countries,” it said in a statement.
“KRG
authorities are in the best position to remember the disappointing outcomes of
such deceitful aims,” it added.
Similarly,
the head of the Iraqi Turkmen Front released a statement, condemning the KRG’s
move as “threatening to the territorial integrity of Iraq, including the
governorates of Kirkuk and Mosul. This step is considered a direct threat to
Iraqi, regional and international security.”
“We
advise the regional government and the Kurdish political parties to preserve
the security and unity of Iraq and the region and not to repeat the mistakes of
the past,” he said, in a vague reference to the region’s abortive push for
secession in 2017.
Reacting
to criticisms about the stamp, KRG spokesperson Jutyar Adil tried to distance
the local government from the designs and claimed they “were submitted by
artists” and that “none of them have been officially approved.”
“The
regional government, in the spirit of protecting Iraqi sovereignty and its
neighboring countries, will study and decide on issuing any postage stamp
candidates and all that has come so far are mere proposals,” he told a press
conference.
The
KRG’s Minister of Transportation and Communication Ano Abdoka also stressed
that the designs “are not final” and that the ministry’s work is “always within
the framework of respecting the constitution and the national sovereignty of
Iraq, land and people.”
On
September 25, 2017, the KRG held a non-binding referendum on secession from
Iraq despite strong opposition from Iraqi authorities, the international
community, and Iraq’s neighboring countries.
The
Iraqi parliament had ruled the vote unconstitutional beforehand.
The
region then refused to hand over its airports and border crossings to Baghdad
as it was ordered, triggering a military escalation. It eventually accepted
Baghdad's conditions, and took its paramilitary forces out of much of the
territory it controlled.
Former
KRG president Masoud Barzani resigned from his post after seeing his campaign
for the secession going awry.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/11/647043/Iran-Turkey-Iraq-KRG-stamp-Pope
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North America
US,
Israel to hold first strategic consultative group meeting: White House
Joseph
Haboush
10
March ,2021
Washington
and Tel Aviv will hold the first US-Israeli Strategic Consultative Group
meeting on March 11, the White House announced Wednesday.
National
Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben-Shabbat
will head the delegations of both sides, according to a statement from the
White House.
“The
discussion will focus on regional issues, building on the close consultations
between the two sides over the past several months,” the White House said.
“This meeting is part of the broader ongoing dialogue between the United States
and Israel on the full range of issues of importance to the bilateral
relationship, building on longstanding dialogues between our two nations under
previous administrations.”
Thursday’s
meeting will be some of the most high-level talks between the US and Israel
since President Joe Biden took office.
Biden
called tens of world leaders before speaking to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu. The White House denied that Biden was “snubbing” the Israeli PM, who
is up for reelection later this year.
Israel
has also reportedly been frustrated with the pace at which the Biden
administration is moving to facilitate direct talks with Iran, arguably
Israel’s greatest national security concern.
During
the Obama administration, Israel and Washington’s Gulf allies were not included
in negotiations that led to the Iran nuclear deal.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/10/US-Israel-to-hold-first-strategic-consultative-group-meeting-White-House
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US
Secretary Blinken says ‘ball is in Iran’s court,’ denies releasing frozen funds
10
March ,2021
The
“ball is in Iran’s court,” and it is on Tehran to prove that it’s serious about
re-engaging with the United States, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said
Wednesday.
Washington
has repeatedly expressed an interest and willingness to sit down with Iran for
direct talks on the nuclear deal, which former President Donald Trump withdrew
from in 2018.
But
since the European Union extended the invite to Iran, weeks ago, the Biden
administration has been given the cold shoulder.
“We
said we would attend and Iran, so far, said no. I think the ball is in their
court to see if they’re serious about re-engaging or not,” Blinken said during
a hearing before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Blinken
reiterated previous stances that the US believes a deal with Iran is in its
best interest. “We have an interest in getting Iran back into that nuclear
box,” he said, in reference to the 2015 deal, which he claims prevented Iran
from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The
top US diplomat said the best, “most sustainable way” to prevent Iran from
getting a nuclear weapon was through “tough-minded diplomacy.”
Blinken
later denied reports that the US had agreed to release $3 billion in frozen
Iranian funds in different countries. “We're not. The report is incorrect,” he
said when asked about the move.
On
Sunday, Iran’s trade official said that the US would release $3 billion in
Iranian funds frozen in Iraq, Oman and South Korea due to Washington’s
sanctions.
Asked
if there was any intention to release any money to Iran, Blinken said: “If Iran
comes back into compliance with its obligations under the nuclear agreement ...
we would pursue sanctions relief. But unless and if Iran comes back into
compliance, they won’t be getting that relief. And the report that you’re
referring to is simply incorrect.”
Earlier
Wednesday, Biden’s special envoy for Iran said the US would not make any
concessions to Iran before it came back into full compliance with the JCPOA, an
acronym from the nuclear deal.
Blinken
echoed those comments during his hearing.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/11/Iran-nuclear-deal-US-Secretary-of-State-Blinken-says-ball-is-in-Iran-s-court-
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US
Capitol reminds me of Kabul, Senate Minority Leader says amid heightened
security
11
March 2021
US
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has objected to the continued stepped-up
security in Washington, likening the US capital to Kabul, the capital of
war-torn Afghanistan.
“With
all this razor wire around the complex, it reminds me of my last visit to
Kabul,” McConnell told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday, criticizing
the security at the Capitol as overreaction.
“I'm
extremely uncomfortable with the fact that my constituents can't come to the
Capitol,” sid the Kentucky Republican, adding that, “I just checked earlier
this morning. There are no serious threats against the Capitol.”
"I
think we continue to overreact based on current threat levels and what is
needed here at the Capitol. It looks terrible to have the beacon of our
democracy surrounded by razor wire and National Guard troops."
Following
the deadly Jan. 6 attack by far-right supporters of former US president Donald
Trump, the Capitol was placed under tight security that includes a perimeter
fence covered with razor wire.
The
Pentagon last week approved a US Capitol Police request to extend the
deployment of military forces and National Guard troops through May 23 due to
potential threats of US domestic terror groups attacking lawmakers at the
Capitol.
US
security agencies remove Democratic lawmakers from the Capitol last week amid
fears of attack by militia groups.
Post-seige
review calls for increased security
Capitol
Police warned that there was a clear and present threat of a militia-style
attack on the Capitol complex.
Pentagon
spokesman John Kirby announced that 2,300 or so troops have been approved to
remain through May 23, saying that the Pentagon will work to “incrementally
reduce” the National Guard “footprint as conditions allow.”
More
than 5,000 forces were still in Washington as of this week following security
reports of “online chatter” about another “QAnon uprising”, similar to the Jan.
6 attack, which had been scheduled for March 4 but failed to materialize.
Earlier
this week, a security task force that had been appointed by House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi (D-California) recommended several measures for improvements to Capitol
Police. The recommendations included an increase in staffing, better training
and planning as well as an upgrade in security equipment.
The
US security review said the Capitol’s policing and surveillance measures are
"woefully inadequate" amid fears of violence by supporters of former
president Donald Trump.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/11/647057/US-Republican-Senator--Mitch-McConnel-Capitol-Security
--------
Iran-Cuba
vaccine cooperation sends signal of independence to White House
10
March 2021
Iran’s
cooperation with Cuba on manufacturing a COVID-19 vaccine is indicative of a
strong and clear signal to Washington that its sanctions will not cripple an
independent country, says an Iranian expert on geopolitics.
“By
cooperating with Cuba on its ‘Soberana,’ which means ‘sovereign’ in Spanish,
Iran is sending the message that it will not be crippled or coerced and that it
will continue to pursue independence – the beating heart of Iran's national
narrative,” TRT World cited Ghoncheh Tazmini, Iranian geopolitics expert and
London School of Economics Research Fellow, as saying.
Iran
and Cuba signed an agreement in January to cooperate in the coronavirus vaccine
project with the use of a technology that will be transferred to Iran by the
Cuban government.
The
US sanctions have hampered Iran’s access to medical equipment and
pharmaceuticals, complicating the process of importing vaccines from overseas.
“The
possibility of a fourth wave, the problem with emerging variants, require that
Iran responds quickly. However, Tehran faces impediments in importing foreign
vaccines, leading the country to look beyond the ‘West,’” Tazmini said.
“‘Vaccine
diplomacy’ must be seen within the larger rubric of Iran's foreign policy
imperatives: fostering non-European and non-Western alliance patterns, and
alignments in order mitigate external (American and European) political
pressure – which in the context of a humanitarian crisis, borders on coercion.”
The
vaccine is now undergoing the human phase trials by the Cuban Finlay Institute
and the Pasteur Institute of Iran.
According
to TRT, the Turkish state-owned news channel, the vaccine, which does not
require refrigeration, is due for release in May.
Helen
Yaffe, a lecturer in Economic and Social History at University of Glasgow and
author of We Are Cuba!: How a Revolutionary People have Survived in a
Post-Soviet World, told TRT World, “The US increased sanctions against Cuba in
the hopes that it would, combined with the pandemic and economic crisis, really
tip Cuba over the edge.”
“The
Cuban economy has been, yes, hard hit by the pandemic as most other economies
in the world. The difference is Cuba doesn’t have access to international
finance, so it can’t get through an economic crisis with a loan from the IMF,
the World Bank, the inter-American Development Bank – it has no lender of last
resort,” Yaffe said.
The
report referred to Cuba’s success in biotechnology and its experience with
vaccinations, noting that Soberana 02 would also cost less than other
candidates, presenting a viable solution to other Global South countries.
Iran
officially began the nationwide vaccination campaign against the COVID-19 with
the Russian Sputnik V vaccine in February, delivering jabs to frontline health
workers in the first phase.
Iranian
scientists have been working on developing domestic vaccines against the
coronavirus, two of which are in the human trial phase.
The
first vaccine, named 'Coviran Barekat,' was produced by experts at the
Headquarters for Executing the Order of Imam Khomeini.
The
second COVID-19 vaccine is a product of the Razi Vaccine and Serum Research
Institute. Razi COV-Pars — an mRNA recombinant vaccine — is administered via
injection and inhalation.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/10/647012/Iran-Cuba-COVID
--------
Biden
reviewing Trump's listing of Cuba as terrorism sponsor -White House
MARCH
10, 2021
WASHINGTON
(Reuters) - President Joe Biden’s administration is reviewing former President
Donald Trump’s last-minute decision to designate Cuba as a state sponsor of
terrorism but a broader Cuba policy shift is not currently among Biden’s top
priorities, the White House said on Tuesday.
White
House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the administration is in no rush for major
gestures toward Communist-ruled Cuba, despite hopes for a softer approach after
Trump rolled back historic Obama-era détente with Havana.
Her
remarks provided public confirmation of comments made last week by a senior
White House official who told Reuters on condition of anonymity that Cuba
policy was not among the top issues that Biden was focused on for now.
“A
Cuba policy shift is not currently among President Biden’s top priorities,”
Psaki told reporters at a daily briefing. “But we are committed to making human
rights a core pillar of our U.S. policy and we are committed to carefully
reviewing policy decisions made in the prior administration, including the
decision to designate Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism,” she said.
Nine
days before Trump left office, his administration announced on Jan. 11 it was
returning Cuba to that particular U.S. list, citing its harboring of American
fugitives and Colombian rebel leaders and security support for socialist
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Trump’s
move was a further reversal of rapprochement that former President Barack Obama,
under whom Biden served as vice president, orchestrated between the old Cold
War foes.
Critics
said Trump’s decision was highly politicized and not supported by evidence.
Trump’s hardline policy was popular among the large Cuban-American population
in south Florida, helping him win the state in November though he lost the
election.
Eighty
U.S. House of Representatives Democrats urged Biden in a March 3 letter to
repeal Trump’s “cruel” sanctions on Cuba and renew engagement.
Psaki
said one of the guiding principles for Cuba policy would be support for
democracy and human rights. She also said “Americans, especially Cuban
Americans, are the best ambassadors for freedom and prosperity in Cuba.”
Biden’s
advisers previously suggested he could start by loosening up remittances from
Cuban Americans and easing restrictions on family travel. But the White House
has indicated that such steps may not be coming anytime soon.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-cuba/biden-reviewing-trumps-listing-of-cuba-as-terrorism-sponsor-white-house-idUSKBN2B12IV?utm_source=iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2084906_
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South Asia
Security
will remain crucial with or without peace: SIGAR
11
Mar 2021
In
the SIGAR’s 2021 High-Risk report, John F. Sopko Special inspector general said
“with or without a sustainable peace agreement and nationwide ceasefire,
Afghanistan will likely continue to be threatened by multiple violent-extremist
organizations”.
The
report added that the security situation remains crucial and at high risk in
the country because the Taliban have not changed their battle tactics, and
extreme violence, political objectives, terrorist groups like Islamic State
Khorasan (Daesh) and Al Qaeda still remains in the country.
According
to the report “Any political agreement risks subordinate groups going rogue,
possibly manifesting as another insurgency or insecurity from criminal gangs or
networks.
“These
issues could become even more pronounced if US forces are no longer in country
to provide counterterrorism support and to train, advise, and assist
Afghanistan’s security institutions”.
Sopko
indicated, that any political agreement risks subordinate groups going roque
possibly
Presenting
SIGAR’s 2021 High-Risk List to US Congress, John F. Sopko, Special Inspector
General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, said any political agreement risks
subordinate groups going rogue, possibly manifesting as another insurgency or
insecurity from criminal gangs or networks.
Following
the withdrawal of troops if the US will not facilitate Afghanistan in
counterterrorism, support train, assist and advise the Afghan security, such
issues will become even more pronounced, the report added.
Inspector
General Sopko iterated that keeping with SIGAR’s statutory mandate to promote
economy, effectiveness, and efficiency, the High-Risk List identifies serious
risks to the United States’ $143 billion reconstruction effort in Afghanistan.
According
to Sopko, stalled negotiations and continuing high levels of violence are
putting the reconstruction efforts in the country at great risk than ever
before.
Sopko
said, “As we note in this report, whether or not the United States continues to
withdraw its troops from Afghanistan pursuant to last year’s withdrawal
agreement with the Taliban, the new Administration and Congress will have to
decide whether and to what extent reconstruction will continue.
“Although
Afghanistan’s leadership have often stated that their goal is self-reliance,
Afghanistan today is nowhere near to being self-reliant – especially in funding
its government operations, including military and police – from its own
resources.
“And,
as highlighted in our report, reconstruction aid helps keep Afghanistan from
reverting to a terrorist safe haven,”.
“Today the gains from our nation’s investment
in Afghanistan’s reconstruction face multiple threats: continued insecurity,
uncertain post-peace settlement funding, the challenge of reintegrating
fighters, endemic corruption, lagging economic growth and social development,
threats to women’s rights, the illicit narcotics trade, and inadequate
oversight by donors” Sopko stated.
He
also pointed that level of the violence has intensified, including not only the
attacks on Afghan security forces but also bomb attacks and targeted
assassinations on civilians, mid-level officials, prominent women, and
journalists.
Adding
to his statement he said that the coronavirus pandemic is overwhelming
Afghanistan’s health sector and has severely impacted its economy and people.
This
report is “intended to provide an independent and sober assessment of the
various risks now facing the Administration and Congress as they seek to make
decisions about the future of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan.” Sopko said.
By
focusing on elements of US reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan that are
essential to success; at risk of failure due to waste, fraud, or abuse; and
subject to the control or influence of the US government, the High-Risk List
was prepared.
The
key factors using these criteria, SIGAR findings show eight areas at high
risks, which are increasing insecurity, uncertain funding for a post-peace
settlement, the need to reintegrate ex-combatants, endemic corruption, lagging
economic growth and social development, illicit narcotics trade, threats to
women’s right, inadequate oversight.
The
report indicated that the failure of Afghan peace negotiations will be plunging
the country into worse long-term danger and violence against women, “Women and
girls suffer not only loss of life, injury, disability, and mental trauma, but
also the loss of male breadwinners, increasingly desperate poverty, the social
stigma and discrimination that accompany widowhood and permanent disability,
and reduced access to basic services.”
SIGAR
report hinted that there are between 55,000 and 85,000 Taliban fighters in the
country some of who will be integrated into Afghan National Defense and
Security Forces depending on terms of the peace agreement and some will need to
change to productive noncombatants status in the civil society.
It
is reported that Afghanistan still remains reliant on foreign aid with donors
granting at least $8.6 billion annually which covers 80% of the country’s $11
billion public expenditures.
“Afghanistan
remains exceptionally reliant upon foreign assistance, creating both an
opportunity for donors to influence events there as foreign troops depart and
risks to a potential peace if they reduce assistance too much, too fast, or
insist on conditions that cannot be achieved by the parties to the conflict,”
according to the report
SIGAR
warned that Afghanistan’s limited fiscal capacity is inadequate to sustain
infrastructures such as roads, power generation, and economic supply chains.
“The
Afghan government’s lack of financial sustainability is an issue affecting all
high-risk areas identified by SIGAR,” the report indicated.
SIGAR
also noted that the detrimental effects of the illegal drug trade in
Afghanistan do not only affect the health system but also help fund insurgents,
foster corruption, and provoke criminal violence.
SIGAR
denoted that illegal drugs do not only affect the health system but also fund
insurgents, terrorists, foster corruption and provokes criminal violence.
“Even
in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Afghanistan’s opium economy has remained
resilient. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reported that
Afghanistan’s 2020 opium-poppy harvest was largely uninterrupted by COVID-19,”
read the report.
Another
key risk factor was the government’s failure to effectively address the
systemic corruption in Afghanistan.
The
report also found that the Afghan government has failed to effectively address
systemic corruption, and has taken limited steps to restrict and curb systemic
corruption and that more practical action is required in this regard.
“The
Afghan government often makes “paper” reforms, such as drafting regulations or
holding meetings, rather than taking concrete actions that would reduce
corruption, like arresting or enforcing penalties on powerful Afghans”, the
report added.
Sopko
also reminded the U.S congress that SIGAR is the only authority that remains
the best US defense against waste, fraud, and abuse of US taxpayer funds in
Afghanistan.
https://www.khaama.com/security-remains-crucial-with-or-without-peace-sigar-4324248/
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KSA
promises to vaccinate Bangladeshi migrants
March
11, 2021
The
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has assured that all Bangladeshi migrants --
regular or irregular -- would be vaccinated and that they won't be forcibly
sent back to Bangladesh.
State
Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam said this to journalists at the
foreign ministry yesterday, following a 10-day visit to the KSA and the United
Arab Emirates (UAE).
Referring
to his meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir in Riyadh,
he said he expressed gratitude to Saudi authorities for providing treatment to
the Bangladeshi migrants in the Kingdom during the coronavirus pandemic.
There
has been an issue that those who became irregular were not eligible for the
vaccination against Covid-19, Shahriar Alam said, adding that in response to
his request, the Saudi minister assured of ensuring that the irregular workers
also come under vaccination programme.
Al-Jubeir
also assured that the Saudi authorities will not force any irregular migrants
to return to Bangladesh.
The
KSA is home to some 23 lakh Bangladeshis.
In
the last several years, there were thousands of cases that undocumented
Bangladeshis were detained and deported.
In
some cases, they even had valid iqamas, but were deported because they were
found by the police in places where they were not meant to work.
Shahriar
Alam also said that the Bangladeshi migrant workers, whose passports have
already expired and are yet to secure MRP passports from the missions
concerned, will get a one-year extension of their hand-written passports and
that the government will not charge the extension fees of Saudi Riyal 25.
"We
are extending the passports of the migrants so that they have no problems in
finding jobs," he said.
On
reports that the KSA wants to send back 55,000 Rohingyas to Bangladesh as they
traveled to the Kingdom with Bangladeshi passports, Alam said Dhaka has
proposed a joint commission comprised of officials from Bangladesh and Saudi
Arabia for addressing the issues.
"There
might be some irregularities [in the issuance of passports], but we need to
conduct strict scrutiny. So, we have proposed the joint commission," he
said.
Shahriar
Alam said Bangladesh and Saudi Arabia relations have widened over the last
decade.
Saudi
investors are interested in investing in the capacity building of Chittagong
port and renewable energy.
This
can happen under an agreement between Bangladesh's Public-Private-Partnership
Authority and the Saudi authorities concerned.
Bangladesh
and Saudi Arabia have also expressed consensus to work together in the global
arena against militancy and terrorism, as well as the anti-Muslim sentiment
that has developed due to some extremist groups.
Shahriar
Alam said Bangladesh will help Saudi Arabia, if required, by sending troops in
the areas of minesweeping in the Saudi border, but not to join the Saudi
coalition against Yemen.
"We
are with Saudi Arabia against Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia."
He
proposed offers of contract farming both to the Saudi minister as well as the Secretary-General
of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
OIC
has responded positively, asking Dhaka to prepare a policy on contract farming
in all the OIC countries.
"We
have achieved food autarky and developed skilled workforce and expertise. So,
we should use it in other parts of the world to achieve food security," he
said.
https://www.thedailystar.net/backpage/news/ksa-promises-vaccinate-bangladeshi-migrants-2058693
--------
Pakistan
Mosque
built by Turkish Red Crescent in Pakistan opens
Islamuddin
Sajid
11.03.2021
ISLAMABAD,
Pakistan
A
mosque built by the Turkish Red Crescent on the site in northeastern Pakistan
where a 120-year-old mosque that was destroyed by an earthquake once stood was
opened for worship Wednesday.
Mosque
built by Turkish Red Crescent in Pakistan opens
The
mosque, built in the village of Hokran Chak in Jhang district of Punjab
province, was inaugurated by Turkish Red Crescent Secretary General Huseyin
Can.
The
organization's International Programs and Operations Director Alper Uluca,
Turkish Red Crescent Delegation President in Pakistan Ibrahim Carlos Camilo and
Zafar Iqbal, president of the NGO World Foundation, also attended the ceremony.
Upon
their arrival, the Turkish delegation was warmly welcomed by the local villagers
and thanked for the construction of the mosque in their village.
Addressing
the opening ceremony, Huseyin Can said it was a great honor to build a mosque
in a brotherly Muslim country.
"Hazrat
Ibrahim Mosque was built in 1901 and it was demolished in 2017 during the
earthquakes in the region," Can later told Anadolu Agency.
Construction
began in October 2019, but its completion was delayed for six months due to the
coronavirus outbreak and restrictions in the country.
Can
also prayed along with his delegation in the newly built mosque.
The
mosque was built on 400 square meters and has a capacity of over 750
worshipers.
A
religious seminary was also built on the premises of the mosque for the local
children.
"The
Turkish nation has not forgotten the friendship of Muslims of the
sub-continent," Can said, referring to their assistance in the Turkish War
of Independence.
Turkey
has always stood behind their Pakistani brothers and sisters in difficult times
of floods and earthquakes, he added.
The
Turkish Red Crescent has been carrying out humanitarian aid operations in
Pakistan since 2005 and supporting the people of the region with many projects.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/mosque-built-by-turkish-red-crescent-in-pakistan-opens/2171944
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US-based
MQM-L activist planning killings to trigger sectarian rift in Karachi:
officials
Imtiaz
Ali
March
11, 2021
A
United States-based female activist of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-London (MQM-L)
is allegedly planning assassinations to trigger sectarian violence and chaos in
Karachi, officials said on Thursday.
Counter
Terrorism Department (CTD) Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Omar Shahid Hamid and
Colonel Shabbir from Rangers held a press conference in Karachi during which
they showed journalists a video in which a woman is seen giving instructions to
an unidentified target killer and promising payment upon successful completion
of the assassination.
She
told the individual to "send his love" to the target and demanded
confirmation of the assassination attempt, adding that "our life depends
on it."
In
the video, she provides details of the payments to be made to the hitman and
arrangements for his security and transport while adding that he would be flown
abroad after the successful kill.
DIG
Hamid and Col Shabbir then identified the woman as a US-based MQM-L activist,
Kehkashan Haider. According to DIG Hamid, she has been based in Texas since the
1990s and has remained a close aide of MQM founder Altaf Hussain.
“The
MQM-L’s Coordination Committee member, Kehkashan Haider, has established target
killer groups in collaboration with India’s RAW and anti-Pakistan Sindhi and
Baloch groups to target law enforcement agencies, police and political and
religious leaders in Pakistan, particularly in Karachi,” Hamid said.
Colonel
Shabbir said their targets had been individuals whose deaths held potential for
creating sectarian strife in the city while DIG Hamid added that other targets
were politicians of the city. He refused to share any further details about the
targets, citing "concerns about their safety".
DIG
Hamid said details of the alleged plot to target these personalities were
uncovered by the CTD and the Pakistan Rangers after interrogation of recently
arrested alleged hitmen affiliated with the MQM-L from Karachi and other parts
of Sindh. The interrogations revealed that targeted killing teams had been
re-established under directions of the MQM-L chief.
“These
new targeted killing teams were being patronised by Kehkashan Haider,” he said.
The
CTD has registered a case against Haider under Sections 11-H and 11-N of
Anti-Terrorism Act of Pakistan pertaining to terror financing, DIG Hamid said.
"This
has always been a purpose of the MQM-L that terrorism is spread in Karachi
[...] so there is no doubt that it is a constant effort of theirs to once again
plant feet in Karachi."
He
said it was "alarming" that a woman based in the US was coordinating
such illicit activities in Karachi "like a mafia don".
The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs would be approached to "take up this matter
with the relevant law enforcement institutions of the US government",
according to the police officer.
"A
clear line of financial transactions is appearing when we traced bank accounts
and transactions," he said, adding that the evidence of financial
transactions for terror financing made Pakistan's case stronger.
"If
there is any aspect of money laundering in this, [then] it will be investigated
according to the Anti-Money Laundering Act and looked at by the FIA [Federal
Investigation Agency]."
He
gave assurances that investigations into the case would be impartial and would
not target any political party, referring to the MQM-Pakistan and Pak Sarzameen
Party.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1611908/us-based-mqm-l-activist-planning-killings-to-trigger-sectarian-rift-in-karachi-officials
--------
Bajwa,
ISI chief participate in Bahrain talks on Afghan issue
March
11, 2021
ISLAMABAD:
Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa and Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence
Lt Gen Faiz Hameed attended a session on Afghan peace process in Bahrain, it
emerged on Wednesday.
The
Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement said: “Current
developments in Afghan peace process, border security and necessary steps to be
undertaken to facilitate an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process were
discussed” during the meeting which was held on Tuesday.
It
was reportedly part of the international efforts to accelerate the Afghan peace
process that is virtually stalled at the moment and included key players in the
process.
The
meeting has taken place at a time when the United States is planning to request
the United Nations to convene a meeting of the foreign ministers and envoys
from Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, India, and the US so that the regional
countries could develop a unified approach for supporting the peace process.
The
Biden administration has also proposed a ‘power sharing agreement’ between the
Afghan government and the Taliban.
Diplomatic
efforts have recently intensified to bring peace to war-torn nation
Secretary
of State Antony Blinken, in a letter to President Ashraf Ghani, underscored the
urgency for a political settlement of the Afghan dispute, while warning that
“Taliban could make rapid territorial gains” in the eventuality of a US
withdrawal. The US, under an agreement signed with the Taliban in February
2020, has to complete its withdrawal from Afghanistan by May 1.
US
Special Envoy for Afghan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalil-zad, who visited Pakistan
on Monday, in his meeting with Gen Bajwa stressed the need to accelerate
progress towards “a just and durable peace” in Afghanistan.
Russia
is, meanwhile, hosting a meeting of the ‘extended troika’ on March 18. The US,
China, Pakistan, Afghan government and the Taliban have been invited to the
meeting by Moscow.
Gen
Bajwa, meanwhile, held meetings with Commander Bahrain Nation Guard Field
Marshal Mohammed Bin Isa Al Khalifa and Bahraini National Security Adviser Maj
Gen Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
“During
the meetings, issues of mutual interest and regional security situation came
under discussion. COAS offered Pakistan’s complete support in achieving shared
interests in bilateral security cooperation including training and capacity
building,” the ISPR said.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1611815/bajwa-isi-chief-participate-in-bahrain-talks-on-afghan-issue
--------
Uzbekistan
offered access to Pakistani ports
Baqir
Sajjad Syed
March
11, 2021
ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday assured Uzbekistan of complete
facilitation in access to Pakistani ports.
Mr
Khan held out the assurance during a meeting with Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister
Dr Abdulaziz Kamilov, who was on a two-day visit to Pakistan.
Mr
Khan, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister Office after the
meeting, said that Pakistan’s Karachi and Gwadar ports could become “the
gateway to the landlocked Central Asia as Pakistan provided the Central Asian
Republics the shortest route to international seas”.
Pakistan,
he said, would facilitate Uzbekistan’s access to its ports.
Uzbekistan,
which currently relies on Iranian seaport of Bandar Abbas for external trade,
is exploring other options and is prioritising Pakistani ports because of short
distance, being more economical and due to some political considerations.
Uzbekistan
is working with Pakistan on the development of two options — the first is the
Trans-Afghan railway project while the second is the road route via China.
Pakistan,
Afghanistan and Uzbekistan had in Tashkent in February signed a roadmap for
the construction of almost 600km of Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway
line. The project, which is expected to take five years for completion at an
estimated cost of $4.8 billion, enjoys the backing of international lending
agencies including the World Bank.
Mr
Khan welcomed the proposed Trans-Afghan railway project and underscored
Pakistan’s commitment to support all efforts for the earliest realisation of
this important connectivity project.
Meanwhile,
Uzbekistan has been desirous of acceding to the Quadrilateral Traffic in
Transit Agreement (QTTA), an agreement between China, Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan and
Kazakhstan to facilitate transit traffic and trade. Pakistan has been
supporting Uzbekistan in this regard also.
The
road project under this agreement would provide an alternative link between
Pakistan and Central Asia while bypassing Afghanistan through the Karakoram
Highway which connects Gilgit-Baltistan to China’s Xinjiang region and further
on to Central Asia.
Dr
Kamilov’s visit was also focused on regional connectivity and he extended
invitations to Mr Khan and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi for
participation in Central Asia-South Asia Connectivity Conference in Tashkent in
July.
Mr
Khan told Dr Kamilov that he looked forward to visiting Uzbekistan and that his
government wanted enhanced trade and regional connectivity.
DELEGATION-LEVEL
MEETING
During
the delegation-level talks, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and his Uzbek
counterpart Dr Kamilov exchanged views on enhancement of economic cooperation,
mutual support in international fora, regional connectivity and tourism
promotion.
The
two foreign ministers, the Foreign Office said, expressed satisfaction at the
progress achieved in advancing the rail connectivity between the two countries
and agreed on early completion of the Trans-Afghan railway project.
Mr
Qureshi called for establishing direct air connectivity between the two
countries to boost up trade and tourism. He also stressed the need for quick
facilitation of visas for businessmen and tourists.
Visit
to GHQ
Dr
Kamilov later visited the General Headquarters for a meeting with Army Chief
Gen Qamar Bajwa. Director General of ISI Lt Gen Faiz Hameed also attended the
meeting.
“Matters
of mutual interest, overall regional situation including the Afghan Peace
Process and bilateral cooperation in various fields were discussed. Both
reiterated the desire to further enhance bilateral relations including efforts
for peace and security in the region,” the ISPR said in a statement.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1611855/uzbekistan-offered-access-to-pakistani-ports
--------
PML-N
leader booked for thrashing woman constable in Lahore
March
11, 2021
LAHORE:
The Islampura police on Wednesday registered a case against a senior leader of
the PML-N for allegedly torturing and thrashing a lady police constable on the
premises of an accountability court.
The
police nominated PML-N leader Tanvir Chaudhry in the first information report
on the complaint of anti-riot force constable Anam Fatima.
She
alleged the suspect tried to enter the premises of the accountability court
along with five unknown women without seeking permission. As she and her
colleague Sonia Ashraf tried to stop them, Tanvir Chaudhry got furious and
slapped her.
He
and the unidentified women then thrashed her publicly, Anam alleged adding the
attackers also hurled threats at her.
A
police official said the matter had been referred to the investigation police
for further action against the suspects.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1611885/pml-n-leader-booked-for-thrashing-woman-constable-in-lahore
--------
Capt
Safdar gets pre-arrest bail in sedition case
March
11, 2021
PESHAWAR:
A single-member Peshawar High Court bench on Wednesday granted an interim
pre-arrest bail to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader retired Captain Mohammad
Safdar until March 22 in a case registered against him here last month on the
charges of committing sedition and inciting the personnel of the armed forces
to mutiny.
Justice
Lal Jan Khattak ordered Mr Safdar, who is the son-in-law of former prime
minister and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, to produce two surety bonds of
Rs100,000 each.
He
issued a notice to the police for response on the bail plea during the March 22
hearing.
Station
house officer of the East Cantonment police station Imran Nawaz Alam had
registered an FIR against the PML-N leader over the alleged sedition and
incitement of the personnel of the armed forces to mutiny during a media talk
on Feb 9 after attending the court proceedings on the high court premises.
The
SHO claimed in the FIR that he had registered the case after getting the
government’s written permission.
The
PML-N leader was booked under Pakistan Penal Code Section 121 (waging war
against Pakistan), Section 121-A (conspiracy to wage war against Pakistan),
Section 124-A (sedition), 131 (Mutiny or seducing soldier for mutiny), Section
153 (provocation to cause riot) and Section 505 (statement to cause public
mischief).
Mudassir
Amir, lawyer for Mr Safdar, said his client’s media talk didn’t amount to
sedition or other offences mentioned in the FIR.
The
SHO claimed that Mr Safdar through his news conference had tried to defame
Pakistan and its institutions and spread anarchy in institutions.
He
added that the PML-N leader also tried to incite people against the government
and institutions and create rifts among the personnel of the armed forces and
their leadership.
BAIL
EXTENDED: The high court extended the interim pre-arrest bail granted to PML-N
leader retired Captain Mohammad Safdar until Mar 18 over an ongoing National
Accountability Bureau inquiry about his assets.
A
bench consisting of Justice Lal Jan Khattak and Justice Syed M Attique Shah
directed the NAB, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, officials to inform it on the next
hearing about whether a private counsel could be hired by the bureau against an
accused and if the lawyer could be hired whether the legal requirements were
fulfilled in this regard.
It
also asked the NAB officials to explain how separate inquiries could be
conducted into the accused’s assets in Peshawar and Lahore, simultaneously.
Lawyers
Abdul Lateef Afridi and Mudassir Amir appeared for the petitioner, whereas
deputy prosecutor general Azeem Dad, senior special prosecutor Mohammad Ali and
private counsel Abdul Sattar Khan appeared on behalf of the NAB.
The
petitioner’s lawyers said their client’s petition was disposed of by the high
court in 2019 stopping the NAB from arresting suspects without warrants.
They
said when his client’s arrest warrants were issued and the high court granted
him an interim bail, the NAB began an identical inquiry in Lahore to frustrate
the court’s order.
NAB
DPG Azeem Dad claimed that the Peshawar NAB inquiry was against Mr Safdar only,
while the Lahore one was against his family members, including Maryam Nawaz
Sharif.
The
bench asked NAB lawyer Sattar Khan if the hiring of a private counsel by the
bureau didn’t violate the 2016 Supreme Court ruling against the hiring of
private counsel in presence of government prosecutors.
The
counsel said under Section 8 of the National Accountability Ordinance, the
bureau could hire the services of a private lawyer.
The
NAB’s prosecutor also submitted the copy of a letter of the NAB Peshawar
regional office requesting the bureau’s chairman to hire a counsel in the case.
The
bench directed him to produce that letter by Mar 18 and adjourned hearing.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1611800
--------
PML-N
starts preparations for PDM’s anti-government long-march
March
11, 2021
LAHORE:
The
Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) has started preparations for Pakistan Democratic
Movement’s (PDM) anti-government long march, scheduled to commence on March 26.
According
to reports, the party leadership has sought suggestions from central and local
leaders within a week to formulate a strategy for the march.
Party
sources said that the final strategy would be decided in the light of
suggestions received from the party's leadership whereas the final nod would be
given by former premier Nawaz Sharif after consultations with Leader of the
Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif.
On
the other hand, Leader of the Opposition in Punjab Assembly Hamza Shehbaz and
PML-N Vice-President Maryam Nawaz have been given responsibilities regarding
the anti-government long march in Punjab.
According
to reports, the deposed premier has given the task to organise and mobilise the
party in Punjab to Hamza.
In
this regard, Hamza would make visits across Punjab before the anti-government
protest.
He
would also preside over the Workers Convention and various meetings with the
provincial leadership of other PDM parties.
On
March 8, it was reported that the PDM warned the establishment against any
attempt to interfere in the polls for the Senate chair position, scheduled for
March 12.
Addressing
a news conference after a meeting of the PDM leaders on Monday, PDM President
Maulana Fazlur Rehman said there is evidence that intelligence agencies
violated the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) code of conduct and tried
to influence the March 3 Senate polls by threatening and luring the voters.
“The
PDM condemns the move and warns that if the same tactics are repeated during
the election of Senate chairman and deputy chairman then the PDM would be
compelled to present all the evidence before the public,” said Fazl.
The
PDM president was flanked by a number of PDM leaders including Bilawal Bhutto
Zardari and Maryam Nawaz, respectively, the top leaders of the PPP and the
PML-N.
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2288817/pml-n-starts-preparations-for-pdms-anti-government-long-march
--------
India
Right-Wingers
Tweet Morphed Video of AIUDF Chief Saying 'India Will Become Islamic Nation'
Mar
11, 2021
New
Delhi: The Hindu right-wing ecosystem – purportedly to help the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) in Assam to influence the majority of Assamese voters on communal
lines in the coming assembly polls – has been circulating on social media a
morphed video of Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, the chief of the All India United
Democratic Front (AIUDF), to claim that he was prodding the Muslims of Assam to
vote for him because he would then set up “an Islamic nation” with the help of
the Congress and not leave “a single Hindu” without converting them to Islam.
The
original speech of Ajmal – uploaded in 2019 on YouTube from a public speech –
spoke exactly opposite of what the right-wing twitter handles had tried to
establish in poll-bound Assam since March 9 evening.
Criticising
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in that speech in the run-up to the 2019
parliamentary polls, Ajmal had said, “The Mughals had ruled this Bharat Varsha
for 800 years. It never dreamt of making it an Islamic nation. If that would
have been their dream, perhaps not a single person in this country would have
remained a Hindu. Everyone would have become a Muslim. Did they? No. It never
tried, never dared to. Then came the British for 200 years. They too didn’t
dare to make Bharat Varsha a Christian nation. Did they? No. In independent
India, the Congress has run this country for 55 of the 70 years. From Nehru to
Shastri, to Rajiv Gandhi to Manmohan Singh, Narasimha Rao, no Congress leader
had dreamt of making Bharat Varsha a Hindu Rashtra. Modi ji, please don’t dream
such a dream. Your dream will not be fulfilled….”
The
doctored video was circulated on March 9 by Legal Rights Observatory (LRO), a
wing of the sangh parivar, which claims to do “legal activism to safeguard
Indian interest, human rights of armed forces and Hindu cause”. Its tweet had
said, “Shocking, Badaruddin Ajmal threatens converting entire Assam into an
Islam with the help of INCAssam (Congress a party it is in alliance with for
the assembly polls) and INCIndia. Is Congress in SECRET understanding with
Ajmal for Partition 2?” It also tagged the Election Commission of India (ECI)
to “look into the issue and initiate action” against the AIUDF.
#Shocking
Badruddin Ajmal @BadruddinAjmal threatens converting entire #Assam into an
Islam with d help of @INCAssam @INCIndia. Is Congress in SECRET understanding
with Ajmal for Partition 2?
Sought
immediate arrest of Badroo with @AmitShah @himantabiswa @assampolice @AssamCid
pic.twitter.com/nuWMFqmBKz
—
Legal Rights Observatory- LRO (@LegalLro) March 9, 2021
The
fake video was thereafter not only circulated by the right-wing ecosystem from
across the country on twitter but was also run on March 10 without any verification
by the Assamese news channels, including NewsLive, owned by the wife of BJP
leader Himanta Biswa Sarma.
The
Assamese news channel Dy365 later deleted the story from its site without an
apology to its readers and ran both the original and the doctored versions on
its channel.
Interestingly,
the fake news was tweeted on March 10 morning by Deepak Chaurasia too,
consulting editor of NewsNation TV. His tweet was thereafter quoted for nearly
350 times by the right-wing trolls to circulate the fake news. It was liked
over 13,000 times and retweeted over 3,000 times, before he deleted it in the
evening.
Reacting
to the fake news on March 10, AIUDF MLA Hafiz Rafiqul Islam tweeted the
original video and called out Assamese news channels – NewsLive and DY365 – and
the “right-wing groups” for “clearly (circulating it) with a vested interest”.
Speaking
to The Wire, an AIUDF senior member said, “We have already tagged the ECI about
the circulating of the fake video aimed at influencing the elections. Our legal
team is looking at taking further action.”
In
a hurriedly called press meet at Hojai on March 10, Ajmal said LRO has been
circulating fake information about him and his party for some time now. “A fake
NGO which doesn’t have an address and no name as to who runs it is circulating
this doctored video to upset the chances of the ‘Mahajut’ in the coming Assam
elections. They don’t know that neither the Congress nor the AIUDF has at any
time said anything communal. It is a completely adulterated video pushed into
the market clearly to foment trouble.”
The
Assam Police, which has been running a campaign against fake news on twitter,
#thinkbeforeyoushare, has however, not reacted to it. Several twitter handles
have tagged the state police handle that it is a fake video being widely
circulated.
Meanwhile,
the LRO handle, on March 10 afternoon, said it had lodged a complaint with the
ECI “seeking immediate investigation to check the veracity of speech and action
against AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal for allegedly provocative seditious
comments during a recent election rally and issue gag order”.
Complaint
lodged at @ECISVEEP seeking immediate investigation to check veracity of speech
and action against AIUDF Chief @BadruddinAjmal for allegedly provocative
seditious comments during a recent election rally n issue gag order
#AssamAssemblyPolls @himantabiswa @CMOfficeAssam https://t.co/1Qak96ZPBE
pic.twitter.com/5SCq4SxpmY
—
Legal Rights Observatory- LRO (@LegalLro) March 10, 2021
The
‘Ajmal’ factor has been used by the state’s BJP national and state leaders,
including Sarma, in successive elections to polarise the majority Assamese
votes. In the last assembly elections too, a line plucked out of Ajmal’s speech
was adequately utilised to split the votes on communal lines.
In
this election though, the narrative in upper Assam, the Assamese heartland
where the majority of the state’s assembly constituencies are, has shifted from
the ‘Ajmal factor’ to anger against the BJP for supporting the Citizenship
Amendment Act (CAA), thus putting the ruling party in not a very safe spot for
the three-phased elections commencing on March 27.
https://thewire.in/politics/right-wingers-tweet-morphed-video-of-aiudf-chief-saying-india-will-become-islamic-nation
--------
Telangana
Muslim Advocates Forum backs TRS candidate
Mar
11, 2021
Hyderabad:
Telangana Muslim Advocates Forum on Wednesday announced its support to the TRS
for the ensuing graduate MLC elections. In a meeting held on Wednesday, nearly
300 advocates expressed their solidarity with TRS and reposed their faith in
the party’s ‘successful governance’.
Nearly
200 Muslim lawyers declared their support for TRS.
Addressing
the forum, former minister and MLC Mohammed Fareeduddin extended support to the
TRS. He said, “Telangana is a state of peace and development. Chief Minister K
Chandrasekhar Rao is a minority friend and an Urdu speaker. His consciousness
of issues faced by the Muslim community has helped the government take
constructive steps for the welfare of minorities on a large scale.”
Convenor
of the meeting, state president of Telangana Muslim Advocates Forum and Waqf
board member Waheed Ahmed stressed that the government believes in giving equal
rights to Muslim lawyers in judiciary, an assurance, brought forward from their
previous representations submitted to KCR. He urged the government to provide
Muslims at least 4% reservation in courts. He urged the government to provide
reservation to Muslim lawyers so that they can be appointed as additional
advocate general, public prosecutor, government pleaders and additional public
prosecutor and other positions while observing that the representation of
Muslim lawyers is zero. He added that “in all legislative commissions at least
those with a legal education should be given the presidency and membership in
the interest of the society and the state.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/muslim-advocates-forum-backs-trs-candidate/articleshow/81437857.cms
--------
Two
terrorists killed in encounter with security forces in Anantnag
Mar
11, 2021
SRINAGAR:
Two terrorists were killed in an overnight encounter with security forces in
Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district, police said on Thursday.
The
terrorists opened fire on security forces when they were conducting a search
and cordon operation on Wednesday in Kandipora in the district's Bijbehara
area, a police official said.
Two
terrorists have been killed so far and they are yet to be identified.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/two-terrorists-killed-in-encounter-with-security-forces-in-anantnag/articleshow/81445311.cms
--------
J&K
Police averted Pulwama-like suicide attacks in south Kashmir: IGP Kashmir
Mar
11, 2021
SRINAGAR:
J&K Police on Wednesday claimed to have averted a series of potential
Pulwama-type terror attacks planned by Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad
after arresting seven newly recruited terrorists tasked with planning and
executing fidayeen strikes across south Kashmir.
Announcing
the operational breakthrough, IGP (Kashmir Range) Vijay Kumar said security
forces were on high alert in Srinagar too, based on intelligence inputs about
the presence of the Pakistan-backed terror outfit TRF’s J&K chief Abbas in
the city’s Chanapora area.
“Awantipora
Police foiled a terror bid wherein a Jaish module was planning to carry out a
vehicle-based IED attack. We arrested a first-year BA student, Sahil Nazir of
Pampore, who was lured through social media. After interrogating him, we
arrested four more youths besides seizing a vehicle meant to be used in the
attack,” the IGP said.
Sahil
told cops that they were planning to carry out a suicide attack with help of an
overground worker in north Kashmir.
In
another anti-terror operation, the IGP said a Lashkar module headed by
terrorist Umar Khanday — involved in killing two unarmed cops in Srinagar’s
Barzulla on February 19 — was busted. Khanday had persuaded one Musaib Ahmed
from Pampore. “We arrested Musaib who revealed that there was a container at
his home with 25kg ammonium powder meant to be used as an IED,” said IGP Kumar.
Upon
further questioning, Musaib said the remaining explosive material was supposed
to reach from north Kashmir. Based on information obtained from him, another
youth, Shahid Sofi, was also arrested. They were planning an explosion at MC
building in Pampore.
“All
seven youths had been lured through social media networks operated by
Pakistan-based terror handlers,” IGP Kumar said, adding that terrorists were
adopting new strategies to attack security forces. “We are alert and plugging
the loopholes after conducting regular security reviews,” he said.
The
IGP said Al-Badr chief Gani Khwaja’s encounter killing on Tuesday evening had
dealt a major blow to terrorism in north Kashmir as the slain terrorist
commander was instrumental in recruiting youth. “He would also receive new
terrorist groups in north Kashmir from across the border and help them reach
south Kashmir districts, besides providing logistics support to ultras,” he
said, adding that two of Khwaja’s aides managed to flee during the anti-terror
operation Tuesday evening.
Khwaja
was a senior terrorist and had crossed over to Pakistan in 2000. He returned to
the Valley in 2002 and was active for five years before getting arrested in
2007 under the Public Safety Act. He was released a year later. Till December
2015, Khwaja was working as an overground worker. In January 2018, he became
active with Hizbul Mujahideen. In 2020, he joined Al-Badr as its chief, IGP
Kumar said. Police recovered an AK-47 rifle, five magazines, two grenades and
other incriminating material on the slain terrorist.
Clarifying
that stone-pelting and other law and order disturbances would not be tolerated
at any cost, the IGP revealed that 39 youths engaged in stone-pelting have been
arrested so far, and 15 of them will be charged under PSA.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/jk-police-averted-pulwama-like-suicide-attacks-in-south-kashmir-igp-kashmir/articleshow/81440825.cms
--------
Sopore
encounter: Al-Badr chief’s killing a big success, says J&K Police
MAR
10, 2021
Terrorist
outfit Al-Badr’s commander Ganie Khwaja was neutralised during an encounter in
Sopore late on Tuesday night, informed Kashmir inspector general of police
(IGP) Vijay Kumar, terming the militant chief’s elimination a big success.
The
IGP said the Khwaja was gunned down during an operation launched at Tujjer
Sharief on Tuesday night after receiving a specific input. This was achieved
without any collateral damage, Kumar said.
“During
the search operation, as the presence of militants was ascertained, they were
given the opportunity to surrender, however, they fired indiscriminately upon
the joint search party, which was retaliated, leading to an encounter,” a
police spokesperson said, adding that one terrorist (Khwaja) was killed in the
encounter and his body was retrieved from the site.
Police
said Khwaja was involved in several terror cases including attacks on security
forces and civilians, besides being the main recruiter.
“Dozens
of cases have been registered against him in north Kashmir, which include
grenade blast at Sopore bus stand in which 19 civilians sustained injuries on
October 2019; rifle-grenade attack at Warpora police post which injured two
cops in March 2019; attack on joint police/ CRPF party at Bismillah Colony,
Sopore, in which four CRPF personnel got seriously injured and one among them,
while being evacuated to hospital, succumbed to injuries; among several
others.”
Police
said he was also involved in providing arms and ammunition to overground
workers of the terrorist outfit for carrying out subversive activities in the
area.
“He
was operating in the areas of north Kashmir, including Langate, upper/lower
Qaziabad, Handwara, Sopore, Zainageer, Tujjar, Barahampora etc,” the
spokesperson said.
Incriminating
materials, including arms and ammunition, were recovered from the site of the
encounter. “All the recovered materials have been taken into case records for
further investigation and to probe his complicity in other terror crimes.”
IGP
Vijay Kumar said, “He was a resident of Kralgund, Langate, and one of the old
militants who went to Pakistan in 2002 and returned the same year. A few years
ago, he became an active terrorist again.”
https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/others/sopore-encounter-al-badr-chief-s-killing-a-big-success-says-j-k-police-101615393173101.html
--------
In
Assam, Ban on State-Run Madrassas May Force Girls To Drop Out
By
Makepeace Sitlhou
11
Mar 2021
Barpeta,
India – It has been nearly a year since 12-year-old Ayesha Siddiqa has been
confined to her house in India’s northeastern state of Assam due to COVID-19
restrictions.
Her
school in Gomafulbaru in the Barpeta district offered online classes, but the
grade 6 student could not attend, as her parents cannot afford a smartphone.
Siddiqa
lives with her parents and younger brother in a char – a remote riverine island
formed by siltation of the Brahmaputra river that cuts through the state of
nearly 30 million. Her father Abed Ali, 45, and mother Gulbahar Nesa grow rice
on rented farmland, but struggle to make ends meet.
Come
April, however, Siddiqa will no longer be able to continue her studies, as the
Gomafulbari Title Madrassa – a government-funded school that also offered
Islamic education – will cease to exist.
In
December, the state government led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) announced it will convert all government-funded madrassas into
regular schools and drop theological components from their syllabi.
More
than 700 state-run madrasas will be shut down, affecting 98,000 students, of
whom nearly half are girls, according to figures from the State Madrassa
Education Board (SMEB). Like elsewhere in India, the literacy rate (61.92
percent) and percentage of students who complete matriculation or 10th board
(2.8 percent) is lowest among Muslims in Assam, as per 2011 Census data.
Affect
girl students
Members
of the Muslim community and activists say the decision will particularly affect
the education of Muslim girls as many parents, who prefer girls to get Islamic
education along with regular subjects, will pull their daughters out of the
schools.
The
female literacy rate is particularly low among Assam’s Muslims, most of whom
are poor and sit at the bottom of development indices.
“If
the madrassa is closed down, we’ll have to pull her out of school. I cannot
afford to send her to a private madrassa on my meagre earnings,” Ali told Al
Jazeera.
Although
there is a high school in the village, he sent his daughter to the state-run
madrassa, which offered both Islamic and general education.
In
the state-run madrassas, apart from Islamic studies and languages such as
Arabic and Urdu, general subjects including maths, sciences, social studies and
other modern Indian languages were also taught.
“We
are poor people so it’s important for her to get a religious education to
improve her marital prospects,” he added. “It saves us the expenses for her
dowry. In fact, the groom will offer something in exchange for her hand.”
Naznima
Akhtar and Fatima Afreen are back in school after almost a year since the
coronavirus pandemic hit last March. Until January, their classes were online
and home assignments would be delivered on WhatsApp.
The
girls, both 17, are in their first year of Fadilul Ma’rif (FM), a three-year
theological degree course equivalent to a bachelor’s degree in general
education at Gomafulbari Senior Madrasa in Barpeta district. Fiqh (Islamic Law)
and the Quran are their favourite subjects.
‘Imbibe
the values Islam’
As
per the new law, only second year FM and Mumtazul Muhatditthin (MM) students
would be allowed to complete their course up to 2022, forcing students like
Akhtar and Afreen to either continue in general education or drop out. MM is
equivalent to a postgraduate degree in theological studies of the Hadith and
Quran.
Akhtar,
who wants to study up to MM course, said she will have to move to another
school if the Quran is no longer in the curriculum.
“My
parents want me to work hard and make something of myself in life. At the same
time, they want me to imbibe the values and tenets of Islam,” she said.
Established
in 1972, the Gomafulbari Title Madrassa was originally started as an
institution for girls by Ahmed Ali Khan, an educationalist based in Barpeta
district, which has a majority Muslim population.
Unlike
other madrassas nearby in the village, girls heavily outnumber boys in
Gomafulbari Title Madrassa.
It
was merged with the Gomafulbari Senior Madrassa, which was founded in 1942
before India’s independence from British colonial rulers. It is sought-after as
it offers FM and MM courses.
Rustam
Ali Dewan, headmaster of the Gomafulbari Title Madrassa, said that the parents
and local guardians are unhappy with the government’s decision.
“They
see it as an attack on their religion and are asking us to do everything to
reverse this move,” he told Al Jazeera.
Akhtar’s
father, Naseeruddin Khan, who works as a government employee, said that the
conversion would lead to a lot of difficulties for his daughter’s education.
“We
like that she is exposed to both religious and general subjects. That way she
has an equal chance to pursue a higher degree in Islamic studies or go into a
general stream like BA (Bachelor of Arts), LLB (Bachelor of Laws) etc,” he
said.
Mahmud
Hassan, a class nine student at Gomafulbari Title Madrassa, said that he may
continue studying in the same school but will have to travel further to a
private madrassa for Islamic studies.
“However,”
he added, “not everyone has that privilege in terms of time and money. A lot of
girls studying here will not be allowed to do the same.”
Private
madrassas
Private
madrassas typically offer food and boarding to lower socio-economic status
students. However, Dewan from the Gomafulbari Title Madrassa said, these are
hardly an alternative to the state-run madrassas.
“In
the private-run madrassas, they simply memorise the holy book in Arabic with no
understanding of it,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Moreover,
these aren’t regulated by any state board. So education here will ultimately be
useless for students to pursue higher studies or get a job,” he added.
Parvin
Sultana, an assistant professor in Pramathesh Barua college in Assam, said the
privately-run madrassas required reform.
“If
girls are shifted to private madrassas where modern education is not a part of
curriculum, it will foreclose any possibility of socio-economic empowerment of
Muslim girls,” she said.
The
Assam State Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind – a religious organisation based in Nagaon
district, runs 987 madrassas in mainly Muslim-majority regions of the state.
Masood
Zaman, a spokesperson of the legal cell of the Jamiat Ulama, defended the
quality of education in madrassas saying they are run under the Assam Tanzim
Board – a private body that monitors the quality of education in private
madrassas.
The
Tanzim Board is supervised by the Darul Uloom Deoband Islamic university based
in northern Uttar Pradesh state – India’s largest madrassa.
Zaman
said that nearly 100 out of 987 madrassas run by his organisation are
exclusively for girls, and that his organisation is working to improve the
quality of education in private madrassas.
“At
least 150 madrassas are waiting to be included under the Tanjim board, pending
fulfilment of requirements like classroom, teacher-student ratio, playground
etc,” Zaman told Al Jazeera.
Anti-Muslim
agenda
Some
activists and opposition parties said the move was part of the right-wing
government’s anti-Muslim agenda and was aimed at appealing to Hindu voters
ahead of the upcoming state elections.
But
the government said the move was aimed at “secularising” school education in
the state. The state’s influential education minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma,
defended the move, citing the ban on Sanskrit schools, known as tols.
But
critics said the government has projected madrassas as “obscurantist and
outdated” institutions while Sanskrit tols would be converted into academic
institutes researching on “Indian civilisation”.
Dewan,
headmaster of the Gomafulbari Title Madrassa, said that the conversion of
madrassas and Sanskrit tols, which Assam’s Education Minister touted as
“secular”, were not the same.
“Unlike
the madrassas, the Sanskrit tols will be upgraded to university level
education,” he told Al Jazeera.
But
Imran Hussain, chairman of the SMEB Assam, supported the government’s move.
“General education will help uplift the (Muslim) community in mainstream jobs.
Whereas in madrassas, there’s a likelihood of ghettoisation,” he told Al
Jazeera.
One-third
of the state’s population comprises Muslims, most of them of Bengali origin.
Hussain,
the SMEB chairman, said the Sachar Committee report released in 2006 should be
consulted in planning education policy for Muslims. “One must consult the
Sachar Committee report to see what needs to be done for the Muslims,” Hussain
told Al Jazeera.
The
Rajinder Sachar committee instituted by the central government had found that
the literacy rate among Muslims was far below the national average and the
minority community is at the bottom of most development indicators.
The
ruling BJP party defends the move
Activists
like Sultana foresee a possibility where the closure of government madrassas
could put young girls at risk of early marriage, a problem that continues to
afflict the community.
A
2020 study on education of female Muslims in Nagaon district of Assam found
that the mother’s education had a significant effect on fertility and the
overall development of a family.
India’s
largest minority has faced increased attacks by Hindu far-right groups linked
to the BJP since Narendra Modi took over as prime minister in 2014.
But
Pabitra Margherita, a spokesperson of the BJP in Assam, defended the government
move, saying a “limited section” of parents wanted to send their daughters to
Islamic studies.
“This
year we have budgeted for special schools covering normal curriculum in
minority dominated districts, especially for girl students,” he said, adding
that the proposal was moved before the assembly passed the law in December.
Dewan
from the Gomafulbari Title Madrassa, said the new law was another nail in the
coffin for the Bengali-speaking Muslim minority community in Assam, already
targeted by the movement to identify undocumented immigrants through the
National Register of Citizens (NRC).
In
2019, nearly two million people of Bengali origin, both Hindus and Muslims,
were excluded from a citizenship list published in 2019, effectively rendering
them stateless.
Moreover,
a number of Muslim poets of the Miya language have faced police cases for their
poetry.
“This
government has been critical of our mother tongue (Bengali) or the poetry we
write,” Dewan said. “But it is in state-run madrassas where students first
learn the Quran in Assamese.”
Sultana,
the activist, said that while some parents might discontinue their girls’
education, others could shift them to private madrassas “where modern education
is not a part of curriculum”.
“It
forecloses any possibility of socio-economic empowerment of Muslim girls,” she
told Al Jazeera.
https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2021/3/11/shut-down-of-madrasas-in-indias-assam-could-see-girls-drop-out
--------
Africa
Libya’s
lawmakers approve interim unity government
10
March 2021
Libya’s
divided parliament has voted in support of a unity government which would lead
the war-ravaged country into December elections.
The
parliamentary approval of Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah’s cabinet took place
after a two-day session in the war-battered frontline city of Sirte on
Wednesday.
Dbeibah’s
proposed government includes two deputy prime ministers, 26 ministers and six
ministers of state.
“This
will be the government of all Libyans,” the interim premier said in a brief
speech after the vote.
“Thank
you for putting the nation's interest above all else.”
The
interim administration emerged through a UN peace process as part of a plan to
resolve a decade of conflict, with elections set for December.
Dbeibah,
along with three members of a presidency council also selected in the Swiss
city of Geneva, has promised not to seek further office in the elections.
However,
the manner of Dbeibah's own appointment has drawn criticism in Libya with
accusations of corruption and influence peddling.
The
United Nations mission has praised leaders for the “patriotic efforts that led
to this landmark moment in the history of Libya.”
“Libya
has now a genuine opportunity to move forward towards unity, stability,
prosperity, reconciliation and to restore fully its sovereignty.”
The
interim prime minister now faces challenges.
Holding
free parliamentary and presidential elections under such circumstances in 2021
will be an immense task.
Since
2015, Libya has been divided between the internationally recognized Government
of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli and lawmakers in Tobruk, allied to renegade
military commander Khalifa Haftar.
The
front lines in Sirte stabilized last summer after the GNA pushed Haftar's
eastern-based Libyan National Army (LNA) back from Tripoli.
Elsewhere
in his remarks, Dbeibah called for the departure of some 20,000 foreign
fighters present in the country, adding that he would coordinate with the
fighters’ countries of origin to arrange for their withdrawal.
“The
mercenaries are a stab in our back – they must leave,” Dbeibah said. “Our
sovereignty is violated by their presence.”
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2021/03/10/646998/Libya-government
--------
25
Killed As Soldiers, Boko Haram Clash In Borno
MAR
09, 2021
No
fewer than 25 suspected terrorists and two soldiers died on Monday when troops
of the Special Forces Brigade in Borno State engaged Boko Haram members in a
gun battle at Chikingudu, a community in the Marte Local Government Area of the
state.
According
to a military signal seen by SaharaReporters on Tuesday, seven soldiers also
sustained injuries while fighting the insurgents.
About
25 AK-47 rifles, three anti-aircraft guns, three general purpose machine guns,
two automatic grenade launchers (AGL), and two gun trucks, among other arms and
ammunition were also recovered by troops.
The
signal read, “Sequel to elements of 402SF Bde encounter with BHTs on 8 Mar 21,
additional details indicated that SF troops cleared Missene (an abandoned
village where BHTs {Boko Haram terrorists} assemble to attack Marte and Dikwa,
etc.), Hausari and Chukun Gudu villages in Marte LGA.
“Troops
made contact with the enemy 3km from Chukun Gudu as apparently a top Amir had
his family and assets in Chukun Gudu. The SF troops engaged them stoutly.
Casualties on troops are 2KIA and 7WIA.
“Enemy
casualties are over 25 elements killed. Items recovered are over 25 x AK47
rifles, 5 x FN rifles, 3 x AA guns, 3 x GPMG, 2 Automatic Grenade Launchers
(AGL), 2 x enemy gun trucks (originally NA vehicles) and one x CJTF Hilux
vehicle, among others. Troops’ morale and fighting efficiency remain high.”
Boko
Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, have killed
thousands and displaced millions in northeastern Nigeria.
The
Nigerian military has repeatedly claimed that the insurgency has been largely
defeated and frequently underplays any losses.
In
the past months, soldiers have been targeted by the insurgents, waiting in
ambush for them.
Hundreds
of soldiers and officers have been reportedly killed since January 2021.
http://saharareporters.com/2021/03/09/25-killed-soldiers-boko-haram-clash-borno?utm_source=iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2084906_
--------
Europe
Allow
British-Iranian aid worker to return home, UK PM Johnson tells Rouhani
10
March ,2021
British
Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that
British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe must be allowed to return
home to be with her family.
“The
prime minister raised the case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and other
British-Iranian dual nationals detained in Iran and demanded their immediate
release,” a statement from Johnson’s office said after a call with Rouhani on
Wednesday.
“He
(Johnson) said that while the removal of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s ankle
monitor was welcome, her continued confinement remains completely unacceptable
and she must be allowed to return to her family in the UK.”
Zaghari-Ratcliffe,
a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation charity, was arrested at
a Tehran airport in April 2016 and convicted of plotting to overthrow the
clerical establishment. She denied the charges.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe
served a five-year sentence which ended on Sunday. An ankle bracelet was
removed, allowing her freedom to travel in Iran, but she still cannot leave the
country, as she has been ordered to appear for a new court case on March 14 on
charges of propaganda against the Iranian state.
Johnson
also restated Britain’s commitment to making a success of a multilateral 2015
nuclear deal with Iran, and urged Rouhani to end Iranian breaches of the terms
of that deal that began after the US withdrew from it in 2018.
“He
stressed the importance of Iran seizing the opportunity presented by the US’
willingness to return to the deal if Iran comes back into compliance,” the
statement said.
Iran
has so far refused to take part in a meeting brokered by the European Union
between world powers and the US on reviving the deal.
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2021/03/10/Iran-military-Allow-British-Iranian-aid-worker-to-return-home-UK-PM-Johnson-tells-Rouhani
--------
French
schoolgirl lied about teacher who was beheaded in terror attack
BY
LEXI LONAS
03/09/21
A
French schoolgirl admitted to lying about her teacher almost five months after
a social media campaign spread the lies around the world and the teacher died
in a terror attack, Sky News reported.
The
girl, who has not been named, said she lied about her teacher asking Muslim
students to leave the classroom before showing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad
that were in a satirical magazine, French paper Le Parisien first reported.
"She
lied because she felt trapped in a spiral because her classmates had asked her
to be a spokesperson," the girl’s lawyer Mbeko Tabula told AFP news
agency.
She
reportedly lied to her father and said she was suspended for disagreeing with
her teacher, Samuel Paty, for showing the images in the free speech class.
However, she was never at class that day and was actually suspended the day
before for missing too much school.
The
girl’s father believed her daughter’s lies and started a social media campaign
against Paty.
After
the campaign became popular, Paty was murdered and beheaded by Abdullah
Anzorov.
Paty’s
family lawyer responded to the new information saying the family already knew
the girl wasn’t in class that day so they would have known she was lying, BBC
reported.
"So
to come and say now, sorry, I believed my daughter's lies, that's really
weak," Virginie Le Roy, the family lawyer, told RTL radio.
After
Paty’s death, the French government closed a mosque for six months and
threatened to jail anyone for six months who disobeyed.
France
takes a vigorously secular stance and the government introduced an
anti-religion extremism bill after the attack took place.
https://thehill.com/policy/international/542402-french-schoolgirl-lied-about-teacher-who-was-beheaded-in-terror-attack?utm_source=iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2084906_
--------
Manchester
Arena attack: 'Chaotic' response after bomb blast
March
09, 2021
A
"chaotic" response to the Manchester Arena bombing was the result of
fire crews being "starved of information", a public inquiry has
heard.
Andy
Dark, assistant general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said his members
were ready to "muck in".
But
he said Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service failed to respond properly
to the terror attack due to a breakdown in communications.
Crews
were left feeling "humiliated", he said.
Mr
Dark told the inquiry in Manchester: "The key problem I think for the fire
and rescue service on the night was being starved of information and, to an
extent, not accessing information by other means."
Suicide
bomber Salman Abedi killed 22 and injured hundreds more when he detonated a
device in the City Room foyer at the Arena on 22 May 2017.
Earlier,
the inquiry, which is examining the emergency response to the attack, was told
the fire service had crews ready to go in that were trained in operating in
terror incidents and treating casualties, which could have saved lives.
Despite
some firefighters being close enough to hear the bomb go off, fire crews did
not attend until their bosses eventually gave the green light to go in two
hours later.
Some
injured had to be carried down stairs on makeshift stretchers made of
advertising hoardings, while firefighters, who had the required equipment were
directed to wait three miles away from the arena.
Greater
Manchester Police (GMP) had declared Operation Plato, a pre-planned response to
what they believed was a marauding terrorist firearms attack, as erroneous
reports of gunfire had come in.
But
GMP failed to inform fire and ambulance teams and they were kept away from the
scene.
Mr
Dark said: "Firefighters knew something serious was happening. They could
not understand why they were not being deployed."
Inquiry
chairman Sir John Saunders asked if firefighters could have not waited for
orders to go in but "self-deploy".
Mr
Dark said while the fire service in the station is "democratic, collegiate,
consensual" while on an operation, "it's a dictatorship" with
staff having to follow orders.
He
said if a firefighter had been in the City Room they would have reported back
that there was no "active shooter" and fire chiefs would then have
told crews: "Roll up your sleeves, get in there."
But,
he added "they didn't have that" and on the night what happened was
"chaotic" and left firefighters feeling "humiliated".
Mr
Dark added: "If they had had the information, their decision making, their
actions, their deployment would have been far quicker, far better, and you
would have firefighters' boots on the ground in that City Room far, far
earlier."
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-56328170?utm_source=iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2084906_
--------
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