Minimum Age Of 18 For Marriage Ideal For Islam; ‘Child Bride’ Has No Legitimacy In Terms Of Islam: Türkiye’s Diyanet Head
New Age Islam News Bureau
17 December 2022
Representational image |
Photo: Pixabay
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• 'Muslims In India In Much Better Condition Than
Those In Pakistan': Ajmer Dargah Cleric’s All-Out Attack At Bilawal Bhutto
• Daughter Organization Of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind
Opposes Government's Decision To Discontinue Fellowship To Muslim Students
• Sindh High Court Dismisses Petition To Include Quran
In School Syllabus F Primary To College Level Education
• Qatargate In Europe: The Left’s Ideological Pact
With Islam Is Far Beyond Corruption
Mideast
• Netanyahu Says He May Offer Palestinians Self-Rule
But No Sovereignty
• Turkish Artist Dedicates 30 Years On Interior
Decorations Of Seljuk And Ottoman Mosque Motifs
• Iranians hit streets again as protests enter fourth
month
• At least 65 children killed for participating in
demonstrations by the Iranian regime
• Moscow welcomes Turkiye's call for trilateral Syria
diplomacy
• Hamas hails UN resolution in favour of Palestine’s
self-determination
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India
• Jamia Masjid Srinagar Prohibits Photography Inside
Mosque, Men And Women From Sitting Together In Its Lawns
• Sikh Family Donates Land For Mosque, To Help Build
It Too In Punjab
• Pakistan Foreign Minister Calls PM Modi ‘Butcher Of Gujarat’,
India Condemns ‘Uncivilised’ Remark
• ‘Land for outsiders’ fear in Jammu and Kashmir
• Amravati killing revenge for backing Nupur Sharma:
NIA
• Cops: Terrorists in Canada, Europe planned Tarn
Taran RPG attack
• NE Delhi riots: Court acquits 4 who were part of mob
that assaulted Muslims
• Gujarat: Muslim Students, Parents Struggle With
Cancellation of Pre-Matric Scholarship, MANF
• Bajrang Dal workers object to Hindu woman travelling
with Muslim man
--------
Pakistan
• Pakistan Reserves Right To Act Against Cross-Border
Terrorism: Bilawal
• Pakistan at end of its tether with Kabul over TTP
attacks
• Only state should deal with religious matters: SC
• ‘Illegal Afghan immigrant’ held for NED student’s
murder in Karachi
• Pak-Afghan meeting today amid unease at Chaman
--------
Europe
• Divisive Australia: Promotes Islam, Shuns
Christianity
• Russia Launches Missile Attacks in Ukrainian Cities,
Including Kyiv
• Supporters of PKK terrorist group hold illegal
demonstration in Swedish capital
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Southeast Asia
• Should Christians Support Indonesia Criminalizing
Cohabitation and Extramarital Sex?
• Malaysia’s Anwar may give Thai Deep South talks shot
in arm
• Malaysia death toll rises to 21
• Rescuers race to find survivors of deadly landslide
at Malaysia campsite
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Arab World
• Marvels Of Saudi Urban Landscape Testify To Abiding
Italian Design Influence
• Muslim Council of Elders participates in Interfaith
Dialogue in the Czech Republic
• Saudi Arabia condemns attack on UN peacekeeping
mission in Lebanon
• Saudi sport minister hosts world football leaders at
Saudi House in Qatar
• Why many Italians are choosing Saudi Arabia as their
holiday destination
• Doctors, architects, and engineers flock to Riyadh
Winter Wonderland for Professions Day
• Saudi Ministry of Culture opens Fenaa Alawwal Centre
to encourage global cultural exchange
• Libya rejects Egypt’s decision on demarcation of
maritime borders
• US senators call for sanctions to pressure Lebanon
to form government
--------
Africa
• Proper Islamic Education Will Reduce Crime – Borno
State Governor
• France announces it will end visa restrictions with
Morocco
• Jordanians protest over fuel price rises, after
policeman killed in riots
• Polls open in Tunisian vote boycotted by opposition
--------
North America
• Groups Actively Spreading Islamophobia Smear
Law-Abiding Muslims
• Top US senators urge Biden to sanction more Lebanese
bankers, politicians
• US court decision paves way for depositor case
against Lebanese bank
--------
South Asia
• MoFA Calls on International Community to Have
Positive Interactions With Afghanistan
• Pak summons Afghan envoy to condemn “unprovoked”
firing by Taliban forces in Chaman border area
• UNSC extends mandate of team monitoring sanctions
against Taliban-linked entities
• Afghanistan: UN experts call on Taliban to
immediately halt public floggings and executions
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
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Minimum Age Of 18 For Marriage Ideal For Islam; ‘Child Bride’ Has No Legitimacy In Terms Of Islam: Türkiye’s Diyanet Head
Representational image | Photo: Pixabay
----
December 17 2022
The law imposing the minimum age of 18 years for
marriage is ideal in terms of Islam, says Türkiye’s top religious official amid
a controversial child abuse case where the victim’s father forced her into
marriage at the age of 6.
“All kinds of abuse, reflected to the public as ‘child
bride’ cases and should actually be considered as ‘child abuse,’ has no
legitimacy in terms of Islam,” said Ali Erbaş, the head of the Directorate of
Religious Affairs (Diyanet).
The allegations came to the country’s agenda and
caused a bombardment of cursing posts on social media platforms when a daily
published the story on Dec. 3.
The woman, identified only by the initials H.K.G.,
accused her father, Yusuf Ziya Gümüşel, the head of the Hiranur Foundation
affiliated with İsmailağa Jamia, of forcibly marrying her to a 29-year-old sect
member, Kadir İstekli, in 2004 when she was just 6.
According to Islam, it is out of question for men and
women to get married before they reach both physical and spiritual maturity,
and “rushd,” the maturity of mind, and they come of age and understand the
meaning and responsibility of starting a family, Erbaş said.
The age of puberty should not be confused with the age
of marriage, as adolescence is a biological development process, while what is
sought in marriage is rushd, he warned.
“Therefore, the age limit of 18 for marriage in our
laws is an ideal practice in terms of the rushd age required by our religion,”
he noted.
“It is regrettable that our young girls are forced
into marriage at such an early age that they can be considered children and
that this practice is tried to be based on religion. This approach has no
scientific or religious basis.”
Erbaş announced that a sermon prepared on the mistake
of marrying minors was to be read in all mosques in Friday prayer on Dec. 16.
Meanwhile, he also warned that all Muslims should not
be accused of associating these “treacherous and cruelty” with Islam.
The prosecutor asked for a prison sentence of over 67
years for İstekli with charges of “child abuse” and “sexual assault.” Another
22-and-a-half-year prison sentence was asked for each of H.K.G.’s parents on
the charge of “sexual harassment of children.”
İstekli and Gümüşel, who were taken into custody, were
referred to the courthouse after their procedures at the police station and
were arrested.
The first hearing of the lawsuit, first scheduled on
May 22, 2023, was moved up by four months to Jan 30, 2023.
Source: Hurriyet Daily News
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/minimum-age-of-18-for-marriage-ideal-for-islam-diyanet-head-179388
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'Muslims In India In Much Better Condition Than Those In Pakistan': Ajmer Dargah Cleric’s All-Out Attack At Bilawal Bhutto
Ajmer Dargah's cleric
----
Dec 17, 2022
Ajmer: Launching a blistering attack at Pakistan
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's personal comments against Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, an Ajmer dargah cleric said that Muslims in India are
“far more secure” and in “much better condition” than those in Pakistani.
“I strongly condemn the venomous language used by the
Pakistani foreign minister and deputy foreign minister against our Prime
Minister and our motherland,” Hazrat Syed Naseeruddin Chishty, chairman of All
India Sufi Sajjadanshin Council and successor of spiritual head of Ajmer
Dargah, said.
The Muslim cleric further said that Bhutto has not
only downgraded the position of his portfolio but also of his entire nation.
“Pakistan should keep this in mind that Indian Muslims
are far more secure and in much better condition than Pakistani
Muslims….Bilawal Bhutto has forgotten that terrorist Osama bin Laden didn’t
died but was killed in Pakistan by American forces right under the nose of the
Pakistani government,” he added.
He also asked the Pakistan foreign minister not to
ever compare “great country”” India with his “unstable country”, stating that
the Constitution of India guarantees freedom of religion to all.
Bilawal Bhutto's anti-Modi remarks spark row
The Pakistan Foreign Minister has come under fire
after he resorted to a personal attack against PM Modi and hit out at the RSS
after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar tore into Pakistan over terrorism
at UNSC and described the country as the "epicentre of terrorism".
India on Friday came down heavily upon Zardari for his
"uncivilized outburst" at PM Modi, sayting that it seemed to be a
result of Pakistan's increasing inability to use terrorists and their
"proxies".
Launching a no-holds-barred attack at Zardari,
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, said, "These
comments are a new low, even for Pakistan. Pakistan foreign minister's
frustration would be better directed towards the masterminds of terrorist
enterprises in his own country, who have made terrorism a part of their state
policy. Pakistan needs to change its own mindset or remain a pariah."
"Pakistan is a country that glorifies Osama bin
Laden as a martyr, and shelters terrorists like (Zakiur Rehman) Lakhvi, Hafiz
Saeed, Masood Azhar, Sajid Mir and Dawood Ibrahim. No other country can boast
of having 126 UN-designated terrorists and 27 UN-designated terrorist
entities," Bagchi said.
Source: Times Now News
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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Daughter Organization Of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind Opposes Government's Decision To Discontinue Fellowship To Muslim Students
Syed Ali Mujtaba
The Central Government’s decision to discontinue the
Maulana Azad National Fellowship (MANF), that provided scholarship to minority
students in higher education, is being vehemently opposed by the National
Federation of Girls Islamic Organization, the daughter organization of
Jamaat-e-Islami Hind.
Ms. Sumayyah Roshan, President National Federation of
Girls Islamic Organization condemned the Central Government’s move to abolish
MANF and called it a blatant injustice to Muslim students in the country.
“By eliminating minority scholarships, a concerted
effort is being made to institutionally exclude socially backward communities
from the education sector,” Ms. Sumayyah said at a press meet.
The GIO General Secretary, Ms. Samar Ali added, “The
previous action of the Central Government to revoke pre-metric scholarships for
students up to class 8 is also part of the same discrimination agenda.”
Both office bearers of the GIO equivocally said that
the decision to discontinue the scholarship indicates the government’s ignorance
about the socio-economic conditions of the Muslims in India and urged the
government to reverse the decision immediately and reinstate the scholarship at
the earliest.
The MANF scholarship was implemented in 2009 on the
recommendation of the Sachar Committee report, to facilitate the inflow of
minority students to the premiere institutes and central universities, enabling
the presence of minority voices on these campuses.
Earlier, the Union Minister Ms. defended the
government’s decision to discontinue minority scholarships saying that the MANF
scheme overlaps with several other governments’ schemes and hence being
stopped.
Girls Islamic Organization of India (GIO) is a student
organization for girls. It
actively works in various states including Rajasthan, West Bengal, Andhra
Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Kerala and Karnataka besides several other
states of India.
---
Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He
can be contacted at syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com
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Sindh High Court Dismisses Petition To Include Quran In School Syllabus F Primary To College Level Education
Dec 16, 2022
A top Pakistani court here on Friday dismissed a
petition that sought to make it compulsory the inclusion of the holy Quran with
translation in the syllabus of primary to college level education.
The Sindh High Court in its verdict dismissed the
petition on the grounds that faith is a personal matter of an individual and
the court cannot interfere.
It said no changes can be made to the education
syllabus if fundamental rights are violated.
The High court also observed that the Constitution has
created a balance among the roles of three pillars of power — Judiciary,
Legislature, and Administration.
The court also noted that Article 20 of the Constitution
provides religious freedom to citizens and makes it mandatory for the state not
to interfere in the religious matters of individuals.
In its verdict, the court further said that the
Constitution of Pakistan gives a guarantee to an individual to exercise his
fundamental rights without the government interfering unless he breaks a law.
Advocate Imtiaz Ali, who appeared for the petitioner,
argued that the holy Quran education should be made compulsory in the Sindh
province as Pakistan was an Islamic state created for Muslims.
Presently students in primary and secondary levels are
required to study Islamic studies as a subject but non-Muslims can opt for an
optional subject.
Source: India Today
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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Qatargate In Europe: The Left’s Ideological Pact With Islam Is Far Beyond Corruption
Photo: Maeeshat.in
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Giulio Meotti, Italy
Dec 16, 2022
From “gauche caviar”* to “gauche Qatar”… What is an
atheist, LGBT, feminist, abortionist left doing arm in arm with Sharia, the
Islamic law of Allah?
( "Gauche caviar" = *“caviar leftist”
referring to a person who claims to be a socialist but leads a hypocritic
lifestyle inconsistent with such beliefs. "Gauche" means left in
French, ed.)
“Political Islam: How the Muslim Brotherhood Gained a
Foothold in Brussels”. The weekly Marianne's investigation on newsstands
recounts a scandal that goes far beyond corruption and which has just led to
the arrest and searches of numerous MPs and politicians and parliamentary assistants
in the European Parliament, accused of corruption in dealings with Qatar.
In the words of L'Echo, "it is the tip of an
immense iceberg".
If it were just a story of bribes and personal
enrichment, it wouldn't be interesting. No, there is an ideological-political
pact between European progressivism and Islamism. "Having worked on the
subject for more than ten years, I firmly believe that the Qatargate
revelations in the European Parliament are just the tip of the iceberg in terms
of corruption and influence acquisition by Doha in Europe", commented the
journalist Georges Malbrunot, author of the Qatar Papers.
“Iratxe Garcia Perez, President of the Progressive
Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament, is happy to
support Femyso”, explains the Belgian sociologist Florence Bergeaud-Blackler (a
recent investigation by Le Point has shown that Femyso lies within the Qatari
bed).
“Money is not the most important thing,” continues
Bergeaud-Blackler. “It must be understood that the European Muslim Brotherhood
forms a political-religious movement that has long-term ambitions. What they
want is to enter the European institutions, to learn as much as possible about
how they work. The European Union spends huge sums of money to study and combat
Islamophobia, to the point that there is no longer a euro left to study Islam
and the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe. There is a division of tasks. The Muslim
Brotherhood and those it formed get money from the EU, from Turkey, from Qatar,
from all the private partners who don't understand anything or want to see
anything. At EU level the left is more involved because the Brotherhood
flatters and serves it (at least temporarily because once in power the Muslim
Brotherhood will fight it). This makes Brussels, in addition to the European
capital, the most Islamist capital in the EU. It is an endemic phenomenon which
affects a liberal Europe which seems deaf and blind to the concerns of the
nations”.
In L'Express, Florence Bergeaud-Blackler, a CNRS
researcher, also explains that the left has signed an agreement with Islam for
electoral reasons: "A vote based on confessional requests such as the
veil, Islamic education, mosques, halal...It is no longer even an alliance
between the left and Islamism, but between the left and Islam”.
A former prime minister and foreign minister, Massimo
D'Alema, has lectured extensively at the University of Leuven with Tariq
Ramadan, grandson of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, and co-authored
articles with the Islamist preacher in the Belgian newspaper Le Soir. The
Municipality of Rome invited Ramadan to the Parco della Musica in an event
wanted by the mayor Walter Veltroni. And who paid Ramadan's hefty salary of
35,000 euros a month in those years? Qatar, of course.
In Brussels, the Democratic Party with its head of
delegation, deputy Brando Benifei supported the Muslim Brotherhood and their
youth acronym Femyso on the occasion of the "European Day against
Islamophobia". Le Point was able to consult the emails exchanged between
Femyso and representatives of the Qatar Charity organization, which finances
thousands of Islamist organizations around the world. “Islamophobia,” which the
late Christopher Hitchens called “a word created by fascists and used by
cowards to manipulate cretins.”
"For the votes and the hatred of the white man,
the left has allied itself with Islam", says the French philosopher Alain
Finkielkraut. "It is betting on the demographic change of
immigration". In the last elections, the Social Democrats in Sweden
received 38 per cent of the vote among foreign-born voters, ten per cent higher
than 28 per cent of their overall vote.In Norway, the Labor Party has the most
p MPs of immigrant origin. In Germany, the number of Social Democrat MPs who
have immigrant backgrounds rose from 10 percent to 17 percent in just one
election.
Why is the socialist mayor of Denain, in France,
talking to the imam Hassan Iquioussen, leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, who
fled to Belgium after a French arrest warrant? Algerian journalist Mohamed
Sifaoui wrote a book about it, “Taqiya”. Subtitle: “Mayors, universities,
parties, media, associations. How the Muslim Brotherhood infiltrates France”.
Erwan Seznec, the author of the book “Nos élus et l'islam” ("Our elect and
Islam"), explained how many leftist leaders allowed Islamism to flourish.
In exchange for votes, Islam received social housing,
public works, halal canteens, prayer rooms. Yes, it's the votes, stupid.
Helena Dalli, the Maltese socialist European
Commissioner for Equality who has proposed not to say "Merry
Christmas" anymore, takes part in the Femyso meetings, celebrates the
"day against Islamophobia" and participates in the seminars of
Islamist movements.
The Labor mayor of London, Ken Livingstone (later
suspended from the party for anti-Semitism), invited Imam Yusuf al Qaradawi,
spiritual leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, who justified the suicide bombings
against "infidels" and Israeli Jews (even against pregnant women, as
they are mothers of future Israeli soldiers). And the former leader of the
British Labor Party, Jeremy Corbyn, has been in dialogue with the Muslim
Brotherhood for years.
Ten years ago, the Social Democrat-led government in
Hamburg, Germany's second largest city, concluded a "state treaty"
with its Muslim communities that granted Muslims many rights and privileges.
Signed by then-Mayor of Hamburg, Olaf Scholz, now German Chancellor, and the leaders
of four Muslim umbrella groups, the deal was praised by multiculturalists for
putting the port city's 200,000 Muslims on an equal footing with Christian
residents. The most controversial part of the agreement included a commitment
by the government to promote the teaching of Islam in Hamburg's school system.
"In Turkey, the Muslim Brotherhood, driven out of Egypt and financed by
Qatar, is organizing itself to conquer Europe", explained the great
specialist in the Muslim world, Gilles Kepel.
In Sweden there was the scandal of the Muslim
Brotherhood's infiltration of the Greens. Greens' Housing Minister Mehmet
Kaplan had to resign after his Islamist ties came out. Lars Nicander, director
of the Center for Asymmetric Threat Studies at the Swedish National Defense College,
said “today people close to the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist party, have
gained a solid footing in the Green Party. I see a similarity to the way Soviet
communism acted during the Cold War, when it tried to infiltrate the various
democratic parties." Then photos surfaced in which Kaplan and the other
members of the Greens show the four raised fingers of the Muslim Brotherhood.
A leaflet from the Ecologist party was distributed in
Brussels. Yes to the Islamic veil, yes to free days according to the Islamic
calendar… The case of Kauthar Bouchallikht broke out in Holland, veiled
politician and rising talent of the green party GroenLinks, which is part of
Femyso. "Socialist Party: champion of Muslim clientelism", says Le
Figaro. In “Sept pas vers l'enfer” ("Seven steps to hell"), the new
book by Alain Chouet, the former number two of the DGSE, the powerful French
counterintelligence service, this alliance is recalled:
"I was invited every year to hold a conference on
the problems of the Arab world in Molenubeek, a s suburb of Brussels. I was
there one day (...) when Philippe Moureaux, the socialist mayor of the city and
big boss of the Belgian Socialist Party, occupied the first row flanked by two
imposing bodyguards in djellabas, with beards and white caps on their heads.
The management of Molenbeek is exemplary in this sense: authorizations granted
easily and without any control of the opening and functioning of mosques,
Islamic private schools…”.
Inclusive, hypermodern, emancipatory, progressive,
anti-racist, imbued with the suicidal ideology of "diversity",
politically correct down to the grotesque use of asterisks and neutral
pronouns, the "gauche Qatar" is the main terrain for the entry of
Islam into society European. Not in the name of money, but of ideology - hatred
for Europe founded on Rome, Athens and Jerusalem - and they have turned us into
a soft underbelly.
Source: Israel National News
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/364507
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Mideast
Netanyahu says he may offer Palestinians self-rule but
no sovereignty
Abdelraouf Arna'out
16.12.2022
JERUSALEM
Israeli Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu said
the peace he plans to seek with Palestinians would offer them powers to rule
themselves, with security matters in the hands of Israel.
"The only peace that will hold is one that we can
defend," Netanyahu said on Thursday in an interview with the US' National
Public Radio.
"Palestinians have all the powers to govern
themselves, but none of the powers to threaten our life, which means that
security, in whatever political arrangements we'll have, realistically will
have to remain in Israel's hands," he added.
As prime minister at the time, Netanyahu recounted
that in a 2014 visit, then-US Vice President Joe Biden told him that such an
offer would not give the Palestinians "complete sovereignty."
He replied: "You're right, Joe, but that's the
only one that will last."
Peace negotiations between the Palestinians and
Israelis collapsed in April 2014 as Tel Aviv refused to stop settlement
building and release Palestinian detainees imprisoned before 1993.
On the issue of the government he plans to form,
Netanyahu defended the far-right parties that are expected to be part of his
administration after their support carried him to victory in last month's
elections.
For Itamar Ben-Gvir, head of far-right Jewish Strength
party, Netanyahu said he had "modified" many of his views in recent
years.
Source: Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Turkish Artist Dedicates 30 Years On Interior
Decorations Of Seljuk And Ottoman Mosque Motifs
DEC 16, 2022
Sıddık Korkutata, 52, a muralist living in Sakarya,
has been working on interior decorations of mosques in various cities of
Türkiye, adorning the holy places of worship with Seljuk and Ottoman motifs for
30 years.
Embroidering the motifs with utmost attention like
lacework, Korkutata strives to preserve Turkish-Islamic culture for future
generations.
Currently continuing his work in Sakarya's Kadriye
Binek Mosque, Korkutata's work decorates several mosques in Kocaeli, Yalova,
Kayseri and Istanbul.
Speaking with Anadolu Agency (AA), Korkutata explained
that he has been working in detail both in Türkiye and abroad for 30 years.
"When we first enter mosques, we first look at the architecture, we design
where and what we will do in our minds, we draw the dimensions and apply our
project on paper and apply it on the wall. We work in millimeters with pencil
brushes," he said.
Explaining that he works with Ottoman and Seljuk
motifs, he said, "30 years ago, when I was working in a mosque, I observed
the masters and fell in love with this profession and I have worked in mosques
since then."
Source: Daily Sabah
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Iranians hit streets again as protests enter fourth
month
December 16, 2022
PARIS: Hundreds took to the streets Friday in Iran’s
restive southeast, footage shared by human rights groups showed, beginning a
fourth month of protests sparked by Mahsa Amini’s death.
The Islamic republic has seen waves of demonstrations
since the September 16 death in custody of Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd
who had been arrested for allegedly violating the country’s strict dress code
for women.
Protesters in Zahedan, the Sistan-Baluchestan
provincial capital, chanted “Death to the dictator,” taking aim at supreme
leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to a video shared by Oslo-based Iran
Human Rights (IHR) and verified by AFP.
Other images from Zahedan showed crowds of men, some raising
posters with anti-regime slogans, and a group of black-clad women marching down
what appeared to be a nearby street, also chanting slogans.
Sistan-Baluchestan, on Iran’s southeastern border with
Afghanistan and Pakistan, had been the site of often deadly violence even
before nationwide protests erupted.
The province’s Baluchi minority, who adhere to Sunni
Islam rather than the Shiite branch predominant in Iran, have long complained
of discrimination.
US-based rights group HRANA said hundreds rallied
after Friday prayers in Zahedan, which has seen weekly protests since the
security forces killed more than 90 people in the city on September 30, in what
has been dubbed “Bloody Friday.”
The trigger for that violence was the alleged rape in
custody of a 15-year-old girl by a police commander in the province’s port city
of Chabahar.
But analysts say Baluchis were inspired by the
protests that flared over Amini’s death, which were initially driven by women’s
rights but have expanded to include other grievances.
Last week, a cleric was killed after being kidnapped
from his mosque in Khash, a town in Sistan-Baluchestan.
Zahedan’s chief prosecutor said Tuesday that the
killers of cleric Abdulwahed Rigi had been arrested, and accused them of
seeking to stir trouble between Sunnis and Shiites.
The largely peaceful demonstrations sparked by Amini’s
death have been met with a crackdown by the Iranian security forces that has
killed at least 458 protesters, according to a toll issued on December 7 by the
Norway-based IHR.
Iran’s top security body, the Supreme National
Security Council, said on December 3 that more than 200 people had been killed
in the unrest, including security personnel.
The United Nations says Iran’s security forces have
arrested at least 14,000 people.
Iran’s judiciary said it has handed down 11 death
sentences in connection with the protests.
Iran executed Mohsen Shekari on December 8 and
Majidreza Rahnavard on Monday. Both were 23 years old.
Rahnavard was hanged in public rather than in prison
as has been usual in the Islamic republic in recent years.
Amnesty International said on Friday that at least 26
people were at risk of execution in connection with the protests in Iran, which
according to the London-based rights group is already the world’s most prolific
user of the death penalty after China.
The crackdown on the demonstrations has led to
international condemnation, sanctions and Iran’s removal Wednesday from a UN
women’s rights body.
Solidarity protests have also erupted worldwide, and a
group of Iranians in Germany on Friday reached the final day of a hunger strike
while camped outside their country’s consulate in the city of Frankfurt.
Ultraconservative cleric Ahmad Khatami meanwhile
lashed out at the European Union after the bloc slapped him with sanctions over
what it called “repression against protesters.”
Khatami was sanctioned for allegedly inciting violence
against protesters, including demanding the death penalty.
During a Friday sermon in Tehran, the cleric said the
EU had a “black” human rights record, state news agency IRNA reported.
The EU “is on the top of the list of human rights
violators,” Khatami charged.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217411/middle-east
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At least 65 children killed for participating in
demonstrations by the Iranian regime
December 16, 2022
LONDON: At least 65 children between the ages of 2 and
17 have been killed in a “brutal crackdown” since protests erupted against the
Iranian regime over 90 days ago, an opposition group has said.
“Three months have passed since the beginning of the
Iranian people’s uprising against the mullahs’ regime,” said the National
Council of Resistance of Iran. “According to the reports by the People’s
Mojahedin Organization of Iran from inside the country, more than 700 people
have been murdered and thousands injured by repressive forces and more than
30,000 people arrested and subjected to the most brutal torture.”
A report issued by the NCRI’s Foreign Affairs
Committee, which is based on information from the PMOI network, revealed the
name and age of each victim, as well as the city in which they were killed.
It found that 13 of the victims were girls and 52 were
boys, while five victims were under 10 years old, and 60 were between 10 and 17
years old.
The report also said that the victims were from 33
cities across Iran, with the largest number of child victims reported in
Zahedan, the capital of Sistan and Baluchistan Province, which registered 15
deaths in the southeast, followed by nine in Tehran and four in Piranshahr, in
Kurdistan Province.
“Most of these children were killed by gunshots, but
some of them, including Sarina Ismailzadeh, Nika Shakrami, Mohammad Hossein
Kamandalo, and Maedeh Hashemi, were killed by baton blows to their heads and
other vital areas, or by severe beatings by the security forces,” the reports
said.
“Some were injured due to severe blows and injuries
and died after some time. One example is Armika Ghaem Maghami, who was in a
coma fighting for her life for 10 days before finally succumbing to her
injuries,” it added.
“It should be emphasized that this report only
includes confirmed cases and that the actual number of child victims is
certainly higher, with some families being afraid to reveal victims’ names due
to continuous threats by the regime.”
The report also said that the Iranian regime has
denied any involvement in the children’s deaths but added that “the fact that
children have been brutally victimized by the regime’s repression is also
evident in protesters’ slogans, which include chants of ‘We don’t want a
child-killing regime.’”
Amnesty International said 26 people faced possible execution
after the Islamic Republic hanged two people who were arrested over the
protests that erupted after the death in police custody of young
Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini on Sept. 16.
The unrest, in which demonstrators from all walks of
life have called for the fall of Iran’s ruling theocracy, poses one of the
biggest challenges to Iran since its 1979 revolution. “At least 26 people are
at great risk of execution in connection with nationwide protests after Iranian
authorities arbitrarily executed two individuals following grossly unfair sham
trials in a bid to instil fear among the public and end protests,” Amnesty
International said in a statement.
“The time has come for the international community to
stand with the people of Iran, to accept their will, and to recognize their
right to resist and defend themselves,” the NCRI said.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217266/middle-east
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Moscow welcomes Turkiye's call for trilateral Syria
diplomacy
December 16, 2022
ISTANBUL: Moscow has welcomed Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan's proposal to establish a three-way mechanism for diplomacy
between Turkey, Russia and Syria.
Erdogan has brought the new proposal to the table to
open a diplomatic channel with Damascus.
Turkish state-run broadcaster TRT cited Erdogan as
telling reporters during his flight back from Turkmenistan that he offered to
initiate a series of meetings between Turkiye, Russia and Syria to reconsider
strained ties with Damascus.
“As of now, we want to take a step as a
Syria-Turkiye-Russia trio. First our intelligence agencies, then defense
ministers, and then foreign ministers of the parties could meet. After their
meetings, we as the leaders may come together,” Erdogan was quoted as saying.
Erdogan added that he offered this plan to Russian
President Vladimir Putin, who viewed it “positively.”
In September, Reuters reported that Hakan Fidan, head
of Turkiye’s National Intelligence Organization, had met several times in
Damascus with his counterpart, Syrian National Security Bureau Chairman Ali
Mamlouk.
Experts noted that the move might be linked with
Turkiye’s domestic politics, especially with regard to managing the issue of
refugees ahead of the approaching elections, as Erdogan’s main focus has
shifted from ousting the Assad regime to curbing advances of Kurdish militants
along Turkish borders with Syria.
Erdogan and Syrian President Bashar Assad have not had
contact since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, as Ankara supported
Syrian opposition forces fighting Damascus.
“For Assad, this is all good news. Normalization with
Turkiye would be a major watershed moment in the conflict, even if it won’t
suffice to end it or address all the problems faced by his regime,” Aron Lund,
fellow with Century International, told Arab News.
If Damascus and Ankara can get back on speaking terms,
Lund thinks that they would still have a lot to disagree on — not least
Turkiye’s troop presence in Syria.
“But they would also have the opportunity to address
common problems, one of which is the role of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic
Forces and the US troops in northeastern Syria,” he said.
Lund also emphasized that it is just a proposal and
not a done deal.
“It takes two to tango — or three in this case, with
Russia. Assad will be able to shape the terms of this process, too, and I’ll be
interested to see what the Syrian response will be. The Syrian regime is
typically very stubborn about these things, and Assad realizes, of course, that
he would be boosting Erdogan’s reelection chances,” he said.
“I don’t think Assad will want to squander the
opportunity,” Lund added.
Erdogan “is likely to stay in power one way or the
other, and once the elections are over, he may not have the same strong
incentive to cozy up to Assad. Still, though, judging by past behavior, I would
not be surprised at all if Assad starts to play hardball and stalls the process
to extract concessions,” said Lund.
On its side, Russia, Assad’s main backer, has been
pushing for reconciliation between Ankara and Damascus for a couple of months.
In September, Mikhail Bogdanov, the Russian
president’s deputy foreign minister and special envoy to the Middle East and
Africa, said that Moscow is willing to organize a meeting between Syrian
Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Following Erdogan’s offer, Bogdanov was quoted by RIA
news agency as saying that Moscow reacted positively to the idea of the Turkish
president holding a meeting between the leaders of Turkiye, Syria and Russia.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin was
in Turkiye last week to discuss Syria-related developments, while Putin held a
phone call with Erdogan on Sunday when the Turkish president asked for a 30-km
security corridor on Turkiye’s southern border, in line with the 2019 agreement
between Turkiye and Russia.
Under the 2019 deal, Russia guaranteed to establish a
buffer zone between the Turkish border and the Kurdish People’s Protection
Units, or YPG, which would be controlled by the Syrian army and Russian
military police. The agreement, however, was not fully implemented.
Following a deadly bomb attack in Istanbul that killed
six and injured 81, Turkiye carried out an aerial operation against the YPG in
northern Syria and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, in northern Iraq on
Nov. 20.
Erdogan also pledged a ground operation into northern
Syria “at the most convenient time” to build a security strip.
But, Francesco Siccardi, senior program manager and
senior research analyst at Carnegie Europe, thinks that for Ankara,
normalization with Assad is not an alternative to a ground operation in
northern Syria.
“The link between these two policies is Ankara’s
interest to undo Kurdish gains in Northern Syria — an objective that it shares
with Damascus, too,” he told Arab News.
According to Siccardi, everything Ankara does is
calculated to maximize Erdogan’s chances for reelection.
“In this sense, dialogue with Damascus strips the
opposition of a key talking point, since they are proposing to do the same,” he
said.
“It also allows President Erdogan to present his
concrete work toward a solution to the issue of Syrian refugees in Turkiye. And
lastly, it puts the security and terrorism issues at the center of the
political debate. This approach has benefitted the incumbent president in the
past,” Siccardi added.
Turkiye hosts 3.7 million Syrian refugees, the largest
refugee population in the world. But the country’s ongoing economic crisis has
further fueled anti-Syrian refugee sentiment, pushing several opposition
parties to call for forced deportations of Syrians, blaming them for the
economic problems of Turkiye.
In the meantime, the trio offer came at a time when
Josep Borrell, EU foreign policy chief, criticized Turkiye over its ties with
Russia and urged Ankara to join the EU’s sanctions against Moscow.
Prof. Emre Ersen, an expert on Turkiye-Russia
relations from Marmara University, thinks that if the two governments finally
decide to come together, this could be regarded as a significant achievement
for Russian diplomacy, particularly at a time when Moscow is becoming more
isolated in the international arena due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Yet, Ersen noted a number of thorny issues that need
to be resolved between Ankara and Damascus in order for this diplomatic process
to be successful.
“Turkiye still continues to support the rebel groups
in Syria, which is a major problem for the Assad regime,” he said.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217256/middle-east
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Hamas hails UN resolution in favour of Palestine’s
self-determination
16 December 2022
The Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has welcomed
a United Nations General Assembly resolution that affirms the Palestinian
people’s right to self-determination and ends the Israeli occupation of the
Palestinian territory.
“This resolution is a continuation of previous ones
adopted recently that affirm such right and the subsequent UN and international
obligations to put an end to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian
territory and grant the Palestinian people their rights guaranteed by all
international conventions,” Hisham Qasem, a member of the Hamas political
bureau abroad, said on Friday.
He said the overwhelming voting in favor of the
resolution shows an “increasing conviction” within the international community
that the time is ripe for Palestinians to enjoy their right to self-determination,
end the Israeli occupation, and prosecute this settler-colonial occupation for
its heinous crimes committed against the Palestinian people over the past seven
decades.
The Hamas official called on the countries that voted
against the resolution or abstained to reconsider their positions.
Qasem said more resolutions are needed in favor of the
Palestinian people.
The UN General Assembly on Wednesday adopted a
resolution declaring that Syrians and Palestinians have sovereignty over their
natural resources in the Israeli-occupied tracts of land in the strategic Golan
Heights and the West Bank, including East al-Quds.
The UNGA passed the resolution on “permanent
sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,”
including East al-Quds, and of “the Arab population in the occupied Syrian
Golan over their natural resources,” with 159 votes in favor.
Palestine welcomes UN resolution on natural resource
sovereignty
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki on
Thursday hailed the UN resolution. “Voting in favor of the resolution confirms
the right of the Palestinian people and their sovereignty over their natural
resources, including land, water, and energy resources.”
He said the international community should work on
obliging Israel “to implement international resolutions and guarantee the right
of the Palestinian people to their natural resources.”
Palestinians want the West Bank as part of a future
independent Palestinian state with East al-Quds as its capital.
Israel, which captured the territory in 1967 and later
annexed it in a move never recognized by the international community, calls
al-Quds its indivisible capital.
More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230
settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East
al-Quds.
Source: Press TV
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India
Jamia Masjid Srinagar Prohibits Photography Inside
Mosque, Men And Women From Sitting Together In Its Lawns
December 16, 2022
The management of the historic Jamia Masjid here has
issued a notification banning photography inside the mosque and asking men and
women to not sit together in its lawns.
Entry of photography equipment is also prohibited, the
Anjuman Auquaf Central Jamia Masjid said in the notification put up all around
the mosque complex.
“Photographers or camera persons are prohibited to
take any kind of photos or clicks inside the mosque. Even equipment used to
click any kind of photos are totally disallowed and need to be stopped at the
gate forthwith,” it read.
It also prohibited the carrying of eatables into the
mosque premises.
“Nobody is allowed to have lunch or any kind of
eatables inside the mosque. As such, visitors need to be stopped at the gate
itself,” the notification read.
The management of the 14th-century mosque directed its
security guards to implement the instructions immediately.
Women can enter the mosque if there is a designated
place for them, separate from men.
Meanwhile, in a statement, Anjuman Auqaf said being a
place of worship, the visitors are requested to respect its sanctity as a
mosque and observe decorum while visiting it.
“It is not a public park or a recreational facility.
So, while clicking photographs visitors — both local and outsiders — should
keep this in mind. For professional purposes, permission needs to be sought
from Anjuman Auqaf before taking any pictures or video of Jamia Masjid,” the
statement said.
Source: Indian Express
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Sikh family donates land for mosque, to help build it too
in Punjab
Dec 16, 2022
BATHINDA: Setting up an example of communal harmony, a
Sikh family has donated land for a mosque at Bakhatgarh in Punjab' Barnala
district, while several more Sikh and Hindu families will support the project
in cash and kind, so that the village's 15 Muslim families don't have to go 5
kilometres to Chunga for prayers.
Bakhatgarh only has a Muslim graveyard. Sensing the
Muslim sentiments, villager Amandeep Singh donated 8 marlas (250 square yards)
for a mosque and, a few days ago, registered the deed at the tehsildar's office
in the name of Noorani Masjid. The Muslim families of the village are preparing
the site plan. The estimated cost will cross Rs 12 lakh, and the Sikh and
Hindus will bear a part of it.
Amandeep Singh, who has MA and BEd degrees, told TOI
that: "The village has two gurdwaras apart from a dera but no mosque. Its
Muslim families go to nearby village for prayers, so my family gave them land
for a mosque and will also contribute in the construction."
Moti Khan, who will oversee the project, said:
"We are indebted to the Sikh family and many others who have promised to
support us. We pray for similar brotherhood everywhere for communal
peace."Punjab has many examples where Sikhs and Hindus have built mosques
for the Muslims of their villages, which shows the peaceful coexistence of
these communities in the state.
Source: Times Of India
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Pakistan foreign minister calls PM Modi ‘Butcher of
Gujarat’, India condemns ‘uncivilised’ remark
Anita Joshua
| New Delhi
17.12.22
Pakistan on Friday lashed out at India for accusing it
of harbouring Osama bin Laden, its foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari
telling the media at the United Nations: “Osama bin Laden is dead but the
Butcher of Gujarat lives. And, he is the Prime Minister of India.”
India responded sharply, issuing a long statement
condemning the “uncivilised” remarks. External affairs ministry spokesman
Arindam Bagchi said: “These comments are a new low, even for Pakistan.”
Bagchi recalled the genocide in East Pakistan that led
to the creation of Bangladesh in 1971 and the terrorist attacks in cities
across the world that bear the fingerprints of Pakistan-sponsored terrorist
groups, and said no other country had as many UN-designated terrorists as
Pakistan.
At a news conference at the UN, Bilawal had been asked
about Indian foreign minister S. Jaishankar on Thursday bringing up bin Laden,
whose killing by US special forces in a stealth operation not far from
Pakistan’s premier military training academy put Islamabad’s deep state on the
back foot.
Referring to a US visa ban on Narendra Modi, imposed
after the 2002 riots in Gujarat and lifted once the BJP won the 2014 elections
under him, Bilawal said: “He was banned from entering this country till he
became Prime Minister.”
He added: “This is the Prime Minister of the RSS and
the foreign minister of the RSS. What is the RSS? The RSS draws its inspiration
from Hitler’s SS.”
Gandhi reference
Bilawal then brought up Jaishankar’s unveiling of a
statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the UN in New York.
“If the foreign minister of India was being honest,
then he knows as well as I that the RSS does not believe in Gandhi, in the
ideology of Gandhi, in the manifesto of Gandhi. They do not see this individual
as the founder of India. They hero-worship the terrorist that assassinated
Gandhi,” he said.
Bilawal also flagged the pardon granted to the
rapist-murderers in the Bilkis Bano case ahead of the Gujarat elections.
Spokesperson Bagchi said Pakistan lacked the
credentials to cast aspersions on India. Bilawal’s outburst “seems to be a
result of Pakistan’s increasing inability to use terrorists and their proxies”
as his country’s role in sponsoring terrorists “remains under the scanner”, he
said.
In an uncharacteristically long response, India said
New York, Mumbai, Pulwama, Pathankot and London were among the many cities that
bore the scars of terrorism sponsored, supported and instigated by Pakistan.
“‘Make in Pakistan’ terrorism has to stop,” Bagchi
said. India said Pakistan glorified Osama as a martyr and sheltered terrorists
like Lakhvi, Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar, Sajid Mir and Dawood Ibrahim.
The BJP called Bilawal’s remarks “shameful and
derogatory” and said it would hold protests on Saturday.
Source: Telegraph India
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‘Land for outsiders’ fear in Jammu and Kashmir
Muzaffar Raina
| Srinagar
17.12.22
A decision by the Jammu and Kashmir administration to
deny renewals for expired leases on government land and freshly lease out the
plots has triggered fears that it wants to “snatch” land from local people to
benefit “outsiders”.’
While non-Kashmiris always had the right to take
government land on lease in Jammu and Kashmir, the overwhelming majority of
existing lessees are local people. Hundreds of hotels, schools and other
institutions have come up on leased land over the decades.
However, a new government notification, which rules
out the renewal of expired leases, says the fresh leases will be given for
“self-employment or for housing purposes of ex-servicemen, war widows, families
of deprivation categories (as per latest socioeconomic census), specially abled
persons (divyang), families of martyr(s) (one who has sacrificed his life in
the line of duty for the sake of nation), migrant workers/ building and other
construction workers.”
Apart from the migrant workers, the ex-servicemen and
war widows, especially, are likely to be non-Kashmiris. The notification says
nothing about the outgoing lessees
having the right of first refusal.
The government is expected to exercise its discretion in deciding who to grant the fresh
leases to. If bidding is held for commercial properties like hotels — with the
existing lessees compensated if they have built the structures themselves — big
companies from outside should be able to easily outbid local rivals.
An empowered committee headed by the financial
commissioner, revenue, and made up of officials from various departments will
“identify and designate land and the purpose for grant of the lease”.
“Its function would also be to recommend the period of
grant of lease, which shall ordinarily be for 40 years,” says the notification
on the Jammu and Kashmir Land Grants Rules, 2022.
The government says the Rules have been notified under
a 1960 law. The Rules say the leases will be granted for “development” purposes
such as education, healthcare, agriculture and allied activities, tourism,
skill development, and infrastructure and industrial projects.
Existing leases given out for residential purposes are
among a small category that is exempt from the notification, and will be
renewed. Others whose leases expire must immediately hand over possession of
the land, failing which they will be evicted.
National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah and
People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti said the administration was
bent on arbitrarily evicting local people, institutions, tourism players,
hoteliers and businesses occupying leased land.
“At least, people who kept these institutions,
structures and businesses alive in difficult times should get the first chance.
Fix the rate and tell them to submit the money,” Omar said.
Source: Telegraph India
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https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/land-for-outsiders-fear-in-jammu-and-kashmir/cid/1904326
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Amravati killing revenge for backing Nupur Sharma: NIA
Dec 17, 2022
NEW DELHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on
Friday filed a chargesheet in the case relating to the murder of veterinary
chemist Umesh Prahladrao Kolhe in Amravati, Maharashtra, in June 2022,
describing the killing as an act of revenge against Kolhe's social media post
in support of former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma's controversial remarks
about the Prophet.
All the 11 accused named in the chargesheet -
Mudhassir Ahmed, Shahrukh Kha, Abdul Taufeeque Shaikh, Mohammad Shoeb, Atib
Rashid, Yusuf Khan, Irfan Khan, Abdul Arbaz, Mushifique Ahmad, Shaikh Shakil
and Shahim Ahemad - are residents of Amravati.
NIA on Friday said its investigation revealed that a
criminal conspiracy was hatched by the accused by constituting a terrorist gang
to carry out the attack.
The accused, working with common intention, waylaid
Kolhe in a public area at Ghantaghar, Amravati, and murdered him with an aim to
strike terror among people, said an NIA spokesperson. They have all been
chargesheeted under Sections 120B, 341, 302, 153-A, 201, 118, 505, 506 and 34
of IPC and Sections 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention)
Act, 1967.
On Friday, an NIA official told TOI that no link to
any banned organisation, like the Popular Front of India or Islamic State, was
established in the Kolhe murder case. It is suspected that the accused were
self-radicalised, and chose to use violent means to "punish" what
they perceived as "blasphemy".
The Kolhe murder case was initially registered by the
city kotwali police station, Amravati, and re-registered by NIA on July 2 this
year. The Amravati police had intially suspected robbery as the motive.
However, after the killing of tailor Kanhaiya Lal in Udaipur over social media
posts in favour of Nupur, days after Kolhe was murdered in Amravati, there was
a demand from BJP members in Maharashtra to also explore a likely revenge angle
in the case.
After the Union home minister handed over the Kolhe
murder case to NIA, the probe revealed a common thread of "revenge killing"
and "pro-Nupur Sharma posts".
Source: Times Of India
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Cops: Terrorists in Canada, Europe planned Tarn Taran
RPG attack
Dec 17, 2022
TARN TARAN: The attack at Sarhali police station in
Punjab's Tarn Taran district on December 9 night was masterminded by
foreign-based terrorists, DGP Punjab Gaurav Yadav said on Friday. He named the
accused as Lakhbir Singh alias Landa Harike, Satbir Singh alias Satta and
Gurdev alias Jaisel, and Ajmeet Singh, who is currently lodged in jail.
Six youths, including two juveniles, were arrested for
planning and carrying out a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) attack .
According to sources, Landa is based in Canada, Satta
and Gurdev are residing in European countries and Gurdev migrated to Europe
from Dubai recently.
The arrested accused are Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi
Numberdar, 18, resident of Naushera Pannuan; Gurlal Singh alias Gahla ,19, of
Chohla Sahib, Surlalpal Singh alias Gurlal alias Lali, 21, of Thathiya Mahanta
village, and Jobanpreet Singh alias Joban, 18, of Naushera Pannuan. Two
juveniles arrested in the case had fired the RPG.
The Soviet-era single-use 70mm caliber RPG-26 weapon,
which was used by Mujahideen in Afghanistan, was sourced from across the
border. Police have recovered three pistols - two .32 bore and one .30 bore -
along with ammunition, one hand grenade and one motorcycle from the arrested
persons.
Gopi Numberdar who turned 18 years old a day after his
release on November 22, 2022, immediately got in touch with the foreign-based
handlers. The DGP said the foreign-based handlers used cut-outs and Dead Letter
Box (DLB) techniques for retrieval of consignment and establishing contact so
that the module members were assigned tasks directly by the handlers, and the
sub-modules were unknown to each other.
Tarn Taran senior superintendent of police Gurmeet
Singh Chohan said the attack was the handiwork of Gopi Numberdar and Gurlal
Gahla, who were directly in touch with Landa Harike and Satta Naushehra. Both
were apprehended from Patti Morh Sarhali on Thursday along with one .32 pistol
and 15 live cartridges. The police teams had also recovered a hand grenade on
the inputs provided by Gopi Numberdar, he said.
Source: Times Of India
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NE Delhi riots: Court acquits 4 who were part of mob
that assaulted Muslims
December 16, 2022
A Delhi court acquitted four men who allegedly were
part of a mob that beat up Muslim men after ascertaining their religious
identity at Johripur Pulia.
Additional Sessions Judge Pulastya Pramchala acquitted
four accused Dinesh Yadav, Babu, Sandeep and Tinku, who were accused of being
part of a mob which assaulted several Muslim men on February 25, 2020.
The prosecution had relied on the fact that the three
accused pleaded guilty in a separate riot case and submitted that they were all
part of the same mob in the present case as well. However, the court said this
“submission is not based on evidence, rather it is a kind of presumption made
by the prosecution”.
“A member of unlawful assembly can join at any moment
and in the same manner, he can leave any moment. Therefore, the presence in one
such assembly at a different time, cannot be sufficient to presume that the
accused remained member of that assembly all the time,” the judgment read.
The court also said that the “victims of the riot did
not identify any of the accused persons as part of the respective riotous mob”.
Source: Indian Express
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Gujarat: Muslim Students, Parents Struggle With
Cancellation of Pre-Matric Scholarship, MANF
Tarushi Aswani
Gandhinagar: On November 25, 2022, the Union
government decided to cancel the pre-matric scholarships for students from
class 1 to 8 belonging to minority communities from the academic year 2022-23.
In its widely criticised move, the government
restricted the pre-matric scholarship scheme meant for minority communities to
only include students of classes 9 and 10. The government justified its stand
by saying that the Right to Education Act (RTE Act) covers compulsory education
up to class 8 for all students.
The decision drew fierce flak from scholars, activists
and political parties, with the Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party accusing the
Bharatiya Janata Party government of revoking rights of the poor.
For Chohan Isha, a student of class 7 from Modasa, the
cancelled scholarship means her dream of becoming a teacher is going dark. “My
father is a driver and earns Rs 6,000 a month. The scholarship was helping us
study, without being a burden on him,” explained Isha, whose brother is in
class 5 and was also benefitting from the scholarship.
Struggling to study
Amid the chaos created because of the cancellation of
pre-matric scholarships, the Union government also withdrew the Maulana Azad
National Fellowship (MANF). The MANF was launched by the earlier United Progressive
Alliance government at the Centre in an effort to implement the recommendations
of the Sachar Committee.
Both financial assistance schemes – the MANF as well
as the pre-matric scholarships for minority communities – were formulated by
the Ministry of Minority Affairs. While one was aiding students in their early
education, the other fellowship aided research scholars from the minority
communities.
Rashid Chaki, a teacher and social activist from
Jamnagar, has been struggling to help students avail what he calls the
scholarship ‘rightly belonging’ to them. Chaki filed an RTI with the Maulana
Azad Education Foundation (MAEF) and the state government after some parents of
excluded children approached him for help. The Begum Hazrat Mahal scholarship
is for girl students in classes 9 to 12 from the minority community. Students
of classes 9 and 10 receive Rs 5,000 annually as scholarship and students
studying in classes 11 and 12 receive Rs 6,000. Following the process of RTIs
and its replies, Chaki did not get a very solution-oriented response of the
ministry. MAEF told Chaki that it had received 2.82 lakh applications from
across India, of which 4,362 were pending verification. Out of these, 1,019
applications are from Gujarat.
Chaki, who helps scores of students correctly fill up
scholarship forms, told The Wire that even until November 15, 2022, the portal
was accepting applications for pre-matric scholarships.
Chaki’s uncle, Adam Chaki, has also been instrumental
in getting these scholarships to beneficiaries at the ground level – as a
petitioner in the case at the Gujarat high court.
In 2008, when the pre-matric scholarships were
launched, the Gujarat government under then chief minister Narendra Modi argued
in the apex court that the Centre’s scholarship for minorities is a scheme
based on religion and the Centre cannot compel the state to implement it, and
that a similar scheme was in place in the state for all poor students
irrespective of their religion.
The then Gujarat government had appealed to the
Supreme Court in this matter, challenging the Gujarat high court verdict
upholding tge constitutional validity of the scholarship. In this pre-matric
scholarship, the Union and state governments share the financial burden in the
ratio of 75:25. A student is eligible if their parental income from all sources
does not exceed Rs 2.50 lakh per annum.
Chaki explained that the reasoning that the government
has given – that the RTE covers expenses for students of class 1-8 – does not
apply to minority students studying in private schools. He added that as even
minority-run schools were exempt from implementing the RTE policy and did not
fall under the government’s Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, this would be problematic in
case a student from a minority community went to study in a minority-run school
of another community.
Isha, who studies in a private school in Karimnagar
along with her younger brother, feels that now, her parents will have to pick
which child they want to educate in the future, considering the cash crunch and
loss of the pre-matric scholarship.
Marginalising minorities
Mukhtar Bapu, trustee of Derawala Vidyalaya in Dhebar,
Jamnagar has been receiving calls ever since the news of the cancellation of
the scholarship came out. “Parents, students and even us school staff are
worried about the future of these children,” he said. The Vidyalaya Bapu runs
has 176 students from classes 1-8. The fee system of the school is such that
Bapu and his staff help children to fill forms wherein they take only half the
scholarship money as fees and let parents keep the rest. “We don’t know where
to go now, how to help these children in the middle of their academic years,”
he said.
Hamza Chiroliya, 32, is a former beneficiary of the
MANF, and is grateful for it. Chiroliya feels that had the fellowship not aided
his education, he would have never been able to complete his PhD. Like
Chiroliya, many students have been left in limbo, and forced to either borrow
loans or leave their education midway. “Had I been in this situation I would
not have been able to complete my PhD; it is not only unfair, but also pushing
Muslims to illiteracy.” Chiroliya also added that while not many pursued PhDs
in the state, this action would disable economically deprived persons from the
minority community to pursue an education at all.
Adding to the argument that the cancellation is
discriminatory in nature, Dr Manish Doshi, Congress’s Gujarat spokesperson,
said that the party vehemently opposed the BJP government’s politically
coloured decision. “The BJP government has a track record of robbing ST, SC and
OBC community members off of facilities. Rather than spending crores on their
own advertising, they should spend on the future of our country,” said Doshi.
Source: The Wire
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Bajrang Dal workers object to Hindu woman travelling
with Muslim man
16th December 2022
Bengaluru: An incident of Bajrang Dal activists
objecting to a young Hindu woman and Muslim man travelling together in a bus
and creating a scene has been reported from the communally sensitive district
of Dakshina Kannada in Karnataka, said police on Friday.
According to police, the woman was travelling with her
friend in a private bus from Mangaluru to Bengaluru.
The Bajrang activists, who got to know about this,
tried to stop the bus near the Pump well area in Mangaluru. However, when they
could not stop the bus, they informed their members in Kalladka town.
The activists stopped the bus at Dasakodi near Kalladka
Thursday midnight. They questioned the woman and the man over their travelling
together. The activists scolded the woman, and asked both to get down from the
bus. They later informed the Bantwal police, which immediately rushed to the
spot and took the two to safe custody.
This is the sixth incident of moral policing reported
from the coastal district of Dakshina Kannada in two weeks.
A video of the woman arguing with the Bajrang Dal
activists went viral on social media. The activists told the police that the
two were travelling together on a sleeper bus and they suspected it to be a
trap.
Source: Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Pakistan
Pakistan reserves right to act against cross-border
terrorism: Bilawal
December 16, 2022
UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan on Friday said that it would
not tolerate cross-border terrorism by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) or
other terrorist groups and that the country reserved the right to take direct
action against them.
“Pakistan will not tolerate such cross-border
terrorism by the TTP or other terrorist groups, like the BLA, which are also
receiving financial and other support from hostile quarters. We reserve the
right to take direct action against them,” the foreign minister said addressing
an event to commemorate the 8th anniversary of the terrorist attack on Army
Public School in Peshawar held here at the UN Headquarters.
Hosted by Pakistan, the event was held as part of the
UN’s Office of Counter Terrorism’s “Remembrance of the Victims of Terrorism”
campaign.
Started with one-minute silence, the commemorative
event brought together the UN member states, victims, experts, academics, civil
society organizations and representative of law enforcement agencies.
In his address, the foreign minister said 132 children
and eight teachers and staff at the School had died in that attack and several
others were injured.
The attack was claimed by the so-called
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an entity listed as a terrorist organization
by the Security Council and many Member States, he added.
“This terrorist attack was particularly heinous
because the clear aim of the terrorists was to kill children. In this sense, it
was a targeted attack designed to deal a grievous blow to the morale of the
people of Pakistan.”
He told the gathering that instead, the shock of the
APS massacre mobilized the Pakistani nation and motivated it to eliminate all
terrorists from their soil as massive military operations were undertaken to
cleanse the frontiers of the TTP and associated terrorist groups.
“Pakistan’s operations were successful. Our territory
was cleared of terrorists. We paid a heavy price – 80,000 civilians and
soldiers killed or injured and the economy set back by $120 billion,” he
remarked.
However, Foreign Minister Bilawal said unfortunately
the TTP and some other terrorist groups found “safe havens” and even more
frequent attacks have been conducted against Pakistan’s military and civilian
targets.
He said the brutal nature of the TTP, and its callous
targeting of children in the APS attack, and other crimes should also reinforce
the world community’s determination to combat and defeat the TTP, along with
other terrorist organizations, like ISIL-K, operating in Afghanistan.
He told the participants that Pakistan’s intelligence
agencies had “solid proof” of financial and organizational support and
direction provided to the TTP.
“We have shared a comprehensive dossier with the
Secretary-General and the Security Council containing concrete evidence of such
external support to the TTP and other terrorist groups operating against
Pakistan.”
The foreign minister said Pakistan had ?expected that
the new authorities in Kabul would be able to convince or constrain the TTP
from conducting cross-border terrorist attacks against Pakistan as they had
promised to do in the Doha Agreement and in subsequent policy declarations.
“However, endeavours towards this end appear to have
failed. The TTP seems to have been emboldened to declare a “war” against
Pakistan. Its attacks have intensified.”
He expressed the hope that the remembrance of the APS
attack would serve to mobilize the UN’s counter-terrorism machinery to address
the threat of terrorism which presently emanated from Afghanistan and adjacent
regions in a comprehensive and effective manner.
“We need to eliminate the “safe havens” of these
terrorists; to cut off the sources of their financing and sponsorship; and to
target and hold accountable individuals and entities responsible for the
terrorist attacks or for sponsoring and financing such attacks,” he commented
and assured Pakistan’s support to the UN and the international community in realizing
the said objectives.
The foreign minister also read out the last word of
APS Principal Tahira Qazi “They are my children and I am their mother” she
uttered before being burnt alive by the terrorists in front of her pupils as
she struggled to protect them.
He also showed the picture of a student Sher Shah
Khattak who sacrificed his life while tryign to save his classmates.
The foreign minister told the gathering that he had
also lost his mother in a terrorist attack carried out by the same terrorist organisation.
Deputy Under-Secretary-General and Representative of
United Nations Office of Counter Terrorism Raffi Gregorian said the APS attack
had shocked the world.
He said there was no justification of attacking
children particularly when they were there to learn.
He said the United Nations stood in solidarity with
the victims and families whose lives were changed after the terror attacks.
He said the UN took multiple measures for the rights
of terror victims like the observance of an annual day and adoption of two UN
Assembly resolutions.
He said the member states needed to be more inclusive
and make the victims’ associations part of the anti-terror efforts and
strategies.
Among notable speakers included Ahmed Nawaz , a
survivor of the APS terrorist attack, President of Oxford Union, Dr. Fatima Ali
Haider, a therapist whose husband and son were killed in a sectarian incident
in 2013. In the aftermath of Peshawar’s Army Public School massacre in December
2014, she co-founded The Grief Directory in 2015.
Other speakers included Sallie Lynch, Consultant for
Tuesday’s Children and Muhammad Khalid Khan Khattak, Member-Policy on Counter
Terrorism Extremism and Financial Terrorism of NACTA.
A short video was also played developed by the
Pakistan Mission. Brochures were also distributed amongst the member states to
apprise them of the horrific incident.
Source: Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pakistan at end of its tether with Kabul over TTP
attacks
Anwar Iqbal
December 17, 2022
UNITED NATIONS: Foreign Minister Bilawal
Bhutto-Zardari on Friday warned the perpetrators of terrorism that Pakistan
will not tolerate cross-border terrorism by the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban
Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and other militant groups,
adding that Islamabad reserved the right to take direct action against them.
In an earlier statement, the minister also said
Pakistan could reconsider its strategy for dealing with Afghanistan’s Taliban
rulers, but it could not afford to disengage with Kabul.
“Pakistan will not tolerate cross-border terrorism by
the TTP or other terrorist groups, like the BLA,” FM Bhutto-Zardari said at a
UN event. In an indirect reference to India, the foreign minister said Pakistan
had evidence to prove that such groups were “receiving financial and other
support from hostile quarters”.
“We reserve the right to take direct action against
them,” the foreign minister told the participants who had gathered to honour
the victims of the Dec 16, 2014, terrorist attack on the Army Public School in
Peshawar.
The TTP militants, who had come from Afghanistan,
killed 149 people — including 132 schoolchildren — in one of the worst
terrorist attacks in Pakistan.
While raising the issue of resumption of attacks by
TTP and other militant groups inside Pakistan, a journalist asked the foreign
minister at a Thursday afternoon news briefing here if Islamabad would consider
disengaging with Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers because they were allowing them
to carry out the attacks.
“I can’t wish the Taliban away or Afghanistan away.
They are a reality, and they are on my border,” he replied, but “the modes and
ways in which we are engaging, particularly within the Pakistani context, and
as far as the TTP is concerned, perhaps that can be reconsidered, as far as the
strategy is concerned”.
However, in his address to the APS commemoration
event, the foreign minister said that Kabul’s Taliban rulers had failed
Pakistan’s “hope and expectation” that Kabul’s new authorities “would be able
to convince or constrain the TTP from conducting cross-border terrorist
attacks.”
He recalled that the Afghan Taliban pledged to do so
in Doha, where they signed a peace agreement with the United States and also in
subsequent declarations. “But endeavors towards this end appear to have failed.
The TTP seems to have been emboldened to declare a war against Pakistan. Its
attacks have intensified,” he noted.
The foreign minister then directly blamed India for
encouraging TTP terrorists for attacking Pakistan.
“Our intelligence agencies have solid proof of
financial and organizational support and direction provided to the TTP by the
agents of our eastern neighbor and by elements of the previous government in
Kabul,” he said.
He said Pakistan had shared a comprehensive dossier
with the secretary-general and the UN Security Council “containing concrete
evidence of such external support to the TTP and other terrorist groups
operating against Pakistan”.
The chief Pakistani diplomat hoped that the UN’s
counter-terrorism machinery will address the threat of terrorism that presently
emanates from Afghanistan and adjacent regions in a comprehensive and effective
manner.
“We need to eliminate the safe havens of these
terrorists; to cut-off the sources of their financing and sponsorship; and to
target and hold accountable individuals and entities responsible for the
terrorist attacks or for sponsoring and financing such attacks,” he said.
Reconstruction his top priority: UN chief
On the sidelines of the G77 ministerial conference in
New York, the foreign minister met UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on
Thursday evening.
The UN chief assured the Pakistani leader that
“resilient reconstruction” of flood-hit areas in his country was his “top priority.”
Mr Guterres also reaffirmed “full UN support” to the
ongoing humanitarian work in the country.
Mr Bhutto-Zardari conveyed his appreciation to the
secretary general for his “solidarity” and massive support to Pakistan in the
wake of the devastating floods in the country, and for announcing the
International Conference on Climate Resilient Pakistan in Geneva on Jan 9,
2023.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1726783/pakistan-at-end-of-its-tether-with-kabul-over-ttp-attacks
--------
Only state should deal with religious matters: SC
Nasir Iqbal
December 17, 2022
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to
an accused facing blasphemy charges for joining a “WhatsApp” group, which
allegedly posted sacrilegious content, and observed that the state, and not
individuals, should have the authority to deal with the matters concerning
religion.
“The state should not surrender itself to individuals
on religious matters rather the state machinery should be used in such
sensitive matters with great care in a proficient manner,” observed Justice
Qazi Faez Isa, who was heading a two-judge SC bench also comprising Justice
Yahya Afridi.
The bench, which had taken up the bail plea, regretted
how the accused would defend himself when he had no idea about the nature of
crime he committed.
The court allowed the bail petition subject to
furnishing of a surety bond of Rs100,000 and said the present case needs
further inquiry.
Grants bail to blasphemy accused
The accused had challenged the rejection of his bail
application by Lahore High Court’s Multan bench which was also seized with a
review petition against framing of charges against him under the blasphemy
section.
Deputy Attorney General (DAG) Shafqat Abbasi told Dawn
that the accused was arrested from Layyah on April 22 this year by the Federal
Investigation Agency’s (FIA) cybercrime wing on a complaint registered on April
6 under Section 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), which deals with
offences for insulting religion as well as Section 11 of the Prevention of the
Electronic Crime Act relating to hate speech.
Surprisingly, the complainant was not a member of the
WhatsApp group and registered the complaint after one of his friends told him
about the questionable text which the latter received on his cellphone.
The FIA later dropped Section 295C of the PPC from the
challan after seeking an opinion from the Council of the Islamic Ideology (CII)
which had held that the matter did not attract this section.
During the hearing, the apex court raised doubts and
observed that how the accused would defend himself when he did not know about
the nature of the allegations.
The SC bench was also not amused with the way FIA’s
team conducted the inquiry, regretting that the investigation failed to explain
whether the complainant was well conversant with the Arabic language since the
social media group in which the objectionable text was posted was in Arabic.
The court noted that the CII opinion was not taken
into account while framing charges against the accused by the trial court.
“What is the purpose of CII if the opinion of the constitutional institution is
not to be followed,” the court regretted.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1726774/only-state-should-deal-with-religious-matters-sc
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‘Illegal Afghan immigrant’ held for NED student’s
murder in Karachi
Imtiaz Ali
December 17, 2022
KARACHI: A suspect allegedly involved in the killing
of a young NED University student, was shot and arrested during an encounter on
Superhighway, police said on Friday.
Twenty-one-year-old Bilal Nasir, a resident of Federal
B. Area, who was in his third year at the petroleum engineering department of
the NED University, was shot dead when he put up resistance to a robbery bid at
a tea shop outside the main university gate near Samama Shopping Mall on
Thursday.
The killing sparked outrage on social media with
students holding protest demonstrations on campus against the breakdown of law
and order in Karachi.
Karachi police chief Javed Odho told a press
conference at his office that the suspect, who was arrested on Friday morning
after an encounter, hailed from Afghanistan.
Slain Bilal Nasir laid to rest amid moving scenes;
demonstration held against murder outside varsity
A special team led by East-SSP Syed Abdul Rahim
Shirazi arrested 16-year-old Nizamuddin, an Afghan Tajik, while his accomplice,
also a Tajik, was still at large.
The suspects were ‘illegal immigrants’ and residents
of the Jamali Pull area off Superhighway, he said, stressing the need to bring
illegal immigrants living in Karachi under a law.
Meanwhile, funeral prayers for Bilal Nasir were held
at a Federal B. Area mosque on Friday.
A large number of residents, friends, students and
others attended the funeral prayers. The robbery victim was buried in
Yaseenabad Graveyard amid moving scenes.
Protest
Students and activists staged a demonstration outside
the university against the killing. The protesters claimed that street crimes
had increased particularly on University Road.
Speaking on this occasion, Jamaat-i-Islami Karachi
chief Hafiz Naeem Rehman said law enforcers were present in vicinity of the
university and Rangers were also present, but when they asked the Rangers to
control robberies in the city, they replied that “this was not within the ambit
of their powers”.
The JI leader announced that they would observe a
‘mourning day’ on Saturday and a rally would also be taken out.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1726702/illegal-afghan-immigrant-held-for-ned-students-murder-in-karachi
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Pak-Afghan meeting today amid unease at Chaman
Saleem Shahid
December 17, 2022
QUETTA: A day after armed clashes between Pakistan and
Afghan forces claimed one life, the situation at the Chaman border remained
calm with routine trade activities continuing unabated.
Pakistan also summoned the Afghan chargé d’affaires on
Friday to protest over the “unprovoked” shelling that left 15 people wounded.
Amid the relative calm, the tension was palpable as
forces on both sides of the border remained alert, with heavy weapons drawn.
Quetta Corps Commander Lt-Gen Asif Ghafoor visited
Chaman and reviewed the situation at the border in a meeting with the
authorities.
He met with tribal elders living along the border,
traders, ulema and locals of Chaman.
Head of southern command visits border; Pakistan
summons Afghan chargé d’affaires
Lt-Gen Ghafoor expressed his grief over the loss of
life and property due to shelling by Afghan forces. He expressed sympathy for
the affected families and assured all-out help and cooperation.
The participants of the meeting condemned the
aggression from the Afghan side and said it was ‘an attempt to create
misunderstandings’ between the two brotherly countries.
The meeting decided to take steps at all levels to
mend fences and defuse the situation between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Lt-Gen Ghafoor urged the tribal elders on both sides
to play a role in reducing tensions and maintaining close contact with the
other side.
“Nobody should be happy with the losses that took
place in Chaman or Spin Boldak,” Lt Gen Ghafoor said, adding Pakistan did not
initiate the attack and will not do so in future as well.
However, he vowed to “protect and defend the citizens
at all costs.”
Sources said a flag meeting was also expected between
senior commanders and border authorities of both sides on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the Friendship Gate at the border remained
open throughout the day and routine trade activities took place as usual.
Travellers from both sides were allowed to move across the border after showing
the required legal documents.
The transit trade was not suspended as well and trucks
were allowed to cross the border.
FO summons Afghan diplomat
The Foreign Office, in a statement on Friday, said the
Afghan chargé d’affaires was summoned to protest over recent firing incidents.
The FO condemned the unprovoked cross-border shelling
by Afghan Border Security Forces in the Chaman-Spin Boldak area.
“It was reiterated that protection of civilians
remained the responsibility of both sides and that recurrence of these
incidents must be prevented. It was agreed to use established institutional
mechanisms in this regard,” the FO added.
Pakistan remained committed to maintaining “fraternal
relations” with Afghanistan, the statement said, adding, “Peace along the
Pak-Afghan border is intrinsic to this end.”
Thursday’s attack came four days after the Afghan
authorities ‘apologised’ over cross-border shelling that claimed the lives of
eight people.
At least 16 people also suffered injuries on Sunday
when Afghan border forces attacked civilian population in Chaman with heavy
gunfire and artillery shelling.
The relations between the two sides have been strained
for the past few weeks after a number of cross-border attacks and an ‘attempt
on the life’ of Pakistan’s Head of Mission in Kabul Ubaidur Rehman Nizamani on
Dec 2.
Amid rising tensions, voices are being raised in
Pakistan to revisit the police vis-à-vis Afghanistan after the border clashes.
On Thursday, PPP’s Senator Farook H. Naek called for
revisiting the Afghan policy while chairing a meeting of the Senate Standing
Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1726782/pak-afghan-meeting-today-amid-unease-at-chaman
--------
Europe
Divisive Australia: Promotes Islam, Shuns Christianity
by Mark Durie
December 16, 2022
In the lead-up to the recent Victoria, Australia,
election, Premier Daniel Andrews announced grants of more than $8 million to
the Victoria Islamic community. A social media video posted by his office
celebrated this news in a way that can only be described as joyful. In the video,
Andrews stated that $3 million will fund education to tackle Islamophobia. He
also declared that Victoria will be funding Muslims to spread the word of
Islam:
We think it is important, as part of an education
process, that everyone across our state knows about the works of the Prophet
Muhammad, Peace Be Upon Him. It's very important that his teachings, his life,
his journey, is understood by so many people. That's why we will provide a
$500,000 grant to the Islamic Museum in partnership with the Board of Imams and
also the Islamic Council of Victoria to develop a program to educate, to share
those teachings, that wisdom. This is part of a comprehensive plan to do what
matters.
This sounds awfully like state-funded proselytism.
Of course it is important that people know about
Muhammad's deeds, teachings, and life. However, we can expect that the
information made available to Victorians through this largess will be more
promotional than informative. It will urge Victorians not only to respect but
also to believe in the message and mission of Muhammad.
The figure of Muhammad is complex, contradictory, and
controversial. At times, he advocated for what today would be recognised as
justice – for example, caring for widows and orphans. At the same time, Muhammad's
works and words stand behind the many strict restrictions and punishments
applied by Islamic legal codes. The Afghan Taliban has forbidden car drivers,
restaurants, and public media from playing music, based on Muhammad. Qatar
banned alcohol from the FIFA World Cup and bans homosexual acts, based on
Muhammad. Saudi Arabia applies the penalties of amputation for theft and
cross-amputation for moharebeh, based on Muhammad. Indonesia has recently
banned sex outside marriage, reflecting religious beliefs based on Muhammad.
Similar bans are in place in other Muslim-majority nations, including Pakistan,
Qatar, Iran, Somalia, and Sudan.
Andrews' enthusiastic praise for Muhammad, and his
glowing praise of the Muslim community – including a declaration that he will
always 'stand' with them – contrast starkly with his recent vilification of
conservative Melbourne Anglicans for their views on abortion and same-sex
marriage. He called their views 'intolerance', 'hatred', 'bigotry', and
'absolutely appalling'. Ironically, Andrews was castigating Victorian
Christians for holding views that very many Victorian Muslims also hold.
Our culture manifests two opposite, extreme approaches
to religion, both flawed. One is to treat religion as something that is merely
a part of culture, perhaps at times rather odd, but essentially of secondary
importance. In a sense, this is what Andrews has done with Muhammad, for his
glowing praise is vacuous and treats with dismissive contempt the actual
content of Muhammad's words and deeds. It is as if the profound impact of
Muhammad on millions of men's, women's, and children's lives is irrelevant and
deserves no critical reflection.
The other extreme response to religion is to vilify
and demonise. Andrews' response to the beliefs of some Victorian Anglicans
about abortion and marriage was an example.
Religion is too important to be abused in these ways.
The American journalist Andrew Breitbart observed that 'politics is downstream
from culture'. And culture is downstream from religion. Over time, religions
have tremendous power to shape cultures and, through them, politics and law,
both for good and for evil.
Source: ME Forum
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.meforum.org/63908/divisive-australia-promotes-islam-shuns
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Russia Launches Missile Attacks in Ukrainian Cities,
Including Kyiv
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
December 16, 2022
The Russian air strikes targeted Kyiv, the capital
city, Kryvyi Rih, in the south and Kharkiv in the northeast of Ukraine. The
sound of explosions was heard across the country the local authorities
reported.
“The attack on the capital continues, and subway
services in the capital were suspended, as people flocked inside its tunnels
deep underground to seek shelter” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported on
Telegram.
According to experts striking energy infrastructures
has been part of a new Russian strategy to try to freeze Ukrainians into
submission after key battlefield losses by Russian forces in recent months.
The unwanted Russian invasion of Ukraine began on
February 24 and the war has prolonged beyond Putin’s expectations. To continue
supplying its military, Russia has already started looking for alternatives.
Iran, for instance, one of its closest allies in the Middle East is reported to
be supplying Russia with drones and missiles.
On the other hand, U.S. and NATO member states provide
military supplies and ammunition including sophisticated missiles to Ukraine’s
forces to resist the mighty Russian Army. According to local authorities, the
Ukrainian army has been able to bring down Russian missiles, Rockets, and
drones before hitting the target.
Source: Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/russia-launches-missile-attacks-in-ukrainian-cities-including-kyiv/
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Supporters of PKK terrorist group hold illegal
demonstration in Swedish capital
Atila Altuntas
16.12.2022
STOCKHOLM
Supporters of the PKK/YPG terrorist group staged an
unauthorized demonstration in Stockholm on Friday.
Terror supporters displayed a PKK banner over a bridge
in the city's Kungsgatan street, chanting slogans praising the terrorist
organization.
Video footage posted later on a social media account
affiliated with the terror group showed that preparations were underway to hold
a planned large-scale demonstration on Jan. 21 in the Swedish capital.
Sweden and Helsinki struck a deal with Ankara in June,
which requires them not to provide support to the PKK and its offshoots, or to
the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated
coup in Türkiye. Ankara has also called for the extradition of terror suspects.
Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan, have warned that Türkiye will not give the nod to their memberships
until its concerns are addressed.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and NATO
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg recently visited Türkiye to discuss the
membership bids, which require unanimous approval from the alliance's 30 members.
Source: Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Southeast Asia
Should Christians Support Indonesia Criminalizing
Cohabitation and Extramarital Sex?
DECEMBER 16, 2022
Last week, Indonesia’s parliament approved a new penal
code that received backlash from the United Nations and human rights groups
inside and outside the Southeast Asian nation.
The new code, which replaces a colonial-era code
enacted while the archipelago was under Dutch rule, includes the
criminalization of cohabitation and sex outside marriage, bans insulting the
president, and keeps in place blasphemy laws that have been used at times
against religious minorities, including Christians. The law will go into effect
after a transitional period of three years.
Home to the world’s largest Muslim population,
Indonesia places a high value on religious harmony—known officially as
Pancasila—among its 277 million citizens, and its constitution guarantees
freedom of religion. Christians, who make up about 10 percent of the
population, have mostly kept quiet on the new code.
CT asked five Indonesian Christians for their thoughts
on the new criminal code’s article on cohabitation and extramarital sex, as
well as other articles on blasphemy and criticizing the president. They
explained how enforcement matters and why many Christians share the same stance
on morality but disagree with the government’s attempts to legislate it.
Ihan Martoyo, director of Center for Research and
Community Development, Universitas Pelita Harapan (UPH) in Tangerang
Many reports in Western media found the Indonesian new
criminal law controversial, especially the point related to sex outside
marriage. But only a few explained that the offense regarding extramarital sex
is in fact a complaint offense (delik aduan), which does not apply unless a
close family member—a spouse, a parent, or a child—reports the offense to the
police. So the fear that it would apply to unmarried foreign tourists is
unlikely to happen unless the tourist offends Indonesian family members by
sleeping with an Indonesian.
I think the media controversy also highlights the
undercurrent of cultural differences. In Western culture, which is typically
more individualistic than in the East, sex is a matter of personal choice and
freedom. However, Eastern culture is more communal and considers how sexual
relations can cause repercussions to the community, especially the close family
members. It seems there is a widely accepted consensus among Indonesian Muslims
and Christians to view extramarital sex as compromising good moral values.
It is quite interesting to note that many biblical
passages also articulate communal religious or virtuous values. Paul often
admonishes the church to pay attention to the body of Christ (1 Cor. 11:27),
perhaps something that modern Christians find difficult to comprehend.
Should the government legislate morality? For some
issues like marriage, the answer seems to be quite complicated. Reformer John
Calvin faced issues sharing responsibilities between the Consistory (a church
court) and the City Council regarding marital disputes in Geneva. In our modern
time, debates on the “acceptable kind” of marriage touch on civil law and
create some of the most difficult debates among churches. This dichotomy
between civil criminal codes and morality seems to be an artifact of modernity
that we are still struggling to navigate. For religious Indonesians, they do
not believe that the public sphere must be kept sterile from religious values.
William Wijaya (name changed for security reasons), a
seminary professor in Indonesia
As someone who holds to a traditional view on sexual
ethics, I agree that extramarital sex is prohibited by the Scriptures.
Nevertheless, the issue here is whether or not the government should make laws
regarding this. I don’t think that just because something is prohibited in
Christian ethics, Christians should support its criminalization.
I accept my own bias: I’ve been educated in the West,
where privacy is important. This law is an intrusion of privacy. It’s very
hard—if not impossible—to enforce laws on private matters. The law stipulates
that only a parent or a child could make an accusation against someone. How
could the government prove that sexual activity has happened?
I’m very glad that the law in Indonesia is not the
Islamic law. I’m glad to live in a country where the majority doesn’t impose
their ethics on me, a Christian. I can do things that my Muslim neighbors are
prohibited from doing.
I’d like to say to my Christian sisters and brothers,
in the US especially, that in a pluralistic society, I don’t think we should
use our Christian ethics as the basis of our law. We should find a way to move
forward together, to find a common ground, and even to allow some of the things
that are prohibited by our faith.
Samuel Soegiarto, head of the Institute of Spiritual
Development and Christian Leadership at Petra Christian University in Surabaya
From a Christian perspective, God designs sex to be
one of the most beautiful things that can happen between a man and a woman in a
marriage. So yes, extramarital sex is against God’s design. Religious leaders,
Christians and Muslims, should not stop encouraging their followers to live
according to God's design. But when this divine precept is legalized, when it
becomes law, we need to be cautious. As a Christian, I want more and more
people to live a holy life. But if what drives them is the fear of prison,
something is wrong.
The blasphemy laws in the code are designed to protect
the rights of religious followers. But some parts are ambiguous; for example,
“expressing hatred and hostility toward other people’s religious beliefs” can
be interpreted in many ways, including expressing disagreement with religious
claims. In the end, the interpretation will be decided by the majority.
I think Christians should not insult the president. We
have to be critical of government policies and, if necessary, protest.
Regarding the law, the government should make clear the definition of insult.
If not, this law has much potential to be abused to silence the opposition.
Martin Lukito Sinaga, pastor and chairperson of the
Interreligious Relations Commission at Communion of Churches in Indonesia
Extramarital sex and cohabitation acts can be regarded
as criminal only if family members report it. Some experts told me that this
aligns with an existing domestic violence law in which an “act of negligence”
from the parent due to his or her cohabitation can be regarded as criminal. In
this case, religious morality is used to protect family members.
The critical issue is its enforcement and whether it
will be used to punish cohabitation or to protect the family from negligence by
any members engaged in it.
The blasphemy laws are a long-standing issue. Some
NGOs believe the articles on blasphemy should be replaced with a law that would
combat intolerance, discrimination, and violence against a person based on
religion or belief. This would require more public deliberation on the issue of
defamation.
The law criminalizing insulting the president is also
debated in the context of freedom of speech and freedom to criticize the
government. Therefore, democracy is at stake here. This is also a complaint
offense, and hopefully, the meaning of insult is clearly defined. Insult is
understood as giving false information about the personal life of the
president. Again, how complaints about the president are processed by the
police is the key to whether this will harm democracy or not.
Christine Elisia Widjaya, a civil-law notary and
private law lecturer at Universitas 45 in Surabaya
Most people agree that what is legal is not
necessarily what is moral. However, laws should be based on—and in harmony
with—the moral principles of society. As the representative of the Indonesian
people, the government has the responsibility to pass bills. By governing
morality, the government plays an important role in protecting its citizens.
That doesn’t only include extramarital sex but also drug abuse, alcohol, and
pornography due to the physical and mental health risks associated with those
acts. As a result, society faces consequences such as public health issues, the
cost of the criminal justice system, and the decline of economic productivity.
However, not every immoral act should be necessarily
made illegal. What is defined as “morality” is relative, depending on the
environment, religion, and philosophy. In my opinion, the government may
legislate morality, but not every immoral behavior should be punishable by law.
Criminalization should be used as the last resort. I believe that placing
limits on these behaviors is the best policy for protecting society from
morally corrupt behavior.
The blasphemy laws will affect Christians in many
ways, such as to silence political opposition and justify attacks on religious
minorities. In short, it will promote intolerance and discrimination, violate
the fundamental rights to freedom of religion and expression, as well as
prevent harmony among religious society in the multicultural country of
Indonesia.
As Christians, we must follow the teaching of Jesus
and submit ourselves to the governing authority (Rom. 13:1–7). The government
is established by God and serves the purpose of ruling and promoting general
welfare, so it is our responsibility to be good citizens by submitting to and
obeying the laws.
Source: Christianity Today
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Malaysia’s Anwar may give Thai Deep South talks shot
in arm
Iskandar Zulkarnain and Iman Muttaqin Yusof
2022.12.15
Change may be coming to slow-moving and thus far
fruitless peace talks in Thailand’s Deep South, observers say, as Malaysia’s
new prime minister is keenly interested in the conflict and no friend of the
current facilitator, who once punched him in the eye.
Talks between negotiators representing Thailand’s
government and insurgents in the mostly Muslim southern border region were
informally on hold while Malaysia – which for years has brokered the talks –
held an election in November. The two sides last conferred in August.
Malaysia’s new leader, Anwar Ibrahim, has already met
with Thai Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan. But the two governments have
kept mum about the future direction of the peace talks, saying only that they
are discussing matters, including whether peace broker Abdul Rahim Noor, a
former national police chief, would be replaced.
The date of the next round of talks hasn’t yet been
confirmed, although the Malaysian facilitator told BenarNews last week that it
would take place in January. BenarNews tried to get information from Thai
officials, but calls to the head and secretary of the Thai peace panel were not
picked up.
Meanwhile, a senior member of Barisan Revolusi
Nasional (BRN) – the largest and most powerful insurgent group in the Thai Deep
South – said recently that it would be open to autonomy instead of
independence, if that is what people in the region want.
The BRN man gave a rare, on-camera interview to
BenarNews in August on condition that his identity be concealed and his voice
altered.
“The ultimate goal is independence. …. To achieve the
goal, the Patani people’s support is a key factor,” said the insurgent, who
asked to be identified as “Mustakim.”
“However, if the people see during the struggle that
there are better options than independence, such as what occurred in Aceh or
Mindanao, [then] that could be their consensus.”
Rebel groups in Aceh, Indonesia, and Mindanao, in the
southern Philippines, originally sought independence but settled for autonomy
in return for peace.
Mustakim said the Deep South peace talks have left
much to be desired.
“[T]he peace talk process does not live up to ideal
standards, when compared to successful processes such as in other ASEAN
countries like Indonesia’s Aceh [region],” he said.
“They had a detailed and tangible process leading to a
peace agreement in a short time, not 10 or 20 years.”
BRN has been fighting to establish an independent
state for Malay Muslims who form the majority of the population in Thailand’s
southern border region. It was not clear if “Mustakim” was stating an official
view or his own opinion, and whether BRN had authorized him to speak to
reporters.
Anwar ‘can play a significant role’
Meanwhile, observers of regional conflict also noted
the slow progress of the peace talks.
The Thai government and BRN representatives began
Malaysia-brokered peace negotiations in early 2020, soon before the outbreak of
the coronavirus pandemic in the neighboring countries. These talks followed
years of negotiations between the government and MARA Patani, an umbrella group
that brought together Deep South insurgent groups, including BRN.
Mohd. Mizan Mohammad Aslam of the National Defense
University of Malaysia said peace talks had not changed anything on the ground
because, in his view, the conflict actually escalated after the COVID-19
pandemic.
Malaysia needs to revamp the whole negotiation process
to reach a workable solution, and that includes getting someone new to replace
the facilitator Abdul Rahim Noor, he said.
“The [Malaysian] government has two choices: whether
you want someone energetic, relatively young, and who has a will to finish the
task or the job, or do you want someone who is very experienced with wisdom to
tackle the issue?” he told BenarNews.
Mohd Mizan believes Anwar can play a prominent role.
“He is one of the very respected figures in Thailand.
I know during his tenure as deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim helped a lot
of Muslims, especially madrassas in southern Thailand. So with that, I believe
he can play a significant role,” he said.
Another analyst, Altaf Deviyati, co-founder and
director of IMAN Research, a Kuala Lumpur think-tank, said Malaysia had not
been proactive in these past few years on the Deep South issue.
“Malaysia is [currently] functioning literally like a
secretariat office. … [But] Anwar Ibrahim has shown over the years his interest
in the situation in the Deep South and security in ASEAN in general,” she told
BenarNews.
“I would think he will take a personal interest in the
progress of the dialogue. …I would assume that the facilitator may [also] be
replaced.”
Last week, Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution
Ismail said the possibility of replacing Rahim Noor was among things discussed
during a meeting with Thai Deputy Prime Minister Prawit.
“When the time comes we will announce [any change] … I
can say that the matter was also touched on during the meeting,” he told
reporters in Putrajaya.
“[I]t was too specific and detailed with several
mutual commitments that need to be discussed, but it is still too early for me
to divulge the details on the matter for the moment.”
Rahim Noor was appointed facilitator for the southern
Thai peace talks in September 2018 by then-Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
Anwar’s People’s Justice Party, which was part of
Mahathir’s coalition government, strongly objected to the appointment. Party
members had not forgotten that Rahim Noor, as the police inspector-general,
punched Anwar in prison in 1998 after Mahathir had sacked Anwar as deputy prime
minister, in a notorious case dubbed as the “black eye incident.”
Two years later, Rahim Noor was sentenced to two
months in prison for the assault. In 2005, the former police chief publicly
apologized to Anwar in court.
BenarNews contacted Rahim Noor last week to seek
comment but he declined to answer. Officials at Malaysia’s Ministry of Home
Affairs as well as the PM’s Office did not respond to BenarNews questions about
whether the facilitator would be replaced.
Don Pathan, a Thailand-based security analyst,
declined to comment on the Anwar-Rahim Noor relationship, but said a new
facilitator in the talks may move things along.
“About Rahim Noor, perhaps it’s time for him to step
aside. He was Dr. Mahathir’s choice,” Pathan told BenarNews.
“PM Anwar is in charge now, and he appeared to be more
hands-on, making a quick trip to Bangkok just days before the General Election
to meet Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwan,” Pathan said, referring to Anwar’s visit to
the Thai capital on Sept. 22.
The armed separatist movement in the Deep South region
against Buddhist-majority Thailand began in the 1960s.
Source: Benar News
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Malaysia death toll rises to 21
17 December ,2022
Rescue workers scoured muddy terrain for survivors and
bodies on Saturday as the death toll from a landslide at a Malaysian campsite
rose to 21, including five children, authorities said.
A dozen people were still missing after a predawn
landslide hit a campsite at an organic farm on Friday near the town of Batang
Kali just outside the capital Kuala Lumpur.
Officials said there had been more than 90 people,
most of them asleep, at the campsite near a mountain casino resort when the
landslide struck.
Authorities said 61 people had been found safe or
rescued.
Two of the victims were “believed to be a mother and
her child in a state of embrace buried under the earth”, Norazam Khamis,
director of the Selangor state fire and rescue department, told reporters on
Friday.
The farm did not have a licence to run a campsite and
its operators would be punished if they were found to have broken the law,
authorities said.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim visited the area late
Friday and said financial aid would be given to the families of those killed or
injured in the disaster.
Selangor state chief minister Amirudin Shari tweeted
that all picnic and camping sites in the state would be closed for a week.
Landslides are common in Malaysia after heavy rains,
which are regular at the end of the year, and can occur after bouts of bad
weather.
However, no heavy rains were recorded in the area on
the night of the disaster.
The government has imposed strict rules on hillside
development.
In March, four people were killed after a massive
landslide triggered by heavy rains buried their homes in a Kuala Lumpur suburb.
Source: Al Arabiya
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https://english.alarabiya.net/News/world/2022/12/17/Malaysia-death-toll-rises-to-21-
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Rescuers race to find survivors of deadly landslide at
Malaysia campsite
December 16, 2022
KUALA LUMPUR: Rescuers raced to find survivors of a
deadly landslide on Friday, which killed at least 21 people, including women
and children, near the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.
The landslide struck a campsite in the town of Batang
Kali in Selangor, where families were sleeping in their tents on early Friday
morning.
Nearly 100 people were swept away and about a dozen
are still missing, feared buried under the heavy soil, the Fire and Rescue
Department told reporters, as hundreds of personnel from search agencies
continued to scour thick mud and downed trees.
“Total victims are 94 individuals, those confirmed
dead are 21 individuals, those still missing are 12 people,” Malaysia’s Deputy
Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told reporters at the site.
Environmental Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad said in a
press release that the 500-meter-long landslide that moved 450,000 cubic meters
of soil was likely a result of an embankment slope failure.
The campsite belonged to Father’s Organic Farm,
located about 4 km from the Genting Highlands resort, which describes itself as
a child-friendly attraction promoting organic fruit and vegetable planting.
The farm has been reportedly operating the campsite
illegally.
The landslide was the deadliest such incident in the
Selangor region since the 1995 incident in which a massive mudslide buried 20
people on the road leading up to Genting Highlands.
Environmental group Sahabat Alam Malaysia urged the
government on Friday to promptly investigate the tragedy and make the outcome
of the probe open to the public.
“How was a campsite allowed on a hilly area?
Photographs showed that a major slope failure has occurred under the highway
nearby in the upper reaches of the site. What triggered that to happen?”
Meenakshi Raman, the group’s president, said in a statement.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217006/world
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Arab World
Marvels of Saudi urban landscape testify to abiding
Italian design influence
NADA ALTURKI
December 16, 2022
RIYADH: As Saudi Arabia and Italy mark 90 years of
formal diplomatic relations, evidence of their strong bonds of friendship can
be found in the brick and mortar of their respective cities, from architectural
masterpieces to unique design innovations.
Among the most striking examples of this collaboration
is Al-Balad cultural square, the permanent venue of the Red Sea International
Film Festival in Jeddah, renovated by Rome-based architectural design firm
Schiattarella Associati.
In the historic Diriyah district near Riyadh, Italian
architect Amedeo Schiattarella, founder and chairman of the eponymous firm, is
also responsible for Diriyah Art Futures — the world’s first education-focused
digital arts center — which will be completed next year.
The 10,000-square-meter site will not only act as an
innovation hub but also as a tourist attraction, dotted with hotels,
restaurants, parks and coffee shops, set in the historic grounds where the
Saudi state was born.
Incidentally, Diriyah is also home to the Qasr Al-Hukm
(Palace of Justice), renovated by Italian architect Marco Albini in the
mid-1970s.
In the space of just a few years, the long-neglected
region of AlUla in the Kingdom’s northwest has also been transformed into an
enchanting living museum, attracting visitors from across the globe and gaining
recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
AlUla’s awe-inspiring Maraya Concert Hall — an edifice
covered in 9,740 mirrors, allowing it to blend seamlessly into the surrounding
landscape — was developed by Italian architecture firm Gio Forma and designed
by architect Florian Boje.
Maraya was the first development under the Journey
Through Time Masterplan, a Saudi initiative to preserve the Kingdom’s cultural
oasis and explore 200,000 years of heritage in AlUla dating back to the
Nabataeans.
As part of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 social reform and
economic diversification agenda, Maraya aims to raise awareness about the
region’s cultural legacy and remarkable topography.
The Maraya Concert Hall’s ties to Italy do not end
with its architecture. The venue regularly hosts performances by Italian
artists. Tenor Andreas Bocelli has performed four times at the annual Winter at
Tantora.
Gio Forma is also responsible for the Prince Abdul Majeed
bin Abdulaziz Airport in AlUla and has submitted a proposal to refurbish
Al-Muazzam Fort Hotel in Tabuk, northwest Saudi Arabia.
Italian involvement in the Kingdom’s infrastructure
projects is not a recent phenomenon. Webuild, a Milan-based engineering firm,
originally founded as Impregilo in 1959, is behind multiple sustainable
infrastructure projects in the Kingdom dating back to 1966.
The firm, today headed by CEO Pietro Salini, has built
several housing units, the architectural frameworks for hospitals, and
sustainable methods of water sourcing. Its most notable work is the Kingdom
Tower, a 41-story, 302.3-meter-tall skyscraper located in Riyadh’s Olaya
district.
More recently, Webuild has contributed to the design
of the Riyadh Metro.
Pescara-based engineering company Proger is another
Italian firm that has contributed to the Kingdom’s cultural life through
managing Riyadh Art, the entity behind Noor Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s largest
annual light festival, which transforms the capital into an open-air gallery.
The 2022 festival broke six world records, including
one for the biggest celebration of light-based art.
Saudi Arabia has left its own indelible touches on
Italy’s religious, social and cultural landscape, chief among which is the
Grand Mosque of Rome — the biggest in the Western world, able to accommodate
12,000 worshippers.
King Faisal provided nearly EUR20 million ($21
million) to fund the mosque’s construction, which was designed and developed by
Italian and Arab architects.
Design cooperation between Italy and Saudi Arabia does
not end with architecture.
In recent times, the Fashion Commission’s Saudi 100
Brands, an initiative championing Saudi creatives and placing them on a global
platform, saw the first set of designers showcase their work at Milan Fashion
Week, in collaboration with White Milano.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217331/saudi-arabia
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Muslim Council of Elders participates in Interfaith
Dialogue in the Czech Republic
December 17, 2022
Prague: The Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of
Elders Judge Mohamed Abdelsalam said that interreligious and inter-cultural
dialogue are especially important considering recent global challenges.
"The Document on Human Fraternity is the pinnacle
of interfaith dialogue and is one of the most important steps taken towards
conceiving contemporary global peace," he said while addressing the opening session of the
7th Intercultural and Interfaith Dialogue hosted by the Czech Republic.
Abdelsalam added: "The historic Document on Human
Fraternity which was co-signed by His Eminence Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, the Grand
Imam of Al-Azhar, and His Holiness Pope Francis of the Catholic Church under
the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of
the United Arab Emirates, was the preeminent event for interfaith relations in
modern history."
Shared vision
"There is a shared vision towards directing
future generations down the path of coexistence and human fraternity. This can
be seen with the adoption of the Document on Human Fraternity in various school
and tertiary curricula, with a total of 1.5 million students around the world
benefiting from the noble values of the Document.
"Likewise, the anniversary of the Document's
signing on the 4th of February has been recognized by the United Nations as the
International Day of Human Fraternity. Also, the Zayed Award for Human
Fraternity was launched with the aim of recognizing individuals and groups who
embody the values of human fraternity."
"The Muslim Council is exerting great efforts to
consolidate peace and coexistence through its many meetings with world leaders.
The Council will continue to spearhead efforts to spread human fraternity
through its many initiatives to stop all forms of conflict and bloodshed.
Source: Gulf News
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Saudi Arabia condemns attack on UN peacekeeping
mission in Lebanon
17 December ,2022
Saudi Arabia on Friday condemned the attack on a UN
peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
reported.
An Irish soldier was shot and killed on a UN
peacekeeping mission in Lebanon and a second was in a critical condition after
a “hostile” crowd surrounded their armored vehicle late on Wednesday.
The Kingdom’s foreign affairs ministry expressed its
“strong condemnation and denunciation of the attack,” and called for an
“immediate and transparent” investigation into the incident.
The ministry expressed the Kingdom's absolute
rejection of all forms of violence and affirmed the Kingdom’s support for
UNIFIL.
It also extended its “sincere condolences to the
government and people of Ireland, wishing the wounded a speedy recovery,” SPA
added.
Southern Lebanon is a stronghold for Hezbollah, a
powerful armed group and a heavyweight political party backed by Iran.
The party has denied a role in the violence, saying it
was an “unintentional incident” between residents and the UN forces.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Saudi sport minister hosts world football leaders at
Saudi House in Qatar
December 17, 2022
DOHA: Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Sport Prince
Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal on Friday hosted a number of international
football sports federations and Qatari officials at the “Saudi House” zone.
The zone was founded by the Saudi Football Federation
in the Doha Corniche to coincide with the FIFA World Cup 2022 being hosted by
Qatar.
The celebration included a dinner party at the Saudi
House, attended by the President of the Asian Football Confederation, Sheikh
Salman bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, the President of the Qatar Olympic Committee,
Sheikh Joa’an bin Hamad Al-Thani, Qatari Minister of Youth and Sports Salah bin
Ghanem Al-Ali, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, UEFA President Aleksander
Ceferin, and a number of international sports leaders.
They praised the activities they witnessed that
enriched the experience of fans of all nationalities.
The guests toured the zone and were briefed on the
more than 21 activities it offers across 10 pavilions.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217436/saudi-arabia
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Why many Italians are choosing Saudi Arabia as their
holiday destination
December 16, 2022
ROME: In 2022, Italy was among
the top five countries of origin for tourists who chose Saudi Arabia as their
holiday destination.
Italian tourism in the Kingdom has
been seeing steady growth. In just the
first 6 months of 2022, around 1,500 Italians traveled to the country.
AlUla, with its archaeological wonders, remains the favorite destination
for Italian tourists, followed by Riyadh and Jeddah, the historical centers of
which carry obvious appeal to Italians.
“When they go back home, all Italian tourists say they were enthusiastic
and incredibly surprised by Saudi Arabia,” Eleonora Bertuzzi,
director of Bertel, one of
the first Italian tour operators to organize trips to Saudi Arabia, beginning
in 2002, told Arab News.
Bertuzzi lives in
Milan and collaborates with Kel12, a tour operator in the city. However, she says
she prefers to cooperate with Saudi
suppliers who maintain authentic local traditions.
“Before getting
there, Italian tourists expect to find an extremely closed country where
nothing can be done. Instead, they see a modern and interesting country, where young people
have a great desire to enjoy life and do
interesting things.”
She says Italians always
tell her they are “impressed” by the
Saudi people, especially those “engaged
in promoting heritage, trying to offer tourists new experiences, like those who
have opened their homes to organize lunches and show how a middle-class Saudi
family lives every day.”
Italian tourists are
equally fascinated by the archaeological heritage of the Kingdom.
“AlUla is an open-air museum, and Riyadh
with its antiquities is also much loved by our tourists who seek to understand
the country by studying its origins,” Bertuzzi said.
“Fifty percent of Italian tourists say
they want to return to Saudi Arabia. We are now studying
alternative itineraries and destinations. Among
these, NEOM will be very interesting,” she added.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217371/saudi-arabia
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Doctors, architects, and engineers flock to Riyadh
Winter Wonderland for Professions Day
RAHAF JAMBI
December 16, 2022
RIYADH: Riyadh Winter Wonderland hosted a special
Professions Day on Thursday as part of Riyadh Season. Participants who came
along dressed in their uniforms received a free pass to Winter Wonderland — one
of Riyadh Season’s main zones.
“As doctors, my friends and I arrived today to
celebrate with everyone else, check out their uniforms, and have fun,” Mussab
Jaber, who is studying medicine, told Arab News.
According to architects Nasser Bahamdan and
Abdulrahman Al-Bahoth, who wore safety helmets and vests, the event
demonstrates the variety of professions practiced by Saudis.
“We heard about Professions Day and came to see how
everyone was dressed and if there were any other architects here,” Bahamdan
said. “Everyone is dressed to reflect their profession, which is cool.”
Ateeq Al-Shahrani, a student of aviation technology,
arrived with his peers in an aviation uniform. He said his college had
encouraged him to participate.
“Our college emailed us about Professions Day and
encouraged us to participate and show off our uniform, which bears the
International Aviation Technical College logo, our names, and this red line on
the shoulder that represents which year you are in; I’m a freshman, so I have
one line,” Al-Shahrani said.
Ghaith Al-Enazi, a refrigeration technician, said he
had heard that many people were coming, so he wanted to come and see what
people were wearing.
“We refrigeration technicians wear overalls or
jumpsuits, safety shoes, and a helmet,” he said. “I think it’s great to be
proud of what you do for a living.”
Doctor Zahraa Al-Abdullah arrived wearing a lab coat
and said she had come to play with her children.
“I’m happy to see how my profession is influencing my
children,” she told Arab News. “As a mother and a doctor, work can sometimes
cause us to drift from our families, but today I find it amusing that I can
come in with my lab coat and feel appreciated by my kids, who are asking me why
people are taking pictures of me.”
Many children took part in the festival themselves,
dressing up as musicians, astronauts, chefs, and other professionals.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217281/saudi-arabia
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Saudi Ministry of Culture opens Fenaa Alawwal Centre
to encourage global cultural exchange
RASHID HASSAN
December 16, 2022
RIYADH: The Saudi Ministry of Culture opened its first
cultural center, Fenaa Alawwal, on Thursday in Riyadh.
The new arts and culture center is located in the
former headquarters of the Kingdom’s first commercial bank — Alawwal Bank — in
the Saudi capital’s Diplomatic Quarter. It is one of Riyadh’s most-recognizable
landmarks, with traditional geometric patterns typical of Saudi Arabia around
its cylindrical edifice.
Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin
Farhan and various other dignitaries from the cultural and diplomatic sectors
attended the opening ceremony, which was marked by a light show.
The ministry established Fenaa Alawwal as part of its
efforts to fulfill the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 and to “encourage culture as
a way of life.” It is intended to be a cultural and creative hub which will
offer a wide range of cultural activities, including exhibitions and workshops,
and bring together a diverse community of thinkers, creators and leading
talents.
The center includes a library dedicated to art books,
and a restaurant and cafe called Circle 3 by Acoustic.
Explaining the center’s mission, director Rola
Alghrair told Arab News: “Fenaa Alawwal will gather diverse minds in a unique
space that inspires cultural exploration and discovery through creative and
artistic activities.”
She added: “From next year, our programs aim to
directly involve embassies; from ideation to implementation, all activities
will be the product of cross-cultural collaboration and exchange.”
The center’s opening exhibition is “The Memory
Deposit,” which runs until Feb. 28. Entry is free from Monday to Saturday, 9
a.m. to 10 p.m.
Inspired by the building’s former role as a bank, the
exhibition explores the history of Saudi currency and features work from six
contemporary artists based on from milestones of Saudi heritage, identity and
culture depicted on the Kingdom’s coinage and banknotes.
Saudi artist Saddek Wassel, whose work is part of the
show, told Arab News: “My artwork shows a man sitting on a rock, contemplating
nature and (his surroundings). This artwork is in close dialogue with the
historical depth behind the place that hosts it — the sculpture garden at the
Fenaa Alawwal Culture Center — because this center has a history. It is also
about a man contemplating the history and background of his people and his
country.”
Argentinian artist Carola Zech contributed a mirrored
work called “Us” to the show. “It is meant to be an interactive work,” she
said. “People can move through most of the parts and then can build different
spaces, but they are collective social spaces because when you interact with
one of these, other people can interact with you. It is a work without hard
limits. You construct the limits.”
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217296/saudi-arabia
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Libya rejects Egypt’s decision on demarcation of
maritime borders
Ahmet Gençtürk
17.12.2022
Libya on Friday rejected a Dec. 11 decision by Egypt
to demarcate maritime borders.
"This demarcation is unjust because it was
unilaterally announced, it violates Libya's territorial integrity and the
principles of good faith and respect for sovereignty," the Foreign
Ministry said in a statement.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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US senators call for sanctions to pressure Lebanon to
form government
17 December 2022
In yet another case of blatant US intervention in
Lebanon’s domestic affairs, top Republican and Democratic senators have called
on the administration of US President Joe Biden to use sanctions to pressure
Lebanese lawmakers to form a new government in the crisis-plagued Mediterranean
country.
“Instead of simply waiting for political movement and
reforms, it is time for the administration to implement a more forward leaning
policy,” Republican Senator James Risch and Democratic Senator Robert Menendez
said in a letter sent to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Treasury
Secretary Janet Yellen on Friday.
“We urge the Biden administration to use all available
leverage, including the threat of sanctions, to ensure that Lebanese lawmakers
select a new president and form a government in a timely manner and implement
overdue economic reforms,” said the letter, viewed by Middle East Eye.
Accusing the Lebanese lawmakers of “corruption,” Risch
and Menendez added, “We strongly urge the administration to use its existing
authorities to sanction members of Lebanon’s financial and political elite
across the political and sectarian spectrum who are engaging in corruption and
undermining the rule of law.”
The Lebanese parliament, which is divided between
camps for and against the Hezbollah resistance movement, failed for the 10th
time on Thursday to select a replacement for former President Michel Aoun,
whose term expired in October.
Thursday's vote was attended by 109 lawmakers in the
128-member parliament. Candidate Michel Moawad, who is seen as close to the
United States and backed by the Lebanese Forces Party, received 38 votes, well
short of the figure needed to win the first round. A candidate needs two-thirds
of the vote, or 86 lawmakers, to make it through the first stage. An absolute
majority is needed in subsequent rounds. A total of 37 lawmakers cast blank
ballots, while the other votes went to other candidates.
Speaker Nabih Berri ended the session without setting
a date for another voting session, which was usually held on a weekly basis
over the past nine voting sessions.
Sheikh Mohammad Yazbek, head of the religious council
of Hezbollah resistance movement, said last week that the United States is
seeking to impose a president on Lebanon who will serve the best interests of
Washington and the Tel Aviv regime amid a political stalemate in the
crisis-ridden Arab country.
Sheikh Yezbek added that the Lebanese are themselves
capable of electing a president and building their country, noting that one
should only trust those who are preoccupied with the homeland and its
sovereignty.
Lebanon’s presidency has seen stalemate several times
since the 1975-1990 civil war. The country has also had only a caretaker
government since May.
The Arab country has been mired in an economic crisis
that the World Bank has dubbed one of the worst in recent history, which comes
amid crippling sanctions imposed by the US and its allies. The Lebanese pound
has lost more than 95 percent of its value on the black market since 2019.
According to the United Nations, the ongoing financial
crisis in Lebanon has caused poverty rates to reach more than 80 percent of the
population, and food prices have risen by an astonishing 2,000 percent.
Source: Press TV
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Africa
Proper Islamic Education Will Reduce Crime – Borno
State Governor
December 16, 2022
By Ifeanyi Nwannah
The Borno State Governor, Professor Banbagana Zulum
has appealed to Zamfara State indigenes to support efforts to rid the region of
insecurity
Zulum made the call during his opening remarks as the
chairman of the 37th national Quranic recitation competition in Gusau, saying
many state governments inherited security challenges
He said even the coronavirus pandemic destroyed the
economic set-up of many states and that of the country at large.
“It is also very clear that Governor Matawalle
inherited the insecurity and had tried his best to address the insecurity
situation”
Source: Daily Post Nigeria
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France announces it will end visa restrictions with
Morocco
16 December ,2022
France will end visa restrictions for Moroccan
nationals, the foreign minister said on Friday, in a sign of warmer relations
between the two countries after more than a year of tensions between Paris and
Rabat.
“We’ve taken measures with our Moroccan partners to
re-establish a consular relationship,” Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said
on Friday after talks with her Moroccan counterpart Nasser Bourita in Rabat.
France, under pressure from public opinion to act to
curb undocumented immigrants, announced last year it would cut the number of
visas granted to nationals from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia because of the
North African countries’ refusal to take back their citizens living illegally
in France.
It was not immediately clear whether France had got
anything in return from Morocco. Morocco’s Bourita said France had made a
unilateral decision to end restrictions after what he said was also a
unilateral decision to introduce the restrictions.
France has generally warmer relations with Morocco
than with its eastern neighbor Algeria, also a former colony.
But ties deteriorated after media reports in the
summer of 2021 said President Emmanuel Macron’s phone was on a list of
potential targets for surveillance by Morocco using the Pegasus software.
Morocco has denied the allegation and said it did not possess Pegasus.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Jordanians protest over fuel price rises, after
policeman killed in riots
December 16, 2022
AMMAN: Jordanians staged sit-ins on Friday and
activists called for more protests over fuel price rises that have added to a
cost-of-living squeeze, a day after riots in a southern city left one police
officer dead, witnesses and security sources said.
The authorities said the policeman was killed on
Thursday night by a gunshot fired by an unidentified individual when armed
officers entered a neighborhood of Maan to quell riots. Youths had attacked
government property in the city, witnesses said.
King Abdullah and Crown Prince El Hassan bin Talal on
Friday extended condolences to the family of Col. Abdulrazzaq Dalabeeh, the deputy
police director of Maan Governorate, Petra News Agency reported.
According to a royal court statement, King Abdullah
reaffirmed that violence against the state, vandalism of public property, and
violating Jordanians’ rights will be dealt with firmly, stressing that assaults
and acts of vandalism are dangerous threats to national security and will not
be tolerated.
He expressed his deepest sympathies and condolences to
Dalabeeh’s family, describing him as the son of all Jordanians and adding, “we
will not rest until the criminal is brought to justice.”
“We will not tolerate violence against our security
personnel, who work day and night to protect Jordan and Jordanians,” the king
stressed.
He also acknowledged Jordanians’ difficult economic
conditions and their right to peaceful self-expression within the law,
highlighting that state institutions will take all measures to hold outlaws to
account.
Jordan’s Public Security said heavy security has been
deployed in the kingdom’s governorates to “ensure the enforcement of the rule
of law and maintain the security of citizens.”
It said that it had dealt with riots in a number of
regions and arrested 44 people, who “will be referred to the competent
authorities, in addition to those who were arrested in the previous days.”
It added that there was a noticeable decline in the
number of riot units since Thursday, especially in the southern governorates.
It also said that investigations into Dalabeeh’s death
are continuing and will not end until the perpetrator is arrested.
Tensions have mounted in Maan and several cities in
southern Jordan in particular after sporadic strikes by truck drivers
protesting against high fuel prices and demanding cuts in diesel prices. Fuel
rises have added to the squeeze on households.
Interior Minister Mazen Farrayeh told a news
conference that the government will apply tough steps and redeploy more
anti-riot police against demonstrators who protest violently.
“We have seen a large jump in violent acts,” he said.
“After what happened, there will be tougher security measures to reinforce the
security forces in the areas that witness such acts.”
Although the streets were calm on Friday, sporadic
protests continued with a sit-in in front of Maan’s main mosque and a mosque in
the capital Amman after Friday prayers, while activists called for more
demonstrations.
Overnight, riot police chased scores of youths
throwing stones in Amman, Zarqa, Irbid and other cities where Farrayeh said
rioters torched public property, vandalized state buildings and burned tires
that closed major highways across the kingdom.
The US, a close ally of Jordan, on Thursday said US
government personnel had been restricted from both personal and official travel
to the provinces of Karak, Tafilah, Maan, and Aqaba until further notice.
This was because of “reports of ongoing protests,
burning tires, and throwing stones at vehicles on streets and highways
throughout Jordan and particularly in the south,” the US embassy in Jordan
said.
Internet users and activists said Internet services
faced slowdowns in several regions, disrupting social media platforms activists
used to share footage of clashes with police.
The government has promised to examine truck strikers’
demands but says it has already paid more than 500 million dinars ($700
million) to cap fuel prices this year and cannot do much more if it wants to
avoid breaching an International Monetary Fund deal.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2216911/middle-east
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Polls open in Tunisian vote boycotted by opposition
December 17, 2022
TUNIS: Polls opened on Saturday in a Tunisian
parliamentary election that will tighten President Kais Saied’s grip on power,
capping what his opponents denounce as a march to one-man rule over a country
that shook off dictatorship in 2011.
Taking place 12 years to the day after vegetable
seller Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire in an act of protest that sparked
the Arab Spring, the vote is being boycotted by political parties which have
accused Saied of mounting a coup.
Voters will be choosing a parliament largely defanged
by a new constitution, approved with a low turnout in a July referendum that
was engineered by Saied to shift Tunisia back toward a presidential system.
Nejib Chebbi, head of an anti-Saied coalition
including Ennahda, has labelled the election a “still-born farce.”
Saied shut the previous parliament down last year,
surrounding the legislature with tanks and assuming near total authority.
The vote appears to have stirred little interest among
a population jaded by political dysfunction and struggling with economic
hardship.
Voting is due to take place from 8 a.m.- 6 p.m. (0700
GMT-1700 GMT).
Saied, a former law lecturer who was a political
independent when elected president in 2019, has described the election as part
of a roadmap for ending the chaos and corruption he says afflicted Tunisia
under the previous system.
His opponents including the Islamist Ennahda party
meanwhile accuse him of a coup, and have rejected the ballot along with all the
president’s other moves since last summer, when he dissolved parliament and
began ruling by decree.
The election is taking place against the backdrop of
an economic crisis that is fueling poverty, leading many to attempt the
perilous journey to Europe aboard smugglers’ boats.
With the main parties absent, a total of 1,058
candidates — only 120 of them women — are running for 161 seats.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2217561/middle-east
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North America
Groups Actively Spreading Islamophobia Smear
Law-Abiding Muslims
Dec. 17, 2022
An ecosystem of influencers, media and more, Dec. 10
After the 9/11 attack in New York, the Canadian
Islamic community became a target of our intelligence agencies to spy on our
mosques, schools and community services to look for Islamic terrorists.
The Islamic community in Canada is very diverse,
well-established, and made up of law-abiding citizens.
Islamophobia is widespread and not reported.
Canada and the U.S now have to handle their own
home-grown, extreme, right-wing terrorists.
There are certainly groups here actively involved in
Islamophobia, which must be condemned.
Rafat Khan, Mississauga
Every Dec. 6, we must renew vigilance, Dec. 6
I have been working in community agencies with men and
youth to prevent violence and abuse for over 20 years. Every year on and around
Dec. 6, the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre of young women, I take stock
on where our communities are regarding violence against women.
My reflection is one of sadness, and frustration:
intimate partner abuse is increasing in frequency and severity.
We have seen an increase in the number of women killed
by intimate partners/ex-partners since the start of the pandemic and calls to
helplines have increased exponentially.
The vast majority of violence in our communities is
perpetrated by men. As a man, I take that very seriously and feel that if I do
not act to help reduce and stop this violence, I am part of the problem.
I work in an agency, Counterpoint Counselling and
Educational Cooperative that provides Partner Abuse Response (PAR) programs to
men (as) mandated by the criminal courts. PAR programs are unique in that they
are the only program working with offenders of domestic violence to change
their behaviour, while also monitoring and managing the risk they pose to their
partners.
The only way to end intimate partner abuse
successfully is to work with men who are the perpetrators of this violence,
while providing support and resources to those suffering from it. Through my
work I have witnessed that change is possible, and we can make women and
families safer. However, it requires investment in programs (such as PAR).
These urgently need a sustainable funding base.
The urgency is now before another woman is mourned.
Rodrigo Moreno, Midland, Ont.
Teen was in ‘wrong place, ’ police say, Dec. 13
My sympathies to the parents of David Petrovic,
senselessly murdered in his own neighbourhood.
For anyone to say, especially the police, that he was
in the wrong place at 7 p.m. in a Canadian city is ridiculous.
Anyone should be able to walk safely anywhere at any
time without fear of being murdered by a stranger in a random attack.
Have the police simply given up on some areas of the
city?
Source: The Star
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Top US senators urge Biden to sanction more Lebanese
bankers, politicians
17 December ,2022
A bipartisan group of 22 powerful US lawmakers has
called on the Biden administration to levy more sanctions against members of
Lebanon’s financial and political elite who are engaging in corruption and
undermining the rule of law.
Lebanon has been without a fully functioning
government for months, and lawmakers have failed to elect a new president since
Michel Aoun’s term ended at the end of October. Meanwhile, the economic and
social collapse of the country has continued due to political bickering and a
flawed sectarian system.
“Given this new phase of political deadlock and a lack
of movement on necessary reforms, we strongly urge the Administration to use
its existing authorities to sanction members of Lebanon’s financial and
political elite across the political and sectarian spectrum who are engaging in
corruption and undermining the rule of law,” the US senators wrote in a letter
to the US secretaries of State and Treasury.
The senators said this should be done in coordination
with Washington’s European allies.
Consecutive US administrations since 2006 have
supported continued American military and economic assistance to Lebanon. Part
of the argument has been that supporting the Lebanese Armed Forces is the only
way to push back against Iran-backed Hezbollah.
But the years of corruption and siphoning of state
funds culminated in recent years with the election of Aoun, backed by Hezbollah
and its allies. Ties between Lebanon and its traditional backers, mainly Saudi
Arabia, soured, and the COVID-19 pandemic and Beirut blast dealt a further blow
to the country.
And with no government, Lebanon has failed to
implement reforms needed to unlock international funds and grants as well as a
regional gas deal with Egypt.
The lawmakers slammed Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri,
a longtime Hezbollah ally, for facilitating the tactics used by lawmakers to
prevent the quorum needed to elect a new president.
“Speaker Berri and other pro-Hezbollah politicians
must stop playing procedural games with Lebanon’s future and allow for the
maintenance of a quorum and for successive simple majority votes to take
place,” the senators said.
Aoun’s government was, however, able to finalize a
US-backed deal to demarcate their maritime border with Israel. This is expected
to help Lebanon’s long-term economic gains. “However, for too long, Hezbollah
and others in Lebanon’s political class have continuously failed to prioritize
the needs of the Lebanese people over their own narrow agendas,” the senators
wrote.
They added: “The need for an effective elected
government, free from malign foreign influence and that prioritizes the needs
of its people, cannot be understated.”
The Trump administration sanctioned Aoun’s son-in-law
and former foreign minister, Gebran Bassil, Berri’s top political aide and
another senior official close to Sleiman Frangieh.
Source: Al Arabiya
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US court decision paves way for depositor case against
Lebanese bank
16 December ,2022
A US court of appeals determined this week that cases
against Lebanese commercial banks can be tried outside Lebanon, according to a
decision seen by Reuters, paving the way for more cases by depositors seeking
to unlock their frozen funds.
The court decision, issued on Dec. 15 in a case
brought by Lebanese depositors against leading lender Bank Audi, overturned a
lower district court’s decision that said Beirut courts had “exclusive
jurisdiction” to try cases against Lebanese banks.
During Lebanon’s three-year financial collapse, banks
have imposed tight controls on withdrawals in both US dollars and the local currency,
which has lost more than 90 percent of its value.
Those restrictions have yet to become law and have
been challenged in both local and international courts by savers who have
sought to gain back their money promptly in US dollars, with mixed results.
The Raad family filed a lawsuit in New York in
December 2020, saying Bank Audi had breached their contract by refusing to
transfer their funds abroad at the beginning of the financial crisis, according
to the court document.
A district court dismissed their claim on the
reasoning that such cases should only be heard by Lebanese courts.
Nada Abdelsater, a lawyer representing Patricia,
Stephanie and David Raad, said this week’s new decision could allow them to
proceed with the case, saying it had “made history.”
“The door is now open, and the real action begins,”
she told Reuters.
“This decision rightly removes the main obstacle that
has so far been preventing cases from being taken up... and this New York
decision allows us to further pursue proceedings in competent courts outside of
Lebanon,” Abdelsater added.
There was no immediate response from Bank Audi in
Beirut to a request for comment filed outside business hours.
Jeffrey Rotenberg, a lawyer from DLA Piper
representing Bank Audi in the case, said the decision was “non-precedential.”
Source: Al Arabiya
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South Asia
MoFA Calls on International Community to Have Positive
Interactions With Afghanistan
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
December 16, 2022
Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, the acting Minister of
Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan on Friday said in his remarks that the
international community should have positive interactions with Afghanistan.
In a meeting ‘unveiling the book of one-year
achievements of MoFA’ Mr. Muttaqi reiterated that the current regime will not
allow Afghanistan to change to a ‘competitive field’ of the powerful countries.
He further added, “it is the Islamic Emirate’s politics, and responsibility to
provide education and employment opportunities for the people.”
The Foreign Minister’s remarks on ‘education and
employment opportunities came as the unemployment rate among the Afghan
populace has skyrocketed since the overthrow of the previous regime in August
2021. Thousands of highly educated and experienced Afghan youths migrated to
neighboring countries such as Iran and Pakistan in search of work to feed their
families.
A large majority of private businesses and NGOs closed
their doors due to the existing dire economic situation and the uncertain
political environment in Afghanistan – adversely affecting the living
conditions of the ordinary people.
Meanwhile, the ruling regime has barred women from
working in government organizations and girls from attending schools beyond
grade six since. Recently, they have resumed public punishment such as
flogging, stoning and public execution – receiving worldwide criticism.
Source: Khaama Press
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Pak summons Afghan envoy to condemn “unprovoked”
firing by Taliban forces in Chaman border area
SAJJAD HUSSAIN
16 December, 2022
Islamabad, Dec 16 (PTI) Pakistan on Friday summoned
the Afghan charge d’affaires here to condemn the recent incidents of
“unprovoked” cross-border shelling by Afghan troops near the southwestern Chaman
border crossing that have escalated tensions between Islamabad and
Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers.
At least one person was killed and 11 others were
wounded on Thursday when Afghan Taliban forces fired mortars toward civilians
in the Chaman-Spin Boldak area in the restive Balochistan Province.
The latest violence follows a series of deadly
incidents and attacks that have strained relations between Pakistan and
Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers in recent months. Thursday’s violence was the
second incident of firing in less than a week after a similar attack on
December 10 had killed seven civilians.
“Afghan Charge d’Affaires in Islamabad was called in
to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Pakistan’s strong condemnation over recent
incidents of unprovoked cross-border shelling by Afghan Border Security
Forces,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.
Pakistan conveyed to the Afghan official that the
firing in the Chaman-Spin Boldak area resulted in the loss of life, injuries
and damage to property.
“It was reiterated that protection of civilians
remained the responsibility of both sides and that recurrence of these
incidents must be prevented,” the FO said.
The two sides agreed to use the established
institutional mechanisms to prevent such incidents in future, it said.
“Pakistan remains committed to maintaining fraternal
relations with Afghanistan and peace along the Pak-Afghan border is intrinsic
to this end,” FO said.
Earlier this month, Pakistan’s Embassy in Kabul came
under gunfire in an attack that was later claimed by the Islamic State group.
Pakistani officials at the time had called the incident an attack on its envoy
there. Islamabad also has said Afghanistan’s rulers are sheltering militants
who carry out deadly attacks on its soil.
Pakistan and Afghanistan share a 2,600-km volatile
border.
Chaman remains a busy border trading area for Pakistan
and Afghanistan and has also been a flashpoint for clashes between border
forces on both sides.
The Chaman border crossing, also known as the
Friendship Gate, connects Balochistan province to Afghanistan’s Kandahar. It
was closed last month after an armed Afghan crossed onto Pakistan’s side of the
border and opened fire on security troops, killing a soldier and injuring
another two.
Islamabad has completed almost 90 per cent of fencing
work along the border despite protests from Kabul, who contested the
century-old British-era boundary demarcation that splits families on either
side.
Source: The Print
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UNSC extends mandate of team monitoring sanctions
against Taliban-linked entities
17th December 2022
United Nations: The UN Security Council has decided to
extend the mandate of the team monitoring sanctions against Taliban-linked
entities in Afghanistan.
Unanimously adopting Resolution 2665, the council
decided to extend for 12 months the mandate of the team monitoring sanctions
against individuals and entities associated with the Taliban, as well as other
individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with the Taliban in
constituting a threat to the peace, stability and security of Afghanistan,
Xinhua news agency reported.
The council directed the monitoring team, whose
current mandate expires on December 31, to gather information on instances of
non-compliance with measures imposed in Resolution 2255.
The council highlighted the importance of ensuring
that the monitoring team receives the necessary support to effectively, safely
and in a timely manner fulfil its mandate, including with regard to duty of
care in high-risk environments.
Source: Siasat Daily
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Afghanistan: UN experts call on Taliban to immediately
halt public floggings and executions
16 December, 2022
Geneva [Switzerland], December 16 (ANI): UN experts
are deeply aggrieved about a public execution and that flogging has resumed in
Afghanistan and call on the de facto authorities to halt immediately all forms
of torturous, cruel and degrading forms of punishments.
They said in a statement issued today, “Since November
18, 2022, the de facto authorities have reportedly carried out floggings of
over 100 individuals, both women and men, in several provinces including
Takhar, Logar, Laghman, Parwan and Kabul. Each were given between 20 and 100
lashes for alleged crimes including theft, ‘illegitimate’ relationships or
violating social behaviour codes. While criminalisation of relationships
outside of wedlock seem gender-neutral, in practice, punishment is
overwhelmingly directed against women and girls. The flogging has been carried
out in stadiums in the presence of officials and members of the public.”
On December 7, 2022, the Taliban publicly executed a
man in Farah city, Farah province, in what appears to be the first public
execution since seizing power in August 2021.
“Senior de facto officials, including the Deputy Prime
Minister and Chief Justice, were in attendance. The application of these
punishments began after the Supreme Leader on November 13, 2022 ordered the
judiciary to implement Hudood (crimes against God) and Qisas (retribution in
kind) punishments across the country,” added the statement.
Public floggings and public executions violate
universal principles prohibiting torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment. Afghanistan is a State party to the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention against Torture and
Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which prohibits
torture, or other cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment. The public spectacle
of these punishments make them especially distasteful and undignified.
“We are additionally raising doubts about the fairness
of the trials preceding these punishments, which appear not to satisfy basic
fair trial guarantees. International human rights law prohibits the
implementation of such cruel sentences, especially the death penalty, following
trials that apparently do not offer the required fair trial guarantees,” added
the statement.
It called on the de facto authorities to immediately
establish a moratorium on the death penalty, prohibit flogging and other
physical punishments that constitute torture, or other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment and guarantee a fair trial and due process in
accordance with international standards. At all times, no matter the status of
a person, they are entitled to dignity and respect.
The experts included Richard Bennett, Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan; Reem Alsalem,
Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and
consequences, Fionnuala Ni Aolain, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and
protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism;
Dorothy Estrada Tanck (Chair), Ivana Radacic (Vice-Chair), Elizabeth Broderick,
Meskerem Geset Techane and Melissa Upreti, Working Group on discrimination
against women and girls; Alice Jill Edwards, Special Rapporteur on Torture and
Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; Morris Tidball-Binz,
Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.
The Special Rapporteurs, Independent Experts and
Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human
Rights Council.
Special Procedures, the largest body of independent
experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s
independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific
country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world.
Source: The Print
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