No jobs for people of other religions in temples: Andhra HC

New Age Islam News Bureau

21 November 2023

·         No jobs for people of other religions in temples: Andhra HC

·         If Govt is Recognized, Kabul Will Adopt Intl Norms in Line With Sharia

·         Hamas chief says close to truce agreement with Israel

·         Malaysia to fully support countries referring Israel to the International Criminal Court, says Anwar

·         Israel trying to provoke Hezbollah, draw US into a wider war: US media

·         Palestinian state best guarantee of Israel security: EU’s Borrell

·         Pakistan remains committed to two-state solution of Palestinian conflict based on 1967 borders: FM

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India

·         India welcomes efforts for humanitarian pauses in Israel-Hamas conflict

·         'Murdered hundreds of Indians': Israel bans Pakistan based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba

·         India advocates for sovereign, independent state of Palestine at UN, opposes violence

·         Kerala government official suspended for allowing prayer meeting at office

·         3k apply for post of priests at Ram temple

·         Muslim League finally says ‘no’ to Left front; Congress relieved

·         Gyanvapi case: Contest shivling report at trial, Supreme Court tells Muslim party

·         Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi mosque land title dispute: SC defers hearing till Dec 1

·         Telangana polls: Shah attacks rivals, vows to end Muslim reservation

·         Torn apart by Partition, an Indo-Pak reunion of families in Mecca

·         Siliguri: Interfaith celebration on Jagaddhatri Puja as Hindu, Muslim youth team up for

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South Asia

·         Taliban’s inaction against terror activities in Pakistan unacceptable: Kakar

·         Concerns over the Promotion and Institutionalization of violence in Afghanistan

·         Germany blasts Taliban official’s appearance at Cologne mosque

·         German Minister calls on Turkish-Islamic Union to explain hosting of Taliban official

·         Six Afghan families with Canadian ties deported from Pakistan

·         Deportees from Pakistan, Iran, Turkey Called for Halt to Expelling Refugees

·         Poor Situation of Afghan Children on World Children's Day

·         Nothing can be gained by harming, burning people: PM

·         IEA responds to Trump’s statement over ‘recapturing’ Bagram

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Mideast

·         Israel battles Hamas near another Gaza hospital sheltering thousands

·         Israel minister urges ‘voluntary resettlement’ of Gazans

·         200 patients evacuated from Gaza's Indonesian hospital where an Israeli strike killed 12

·         Hezbollah attacks Israeli troops with drones, artillery, missiles

·         Premature Gaza babies evacuated to Egypt

·         Sharia and Islamic Studies College hosts lecture on Quran

·         Jordan’s king, top EU official discuss Israeli onslaught on Gaza

·         Jordan’s crown prince oversees delivery of second field hospital to Gaza

·         Red Cross president meets with Hamas chief on Gaza war humanitarian issues

·         Families of Israeli child hostages make plea on World Children’s Day

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Southeast Asia

·         PM: Thai marriage equality bill will go to parliament in December

·         Nearly 1,000 Rohingya refugees arrive by boat in Indonesia's Aceh region in one week

·         Asked why not ban Coldplay concert in KL, PM Anwar says band supports Palestinian cause

·         Conference of Rulers-approved Special committee to boost Syariah courts, says Anwar

·         Anwar to discuss Coldplay concert with FT mufti after latter advises cancellation

·         Indonesia strongly condemns Israeli attacks that killed 12 in its hospital in Gaza

·         Parliament to discuss outcome of Extraordinary Islamic Summit today

·         Kemaman by-election: Ahmad Maslan says Umno also fights for Islam, not just PAS

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North America

·         US aid to Israel debated as Biden’s support base crashes

·         Chicago area Jewish, Muslim, and Christian leaders call for peace in Gaza

·         CAIR Condemns Neo-Nazi March in Wisconsin, Racist Threat in New York

·         Former Pegasus employee sentenced in jail over photo with rakı on Islamic holy night applies for asylum in US

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Europe

·         Hostile environment for British Muslims peaks manifold amidst Israel’s Gaza carnage

·         Autumn Statement cuts and benefits: London's Central Mosque of Brent issues cost-of-living warning

·         Law alumnus listed in top 50 influential Muslims in UK and Europe 2023

·         Putin to take part in emergency BRICS summit – Kremlin

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Pakistan

·         More than 400,000 Afghans return home from Pakistan following crackdown on migrants

·         Civil society in Karachi forms Palestine Solidarity Committee, demands immediate ceasefire in Gaza

·         PM lauds role of Saudi Prince in building historic consensus among Arab, Islamic countries

·         Cipher case: IHC extends stay for one day against Imran’s jail trial

·         Bushra’s former husband blames Imran for being homewrecker

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Africa

·         Amnesty International urges media to spotlights pepetrators of human rights violations

·         Israel recalls ambassador ahead of South African parliamentary vote to shut down Israeli embassy

·         Somalia flood toll climbs to 50: disaster agency

·         After seven months of war, Sudan faces risk of collapse

·         Nigerians mark International Men's Day with focus on zero male suicide

·         Israel-Hamas war: South Africa chairs BRICS meeting on Gaza

·         Niger Republic Withdraws Troops Fighting Boko Haram From Nigerian Borders Due To Sanctions As MNJTF Comes Under Threat

·         Universal Day of the Child: UNICEF, others raise concerns about children

·         Children killed in Niger boat accident get mass burial

·         Hamzat urges informal organisations on service delivery

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Arab World

·         Israeli ships ‘legitimate target’, Houthis warn after seizure

·         Qatar calls for formation of int’l committee to probe Israeli crimes in Gaza

·         KSrelief medical projects continue in several countries

·         Prince Turki bin Muhammad visits Saudi, Qatari pavilions at Expo 2023 Doha Horticultural Exhibition

·         Saudi aid agency project clears 837 mines in Yemen

·         Ministerial committee assigned by joint Islamic-Arab summit holds meeting with China vice president

·         Saudi crown prince announces launch of Human Capability Initiative

Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau

URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/jobs-religions-temples-andhra-hc/d/131153

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No jobs for people of other religions in temples: Andhra HC

21st November 2023

VIJAYAWADA: The Andhra Pradesh High Court has ruled that people of other religions are not eligible for employment in temples. Only those who follow Hindu religion are eligible to work in temples, the court said.

Justice HarinathNunepally gave the orders recently while dismissing a petition filed by P SudershanBabu challenging his removal from service by the SrisailamDevasthanam executive officer after it was found that he concealed his identity as a Christian and got compassionate appointment as a record assistant.

In 2002, SudershanBabu claimed that he belonged to the SC (Mala) community and a Hindu, and got the compassionate appointment.

Later, he married a woman belonging to the Christian community in the Holy Cross Church in 2010, after which petitions were filed against him in the Lokayukta for getting the job by falsely claiming as a Hindu.

In his response to the notice by Lokayukta, SudershanBabu claimed that he did not conceal his faith and produced his caste and school certificates.

After going through various documents, the Lokayukta found that SudershanBabu got the job by concealing his religion. Following this, the Srisailam temple EO issued orders removing him from service.

In 2012, SudershanBabu approached the High Court challenging his removal from service.

After examining various documents during the hearing, Justice Harinath said in the register of the Holy Cross Church, the petitioner’s religion was mentioned as Christian and it had the signature of the petitioner.

Justice Harinath said if SudershanBabu had married the woman without converting into Christianity, it should have been registered under the Special Marriages Act, 1954 and the marriage certificate should also be issued as per the Act. The same, however, was not done in SudershanBabu’s case.

Source: newindianexpress.com

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https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/andhra-pradesh/2023/nov/21/no-jobs-for-people-of-other-religions-in-temples-andhra-hc-2634812.html

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If Govt is Recognized, Kabul Will Adopt Intl Norms in Line With Sharia

November 20, 2023

The Islamic Emirate’s Spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said that they are not obliged to adhere to the UN laws unless their government is recognized by the United Nations members.

This comes as November 19 is the 77th anniversary of Afghanistan’s joining the UN.

However, he stressed even if the Islamic Emirate is recognized, the issues which are against the Islamic rules will not be accepted.

“The Islamic Emirate has not yet been recognized. So we have no obligation towards it. Whenever we are recognized, we will accept all of the norms and laws which are not against Islamic Sharia,” Mujahid said.

He also stressed the need for the presence of an Islamic Emirate representative in the UN.

“We should have the membership as do many other countries. The rights of the people of Afghanistan in the UN should be given,” he said.

Meanwhile, the permanent representative of Afghanistan to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Nasir Ahmad Andisha, said that the UN plays an important role in Afghanistan.

“The only important mission in Afghanistan currently is the UN. However, the activity of this organization has been limited to provision of humanitarian assistance, but it has an important role as a major international organization,” he said.

“It is time for Afghanistan to use a logical policy and engage with the international community and become an important member of the UN,” said Sayed Jawad Sijadi, a political analyst.

Hossein Azizi, a minister, on behalf of Afghanistan, signed the convention of the UN in 1964 in the US.

Source: tolonews.com

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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-186120

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Hamas chief says close to truce agreement with Israel

 Nov 21, 2023

GAZA/JERUSALEM: The chief of Hamas told Reuters on Tuesday that the Palestinian militant group was near a truce agreement with Israel, even as the deadly assault on Gaza continued and rockets were being fired into Israel.

Hamas officials are "close to reaching a truce agreement" with Israel and the group has delivered its response to Qatari mediators, Ismail Haniyeh said in a statement sent to Reuters by his aide.

There were no more details about the terms of the potential agreement.

US President Joe Biden said on Monday he believed an accord was near. "We're closer now than we've been before," White House spokesman John Kirby said of an agreement aimed at securing the release of some hostages held in Gaza and a pause in the fighting that would allow much needed aid into the besieged enclave.

Hamas took about 240 hostages during its October 7 rampage into Israel that killed 1,200 people.

Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), met Haniyeh in Qatar on Monday to "advance humanitarian issues" related to the conflict, the Geneva-based ICRC said in a statement. She also met separately with Qatari authorities.

The ICRC said it was not part of negotiations aimed at releasing the hostages, but as a neutral intermediary it was ready "to facilitate any future release that the parties agree to."

Talk of an imminent hostage deal has swirled for days. Reuters reported last week that Qatari mediators were seeking a deal for Hamas and Israel to exchange 50 hostages in return for a three-day ceasefire that would boost emergency aid shipments to Gaza civilians, citing an official briefed on the talks.

Israeli ambassador to the United States Michael Herzog said on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday that he hoped for an agreement "in the coming days" while Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said that the remaining sticking points were "very minor."

A deal has appeared close before.

"Sensitive negotiations like this can fall apart at the last minute," White House deputy national security adviser Jon Finer told NBC's "Meet the Press" program on Sunday. "Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed."

Hamas' raid on October 7, the deadliest day in Israel's 75-year-old history, prompted Israel to invade the Palestinian territory to target Hamas.

Since then, Gaza's Hamas-run government said at least 13,300 Palestinians have been killed, including at least 5,600 children and 3,550 women, by unrelenting Israeli bombardment.

Hamas said on its Telegram account on Monday that it had launched a barrage of missiles towards Tel Aviv. Witnesses also reported rockets being fired at central Israel.

Hospitals at risk

The Palestinian news agency WAFA said on Tuesday at least 17 Palestinians were killed in Israeli bombing of the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza at midnight.

There was no immediate comment from Israel.

Gaza's health ministry said on Monday that at least 12 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded by firing into the Indonesian Hospital complex, which was encircled by Israeli tanks.

Health officials said 700 patients along with staff were under Israeli fire.

WAFA said the facility in the northeast Gaza town of Beit Lahia, funded by Indonesian organisations, had been hit by artillery rounds. Hospital staff denied there were any armed militants on the premises.

World Health Organisation chief TedrosAdhanom Ghebreyesus said he was "appalled" by the attack that he too said had killed 12 people, including patients, citing unspecified reports.

The Israeli Defence Forces said troops had fired back at fighters in the hospital while taking "numerous measures to minimise harm" to non-combatants.

Like all other health facilities in the northern half of Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital has largely ceased operations but is still sheltering patients, staff and displaced residents.

Twenty-eight prematurely born babies evacuated from Gaza's biggest hospital, Al Shifa, were taken into Egypt for urgent treatment on Monday.

Israeli forces seized Shifa last week to search for what they said was a tunnel network built by Hamas beneath the hospital. Hundreds of patients, medical staff and displaced people left Shifa at the weekend, with doctors saying they were ejected by troops and Israel saying the departures were voluntary.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/hamas-chief-says-close-to-truce-agreement-with-israel/articleshow/105372033.cms

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Malaysia to fully support countries referring Israel to the International Criminal Court, says Anwar

21 Nov 2023

By RAHIMY RAHIM, GERARD GIMINO and TEH ATHIRA YUSOF

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will fully support all efforts of other countries to refer Israel to the International Criminal Court (ICC) over atrocities against Palestine, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The Prime Minister said that the country has given its assistance previously on such efforts although it is not a signatory or a member state of the Rome Statute.

“Yes, we did not sign the Rome Statute, but the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) has attended this year’s (ICC conference) to provide assistance – that is allowed.

“We also have informed Türkiye President (Recep Tayyip) Erdogan that Malaysia is ready with support, including sending representatives and providing legal advisory," he said in the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday (Nov 21).

Anwar said this in reply to a supplementary question from Wan Ahmad Fayshal Wan Ahmad Kamal (PN-Machang) who asked whether the government will support efforts by other countries such as South Africa, Bolivia and others, to refer Israel to the ICC.

On Nov 17, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) said he had received a joint request from five countries to investigate the situation in the Palestinian territories.

Prosecutor Karim Kahn said the referral had come from South Africa, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros and Djibouti.

South Africa said the request was made "to ensure that the ICC pays urgent attention to the grave situation in Palestine."

Last month,Kahn said that his office had jurisdiction both over Hamas' attack on Israel on Oct 7 and any crimes committed as part of Israel's response including bombings in the Gaza Strip.

Last Saturday, Erdogan said there was “ample evidence” to hold the Israeli government accountable at the ICC and Türkiye would do everything in its power to ensure that these crimes would be punished impartially.

Source: thestar.com.my

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Israel trying to provoke Hezbollah, draw US into a wider war: US media

21 November 2023

An Israeli mobile artillery unit takes position in Upper Galilee in the northern part of Occupied Palestine near the Lebanon border on November 15, 2023. (Photo by AFP)

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US President Joe Biden’s top adviser has arrived in Israel for talks with senior Israeli officials to stop Israeli provocations against the Hezbollah resistance movement and prevent a war in Lebanon that could embroil Washington, an American report says.

Amos Hochstein arrived in Israel on Monday to meet with minister of military affairs, Yoav Gallant, minister for strategic affairs, Ron Dermer, the Israeli army’s chief of staff Herzi Halevi, and the so-called national security adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, Axios cited an Israeli official as saying.

The visit comes as American officials say the White House is concerned that Israeli military action in Lebanon is increasing tensions along the Lebanese border and could lead to a regional war.

“Some in the Biden administration are concerned Israel is trying to provoke Hezbollah and create a pretext for a wider war in Lebanon that could draw the US and other countries further into the conflict,” Axios reported, noting that Israeli officials have denied this.

Hochstein arrived in Israel after another day of exchange of fire between Hezbollah fighters and Israeli forces.

Report says US officials are already gauging potential successors to Netanyahu as he is "significantly weakened" by Israelis’ anger over the regime

“This trip builds on Hochstein’s visit to Beirut earlier this month where he made clear the United States does not want to see conflict in Gaza escalating and expanding into Lebanon,” a US official told Axios.

“While in Israel, Hochstein will emphasize that restoring calm along Israel’s northern border is of utmost importance to the United States and it should be a top priority for both Israel and Lebanon.”

The Tel Aviv regime wants Washington to do its diplomatic work to “press Hezbollah to pull back its elite Radwan Force from the border with Israel,” the report said citing an Israeli official.

Hezbollah has warned that it will join the Palestinian resistance group Hamas and its allies in the fight against Israel if the regime escalates its aggression on Gaza and in case foreign military forces intervene to help the Israeli regime in the battle.

Hezbollah’s Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on November 2 that the Lebanese resistance movement entered the battle against Israel on October 8, a day after Gaza-based Palestinian resistance movements launched their surprise attack, Operation al-Aqsa Storm, against the regime.

Source: presstv.ir

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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/11/21/714989/Biden-adviser-Israel-provocations-Lebanon

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Palestinian state best guarantee of Israel security: EU’s Borrell

November 21, 2023

BRUSSELS: EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Monday that the establishment of a Palestinian state would be the best way of ensuring Israel’s security.

Borrell held a video meeting with foreign ministers from the EU’s 27 countries after touring the Middle East for talks on Israel’s war with Hamas.

The EU’s top diplomat said that he had drawn “a fundamental political conclusion” from his discussions across the region.

“I think that the best guarantee for Israel’s security is the creation of a Palestinian state,” Borrell said in a written summary of the EU meeting.

Borrell has insisted Israel should not occupy Gaza after the current conflict ends and that control of the territory should be handed over to the Palestinian Authority.

“Despite the huge challenges, we have to advance our reflections on the stabilization of Gaza and the future Palestinian state,” he said.

In the short-term, Borrell said, after visiting a string of Arab states, that there was a “sense of urgency” over the desperate humanitarian situation in Gaza.

“The UN Security Council resolution calling for immediate humanitarian pauses is a big step forward, but we must ensure its rapid implementation,” the EU official said.

Another major fear was the possibility of the conflict further enflaming volatile situation in the West Bank and dragging in other actors in the Middle East.

“In light of increased extremists and settlers’ violence against Palestinians there is a real risk that the situation could escalate,” Borrell said.

“Reports of a ship hijacked by the Houthis are another worrying signal of a risk of the regional spill over.”

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412396/world

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Pakistan remains committed to two-state solution of Palestinian conflict based on 1967 borders: FM

November 21, 2023

Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani said Pakistan remains committed to two state solution of the Palestinian conflict based on 1967 borders.

Responding to the points of Mian Raza Rabbani in the Senate today, he said that Pakistan's position is in line with the United Nations and OIC resolutions.

The Senate was informed on Tuesday that the caretaker government is making all out efforts to address the problems in the education sector.

During the Question Hour, Minister for Education Madad Ali Sindhi regretted that the education sector was neglected by successive governments.

He pointed out that our twenty million children are out of schools. He said it is our effort to improve the quality of education at the public sector schools to improve enrollment there.

The Minister said Higher Education Commission has also been instructed to keep an eye on the quality of education in the universities.

Replying to a question, Minister for Foreign Affairs Jalil Abbas Jilani told the House that about 2.5 million Pakistanis are working in Saudi Arabia.

He said round the clock helpline has been established in the Pakistani Embassy in Riyadh and Consulate General in Jeddah to address their complaints.

The Foreign Minister pointed out that about five hundred thousand Pakistani went to Saudi Arabia last year for employment.

He said the Saudi authorities have given the assurances to provide jobs to those facing employment related problems at alternative companies.

Jalil Abbas Jilani said the Federal Investigation Agency has busted two to three gangs of beggars, who were trying to travel to Saudi Arabia under the garb of Umrah.

Answering another question, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Solangi told the House that a committee has been constituted to elect a new President of Pakistan Hockey Federation.

He also laid before the House the Report on 1st Biannual Monitoring on the Implementation of 7th NFC Award.

Later the House was adjourned to meet again on Friday at 10:30 in the morning.

Source: radio.gov.pk

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India

India welcomes efforts for humanitarian pauses in Israel-Hamas conflict

Nov 21, 2023

UNITED NATIONS: India has welcomed efforts for humanitarian pauses in the Israel-Hamas conflict as well as efforts by the international community aimed at de-escalation and delivery of urgent humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine.

Speaking in the Informal meeting of the plenary in the UN General Assembly on a briefing on the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj on Monday stressed that the message from the Indian leadership has been “clear and consistent".

“India welcomes all efforts by the international community that strive towards the de-escalation of conflict and enables the delivery of urgent humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine,” Kamboj said.

“We are firmly opposed to terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, clearly against violence and are on the side of adherence to international humanitarian law and ensuring that further escalation is prevented, Humanitarian aid delivery continues, all hostages are released unconditionally and all parties work towards an early restoration of peace and stability,” she said.

Kamboj underlined that towards this, “We also welcome efforts for humanitarian pauses.”

Last week, the UN Security Council called for urgent humanitarian pauses and corridors throughout Gaza to allow unhindered humanitarian access in the strip, finally overcoming deadlock and adopting a resolution in the month-long Israel-Hamas conflict.

The 15-nation Council adopted a resolution last Wednesday that called for the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held by Hamas and other groups, especially children, as well as ensuring immediate humanitarian access.

The Malta-drafted resolution was adopted with 12 votes in favour, none against and three abstentions from Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The adoption of the resolution came after four failed attempts last month in the Council to take action on allowing humanitarian access in the Israel-Hamas conflict that broke out after the militant group attacked Israel on October 7.

Kamboj underlined India's consistent position of achieving a just, peaceful and lasting solution to the Israel-Palestine issue. “India has always advocated the resumption of direct negotiations towards establishing a sovereign, independent and viable state of Palestine, living within secure and recognized borders side by side at peace with Israel,” she said.

Kamboj underlined India's commitment to providing humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine, including delivering 70 tons of disaster relief materials. These include 17 tonnes of medicines and medical supplies in two tranches, adding that India's humanitarian support will continue.

Similarly, India continues to play an active role as a member of the Advisory Commission of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, she said.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/india-welcomes-efforts-for-humanitarian-pauses-in-israel-hamas-conflict/articleshow/105372706.cms

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'Murdered hundreds of Indians': Israel bans Pakistan based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba

 Nov 21, 2023

NEW DELHI: Ahead of the 15th anniversary of the Mumbai attacks, Israel banned the UN-proscribed, Pakistan based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) that carried out the attacks.

Despite not being requested by the government of India to do so, the Israeli embassy said in a statement, Israel had formally completed all necessary procedures and had “satisfied all required checks and regulations to the result of introducing Lashkar -e- Taiba into the Israeli list of illegal terror organizations”.

“To symbolise the marking of the 15th year of commemoration of the Mumbai terror attacks, the state of Israel has listed Lashkar -e- Taiba as a terror organisation,” it said in a statement. Israel has been pushing India for a similar ban on Hamas whose assault on Israel on October 7 was condemned by India as a terrorist attack..

The 2008 Mumbai attacks saw LeT terrorists also targeting a Jewish centre and killing many of its occupants. With the ban, Israel is also hoping to address concerns in India that it has been focused more on Iranian “terrorism” without paying enough attention to cross-border terrorism as perpetrated by Pakistan. While Israel looks at Iran as the main source of global terrorism, India uses that characterisation only for Pakistan.

“While Israel only lists terror organizations who are actively operating against it from within or around its borders, or in a similar manner to India - those globally recognized by UNSC or the US state department, the Israeli ministries of Defense and Foreign affairs, have jointly worked in the last few months towards an expediated and extraordinary listing of the Lashkar -e- Taiba organization on this date, to highlight the importance of a Unified Global Front in combating terrorism,” said Israel in its announcement of the ban.

“Lashkar -e- Taiba is a deadly and reprehensible terror organization, responsible for the murder of hundreds of Indian civilians as well as others. Its heinous actions on November 26, 2008 still reverberate in force, through all peace seeking nations and societies,” it added, while offering condolences to all victims of terrorism and to the survivors and bereaved families of the Mumbai attacks, including those in Israel.

“We stand with you united in the hope for a better peaceful future,” it said.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/murdered-hundreds-of-indians-israel-bans-pakistan-based-terror-outfit-lashkar-e-taiba/articleshow/105378429.cms

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India advocates for sovereign, independent state of Palestine at UN, opposes violence

Nov 21, 2023

NEW YORK: India advocates for the resumption of direct negotiations towards establishing a sovereign, independent and viable state of Palestine living within secure and recognised borders side by side at peace with Israel, India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ruchira Kamboj said at the United Nations General Assembly.

Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly informal discussions on the humanitarian situation in Palestine on Monday, Kamboj said, "India's consistent position of achieving a just, peaceful and lasting solution to the Israel-Palestine issue. India has always advocated the resumption of direct negotiations towards establishing a sovereign, independent and viable state of Palestine living within secure and recognised borders side by side at peace with Israel."

Kamboj, welcoming the international efforts to ensure further de-escalation of the conflict, also affirmed that India opposes terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and is clearly against violence.

She said, "India welcomes all efforts by the international community that strive towards a de-escalation of the conflict and enables the delivery of urgent humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine."

She added, "The message from our leaders has been clear and consistent - we are firmly opposed to terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, clearly against violence and are on the side of adherence to international humanitarian law and ensuring that further escalation is prevented, humanitarian aid delivery continues, all hostages are released unconditionally and all parties work towards an early restoration of peace and stability. Towards this, we also welcome efforts for humanitarian pauses."

Kamboj highlighted that India has already delivered 70 tonnes of disaster relief materials, including medicines and medical supplies, to the people of Palestine.

She stated, "We are also firm in our commitment to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Palestine and have already delivered 70 tonnes of disaster relief materials including 17 tonnes of medicines and medical supplies in two tranches and our humanitarian support continues. Similarly, India continues to play an active role as Member of the Advisory Commission of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)."

Israel announced war against Hamas after it launched attack on Israel on October 7 and killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, with around 240 people taken hostage, according to Israeli officials.

Meanwhile, amid the ongoing situation in Gaza, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will host the BRICS groups of nations to convene a virtual BRICS Extraordinary Joint Meeting on Monday, the South African President Office said.

In a major development, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres will also participate in the virtual meeting.

As per the press statement, in the meeting, the South African President will deliver an opening speech, followed by speeches from invited states and members on the current humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Later in the meeting, a joint statement on the situation in the Middle East with particular reference to Gaza will be adopted.

Leaders of BRICS countries, Brazil, Russia, India and China--will join the virtual Extraordinary Meeting with invited BRICS leaders of Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, said the press statement.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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Kerala government official suspended for allowing prayer meeting at office

 21.11.23

K.M. Rakesh

A Kerala government official has been suspended after a departmental inquiry concluded that she had violated service rules by allowing a prayer meeting at her office, apparently to drive away "negative energy".

At the event in the office of K.A. Bindu, the child protection officer in Thrissur, an employee donned a cassock and carried a Bible to seek divine intervention to quell the "negative energy" she used to complain frequently about, the inquiry said.

Government offices in Kerala do not allow any religious rituals on their premises.

The probe was conducted by the district women and child development officer. As is standard practice, district collector V.R. Krishna Teja has ordered another inquiry by one of the sub-collectors, who is likely to submit the report in a week, a senior government official told The Telegraph on Monday.

The web portal of MalayalaManorama quoted Bindu as saying she had received the suspension order, dated November 16, only on Monday.

"I was on leave on November 18 (when it was served). I got the suspension order when I came to the office today (Monday), hence I am leaving (returning home)," she was quoted as saying.

"The usual period of suspension is six months; any extension of the suspension period is up to the department," the government source who spoke to this newspaper said.

The prayer meeting was held at 4.30pm on September 29, the source, who declined to be named, said. "It seems the officer (Bindu) felt there was some negative energy in her office since things were not going smoothly," he said.

The "solution" was suggested by the employee who eventually presided over the prayer. The employee, whose name has not been revealed, happens to be a trained pastor from a Christian denomination.

"The man turned up in a cassock and carried a copy of the Bible for the prayer that the staff didn't dare skip since a good number of them were not permanent employees," the source said.

Since Bindu's office was housed in the Thrissur district civil station -- a complex where almost all state government offices in the district are located --- the news spread fast. Local media picked up the story.

Bindu is free to appeal against her suspension to the secretary to the ministry of women and child development. After exhausting that option she can approach the Kerala Administrative Tribunal.

The source said that Kerala, irrespective of which party is in power, forbids government employees from adorning their desks or walls with portraits of a religious nature.

"The whole idea is to maintain the secular character of the State. Even computer screensavers (at government offices) cannot be of a religious nature," he said.

In neighbouring Karnataka, in contrast, almost all government offices display pictures of gods and goddesses and even observe religious rituals like the Ayudha Puja during Dasara.

The Kerala government also prohibits its employees from being office-bearers of any religious or communal organisation. Kerala High Court had in May 2022 held that Rule 67A of the Kerala Government Servants Conduct Rules prohibits government employees from holding any such position.

Bindu headed one of the four wings of the district unit of the women and child development ministry. There is a wing each for child development, child protection, women’s development and women’s protection.

Source: telegraphindia.com

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 https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/kerala-government-official-suspended-for-allowing-prayer-meeting-at-office/cid/1981359

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3k apply for post of priests at Ram temple

 Nov 21, 2023

AYODHYA: About 3,000 candidates have applied for the post of priests for the upcoming Ram temple in Ayodhya.

The vacancies were advertised by Shri Ram JanmabhoomiTeerthKshetra Trust. The Trust has shortlisted 200 candidates on the basis of merit for the interview.

The interviews are being held at Karsevakpuram in the temple town. The three-member interview panel comprises Hindu preacher from Vrindavan, Jaykant Mishra, and two Mahants from Ayodhya - Mithilesh Nandini Sharan and Satyanarayan Das.

The Trust will finally select 20 candidates for the job. The selected candidates will be appointed as priests at different posts in the Ram Janmabhoomi complex after six months of residential training.

The non-selected, but shortlisted, candidates who will attend the training will be given certificates and will have a chance to be called for the post of priests to be created in the future, said Govind Dev Giri, treasurer of the Ram Mandir Trust.

Candidates are being asked tough questions about the procedure of different pujas during the interview. Some of these included 'Sandhya Vandan', its procedures and mantras, special mantras and 'karma kand' regarding the worship of Lord Ram, etc, said Giri.

The selected 20 candidates will go through six months of training to be held at Karsevakpuram that has offices of several Hindu organisations, including the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP).

The training will be based on the religious syllabus prepared by the top seers. During the training, the candidates will be provided free food and lodging facility. They will also be given Rs 2,000 each as the monthly stipend.

Source timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/3k-apply-for-post-of-priests-at-ram-temple/articleshow/105369428.cms

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Muslim League finally says ‘no’ to Left front; Congress relieved

21st November 2023

KOZHIKODE: Laying speculation to rest, the IUML has yielded to pressure from the party’s rank and file as well as other Muslim organisations, and categorically stated that it has no plan to ditch the UDF for the rival camp. IUML state president Panakkad Syed Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal declared on Monday that there is no question of his party joining the CPM-led front.

Addressing the party’s district camp in Sultan Bathery in Wayanad, Thangal said there are a thousand reasons for the Muslim League to remain in the UDF.

Some Muslim organisations had contacted Thangal on Sunday to express their apprehensions over the perceived tilt of the IUML towards the LDF. The induction of IUML leader P Abdul Hameed to the director board of Kerala Bank and the presence of a party man on the dais of the Nava Kerala Sadas event in Kasaragod had left many tongues wagging.

The organisations felt that IUML’s entry to the CPM-led front would have far-reaching consequences in the state and wanted Thangal to come out with an emphatic statement that would end all speculation.

“IUML is not merely a constituent of the UDF, we created the front. We have the responsibility to preserve it,” Thangal said, adding that the UDF ideology has a significant role in protecting communal harmony in Kerala. “The UDF accommodates all beliefs, and communal amity flourishes when they are organised under the banner of the front,” Thangal said.

He said the UDF principles helped foster Hindu-Christian-Muslim unity in Kerala. “Real secularism is the one which is rooted in beliefs and not the one based on rejection of religion. The UDF has succeeded in achieving it and people want to protect the system. So, strengthening of the UDF will be the prime aim of IUML,” he said.

A K Balan says CPM has not invited IUML to LDF

Thangal declared that his party is not ready to budge an inch from the stand. “If the IUML wants to change the alliance, it doesn’t need to enter through the doors of any bank. We will declare it openly, explaining the rationale behind the decision. No such circumstance exists now,” he said. If anyone has any different dreams, it would be better for them to shelve the idea now, Thangal said.

IUML national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty also said his party will work to strengthen the UDF. The party has a proud history of working for the resounding victory of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, he said. IUML leaders’ statement has given a big relief to the Congress which has been in a quandary over the developments that happened in the past few days.

Meanwhile, CPM central committee member A K Balan said his party has not invited the IUML to LDF. “But the IUML cannot continue in the UDF for long considering the current policies of the Congress. IUML’s mind is with us and only the body is with the UDF,” he said.

Talking to reporters, Kunhalikutty said Balan’s remarks are ‘just madness’. But when the statement became controversial, the IUML leader clarified that his remark was not personal and was meant to describe the CPM stand. “Our relationship in the UDF stems from our hearts and it is not based on some flimsy grounds. We will work hard for the victory of the UDF in Kerala and the INDIA front at the national level,” he said.

Source: newindianexpress.com

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https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/kerala/2023/nov/21/muslim-league-finally-says-noto-left-front-congress-relieved-2634725.html

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Gyanvapi case: Contest shivling report at trial, Supreme Court tells Muslim party

Nov 21, 2023

NEW DELHI: The Gynavapi mosque management committee on Monday spurned Supreme Court’s suggestion to challenge the evidentiary value of a Varanasi court commissioner’s report, which in May last year had made mention of a purported ‘Shivling’ in the mosque’s wuzu area during the trial of the suit filed by Hindus seeking worshipping rights inside the masjid.

A three-judge bench headed by CJI D Y Chandrachud told senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi that the mosque management committee could question the evidentiary value of the May 2022 report of the Varanasi court-appointed commissioner during the trial of the suit. “You can take all objections to the commissioner’s report during the trial,” CJI Chandrachud suggested. But Ahmadi said the very order of the Varanasi district judge appointing the court commissioner was illegal as it was an exercise to collect evidence to favour the plaintiffs. “The appointment itself was evidence collecting exercise,” he alleged.

The CJI said, “But, during the trial of the suit (now transferred to the high court from the district court), the court commissioner had to step inside the witness box for cross-examination. You can cross-examine him and challenge the evidentiary value of his report.”

Ahmadi said the mosque management committee would prefer a decision from the Supreme Court on three issues — appointment of the court commissioner, carbon dating of the ‘Shivling’ (which the Muslim side terms as a fountain) and the maintainability of the suit given the bar under Places of Worship Act that froze the religious character of buildings as on August 15, 1947. The bench posted the matter for further hearing on December 1.

The SC on November 11 last year had indefinitely extended its May 20, 2022, interim orders directing the Varanasi district judge to protect the wuzu area in Gyanvapi mosque where a big ‘Shivling’ was discovered on May 16 during a trial court ordered survey.

On May 17, after hearing the committee, the Supreme Court had tasked the Varanasi DM alone “to ensure that the area where the Shivling is stated to have been found, as indicated in the order, shall be duly protected”. It had said there would be no restriction on Muslims from going to other areas of the mosque.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/gyanvapi-case-contest-shivling-report-at-trial-supreme-court-tells-muslim-party/articleshow/105365968.cms

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Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi mosque land title dispute: SC defers hearing till Dec 1

20 NOV 2023

The Supreme Court on Monday deferred hearing till December 1 on pleas concerning the Kashi Vishwanath-Gyanvapi mosque land title dispute.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and ManojMisra could not take up the matter for hearing due to paucity of time. The Bench asked the parties to file a one-page note in the meantime.

The AnjumanIntezamia Masjid Committee, which manages Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi, has filed three different pleas in the Supreme Court.

In its first petition, an objection has been made against the appointment of a court commissioner to survey the Gyanvapi-Gauri Shringar complex saying that the order by the Varanasi court is ex-facie without jurisdiction.

Senior Advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for the mosque committee, said that the appointment of commissioner is not “correct” in terms of Order XXVI Rule 9 of CPC (Code of Civil Procedure).

The second Special Leave Petition challenges the order of the Allahabad High Court allowing the ASI (Archaeological Survey of India) to survey the premises of the Gyanvapi mosque, except for 'wuzukhana'.

The Supreme Court on August 4 had refused to pass any interim order staying the survey process after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta undertook that no excavation would be made at the site.

However, the apex court had earlier stayed another order of the High Court directing the ASI to carry out a "scientific survey" of the "Shivling" purportedly discovered in the Gyanvapi mosque to ascertain its age.

In its third petition, the management committee has questioned the decision of the Allahabad High Court upholding maintainability of Hindu worshippers' suit filed before the district court.

In its impugned order passed on May 31, the High Court had dismissed the revision application filed against the rejection of application under Order VII, Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC) by the District Judge.

The district court had held that the suit seeking relief of the ‘right to worship’ the deities located in the disputed property is maintainable and is not barred under the Places of Worship Act, 1991, Waqf Act, 1995, or the Uttar Pradesh Sri Kashi Vishwanath Temple Act.

Recently, the top court had refused to interfere with a decision taken by the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on the administrative side withdrawing the cases concerning the dispute from the single-judge Bench of Justice Prakash Padia.

In 2021, Hindu plaintiffs had instituted a suit in Varanasi court demanding the right of unhindered worship at the MaaShringar Gauri Sthal. The mosque management committee, in its reply, refuted that the mosque was built over a temple, maintaining the structure at the spot was always a mosque.

Source: odishatv.in

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https://odishatv.in/news/national/kashi-vishwanath-gyanvapi-mosque-land-title-dispute-sc-defers-hearing-till-dec-1-220664

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Telangana polls: Shah attacks rivals, vows to end Muslim reservation

Nov 21 2023

With ten days left for Telangana Assembly polls, the political campaigning in the state has intensified as Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday attacked Congress, BRS and AIMIM for encouraging the dynasty politics.

Amit Shah in an election rally in Telangana's Jagital said that four per cent reservation to the Muslims will be done away with.

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"We will do away with the four per cent reservation for Muslims and we will give those to SCs. OBCs, and STs," Amit Shah said while campaigning at Telangana's Jagtial on Monday.

Shah also announced reservations for the Madiga community in Telangana under the SC category."We have decided that the Madiga community will get vertical quota in reservation under the SC category," he said.

Shah charged that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, popularly known as KCR, does not celebrate Hyderabad Liberation Day fearing All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief AsaduddinOwaisi.

Speaking about the newly constituted Turmeric Board, the Union Minister said, "The Prime Minister has announced the Turmeric Board from here. Now turmeric farmers will get the right price for their produce but we will also form the Rs 200 crore centre for research on its medical value.

Amit Shah also held a roadshow in Rangareddy district.

"KCR did not form the Turmeric Board despite staying in power for years. The state could have formed this as well," he added.

Shah also announced the revival of three sugar factories, process maize and form ethanol blending factories in the state, a 500-bed hospital for beedi workers in Nizamabad and an NRI Ministry for NRIs in Telangana.

Amit Shah further slammed the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), the AIMIM and the Congress over 'dynastic politics' and called them 2G, 3G and 4G parties respectively.

"BRS, Majlis and Congress are 2G, 3G and 4G parties. 2G means KCR and KTR. 3G means Owaisi' grandfather, his father and Owaisi. 4G means Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Rahul. Where is your place in it?" Amit Shah said.

Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's achievement in the central government, Shah said, "PM Modi has taken India's tiranga aboard the Chandrayaan and taken it to the moon. Modi has built the new Parliament. Modi has organised the G20 summit and raised India's stature throughout the world. Modi has taken India's economic size from 11th rank to fifth."

Amit Shah also promised free trips to Ayodhya once the BJP comes to power in the state."You are all invited to have a darshan on Ram Lalla at Ayodhya. We will pay for your trip in turns if you vote the BJP to power," he said adding that both the Congress and the BRS have opposed the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Shah in another rally further explained the nomenclature and said 2G means two-generation, which is KCR and his son KT Rama Rao.

"While 3G means three generation, which is the party of AsaduddinOwaisi and 4G is the Congress party with four generations which is Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi."KCR, Owaisi's party (AIMIM) and Congress are dynastic parties. These three parties are 2G, 3G and 4G," Shah said.

"2G means two-generation KCR and KTR. 3G means three-generation, which is the party of Owaisi and 4G is the Congress party, that is Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi," Shah said."KCR has promised a polytechnic college in Jangaon which is not been fulfilled and his MLAs are busy with land grabbing," Shah added.

Shah further said, "Countries first Home Minister made Telangana free from Razakars and Nizam's but KCR refused to celebrate ''Telangana VimochanaDinam' (Telangana Liberation Day) fearing Owaisi."

Meanwhile, BSP candidate Pushpithalaya, who belongs to the transgender community and is contesting from Warangal East constituency in Telangana, campaigned on Monday and sought support from people for the November 30 assembly polls.

Pushpithalaya also thanked party supremo Mayawati for fielding her in the polls."The BSP gave me the MLA ticket. Our community is happy, and I'm very happy. The transgender community is also working with BSP," she said.

All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief AsaduddinOwaisi participated in door-to-door election campaigning in the Nampally Assembly constituency in Hyderabad days ahead of the Telangana Assembly elections.

AsaduddinOwaisi met the locals in the Nampally Assembly constituency and appealed to the people to vote for the party.

Launching a no-hold-bar attack on the Congress and the BJP, Owaisi said that both parties are built on the politics of hate. The AIMIM Supremo also claimed that the Congress MP in Telangana work on the orders of the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) and alleged it to be the ideological parent organisation of the BJP.

Speaking to the media, Owaisi said, "Congress MPs in Telangana are of the RSS, whose remote control is with Mohan Bhagwat. The BJP has been in power for the last nine and a half years. They have weakened the economy, destroyed small businesses, and failed to provide jobs". Owaisi further said that it won't let the RSS come into the state of Telangana."

It is our hard work of 65 years that is reflected here. Neither the Congress nor the BJP will benefit here. Both the Congress and BJP's politics are built upon hate", he added. Further speaking on the uniform civil code promised by the BJP in its election manifesto for Telangana, Owaisi said, "UCC is not required in this country; what is much needed is freedom of speech and expression, wherein people will not be targeted for wearing the clothes they wear because of the religion they belong to," AIMIM Chief AsaduddinOwaisi said.

Meanwhile, Congress chief Revanth Reddy said that Owaisi is just cutting out the votes of the Congress to make the contest easy for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)."AsaduddinOwaisi is known for cutting votes. The entire country knows this. He takes bribes from the BJP.

Earlier, AsaduddinOwaisi took a dig at Telangana Congress chief Revanth Reddy and called him a "puppet of the RSS".

Telangana will go for Assembly elections on November 30 and counting of votes, along with those of four other poll-bound states, has been scheduled for December 3.

In the previous Assembly election in 2018, the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), previously known as Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), won 88 of the 119 seats, grabbing 47.4 per cent of the total vote share. The Congress came a distant second with just 19 seats.

Source: business-standard.com

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https://www.business-standard.com/elections/telangana-elections/telangana-polls-shah-attacks-rivals-vows-to-end-muslim-reservation-123112001263_1.html

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Torn apart by Partition, an Indo-Pak reunion of families in Mecca

Kamaldeep Singh Brar

November 21, 2023

India partition reunionThe families had made several attempts to meet at Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib — which is a visa-free border crossing connecting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, in Pakistan, to Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak, Gurdaspur, Punjab.

Seventeen months of wait, a host of denied permissions, and after having dealt with a severe bout of angst, it was a sweet reunion for 105-year-old Hajra Bibi from Pakistan with her niece, Hanifan, 60, at the Kaaba in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, last week (Thursday).

The families, which was divided during the Partition in 1947, had made several previous attempts to meet, only to see their efforts come to a naught owing to a multitude of reasons.

It finally took a heart wrenching phone call in June last year, and a very gracious YouTuber from Pakistan, for Hajra Bibi to finally reunite with her niece in Mecca.

India partition reunion Dhillon with Hanifan and Hajra Bibi

The families had made several attempts to meet at Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib — which is a visa-free border crossing connecting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, in Pakistan, to Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak, Gurdaspur, Punjab. However, they failed to obtain the necessary permissions every time.

Hanifan, who lives in Kapurthala in Punjab, had also applied for a visa from the Pakistani government to meet Hajra Bibi, which was subsequently denied.

In June last year, Hajra Bibi had for the first time made a video call to Hanifa. It was during the call that she asked to see her younger sister, Majeeda, only to learn that she had passed away some time ago. The news broke Hajra Bibi.

Just when both families had started to give up on hope, a Pakistani YouTuber, Nasir Dhillon, and a Sikh man living in the US, Paul Singh Gill, came to their aid, assisting both the families in traveling to Mecca, where they met at the Kaaba last Thursday.

“We had uploaded the video of Hajra Bibi, which helped us in locating locating the family of her sister in Punjab, India. Hajra had come to Pakistan during the 1947 Partition, whereas her younger sister, Majeeda, had decided to stay back in India ,” said Dhillon.

Dhillon — who also traveled to Mecca and recorded the reunion for his YouTube channel, Punjabi Lehar, saw both Hajra Bibi and Hanifan breaking down in tears as soon as they saw each other at the Kaaba. They had been in touch over the phone, but Thursday was the first time they were meeting in-person.

“It is not clear why Hanifan couldn’t get permission to visit Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib. Earlier, two partition victims, brothers Sadiq Khan and Sikka Khan, had met at Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib. Hanifan had also applied for a Pakistani visa to meet Hajra Bibi but her request was not granted by the Pakistan High Commission in India,” said Dhillon.

Both families not being financially well-off, a second Sikh man from the US provided funds to arrange their visit to the Mecca. “Paul Singh Gill from the US arranged funds to make this reunion happen in Mecca. We were in a hurry to make this reunion happen as Hajra Bibi is already 105 years old,” said Dhillon.

Source: indianexpress.com

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https://indianexpress.com/article/india/

torn-apart-partition-indo-pak-reunion-families-mecca-9035310/

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Siliguri: Interfaith celebration on Jagaddhatri Puja as Hindu, Muslim youth team up for festivity

21.11.23

Binita Paul

Amity pervades the Jagaddhatri Puja pandal in Collegepara, a prominent locality in Siliguri, as a group of Muslim youths have joined hands with their Hindu friends to organise the puja.

For the past three years, around 20 Muslim youths are actively involved in the puja that draws thousands of pandal-hoppers.

“The puja committee has two secretaries, one a Hindu and the other a Muslim. Members of both communities take part in the festival,” said a local resident.

This year, the budget is around Rs 6 lakh. Committee members from both communities have made their contributions.

Rustam Alam, the assistant secretary of the committee, said that three years back, he and two of his friends took the initiative to start the puja.

“My family is also involved in the puja. They come here on puja days and support us a lot. We Muslims and Hindus have all grown up together, how can we be different during festivals? Be it Jagaddhatri Puja or Id, we celebrate every occasion together,” said Alam.

“There are a few who want to create a wedge on religious lines. But as sensible people, we don’t believe in such divisions. That is the culture of Bengal. Religious differences are the last thing which I or my Hindu friends want to bother about,” he added.

Sourav Bhaskar, also the secretary of the committee, said that festivals went beyond religious boundaries.

“Every festival, whether it is Id or any other, is celebrated with huge passion and dedication. The essence of harmony and inclusiveness you find here in our puja committee is something, we believe, is rare in Siliguri,” Bhaskar said.

He said that of the 60-odd members of the puja committee, 20 are Muslims.

“There is no force in the world that can spoil this relationship.... We are united and our bond will strengthen in the days to come,” added Bhaskar.

The organisers claimed that this year, their 21-foot-tall idol was the highest Jagaddhatri idol in north Bengal.

“The height of our idol is 21 feet. For the puja, we do not collect money from people. Our committee members contribute to this puja,” he said.

During the puja days, they congregate together throughout the day and celebrate the occasion till late evening.

“Right from bringing the idol to immersion, our Muslim friends participate in all activities with us,” said Bhaskar.

Source: telegraphindia.com

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https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/interfaith-celebration-on-jagaddhatri-puja-as-hindu-muslim-youth-team-up-for-festivity-in-siliguri/cid/1981398

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South Asia

 

Taliban’s inaction against terror activities in Pakistan unacceptable: Kakar

Fidel Rahmati

November 20, 2023

Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar has issued a strong message to the Taliban administration, urging them to take decisive action against terrorists using Afghan soil for attacks in Pakistan.

Kakar expressed his dissatisfaction with the Taliban’s inaction regarding terror activities targeting Pakistan during an exclusive interview with Pakistan’s Geo News.

A statistical report from the independent think tank PICSS revealed a concerning 79% surge in terror activities in Pakistan during the first half of 2023.

These figures indicate a significant rise in militant attacks compared to the previous year, as reported by Geo News.

Pakistan has repeatedly held Kabul responsible for the recent increase in terrorism. It has called on the Taliban to halt cross-border attacks and the use of Afghan territory against Pakistan.

Kakar emphasized his loyalty to Pakistan and commitment to the country’s security, regardless of any personal identity labels.

Discussing the escalating tensions between Islamabad and Kabul, Kakar stressed his primary role as a Pakistani citizen, emphasizing the importance of honesty in Pakistan-Afghanistan relations.

Kakar urged action against terrorists and revealed that the Afghan government was aware of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) hideouts within its borders.

He made it clear that negotiations with the TTP could not be conducted under duress or “at gunpoint.”

Kakar addressed the government’s measures against illegal foreigners, explicitly emphasizing that registered Afghan refugees were not being deported while calling on undocumented Afghan citizens to return to their home countries.

Since November 1, Pakistan has forcibly expelled over 300,000 Afghan refugees, a move that has raised concerns given the harsh winter conditions in the country.

According to the report, over 80 per cent of the Afghan returnees consist of women and children, and their future remains uncertain, adding to the humanitarian challenges in the country.

Source: khaama.com

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https://www.khaama.com/talibans-inaction-against-terror-activities-in-pakistan-unacceptable-kakar/

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Concerns over the Promotion and Institutionalization of violence in Afghanistan

Fidel Rahmati

November 21, 2023

According to local media reports, the Taliban-controlled Academy of Sciences in Afghanistan has advocated incorporating the “Understanding Boundaries and Retribution” topic into the country’s educational syllabus.

The Bakhtar News Agency, in a report published on Sunday, has stated that the Taliban administration’s Academy of Sciences has introduced the issue of “Understanding Boundaries and Retribution” into the country’s educational curriculum through a scientific and research program in Kabul.

According to this report, the Taliban’s Academy of Sciences had launched a program titled “Alignment of Sharia Boundaries and Its Role in Ensuring Security,” which concluded with the issuance of a resolution on “Sharia Alignment” in a public gathering.

In their resolution, the Academy paid little heed to the widespread international reactions that accompanied the implementation of “Sharia Boundaries and Retribution” and insisted that the authorities of the Islamic Republic must “align and implement boundaries and retribution in the public sphere.”

The resolution emphasized that the “Ministry of Education and Higher Education of the country should incorporate the understanding of boundaries and retribution into the national educational curriculum, and ministries of information and culture, guidance, pilgrimage and endowments, and promotion of virtue and prevention of vice should reflect discussions on the recognition of boundary crimes and their punishments through mass media and public platforms.”

Amirjan Saqib, the acting Deputy for Natural Sciences at the Taliban’s Academy of Sciences, stressed that “in the Islamic system, boundaries and retribution are aligned.”

Observers have condemned the Taliban’s move and their inclination to enforce Sharia boundaries, stating that incorporating such issues into the educational curriculum not only violates children’s rights but also promotes extremism.

MayilSaadiqi, a sociologist and university professor, warned of the “unpleasant” consequences, suggesting that the prohibition of girls’ education and deliberate manipulation of the educational curriculum would have a severe impact on Afghan society.

He added that the educational curriculum should be taught to children and students irrespective of their religious affiliations. If violent content is taught as worthy and good to children, it will lead to a definite setback in gender equality and compassion in society.

On the other hand, the implementation of Sharia boundaries and retribution, which contradicts many international treaties, has sparked widespread international reactions and, in some cases, has been condemned as “hateful.”

Source: khaama.com

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https://www.khaama.com/concerns-over-the-promotion-and-institutionalization-of-violence-in-afghanistan/

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Germany blasts Taliban official’s appearance at Cologne mosque

November 20, 2023

Germany on Monday condemned an appearance by a Taliban official at a mosque in Cologne, with the interior minister demanding explanations from the Turkish organisation running the site.

Abdul Bari Omar, who is an official with the Taliban-run health authority in Afghanistan, attended the mosque to speak at a conference organised by an Afghan association in the city.

“The appearance of a representative of the Taliban in Cologne is completely unacceptable and must be strongly condemned.

“No-one should offer radicals a platform in Germany,” said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser.

She urged Ditib, the Turkish-Islamic association managing the mosque in the city’s Chorweiler district to explain “how it could have been possible that the room was used” in this manner.

Ditib’s management said it had no prior knowledge of the Taliban official’s planned appearance.

“Contrary to the original contract, it was transformed into a political event and a speaker who was not known to us had been invited,” it said.

Ditib rejected “any proximity — even spiritual — to the Taliban”.

The foreign ministry said the Taliban official had not been issued with a visa to enter Germany.

He had apparently been able to travel to the country using a Schengen visa issued by a “neighbouring country”, it added.

Local media said Omar had arrived from the Netherlands, where he had participated in a World Health Organisation conference in early November.

Since the Taliban swept back to power in August 2021, billions of dollars in aid and assets have been frozen by the West in what the United Nations has described as an “unprecedented fiscal shock” to the aid-dependent Afghan economy.

Ditib — the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs — is one of the largest Islamic organisations in Germany.

Source: dawn.com

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https://www.dawn.com/news/1790983/germany-blasts-taliban-officials-appearance-at-cologne-mosque

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German Minister calls on Turkish-Islamic Union to explain hosting of Taliban official

Fidel Rahmati

November 21, 2023

Nancy Fizer, the Minister of Interior of Germany, requested an explanation from the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs regarding the invitation and speech of the Taliban’s acting director of food and drug administration at a mosque affiliated with this centre.

Fizer stated, “No one should provide a platform for radical Islamists in Germany.”

She emphasized once again that “the presence of a Taliban representative in Cologne is unacceptable and must be strongly condemned.”

Abdulbari Omar, the acting director of the Taliban’s food and drug administration, delivered a speech to a group of Afghans in the city of Cologne, Germany, on Thursday.

Earlier, the German Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the appearance and address of Abdulbari Omar, a Taliban official, at an Islamic centre in Cologne.

The Ministry has initiated an investigation into Abdulbari Omar’s entry into Germany. It underscores that Germany does not recognize the Taliban as a legitimate government, and no visa has been issued to this Taliban representative.

The Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs, where Mr Omar spoke at one of its buildings in Cologne, stated in a statement on Friday that trust in this union has been “misused.” The union added that an Afghan association had requested to hold religious rituals, but the event turned into a political conference, and someone unfamiliar to the union spoke at it.

According to French news agency reports, however, the German Interior Minister addressed the union, saying, “How can this place [the union] be used in such a manner?”

Abdulbari Omar had come to Holland for a pharmaceutical conference but subsequently travelled to several European countries and spoke in defence of the Taliban’s rule.

The Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs is the most prominent Islamic religious organization in Germany, with connections to the Turkish government. The union has stated that it rejects any moral and spiritual association with the Taliban.

Source: khaama.com

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https://www.khaama.com/german-minister-calls-on-turkish-islamic-union-to-explain-hosting-of-taliban-official/

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Six Afghan families with Canadian ties deported from Pakistan

Fidel Rahmati

November 20, 2023

According to reports, a non-profit organization in Canada has disclosed that six Afghan families who were awaiting relocation to Canada have been returned from Pakistan to Afghanistan.

“I’m extremely concerned by the current stance that Pakistan has taken to deport Afghans out of the country,” said Jon Feltham, an Afghan war veteran and program director for Aman Lara. CBC News reported that this non-profit works to evacuate people from countries in crisis.

“We’re taking them out of one hotspot, and what we’re doing now is putting them into another.”

Feltham emphasized that these deportations highlight the pressing necessity for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to expedite the processing of paperwork for Afghans seeking refuge in Canada.

The situation on the ground is increasingly dire, and delays in processing applications could result in more individuals facing deportation and being exposed to potential harm.

Towards the end of October, Pakistan initiated a crackdown on what it described as undocumented Afghan migrants, detaining and subsequently deporting them. This development has raised concerns about the safety and well-being of Afghan asylum seekers, especially given the volatile situation in Afghanistan. It underscores the need for international cooperation and swift action to protect vulnerable individuals seeking safety and security in other countries.

The exact number of Afghans seeking to come to Canada through special immigration measures for former employees of the Canadian Armed Forces or the federal government remains undisclosed. The Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has cited operational security concerns for not revealing this information.

Aman Lara, an organization dedicated to assisting Afghans with an “enduring relationship with the government of Canada,” estimates that it has supported nearly 2,500 individuals in temporarily relocating to Pakistan while awaiting further steps in their immigration process.

While the organization couldn’t provide an exact count for the six families affected, it referenced the United Nations estimate that an average Afghan household consists of approximately eight people. This highlights the potential scale of the impact on these families and the urgency of their situation.

The lack of transparency regarding the number of Afghans seeking refuge in Canada and the challenges faced by organizations like Aman Lara underscores the complexities of the Afghan refugee crisis and the importance of coordinated efforts to provide assistance and support to those in need.

CBC News interviewed Sanaullah Azizi, who reported being arrested in Islamabad on Monday while running an errand with his wife. Azizi and his wife, along with other migrants, endured a 17-hour bus journey before being left at the Afghanistan border. His presence in Pakistan was in pursuit of approval to relocate to Canada, leveraging his father-in-law’s prior role as an interpreter for the Canadian Armed Forces.

Azizi explained that he never had the opportunity to pursue his relocation plans. “They snatched my phone right away,” he revealed through an interpreter to CBC, noting that the device contained all his documents and was his sole connection to the outside world. The phone was only returned after they were left at the border, leading him and his wife to go into hiding in Afghanistan since then.

This comes as the Ministry of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada had previously declared that Afghan citizens with pending Canadian immigration cases should not be deported from Pakistan.

It is worth noting that hundreds of Afghan citizens, who had cases pending with countries like the United States, Canada, and Europe, sought refuge in Pakistan following the takeover of the Taliban.

Furthermore, Canada’s immigration department had previously announced plans to relocate over 30,000 Afghan citizens as part of a program to bring 40,000 Afghans to Canada.

However, over the past two years, Canada has predominantly transported Afghan refugees from Pakistan, Tajikistan, and the United Arab Emirates through charter flights to the country.

Source: khaama.com

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https://www.khaama.com/six-afghan-families-with-canadian-ties-deported-from-pakistan/

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Deportees from Pakistan, Iran, Turkey Called for Halt to Expelling Refugees

November 20, 2023

The Afghans who were deported by Pakistan, Iran and Turkey called on host countries to stop expelling the refugees.

They also voiced concerns over the mistreatment of the host countries’ police towards the Afghan refugees.

Nazia, a mother of three children, said that she has recently been deported from Iran. Nazia said that her husband also was arrested by Iranian police.

“They took six million [Iranian currency] from us in Iran. They brought us near the Balochistan province and we came so far through private transportation,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Afghans who were deported by Pakistan and Turkey also complain about the mistreatment of police.

“I call on them to not disturb the refugees and to not deport women and children in winter,” said Jawad, an Afghan refugee deported from Pakistan.

"The Turkish police is harassing us very much. They detained us for 21 days and then deported us,” said a deportee from Turkey.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said that over 295,000 Afghan refugees from Pakistan and 95,000 from Iran have been deported within a month.

This comes as Pakistan and Iran have recently escalated deportation of Afghan refugees from their soil.

Source: tolonews.com

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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-186124

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Poor Situation of Afghan Children on World Children's Day

HadiaZiaei

Coinciding with International Children's Day, United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has emphasized the observance of children's rights around the world.

UNICEF emphasized the rights of children while some children in Afghanistan are unaware of this day. They have told TOLOnews that they do hazardous work to earn bread for their families.

"I earn 70-80 Afs every day, I take bread home and I walk all these places,” said Asif, a child who does hazardous work.

"I come out here and work to find bread to take home,” said Mustafa, a child laborer.

Sohrab, who is polishing boots on the side of one of the roads in the capital, told the TOLOnews reporter that he has a family of seven and his parents are disabled. Besides working, he studies in the fourth grade of school.

"There are seven of us in the house. My parents are also disabled, so I don't have any workers at home, so I come to work here and to find something for my family," Sohrab said.

"We are poor, what should we do? we just find a piece of bread for our parents, for our brothers and sisters who are small,” said Shirzad, a child laborer.

Samiullah Ebrahimi, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, said that efforts are being made to prevent children from hazardous work and support their families.

"Children engaged in hazardous work will be stopped and support will be given to their families when possible and im various ways they will be supported with technical training. The children will also be supported by implemented programs,” Ebrahimi told TOLOnews.

On World Children's Day, UNICEF said that a better future can be achieved by giving priority to children's rights.

Source: tolonews.com

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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-186128

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Nothing can be gained by harming, burning people: PM

 Nov 21, 2023

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said good sense should prevail among the arsonists as nothing can be gained by burning people.

"The arson violence has recently started again. How can a man burn another man? It is wrong," she said.

The prime minister said this while addressing a reception accorded to the selected gallantry award-winning freedom fighters and their successors at the Army Multipurpose Complex in Dhaka Cantonment on the occasion of the Armed Forces Day 2023.

In the event, she also conferred the peacetime medals among 11 selected members of the armed forces -- army, navy and air force -- for their outstanding services.

The PM said to achieve something, the power of the people is required. "Nothing can be gained by harming the people or burning the people," she said.

On this day during the War of Liberation in 1971, the Bangladesh Armed Forces, comprising army, navy and air force, came into being and launched an all-out attack on the Pakistani occupation forces which expedited the victory in the Liberation War.

After the independence of the country, this historic day is observed as the Armed Forces Day every year.

Source: thedailystar.net

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https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/crime-justice/news/jail-sentence-judge-sohel-rana-remain-stayed-till-dec-5-sc-3475091

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IEA responds to Trump’s statement over ‘recapturing’ Bagram

 November 20, 2023

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, in response to Donald Trump’s statement that the United States will regain control of Bagram Airfield, says Trump holds no political power and his words cannot be discussed.

IEA’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said they will not allow Afghanistan to once again become a field of competition between regional and world powers.

“Trump is now an ordinary person; he is not yet in any political side for us to discuss much about his speeches. But in general, we will never allow Afghanistan to be the field of competition between countries and we will not allow this to anyone,” said Mujahid.

“Second, the military presence of any country in Afghanistan is unacceptable, so we want Afghanistan’s interaction with all countries to be moderate and normal,” he stressed.

Speaking to a crowd in Fort Dodge, Iowa, on Saturday, the former US president, Donald Trump, said “he’ll do trade deal with the Taliban [Islamic Emirate] if he’s re-elected in 2024 to regain control of Bagram Airfield to keep an eye on China”.

However, a number of experts believe that Trump’s words are nothing but a campaign to win the upcoming US elections.

“Trump’s statement that he wants to take Bagram airfield in Afghanistan and build a military base is just a campaign and election issue,” said a political analyst.

Source: ariananews.af

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https://www.ariananews.af/iea-responds-to-trumps-statement-over-recapturing-bagram/

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Mideast

 

Israel battles Hamas near another Gaza hospital sheltering thousands

Nov 21, 2023

DEIR AL-BALAH, GAZA STRIP: Israeli forces pressed their offensive against Hamas in northern Gaza on Monday, battling militants around a hospital where thousands of patients and displaced people have been sheltering for weeks, and where despite the fighting health officials managed to evacuate some of the wounded.

A medical worker inside the facility and the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said a shell struck the second floor of the Indonesian Hospital, killing 12 people. Both blamed Israel, which denied shelling the hospital, saying its troops returned fire on militants who targeted them from inside the 3.5-acre (1.4 hectare) compound.

The Israeli offensive came as 28 premature babies evacuated from Gaza City's Shifa Hospital by the World Health Organization were transported to Egypt on Monday. Three others were transferred to an Emirati-run hospital in Rafah in southern Gaza, the Red Crescent said. More than 250 critically ill or wounded patients remain stranded at the Shifa compound, which Israeli forces stormed days ago.

Gaza's hospitals play a prominent role in the battle of narratives over the war's brutal toll on Palestinian civilians, thousands of whom have been killed or buried in rubble since the conflict was sparked by Hamas' October 7 rampage into southern Israel. In the wake of the assault, Israeli leaders vowed to eradicate Hamas, destroy its ability to rule Gaza and uproot its militant infrastructure.

Israel says Hamas uses civilians as human shields and that the militants operated a major command hub inside and under Shifa, a claim hospital officials and Hamas deny. Critics say Israel's siege and relentless bombardment amount to collective punishment of the territory's 2.3 million Palestinians.

Israeli troops were battling Hamas fighters in the Jabaliya refugee camp, a densely built-up district on Gaza City's northeastern side that has been heavily hit by bombardment for weeks. The military said that after moving through the center of the city to Shifa, its forces were now working to uproot Hamas fighters from eastern areas.

Dozens of dead and wounded in airstrikes and shelling overnight flowed into Indonesian Hospital, near Jabaliya, said Marwan Abdallah, the medical worker there. He said Israeli tanks were operating less than 200 meters (yards) away and Israeli snipers could be seen on the roofs of nearby buildings. As he spoke on the phone, the sound of gunfire could be heard in the background.

Hamas' health ministry spokesperson, Ashraf al-Qidra, said roughly 200 wounded patients and their companions were evacuated from the hospital to southern Gaza in a rescue effort coordinated by the UN and the International Committee for the Red Cross. Many of the evacuees were being treated at al-Nasser hospital in the southern town of Khan Younis, he said.

Between 400 and 500 wounded remain at Indonesia Hospital, Ashraf told Al-Jazeera. Some 2,000 displaced Palestinians also are sheltering there.

In a separate development that could relieve some of the pressure on Gaza's collapsing health system, dozens of trucks entered from Egypt on Monday with equipment from Jordan to set up a field hospital. Jordan’s state-run media said the hospital in Khan Younis would be up and running within 48 hours.

More than 250 patients with severely infected wounds and other urgent conditions remain in Shifa. The complex can no longer provide most of the wounded there treatment after it ran out of water, medical supplies and fuel for emergency generators.

Israeli forces battled Palestinian militants outside its gates for days before entering the facility on Wednesday.

Israel’s army said it has evidence that Hamas maintained a sprawling command post inside and under the hospital’s 20-acre (8-hectare) complex, which includes several buildings.

On Sunday, the military released a video showing what it said was a tunnel discovered at the hospital, 55 meters (60 yards) long and about 10 meters (33 feet) below ground. It said the tunnel ended at a blast-proof door with a hole in it for gunmen to fire out of. Troops have not opened the door yet, it said.

Israeli forces also released security camera video showing what they said were two foreign hostages, one Thai and one Nepalese, who were captured by Hamas in the October 7 attack and taken to the hospital. Hamas said its fighters brought them in for medical care.

The army also said an investigation had determined that Israeli army Cpl Noa Marciano, another captive whose body was recovered in Gaza, had been wounded in an Israeli strike on November 9 that killed her captor, but was then killed by a Hamas militant in Shifa.

The military has previously released images of several guns it said were found inside an MRI lab and said that the bodies of two hostages were found near the complex.

The Associated Press was not able to independently confirm the military's findings.

Israel has repeatedly ordered Palestinians to leave northern Gaza and seek refuge in the south, which has also been under aerial bombardment. Some 1.7 million people, nearly three quarters of Gaza’s population, have been displaced, with 900,000 packing into crowded UN-run shelters, according to the UN.

Strikes in the Nuseirat and Bureij refugee camps Monday killed at least 40 people, according to hospital officials, and residents said dozens more were buried in the rubble. Bundled against a chilly wind from Gaza's approaching winter, a line of men prayed over more than a dozen bodies on the grounds of the nearby morgue in Deir al-Balah before loading them onto a truck.

More than 12,700 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the Palestinian health ministry in the West Bank, which coordinates with officials in the Health Ministry of Hamas-run Gaza. Officials there say another 4,000 are missing. Their counts do not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel says it has killed thousands of militants.

Violence also has surged in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where attacks by Jewish settlers are on the rise and where more than 200 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the war, mostly in gunbattles triggered by Israeli military raids.

About 1,200 people have been killed on the Israeli side, mainly civilians during the October 7 attack, in which Hamas dragged some 240 captives back into Gaza. The military says 66 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza ground operations.

Hamas has released four hostages, Israel has rescued one, and the bodies of two were found near Shifa.

Israel, the United States and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas, have been negotiating a hostage release for weeks. Israel's three-member war Cabinet met with representatives of the hostages’ families Monday evening, and a relative of a hostage said the officials, including prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told families the government will not prioritize the hostages' release to defeating Hamas.

“What we’ve heard is that taking down Hamas and bringing the hostages are ... equally important,” said Udi Goren, whose cousin Tal Chaimi is in captivity in Gaza. “This is incredibly disappointing because ... we know that taking down Hamas, we keep hearing from them (it) is going to take months or years and it’s going to take a long time.”

Goren said the war cabinet did not share details about any possible deal to release the hostages.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/israel-battles-hamas-near-another-gaza-hospital-sheltering-thousands/articleshow/105374805.cms

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Israel minister urges ‘voluntary resettlement’ of Gazans

November 20, 2023

JERUSALEM: An Israeli minister said the international community should not fund rebuilding of the war-devastated Gaza Strip and instead promote the “voluntary resettlement” of Palestinians from the territory around the globe.

Any suggestion of Palestinian dispersal is highly controversial in the Arab world as the war that led to Israel’s creation 75 years ago gave rise to the exodus or forced displacement of 760,000 Palestinians, an event known as the Nakba, or “catastrophe.”

Gaza’s Housing Ministry says more than 40 percent of homes have been damaged or destroyed in the weeks of fighting between Gaza-based Hamas militants and Israeli forces.

Israeli Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel said one “option” after the war would be “to promote the voluntary resettlement of Palestinians in Gaza, for humanitarian reasons, outside of the Strip.”

Writing in The Jerusalem Post, she said that “instead of funneling money to rebuild Gaza or to the failed UNRWA, the international community can assist in resettlement costs, helping the people of Gaza build new lives in their new host countries.”

UNRWA is the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.

“Gaza has long been thought of as a problem without an answer,” Gamliel wrote.

“We must try something new, and we call on the international community to help make it a reality.” “It could be a win-win solution: A win for those civilians of Gaza who seek a better life and a win for Israel after this devastating tragedy.”

The Gaza Strip is mainly populated by Palestinian refugees and their descendants.

UNRWA says more than 1.6 million have been displaced by the current fighting.

This mass movement has evoked memories of the Nakba, and some Israeli politicians have proposed pushing Palestinians into neighboring Egypt.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that “people should be able to stay in Gaza, their home.”

Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas warned Blinken that driving out Gaza’s people would amount to a “second Nakba.”

The Oslo Accords of 1993 were meant to lead to an independent Palestinian state, but Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations have been stalled since 2014.

US President Joe Biden said, in an opinion piece published on Saturday, that Gaza and the West Bank, which Israel occupies, should be “reunited” under a new Palestinian Authority.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412281/middle-east

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200 patients evacuated from Gaza's Indonesian hospital where an Israeli strike killed 12

 21st November 2023

JERUSALEM: Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry said Monday 200 patients were evacuated from a hospital with the help of the Red Cross just hours after it was hit by a deadly Israeli strike.

Health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra told AFP 200 people were evacuated from the Indonesian hospital in Jabaliya and taken by bus to Nasser hospital in the southern town of Khan Yunis.

"The Israeli army is laying siege to the Indonesian hospital," he said.

"We fear the same thing will happen there as it did in Al-Shifa," he added, referring to the largest hospital in Gaza which Israeli troops have been searching since Wednesday.

The evacuation of the 140-bed hospital, which is close to the Jabaliya refugee camp, was carried out in coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), he said, in a condition laid down by doctors after Israel struck an ambulance in northern Gaza, claiming it was being used by Hamas militants.

"There are still 400 patients in the hospital and we are working with the ICRC to evacuate," he said, indicating that "around 2,000 displaced persons" were in and around the hospital.

The Hamas-run government earlier reported that dozens of tanks and armoured vehicles were deployed around the outskirts of the hospital and were firing towards the facility.

An AFP reporter in Khan Yunis saw two buses arriving at Nasser hospital in company of the Red Cross.

During the morning, Qudra said an Israeli strike on a hospital had killed 12 people, among them patients and their companions, and wounded dozens of others.

Source: newindianexpress.com

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https://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2023/nov/21/200-patients-evacuated-from-gazas-indonesian-hospital-where-an-israeli-strikekilled-12-2634893.html

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Hezbollah attacks Israeli troops with drones, artillery, missiles

November 20, 2023

NAJIA HOUSSARI

BEIRUT: Hostilities carried out by Hezbollah against Israeli military outposts significantly escalated on Monday, with the group resorting to more developed destructive weapons.

Amid the qualitative military escalation on the southern front, Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Rudakov told Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib that “what was happening in the south is very dangerous and must be stopped.”

The Russian diplomat said, "Both parties mainly discussed the unfolding events in the region, especially in Gaza."

The ambassador said Russia had been calling for peace and halting military operations in all international forums.

“We are in constant contact, following up on an array of topics and interests, whether bilateral or international,” he added.

The envoy’s reaction came as the Saydet El-Jabal group warned that the region is “heading toward a complicated and dangerous situation that requires the highest degrees of political vigilance and internal solidarity.”

The group, which includes politicians and public activists, also believes that Hezbollah is, once again, jeopardizing unity among the Lebanese people.

The comment follows a statement delivered by Sheikh Naim Kassem, Hezbollah deputy secretary-general, who said two days ago that it “will continue to be armed and trained despite all the Lebanese opposition voices.”

Saydet El-Jabal added: “How can Hezbollah say that it is protecting Lebanon’s national interest while it is placing itself above the constitution and the relevant international and Arab resolutions?”

The Israel-Lebanon border has seen daily exchanges of fire since the Israel-Hamas war began.

On Monday, Hezbollah announced hitting — for the first time — the Branit outpost with four Burkan missiles.

A video published by Israeli media showed the massive destruction caused by the missiles.

In two consecutive statements, Hezbollah confirmed that the purpose behind the shelling was “to support our resilient Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and endorse its resistance.”

Israeli media reported that “25 missiles and artillery shells, in addition to a kamikaze drone, were launched from Lebanon toward the KiryatShmona and Margaliot settlements, causing damage to the place.”

The Burkan missile is designed by Iran and produced in the workshops of the Syrian army’s fourth division.

It is a short-range ballistic missile carrying an explosive payload of 500 kg — half a ton of explosives — with a range of up to 10 km. It is launched from short-range tactical launchers.

Each battery carries three firing nozzles mounted on the body of a tank for any armored vehicle or truck.

Hezbollah used this missile for the first time at the beginning of November when it targeted the Israeli Jal Al-Alam outpost opposite the Lebanese border village of Al-Dahira.

Hezbollah’s confrontations with the Israeli military on the Lebanese southern front have been ongoing for 44 days.

Hezbollah announced targeting “an Israeli infantry force on Al-Karantina Hill near the HadebYaroun outpost, an Israeli infantry gathering in the vicinity of the Dahira outpost, and an Israeli infantry gathering in the Al-Tayhat Triangle, causing direct hits.”

The group has also announced targeting “the Zibdeen outpost in the occupied Lebanese Shebaa Farms with appropriate weapons, in addition to targeting a gathering for the Israeli occupation forces in the west of KiryatShmona with three drones.”

The Israeli army responded to Hezbollah’s operations through ground and aerial bombardment, targeting many locations in Lebanon.

The army said that “rocket-propelled grenades were launched from Lebanon toward KiryatShmona,” adding that “three drones were intercepted in the Upper Galilee.”

Artillery shelling has targeted the outskirts of the villages of Yarine, Al-Dahira, TayrHarfa, Rab Al-Thalathin, Mhaibib, and Al-Jabin.

Israeli artillery has also targeted the outskirts of the villages of Houla, Wadi Saluki, Yaroun, and Naqoura, in addition to a forest between Deir Mimas and Kfarkila.

The fire caused by Israeli artillery has trapped a farmer in the valley located between Markaba and Houla.

The region between the Rmaych and Ayta Al-Shaab villages was subject to direct artillery bombardment. The shelling also reached the house of MP KabalanKabalan in Mays Al-Jabal.

Israeli helicopters also bombed the outskirts of the Maroun Al-Ras village.

According to Israeli media outlets, Hezbollah has launched “over 1,000 missiles from Lebanon toward Israeli targets since the beginning of the operations.”

The Al-Manar website affiliated with Hezbollah published “a table showing that the number of Israeli army casualties scattered across hospitals of settlements bordering Lebanon amounted to 1,523.”

Israeli bombing hit on Sunday afternoon a civilian car driving from the border village of Odaisseh to Kfarkila.

Lebanese citizen Sanaa Hussein Rislan was with her son when the artillery shell landed near them.

She was injured and transferred to a hospital for treatment.

Almost all the border region residents have evacuated the area and fled north of the Blue Line.

The Disaster Risk Management Unit in the Union of Tyre Municipalities announced that, as of Sunday, the number of displaced Lebanese reached 16,276, scattered across the villages of the district and four shelters.

The unit added that it was working in cooperation with associations and international organizations to secure the needs of displaced people within the available means.

As winter approaches, the number of displaced people is increasing daily, which adds a burden to securing heating in shelters.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412326/middle-east

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Premature Gaza babies evacuated to Egypt

2023-11-21

GAZA/OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: Twenty-eight prematurely born babies evacuated from Gaza’s biggest hospital were taken into Egypt for urgent treatment on Monday, while Palestinian authorities and the WHO said 12 people were killed at another Gaza hospital encircled by Israeli tanks.

The newborns had been in north Gaza’s Al Shifa hospital, where several others died after their incubators were knocked out amid a collapse of medical services during Israel’s military assault on Gaza City.

Israeli forces seized Shifa last week to search for what they said was a tunnel network belonging to Hamas built underneath. Hundreds of patients, medical staff and displaced people left Shifa at the weekend, with doctors saying they were ejected by troops and Israel saying the departures were voluntary.

Live footage aired by Egypt’s Al Qahera TV showed medical staff carefully lifting infants from inside an ambulance and placing them in mobile incubators, which were then wheeled across a car park towards other ambulances.

The babies were transported on Sunday to a hospital in Rafah, on the southern border of Hamas-ruled Gaza, so their condition could be stabilised ahead of transfer to Egypt. The head of the World Health Organization (WHO), TedrosAdhanom Ghebreyesus, said 12 had been flown on to Cairo.

All of the evacuated babies were “fighting serious infections”, a WHO spokesperson said.

Eight infants have died since doctors at Shifa originally raised an international alarm this month about 39 premature babies at risk from a lack of infection control, clean water and medicines in the neo-natal ward.

12 DEAD IN HOSPITAL RINGED BY ISRAELI TANKS

At the Indonesian Hospital, funded by Jakarta, Gaza’s health ministry said at least 12 Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded by firing into the complex encircled by Israeli tanks.

Health officials said 700 patients along with staff were under Israeli fire.

The Palestinian news agency WAFA said the facility in the northeast Gaza town of Beit Lahia had been hit by artillery rounds. Hospital staff denied there were any armed on the premises.

WHO chief Tedros said he was “appalled” by the attack that he too said had killed 12 people, including patients, citing unspecified reports.

The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) said troops had fired back at fighters in the hospital while taking “numerous measures to minimise harm” to non-combatants.

“Overnight, terrorists opened fire from within the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza toward IDF troops operating outside the hospital,” the IDF told Reuters. “In response, IDF troops directly targeted the specific source of enemy fire. No shells were fired toward the hospital.”

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, speaking to reporters during a trip to Ukraine, reaffirmed the position of the United States, Israel’s strongest ally, on the need to get humanitarian aid to Gaza civilians.

“We have said every step of the way that our expectation is Israelis conduct their operations in accordance with the law of armed conflict,” Austin said. “...they must do everything, or should do everything, that they can to get humanitarian assistance in to the people in Gaza.”

The UN said that 69,000 litres of fuel entered Gaza from Egypt on Sunday after Israel confirmed it would start allowing the daily delivery of about 70,000 litres, “which is well below the minimum requirements for essential humanitarian operations”.

Like all other health facilities in the northern half of Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital has largely ceased operations but is still sheltering patients, staff and displaced residents.

Israel has ordered the evacuation of the north, but thousands of civilians remain. Food, fuel, medicines and water have been running out across the enclave under Israel’s six-week-old siege.

Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said its clinic in Gaza City also came under fire on Monday.

In the south, where hundreds of thousands of Gazans who fled the north of the enclave are sheltering, at least 14 Palestinians were killed in two Israeli strikes on houses in Rafah, according to Gaza health authorities.

At least five people were killed and 10 wounded when an Israeli air strike hit an apartment unit in Khan Younis, at the southern end of the strip, according to medical sources at Gaza’s Nasser Hospital. There was no immediate Israeli comment.

HEAVY FIGHTING AROUND MAJOR REFUGEE CAMP

Witnesses also reported bouts of heavy fighting between Hamas gunmen and Israeli forces trying to advance into north Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp, home to 100,000 people and, according to Israel, a significant stronghold.

Repeated Israeli bombardment of Jabalia, an urban extension of Gaza City that grew out of a camp for Palestinian refugees from the 1948 Israeli-Arab war, has killed scores of civilians, Palestinian medics say.

The Israeli military issued a statement with video of air strikes and troops going house-to-house in Gaza, saying they killed three Hamas company commanders and a squad of Palestinian fighters, without giving specific locations. Hamas meanwhile said on its Telegram account that it had launched a barrage of missiles towards Tel Aviv. Witnesses also reported rockets being fired at central Israel. Despite continued fighting, US and Israeli officials said a Qatari-mediated deal was edging closer to free some hostages.

US President Joe Biden said they believed a deal was near.

“We’re closer now than we’ve been before,” White House spokesman John Kirby said of a hostage agreement.

About 240 hostages were taken during a deadly cross-border rampage into Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7, which prompted Israel to invade the Palestinian territory to target Hamas. About 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in the Hamas assault, according to Israeli tallies, the deadliest day in Israel’s 75-year-old history.

Since then, Gaza’s Hamas-run government said at least 13,300 Palestinians have been killed, including at least 5,600 children and 3,550 women, by unrelenting Israeli bombardment. The United Nations says two thirds of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been made homeless.

Source: brecorder.com

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Sharia and Islamic Studies College hosts lecture on Quran

November 20, 202

KUWAIT: The Office of the Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs, Research and Graduate Studies at the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies at Kuwait University, in collaboration with the Master’s Program in Quranic Sciences, organized a lecture as part of the “Hathiq” program series.

The lecture, titled “The Language of the Noble Quran between Brevity and Redundancy”, was delivered by visiting guest Dr Abdel Fattah Muhammad Khader, the Dean of the Faculty of the Noble Quran at Al-Azhar University. The event took place on Tuesday at the Faculty of Sharia at the Kaifan campus.

Dr Saud Al-Ajmi extended a warm welcome to the guest and the attendees, including college students. Dr Khader addressed the audience, exploring the concepts of brevity and redundancy in the Holy Quran and delving into the perspectives of scholars on these linguistic aspects. He also discussed the rhetorical purposes associated with each of these linguistic forms.

Concluding his speech, Dr Khader emphasized the miraculous nature of brevity and redundancy in the Holy Quran. He wrapped up the lecture by providing practical examples and applications from the Holy Quran to illustrate the themes discussed.

In his closing remarks, Dr Ajmi expressed gratitude to the visiting guest for dedicating time to the students of the College of Sharia and Islamic Studies at Kuwait University and for delivering this insightful lecture.

Source: kuwaittimes.com

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Jordan’s king, top EU official discuss Israeli onslaught on Gaza

Ahmed Asmar

21.11.2023

Jordan’s King Abdullah II and European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell held discussions Monday on Israel’s onslaught against Gaza.

King Abdullah met with Borrell in the capital Amman, according to a statement by the Jordanian Royal Court

It said the Jordanian monarch highlighted "the need to work intensively to stop the war on Gaza (and to) end the (Israeli) siege" imposed on the Palestinian enclave.

He also stressed the necessity "to ensure the delivery of food, medicine, water and fuel" for Palestinians in Gaza.

King Abdullah reiterated that the only way to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is the two-state solution.

The statement cited Borrell as stressing Jordan's important role towards creating a political horizon for the Palestinian issue on the basis of the two-state solution.

Borrell's visit to Amman is the fifth and last stop in his Middle East tour, which included visits to Israel, Palestine, Bahrain and Qatar.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7.

Authorities in Gaza said Monday that the death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 has jumped to over 13,300.

In a statement, the Gaza-based government’s media office said the death toll includes 5,600 children and 3,550 women.

It added that it also includes 201 medical staff, 22 members of civil defense rescue teams and 60 journalists.

Thousands of buildings, including hospitals, mosques and churches, have also been damaged or destroyed in Israel’s relentless air and ground attacks on the besieged enclave.

The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is around 1,200, according to official figures.

Source: aa.com.tr

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Jordan’s crown prince oversees delivery of second field hospital to Gaza

November 20, 2023

LONDON: Jordan’s Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah arrived in Egypt to personally supervise the delivery of a second field hospital to war-torn Gaza, Roya News reported on Monday.

The facility will be built in Khan Yunis in the southwest of the Gaza Strip, where thousands of civilians were forcibly displaced as a result of Israel’s bombing campaign, the report said.

"The least we can do is to help our brothers in Gaza and Palestine," the crown prince said.

The Jordanian Royal Medical Services has doubled its medical aid and capacity in Gaza and the new hospital is expected to be staffed by 180 doctors and nurses.

To date, Israel’s bombing has rendered 25 of Gaza’s 35 hospitals inoperable.

On Wednesday, seven workers at Jordan’s first field hospital in Al-Hawa, central Gaza, were injured while treating Palestinians hurt in the bombing of a nearby mosque.

Jordan has sent six planes carrying medical and relief aid to the Gaza Strip via El-Arish International Airport in Egypt.

A separate Jordanian field hospital was set up on Friday in Nablus in the West Bank, where more than 210 Palestinians have been killed and 2,800 injured by Israeli forces.

That facility has two operating rooms, two intensive care rooms, a laboratory, pharmacy, radiology department and a dental clinic, Roya News reported.

Source: arabnews.com

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Red Cross president meets with Hamas chief on Gaza war humanitarian issues

November 21, 2023

GENEVA: The Red Cross said Monday that its president had traveled to Qatar to meet with Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh “to advance humanitarian issues related to the armed conflict in Israel and Gaza.”

“President Mirjana Spoljaric met with (Ismail) Haniyeh, Chair of Hamas’ Political Bureau, and separately with authorities of the state of Qatar,” the International Committee of the Red Cross said in a statement.

The announcement came as negotiators worked to seal a deal for the release of some of the 240 hostages the Islamist militants took during their unprecedented October 7 attacks on Israel.

Israeli authorities say the attack left around 1,200 people dead, mainly civilians.

Israel’s withering air and ground campaign have meanwhile killed more than 13,300 people in Gaza, also mainly civilians and including thousands of children, according to Hamas authorities.

The ICRC stressed that Spoljaric’s visit was part of efforts to hold “direct discussions with all sides to improve respect for international humanitarian law.”

It pointed out that she has also met “multiple times in recent weeks with families of hostages held in Gaza, as well as senior Israeli and Palestinian leaders.”

The Geneva-based organization stressed that it was continuing “to appeal for the urgent protection of all victims in the conflict, and for the alleviation of the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza strip.”

“ICRC staff in Gaza have been delivering life-saving assistance, and an ICRC surgical team continues to perform operations,” it said, adding that it was “calling for sustained, safe humanitarian access so it can increase its work.”

The organization stressed that it had “persistently called for the immediate release of hostages.”

“The ICRC is insisting that our teams be allowed to visit the hostages to check on their welfare and deliver medications, and for the hostages to be able to communicate with their families,” it said.

“Agreements must be reached that allow the ICRC to safely carry out this work. The ICRC cannot force its way in to where hostages are held, nor do we know their location,” it added.

The ICRC, which has already helped facilitate the release of four hostages on two separate occasions, emphasised that it “does not take part in negotiations leading to the release of hostages.”

But it added that “as a neutral humanitarian intermediary, we remain ready to facilitate any future release that the parties to the conflict agree to.”

Source: arabnews.com

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Families of Israeli child hostages make plea on World Children’s Day

November 20, 2023

TEL AVIV: The families of Israeli children held hostage by Hamas in Gaza pleaded Monday for international voices to demand their release at a protest outside the UN children’s fund in Tel Aviv.

Several hundred demonstrators joined the protest on World Children’s Day, more than six weeks after Hamas militants attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 240 others hostage.

At least 35 of the hostages are children, with 18 of them aged 10 and under, according to an AFP count. That figure includes a baby which the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said was born in captivity.

Demonstrators held Israeli flags, portraits of the children and stuffed toys, with a projector casting enormous pictures of their names, faces and ages onto the side of the building housing the offices of UNICEF, the UN children’s agency, as participants chanted: “UN do your job!“

“How can it be that in the face of this horror, my 12-year-old boy Erez and Sa’ar, 16, and many other children are hostages — brutally taken hostage — and the world is silent?” said HadasKalderon whose two children have been held in Gaza by Palestinian militants since October 7.

“Large institutions like UNICEF are silent. Have you forgotten your role?” she said.

“Where are the rights of my children?“

The rally took place shortly before the families were to meet with Israel’s war cabinet as rumors circulated that a possible hostage deal was in the offing.

Across Tel Aviv, like in many cities in Israel, the streets are plastered with banners, posters and stickers calling for the hostages’ safe return.

Air raid sirens warning of incoming Hamas rockets suddenly interrupted the demonstration, with some people running for shelter as others flung themselves onto the ground.

Yoni Asher, whose two daughters, four-year-old Raz and Aviv, 2, are among the hostages, called on UNICEF to make a public stand about Israeli children “like you refer specifically to babies on the other side.”

“We are all hurt for each and every baby, for each and every child. We don’t want any children to get harmed. If we can say it, can’t you?,” he said.

Since October 7, Israel has pounded Gaza relentlessly from the air, land and sea with officials in the Hamas-run territory saying at least 13,300 people have been killed, among them more than 5,600 children.

Source: arabnews.com

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Southeast Asia

 

PM: Thai marriage equality bill will go to parliament in December

21 Nov 2023

BANGKOK, Nov 21 — Thailand’s Prime Minister SretthaThavisin said today that cabinet has approved a draft law on marriage equality and that it would be brought to parliament during a session starting in December.

Thailand has one of Asia’s most open and visible lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities, but many political activists say Thai laws and traditional institutions have yet to reflect changing social attitudes and still discriminate against LGBT people and same-sex couples.

If the draft law is approved by parliament and receives royal assent, Thailand would become the third place in Asia after Taiwan and Nepal to recognise same-sex marriage.

Parliament last year debated four laws including civil unions for same-sex couples and marriage equality, but did not come to a final vote before the session ended.

Srettha has also previously said he wants Thailand’s capital Bangkok to host World Pride events in 2028. — Reuters

Source: malaymail.com

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Nearly 1,000 Rohingya refugees arrive by boat in Indonesia's Aceh region in one week

Nov 21, 2023

LHOKSEUMAWE: Almost 1,000 Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar have arrived by boat in Indonesia's northernmost province of Aceh in the last six days, officials said on Monday. They included five groups with women and children who were afloat for days. One batch of more than 240 people was twice denied landing by residents in Aceh Utara district, sparking concerns from human rights organisations. The group finally disembarked in Bireuen district on Sunday morning.

"We thank the authorities and local communities who have received and granted landing permits for them and in the future we hope that this spirit of solidarity and humanity will continue to be extended to refugees who need assistance and protection," the the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement.

The refugees arriving in Aceh had endured a difficult sea journey. Most of them left refugee camps in Bangladesh, where more than 700,000 had fled following a crackdown by Myanmar's army in August 2017.

Myanmar security forces have been accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of Rohingya homes.

Most of the refugees have attempted to reach Malaysia, but many have ended up in Indonesia along the way.

"The thwarted landing of hundreds of Rohingya refugees is a big step back for Indonesia, where communities have previously shown generosity and humanity towards those seeking safety after perilous boat journeys," said Usman Hamid, executive director for Amnesty International Indonesia.

Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, and does not have the obligation or capacity to accommodate refugees.

"Accommodation has been provided solely for humanitarian reasons. Ironically, many countries party to the convention actually closed their doors and even implemented a pushback policy toward the refugees," Lalu Muhamad Iqbal, the ministry's spokesperson, said in a statement.

He said that Indonesia's kindness in providing a temporary shelter has been widely exploited by people-smugglers who seek financial gain without caring about the risks faced by refugees, especially vulnerable groups such as women and children.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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Asked why not ban Coldplay concert in KL, PM Anwar says band supports Palestinian cause

By Syed JaymalZahiid

 21 Nov 2023

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 21 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today rejected a suggestion to ban or call off the planned Coldplay concert in the Malaysian capital this week, saying the British outfit is among dozens of rock bands that support the Palestinian cause.

Anwar was responding to Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal from Bersatu who asked about a call by Muslim conservatives to ban the concert on grounds that it is “inappropriate”.

“Coldplay is actually among the bands that support Palestine,” Anwar said during the Prime Minister’s Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat.

"So there is a problem here. I'd like to explain here that even past administrations have greenlit [concerts] before."

Perikatan Nasional (PN), the federal Opposition bloc, and especially its Islamist component PAS, have been pushing for Coldplay’s much-anticipated concert in Kuala Lumpur to be called off.

PN politicians have been linking the upcoming music concert to current affairs in the Middle East in an attempt to portray the Anwar administration as caring less about the plight of Palestinians.

Over 11,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli bombardment of Gaza since October 7, with over half of them children and women. Israel has also blocked humanitarian aid and crucial supplies like fuel and clean water from reaching Palestinians trapped

PAS leaders in justifying the call to cancel the Coldplay concert said holding a music event while Israeli forces bombard Gaza would distract the public from Palestinian suffering, even as the party had wanted the concert called off months before the latest flare-up between Hamas fighters and Israel — back in May.

Federal Territories Mufti Datuk Luqman Abdullah was among those who supported the call, saying Muslims should not support the concert.

The demand to call off the concert has been met with strong pushback, including from a large number of moderate Muslims.

Anwar said he would discuss the matter with Luqman but did not explain if he would allow the concern to go on. He said there were "other issues" that the government could not "agree with".

"I will discuss with the mufti because there are lobby groups from the Palestinian movement that have approached the foreign minister and my office to ask why we are blocking a music band that supports Palestine from performing," he told the Dewan Rakyat.

"But because this has been raised and there are other issues that we do not agree with, I will discuss it again," the Tambun MP added.

Source: malaymail.com

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Conference of Rulers-approved Special committee to boost Syariah courts, says Anwar

21 Nov 2023

By TEH ATHIRA YUSOF, RAHIMY RAHIM and GERARD GIMINO

KUALA LUMPUR: A special committee consented to by the Conference of Rulers will be set up to empower and elevate the country’s Syariah Courts, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Anwar told the Dewan Rakyat that the special committee would be established under the National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs and is responsible for reviewing the authority of the Syariah courts so it can enhance the jurisdiction of the courts.

"The special committee is responsible for examining and fine-tuning issues related to the competence of the state legislative assembly regarding the enactment of Islamic law and the jurisdiction of the Syariah Court,” said Anwar.

“The committee will take this into consideration in their study so any decisions would not offend or coerce the non-Muslims,” he added during the Prime Minister’s Question Time on Tuesday (Nov 21).

Anwar was replying to a question from Mohd Azizi bin Abu Naim (PN-GuaMusang) on the Federal Government's stance on the notice of petition filed by Nik Elin Zurina Nik Abdul Rashid and her daughter.

The legal action by the two is seen as an attempt to challenge the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code (I) Enactment 2019.

Mohd Azizi had also asked Anwar to state the efforts by the government to safeguard Syariah-related laws.

Following the legal matter, Anwar said the government would respect the decision by the Federal Court and Chief Justice Tun TengkuMaimun Tuan Mat as it is an ongoing case.

However, he is of the view that the case does not deter the special committee’s review and discussion with experts.

“The Federal Court can rule on the matter based on their decision whether it falls under Federal or state jurisdiction.

“Aside from the ruling, it does not hinder the government with the consent of the Malay Rulers to conduct a review and discuss with muftis, ulama and all relevant parties that can provide their views so that the legislation that can be implemented will work to empower the Syariah Courts,” he said.

When Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan (PN-Kota Bharu) asked about the details of the special committee, Anwar said the council members had been approved by the Conference of Rulers two weeks ago.

"This is one of the efforts carried out in line with the order of His Majesty the Sultan of Selangor during the MKI meeting on August 28,” he said.

Source: thestar.com.my

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Anwar to discuss Coldplay concert with FT mufti after latter advises cancellation

 21 Nov 2023

PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he will hold talks with the Federal Territories mufti regarding the need to let the Coldplay concert go on as planned tomorrow (November 22) at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil here.

He said that this is in view of the fact that there are lobbyists from the movement supporting Palestinians who support the concert and, at the same time, there are other parties who suggest that the concert be called off.

"Coldplay is among the bands that support Palestine, so there is a small problem I have to say, even the previous government had approved it also. I will discuss this with the mufti regarding the situation.

"Because there are lobbyists from the Palestinian movement who support (the concert) and have given their views to the foreign minister and my office (asking) why should we stop a group that supports the Palestinian cause from performing,” he said during Prime Minister's Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He said this when replying to a supplementary question from Wan Ahmad Fayshal Wan Ahmad Kamal (Machang-PN) regarding the government's stance on the concert, given that Federal Territories Mufti Datuk Luqman Abdullah had advised the concert be called off as it would not benefit society.

Previously, several other parties had also called for the concert to be called off to respect the current situation in Gaza, Palestine, besides raising concerns that a similar incident to that involving the pop rock group known as The 1975 in July may recur.

The British band Coldplay is scheduled to perform at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil tomorrow as part of its Music of the Spheres World Tour. – Bernama, November 21, 2023

Source: thevibes.com

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Indonesia strongly condemns Israeli attacks that killed 12 in its hospital in Gaza

 21 Nov 2023

Linda YulismanJAKARTA – Indonesian Foreign Minister RetnoMarsudi has “strongly condemned” Israeli tank attacks on the Indonesian Hospital in Gaza on Nov 20, in which 12 civilians were killed.

“The attack is an obvious breach of international humanitarian law,” MsRetno said from Beijing. “All countries, especially those with close ties with Israel, must use all their influence and capabilities to urge Israel to end its atrocities.”

She said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had lost contact with three Indonesian volunteers working at the Indonesian hospital after the attack.

The ministry is liaising with related parties, including the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East and the World Health Organisation, to monitor the situation in the health facility and ensure the safety of the volunteers.

MsRetno and other Muslim and Arab foreign ministers have made China their first stop on a tour to permanent members of the UN Security Council, pushing for an end to the war in Gaza.

Eleven patients and a relative of a patient were killed in the attack on the Indonesian Hospital, Palestinian Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qudra said.

Around 700 people, including medical workers and injured people, were inside the hospital, he told Al Jazeera, adding that the situation was “catastrophic”.

The hospital staff insisted on staying to take care of the injured, he said.

Palestine’s Wafa news agency reported that Israeli soldiers shot at everything that moved near the hospital’s entrance.

Israel has alleged that the Indonesian Hospital is used to disguise Hamas’ underground command and control centre.

This has been denied by Palestinian officials, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, and the Indonesian humanitarian organisation, Medical Emergency Rescue Committee (MER-C), that funds the hospital.

Located in Jabalia in northern Gaza, the Indonesian Hospital was built in 2011 using donations raised by MER-C from the public, including from organisations like the Indonesian Red Cross and major Muslim group Muhammadiyah. With 100 beds and four operating theatres, the hospital began operations in 2016.

The hospital and more than 20 others have been largely affected by an Israeli blockade on fuel, electricity and water entering Gaza, and minimum aid deliveries.

On Nov 16, the Indonesian Hospital stopped its service as it was understaffed and ran out of fuel and supplies amid an influx of patients. 

That same day, Israeli soldiers entered Al-Shifa Hospital, the biggest health facility in Gaza, in a ground operation. The Israeli military claimed that Hamas’ headquarters was situated in tunnels beneath the hospital, which the militant group denied.

MsRetno, along with her counterparts from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Palestine, and officials from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Nov 20.

They called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the entry of humanitarian aid into the war-torn territory.

China is assuming the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council for November.

Apart from China, the delegation of Arab and Muslim ministers is also set to ask Russia to support the end of Israel hostilities.

More than 13,000 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, have been killed in Israeli strikes since Oct 7, when Hamas militants invaded Israel and killed around 1,200 and took about 240 people hostage.

Source: straitstimes.com

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Parliament to discuss outcome of Extraordinary Islamic Summit today

21 Nov 2023

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 21 — The outcome of the Extraordinary Islamic Summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Saudi Arabia regarding the Palestinian-Israeli crisis will be the focus at the Parliament sitting today

According to the Order Paper on the Parliament website, the matter will be raised by Aminolhuda Hassan (PH-Sri Gading) in a question to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim during the Minister’s Question Time.

He also wants the benefits derived by the country at the 30th Economic Leaders’ Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) attended by the prime minister in the United States recently

There will also be a question by Mohd Azizi Abu Naim (PN-GuaMusang) to the prime minister regarding the federal government’s stance on the Notice of Petition filed by Nik Elin Zurina and her daughter which is seen as an attempt to challenge the Kelantan Syariah Criminal Code (I) Enactment 2019.

Meanwhile, during the question and answer session, Syerleena Abdul Rashid (PH-Bukit Bendera) will ask the prime minister to state the total number of investigation papers that have been opened and cases that have been charged in court for child grooming offences.

Another question is by Nordin Ahmad Ismail (PN-Lumut) to the Minister of Defence regarding the latest status of the implementation of the long-delayed National Defence and Security Industry Policy (DIPKN).

After the question and answer session, the Dewan Rakyat will continue to debate the Supply Bill 2024 at the relevant ministry committee level.

This Dewan Rakyat sitting is for 32 days from last October 9 to November 30. — Bernama

Source: malaymail.com

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Kemaman by-election: Ahmad Maslan says Umno also fights for Islam, not just PAS

21 Nov 2023

KEMAMAN, Nov 21 — Umno is also a party that fights for Islam as enshrined in its constitution and not just PAS.

Umno supreme council (MT) member Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan said under the leadership of Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as party president, the party’s constitution had been streamlined and improved by including elements of Islamic struggle.

“Believe me when they say they are an Islamic party... I want to say here... Clause 3 of Umno’s Constitution, says that Umno is a political party that fights to support the ideals of the Islamic religion, Malay nationality, Bumiputera, Orang Asli and Sabah Pribumi. That is Umno’s struggle now.

“If Umno used to be a political party for the Malay nationality, that was the earlier constitution,” he said when speaking to residents of FeldaCherol, here, in conjunction with the Kemaman by-election campaign.

In the Kemaman by-election, Barisan Nasional (BN) is fielding former Defence Forces chief Gen (R) Tan Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi Raja Mohamed Noor who will face a one-on-one contest with Terengganu Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar who represents PAS.

The Election Commission (EC) has set November 28 for early voting, while December 2 is the polling day for the Kemaman by-election which needs to be held following the decision of the Terengganu Election Court on September 26 to nullify the victory of PAS candidate Che Alias Hamid in GE15. — Bernama

Source: malaymail.com

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North America

 

US aid to Israel debated as Biden’s support base crashes

November 21, 2023

Anwar Iqbal

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden is facing a significant decline in approval ratings, hitting the lowest point of his presidency at 40 per cent. The latest national NBC News poll reveals widespread disapproval of his handling of the crisis in Gaza, particularly among Democrats and young voters.

Senator Bernie Sanders and others in Congress are now advocating for conditioning US aid to Israel based on a shift in the “military and political positions” of the Israeli government, a stance that was previously unthinkable.

Sanders expressed his concerns, stating, “While Israel has the right to go after Hamas, Netanyahu’s right-wing extremist government does not have the right to wage almost total warfare against the Palestinian people.”

The decline in Biden’s support is most notable among Democrats, with a majority believing that Israel has gone too far in its military actions in Gaza. Among voters aged 18 to 34, a striking 70 per cent disapprove of Biden’s handling of the crisis.

The NBC News poll conducted from Nov 10-14, over a month after the Oct 7 raid and the subsequent Gaza crisis, highlights the public’s sentiments. While 47pc of all voters, including Republicans, believe Israel is defending its interests, 30pc think Israel’s military actions have gone too far and are not justified.

Among Democratic voters, 51pc believe Israel has gone too far, contrasting with 27pc who view Israel’s military actions as justified. Senator Sanders, in response to the ongoing crisis, not only condemned the bloodshed but also proposed measures to facilitate a “significant pause in military operations.”

These measures include ending indiscriminate bombing, allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza, opposing long-term Israeli re-occupation or blockade of Gaza, and addressing settler violence and expansion in the West Bank. Sanders also reiterated his commitment to broad peace talks for a two-state solution.

There is growing opposition to Israel’s aggression, and the Biden administration’s perceived inability to halt the violence is impacting liberal and left-leaning politicians in the United States. This sentiment has led to calls for specific actions, including potential conditions on future military aid to Israel.

President Biden himself has expressed concern about settler attacks on Palestinians, urging an end to such violence. Reports indicate that Democrats in the House and Senate are considering debates on imposing conditions on future military aid to Israel, including potential congressional action.

Discussions on restricting humanitarian aid to Gaza triggered debates on conditioning military aid to Israel. Senator Sanders hosted a lunch where conditions on military aid were raised, and subsequent statements from Sanders supported conditioning US aid to Israel, outlining specific conditions related to the present situation.

The media reports an ‘erosion’ in traditional Democratic support for Israel’s military actions, adding potential complications for President Biden’s stance. Talks between the US and Israel on establishing safe zones in southern Gaza and discussions between Israel and Hamas have also been part of these ongoing deliberations.

Source: dawn.com

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Chicago area Jewish, Muslim, and Christian leaders call for peace in Gaza

OVEMBER 20, 2023

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Leaders of the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faiths in the Chicago area came together Monday night to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Sheikh Hassan Aly, imam and director of religious affairs at the Mecca Center in Willowbrook; Rabbi Brant Rozen, founding rabbi of the synagogue Tzedek Chicago and co-founder of the Jewish Voice for Peace Rabbinical Council, and the Rev. Dr. Michael Woolf, senior minister at the Lake Street Church of Evanston, all pushed for peace in the war before Israel and Hamas.

They spoke at the Muslim Community center, 4380 N. Elston Ave. Their call on Monday came just before Thanksgiving.

"The war in Israel and Palestine is not only a humanitarian crisis – it is a moral, and it is a spiritual one," said Woolf.

"The grave of a child in Ukraine is no different from the grave of a child in Gaza, is no different from the grave of a child in Tel Aviv," said Aly.

"History will remember what we did and did not do in this moment," said Rozen.

The religious leaders are also asking for food and water to be senet into Gaza, and the immediate release of Hamas hostages.

Source: cbsnews.com

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https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/chicago-area-jewish-muslim-christian-leader-peace-gaza/

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CAIR Condemns Neo-Nazi March in Wisconsin, Racist Threat in New York

Ismail Allison

November 20, 2023

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 11/20/2023) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned a march by neo-Nazis in Wisconsin and an alleged racist threat targeting a Black woman in New York.

A group of neo-Nazis waving swastika flags and shouting antisemitic rhetoric marched in Madison, Wisconsin, on Saturday.

In New York, a suspect was accused of threatening and spitting on a Black woman, allegedly while shouting racial slurs and stating he would “get a noose and hang her” and calling her the “N-word.”

“We are unfortunately in a time of rising bigotry nationwide, which creates a duty for all Americans to repudiate hatred and division,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. “Every incident prompted by hate must be condemned if we are to move forward as a society based on justice and mutual understanding.”

He said CAIR and the American Muslim community stand in solidarity with all those challenging antisemitism, systemic anti-Black racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, white supremacy, and all other forms of bigotry.      

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.             

La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertadesciviles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanesen los Estados Unidos.  

Source: cair.com

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Former Pegasus employee sentenced in jail over photo with rakı on Islamic holy night applies for asylum in US

November 21 2023

A former employee of the airline company Pegagus has announced that he soght asylum in the U.S. after entering the country “illegally,” after being sentenced to 3 months and 22 days in jail over a social media post showing himself and colleagues drinking alcohol on the 27th night of Ramadan, which is called “Kadir Gecesi” (known as Lailat al Kadr or the Night of Power), last year.

In a YouTube interview, Onur T. said he was not paid any compensation after the company fired him for “theft.”

“I filed a countersuit, it continues. We couldn't even fix the reason for my dismissal yet,” he said.

“I couldn't work for a year. I thought maybe they would suspend me. In an evening, they called me from HR and said 'come here and resign'. I said, 'I can't come, I can’t go out in the streets.' They said, 'If we fire you, we will do it from ‘disgraceful crime.' They fired me over phone,” he added.

The case concerned a photo shared by Onur T. on Instagram with the note of: “Exclusive to Kadir Gecesi, may God accept.” The photo showed Onur T. drinking rakı, the staple Turkish alcoholic beverage, with colleagues. 

After the post drew the reaction of Islamists, Pegasus fired Onur T. and issued a statement saying that it had “no connection” to the relevant social media post.

Also, prosecutors launched an investigation into the former Pegasus employee over charges of “explicitly insulting the values of religious values embraced by a fraction of society,” demanding up to 1.5 years in prison.

Source: duvarenglish.com

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Europe

 

Hostile environment for British Muslims peaks manifold amidst Israel’s Gaza carnage

November 20, 2023

BALA CHAMBERS

Since Hamas' incursion into Israel on October 7, 13,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis have been killed while Israel continues its onslaught in the besieged Gaza against Palestinians.

The conflict however is causing a ripple effect far and wide. In the UK, authorities are noticing an uptick in hate crimes “across the strands, particularly with the backdrop at the moment in the Middle East”.

According to Zara Mohammed, Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) an umbrella organisation working locally, nationally and globally, the situation in the Middle East is impacting Muslims in the UK.

“This year, we observe Islamophobia Awareness Month against the backdrop of the ongoing attack on Gaza, Palestine and an exceptionally hostile political environment for British Muslim communities,” Mohammed tells TRT World.

In October, London’s Mayor, Sadiq Khan held a roundtable meeting with leaders from the UK’s Jewish and Muslim communities. “The conflict is having a direct impact on London and Londoners, with increasing cases of abhorrent Islamophobia and antisemitism seen in the capital," he said.

According to Mohammed, “over the course of the now month-long attack on the Gaza Strip, we have seen a surge of hate crime at home, with a 140 percent increase in Islamophobic offences in London alone.”

Local media have reported on a range of anti-Muslim cases in the UK.

One of the most prominent cases in the north of the UK involved local police launching a hate crime investigation following a pig’s head being left at the site of a proposed mosque in the county of Lancashire. As a precaution, authorities stepped up police patrols. A local described it as “a clear intent to commit harassment and intimidation."

A spokesperson for Lancashire Council of Mosques (LCM) tells TRT World that “the council has already dealt with cases where places of worship have been vandalised, and they are actively assisting individuals who face hate due to their Muslim identity in reporting such incidents to the hate crime helpline."

The LCM also expresses "concern" about the increase in Islamophobia and hate crimes since October 7, acknowledging incidents are taking place beyond Lancashire and across the UK.

The observations are echoed by the Muslim Council of Britain who have the knowledge of detailed widespread cases.

“We have also seen Islamophobic attacks across the UK, including: the attempted arson on an Oxford Mosque in which the perpetrator threw a petrol can at the Mosque that had ‘IDF’ scrawled over it, a man attacking a Muslim woman with a concrete slab in broad daylight and alcohol being poured over Muslim worshippers praying at a protest,” says Mohammed.

Reportedly a man was also held over an alleged 10 cases of Islamophobic graffiti on bus stops in part of London.

Tell Mama, a UK charity recording anti-Muslim incidents, says students and staff at schools have expressed concern about wearing Muslim clothing or displaying pro-Palestine solidarity.

Another case allegedly involved someone placing a firework through a Muslim family's letter box, according to Tell Mama. The incident is believed to have taken place due to a Palestinian flag outside their home. The non-profit says the situation could have been "far worse," if a family member had not taken decisive action. The organisation said the person seized the firework, removed it from the letterbox. They later required hospitalisation due to burns on their hands.

Tell Mama also says it has seen a seven-fold increase in anti-Muslim cases in one month compared to the previous year.

Since October 7, the organisation has noted a total 701 anti-Muslim cases as far back as November 7.

Their figures include 326 cases offline, with the majority of cases, 209 taking place in London. The incidents include 212 cases of abusive behaviour, 28 of threatening behaviour, 29 of assaults, 24 of vandalism, 16 of discrimination, 17 of hate speech and 5 of anti-Muslim literature.

The organisation also documented 375 online cases across the same timeframe.

On social media, they describe a trend of dehumanising, racialised, and violent language against the Muslim community. The most “extreme” examples, they say, include calls for “genocide” among other dehumanising comparisons and “anti-refugee and anti-migrant narratives.” Such incidents could “inspire or motivate” individuals to enact harm against Muslims or other vulnerable communities in the UK, they say.

According to Abdullah Faliq, Managing Director of the Cordoba Foundation, a research and advisory group seeking to bridge the gap of understanding between the Muslim World and the West, anti-Muslim sentiment has steadily been on the increase.

"The menace of Islamophobia in the UK has been on the rise for some time, it peaks manifold during times of national and global developments such as the carnage inflicted on the Palestinians by the Israeli occupation forces. British Muslims are numbed by the UK government's support of Israeli actions in Gaza which breach international laws and conventions," Faliq tells TRT World.

Critics have pointed the finger at the former Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, sacked on 13 November by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for fueling tensions in the UK.

"Over the past five weeks, highly incendiary commentary from the now former Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, has served to malign people marching for peace in their millions, induce violent hard-right protests, divide communities and undermine the operational independence of the police,” says Mohammed.

In such time, Faliq says various far-right elements merged to target pro-Palestine activists, Muslims and non-Muslims including groups such as the English Defence League, the Henry Jackson Society. He says they have sought “to provoke tensions" against the diverse pro-Palestine movement that includes Jews, Christians, atheists and agnostics, among others.

Faliq describes the impact of this trend as “real” and “deep,” noting the organisation is pushing to challenge this and offer support where possible.

"Large sections of the mainstream media, politicians, and certain lobbies are openly being Islamophobic. They have been calling for a ban of the pro-Palestine marches as "hate marches'', they are trying to tar pro-Palestine activism as Antisemitic; they are pressurising Muslim organisations and mosques to self-censor so they don't talk about Palestine; and there has been a surge in Islamophobic attacks on religious places, individuals and so on,” he says.

Faliq says he is further shocked by the “blind” support of the Labour Party towards Israel and for it “not calling for a ceasefire”.

“Understanbly Muslim politicians are navigating a very difficult time, those with morals and principles are defying party positions to call for (a) ceasefire. Sadly this is not the case for all Muslim MPs," he says.

More broadly across the UK, Mohammed says Muslims remain consistently vulnerable to religiously motivated hate crime offences. The year ending March 2021 she says 45 percent of all recorded religious hate crimes in England and Wales targeted Muslims - a trend that follows a similar pattern 2 years ago.

The LCM underscores the importance for the Muslim community to report any racist incidents and "strongly condemns any form of hate directed towards Muslims or anyone else."

Mohammed says the MCB is ready to support Mosque communities potentially facing challenging security situations, encouraging anyone subject to anti-Muslim hate crimes to report them to the police.

She says, "now more than ever, it is imperative that British Muslims remain vigilant.”

Source: trtworld.com

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https://www.trtworld.com/magazine/hostile-environment-for-british-muslims-peaks-manifold-amidst-israels-gaza-carnage-15905159

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Autumn Statement cuts and benefits: London's Central Mosque of Brent issues cost-of-living warning

 21st Nov 2023

Lynn Rusk

A leading surgeon who helped tackle Covid-19 during the pandemic has launched a community cafe in one of London’s poorest boroughs, serving free meals to struggling families amidst the cost-of-living crisis.

Dr Raja Amjid Riaz, professor consultant who chairs the Central Mosque of Brent, already runs a bi-weekly surplus food market serving 600 families a week and now the cafe is set to help even more members of the community.

On Wesneday (November 22) Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will deliver his Autumn Statement, and it is expected to include changes to benefits and tax cuts.

“The cost-of-living crisis is making a major impact on the community,” said Dr Riaz. “Even those who are working are struggling to make ends meet.

“When we launched the surplus food market it was the majority of people coming from the congregation. As time passed we had more people from the wider community.”

Dr Riaz, who took over from his father as chairman of the mosque, said he expects the community cafe to have the same uptake as the surplus food market.

The WG Community Cafe, at the mosque in Willesden Green, launched in early November and is open from lunchtime every Friday, serving hot meals. In future it will provide support facilities.

According to recent data from Trust for London, around 36% of households in Brent are living in poverty, 9% above the London average, and 14% above the England average.

The west London borough also has the highest unemployment rate in the capital according to the report published last year.

Along with his work tackling food poverty in the area, Dr Riaz set up a vaccination clinic at the mosque during the pandemic.

The vaccine centre was initially rolled out in December 2020, administering over 13,000 doses including at risk and hesitant groups.

On Israel-Hamas conflict

Dr Riaz said that while there have been no tensions in the community amidst the conflict in the Middle East, the mosque remains vigilant.

“The mosque’s approach is that we are on the side of humanity. We are against violence whether it's from the Palestinian side or the excessive force from the Israeli side,” he said. “I listen to both sides from the community and have expressed concerns to local MPs and councillors. The major focus of the community is to get a ceasefire.

"I met up with the head of the synagogue in our community and we agreed more than we disagreed on.”

Dr Riaz and his team at the surplus food bank this year received the King's Award for Voluntary Service (KAVS).

Source: londonworld.com

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https://www.londonworld.com/news/free-meals-cafe-cost-of-living-crisis-4415958

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Law alumnus listed in top 50 influential Muslims in UK and Europe 2023

20 November 2023

The EqualityX list recognises and celebrates achievements of 50 Muslim professionals whose work highlights and uplifts Muslim communities across a variety of sectors. The list recognisesShaheen for making a profound positive difference to the representation of Muslims in the legal sector, and working to improve workplace culture.

Shaheen has worked tirelessly throughout his career to champion and celebrate diversity in the legal sector. Shaheen is an Equality Diversity and Inclusion committee member for the Law Society of England and Wales and works as one of their Social Mobility Ambassadors. Shaheen is also the Strategic Partnership lead at the Muslim Employment Charter which aims to help employers better accommodate the needs of Muslim professionals in the workplace.  

Since graduating from Westminster in 2014, Shaheen has worked in many capacities across the legal field. He now manages his own law firm, Black Antelope Law, which has been recognised for its outstanding performance in immigration. He has recently joined Diversify, a recruitment agency that specialises in connecting employers with underrepresented communities, as their Diversity, Equality and Inclusion lead and was appointed as a Non-Executive Director for the Coram’s Fields Trust Shaheen was also a finalist in the Outstanding Achievement category of this year’s Westminster Alumni Awards, recognising his exceptional contribution to the legal industry. 

Speaking about this award, Shaheen said: “Being recognized among the 50 most influential Muslims in the UK and Europe is an incredible honour. It's a testament to the collective efforts made in championing diversity within the legal sphere. I'm immensely grateful to the University of Westminster for laying the groundwork for my journey and fostering an environment that encourages commitment to inclusivity and positive change.”

Find out more about  Law courses at the University of Westminster.

Source: westminster.ac.uk

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https://www.westminster.ac.uk/news/law-alumnus-listed-in-top-50-influential-muslims-in-uk-and-europe-2023

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Putin to take part in emergency BRICS summit – Kremlin

20 Nov, 2023 Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, will join an emergency video conference with other BRICS leaders on Tuesday to discuss the ongoing escalation between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militant group, the Kremlin said in a statement on Monday. The presidential administration provided no further details about the upcoming event.

Earlier on Monday, the office of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said that he will chair an extraordinary joint meeting on the situation in Gaza. South Africa currently chairs the BRICS group, which also includes Russia, China, Brazil, and India. 

In addition to the regular BRICS members, the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates were invited to join the event as well.

All the participants will comment on the “current humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” the presidential office’s statement said, adding that the leaders are then expected to adopt a joint statement on the issue. The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres will join the meeting as well, according to the statement.

Israel has been conducting a major military operation in Gaza for more than a month by now. The move came in response to a surprise attack by Hamas, which killed some 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians. More than 200 people were also taken hostage by the militants.

West Jerusalem retaliated with a massive bombing campaign against Gaza followed by a ground operation. The death toll linked to the Israeli actions in the enclave has surpassed 11,000, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Russia has repeatedly called for a speedy ceasefire in Gaza. Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told RT that the only way to end Israeli-Palestinian violence is through the UN-backed framework of a two-state solution that requires a genuine effort by all parties to implement.

Source: rt.com

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https://www.rt.com/russia/587674-putin-brics-israel-palestine/

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Pakistan

 

More than 400,000 Afghans return home from Pakistan following crackdown on migrants

20th November 2023

ISLAMABAD: More than 400,000 Afghans returned to their home country following the ongoing crackdown on illegal foreigners in the country, Pakistani authorities said Monday.

Zabihullah Mujahid, chief spokesperson of the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan, confirmed the number and told The Associated Press that the majority have been using the border crossings of Torkham and Spin Boldak to return home.

An estimated 1.7 million Afghans had been living in Pakistan when authorities announced its nationwide crackdown, saying that anyone without proper documents had to leave the country by October 31 or else get arrested.

However, Pakistani officials said the other 1.4 million Afghans registered as refugees need not worry as only people without proper documentation were sought after.

In the 1980s, millions of Afghans fled to neighboring Pakistan during the Soviet occupation of their country.

The numbers witnessed a spike after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.

Pakistan also introduced plans under which hundreds of thousands of residents in the southwestern border town of Chaman would need visas to cross between the two countries.

They previously had special permits.

On Monday, hundreds briefly blocked a key road leading to the Chaman border, disrupting traffic and the repatriation of some of the Afghans.

Residents in Chaman have been protesting repeatedly, asking Pakistan to allow them to continue using the special permits for business purposes and to meet with relatives who live in the Afghan border city of Spin Boldak.

Since November 1, police in Pakistan have been going door-to-door to check migrants' documentation.

Pakistani officials had said before that the crackdown involves all foreigners in the country, but most of those affected are Afghan nationals.

The latest development comes days after the World Health Organization warned that about 1.3 million Afghans were expected to return to their country of origin from Pakistan despite the onset of cold weather.

Such expulsions have drawn widespread criticism from international and domestic human rights groups.

The Taliban-led administration in Afghanistan said it was providing shelter and food to returnees.

Source: newindianexpress.com

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https://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2023/nov/20/more-than-400000-afghans-return-home-from-pakistan-following-crackdown-on-migrants-2634624.html

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Civil society in Karachi forms Palestine Solidarity Committee, demands immediate ceasefire in Gaza

November 21, 2023

Shazia Hasan

KARACHI: Demanding immediate cessation of the barbaric Israeli attacks against the unarmed civilians of Palestine, members of the newly formed Palestine Solidarity Committee on Monday appealed to the people of the city to come out and stand with them in the city on Nov 29 to express their support for the people of Gaza.

Speaking at a press conference here at the Karachi Press Club, former city administrator Fahim Zaman invited the people to gather at the Tariq Road intersection of Shahrah-i-Quaideen at 3.30pm on Nov 29.

He said that the United Nations declared Nov 29 as an international day of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

“Since October 7, international agencies and United Nation organisations have been documenting evidence of war crimes and other violations of international humanitarian and human rights laws in the occupied Palestinian territories, including indiscriminate bombardments and other unlawful attacks by Israeli forces causing mass civilian casualties and destruction of infrastructure in Gaza and the West Bank.

“In the Gaza Strip alone, more than 12,000 people have been killed and tens of thousands critically injured by indiscriminate Israeli bombardments and fire so far. More than two-thirds of these victims are women and children. The double standard of Western powers exposing their hypocrisy is not only shameful but outright criminal,” he said.

“While the massive show of solidarity for the Palestinian people and continuous demonstrations against Israeli brutality by the people in the Western world is forcing their colluding governments to change their outright support for Israel and put it in a defensive mode, our leaders here, for their own ulterior motives and small gains, have mortgaged their country. Therefore, we don’t see them coming out to support Palestine like they really should.

“But our hearts bleed for Palestine. We have formed the Palestine Solidarity Committee for all those who feel like we do to come and join us to raise our voices for Palestine,” said Mr Zaman.

“Today people in Europe and America, too, are sensitive to the Palestinians’ suffering and coming out in big numbers in their defense,” pointed out Advocate Akhtar Hussain of the Awami Workers Party.

“We are not politicians. We will all come out for Palestine in our personal capacities on the day,” said civil activist Umar Farooq.

The committee members said that they are also joined in their cause by other well-known people of the city, including, Anam Khan, Faisal Edhi, Kazim Hasan, Faisal Siddique, Shahab Usto, Khalid Mehmood, Naeem Sadiq, SheemaKermani, Adeela Suleman, Amar Mehboob, Mohsin Sayeed, Tariq Fuad, Kishwar Zehra, Syed Shabbar Zaidi, Professor Saleem Memon, Noman Quadri, Syed Khawar Mehdi and Shakil Jafri.

They said they are also reaching out to politicians, trade unionists, factory workers, lawyers, students, communities, etc, in order to mobilise them for the cause.

Mr Zaman read out their charter of demands, including, immediate ceasefire in Gaza, immediate legal proceeding against the Zionist Israeli civil and military leadership and their comrades in arms in the International Criminal Court, paying of war reparations to Palestine countries supporting Israel’s military actions and United Nations and its member states committing to rehabilitation of the families of the people killed and injured due to Israel’s war crimes along with immediate removal of illegal Zionist settlements and further colonisation of Palestinian lands.

Source: dawn.com

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https://www.dawn.com/news/1791080/civil-society-in-karachi-forms-palestine-solidarity-committee-demands-immediate-ceasefire-in-gaza

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PM lauds role of Saudi Prince in building historic consensus among Arab, Islamic countries

November 21, 2023

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has appreciated the role of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman in building historic consensus among Arab and Islamic countries.

This was stated by the Prime Minister during a meeting with Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Pakistan Nawaf bin Saeed Ahmad Al Maliky who called on him in Islamabad.

The Prime Minister conveyed his deep appreciation for the Saudi leadership for hosting the OIC Extraordinary Summit earlier this month to discuss the situation in Gaza.

The Prime Minister reaffirmed Pakistan’s strong support to diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the violence in Gaza and stopping the brutality unleashed by Israel on innocent Palestinians.

Source: radio.gov.pk

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https://www.radio.gov.pk/20-11-2023/caretaker-pm-appreciates-role-of-saudi-crown-prince-in-building-historic-consensus-among-arab-islamic-countries

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Cipher case: IHC extends stay for one day against Imran’s jail trial

November 21, 2023

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday extended for one day, till November 21, the stay against jail trial of former prime minister Imran Khan in the cipher case.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman is currently detained in Adiala jail Rawalpindi on judicial remand. A two-member IHC bench comprising Justice Gul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice SamanRafat heard arguments. During Monday’s hearing, the court approved an extension in the stay order on the request of Imran Khan’s lawyer Salman Akram Raja.

Justice Aurangzeb asked why the special court judge had written a letter asking for the trial to be held in jail and what security concerns he was aware of. The IHC judge remarked that the notifications, issued by the federal government for jail trial, seemed to be prima facie against the high court rules. He also said that many questions needed to be answered about the trial and summoned the notification of the appointment of the special court judge.

The court also sought reports about the security threats on which basis the trial of the case was being conducted in jail. The first information report (FIR) was registered on August 15 under the Official Secrets Act. It was registered on the complaint of the home secretary. Former prime minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi were nominated in the report, while names of former principal secretary Azam Khan and former planning minister Asad Umar were also mentioned. The FIR stated that the former prime minister and foreign minister distorted facts of the diplomatic cipher. A conspiracy was launched to misuse the contents of the cipher to fulfil nefarious purposes, it added. It further stated that the former premier and top diplomat endangered the state interests.

Source: thenews.com.pk

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https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1131025-cipher-case-ihc-extends-stay-for-one-day-against-imran-s-jail-trial

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Bushra’s former husband blames Imran for being homewrecker

November 21, 2023

KARACHI: Khawar Farid Maneka, the former husband of PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi, has in a tell-all interview claimed that he holds Imran Khan responsible for breaking up his ‘happy home’.

Maneka was speaking with Shahzeb Khanzada on Monday night on Geo’s AajShahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath. Starting with the tale of how his ex-wife and the former prime minister met, Maneka said they were introduced by Bushra Bibi’s sister Maryam Wattoo. Claiming that he and Bushra Bibi [whom he refers to as ‘Pinky’] had a “happy marriage and home” when Imran Khan entered the scene after which his home was “broken”, Maneka said that when Imran’s visits became more regular his mother warned him about Imran’s “reputation” -- and “I also started resisting [his coming over].”

After that, said Maneka, Imran “started meeting [Bushra Bibi] in Islamabad.” Maneka said his then-wife would speak to Imran late at night and this is something that would disturb him. Eventually, he said, his ex-wife ended up getting a separate phone and number provided by her friend Farah Gogi at the request of the PTI chief.

Mankea said that at one point he even got his domestic help to ask Imran to leave his house when the former PM was visiting Bushra Bibi in the absence of her then husband.

When Khanzada asked him why Bushra Bibi had moved to a rented place in Bani Gala, Maneka said that the house in Bani Gala was not rented but his own farmhouse. “I had reservations about the fact that when she was living alone in Bani Gala she would visit Imran at his Bani Gala home as well. Every time I complained, I was told that it was a matter of spiritual mentorship.”

Maneka said that till six months before the divorce, it was not even on the horizon. “But I felt a shift in her attitude at a certain point. My ex-wife said to me that she wanted to live in her mother and brother’s home. I said okay because I had a feeling that something had changed and her attitude had changed.”

Explaining how the divorce came about, he said that “one day, I received a text message from Farah Gogi, asking me to divorce [Bushra Bibi]. I went and asked [my ex-wife] why Farah Gogi had messaged me; she did not respond. So I came back in anger. After a month, Farah called me again asking me to divorce my ex-wife.”

Maneka said that he had sent the written divorce to Bushra Bibi on November 14, 2017. Regarding Farah Gogi’s role in the entire situation, he said that, despite Farah Gogi being persona non grata at his home after this, she called him a month after November 14 asking him to change the date of the divorce.

Responding to an interview Bushra Bibi had given in which she had claimed that her iddat was over before she left her house, Maneka said that it was an entirely incorrect telling of the story, asking how iddat can start before divorce proceedings have started.

When asked why he did not speak then and is speaking up now, Maneka told Shahzeb Khanzada that when the nikah [between Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi] took place, he got calls from Farag Gogi and Zulfi Bukhari both -- and that they asked him to keep mum since “Imran Khan wanted to become the prime minister”. Maneka said that he “took it lightly first but then they got other people to call me too, calls that made me feel that my children’s lives were threatened. So I stayed quiet. But now I am broken and I am tired. My conscience does not allow me to stay quiet any longer.”

What about the fact that he had gained from his relationship with the former first lady, to the extent that there was talk about how he used his clout and influence and then stories of his corruption came out and cases were registered against him? According to KhawarManeka, “This is the first time such cases have been filed against me. I am ready to fight these cases. As far as corruption goes, in the past five years Bushra Bibi is the one who left home and children and is being feted but the home that was broken no one has asked me how me and my children have fared. My youngest daughter was a child when this happened. Even now she cries at night. Imran Khan ruined our happy home and our family. Since the day Imran became PM, me and my children have only faced abuse from people.”

But then what about the fact that one of his daughters had joined the PTI and one daughter’s marriage was solemnized with full PM’s protocol? Why was he silent then, asked Khanzada.Maneka’s response to this was that both his older daughters are married and with children. “Daughters’ relationships with mothers are generally unbreakable. But my sons and my youngest daughter’s lives were ruined. What about my youngest daughter who is as yet 13-14 years old? And my sons?”

On being asked who exactly asked him to stay quiet, Maneka explained further that “First Farah Gogi called and said stay quiet.” Maneka explained that “Farah Gogi was not just Farah Gogi; she and Zulfi Bukhari were the then PM’s ‘special’ people.” He said that this became evident to him when “in the whole government tenure I only once called [former Punjab CM] Buzdar’s PA and that too regarding Baba Farid’s shrine in Pakpattan, but Buzdar refused. I never called again. At night Farah called my children to tell me to not contact the CM again.”

Maneka also categorically refuted any ties with Farah Gogi’s husband Ahsan Jamil Gujjar, claiming that he had met Gujjar the first time through Farah Gogi herself. “We have never had ties with Gujjar; he had come to see Bushra Bibi in 2009-2010 [and that’s when Farah started meeting Bushra Bibi].”

When Shahzeb Khanzada recalled to him the entire incident of how Punjab’s machinery was used to get Maneka and his children out of trouble with the police, Maneka also refuted any special favours regarding that. According to his version, “The incidents that involved the police and me and my children happened twice; my children said please do something...why are they doing this to us. Farah and her husband got to know that Bushra Bibi’s children had been stopped by the police. And the chief justice took suo-motu notice. During the Supreme Court proceedings, the CJ had grilled Ahsan Gujjar and the CM’s representative and said that if Gujjar intervened again then he’d be taken to task.”

Why then did Gujjar claim in court that he was the guardian of Maneka’s children? Maneka said that [Gujjar and his wife Farah] had become self-claimed foster parents [of my children] at the behest of Bushra Bibi. Even if something small would happen in my house, I wouldn’t know about it but Farah and her husband would take action. My name, however, would somehow end up being used.”

Maneka also alleged that “all transfers and postings in the Buzdar government were in the hands of Farah Gogi and her husband. My name would come in but they would be doing the postings and transfers”, adding that [Farah Gogi] “is not to be discussed at all. She is not worth it.”As for the case against him, Maneka said that he “will fight the case against me. I will be vindicated.”

Source: thenews.com.pk

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https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1130896-imran-ruined-my-happily-married-life-khawar-maneka

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Africa

 

Amnesty International urges media to spotlights pepetrators of human rights violations

By Murtala Adewale, Kano

21 November 2023

A global movement against human rights violations, Amnesty International, Nigeria has appealed to media practitioner to expose perpetrators of human rights abuses in the Country.

Besides, the non-governmental organization sought strong collaboration and synergy with journalists in its global fight against corrupt practices and demand for accountability in governance.

Chairman, Board of Trustees, Amnesty International, Nigeria, Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, made the appeal during a media parlay agenda held yesterday in Kano.

Rafsanjani raised concerns over what he described as rising cases of human rights violations citing unlawful killings, forced evictions, oil pollution in Niger Delta, urged immediate intervention of concern authorities.

The human rights activist worried over violation of girl child right to qualify education especially in Northern Nigeria and unlawful arrest and detention of women in Kano in the name of fighting vices. Rafsanjani lamented that the dangerous trend has remain unabated because of the lack of political will of government to nip its in the bud.

While highlighting the role of journalists in exposing the excesses of government and protecting the right of citizens from violation, Rafsanjani said human rights abuses may be worsen, if the media fail to play their part in the society.

Country director, Amnesty International, Nigeria, Isa Sanusi said dissatisfied with the rampant harrassment of security agencies, Genda based violence and other brutality being meted on Nigeria’s on daily basis, the organization has developed a comprehensive human agenda to address the worsening situation.

Sanusi noted that the document designed to guide the government and relevant authorities in Nigeria is meant to protect the dignity and santity of citizens and hold accountable any human rights violence.

According to him, the media parlay was organized because of the crucial responsibility of journalists in the society and the need to promoting freedom and justice through the media.

Source:

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https://guardian.ng/news/amnesty-international-urges-media-to-spotlights-pepetrators-of-human-rights-violations/

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Israel recalls ambassador ahead of South African parliamentary vote to shut down Israeli embassy

November 21, 2023

JOHANNESBURG:Israel has recalled its ambassador to South Africa, EliavBelotserkovsky, back to Jerusalem “for consultations” ahead of a parliamentary vote in the African country to decide the fate of the Israeli embassy on Tuesday.

The two countries’ diplomatic relations have recently witnessed a rise in tensions over the Israeli war on Gaza. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa previously said his country believes Israel is committing war crimes and genocide in Gaza, where thousands of Palestinians have been killed.

“Following the latest South African statements, the Ambassador of Israel to Pretoria has been recalled to Jerusalem for consultations,” Israel’s ministry of foreign affairs posted late Monday on X, formerly known as Twitter.

This came ahead of a vote in South Africa’s parliament on a motion to shut down the Israeli embassy and cut all ties with Israel until a cease-fire is implemented in Gaza.

The motion tabled by the leftist opposition party Economic Freedom Fighters has the backing of the ruling African National Congress and other smaller parties.

South Africa announced last week that it had referred what it called Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza to the International Criminal Court for an investigation, with its cabinet calling on the ICC Monday to issue an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“Given that much of the global community is witnessing the commission of these crimes in real time, including statements of genocidal intent by many Israeli leaders, we expect that warrants of arrest for these leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, should be issued shortly,” South African minister in the presidency, KhumbudzoNtshavheni, told reporters Monday.

Earlier this month, South Africa recalled its ambassador to Israel and withdrew all its diplomatic staff from the country.

The conflict will also be the subject of a virtual meeting of BRICS countries on Tuesday, which will be attended by leaders of the bloc, including Ramaphosa, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The economic bloc was formed by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009 and added South Africa in 2010. Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia are also set to enter BRICS.

The Israel-Hamas war erupted after the Palestinian militant group’s surprise attacks on Israel on Oct.7, which killed about 1,200 people. Israel’s retaliatory strikes on Gaza have so far killed more than 12,700 people, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412536/world

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Somalia flood toll climbs to 50: disaster agency

November 21, 2023

MOGADISHU: Flash flooding in Somalia has killed 50 people and driven nearly 700,000 from their homes, a government official said, with heavy rains starting Tuesday expected to worsen the country’s plight.

The Horn of Africa region is experiencing torrential rainfall and floods linked to the El Nino weather phenomenon, claiming dozens of lives and causing large-scale displacement, including in Somalia, where the downpours have destroyed bridges and inundated residential areas.

“Fifty people died in the disaster… while 687,235 people were forced to flee their houses,” Somali Disaster Management Agency director Mohamud Moalim Abdullahi said at a press briefing on Monday.

“The expected rains between 21st and 24th of November… may cause more flooding which could cause death and destruction,” he added.

On Saturday, the UN humanitarian agency OCHA said the number of people displaced by heavy rains and floods in Somalia “has nearly doubled in one week”, while 1.7 million people overall have been affected by the disaster.

Flooding in Somalia displaces 500,000 people

“In addition, roads, bridges and airstrips have been damaged in several areas, affecting the movement of people and supplies and leading to increased prices of basic commodities,” OCHA said.

British charity Save the Children on Thursday said more than 100 people, including 16 children, had died and more than 700,000 forced from their homes in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia due to flash flooding.

The Horn of Africa is one of the regions most vulnerable to climate change and extreme weather events are occurring with increased frequency and intensity.

The region is emerging from the worst drought in four decades after multiple failed rainy seasons that left millions of people in need and devastated crops and livestock.

Humanitarian groups have warned that the situation is only likely to worsen and called for urgent global intervention as El Nino is expected to last until at least April 2024.

Source: brecorder.com

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https://www.brecorder.com/news/40274390/somalia-flood-toll-climbs-to-50-disaster-agency

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After seven months of war, Sudan faces risk of collapse

November 20, 2023

Seven months of war between rival generals in Sudan have resulted in thousands of deaths, millions of displaced persons and the risk of disintegration of the country, which was already in a fragile state before the outbreak of hostilities.

As the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continue their brutal offensive in the Darfur region (west), experts fear a "Libyan scenario", in reference to the inextricable political crisis shaking this North African country neighbouring Sudan, where two governments are vying for power, one established in the west and the other in the east.

In Sudan, the RSF, which now controls most of the capital Khartoum, has made lightning advances in Darfur. At the same time, the government and army leaders have left the capital to retreat to the city of Port Sudan, which has been spared the fighting, exacerbating fears of a break-up of the country.

"Continued fighting could lead to terrifying scenarios, including division," warns Omar Youssef, spokesman for the Forces for Freedom and Change (FLC), the civilian bloc ousted from power in the 2021 putsch led by the two generals who were allies at the time and are now at war.

"The growing wave of militarisation (of civilians) is aggravating the social fissures", he added to AFP.

At the negotiating table, the two sides, unable to gain a decisive advantage, have little intention of making concessions, as demonstrated once again by the failure in early November of talks sponsored by the United States and Saudi Arabia, leading to fears of fragmentation of the country if the status quo is prolonged.

Failure to reach a political solution could lead to a situation similar to that in Libya, which has been plunged into a major political crisis since the 2011 revolt, with "more than one government, with no real effectiveness or international recognition", explains Fayez al-Salik, political analyst and journalist.

- Offensive in Darfur -

The conflict that broke out on 15 April between the head of the army, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhane, and his deputy-turned-rival, General Mohamed HamdaneDaglo, has claimed more than 10,000 lives, according to an estimate by the NGO Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (Acled), which is widely considered to be an underestimate.

It also displaced more than six million people and destroyed most of the infrastructure.

At the beginning of November, new massacres were reported following a large-scale offensive by the RSF in Darfur, where the militia quickly claimed control of army bases in almost all the major towns in the region.

In the town of Ardamata alone, hundreds of people are reported to have been killed by armed groups, who have forced more than 8,000 people to flee to neighbouring Chad in the space of a week, according to the UN.

The European Union (EU) said it was "appalled" by the "more than 1,000 deaths" in two days in Ardamata, warning of possible "ethnic cleansing".

Since the start of the war, the UN has counted more than 1.5 million internally displaced people in Darfur, a region the size of France and home to a quarter of Sudan's 48 million people.

- No winners -

While General Daglo can count on the support of powerful allies, foremost among them the United Arab Emirates, General Burhane retains his role as de facto head of state on the international stage, regularly taking part in UN and Arab League summits.

On the ground, however, the unbridled advance of the RSF in Darfur "gives them an advantage and allows them to move within their base", according to MrSalik, referring to the Arab tribes.

It is Arab militiamen, the Janjaweed, who form the bulk of the RSF troops and who in the 2000s, under the command of General Daglo, carried out a scorched earth policy in Darfur, pillaging, raping and killing members of non-Arab ethnic groups on behalf of deposed dictator Omar al-Bashir.

Despite the paramilitary advances in Darfur, the chances of either side achieving a decisive victory remain slim, according to a military expert speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity.

According to him, "even if (the army) manages to regain control of Khartoum, which looks very arduous, sending troops to retake the areas of Darfur controlled by the RSF represents an enormous logistical challenge", with more than 1,400 kilometres separating Khartoum from the town of El-Geneina, on the border with Chad.

Source: africanews.com

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https://www.africanews.com/2023/11/20/after-seven-months-of-war-sudan-faces-risk-of-collapse/

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Nigerians mark International Men's Day with focus on zero male suicide

November 20, 2023

As the rest of the world marks the 2023 International Men’s Day (IMD) an advocacy has been made for zero male suicide.

On November 19, International Men’s Day celebrates worldwide the positive value men bring to the world, their families and communities. Highlighting positive role models and raising awareness of men’s well-being. Theme for 2023 is “ZERO MALE SUICIDE”. Together we can stop male suicide.

According to a 2023 report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), about 700,000 people commit suicide annually, apart from many more who attempt suicide globally.

WHO Africa said in 2022, that the suicide rate for men on the continent was at 18 per region, compared to 12.4 per 100,000 population globally.

Some Nigerians say the scourge is so imminent in the country currently due to the hard economic challenges the country is facing.

“Men commit suicide one, because they do not have work that can put food on the table, two marital issues can contribute to it too, if one ventures into ban marital relationship,” Bassey Emmanuel, a civil servant thinks.

“The pressure some women give to their husband make them to die earlier, if you look at the number of years men spent on earth, you will find out that some men die at the age of 60 while the wife stay till 90 to 100 years and if you check, the gap is too much,” says Chidi Emmanuel, a driver.

Experts described suicide as an emerging serious public health issue with greater consequences.

A Mental Health Counsellor Dennis Agbeti says the major thought in the minds of depressed people is lack of love.

“There are lot of reason why people get into depression and begin to think of suicide The first one is a feeling of hopelessness, you know the saying,” where there is life, there is hope” but the reality of it is that where there is no hope, there may be life. So when people loss hope, the next thing they think about is ending it all. lack of hope can lead to depression and make someone to think of suicide,” he added.

According to him, there is a need to reduce the stigma attached to mental health issues especially towards men because when it comes to suicide, almost 70 percent case are men.

“We need to create awareness, people need to be taught about mental health, how to regulate their emotions and how to take care of themselves.

So we need to teach men that they deserve to be cared for, they deserve to take care of themselves, he said.

The consequence of a suicide action is that it is a tragedy that affects families, communities and the larger society, with long-lasting negative effects and impact on the people left behind.

Suicide is a leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds.

The UN SDG Target 3.4, seeks reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being not later than 2030.

Source: africanews.com

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https://www.africanews.com/2023/11/20/nigerians-mark-international-mens-day-with-focus-on-zero-male-suicide/

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Israel-Hamas war: South Africa chairs BRICS meeting on Gaza

November 20, 2023

South Africa will chair an extraordinary virtual meeting of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) on Tuesday "on the situation in Gaza and the Middle East", the South African presidency announced in a press release on Monday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will participate, the Kremlin said. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, "as chairman of the BRICS group of nations", convenes "an extraordinary joint meeting" on the situation in Gaza on Tuesday at 12 p.m. GMT.

The other heads of state of the BRICS will participate in this virtual meeting, as well as the leaders of the countries invited, during the recent summit of the group in Johannesburg, to join it next January, namely Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the Arab Emirates combined.

The South African president, who on Friday requested an investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into the current war between Israel and the Gaza Strip, along with four other states, will open this BRICS meeting, where each of the other member countries or guests, should then speak, specifies the Pretoria press release.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will also participate in this meeting, after which the leaders "are expected to adopt a joint declaration on the situation in the Middle East, in particular in Gaza".

The South African government announced in early November that it would recall its diplomats stationed in Israel for consultations, to "signal" its "concern" about the "atrocities" committed, according to it, by Israel in Gaza.

Pretoria has long been a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause, with the ANC, its ruling party since the advent of democracy in the country, often drawing parallels with its own historic struggle against apartheid.

Source: africanews.com

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https://www.africanews.com/2023/11/20/israel-hamas-war-south-africa-chairs-brics-meeting-on-gaza/

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Niger Republic Withdraws Troops Fighting Boko Haram From Nigerian Borders Due To Sanctions As MNJTF Comes Under Threat

November 21, 2023

The Niger Republic has carried out a withdrawal of its troops from the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) at the border with Nigeria – an action which suggests that it is no longer actively contributing to the regional efforts to curtail the Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists.

The withdrawal by Niger Republic was due to financial sanctions on the country under military leadership by the European Union, African Union, the United Kingdom governments as well as other donor organisations.

Sources familiar with the development told DailyTrust that “The sanctions had affected their (Sector 4) operations. The EU provides the funding so due to the sanctions the EU will not be able to pay the Niger contingent.

“Also, when they are deployed the MNJTF helicopter goes to Niger to pick them to Ndajemena but due to the sanctions, they cannot go and pick them up. Even if they come, the EU won’t be paying.

“So officially, MNJTF have not withdrawn from the frontline, and at the same time, there is little they could do because their funding was cut off by the EU. The problem has to do with sanctions.”

“When commanders finish their tour of duty at the MNJTF, Niger may not be able to deploy another commander because MNJTF cannot go to Niger to pick them and even if they do, no funding due to sanctions,” another source explained.

Recall that the major financial partners of the multinational joint task force, EU, UK, AU, and ECOWAS have announced several sanctions on Niger, cutting financial support following the military take over.

The Sanctions meant to mount pressure on the military government includes freezing of Assets, fund restrictions, shutting down of borders, suspension of imports and exports, power supply cuts and the shutting down of the West Africa’s regional central bank, BCEAO among others.

In separate reactions, the Spokesman of the multinational joint task force, Abubakar Abdullahi and Director, Defence Media Operations, Edward Buba, both denied the withdrawal of Niger from MNJTF.

“Note that, Niger is responsible for Sector 4 of the MNJTF that is located in Diffa. The communication channel between the Sector and HQ MNJTF has been less than perfect. This is obviously, due to the political situation,” Buba told Daily Trust Sunday.

The senior military officer, however, noted that the Defence Headquarters was hoping that things would improve as tension continues to calm down.

Source: saharareporters.com

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Universal Day of the Child: UNICEF, others raise concerns about children

21 November 2023

As Nigeria joins the world to mark the Universal Day of the Child, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has affirmed that the country made progress in the area of child protection through the domestication and implementation of the Child Rights Act (CRA).

Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, had noted that “government has continued to prioritise the rights of children” across the country by ensuring their access to basic amenities, education and protection from violence.

The minister stated this at a symposium with pupils from various schools, at Government Science Technical School, yesterday, in Abuja.  UNICEF Director of Programmes, Nigeria, ChikodiOnyemerela, said children’s rights to quality medical services, education, developmental rights, rights to protection, education and emotional abuse, among others, must never be compromised.

MEANWHILE, UNICEF has said over 110 million Nigerian children are at risk from the harsh realities of rising temperatures, flooding, drought and severe storms.  In a statement, yesterday, the Country Representative, Cristian Munduate, noted that this year’s celebration was a crucial platform for the children, the most affected by climate change, to voice their concerns and experiences.  “Their input is essential in shaping our collective path towards a sustainable and resilient future,” she said.

UNICEF lamented the alarming rate of child displacement due to environmental  disasters, “with 650,000 children displaced from 2016 to 2021 due to floods.” 

Government, development partners, civil society organisations (CSOs) and the private sector have been charged to advocate climate education and child rights.  

Events across the country saw children leading discussions on the significant impact of climate change on their lives and futures.  

Director General, National Council on Climate Change, Dr SalisuDahiru, said: “As one of the countries that suffer the greatest exposure to adverse climate impact, Nigeria’s response to climate change must be swift and holistic, accounting for the needs of vulnerable people, including children and women, at the decision-making level, as well as in the implementation of the National Climate Change Action Plan.”

Commissioner for Youth and Social Development in Lagos, Mobolaji Ogunlende, said: “We need to ensure we have a clean and healthy environment, where our children can thrive and grow. Governor BabajideSanwo-Olu takes the climate issue very seriously, which is why it is one of the key drivers in our agenda.”

To make the environment clean, greener, and making it safe generally for the kids to thrive in. If the environment is not conducive, the children will not grow properly.”

GOMBE State Commissioner for Education, AishatuMaigeri, has said UNICEF has not left any child behind, especially in the areas of education and nutrition.

Other areas UNICEF, according to her, has been intervening are development of Gombe education sector plan, safe schools and teaching at the right levels.

The commissioner stated at the 2023 end of the year review meeting in Gombe, yesterday, that the international organisation had been working tirelessly to put smiles on the faces of women and children across the Bauchi Field Office.

Source: guardian.ng

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https://guardian.ng/news/universal-day-of-the-child-unicef-others-raise-concerns-about-children/

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Children killed in Niger boat accident get mass burial

21st November 2023

Chika Otuchikere

Niger State has carried out the burial of 10 victims of last Thursday’s boat accident in accordance with Islamic rites.

Among the victims were eight children.

Pictures shared by the  Niger State Emergency Management Agency on Monday indicated that the minors were buried in a mass grave.

The PUNCH reports that 34 persons, including 10 children, were aboard the ill-fated boat, which capsized while travelling from ZangoroBassa/Kukoki Ward terminal to Gijiwa/Kato Ward terminal in the Shiroro Local Government Area on Thursday last week.

Giving an update on Monday, NSEMA said its finding showed that a combination of water hyacinth, strong waves and grafting trees caused the boat to capsize.

It said the victims, mostly traders, were conveying their goods from the Zongoru community of Bassa Ward to Gijiwa, ahead of Friday market in Kuta, headquarters of Shiroro LGA, when the incident occurred.

The Director of Relief and Rehabilitation of NSEMA, SalihuGarba, said, “Ten lives were lost, including Farida Muntari, SharhabilaSagir, Abubakar Sadiq, Na’ima Ibrahim, Amina, Safaratu Ibrahim, Sadiq Ibrahim, Rafiya Yakubu, and two unidentified victims.

“The boat had six drivers, including Dahiru Yusuf, Sa’iduShu’aibu, Ahmadu Garba, Sa’iduGarba, Abdulaziz Yahaya, and Lukuman Sani.”

He disclosed that the survivors included Surajo Ibrahim (Zangoro), Ibrahim WakiliNababa (Zangoro), Yahaya Yahuza (Zangoro), Murtala Sarki (Zangoro)Yakubu Hamza (Zangoro) and Sahabi Abdullahi (Zangoro).

Source: punchng.com

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https://punchng.com/children-killed-in-niger-boat-accident-get-mass-burial/

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Hamzat urges informal organisations on service delivery

TajudeenAdebanjo

November 21, 2023

Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat has urged religious bodies, social and other non-governmental organisations to collaborate with the government in its quest in ameliorating the plights of citizens and bringing services closer to them.

He made this call at the opening of Ultra-Modern Hospital built by the Ansar-ud-Deen Society of Nigeria (ADSN) Akoka Branch.

Hamzat noted that no nation develops just by the activities of government alone.

He emphasized that everyone and organizations must play their roles for the growth of the nation and urged other religious bodies and organizations to emulate the Ansar-ud-Deen society in building infrastructures that will help to develop the country, “as the government will continue to do its own part and a lot of the people will be lifted which is the only way we can build a suitable nation”.

He said the hospital will bring health care closer to the people and relieve other general hospitals as well as reduce the workload on the government.

ADSN Akoka Branch Chairman, Alhaji Bashir Lawal, stated that the hospital is to connect medical care and the general wellbeing of the people noting that “the general well-being of the people is inextricably related.”

He noted that the facility underpins the Akoka Branch’s vision of building a good medical facility aimed at improving the health of the people, meet the particular needs of patients, family and communities.

While thanking all that contributed towards the completion of the hospital, he solicited for additional support from other members and well-wishers towards equipping the hospital with more facilities for effective utilization.

ADSN President of Nigeria and Overseas, Aare Abdul-RafiuSanni commended the Akoka Branch of the society for this laudable project and appealed to the state government to hasten the on-going construction of the road leading to the healthcare facility to ease movement to the hospital.

Aare Sanni’s immediate predecessor, Alhaji Abdul-Lateef Okunnu who spoke through the State Council Chairman, Alhaji Rahman Salaudeen, admonished the members of the society to take ownership of the hospital by ensuring that adequate maintenance is given to the facility.

Alhaji Okunnu urged the society to patronize the hospital for their personal use and ensure that the purpose it was made for is sustained.

Source: thenationonlineng.net

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https://thenationonlineng.net/hamzat-urges-informal-organisations-on-service-delivery/

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Arab World

 

Israeli ships ‘legitimate target’, Houthis warn after seizure

 2023-11-21

HODEIDA, (Yemen): Israeli ships are a “legitimate target”, Yemen’s Houthi rebels warned on Monday, after their seizure of an Israel-linked cargo vessel opened a new dimension in the Gaza war.

Sunday’s capture of the Galaxy Leader and its 25 international crew came days after the Iran-backed Houthis threatened to target Israeli shipping over the Israel-Hamas war.

The Houthis, declaring themselves part of the “axis of resistance” of Iran’s allies and proxies, have also launched a series of drones and missiles towards Israel.

“Israeli ships are legitimate targets for us anywhere...and we will not hesitate to take action,” Major General Ali Al-Moshki, a Houthi military official, told the group’s Al-Massirah TV station.

Analysts also said Houthi threats to shipping around the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a choke-point at the foot of the commercially vital Red Sea, were likely to rise.

The Bahamas-flagged, British-owned Galaxy Leader is operated by a Japanese firm but has links to Israeli businessman Abraham “Rami” Ungar.

The Houthis said the capture was in retaliation for Israel’s war against Hamas, sparked by the October 7 attack by the Palestinian militants who killed 1,200 people and took about 240 hostages, according to Israeli officials.

More than 13,000 people have since been killed in Israel’s aerial bombardment and ground operations in the Gaza Strip, the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry says.

Sunday’s ship seizure “is only the beginning,” Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul-Salam said Sunday in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter, pledging further maritime attacks until Israel halts its Gaza campaign.

Maritime security company Ambrey said it had learned that the rebels boarded the ship by rappelling or sliding down a rope from a helicopter — the method used by Iran during previous vessel seizures in the Strait of Hormuz.

Source: brecorder.com

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https://www.brecorder.com/news/40274288/israeli-ships-legitimate-target-houthis-warn-after-seizure

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Qatar calls for formation of int’l committee to probe Israeli crimes in Gaza

Ahmed Asmar

21.11.2023

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry called Monday for the formation of an international committee to look into "the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against civilians in the Gaza Strip."

The country’s stance was made in a statement condemning the Israeli bombing of the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza which left several Palestinians dead and injured.

The Foreign Ministry considered the bombing of the Indonesian Hospital "an extension of the (Israeli) occupation's approach in targeting hospitals, schools and population centers" across Gaza, which is a "blatant violation" of international law and the Geneva Convention.

It also urged "the international community to take urgent action to deter Israel from committing further massacres and provide necessary protection for over two thousand displaced people seeking refuge in the (Indonesian) hospital."

Earlier on Monday, the Gaza-based Health Ministry said that 12 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others were injured as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the Indonesian Hospital.

The ministry accused the Israeli army of seeking to turn the hospital into "a mass grave."

It added that the hospital was the only one partially functioning in Gaza City and the northern Gaza region, as all other hospitals in Gaza City had become non-operational, including Al-Shifa Hospital, which is currently under Israeli military control.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7.

Authorities in Gaza said Monday that the death toll from the ongoing Israeli attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 has jumped to over 13,300.

In a statement, the Gaza-based government’s media office said the death toll includes 5,600 children and 3,550 women.

It added that it also includes 201 medical staff, 22 members of civil defense rescue teams and 60 journalists.

Thousands of buildings, including hospitals, mosques and churches, have also been damaged or destroyed in Israel’s relentless air and ground attacks on the besieged enclave.

The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is around 1,200, according to official figures.

Source: aa.com.tr

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KSrelief medical projects continue in several countries

November 21, 2023

Riyadh: The Saudi aid agency KSrelief has continued to provide vital medical services in countries around the world.

In Togo and Mauritania, the center has implemented a volunteer scheme to combat blindness and the diseases that cause it.

The initiative is part of the Saudi Noor program, involving medical teams examining patients with eye diseases, performing cataract operations, and distributing medical glasses.

In Socotra, Yemen, KSrelief carried out pediatric and urology surgeries with the participation of 17 volunteers with medical specialties. The team performed 18 urinary and 12 pediatric operations.

In the Kyrgyz republic, the center on Monday concluded an eight-day volunteer medical program for open-heart surgery and catheterization for adults. The team of 20 volunteers performed 18 heart operations and 94 therapeutic catheterization procedures.

Agency workers also distributed 1,040 winter bags in Pakistan, benefiting 7,280 people, as part of its efforts to help families in flood-hit areas of the country.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412521/saudi-arabia

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Prince Turki bin Muhammad visits Saudi, Qatari pavilions at Expo 2023 Doha Horticultural Exhibition

November 21, 2023

DOHA: Minister of State and Member of the Council of Ministers Prince Turki bin Muhammad bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz on Monday visited the Saudi and Qatari pavilions at the Expo 2023 horticultural exhibition in Doha.

Prince Turki was welcomed by Qatar’s Minister of Municipality Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Subaie, and he later met with Saleh bin Abdul Mohsen bin Dakhil, the general supervisor of Saudi Arabia’s pavilion at Expo Doha 2023.

At the Saudi pavilion, Prince Turki was briefed on sustainability projects, green initiatives, and renewable energy contributions within the Kingdom. Dakhil highlighted major environmental projects.

During the prince’s visit to the Qatari pavilion, Muhammad Ali Al-Khouri, the secretary-general of Expo 2023 and director of Qatar’s public parks department, outlined the challenges and solutions for an eco-friendly future. The discussion also covered innovative agricultural practices.

The Expo, themed “Better Desert, Better Environment,” spans six months and features the participation of 80 countries, government bodies, NGOs, experts, private-sector companies, universities, and research laboratories.

The event aims to develop mechanisms supporting desert agriculture and promoting modern technologies for resource sustainability.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412511/saudi-arabia

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Saudi aid agency project clears 837 mines in Yemen

November 21, 2023

RIYADH: The Saudi aid agency KSrelief’s demining project in Yemen cleared 873 mines during the third week of November.

Masam demining teams deactivated 113 anti-tank mines and 755 other unexploded ordnances during the period.

The project has dismantled 422,342 mines since it was launched in mid-June 2018.

Around 51.5 million square meters of land in Yemen has to date been declared safe from the deadly remnants of the war in the country.

One of Masam’s ongoing demining operations is located northeast of the strategic town of Dhubab and southeast of Quddam in the southwestern Taiz Governorate, where a steep mountain flank was used as a defensive position by Houthi militias during a battlefront in 2017.

The area is now being used by civilians to herd sheep and collect firewood, and there have been reports that some herders and their animals have been killed or injured because of the mines planted there.

Source: arabnews.com

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Ministerial committee assigned by joint Islamic-Arab summit holds meeting with China vice president

November 20, 2023

RIYADH: The ministerial committee assigned by the extraordinary joint Islamic-Arab summit held a meeting with China’s Vice President Han Zheng in Beijing on Monday, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The members of the committee who participated in the meeting included the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Palestine, and Indonesia, and the head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Han praised the efforts of the summit that was held in Riyadh on Nov. 11 and the resulting decisions aimed at reducing the escalation in Gaza, protecting civilians, and reviving peace efforts. He also stressed China’s support for the committee’s efforts. 

The vice president said China has been working, since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, to push for a ceasefire, protect civilians, allow humanitarian relief into the strip, and find a just solution to the Palestinian issue.

He added that China is keen to coordinate and work with Arab and Muslim countries to achieve a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and ensure calm as quickly as possible.

The members of the committee praised China’s position regarding the crisis in the Gaza Strip, which they said is consistent with the positions of Muslim and Arab countries. They also highlighted the positive role played by China at the United Nations Security Council aimed at achieving a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

The meeting also discussed the importance of reaching an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and protecting unarmed civilians and vital facilities including houses of worship and hospitals, including the Al-Shifa Hospital and the Indonesian Hospital, from Israeli attacks.

The members of the committee stressed the importance of immediately halting Israeli military escalation, stopping the forced displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, and securing safe corridors for the entry of urgent humanitarian aid.

They also highlighted the importance of reviving the peace process in accordance with international resolutions in order to guarantee the rights of the Palestinian people and establish an independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

The members of the committee stressed the importance of the international community fulfilling its responsibility to move toward stopping Israeli violations of international laws.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412351/saudi-arabia

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Saudi crown prince announces launch of Human Capability Initiative

November 20, 2023

RIYADH: Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday announced the launch of the Human Capability Initiative, a platform designed to unify dialogue around the world on the challenges and opportunities for developing human capabilities.

The inaugural edition of the conference will run from Feb. 28-29 at the King Abdulaziz International Convention Center in Riyadh, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

With the theme of “Future Readiness,” the event will bring together 6,000 experts and decision-makers and more than 150 speakers from government, private and non-profit entities and think tanks around the world.

Minister of Education Yousef Al-Benyan, who chairs the Executive Committee of the Human Capability Development Program, described the initiative as a “global cooperative platform to catalyze international collaboration, enrich global dialogue in human capability development and contribute to the development of human skills and a prosperous global economy.”

He continued: “The conference will discuss challenges facing human capabilities development in light of global changes and the most important skills required in the future global labor market, in addition to the impact of rapid developments in the digital and economic fields on human capabilities.

“Topics addressed at HCI are of vital importance in driving new conversations on shaping policy, collaboration and private-public-third sector partnerships and investment at a global level in developing human capabilities. They will contribute to building strong and flexible economies to meet future challenges.”

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2412261/saudi-arabia

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