Muslims Can’t Be Singled Out for Prosecution, Says Bombay HC and Quashes FIRs Against Foreign Tablighi Jamaat Members
New Age
Islam News Bureau
23 August 2020
• Muslims Can’t Be Singled Out for Prosecution, Says Bombay HC and Quashes FIRs Against Foreign Tablighi Jamaat Members
• Pakistan Imposes Sanctions on Over 80 Terrorists
Including Haqqani, Taliban And TTP Members
• Tehran Municipality Under Fire for The Word
"Islamic" Missing in Street Sign
• Christchurch Mosque Attacks: 'I'm Close To
Forgiving, But Not There Yet'
• How China Uses Muslim Press Trips to Counter Claims
Of Uighur Abuse
• Pompeo To Visit Israel, UAE To Discuss 'Peace',
Iran, China
India
•
• Ganesh Chathurthi: Guess Which Muslim-Majority
Country Has Lord Ganesha On Its Currency Note?
• Mosque Trust, Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation,
Releases Logo, Team Visits Ayodhya Village
• Melody of Muslim Singer, Sohil Baloch’s Bhajan Got
Sweeter In ‘Indo-Pak Jugalbandi’
• India: Court drops case against 'scapegoated'
Muslims
• Suspected Islamic State operative had left village
two days ago to get relative treated in Lucknow, says UP cop
• Karnataka: Hindu youth prevents Muslim from drowning
in Nethravathi River
• UP Police on high alert, UP ATS team reaches Delhi
after Islamic State terrorist’s arrest
-------
Pakistan
• Pakistan Imposes Sanctions on Over 80 Terrorists
Including Haqqani, Taliban And TTP Members
• Lawyer denies facilitating killing of suspected
blasphemer in Peshawar court
• Imran Khan declared Man of the Year by ‘The Muslim
500’
• UK approached for extradition of Nawaz: PM aide
-------
Mideast
• Tehran Municipality Under Fire for The Word
"Islamic" Missing in Street Sign
• Losing in Yemen, winning in Afghanistan, Islamic
State Weighs in on Arab-Israeli Peace
• Holding Imam Hussein’s (AS) Mourning Ceremony with
Observing Health Protocols A Test For All
• How Iranian Mullahs Use COVID-19 To Prevent Major
Iran Protests
• Agriculture Jihad Minister: Iran's anti-covid19
vaccine reaching near clinical trial phase
• Maduro says Venezuela buying Iranian missiles ‘a
good idea’
• War With Iran: Here's How the Islamic Republic Could
Cut Off the World's Oil
------
New Zealand
• Christchurch Mosque Attacks: 'I'm Close To
Forgiving, But Not There Yet'
• Survivors Will Face New Zealand Mosque Gunman At
Sentencing
-------
South Asia
• How China Uses Muslim Press Trips to Counter Claims
Of Uighur Abuse
• Key Taliban member arrested in a joint military
operation in Kabul
• Kabul police arrest ex-commander sentenced to jail
for murder and corruption charges
• Kabul magnetic bombs rattle the city
------
North America
• Pompeo To Visit Israel, UAE To Discuss 'Peace',
Iran, China
• AP: Muslim and LGTQ Caucuses at Democratic
Convention Left ‘Under God’ Out of Pledge of Allegiance
• Nine Reasons You Can Be Optimistic That A Vaccine
For COVID-19 Will Be Widely Available In 2021
• Muslim Advocacy Group Pushes For Hate Crime Probe
After Egyptian-American Teen Attacked In NY
• US-led coalition hands over Taji military base to
Iraqi forces: State media
-------
Europe
• UK Muslim Charity Board to Resign as Director Calls
Designated Terrorists ‘Great Men’, Media Says
• My years in the police tell me some Islamic
terrorists are likely reaching our shores in those • rubber dinghies. I fear
the worst
• MPs threaten Boris Johnson with legal action over
Russian election interference probe
• Coronavirus: We will see 'real problems' with
COVID-19 this winter, chief medical officer says
• Protests calling on Netanyahu to resign continue
with momentum
-------
Africa
• Three People Martyred; Dozens Injured In Nigerian Police
Attack On Imam Hussain Mourners
• El-Rufai: Muslim lawyers in Kaduna State boycotts
NBA conference
• 13 killed as Islamist militias attack eastern Congo
villages
• Boko Haram recruiting fresh members, IDPs may be
forced to join, Zulum raises alarm
------
Southeast Asia
• Malaysia's Islamist Party PAS Officially Joins
Ruling Coalition Perikatan Nasional: Source
• Muhyiddin proposes new chapter in Bersatu to
accommodate non-Malay leaders
• MOH: Daily Covid-19 cases in Malaysia back to single
digit despite recent emergence of new clusters
• Dr Afif: Decision to unite under Muhyiddin’s
leadership was a hard one
• Muhyiddin announced as Bersatu president, Ahmad
Faizal deputy president
• UN, Indonesia honour victims of terrorism
-------
Arab world
• Riyadh Global Digital Health Summit Looks At
Technology In Combating COVID-19
• Kuwait Parliament Drafts Plan To Limit Expat
Numbers, Ban Certain Visas Transfers
• Saudi public sector staff return on Aug. 30, but
health precautions enforced
• Top Saudi doctor defeats COVID-19 following 3-week
treatment
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL; https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/muslims-cant-be-singled-prosecution/d/122696
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Muslims Can’t Be Singled Out for Prosecution, Says Bombay HC and Quashes FIRs Against Foreign Tablighi Jamaat Members
Ajay Kumar
August 22, 2020
Today, in
the English-speaking world, the phrase "reading the riot act" means a
good dressing down. On 21 August, the Bombay High Court's Aurangabad Bench, did
just that
-----
For the longest time, England had a law on the books called the Riot Act of 1714. The Act essentially provided that when the authorities found more than 12 people unlawfully assembled, they could read out a proclamation asking them to disperse. Those who did not disperse after the reading of the proclamation, would be guilty of a felony and any force could be used to disperse them.
Today, in the English-speaking world, the phrase
"reading the riot act" means a good dressing down given to someone by
a person in a position of authority. On 21 August, the Bombay High Court's
Aurangabad Bench, did just that.
It gave the government, and quite frankly a lot of
people in this country, a proper dressing down about the way certain sections
of the community have been targeted.
The Bomay High Court was hearing an application by 29
foreign nationals, who had been charged with a variety of offences, including
allegedly violating the visa conditions, by attending a Tablighi Jamaat
congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin Area. The court examined the nature of these
offences and made some very pertinent observations. The government should do
some serious introspection right now for the Bombay High Court has been
scathing in the manner in which it has indicted its behaviour with regards to
the Nizamuddin markaz incident.
It was the case of the prosecution that, while
patrolling, they received inputs that some Indian and foreign nationals were
offering prayers at the Kazi Masjid of Jamked. Upon visiting the site, they
found some foreign nationals giving speeches on thoughts and the philosophy of
the Muslim religion. The police also found a similar thing happening at the
Mehraj Masjid of Ahmednagar and the Bhaldar Masjid of Newasa City.
Consequently, FIRs were registered against 29 foreign nationals in total and
some Indian nationals as well.
During the hearing, the State contented that the
foreigners were in India on a tourist visa but were engaging in religious
activites and accordingly were in contravention of the provisions of the
Foreigners Act, 1948. Further, they had also breached the lockdown regulations
and accordingly were in contravention of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the
Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, and various sections of the Indian Penal Code of
1860.
The petitioners before the court contended that they
were here to see India and experience Indian culture, hospitality and food.
They were screened at the airport and only allowed in after they were found
COVID-19 negative. Further they said, that when the lockdown was suddenly
imposed, vehicular movement stopped and they weren't able to find
accommodations so the mosque gave them refuge.
The court, agreed with the petitioners and held that
even foreigners, who otherwise do not have the rights guaranteed under Article
19 of the Constitution (free speech, etc), while in India, still have rights
under Articles 20 (protection in respect of conviction for offences), 21 (Right
to Life) and 25 (freedom of religion) of the Constitution of India.
"There was big propaganda in print media and
electronic media against the foreigners who had come to Markaz Delhi and an
attempt was made to create a picture that these foreigners were responsible for
spreading covid-19 virus in India. There was virtually persecution against
these foreigners.
A political Government tries to find the scapegoat
when there is pandemic or calamity and the circumstances show that there is
probability that these foreigners were chosen to make them scapegoats. The
aforesaid circumstances and the latest figures of infection in India show that
such action against present petitioners should not have been taken. It is now
high time for the concerned to repent about this action taken against the
foreigners and to take some positive steps to repair the damage done by such
action."
"In our culture, there is saying like 'Atithi
devo bhava' which means that our guest is our God. The circumstances of the
present matter create a question as to whether we are really acting as per our
great tradition and culture. During the situation created by COVID-19 pandemic,
we need to show more tolerance and we need to be more sensitive towards our
guests particularly like the present petitioners. The allegations made show
that instead of helping them we lodged them in jails by making allegations that
they are responsible for violation of travel documents; they are responsible
for spreading of virus, etc.
"The question arises as to what must have tempted
the authority to issue such directions against the foreigners like the
petitioners. The record of this matter and the submissions made show that (the)
action of Central Government was taken mainly against Muslim persons who had
come to Markaz Delhi for Tabligh Jamamat. Similar action was not taken against
other foreigners belonging to other religions. Due to these circumstances, the
background of the action and what is achieved needs to be considered by the
Court.
"There were protests by taking processions,
holding dharana at many places in India from at least from prior to January
2020. Most of the persons participated in protest were Muslims. It is their
contention that Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 is discriminatory against the
Muslims. They believe that Indian citizenship will not be granted to Muslim
refugees and migrants. They were protesting against National Registration of
Citizenship (NRC). There were protests on large scale not only in Delhi, but in
the most of the States in India. It can be said that due to the present action
taken fear was created in the minds of those Muslims. This action indirectly
gave warning to Indian Muslims that action in any form and for any thingcan be
taken against Muslims. It was indicated that even for keeping contact with
Muslims of other countries, action will be taken against them. Thus, there is
smell of malice to the action taken against these foreigners and Muslim for
their alleged activities. The circumstances like malice is important
consideration when relief is claimed of quashing of FIR and the case itself.
"In Marathi, there is saying meaning of which is
'missing Fakir/begger can be found in Masjid'. In big religious places
including Masjids there are arrangement of stay made for religious persons or
the persons who are involved for maintaining of the Masjids. If they allow some
persons like foreigners to stay with them, it cannot be said that they have
committed the offence of breach of the aforesaid orders. In the present
matters, even the trustees of the Masjids are made accused by making
allegations against them that they had given shelter to foreigners and they had
supplied meals to the foreigners. During lockdown period, all over India in
many religious places arrangement was made for destitute persons, to give them
shelter and to provide them meals. Such arrangements were made in gurdwaras,
Masjids and other religious places. During lockdown period even beggars were
not found on the road and some NGOs and such religious institution had made arrangements
for them also. The migrant labourers were accommodated accordingly. Due to
prohibition orders, hotels and restaurants were closed. Thus, giving shelter to
such persons could not have been treated as offence, commission of the act of
disobedience of aforesaid orders.
"It is already observed that the Muslim persons
who had given shelter to the foreigners are made accused probably with some
purpose. This action must have created pressure on Indian Muslims. The persons
of this community may avoid to keep contact with Muslims of other country now
due to such actions. The material in respect of possibility of spreading of
infection by the petitioners is already discussed with relevant dates. This
situation created by the present action is against the promotion of idea of
universal brotherhood. So, this court holds that there is no material on record
to make out prima facie case for the breach of aforesaid orders. No other order
was produced on record and as already observed, the orders are not specifically
mentioned in the charge sheet and copies of the orders are not shown to be
supplied by showing them in the charge sheet.
"It is a fact that many foreigners of other
countries are sent back by the Central Government without making any inquiry.
Social and religious tolerance is practical necessity for unity and integrity
in India and that is also made compulsory by our Constitution. By hard work
over the past years after Independence we have reconciled religion and
modernity to great extent. This approach helps (the) participation of most in
(the) developing process. We have been respecting both religious and secular
sensibilities since Independence and by this approach we have kept India as
united.
"The aforesaid material and discussion of law
shows that (the) Maharashtra Police acted mechanically. It appears that the
state government acted under political compulsion and police also did not dare
to exercise powers given to them under provisions of procedural law like CRPC
and substantive laws. The record shows that there was no application of mind by
(the) police and that is why even when no record was available to make out
prima facie case, chargsheets are filed by police. The government cannot give
different treatment to citizens of different religions of different countries.
Article 14 of the Constitution of India shows that there needs to be ‘law’ as
mentioned in this Article and for some object the classification can be made
which needs to be reasonable. Such law can be subjected to the test of constitutional
validity. The ‘contents’ of ‘the law’ can also be sufficient to rebut the
presumption of reasonableness for the classification and the rebuttal of
presumption of reasonableness is possible after consideration of even
extraneous material. Further, whether such discrimination can be made without
making such classification under law, whether such administrative or executive
instructions can be issued, will be a question, but this Court is not going
into that question. For the limited purpose, this Court is holding that the
police action is based on such instructions probably of the executive and
apparently there is discrimination as mentioned above. On this ground also, the
malice is inferable and the cases needs to be quashed."
The Bombay High Court’s observations are a scathing
rebuke to what has now become a part of the policy of the government, which is
to specifically single out Muslims for prosecution, which in turn, has turned
into persecution. This policy has finally been called out in the open and
rebuked for being antithetical to core constitutional values. One hopes that
the powers that be will take note of this judgement and mend the errors in
their ways. It’s about time someone read the Riot Act to them.
https://www.firstpost.com/india/by-quashing-firs-against-foreign-tablighi-jamaat-members-bombay-hc-shows-govt-that-muslims-cant-be-singled-out-for-prosecution-8742191.html
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Pakistan Imposes Sanctions on Over 80 Terrorists
Including Haqqani, Taliban And TTP Members
By Khaama Press
22 Aug 2020
In a deal
to refrain from demotion at Financial Action Task Force’s grey list, Pakistan
has imposed financial sanctions on 88 individuals linked to different terrorist
groups.
-----
In a deal to refrain from demotion at Financial Action
Task Force’s grey list, Pakistan has imposed financial sanctions on 88
individuals linked to different terrorist groups.
Recently two stationary notifications were released on
18 August by the government of Pakistan.
Pakistan submitted its initial draft report to the
joint group at FATF that shows compliance of the remaining 13 points out of 27
action points regarding terror funding.
The sanctions are imposed against 88 terrorist members
whom are affiliated with Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), JeM,Daesh, Alqaeda, Haqqani,
Afghan Taliban and Tahreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Pakistani government announced banning the insurgents’
bank accounts and properties in their premises, terror outfits are also banned
from traveling abroad.
Pakistan has offered full compliance with the UN
security sanctions to remain in the grey record of FATF, sanctions were applied
to terrorist masterminds such as Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar, Dawood Ibrahim,
Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and Afghan Taliban like Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar.
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is one of the terror
outfits that signed the peace agreement with the United States on February, 29.
https://www.khaama.com/over-80-terrorist-group-members-are-sanctioned-by-pakistan-789798/
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Tehran Municipality Under Fire for The Word
"Islamic" Missing In Street Sign
August 22, 2020
Radio Farda
The old
and new signs of Jomhuri Eslami (Islamic Republic) Square in central Tehran.
------
Iran's hardliners have blasted Tehran Municipality for
the missing word "Islamic" in a street sign replaced recently.
Pictures were posted on social media showing the name of a square in central
Tehran as "Republic" instead of "Islamic Republic".
The attacks have forced the municipality authorities
to apologize and pledge to punish "culprits" for dropping the word
"Islamic".
"Let's not be oblivious to the sneaky move of the
liberals," one hardliner critic tweeted adding that "The Municipality
[of Tehran] is not committed to the Islamic aspect of the republic system"
and called for the "inefficient authorities" to be put on trial.
"Islamic Republic, neither a word more nor a word
less is the legacy of thousands of martyrs for us. What has happened is
unforgivable," Gholam-Hossein Mohammadi, an adviser to the Mayor of Tehran
and Head of the Municipality's Information Center, tweeted on Friday.
In 2009 protesters pulled down the sign of the
"Islamic Republic Avenue" to show their disillusionment with the
Islamic system.
"Islamic Republic, neither a word more nor a word
less" is a quote from the founder of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah
Rouhollah Khomeini. When it came to decide the country's political system after
the fall of the monarchy he insisted that "republic" or
"democratic republic" were out of the question.
In an interview with Students News Network (SNN),
Mohammadi claimed that dropping the word "Islamic" was a mistake and
not a "systematic attempt". He also promised to reprimand those
responsible for it even it had been done "unintentionally".
The Islamic Republic Square and a street of the same
name, one of the oldest and longest in central Tehran, was known as "King
Square" and "King Avenue" before the Islamic Revolution of 1979
after which they were re-named as "Islamic Republic Square" and
"Islamic Republic Avenue". The name is only used on the street signs,
official documents and maps, otherwise the square and avenue are simply
referred to by the name "Republic".
https://en.radiofarda.com/a/tehran-municipality-under-fire-for-the-word-islamic-missing-in-street-sign-/30797441.html
------
Christchurch mosque attacks: 'I'm close to forgiving,
but not there yet'
by Simon Atkinson
23-08-2020
Hamimah Tuyan's husband, Zekeriya, was one of 51
people killed by the attacks on two mosques in Christchurch in March 2019.
The Australian gunman has pleaded guilty to charges of
murder, attempted murder, manslaughter and terrorism.
Hamimah has flown from Singapore to New Zealand to
give a victim impact statement at his sentencing.
She spoke to the BBC from her quarantine hotel in New
Zealand.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asia-53858369
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How China uses Muslim press trips to counter claims of
Uighur abuse
Kate Wong
Sun 23 Aug 2020
Journalist Sherif Sonbol was taking pictures of ethnic
dancers during an official tour of China’s far western Xinjiang province when
he noticed a room full of women being trained to use sewing machines. He
realised he was in one of Beijing’s network of political indoctrination camps,
where – according to the United Nations – China is detaining up to one million
members of the mostly Muslim Uighur minority.
Sonbol, an Egyptian photographer and editor, was one
of at least 80 journalists taken to Xinjiang since 2015 on the “Silk Road
Celebrity China Tour”. He left convinced that accounts of mistreatment inside
the re-education centres were untrue. “I keep hearing people saying the
education centres were where they torture people,” he said. But the enthusiasm
of the dancers impressed him, “Look at their faces! You know these are very
happy people.”
Sonbol is just one beneficiary of a massive Chinese
government outreach programme targeting non-English-speaking journalists in a
concerted push to build its influence. In recent years, Beijing has reached out
to the Muslim world, bringing more than 30 journalists from Islamic countries
to Xinjiang in a bid to refute western headlines claiming human rights abuses.
The tours serve a dual purpose, with Chinese state
media also featuring the visits on the main national evening news bulletin. In
some cases, the journalists are quoted as giving their vocal support to
Beijing’s hardline strategy in Xinjiang.
Interviews with three Muslim journalists who took part
in the tours have revealed they were provided with interpreters, given access
to high-ranking officials and monitored during most of their interactions.
Sonbol described interviewing a female inmate who said she’d been given three
years in the re-education camp after assaulting other women who had failed to
use the Islamic head-covering, the hijab. “She committed a crime!” he said.
“She agreed to go to the re-education centre. What’s wrong with that?”
For Sonbol and his group of 12, the political
indoctrination camp was the last stop on a 10-day tour that started in Beijing
and included a kindergarten, an Islamic college, a mosque, a market and
cultural venues in Xinjiang. Beijing has been accused of attempting to
eradicate Uighur culture, but Sonbol said what he saw convinced him of the
opposite. “In this market for traditional Uighur dancing, they built a modern
mosque, they built a place to pray, they have this place for dancing, they have
everything,” he said.
Murat Yilmaz, a reporter for Turkish newspaper
Hürriyet, took part in a tour to Xinjiang in 2017. Yilmaz’s output from the
visit – two news stories praising Chinese growth – also argued for increased
economic cooperation for countries along the belt and road initiative, echoing
Chinese talking points. “I got to see China with my own eyes, and I got correct
information,” he wrote in an email.
But one journalist who had a very different reaction
to an official tour was Albanian-Canadian freelance Olsi Jazexhi. In August
2019, he flew to Xinjiang for an eight-day tour with another 19 journalists
from 16 countries.He had always vocally opposed the United States, and when he
approached the Chinese embassy in Tirana, he only had one aim in mind. “I
wanted to write a good piece on China,” he admitted, “I wanted to prove to the
world that the Americans, like they lied about us in the Balkans, they are
lying about the Chinese as well.”
Jazexhi’s background is as a historian, and from the
start he was suspicious of the narrative followed by Chinese experts who
lectured the group. “Communist party officials were describing Xinjiang as
historically being Chinese, while the Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims were
shown as immigrants in Xinjiang, and Islam was depicted as a foreign religion
which was imposed by foreigners on the Uighurs.” It was, to his mind, closer to
propaganda than history. He was also made uneasy by the portrayal of Muslims in
state-run museums, where they were often depicted as primitive and dirty.
But the key moment for Jazexhi came during a visit to
Wensu County Vocational Skills Training Centre, a re-education camp in Aksu
prefecture. When the group arrived, they watched a series of song-and-dance
routines. After around 15 minutes, Jazexhi asked if he could speak to some of
the detainees. He was ushered into a classroom and was told he could conduct
interviews under supervised conditions. He noticed that whenever he started
speaking to the detainees in their own language, they responded in Mandarin
Chinese. He realised that the inmates were afraid.
“We understood that these people were not even allowed
to speak their own mother tongue,” he said. Through conversations with
handlers, he realised that the practice of Islam was prohibited in the camps,
and that residents were not allowed access to phones or contact with their
families.
He also learned some of the reasons why they had been
detained, including wearing the hijab, praying in public and reading the
Qur’an. “What we found out was that in Xinjiang, practising Islam was
considered to be a crime,” he said.
That night, Jazexhi posted video of his awkward
interviews with nervous inmates surrounded by handlers and interpreter on
YouTube. The move irritated the Chinese officials on the tour, who questioned
why he was taking the videos.
In the following days, the group visited another re-education
camp in Kashgar, where he noticed the inmates were wearing traditional Uighur
costumes.“In our trip, they had produced this Potemkin show,” he said. “Almost
all of us as journalists, we understood that the CCP had put on a show for us.
They wanted us to sell the world a fake story.”
Yet Jazexhi noted that, while the visits had made some
of the other journalists weep, most took no action. One wrote a lengthy report
that could not be published in their own country, but most of the others stayed
silent.
China’s ministry of foreign affairs(Mofa) said
Jazexhi’s statement had “no factual basis and is pure rumour and slander. I
hope that the media will not be blinded by his remarks.”“The center strictly
implements the basic principles of respecting and protecting human rights in
China’s constitution and relating laws,” a statement from Mofa said. “All use
the national common language and minority language at the same time.”
Such trips represent one prong in China’s information
warfare strategy, according to Michael Raska of Nanyang Technological
University Singapore’s S Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
“Information warfare is about trying to compel others
to accept your interests,” he said, “What is new now is a shift in Chinese
information and political influence strategies. There is now a much more
comprehensive and active push to control the narrative.”
A Chinese police officer takes his position by the
road near what is officially called a vocational education centre in Yining in
Xinjiang
A Chinese police officer near what is officially
called a vocational education centre in Yining, Xinjiang. Photograph: Thomas
Peter/Reuters
The success of these tours is hard to gauge. Sonbol
emerged convinced that Beijing’s motives in Xinjiang were humane, and that the
western press treated China unfairly. Jazexhi, even though he was not won over
by his experience in Xinjiang, said: “China is doing what the British and
Americans do. They’re producing fake stories in the service of their
imperialism.”
Jazexhi’s outspokenness has come at a cost, and he has
been publicly attacked by China’s state-run Global Times newspaper, which
accused him of spreading fake news and violating journalistic ethics. He says
he was also approached by the Chinese embassy in Albania, who hinted that
staying silent would be beneficial for him. “They told me, please don’t write,
don’t say anything, and if you be quiet, you will be the friend of China.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/23/how-china-uses-muslim-press-trips-to-counter-claims-of-uighur-abuse
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Pompeo to visit Israel, UAE to discuss 'peace', Iran,
China
August 23, 2020
PressTV
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reportedly intends
to visit the Israeli-occupied Palestine on Monday before traveling to the United
Arab Emirates (UAE) to discuss the despotic Arab kingdom’s normalization deal
with the Tel Aviv regime.
The agenda of the hawkish top US diplomat will also
include discussions with officials of the two regimes perceived “security
challenges” posed by Iran and China in the region, Reuters reported Saturday
citing two sources “briefed” on Pompeo’s itinerary “who declined to be
identified by name or nationality.”
The development came shortly after the chief of
Israel’s infamous Mossad spy agency, Yossi Cohen, traveled to the UAE in the
first high-profile visit by a senior Israeli official for what was described as
“security talks.”
During the visit, Cohen discussed cooperation “in the
fields of security” with the UAE's National Security Advisor Sheikh Tahnoun bin
Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, according to the country’s official WAM news
agency.
“The two sides discussed prospects for cooperation in
the fields of security as well as exchanged points of view on regional
developments and on issues of common interest, including efforts to contain
COVID-19,” the report said.
The tiny Persian Gulf state and the Tel Aviv regime
reached a US-brokered normalization deal on August 13, designed to lead to full
diplomatic ties amid angry condemnation of the move by all Palestinian leaders,
who described the agreement as a “stab in the back” of the Palestinians by an
Arab country.
The deal further drew strong reaction across the
Middle East and most of the Muslim world, including the Islamic Republic of
Iran, which deplored the accord as “treacherous.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a
telephone conversation with Secretary General of Palestinian Islamic Jihad
resistance movement Ziad al-Nakhala a day after the agreement that the
“treacherous” deal between the Zionist regime and the UAE does not hinder the
Palestinian resistance against the occupying regime.
Zarif further underlined that the Washington-pushed
deal would “certainly increase the hatred of the people of the region and
Palestinians for such policies that are against the Palestinian cause.”
Shortly after the announcement of the Israel-UAE deal,
the Islamic Jihad lambasting the move, emphasizing that it was a sign of
submission of Abu Dhabi to Tel Aviv without having any effect on reducing
conflicts in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The Iranian foreign minister also spoke with the
leader of the Gaza-based Hamas resistance movement, Ismail Haniyeh, who thanked
Iran's leader and government for their persistent support of the Palestinian
cause and said, “We will always continue the line of resistance and fight
against the occupation, and we will not be affected by such treacherous acts,
but we feel pain from this dagger that stabbed the Palestinian people from
behind.”
This is while the American president described the
agreement as a "HUGE breakthrough" in a tweet and further referred to
it as a "historic peace agreement between our two GREAT friends."
Pompeo at the time also described the normalization
deal as an "enormous" step forward on the "right path"
while the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted that deal marked
"a historic day."
However, many observers believe that the Trump
administration has pushed the UAE-Israel deal as a much-needed foreign policy
achievement as the president’s re-election campaign is struggling to gain in
the local polls that show him far behind his Democratic presidential rival Joe
Biden just more than two months ahead of the November 3 elections.
https://en.abna24.com/news//pompeo-to-visit-israel-uae-to-discuss-peace-iran-china_1064690.html
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India
Ganesh Chathurthi: Guess Which Muslim-Majority Country
Has Lord Ganesha On Its Currency Note?
BY DNA Web Team
Aug 22, 2020
Amid the clouds of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of
people in India on Saturday warmly welcomed the popular elephant-headed God,
Lord Ganesha, also known as Ganapati and Vinayaka. The atmosphere of the
pandemic may have dialled down the celebrations a bit compared to other years,
however, that doesn't make the day any less special because it is still about
one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon.
Today, we pose the question to our readers -- Which
country has a picture of Lord Ganesha on its currency note? And before your
mind defaults to the most obvious answer, you should jolt back into remembering
that it is not India, since currency notes here carry the image of Mahatma
Gandhi, as any elementary school lesson will tell you.
Then which country is it? Well, although it might not
be as obvious as first, as a matter of fact -- the image of Lord Ganesha, the
beloved remover of obstacles, the patron of arts and sciences, and the deva of
intellect and wisdom, is found beyond India and even... Hinduism. Yes, his
image is found in Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bali (Indonesia) and Bangladesh
and in countries with large ethnic Indian populations including Fiji, Mauritius
and Trinidad and Tobago. Not just that, devotion to Lord Ganesha is widely
diffused and extends to Jains and Buddhists as well.
He is honoured at the start of rites and ceremonies.
Ganesha is also invoked as patron of letters and learning during writing
sessions. Several texts relate mythological anecdotes associated with his birth
and exploits.
Which brings us to our original question -- Which
country has a picture of Lord Ganesha on its currency note? As a hint, let us
say that it's a Muslim-majority country but it continues to be impacted and
shaped by the rich history of Hinduism and its mythology.
Too difficult? Well, do not bother beating up your
brain cells anymore -- the answer is Indonesia.
Yes, the country whose religious composition comprises
86.7% Islam and 1.74% Hinduism did carry the image of Lord Ganesha on its
20,000 rupiah note from 1998 to 2008, along with Ki Hadjar Dewantara, a leading
Indonesian movement activist.
Don’t get confused as we have the answer to this.
Indonesia is a Muslim-majority, yes, but in most of the places, you’ll see
Hindu motifs so much so that, when L.K. Advani visited Jakarta in 2010 he was
left awestruck by the healthy respect the Muslim majority has for Hindus and
vice versa.
It is believed that Hinduism came to Indonesia in the
1st-century through traders, sailors, scholars and priests. and is still one of
the six official religions of the republic. A syncretic fusion of pre-existing
Javanese culture and Hindu ideas, that from the 6th-century synthesized
Buddhist ideas as well, evolved as the Indonesian version of Hinduism. These
ideas continued to develop during the Srivijaya and Majapahit empires.
The Bali island in Indonesia has a Hindu majority and
in the Indonesian mainland, apart from the image of Lord Ganesha in the
currency note, emblems and symbols of Hinduism are scattered across several
motifs in the country. The National emblem of Indonesia is called Garuda
Pancasila. Garuda, the vehicle carrier (vahana) of Lord Vishnu, also appears in
many ancient Hindu temples of ancient Indonesia.
It is a fact that Ganesha is one of a number of Hindu
deities who have reached foreign lands. Statues of Ganesha are found throughout
Maritime Southeast Asia, often beside Shiva sanctuaries. The forms of Ganesha
found in the Hindu art of the Philippines, Java, Bali, and Borneo show specific
regional influences and modified forms of worship in other places Burma,
Cambodia, and even Thailand.
https://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-ganesh-chathurthi-guess-which-muslim-majority-country-has-lord-ganesha-on-its-currency-note-2838887
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Mosque Trust, Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation,
Releases Logo, Team Visits Ayodhya Village
Aug 23, 2020
Arshad Afzaal Khan
Ayodhya: The Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation, the
Trust formed by Sunni Waqf Board for construction of an alternate mosque in
Ayodhya in lieu of Babri masjid, on Saturday released its official logo, which
is an octagram, represented by two overlapping squares.
Talking to TOI, secretary of mosque trust, Athar
Hussain, said, the logo is an Islamic symbol — Rub el Hizb. “In Arabic, ‘Rub’
means one fourth, while Hizb means a group or party. It’s system for memorising
and facilitating recitation of the Quran, which is divided into 60 hizbs. The
symbol is used as a marker for a chapter in Arabic calligraphy,” said Hussain.
The secretary and members of the Trust visited
Dhannipur on Saturday to inspect the topography of the five acres of land,
which was handed over to the district administration in first week of August.
The delegation comprising secretary, Athar Hussain,
and trustee Imran Ahmad Shibli met local clerics and members of Muslim
community in Dhannipur and adjoining villages. Shadaab Khan, a villager, told
TOI that villagers assured the delegation of support and cooperation in
building the mosque and other public-utility facilities.
The Trust will be building a mosque along with a
multi-speciality hospital, a community kitchen and a library on the land. The
Trust has already announced that the mosque will not be in the name of Babar
and other facilities will be open to people of all communities.
The delegation also visited an ancient Jain temple
adjoining Dhannipur — Sri Jain Swetambara Mandir Raunahi Ratnapuri of the 15th
Tirthankara. Temple priest Chandrashekhar Tiwari, who hosted the Trust members
told TOI that the temple dates back 2,500 years of the Samprati period.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/mosque-trust-releases-logo-team-visits-ayodhya-village/articleshowprint/77698528.cms
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Melody of Muslim Singer, Sohil Baloch’s Bhajan Got
Sweeter In ‘Indo-Pak Jugalbandi’
Aug 23, 2020
By Kiritsinh Zala
RAJKOT: His religion did not create an impediment when
Rajkot-based Sohil Baloch decided to compose and sing a bhajan dedicated to
Lord Shiva. Nor, did the acrimonious Indo-Pak relationship matter when his
Pakistani friend, Wajid Ali Khan, accompanied the singer on the Tabla. The
melodious rendition of the duo left listeners’ hearts melting in devotion.
“Though born into a Muslim family, I have been brought
up on bhajans as I lived in a Hindu area. During my childhood, I used to go to
Swadhyay Parivar and sing bhajans,” says Sohil (30), who lives in Bajarangvadi
area of Rajkot.
Sohil has also written and composed a bhajan, “Mai To
Jogi Banke Aya” (I have become a hermit), in which Khan has played tabla. “I
came into contact with Wajidbhai, a resident of Lahore in Pakistan, on Facebook
three months ago. I sent him the composition of the song, which he loved very
much. He was so kind to me that he filled in the composition with his music and
tabla and sent it back to me,” says Sohil.
“Wajidbhai is the son of Tafu Ali Khan, a legendary a
tabla player who used to play tabla for famous Pakistani ghazal singer Ghulam
Ali,” Sohil added.
Sohil’s father Yusuf Baloch, also a music composer
known as Kamalbhai, would send Sohil to Swadhyay Parivar where Pandurang
Shastri Athavale would ask Sohil to sing bhajans. Sohil’s elder sister Tasleem
Baloch is the principal of Sanskar Deep High School in Jamnagar, and a ghazal
singer.
“I was inspired by my father and elder sister to take
up music as a career. I serve as a music teacher with SNK High School on
University Road in Rajkot,” says Sohil.
Sohil has done masters in music from Arjunlal Hirani
Performing Arts College in Rajkot. So far, he has composed and released 20-odd
albums consisting of bhajans and songs.
Ten years ago, Sohil had composed and sung a bhajan
dedicated to Lord Ganapati along with famous folk singer Nidhi Dholakia. Five
years ago, Sohil had recomposed Saint Narsinh Mehta’s bhajan ‘Vaishnav Janato
Tene Re Kahiye’, in which he made 21 folk singers including Kirtidan Gadhvi,
Hemant Chauhan, Lalita Godadara and Osman Meer lend their voices. Two years ago
during the holy month of Ramzan, Sohil had sung bhajans dedicated to Lord
Swaminarayan at Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan temple in the
presence of Mahant Swami.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/rajkot/melody-of-muslim-singers-bhajan-got-sweeter-in-this-indo-pak-jugalbandi/articleshowprint/77699847.cms
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India: Court drops case against 'scapegoated' Muslims
22.08.2020
Shuriah Niazi
A court in western India quashed criminal proceedings
Saturday against foreign and Indian nationals accused of snubbing precautions
against the novel coronavirus by attending a Muslim congregation in a mosque, saying
they were made "scapegoats."
Judges in the city of Aurangabad in Maharashtra state
heard three separate petitions filed by the petitioners.
Judges TV Nalawade and MG Sewlikar said in their
statement that there had been much "propaganda" in the media against
the "foreigners who had come to Markaz Delhi [mosque] and an attempt was
made to create a picture that these foreigners were responsible for spreading
COVID-19 virus in India."
"There was virtually persecution against these
foreigners," they said, adding there was "probability that these
foreigners were chosen to make them scapegoats."
"A political Government tries to find the
scapegoat when there is pandemic or calamity and the circumstances," said
the bench.
Citing current infection figures in India, they
underlined that these circumstances showed that legal action against those that
attended the congregation should not have been taken.
It is now high time for the concerned to take steps to
repair the damage done by the lawsuit, they added.
A total of 29 foreigners from Ivory Coast, Ghana,
Tanzania, Djibouti, Benin and Indonesia were booked by police for staying in a
mosque and violating lockdown orders in the city of Ahmednagar, roughly 100
kilometers (62 miles) south of Aurangabad.
They said they came on a valid visa issued by the
government and were screened and tested for the coronavirus at the airport.
Muslims in India were targeted in different parts of
the country in April following reports that there one local outbreak of
COVID-19 had occurred at a mid-March religious gathering in New Delhi
organized, by Tablighi Jamaat, a Muslim religious group.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/india-court-drops-case-against-scapegoated-muslims/1950378
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Suspected Islamic State operative had left village two
days ago to get relative treated in Lucknow, says UP cop
Press Trust of India
August 22, 2020
Balrampur: A Special Cell team of Delhi Police took
alleged Islamic State operative Mustakeem Khan to his village Badhya Bhaksai in
Balrampur district on Saturday evening for the scrutiny of his various claims,
a top UP police officer said.
Mustakeem Khan alias Abu Yusuf, allegedly planning to
carry out a lone wolf terror strike in the capital, was arrested in Delhi on
Friday night after a brief exchange of fire with a Delhi police team.
Khan was taken to his village on Saturday evening by a
Delhi Police team after he was remanded in police custody by a court there, a
senior officer of the Anti-Terrorist Squad of UP police told PTI in Lucknow.
The accused was taken to his village to verify his
various claims from his relatives and neighbours in his village, he said.
Following communication from the Delhi Police of its
intention to take the accused to his village, a UP ATS team had swooped on the
village earlier in the day and cordoned it off to restrict the entry of
outsiders to prevent any trouble in the area, said the UP police officer.
During enquiries in the village, it transpired that
Khan had left his village for Lucknow two days ago on the pretext of getting
one of his relatives treated there, he added.
But it could not be ascertained how he reached the
National Capital where he was arrested on Friday night from the central Delhi's
Ridge Road area, he said.
Khan was found in possession with two pressure cooker
IEDs which were fully ready and just needed to be activated with a timer, the
Delhi Police had said earlier on the day after securing his police custody for
eight days from a court there.
Khan's relatives in the village feigned ignorance on
how he reached Delhi despite saying he was going to Lucknow, the ATS officer
added.
He said the accused was taken to his village, besides
some other places, and was intensively questioned.
The Delhi Police team also asked about Khan's
antecedent from several of his relatives and neighbours in his village, the
official said.
During the enquiries, it transpired that nearly eight
years ago, he had left the village to work in Mumbai but he came back after he
got injured there in an accident, the official said.
Around four years ago, he had opened a cosmetic shop
here which he ran briefly, the official said.
A major terror strike was averted with the arrest of
Khan from Central Delhi's Ridge Road area after a brief exchange of fire, Delhi
Police officials said earlier on Saturday.
The Delhi Police said Khan was on police radar for
over a year. He was planning to carry out a lone wolf strike at a high footfall
area in the National Capital, it said.
Khan had planned to strike in the National Capital on
15 August, but could not do so due to heavy security arrangements, Delhi's
Special Cell Deputy Commissioner of Police PS Kushwah had said.
Security was stepped up in the National Capital and
neighbouring Uttar Pradesh following the arrest.
https://www.firstpost.com/india/suspected-islamic-state-operative-had-left-village-two-days-ago-to-get-relative-treated-in-lucknow-says-up-cop-8742531.html
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Karnataka: Hindu youth prevents Muslim from drowning
in Nethravathi River
Aug 22, 2020
Jaideep Shenoy
MANGALURU: In an incident that will warm the cockles
of the heart and typifying the communal amity in Dakshina Kannada district, a
Hindu youth prevented a Muslim from drowning in the Nethravathi at Uppinangady
on Friday. His timely presence of mind and action from the flood rescue unit
stationed at Uppinangady, confluence of the Nethravathi and Kumaradhara rivers,
meant that both youths went home richer by their experience.
Saleem Kalleri of Janata Colony, Kalleri who went to
answer nature’s call on the banks of the Nethravathi accidentally slipped and
fell into the river. Even as he was struggling to come out of the muck that he
was caught in and gradually sinking, Ravi Shetty, a bystander unmindful of the
risk involved, waded into the water and caught hold of Saleem and ensured he
did not drown. The muck made it difficult for both Ravi to drag Saleem ashore.
Flood rescue unit personnel unit headed by in-charge
home guard unit officer Dinesh B, informed of the situation, rowed to the spot
in their inflatable rubber boat. Dinesh told TOI that as the spot where Saleem
was stuck was close to the shore, they could not deploy the outboard engine and
had to paddle their way in. In the interim, home guards threw a rope to Ravi
which he fastened around Saleem’s waist and used the same rope to come ashore.
Dinesh and swimmer Chennappa on board the boat dragged
Saleem onto the boat and brought him ashore. Bystanders helped fasten the rope
to a tree on the riverbank, Dinesh said, adding the collective effort of all,
including the presence of mind shown by Ravi helped salvage the situation.
Incidentally, in May, Muslim youths too had risked their life to save Nishanth,
a teenager from drowning in the Nethravathi at Bantwal, albeit unsuccessfully.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mangaluru/karnataka-hindu-youth-prevents-muslim-from-drowning-in-nethravathi-river/articleshowprint/77695735.cms
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UP Police on high alert, UP ATS team reaches Delhi
after Islamic State terrorist’s arrest
Arvind Ojha
August 22, 2020
Following the arrest of an Islamic State terrorist in
Delhi on Friday night, Uttar Pradesh Police has been put on high alert. The
terrorist, identified as Abu Yusuf, hailed from Balrampur in UP.
Prashant Kumar, ADG-Law and Order, Uttar Pradesh Police,
said, “On DGP's instructions, all SSPs and security agencies of Uttar Pradesh
have been instructed to remain on high alert after a person was arrested with
IEDs from Delhi today by Delhi Police Special Cell.”
Around 15 kg of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)
was recovered from the terrorist who was nabbed after a round of firing at
Delhi’s Dhaula Kuan area on Friday night.
Some weapons were also recovered from the terrorist
who was carrying IEDs in two pressure cookers. The bomb squad, commandos from
the National Security Guard (NSG) managed to defuse the explosives on Saturday
morning.
Delhi Police Special Cell, central agencies and the UP
Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) are now interrogating the arrested terrorist.
A team of Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terror Squad has also
reached Delhi following the arrest of the Islamic State terrorist. The team has
reached the office of Delhi Police Special Cell at Lodhi Road in Delhi.
Meanwhile, raids are being conducted in various places
in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh to trace the associates of Abu Yusuf who had been
helping him with logistical support.
Sources have said the Islamic State terrorist, Abu
Yusuf, had a prominent personality in Delhi as his target and had a major
attack planned. He had even done recce of a few places in the Capital.
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/islamic-state-terrorist-arrested-in-delhi-up-police-on-high-alert-1713903-2020-08-22
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Pakistan
Lawyer denies facilitating killing of suspected
blasphemer in Peshawar court
Bureau Report
23 Aug 2020
PESHAWAR: A local court sent a junior lawyer to jail
on 14-day remand here on Saturday after he rejected the charge of facilitating
the killing of a blasphemy accused by providing a pistol to the suspected
teenage killer.
A team of local police brought Tufail Zia to the
Judicial Complex on the completion of his three-day physical remand and
produced him before an anti-terrorism court for recording confessional
statement in the case under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
The court referred the suspect to a judicial
magistrate for the purpose.
He, however, rejected the charge and said he didn’t
want to record confessional statement.
The court sent him to the Peshawar Central Prison on
judicial remand.
Shabbir Hussain Gigyani, Inamullah Yousafzai and other
lawyers for the lawyer said the police had arrested their client to twist facts
and spoil the case of the prime suspect.
Peshawar court sends him to jail on remand
The lawyer was arrested on Tuesday and was remanded by
the court in police custody on Wednesday for three days.
Interestingly, initially when he was produced before
the ATC on Aug 19 and police was seeking his physical custody, he had told the
court that there was no need of his remand as he was willing to confess that
her had facilitated the prime suspect. However, as the police officials had
stated that they want to further interrogate him, therefore, his physical
custody was granted by the court.
One of his counsels told Dawn that his initial
statement might be under duress and coercion by the police.
Suspect Tufail Zia was also a junior counsel
representing the complainant, Malik Owais, a resident of Nowshera studying in a
seminary in Islamabad, in the trial against deceased Tahir Ahmad Nasim, who was
also a US citizen.
The suspected teenage killer was apprehended soon
after the killing of the blasphemy accused inside the courtroom on July 29. He
has been kept at the Peshawar Central Prison on judicial remand.
The FIR of the incident was registered at the East
Cantonment police station under Section 302 of Pakistan Penal Code, Section 7
of Anti-Terrorism Act and Section 15 of Arms Act.
The body of the suspected blasphemer was handed over
to the US Consul General in Peshawar on Aug 14 and was repatriated to the US on
Aug 15.
The family members of the deceased, including his
daughters based in Illinois, USA, had issued a general power of attorney on
July 30 in favour of the US Consul General in Peshawar for the repatriation of
the remains of the deceased.
A case against the deceased was registered here at
Sarband Police Station on Apr 25, 2018, under Pakistan Penal Code sections
153-A (promoting enmity between different groups), 295-A (acts intended to
outrage religious feelings of any class), 295-B (defiling Holy Quran), 295-C (derogatory
remarks in respect of Holy Prophet) and 298 (uttering words to wound religious
feelings).
Complainant Malik Owais had charged the deceased of
making false religious claims that he was a prophet and that he received Divine
Revelations in dreams.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1575944/lawyer-denies-facilitating-killing-of-suspected-blasphemer-in-peshawar-court
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Imran Khan declared Man of the Year by ‘The Muslim
500’
News Report
August 23, 2020
ISLAMABAD: The Muslim 500, a Jordan based publication,
has declared Prime Minister Imran Khan ‘Man of the Year’, while US
Congresswoman Rashida Talib has been declared ‘Woman of the Year’.
For Imran Khan, the magazine wrote that iff The Muslim
500 was in print back in 1992 Imran Khan would have been nominated as Muslim
Man of the Year because of his brilliant performance in cricket, which
culminated in Pakistan winning the 1992 Cricket World Cup -- a sport I have
always admired for its combination of elegance and intense competitive play.
“I also was touched when Khan launched a successful
fund raising campaign to establish a hospital devoted to both the care of
victims of cancer as well as research.
This was his magnificent response to the loss of his
mother to cancer in 1985 and given Imran Khan’s extraordinary popularity with
Pakistanis both at home as well as among the large number of Pakistani expats
along with his own, no doubt, generous personal contribution—he raised
sufficient funds so that by 1994 the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital
opened its doors in Lahore. 75 percent of its patients receive free-care,”
wrote the editor.
Imran Khan became Prime Minister of Pakistan in 2018
after 22 years devoted to building an opposition political party committed to
reform; confronting Pakistan’s civilian political establishment over the issue
of embedded corruption and mismanagement. This and his other accomplishments
are detailed in the biography that accompanies his ranking (Number 16) in this,
the latest edition of The Muslim 500.
But what is particularly to his credit is that upon
taking office in August 2018 Imran Khan made it quite clear that one of his top
priorities was to work for a lasting peace with India. He wanted to normalise
relations through trade, and settling the Kashmir dispute, “the foremost
impediment” in the prime minister’s own words “to the normalisation of
relations between us”.
“This is Imran Khan’s great dilemma—how do you make a
much desired lasting peace with a nation governed by those who have neither
interest nor need to make a lasting peace with Pakistan, and against whom any
form of war would be hopeless. The answer it would seem that Imran Khan’s
efforts must now focus on mobilising global opinion, to turn a RSS-led India a
global pariah. With his impressive column in the New York Times and the sudden
burst of public activity by some of Imran Khan’s touring ministers and
ambassadors in America, Europe and perhaps in Asia, that appears to be now
underway,” wrote the editor.
Woman of the year Rashida Tlaib, American
Congresswoman (Democrat, Michigan) is this year’s Muslim 500 Woman of the Year.
She is the first Palestinian-American woman and joint first Muslim woman (along
with Ilhan Omar (Democrat, Minnesota) to be elected to the American Congress as
member of the House of Representatives.
She took her individual oath of office with her hand
on the Holy Quran. Although she is serving her first term in office she is
certainly one of the most publicised members, largely because of President
Trump who has publicly accused her and three other congresswomen of colour
(collectively known as ‘the squad’) of hating America and saying that they
should “go back to where they came from”— a trope that has been used by white
American nativists (a polite way to refer to racists) since the 19th century
responding to waves of immigrants—Irish, Italians, Jews (overwhelmingly from
Russia and Poland), Latin Americans (popularly referred to as Hispanics)
ignoring or oblivious to the fact that while Tlaib’s parents are Palestinian immigrants,
Tlaib was born in America, so the best she could do is go back to Detroit.
Although Trump has denounced all of ‘The Squad’ he
seems particularly obsessed with the Muslim congresswomen. They represent all
that he despises. Apart from their faith, gender, and ethnic background, both
are professed socialists. Tlaib is a member of the Democratic Socialists of
America and Omar, while not a member of the DSA, has expressed a sympathy for
democratic socialism. Both support the various welfare state measures proposed
by Senator Bernie Sanders.
Eminent religious scholars Mufti Taqi Usmani and
Maulana Tariq Jameel have also been named among the most influential Muslims.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/704715-imran-khan-declared-man-of-the-year-by-the-muslim-500
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UK approached for extradition of Nawaz: PM aide
Dawn Report
23 Aug 2020
LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: Declaring former prime minister
Nawaz Sharif an “absconder”, Adviser to the Prime Minster on Accountability and
Interior Shahzad Akbar has said that Mr Sharif’s four-week bail on medical
grounds expired in December last year and the government had already approached
the UK government for his extradition.
“The government is treating him (Sharif) as an
absconder and has already sent a request to the British government to extradite
him,” Mr Akbar said while addressing a press conference in Lahore on Saturday.
“His stroll on London roads is a slap in the face of
the judiciary and the government cannot allow this. There is nothing personal
in it: we are only trying to implement the law and fulfil its requirements,”
the adviser maintained.
Mr Akbar said that the government would request the
National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to pursue Mr Sharif’s extradition as well
and it was also looking into legalities of guarantees of Shahbaz Sharif, who
was supposed to escort his elder brother back to Pakistan after his medical
treatment.
Special Assistant to the PM Shahbaz Gill and Punjab
Minister for Information Fayyazul Hassan Chohan were present at the news
conference.
The adviser said that on Oct 29 last year the court
granted Mr Sharif eight-week bail for treatment within Pakistan and on Nov 16,
he got a four-week permission to travel abroad for treatment. According to Mr
Akbar, the former prime minister was supposed to keep the court and the Punjab
government updated about his treatment by sharing the details of the process of
his treatment and test reports which he didn’t do.
He said that Mr Sharif applied to the Punjab
government for bail extension on Feb 19.
A medical board was constituted which sought details
of medical procedures being done and test reports of Mr Sharif, but nothing was
shared.
He said that the law ministry, NAB and the prison
department were informed about the bail expiry and rejection of its extension
when the medical board got nothing as evidence document.
He said the UK government was also informed about the
development on March 2 with a request for Mr Sharif’s extradition.
Commenting on recent pictures of Mr Sharif, Mr Akbar
said that the former premier looked perfectly fine in the pictures being shared
by his sons.
As far as “NRO plus plus”, a term coined by the
government to describe the opposition’s demand in negotiations with it on some
legal issues, was concerned, “Imran Khan would not yield even N of the NRO plus
plus”, he insisted.
Mr Akbar said the opposition had a desire that money
laundering should be taken out of NAB’s purview. On the other hand, he said,
the world took money laundering as a very serious crime and so did the PTI.
He said it was because of money laundering that
Pakistan was put on the grey list of the FATF. He said that the opposition
needed to understand the seriousness of the crime and the world’s concerns on
it.
Not to be left behind, Shahbaz Gill chimed in with
allegation of “rigging of medical tests” by Nawaz Sharif.” He claimed that if
the quantity of ETDA — a chemical that functions by binding calcium in the
blood and prevents blood clotting — was increased during sample collection,
platelets count could be manipulated.
“This is precisely what the Sharif family did. It was
allowed to take and submit blood samples of Nawaz Sharif and manipulated the
samples,” he alleged.
Mr Chohan criticised Maryam Nawaz and her “brand of
politics” and said that she had only damaged herself by bringing workers
carrying stones to attack NAB offices.
Talking to media persons after attending a
journalists’ training workshop in Islamabad, federal Minister for Science and
Technology Fawad Chaudhry said Nawaz Sharif was roaming in the streets of
London and enjoying coffee. He said that submission of fake medical reports
amounted to committing fraud.
The minister said that the Punjab government would
investigate Mr Sharifs medical reports to expose the people who had “rigged” them.
“I had said earlier also that Nawaz Sharif is not sick
and should not be given any relaxation. Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam
Nawaz have the same problem. They just want all cases against them to be shut
down,” he added.
The minister alleged that Pakistan was placed in the
Financial Action Task Force (FATF)’s grey list due to the Pakistan Peoples
Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), alleging that the
opposition parties created hurdles when the government was striving to remove
the country from the grey list.
He said that PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif and PPP
chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari together could not gather enough people to fill
a marriage hall. He also criticised Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur
Rehman.
Earlier, Mr Chaudhry said in a tweet that Nawaz
Sharif’s departure to London had damaged the PTI narrative and the process of
accountability. He said that those involved in preparing fake medical reports
of Mr Sharif should be given exemplary punishment.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1575969/uk-approached-for-extradition-of-nawaz-pm-aide
-------
Mideast
Losing in Yemen, Winning in Afghanistan, Islamic State
Weighs in on Arab-Israeli Peace
By Kyle Orton
22 August 2020
The Islamic State (IS) produced the 248th edition of
Al-Naba, its newsletter, on 20 August. The front page was devoted to recent
events in Yemen, which had not gone well for IS—although one could easily miss
that fact when reading a story that a focuses almost entirely on enemy
casualties and the failures of others. IS is, of course, not pleased about the
Israeli normalisation of relations with the United Arab Emirates, but Al-Naba
makes clear that it is more perturbed that Muslims should believe Turkey or
Qatar are any better than the U.A.E., despite their different approach to
Islamists. Al-Naba 248 documents IS’s continuing advances in Afghanistan—and,
indeed, Iraq, Syria, Africa (the Sahel), and Egypt. There is also a report of
insurgent activity in the Philippines.
Yemen
The front page of Al-Naba 248, continued on page four,
is about IS in Yemen countering an attack in the Qayfa area of Bayda province
by the Iran-backed Huthis, formally known as Ansarallah. Al-Naba claims that
“the mujahideen” killed and wounded 130 “polytheists/idolaters” (mushrikeen),
“despite the great difference in numbers and equipment”. IS claims that
recently it has been “alone in fronting the Huthi attacks”, and its forces had
persevered to the last despite being outnumbered and outgunned.
IS dates the Huthi attack to 12 August, saying it
killed and wounded twenty-five Huthis on this day. IS claims to have launched a
raid of its own against the Huthis the following day, which killed and wounded
thirty. IS then ambushed a Huthi convoy with a roadside bomb on 14 August,
according to Al-Naba, before launching two more IED attacks on Huthi vehicles
and bombing a Huthi gathering on 15 August. An “epic” battle is reported with
Huthi reinforcements on 16 August, and on 17 August it is claimed that IS
killed sixty Huthi fighters and wounded others.
The outcome of this week of “sanguinary
confrontations” was, by IS’s count, 100 Huthis killed and thirty wounded, plus
a the destruction of Huthi military hardware. It is conceded that IS made
“great sacrifices”—the omission of a specific number of killed and wounded on
the IS side by Al-Naba is glaring—but, says Al-Naba, this merely “proves [IS]
is worthy of the trust placed upon their shoulders to carry the fight for the
religion”.
IS says that the “steadfastness” of its jihadists in
Yemen should be recognised since they have been trapped in a “rugged area”,
i.e. Qayfa, under a “stifling/suffocating siege” (hisar khanaq) for two years,
surrounded by the Huthis, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and its
tribal allies, and the militias associated with the recognised government of
president Abdrabbu Mansur Hadi. IS says its fighters in Yemen have suffered not
only a lack of ammunition but even a scarcity of food.
Moving to page five, IS notes the “rapid advances” by
the Huthis in Qayfa and the fact the Huthis now control large parts of the
area, without really conceding it has much to do with them—indeed, while
directly refusing responsibility and loading it onto the failure of the tribes
to mobilise against the Huthis and the treachery of Al-Qaeda, which withdrew
from all of its “contact points” against the Huthis. Any euphoria from the
Huthis will be short-lived, Al-Naba concludes, since “the battle between truth
and falsehood continues—it is not dependent on the fate of [an individual] city
or region—and jihad will continue until the Hour [i.e. the end of time,
Armageddon]”.
The Emirati-Israeli Accord, Turkey, and Qatar
The main editorial in Al-Naba 248, on page three, is
devoted to reminding readers that, for IS, the United Arab Emirates’ open
normalisation of diplomatic relations with Israel on 13 August is neither here
nor there; this is a symptom of an impious regime and Turkey and Qatar are no
better, despite their alliance with forms of Islamism and Islamists, namely the
Muslim Brotherhood (al-Ikhwan al-Muslimeen).
Al-Naba pours scorn on the “comic scene” of the
Turkish government led by Recep Tayyip Erdogan musing on cutting relations with
the U.A.E. in retribution for the U.A.E. “announcing its relations with the
state of the Jews”, while there is an Israeli Embassy in Erdogan’s capital.
This is a “vivid example of the apostates’ manipulation of religion, and its
use as a political tool”, says Al-Naba.
The Emiratis did not reveal their apostasy by this
normalisation with Israel, nor by their stand against the Brotherhood
throughout the region, says Al-Naba. Rather, this apostasy was revealed decades
ago because they fail to rule by the law of God.
The “apostates belonging to parties falsely affiliated
with Islam” (the Muslim Brethren) are no better than the U.A.E., Al-Naba
continues, citing Erdogan—whose Justice and Development Party (AKP) developed
from Ikhwani roots—and Muhammad Morsi, the Brotherhood operative who briefly
served as Egypt’s first elected president (2012-13), neither of whom ruled by
(IS’s interpretation of) the shari’a and both of whom “maintained their
treaties with the Jewish state”.
As for Qatar, says Al-Naba, it “preceded the Emirates
in their public relations with [Israel]”.
Any objections heard from the Qataris or Turks about
what the U.A.E. has done are not out of concern for the Palestinians, says
Al-Naba, but out of “envy for their relationship with the Jews, which might
increase [the Emiratis’] favours from the Crusaders”. The Saudi government was widely
attacked in the Muslim world for hosting the U.S. and British jets that
patrolled the no-fly zones in Iraq—“bombed the Muslims of Iraq”, as Al-Naba has
it—and Qatar joined in on this, but only, says Al-Naba, so the Americans would
move away from the House of Saud and concentrate their regional presence at
Al-Udeid Airbase in Doha, making the Qataris their main ally in fighting the
jihadists.
Similarly, says Al-Naba, in Iraq there were many
ostensibly militant Islamic formations in the mid-2000s, who had condemned the
Shi’a parties as traitors to their country and Islam for working with the
Americans—“but as soon as the Crusaders reached out to them” during the Surge
and Awakening, these insurgent groups “rushed to subordinate themselves [to the
Americans] and declared their loyalty to the fight against the Muslims [i.e.
IS] under their flag”.
IS concludes that as between the U.A.E., Qatar,
Turkey, and the “apostate Brotherhood” there is little more than a jealous
bidding war for Western affection ongoing: “We ask God Almighty to expose these
apostates, reveal their crimes to the people, and make His punishment for them
in this world a sign for everyone who manipulates or distorts His religion or
the Holy Law”.
Afghanistan
The largest item on page eight was from Afghanistan,
where IS is clearly on the upswing. The title boasts that “the Presidential
Palace and the Embassies are Within Range of Islamic State Missiles”.
IS blew up an Afghan police checkpoint in Jalalabad on
14 August, wounding two people, and detonated an IED under a vehicle carrying
security personnel in Bagram on 16 August, killing three and wounding one, says
Al-Naba.
Later on 16 August, IS fired three Katyusha rockets at
the Americans’ Bagram Airbase.
Sixteen Katyusha rockets were then unleashed on 18
August against the Afghan “presidential palace, the Embassies of a number of
Crusader countries, and the headquarters of the apostate Afghan government,
located in the ‘diplomatic area’ in Kabul”, says Al-Naba. This occurred during the
Independence Day celebrations. At least three people were killed and that many
wounded, and Al-Naba was especially pleased that international coverage showed
smoke billowing over the city.
Al-Naba concluded by noting this was the second time
in five months IS in “Khorasan” had attacked the Afghan presidential palace.
The last time was on 14 Rajab 1441 (9 March 2020), during the swearing-in of
president Ashraf Ghani—which was already contested by another candidate. The IS
attacks “caused great embarrassment to him, [getting him off to] a bad start
that is still getting worse”.
Miscellaneous
The rest of page five highlights IS attacks in the
Sinai in Egypt; attacks in the Philippines, including the 18 August
assassination of a police officer in Lanao del Sur in the south of the country;
and the assassination of a police officer in Tarmiya, near Baghdad, in Iraq by
one of its “security detachments” (mafariz amniya) on 13 August.
Page six was a whole-page spread on a series of
attacks in Nigeria that allegedly killed and wounded forty-five people,
including members of the Red Cross. Africa has been central to IS’s messaging
for some time. Attacks in Nigeria were on the frontpage of Al-Naba last week,
and the main editorial in Al-Naba 247 was devoted to justifying attacks on aid
workers—leaping off from a defence of the recent murders in the Sahel. Al-Naba
247 said that humanitarian aid workers are spies for blasphemous governments,
playing a part in the war against Islam by spreading the false religion of democracy
and secularism. Al-Naba went on to attack the United Nations in general as a
pillar of this conspiracy and in particular for having pumped “billions of
dollars into the Nusayri system [i.e. Asad regime] to help it complete its war
on the Muslims of Syria”. What was called “’humanitarian’ aid was converted
into army supplies and salaries for [the regime’s] fighters”, says Al-Naba.
Many “Crusader states” contributed to this fund, Al-Naba adds. As such, the
West has little standing to be concerned about the Islamic State’s atrocities,
which are dwarfed many times over by what Asad has done. The fact that what IS
says about the U.N. in Syria is effectively true is among the reasons Western
policy in that country has been so disastrous: it has given the jihadists a
legitimate grievance to weaponise for recruitment, not dissimilar to what
happened with Bosnia a generation earlier.
Page seven of Al-Naba 248 purports to document the
killing and wounding of thirteen PKK operatives in “Wilayat al-Khayr” (Deir
Ezzor) in eastern Syria in four separate attacks; the assassination on 15
August in Al-Bab in Aleppo in northern Syria of Abdallah Shaykhani, a member of
the “Awakening Police loyal to the apostate Turkish army” (i.e. the Syrian
National Army or SNA, the Turkish proxy militias); and a targeted assassination
the same day in Iraq, in the Nimrud area south of Mosul, of a member of the
“Tribal Hashd” by IS’s security detachments.
The rest of page eight, after the Afghanistan piece,
is devoted to assassinations in Syria. IS claims two assassinations in southern
Syria on 18 August: Hassan al-Ruwaydan, a pro-Asad militiaman, in the eastern
countryside of Deraa, and another in the same area, Rami al-Khatib, solving
what had been a mystery among activists who reported his murder. Al-Khatib is
accused by Al-Naba of insulting the prophet and stealthily promoting atheism by
criticising the implementation of the shari’a and advocating rationalism.
Al-Naba then goes on to claim that IS killed two contractors working for the Russians
in western Raqqa province, and abducted and murdered a member of the Ismaili
community near Rusafa in southern Raqqa.
Page nine documented a rash of guerrilla attacks in
Iraq: in Diyala, Kirkuk, and Anbar.
And page ten is an ideological essay, based on the
example of Ahmad al-Khalayleh (Abu Musab al-Zarqawi), the founder of the IS
movement, who, says Al-Naba, showed that the jihadists struggle was not
solely—or even primarily—with the “occupiers”. The real obstacles to an Islamic
state were two-fold, Al-Naba says: the Sunnis who did not share IS’s
interpretation of their faith and were even prepared to collaborate in building
a democratic order in Iraq, who had to be eliminated; and the Shi’a, who opened
the doors to the Americans from without and corrupted the faith from within.
Al-Naba reserves especial scorn for those who tried to affect Sunni-Shi’a
reconciliation, which would mean bringing the true believers toward “blatant
disbelief”. The Naba article notes with approval Zarqawi’s initiation of all-out
war against the Shi’is of Iraq. “This blessed approach not only angered people
of false religions, but angered even some of the elders of Al-Qaeda … who
believed that fighting was only for the invaders … due to their perverted
belief in the Islamization of the common people of the Rafida”, says Al-Naba.
This issue—whether lay Shi’is were to be targeted for murder, or “only” their
leaders (and by extension how to treat Sunni Muslims who did not share a
jihadist worldview)—would become one of the central theological disputes
between IS and Al-Qaeda.
The news of the week section on page eleven had five
items:
It led with the Israel-U.A.E. accord. Al-Naba
presented it nearly without commentary, noting that some considered it
historic, some thought it had prevented Israeli annexation on the West Bank,
some saw it as a unification against Iran, and others saw more cynical motives
in getting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu out of some domestic legal
trouble and/or assisting President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign.
Next was the Russian bombing of Idlib and the downing
of several drones in the province.
After that the “quiet coup” in Mali on 18 August.
Al-Naba documented the 18 August car-ramming attack in
Berlin that injured six people, which Germany has confirmed was motivated by
Islamist ideology, but IS did not claim this attack or even hint that it was
theirs.
Al-Naba reported the comments of Iraq’s prime minister
Mustafa al-Kadhemi during his 17 August interview with The Associated Press
that the Iraqi government would continue to need American help to be able to
resist the challenge of the Islamic State, and IS’s glee about this admission was
doubled by Trump’s reiteration of his desire to get American troops out of
Iraq—something the jihadists understand, and are exploiting in their tactical
planning and propaganda.
The downing of a third Western drone in Niger was
celebrated as a victory for the jihad, albeit apparently from a mechanical
failure rather than shoot-down (God does work in mysterious ways). Al-Naba was
particularly encouraged about this because bases for “Christian aircraft” have
been established and there is U.S. intelligence assistance to the French in the
Sahel, none of which seems to be doing much to further “their war against
Islam”.
Finally, IS took note of the removal of Iraqi
government officials in Basra after the assassination of several civilian
activists.
https://kyleorton1991.wordpress.com/2020/08/22/losing-in-yemen-winning-in-afghanistan-islamic-state-weighs-in-on-arab-israeli-peace/
---------
Holding Imam Hussein’s (AS) mourning ceremony with
observing health protocols a test for all
August 23, 2020
Pres. Rouhani
Iran's President said that the chart of reduction in
coronavirus in some provinces shows the great work and efforts of medical
staff, health officials and people's support in strict observance of health
protocols and stressed that holding a passionate mourning ceremony for Imam
Hussein (AS) with following health protocols is a test for all of us that we
must pass.
Speaking on Saturday at the meeting of the National
Task Force for Fighting Coronavirus, Dr Hassan Rouhani said, "Islamic Iran
can be a model in this area and it is a great test for all of us how we spend
the month of Muharram passionately and we do not see a new peak of the
disease”.
Appreciating the efforts of all medical staff,
especially doctors, the President said, "The medical staff, especially
doctors as health defenders, have done a great job over the past six months on
the front lines of the fight against coronavirus, with a loving effort to
maintain public health”.
The president went on to say that the dimensions of
the second wave of coronavirus were much wider and heavier than the first wave,
adding, "In the first wave, we were unfamiliar with the dangers of the
virus and in the second wave, it was much more aggressive”.
Dr Rouhani pointed out, "The efforts of the
medical staff and all managers, officials, governor generals and medical
universities and those who work in this field should be appreciated”.
The President stated, "We must work together with
the same spirit and empathy until we achieve ultimate success and victory”.
In another part of his speech, Dr Rouhani pointed out
that it was very difficult to decide whether or not to hold the national exam
and said, "Some people suggested that it be postponed completely for a
year, but without a doubt, this decision would waste a year of our young
people’s life”.
The President added, "The national exam was held
well because the great efforts of the country's officials, along with the
participants and their families, and this is a great work that was done with
cooperation and empathy”.
In another part of his speech, Dr Rouhani stressed the
need for people to pay attention to health protocols and the need to adopt a
new lifestyle, given that not all aspects of coronavirus are obvious.
The President added, "Many efforts have been made
to find a vaccine for this disease, but it is still not possible to speak with
certainty about any vaccine, and research in this field has not reached any
point, in a way that the World Health Organisation has announced in recent days
that we are two years away from harnessing the virus”.
Dr Rouhani said, "Of course, in our country,
companies and various institutions are trying to find a vaccine for this virus,
but until we get the vaccine, we must get used to a new lifestyle and continue
to follow physical distance and health instructions for the coming months”.
Dr Rouhani pointed out, "The heads of various
departments, businesses and occupations should emphasise to their employees
that following health protocols is not just for one month”.
"Some are asking if there will be a third
coronavirus wave," the president said, adding, "Undoubtedly, it is us
who play a role in the formation of the third wave, and if health protocols are
not followed, we will definitely have the third wave, so it is very important that
we observe all the health protocols”.
Dr Rouhani emphasised the importance of e-government
and e-health and said, "It is very important that people do not leave
their homes by taking advantage of e-government and solve their problems from
inside the house and through cyberspace”.
The President said, "In the field of e-health,
efforts should be made to record people’s health, and in this regard, its steps
should be completed as soon as possible, and people should not need to go in
person except in urgent cases".
https://en.abna24.com/news//holding-imam-hussein%e2%80%99s-as-mourning-ceremony-with-observing-health-protocols-a-test-for-all_1064685.html
-------
How Iranian Mullahs Use COVID-19 To Prevent Major Iran
Protests
by Shamsi Saadati
22nd August 2020
Holding university exams, planning to hold mourning
ceremonies in Muharram, forcing people back to work amid the COVID-19 outbreak,
and systematic cover-up of this crisis, are the Iranian regime’s plan to use
the Coronavirus pandemic for thwarting an uprising, thus preventing its
downfall.
The regime held the college entrance exams, without
implementing the most basic preventive measures and health protocols. In this
regard, Minoo Mohraz, member of the regime’s National Coronavirus Combat Task
Force, on August 19 told the state-run Hamshari daily: “We suggested that we
postpone the entrance exams until the weather would be better, and it could be
held outdoors. But the Health Ministry was forced to write a protocol. Who
wants to implement it? The entrance exam is a gathering, and I, as an expert,
say it should not be held indoors.”
The regime held these exams while the COVID-19 death
toll is rapidly rising, even according to the regime’s statistics, which stands
at over 20,000 deaths. Meanwhile, the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran
(PMOI/MEK) announced on Friday that the coronavirus death toll in 394 cities
across Iran has surpassed 92,300.
The major Iran protests in November 2019 rattled the
regime’s foundation. According to Reuters, the regime’s Supreme Leader ordered
the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) “to do whatever it takes” to prevent this
uprising from overthrowing his regime. This order led to over 1500 people being
slaughtered on the streets, according to the MEK.
Protests in January erupted following the regime
reluctantly confessing to shooting down a Ukrainian passenger jet, targeting
the regime’s top officials, with chants of “death to the dictator.” These
protests, as well as the general boycott of the regime’s sham parliamentary
elections, made people’s desire for regime change clear for the mullahs’ regime
and left the clerical regime in the constant nightmare of downfall.
So, the COVID-19 was the regime’s savior. Khamenei
called it a “blessing and test.” It is important to understand how the regime
used this deadly virus.
The mullahs held their sham parliamentary elections
despite knowing it would be boycotted. This was partly to defy the
international community and legitimize their rule. But mostly the Iranian
regime intended to use the novel coronavirus as a lever of oppression to quell
the restive Iranian society. The regime’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak
confirmed this reality that the mullahs intend to use mass casualties as a
barrier to a new series of possible major protests.
Since the coronavirus outbreak, the mullahs’
president, Hassan Rouhani, and other officials tried to downplay this crisis
and cover up the true extent of this virus. While the mullahs said the virus
was transmitted from China to Iran in February, documents published by the
National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), obtained by the People’s
Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) from the regime’s National Emergency
Organization, confirmed the virus had arrived in Iran in early January.
Yet, the regime continued its cover-up and ordered a
quarantine when the virus had spread across Iran. This quarantine was also
rapidly canceled since the regime feared starving people, who were at home
without any governmental help, would rise up against the regime. So, they
quickly forced people back to work.
These actions increased the death toll and the
infection rate. The situation even forced some of the regime’s officials to
acknowledge the regime’s strategy of killing people.
Mohammad Reza Mahboubfar, a member of the National
Covid-19 Task Force, on August 10 told the state-run Jahan-e Sanat daily: “We
witnessed the first patients suffering from Covid-19 exactly a month before the
official announcement of this virus entering the country, meaning around
mid-January. However, at the time the government concealed this due to
political and security reservations.”
Mahboubfar further described these security and
political reservations. “The government to avoid the protests of 2018 and 2019
being repeated chose the herd immunity policy by vast reopening. Thus, leaving
people alone facing coronavirus.”
Not satisfied to merely deny public statements that
contradict the official narrative, the regime responded to Mahboubfar’s
interview by closing Jahan-e Sanat.
Also, the state-run Setareh Sobh (Morning Star) daily,
in its editorial published on August 4, while acknowledging to the regime’s
cover-up, had warned about holding the college entrance exams and the mourning
ceremonies in the holy month of Muharram.
“Due to the flawed structure of health decision-making
and government mismanagement, Iran is and will continue to be plagued by the
disease. When the [regime’s] president [Hassan Rouhani] says that Muharram
mourning ceremonies could be held gloriously, regardless of the opinion of
health experts and specialists, it means there is a serious disagreement
between the government and the National Coronavirus Combating Task Force.
Despite the fact, most people want to cancel the national entrance exams or to
hold mourning ceremonies virtually,” read the article.
The answer is no. The restive society that showed its
desire for regime change by boycotting the mullahs’ sham parliamentary
elections, after sacrificing 1500 martyrs, will never forget how it was treated
during these days.
In this regard, the state-run Mostaghel daily on July
13 wrote: “This nation will not forget how it was abandoned during these bitter
days. This will affect the upcoming incidents. The Government did not contain
and control the coronavirus to relevantly control the anger of defiant people.
But I wish that the suffering and illness of the people were not used as a cure
for obliviousness and a means of revenge for the events of November and
December. Because soon, people will come to their table for eating, and their
despair of an empty table will lead them to protest on busy streets.”
https://www.ncr-iran.org/en/news/how-mullahs-use-covid-19-to-prevent-major-iran-protests/
------
Agriculture Jihad Minister: Iran's anti-covid19
vaccine reaching near clinical trial phase
Kazem Khavazi
Aug 22, 2020
Tehran, Aug 22, IRNA – Iranian Agriculture Jihad
Minister Kazem Khavazi announced that the animal phase of the trial of Iran's
anti-coronavirus vaccine has been ended in Razi Serology Institute and it is
getting ready for the first phase of the clinical trial of the vaccine.
"We hope that we could witness the making of the
coronavirus soon in our country," Khavazi said.
"Our colleagues have carried out extensive work
under the direct auspices of the Iranian Ministry of Health in the field of
research to gain access to vaccine and the vaccine has undergone all its
animal-phase tests and we are preparing documents and rendering them to the
Health Ministry," he added.
https://en.irna.ir/news/83918259/Agriculture-Jihad-Minister-Iran-s-anti-covid19-vaccine-reaching
-------
Maduro says Venezuela buying Iranian missiles ‘a good
idea’
August 23, 2020
Thomas Miles
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas
Maduro on Saturday said it would be a “good idea” to look into buying missiles
from Iran, a day after Colombia said Venezuela was considering such a plan amid
growing ties between Caracas and Tehran.
Iran in May supplied gasoline to Venezuela to ease
chronic shortages, triggering alarm bells in Washington as the two countries
expand trade relations amid efforts to undermine aggressive U.S. sanctions
programs.
“It had not occurred to me, it had not occurred to
us,” Maduro said during a televised broadcast with cabinet members, instructing
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino to follow up and jokingly telling his cabinet
to keep the plan a secret.
“Padrino, what a good idea, to speak with Iran to see
what short, medium and long range missiles they have, and if it is possible,
given the great relations we have with Iran.”
Colombian President Ivan Duque said on Thursday that
Maduro is looking to buy Iranian missiles and is handing over weapons made in
Russia and Belarus to Colombian armed groups, citing intelligence reports.
Weapons purchases appear relatively unlikely for
Maduro, whose government is struggling to buy basic food and medicine or to
provide fuel to the population due sanctions as well as chronic dysfunction of
the country’s refineries.
https://kyrnews.com/us-news/11925/maduro-says-venezuela-buying-iranian-missiles-a-good-idea/
--------
War With Iran: Here's How the Islamic Republic Could
Cut Off the World's Oil
by Edward Chang
August 23, 2020
Iran threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz--and
cutting off a huge percentage of the world's oil--is nothing new.
In fact, as recently as 2012, the Obama administration
had its own confrontation with Iran over the latter’s nuclear program. Iran
threatened to close the Strait and carried out military exercises in the area,
drawing a major United States, British, and French deployment in response. But
a year later, both sides resorted to negotiations that led to the JCPOA.
In 2008, citing fears of a U.S. or Israeli attack, the
commander of the IRGC, Mohammad Ali Jafari, threatened to close the Strait of
Hormuz in retaliation. During the 1980–88 Iran-Iraq War, both sides targeted
one another’s shipping as part of a total war effort, raising fears that Iran
might attempt to make the Strait of Hormuz unpassable. Iran used mines as part
of its strategy, eliciting an operation to safeguard Kuwaiti shipping,
codenamed Operation Earnest Will. Beginning in summer 1987, it lasted over a
year-and-a-half and involved increasingly direct combat between the United
States and Iran, culminating in Operation Praying Mantis in spring 1988. In the
one-day air/naval battle, the United States scored a decisive victory, with
Iran losing several warships during the exchange, while inflicting no losses in
return.
Apart from the events that took place from 1987–88,
none of these incidents resulted in open warfare. This is nothing short of
remarkable, given the unrelenting level of hostility exhibited on both sides
since the November 4, 1979, seizure of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. While the
lack of actual fighting can be attributed to restraint and professional crisis
management skills on the part of the United States, it can also be attributed
to the fact that Iranian behavior and rhetoric regarding the Strait primarily
serves as a means of crisis-management (albeit a dangerous one) and a political
purpose.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/war-iran-heres-how-islamic-republic-could-cut-worlds-oil-167560
--------
New Zealand
Survivors will face New Zealand mosque gunman at
sentencing
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
23 August 2020
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - When Aya Al-Umari faces
her brother's killer in the dock, she intends to tell him that his hatred stole
away her best friend, her guardian, her hero. That she still wants to pick up
the phone and tell her brother all about her day, because he's the only one who
would understand.
Al-Umari is one of more than 60 survivors and family
members who this week in court will confront the white supremacist who
committed the worst atrocity in New Zealand´s modern history, when he slaughtered
51 worshippers at two Christchurch mosques in March 2019.
The gunman, 29-year-old Australian Brenton Harrison
Tarrant, pleaded guilty in March to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted
murder and one count of terrorism - the first terrorism conviction in the
nation´s history.
Tarrant has dismissed his lawyers and intends to
represent himself during the four-day sentencing starting Monday, raising fears
he could try to use the occasion as a platform to promote his racist views. He
can choose to speak once the victims have spoken, although the judge will
likely shut down any attempts he makes to grandstand.
Tarrant could become the first person in New Zealand
to be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. New
Zealand abolished the death penalty for murder in 1961, and the longest
sentence imposed since then has been life imprisonment with a minimum 30-year
non-parole period.
The attacks targeting people praying at the Al Noor
and Linwood mosques shocked the nation and prompted new laws banning the
deadliest types of semi-automatic weapons. They also prompted global changes to
social media protocols after the gunman livestreamed his attack on Facebook,
where it was viewed by hundreds of thousands of people.
Some victims have traveled from abroad to attend the
court hearing and have completed a mandatory 14-day quarantine imposed because
of the coronavirus.
Virus distancing requirements mean the number of
survivors in the main courtroom will be limited to 35 at any one time. But the
hearing will also be streamed to seven adjacent courtrooms, which can hold
another 200 or so people.
Judge Cameron Mander said he realized the court
process had been "exhausting and frustrating" for many of the
victims. "Finality and closure is considered by some as the best means of
bringing relief to the Muslim community," he wrote in a court memo.
Mander is not allowing live reporting from the
sentencing and has reserved the right to ban some things that are said in court
from being broadcast or published. The victims also can choose to remain
anonymous.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who was praised around
the world for her empathy and leadership after the attacks, said she would be
monitoring the hearing closely. She said the sentencing would be hard for the
victims.
Andrew Geddis, a law professor at the University of
Otago, said the case was unprecedented in New Zealand, both in the magnitude of
the crime and the number of victims involved in the sentencing.
He said it was likely the judge would impose the first
all-of-life sentence, with two possible mitigating factors being Tarrant's
guilty plea and his young age. Geddis said if Tarrant shows any remorse during
the hearing, it may factor in his favor, while any attempt he makes to promote
his racist agenda will likely count against him.
Tarrant moved to New Zealand in 2017 and kept a low
profile in the university city of Dunedin. He frequented a gym, practiced
shooting at a rifle club range and built up an arsenal of weapons. He didn´t
appear to be employed, and said in some online posts that he´d inherited a
significant amount of money when his father died.
Tarrant appeared to have a fascination with religious
conflicts in Europe and the Balkans, and visited a number of sites in Eastern
Europe in the years before he committed the massacre. After his attack at the
second mosque, Tarrant was driving, possibly to carry out a shooting at a third
mosque, when two police officers rammed his car off the road, dragged him out
and arrested him.
Al-Umari's 35-year-old brother Hussein was among those
killed at the Al Noor mosque. In her victim impact statement, which she shared
with The Associated Press ahead of the sentencing, she says that she mourns not
only the loss of her brother, but also the loss of his hopes and goals, and
that she will never have any nieces or nephews.
"There are no words that do justice to explain
what it is like to go from having lunch with your brother on one day to burying
him on another," she writes.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-8655015/Survivors-face-New-Zealand-mosque-gunman-sentencing.html
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South Asia
Key Taliban member arrested in a joint military
operation in Kabul
By Khaama Press
23 Aug 2020
Afghanistan Ministry of Defense said in a statement
that in a joint military operation they have arrested a key Taliban member who
used to lead an insurgency group in Shakardara district of Kabul city.
“The Afghanistan National Security Defense Forces in
joint operation in Saleh Kheli and Boya Zar villages of Shakar Dara district in
kabul, arrested Mullah Akhtar, a key Taliban member”, Ministry of Defense said
in a statement.
Mullah Akhtar was involved in recent terrorist and
destructive activities in Shakardara district and extorted money from the
residents of this district by force, the statement added.
This comes as, the Taliban and the Afghan government
are in negotiations to soon start talks on peace deal to end the prolonged war.
https://www.khaama.com/key-taliban-member-arrested-in-a-joint-military-operation-in-kabul-978977/
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Kabul police arrest ex-commander sentenced to jail for
murder and corruption charges
By Khaama Press
23 Aug 2020
A former police force commander who was sentenced to
jail for corruption and murder charges was arrested by the Afghan security
forces early Sunday morning, an official said.
Tariq Aryan, a spokesperson to the Ministry of
Interior told Khaama Press that Zemarai Paikan a former commander of
Afghanistan Public Protection Forces (APPF) was detained in an operation on
Sunday morning.
Zemarai Paikan was sentenced to 8 years and six months
jail sentence for murdering a police officer, misuse of authority and
corruption charges and he was a fugitive for a while.
This comes as the Afghan government has been under
public criticize for its weakness in fighting against corruption.
https://www.khaama.com/kabul-police-arrest-ex-commander-sentenced-to-jail-for-murder-and-corruption-charges-98787/
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Kabul magnetic bombs rattle the city
By Khaama Press
22 Aug 2020
Three magnetic bombs exploded in three different
locations around Kabul city on Saturday early morning causing casualties,
officials confirmed.
Initial explosion took place in Sarak-e-Naw area of
Chehlsotoon at around 6:30, a magnetic mine was placed in a private Toyota
vehicle that killed one civilian and injured two others.
The second bomb targeting a police vehicle exploded in
Hangarha square of district 15, injuring two policemen, Ferdaus Faramarz, a
spokesperson to Kabul police said.
Another magnetic bomb exploded in Company area of
district 5, no casualties reported.
In another separate incident in Kart-e-Naw area of
Kabul, two Afghan national army were killed by unknown gunmen, the Ministry of
Defense confirmed.
The victims are a colonel who used to work for the
logistics department of the Defense Ministry and his driver.
According to reports, the number of security incidents
in Kabul city have increased.
https://www.khaama.com/kabul-magnetic-bombs-rattle-the-city-9878976/
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North America
AP: Muslim and LGTQ Caucuses at Democratic Convention
Left ‘Under God’ Out of Pledge of Allegiance
August 22, 2020
By CNSNews.com Staff
The Muslim Delegates and Allies Assembly and the LGBTQ
Caucus left out the words “under God” when they recited the Pledge of
Allegiance at their caucus meetings at the Democratic National Convention on
Tuesday, according to a “fact check” by the Associated Press.
“During two caucuses before the evening conventions
started, the Muslim Delegates and Allies Assembly and the LGBTQ Caucus meeting,
both Tuesday, left out ‘under God,’ from the pledge,” reported the Associated
Press.
“The party's series of caucus meetings was
livestreamed but not part of the prime-time convention broadcast,” said the
Associated Press.
The words “under God” were included when the Pledge
was reciting before the full convention on each of the four days of the
assembly.
“The first night of the Democratic National
Convention, Joe Biden's grandchildren said the pledge, followed by the
convention's chorus of ‘The Star Spangled Banner,’” reported AP. “On the second
night, it's stated by a diverse group of Americans; same with the third night.
On the fourth night, it's recited by Cedric Richmond Jr., the son of Rep.
Cedric Richmond, R-La. “Under God” was in each rendering. The convention also
devoted a segment to showcasing Biden’s religious faith.”
The Associated Press reported on this in response to a
tweet President Donald Trump sent out on Saturday that said the “Democrats took
the word GOD out of the Pledge of Allegiance.”
“The Democrats took the word GOD out of the Pledge of
Allegiance at the Democratic National Convention,” Trump said in the tweet. “At
first I thought they made a mistake, but it wasn’t. It was done on purpose.
Remember Evangelical Christians, and ALL, this is where they are coming
from—it’s done. Vote Nov. 3!”
“President Donald Trump is accusing the Democrats of
taking God out of the Pledge of Allegiance at their national convention. He’s
distorting what happened,” the AP said in its fact check.
The AP then pointed out that the “central programming”
at the Democratic National Convention used the words “under God” in the Pledge.
“That's a misleading accusation,” the AP said of
Trump’s tweet. “The central programming of the convention featured the entire
pledge, complete with ‘under God.’”
https://www.cnsnews.com/blog/cnsnewscom-staff/ap-muslim-and-lgtq-caucuses-democratic-convention-left-under-god-out-pledge
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Nine Reasons You Can Be Optimistic That A Vaccine For
COVID-19 Will Be Widely Available In 2021
WILLIAM PETRI
August 23, 2020
As fall approaches rapidly, many are wondering if the
race for a vaccine will bear fruit as early as January 2021.
I am a physician-scientist and infectious diseases
specialist at the University of Virginia, where I care for patients and conduct
research into COVID-19. I am occasionally asked how I can be sure that
researchers will develop a successful vaccine to prevent COVID-19. After all,
we still don’t have one for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Here is where the current research stands, where I
think we will be in five months and why you can be optimistic about the
delivery of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Human immune system cures COVID-19
In as many as 99% of all COVID-19 cases, the patient
recovers from the infection, and the virus is cleared from the body.
Some of those who have had COVID-19 may have low
levels of virus in the body for up to three months after infection. But in most
cases these individuals can no longer transmit the virus to other people 10
days after first becoming sick.
It should therefore be much easier to make a vaccine
for the new coronavirus than for infections such as HIV where the immune system
fails to cure it naturally. SARS-CoV-2 doesn’t mutate the way that HIV does,
making it a much easier target for the immune system to subdue or for a vaccine
to control.
Antibodies targeting spike protein prevent infection
A vaccine will protect, in part, by inducing the
production of antibodies against the spike protein on the surface of
SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
The virus needs the spike protein to attach to and
enter human cells to reproduce. Researchers have shown that antibodies, like
those made by the human immune system, bind to the spike protein, neutralize it
and prevent the coronavirus from infecting cells in laboratory culture.
Vaccines in clinical trials have been shown to raise
anti-spike antibodies that block virus infection in cells in the lab.
At least seven companies have developed monoclonal antibodies,
laboratory-manufactured antibodies that recognize the spike protein. These
antibodies are entering clinical trials to test their ability to prevent
infection in those who are exposed, for example, through a household contact.
Monoclonal antibodies may also be effective for
treatment. During an infection, a dose of these monoclonal antibodies could
neutralize virus, giving the immune system a chance to catch up and manufacture
its own antibodies to combat the pathogen.
Spike glycoprotein contains multiple targets
The spike protein has many locations where antibodies
can bind to and neutralize the virus. That’s good news because with so many
vulnerable spots, it will be difficult for the virus to mutate to avoid a
vaccine.
Multiple parts of the spike would need to mutate to
evade neutralizing anti-spike antibodies. Too many mutations to the spike
protein would change its structure and render it incapable of binding to ACE2,
which is key to infecting human cells.
We know how to make a safe vaccine
Safety of a new COVID-19 vaccine is improved by
researchers’ understanding of potential vaccine side effects and how to avoid
them.
One side effect seen in the past was
antibody-dependent enhancement of infection. This occurs when antibodies don’t
neutralize the virus but instead allow it to enter into cells via a receptor
intended for antibodies. Researchers have found that by immunizing with the
spike protein, high levels of neutralizing antibodies can be produced. This
lessens the risk of enhancement.
A second potential problem posed by some vaccines is
an allergic reaction that causes inflammation in the lung, as was seen in
individuals who received a respiratory syncytial virus vaccine in the 1960s.
This is dangerous because inflammation in the lung air spaces can make it
difficult to breathe. However, researchers have now learned how to design
vaccines to avoid this allergic response.
Several different vaccines in development
The U.S. government is supporting the development of
several different vaccines via Operation Warp Speed.
The goal of Operation Warp Speed is to deliver 300
million doses of a safe and effective vaccine by January 2021.
The U.S. government is making a major investment,
committing US$8 billion to seven different COVID-19 vaccines.
By supporting multiple COVID-19 vaccines, the
government is hedging its bets. Only one of these vaccines needs to prove safe
and effective in clinical trials for a COVID-19 vaccine to be made available to
Americans in 2021.
Vaccines passing through phase I and II trials
Phase I and phase II trials test if a vaccine is safe
and induces an immune response. Already the results to date from three
different vaccine trials are promising, triggering the production of anti-spike
neutralizing antibodies levels that are two- to four-fold higher than those
seen in people who have recovered from COVID-19.
Moderna, Oxford and Chinese company CanSino have all
demonstrated the safety of their vaccines in phase I and phase II trials.
Phase III clinical trials are underway
During a phase III trial, the final step in vaccine
development process, the vaccine is tested on tens of thousands of individuals
to determine if it works to prevent infection with SARS-CoV-2, and that it is
safe.
The vaccine produced by Moderna and NIH and the vaccine
from Oxford-AstraZeneca began phase III trials in July. Other COVID-19 vaccines
will be starting phase III within weeks.
Accelerating vaccine production and deployment
Operation Warp Speed is paying for the production of
millions of doses of vaccines and supporting vaccine manufacturing at an
industrial scale even before researchers have demonstrated vaccine efficacy and
safety.
The advantage of this strategy is that once a vaccine
is proven safe in phase III trials, a stockpile of it will already exist and it
can be distributed immediately without compromising full assessment of safety
and efficacy.
This is a more prudent approach than that of Russia,
which is vaccinating the public with a vaccine before it has been shown to be
safe and effective in phase III.
Vaccine distributors are being contracted now
McKesson Corp., the largest vaccine distributor in the
U.S., has already been contracted by the CDC to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine
to sites – including clinics and hospitals – where the vaccine will be
administered.
I believe that it is realistic that we will know
sometime in late 2020 whether some COVID-19 vaccines are safe, exactly how
effective they are and which ones should be used to vaccinate the U.S.
population in 2021.
https://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2020/08/23/nine-reasons-you-can-be-optimistic-that-a-vaccine-for-covid-19-will-be-widely-available-in-2021.html
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Muslim advocacy group pushes for hate crime probe
after Egyptian-American teen attacked in NY
Amr Mohamed Kandil
22 Aug 2020
The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a
Washington-based NGO, is calling on New York police and prosecutors to consider
an attack against an Egyptian-American teen earlier in this month as
“anti-immigrant, anti-Arab and racially charged.”
In a press release on Wednesday, the New York chapter
of the council, which defines itself as the nation’s largest Muslim civil
rights and advocacy organisation, said that a middle-aged man hit
Egyptian-American Tarek El-Sayed, 18, with a baseball bat in the head and
forearm after he puncturing the rear tire on Sayed’s car.
The organisation added that the assailant threatened
to kill Sayed and his friends and told them to “go back to your country.” The
assailant also used anti-Arab slurs, according to the council.
Sayed suffered injuries including a broken arm and a
head wound, the council said.
"This brazen attack on a teenager is disturbing
and has no place in our city," said Ahmed Mohamed, the legal director of
the council’s New York chapter in a statement on Wednesday. Mohamed said the
assailant’s motives were “very clear,” and urged the New York City Police
Department (NYPD) to open a hate crime probe.
"No one should be attacked or live in fear
because of their race or ethnicity,” Mohamed said.
Talking with CNN, Mohamed called on the NYPD and
District Attorney to consider the “plethora of evidence” available to support a
hate crime probe.
Sayed told CNN that he believes he informed police of
the racial epithets the assailant allegedly used, but NYPD Detective Hubert
Reyes told the American media platform that the police report did not include
any mention of racial epithets.
The assailant, 41-year-old Emilio Lopez, has been
arrested and is facing charges of harassment, assault in the second degree and
criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, CNN cited the NYPD as
saying. Lopez is set to appear in Richmond Criminal Court on 16 November,
according to court documents.
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/378286/Egypt/Politics-/Muslim-advocacy-group-pushes-for-hate-crime-probe-.aspx
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US-led coalition hands over Taji military base to
Iraqi forces: State media
Leen Alfaisal
23 August 2020
US-led international coalition in Iraq hands over Taji
military base to Iraqi forces, Iraqi News Agency reported on Sunday, citing
Iraq's joint operations' spokesperson.
“The base was being used to train, prepare, and
rehabilitate the Iraqis by Australian, New Zealand, and American forces,” the
spokesperson for Iraq’s joint operations, Major General Tahseen Al-Khafaji,
told the Iraqi News Agency. “It will now be dedicated for the usage of the
Iraqi security forces.”
The withdrawal came days after President Donald Trump
redoubled his promise to withdraw the few US troops still in the country.
Iraq's parliament had voted earlier this year for the departure of foreign
troops from Iraq, and US and other coalition troops have been leaving as part
of a drawdown.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/08/23/US-led-coalition-hands-over-Taji-military-base-to-Iraqi-forces-State-media.html
-------
Europe
UK Muslim Charity Board to Resign as Director Calls
Designated Terrorists ‘Great Men’, Media Says
22.08.2020
Liam Duffy
The organisation bills itself as an international aid
agency that provides humanitarian relief to over 40 countries in the world
irrespective of gender, race, or religious belief. Former Foreign Secretary
David Miliband once described the organisation as representing “the values that
bind Britain together as a liberal democracy.”
The full board of the UK’s largest Muslim charity set
to resign on Sunday following revelations that one of its directors praised
terrorists and engaged in anti-Semitic slurs on social media, according to The
Times.
Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW), which is based in the
city of Birmingham, has admitted that a number of Facebook posts by one of its
directors, Almoutaz Tayara, were “inappropriate and unacceptable” and that its
board of trustees would resign en masse today as a gesture of opposition.
According to The Times, in the Facebook posts, which
were written in Arabic and discovered by “a leading academic on Islamism in the
West,” Mr Tayara described the leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas
- which engaged in a number of suicide bombings in Israel in the early 2000s -
as “great men” who were simply showing respect to “the divine and holy call of
the Muslim Brotherhood.”
In another, Mr Tayara posted a caricatured image of
former US President Barrack Obama wearing a tie branded with the Star of David
- the symbol of Judaism - with President Bashar Al-Assad and former Iranian
Ayatollah Khomeini sitting on his lap. There are quote marks coming from Assad
and Khomeini’s mouths saying “death to America” and “death… death.”
The posts were made in 2014 and 2015 when the United
States was sending material support to armed Syrian groups fighting President
Bashar al-Assad’s forces in Syria but appears to suggest that the US, Assad and
Israel are secretly in cahoots.
Islamic Relief Germany - a branch of IRW - where Dr
Tayara is also a director, reportedly knew of the posts as far back as 2017 but
gave him permission to remain in his senior position following an apology.
IRW have allegedly said that Mr Tayara’s posts are a
violation of their values. They added that he would be stepping down from his
position and would “play no further part in the governance of IRW.”
Mr Tayara had been brought in to replace another
chairman - Heshmat Khalifa - who had been removed from his post, also for
anti-Semitic comments.
The Times revealed back in July of this year that Mr
Khalifa posted on social media that Israelis were “the grandchildren of monkeys
and pigs” and called Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi a “pimp son of the
Jews.”
After being approached by the media about those
comments, IRW aid that it was “appalled by the hateful comments” and said that
Mr Khalifa had resigned.
The charity released a statement soon after saying
that it is “reviewing our processes for screening trustees’ and senior
executives’ social media posts to ensure that this will not happen again.”
https://sputniknews.com/uk/202008221080248639-Board-UK-Muslim-Charity-to-Resign-After-Director-Praises-Terrorists-on-Facebook-Report-Says/
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My years in the police tell me some Islamic terrorists
are likely reaching our shores in those rubber dinghies. I fear the worst
22 Aug, 2020
Kevin Hurley
Kevin Hurley is a British politician and former police
officer. He was the Surrey Police and Crime Commissioner between 2012 and 2016.
He served in the Metropolitan Police, reaching the rank of Detective Chief
Superintendent. He was also an officer of the Territorial Army, first in the
Parachute Regiment and then the Royal Military Police.
Among all the economic migrants flocking to the UK, I
worry that there will be some former ISIS fighters who are hell-bent on
revenge. Combine that with around 1,000 terrorists being released this year,
and there’s trouble ahead.
Five years ago, I was the elected police and crime commissioner
for Surrey, a county in the southeast of England. I almost immediately
discovered that our county’s police were being overwhelmed on an almost daily
basis by illegal immigrants coming into the UK.
It turned out that the reason was simple. The first
stopping place for lorry drivers bringing goods into the UK was at the Cobham
motorway services on the M25 in Surrey. To put it simply, after a long drive
from Dover ferry port, the drivers would stop at these services to use the
toilet and maybe buy a coffee and a bite to eat.
While they did so, the illegal immigrants who had
climbed into the backs of their lorries when they stopped in France and who had
traversed the English Channel, would take their chance to jump out. Cobham was
their first opportunity to do so and sometimes up to 30 from just one lorry
would get out, requiring the local police to send many officers to try and
catch them.
Seasonal rise in migrants crossing the Channel is
nothing compared to surge that awaits the UK when it leaves EU for goodSeasonal
rise in migrants crossing the Channel is nothing compared to surge that awaits
the UK when it leaves EU for good
Normally they would only manage to round up a few,
while the others disappeared. In Surrey alone, dozens would slip through the
net every week. I’d sometimes be driving and see groups of them walking along
the side of the A3, heading for London, and I’d call it in. I know from former
colleagues that it was the same story at other motorway service stations all
over the country, anywhere that the lorries which had been on the continent
stopped.
The UK Border Force was then, as now, overwhelmed. In
fact, so understaffed were they that they had to employ retired police officers
at our airports on zero-hours contracts to check passports. At least Covid and
the reduction in flights has stopped the need for that particular Band-Aid now.
Nonetheless, these part-timers are being kept on retainers for when flights
resume, so desperate are the border staff shortages.
Despite my protests to the government and articles in
the national press at the time, little was done to stop this flow from freight
lorries. I decided to up the ante. I was invited by a BBC camera team to go
into the Calais ‘Jungle,’ the huge shanty town of tents and plastic tarpaulins
that had grown up on the edges of an industrial estate close to this key ferry
port in France.
What I saw there was very disturbing and frightening.
There were literally thousands of young men and youths from all over Africa and
the Middle East living as best they could in what had become a makeshift town
of homes, cafes, restaurants and even hairdressers, all fashioned from packing
cases.
The camp was split into segments, where the citizens
of the Third World lived alongside each other, like some dystopian United
Nations of Refugees: Somalis, Sudanese, Nigerians, Libyans, Afghans, Iraqis,
Syrians and Kurds. It was utterly lawless – even the heavily-armed French CRS
riot police would not enter except infrequently and in large numbers; one Sudanese
man was stabbed to death the day I was there. Eventually, we were rumbled in
the Somali quarter and had to literally run for our safety.
There were very few women and even fewer children at
the camp. The inhabitants were for the most part male economic migrants in
their teens and their 20s, seeking refuge from their impoverished, often
war-torn, homelands. I did not blame them for seeking to find a better life for
themselves, and in time, to help the families they had left behind.
What worried me, though, was that there was a good
chance that among them were returning jihadist or ISIS fighters using this as a
route to enter the UK without being recognized, and with revenge on their
minds. After all, if so many thousands could do it, why shouldn’t they do so by
hiding in plain sight?
Since then, the French have broken up and moved these
“transit” camps, but the streams of
humans seeking to get to Britain have not gone away. They are still
there in France in their thousands, awaiting their chance to find a way – any
way and by any means – into the UK.
Instead of sneaking onto lorries, the method du jour
of getting across the English Channel is to make the perilous journey in a
rubber boat, at risk of freezing to death in one of the busiest and most
dangerous shipping lanes in the world. Just this week, a 28-year-old Sudanese
man drowned after the 3-foot dinghy he and a friend were in was punctured by
the shovels they were using as oars.
Hundreds have been arriving in this way over the past
weeks and months; so many that the county council in Kent, where most set foot
ashore, has been overwhelmed and the government has been forced to ship out the
arrivals to stay in three- and four-star hotels across the UK.
Britannia used to rule the waves, now it attacks defenceless
people in tiny boats to deflect from its own sinking statusBritannia used to
rule the waves, now it attacks defenceless people in tiny boats to deflect from
its own sinking status
The UK government is talking a tough game, but what
can they really do? Will the French really play their part and stop them
coming? Why should they? If they make efforts to stop them leaving France for
the UK, it is the French taxpayer, authorities and economy that must pick up
this burden. Why would they want to do that if they can just turn a blind eye
and let them cross to the UK?
Remember that we have left the EU; we are not part of
their club and are effectively economic rivals. The French owe us no loyalty
now, if they ever did.
It’s obvious if you are a hard-pressed local
politician, gendarme or public official in a French coastal town that you will
just be glad to see the back of them. To be blunt, if among them there are some
returning British jihadists, why on Earth would the French want to hang on to
them?
As we know only too well, the French have their own
terrorism problem, which is only likely to increase. There are an estimated
1,000 ISIS fighters who were imprisoned on their return to Europe prior to 2015
expected to be released this year, according to this study. One analysis from
July this year found that 60 percent of those who left France to fight for
jihad in Afghanistan, Bosnia, or Iraq between 1986 and 2011 went on to commit a
fresh terrorist offense upon their return. While that recidivism rate may be
abnormally high – other studies have put it at six percent or lower – even 60
new terrorist attacks across Europe would pose a significant problem,
especially when put alongside first-time attacks.
The solution to this problem lies outside of a
tactical agreement with the French to do more to stop migrants coming across
the channel. Even if we pay the French to tackle the problem, it is going to be
almost impossible to ensure that a couple of local gendarmes patrolling an
isolated beach after dark can stop all the rubber boats from leaving. They will
get no thanks from the bosses or politicians for doing so.
We could try and disrupt some of the organized
criminal gangs making money out of this lucrative business, but ‘how’ is a big
question – who will do it and who will pay?
But regardless of that, the illegal economic
immigrants and genuine refugees will still try to come. It is partly our own
fault, a self-inflicted wound: we played a big part in destroying the
economies, livelihoods, and systems of government in Libya, Iraq, Syria and
Afghanistan. Our military interventions in those countries have been
devastating. Far from creating the solutions our politicians promised, they
have left already fragile nations in a worse state, fracturing their economies
and societies to the point where young men are left with little option but to
flee elsewhere.
Our government can continue to talk tough while many
hundreds, if not thousands, of former British ISIS fighters plot their escapes
and return home from Turkish, Syrian and Kurdish refugee camps.
What they will do when they get back into the UK is
unknown, but I doubt it will be nice. Their experiences are hardly likely to
have reformed them or endeared them to our way of life. After all they have
been through – mass air attacks, savage fighting, the destruction of their
caliphate – a nice little four-hour boat ride across the Channel pretending to
be a refugee will be child’s play.
https://www.rt.com/op-ed/498677-police-isis-terrorists-uk/
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MPs threaten Boris Johnson with legal action over
Russian election interference probe
John Johnston
23-08-2020
A cross-party group of MPs has threatened Boris
Johnson with legal action over an independent investigation into Russian
election interference.
The group, which includes Green Party MP Caroline
Lucas and Labour's Chris Bryant, said the Prime Minister's "lack of
action" in tackling Russian interference breached the right to free
elections.
Their letter comes after a report from the
Intelligence and Security Committee concluded in July that the UK had
"badly underestimated" the threat posed by the Kremlin and accused
ministers of failing to take steps to investigate whether foreign actors had
meddled in elections.
But in a pre-action letter to Downing Street, the MPs
said they would take Mr Johnson to court as a "last resort" if he
failed to order an independent investigation into the issue.
And the group claimed the refusal to probe the issue
could constitute a breach of the European convention of human rights, which
enshrines the right to fair and free elections.
"Democratic processes are clearly at risk,"
she said. "It seems that the integrity of our elections is being
deliberately undermined. Nothing could be more serious for our democracy.
"Ministers’ behaviour to date has been shockingly
complacent and negligent. The government cannot be allowed to shirk this
because Tory party coffers are topped up with Russian money."
Meanwhile, Chris Bryant, Labour MP for Rhondda, added:
"The government's refusal to investigate is a complete deriliction of
their duty to keep us and our way of life safe."
Other signatories to the letter include SNP MP Alyn
Smith, Labour MP Ben Bradshaw and Lib Dem peers Lord Strasburget and Baroness
Wheatcroft.
But hitting back at the comments, a Cabinet Office
spokesperson said protecting the electoral process from outside interference
was an "absolute priority".
"Safeguarding our democracy will always be an
absolutel priority and the UK has robust systems in place to protect our
elections from interference," they said.
"To prevent any future threats we are bringing
forward new legislation to provide the security services and law enforcement
agencies with the tools they need to disrupt hostile state activity.
"And we have also published proposals for a
digital imprint regime that will improve transparency in political campaigning
online, and are developing an online media literacy strategy, to help empower
the public to question the information they read online."
https://www.politicshome.com/news/article/mps-threaten-boris-johnson-with-legal-action-over-russian-election-interference
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Coronavirus: We will see 'real problems' with COVID-19
this winter, chief medical officer says
Sharon Marris
23 August 2020
England's chief medical officer has warned it is
unlikely there will be an "effective and safe" coronavirus vaccine
before the winter of 2021.
Professor Chris Whitty said this winter would see
"real problems" with COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus,
and that the UK should assume no vaccine would be available.
Mr Whitty added: "I would obviously be delighted
if it came earlier rather than later but I'd be quite surprised if we had a
highly effective vaccine ready for mass use in a large percentage of the
population before the end of winter, certainly before this side of Christmas.
"Now that may be wrong - a lot of people are
doing a huge amount scientifically, logistically to make sure that's a
pessimistic statement, to try and see if we can get a vaccine at extraordinarily
fast speed but we have to check it works and we have to make sure it's safe and
these things do take time.
"So I think if we look forward a year I think the
chances are much greater than if we look forward six months and we need to have
that sort of timescale in mind.
"So planning for the next winter, it would be
foolish to plan on the basis we will have a vaccine.
He said he was "confident" in the ability of
science "to get us out of this hole", but added: "I don't think
we can expect it to happen in the next few weeks or even the next few
months."
It comes as the UK records a further 1,288 positive
tests for the virus as of 4pm on Saturday. Some 834 patients are in hospital,
97 of them admitted in the past 24 hours.
Seventy-two people are on ventilators and 18 deaths
were recorded during those 24 hours of people who had tested positive within
the previous 28 days.
There have been 41,423 deaths in the UK so far,
according to government figures.
Earlier, Mr Whitty had joined the UK's other chief and
deputy chief medical officers in a joint statement about schools reopening.
He warned that the risk of COVID-19 to children were
dwarfed by the "certainty of long-term harm" caused by continued
school closures.
https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-foolish-to-assume-covid-19-vaccine-will-be-here-for-winter-whitty-12054756
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Protests calling on Netanyahu to resign continue with
momentum
REUTERS NEWS AGENCY
23-08-2020
Thousands of Israelis continued to protest outside the
prime minister's official residence on Saturday as months-long demonstrations
against Benjamin Netanyahu maintained their momentum.
The protesters want the embattled Netanyahu to give up
his post while he is on trial for corruption charges. The government's mishaps
in handling the coronavirus crisis after relative success in its early stages
have also driven the demonstrations.
Saturday's protest comes in advance of Tuesday's
deadline in which the coalition government must agree on a budget plan or
trigger new elections that would be the fourth in slightly more than a year.
Ignoring police suggestions for alternative routes,
the protesters marched from several parts of Jerusalem through key roads trying
to reach Netanyahu's residence on Balfour Street.
Outside the residence, they hoisted giant balloons
depicting smeared heads of Netanyahu and his rival-turned-coalition partner
Benny Gantz of the centrist Blue and White party, waved Israeli flags and the
black flag of one of the grassroots protest movements.
A sign read "Balfour is in our hands,"
referring to the residence address. Other signs called on Netanyahu to quit and
a placard described him as "Crime Minister."
Israeli police said they arrested seven protesters
"on suspicion of violating public order and assaulting police
officers".
Last week, Netanyahu announced a US-brokered deal to
normalise ties with the United Arab Emirates, making it the third Arab country
to establish full relations with Israel. The historic breakthrough has not
helped calm the demonstrations against him.
Netanyahu has rejected calls to step down while he is
on trial and claimed the protests are the work of leftists and the media.
Israel appeared to contain the pandemic in its first
phase, but the quick reopening of the economy led to a spike in cases.
More than 100,000 Israelis have tested positive for
the virus. The country has also recorded 809 COVID-19 deaths among its
population of nine million.
The pandemic has caused unemployment numbers to hover
above 20 percent.
Netanyahu was charged last year with bribery, fraud
and breach of trust in three long-running corruption investigations.
In January, the trial will move to a witness phase
with three sessions a week.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/08/protests-calling-netanyahu-resign-continue-momentum-200823025608326.html
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Africa
Three people martyred, dozens injured in Nigerian
police attack on Imam Hussain mourners
Source : IMN, ABNA
August 23, 2020
Security forces in Kaduna attacked Muharram Mourning
gathering taking place Hayin Mallam Bello Area on the 3rd of Muharram 1442
(22/8/2020). The Policemen supported by hired thugs, fired canisters of teargas
followoed by live ammunition on the mourners as the mourning session was
on-going.
At least three person was feared killed by the
rampaging forces. The Police also destroyed cars parked near the venue of the
mourning session. The cars belong to people living in the area.
On Saturday evening, at Hayin Bello neighborhood, a
team of policemen attacked a gathering of members of the Islamic Movement in
Nigeria holding the annual Ashura mourning commemorating the brutal
assassination of Imam Hussein (AS), the Grandson of Prophet Muhammad (S) and
killed 3 persons instantly.
Those killed are: Abubakar Talle, Ali Rigasa, and
Hasan Umar, with many people injured by gunshots. The police also vandalise the
vehicles of those who attended the mourning session.
A police vehicle caught fire after it fell into a
gutter, resulting in the burning of a house close to it.
This year’s Ashura mourning was started in Nigeria on
Thursday 20/08/2020 coinciding with the beginning of new Islamic calendar 1442
in two other neighborhoods peacefully and is scheduled to culminate on the
tenth of Muharram next week.
https://en.abna24.com/news//three-people-martyred-dozens-injured-in-nigerian-police-attack-on-imam-hussain-mourners-photos_1064693.html
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El-Rufai: Muslim lawyers in Kaduna State boycotts NBA
conference
August 22, 2020
By John Owen Nwachukwu
The Muslim Lawyers Association of Nigeria (MULAN) in
Kaduna State has shunned participation in the forthcoming Nigeria Bar
Association, NBA, Annual General Conference, AGC
The MULAN announced its decision to boycott the
conference on Saturday while expressing disappointment over the decision of the
NBA NEC to rescind the invitation extended to Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna
State.
Recall that Muslim Rights Concern, MURIC had
instructed all Muslim lawyers to shun the conference following the NBA’s
decision to withdraw its invitation to El-Rufai.
Chairman of MULAN in Kaduna State, Abbas Masanawa, in
a statement on Saturday, titled Missive to the Monsignors of Nigerian Bar
Association NEC, said “the MULAN Kaduna Branch is bewildered and disappointed
at the unfortunate de-invitation of His Excellency, Mallam Nasir Ahmad
El-Rufai, Executive Governor of Kaduna State to the Annual General Conference
(AGC) of the Nigerian Bar Association, 2020.
“The said decision of the NBA NEC is deemed by MULAN
Kaduna Branch as being parochial, sentimental, disuniting and tainted with
favouritism and ethno religious considerations.”
The group said it has watched with dismay, how the NBA
kept mute in the face of genocide going on in the North East, Banditry and
Kidnappings in Katsina, Zamfara, Niger, Kebbi States, and Giwa and Birnin Gwari
in Kaduna State.
It also accused the NBA of giving surreptitious ethnic
cover to the killings in Southern Kaduna as if lives matter more in some parts
of the country over the others.
MULAN said it witnessed how Governor Nyesom Wike of
Rivers State demolished a Mosque and came out openly to say ‘I repeat once
again without apologies, Rivers is a Christian State. That is why nobody can
touch us’
According to MULAN, the NBA never uttered a word to
condemn the governor’s action but has invited Wike “to use our hallowed
platform to propagate his governance inklings and de-invitation of Governor
El-Rufai.
“MULAN Kaduna Branch is left with no option than to
instruct it’s members to withdraw their participation in the forthcoming NBA
AGC and enjoins all Muslim Lawyers in Nigeria to join in the boycott.
“MULAN Kaduna Branch reaffirms its support to Governor
Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai in his efforts to stem the tide of insecurity in Kaduna
State generally and Southern Kaduna in particular,” the lawyers said.
https://dailypost.ng/2020/08/22/el-rufai-muslim-lawyers-in-kaduna-state-boycotts-nba-conference/
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13 killed as Islamist militias attack eastern Congo
villages
By Erikas Mwisi Kambale
23-08-2020
Beni, Democratic Republic of Congo - Suspected
Islamist militants killed 13 people during raids on two villages in eastern
Congo, the army and a village chief said, the latest in a spate of attacks the
United Nations says may constitute war crimes.
The Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), a Ugandan armed
group operating in North Kivu province in Democratic Republic of Congo, have
killed more than 1 000 civilians since the start of 2019, according to UN
figures.
Militiamen tied up the victims in the villages of
Kinziki-Matiba and Wikeno, 10 km east of the city of Oicha, before killing them
in the attack on Friday afternoon, said Chui Mukalangirwa, a local village
chief.
"We beg the authorities to put an end to this
bloodbath," he said.
The army helped civilians bury the bodies and is
looking at deploying more units in the area, army spokesman Antony Mwalishayi
said.
The ADF has operated in the dense forests near the
Ugandan border for more than three decades. Late last year the Congo army
launched a large-scale operation against them, sparking a violent backlash
against civilians.
Several attacks attributed to the ADF have also been
claimed by Islamic State, although researchers and analysts say there is a lack
of hard evidence linking the two groups.
The insecurity has forced hundreds of thousands to
flee their homes and complicated Congo's response to the COVID-19 pandemic as
well as an Ebola epidemic that has killed more than 2,200 people. (Reporting by
Erikas Mwisi Kambale Writing by Hereward Holland Editing by Mark Heinrich)
https://www.iol.co.za/news/africa/13-killed-as-islamist-militias-attack-eastern-congo-villages-86be1699-b022-4b89-9a03-d3b01894e95f
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Boko Haram recruiting fresh members, IDPs may be
forced to join, Zulum raises alarm
AUGUST 22, 2020
By Ibrahim HassanWuyo
Governor of Borno state, Babagana Umara Zulum has
raised the alarm that the dreaded Boko Haram sect was recruiting fresh members,
mostly from the internally displaced persons, IDPs. According to the governor,”
truly, the Boko Haram sect is working on people to join them. This is
frightening. If the IDPs living in camps could not get what they are looking
for, especially the opportunity to go back to their various towns and return to
the farm, they may be forced to join the Boko Haram sect,” he said. Zulum spoke
in an interview with the BBC Hausa Service, monitored by journalists in Kaduna.
He explained that the IDPs were tired and bored of staying in the camps because
they were not getting what they really wanted. “It is important that they go
back to their various towns because no government can continue to be feeding
them, continuously,” he said. He said so far, his government was able to return
displaced persons to Mafa and Kukawa, while plans were on to return people to
Kawuri. He expressed hope that the military will intensify efforts and make it
possible for people to return to Baga, Marte, Malam Fatori and Guzamala. READ
ALSO: Allegation of Governor sponsoring Boko Haram: Police summon Mailafia to
Abuja Professor Zulum told the BBC Hausa service that the security situation
was improving in Borno state, but there was still danger as the Boko Haram
elements were still in their hiding place. ” The sect members are hiding at the
lake Chad area and the Sambisa forest. There will still be problem unless they
are traced to their hiding places. Chasing them away from their headquarters is
one of the solutions towards ending the insurgency,” he said. Zulum however,
observed that chasing the Boko Haram elements from Sambisa needed support from
Nigeria’s neighbours However, the governor explained that to successfully go
into the lake Chad basin and Sambisa forest, it required the cooperation of the
countries that share border with Nigeria in the area. On whether the Insurgents
still occupy some places in Nigeria, he said ” truly, there is no place under
the occupation of Boko Haram. But there are places with no people there, What I
mean is that people are yet to return to their places of origin. ” “I swear by
Allah, before the coming of Buhari, the security situation in Borno had
deteriorated. At that time, 20 local government areas where under Boko Haram.
Now, it’s not so.” Asked when Boko Haram will end, he said there are thousands
of people in different IDP camps in the state. “One surest way to end Boko
Haram is ensuring a good relationship between the military and civilians .” ” I
keep on saying wherever you go, you will see the military and vigilante
together. But what I’m saying is that the military should provide protection to
the civilians to enable them return home and go back to their farms. He said
surely, the military are doing their best. ” But what is disturbing us is, when
shall this war with Boko Haram come to an end?.” Commenting on the Baga attack
on his convoy, he reiterated that it was sabotage. READ ALSO: Where are
Nigeria’s allies in the war against Boko Haram? He said although he did not
mentioned name, whatever is done to hinder the fight against Boko Haram is an
act of sabotage including failure to use money and buy arms. He said the Baga
attack was shameful. ” I was not afraid because I rely on Allah. Nothing will
happen to a Muslim unless by the will of Almighty Allah .” “I was attacked with
bombs but Almighty Allah protected me. We must be brave, if we continue to
fear, the war will not end,” he said.
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2020/08/boko-haram-recruiting-fresh-members-idps-may-be-forced-to-join/
---------
Southeast Asia
Malaysia's Islamist party PAS officially joins ruling
coalition Perikatan Nasional: Source
AUG 22, 2020
MUHYIDDIN YASSIN
PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) -
Malaysia's Islamist party PAS has formally joined Perikatan Nasional, making it
the ruling coalition's second component party after Prime Minister Muhyiddin
Yassin's Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, according to a source.
A source confirmed that the coalition was registered
with the Registrar of Societies (ROS) under the name Parti Perikatan Nasional
two weeks ago and has a logo which will be used by the component parties and
Perikatan-friendly parties during the next general election.
"There is an agreed pro-tem committee which will
make the decisions for Perikatan on behalf of Bersatu and PAS, " said the
source.
The pro-tem committee of Perikatan for now comprises
PAS' Deputy President Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar and Secretary-General Takiyuddin
Hassan.
Bersatu is represented by its Secretary-General Hamzah
Zainuddin and Perikatan government whip Azmin Ali, also the information chief
of Parti Perikatan Nasional.
PAS Deputy President Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said the
formal formation of Perikatan was akin to "an umbrella" to the ruling
government.
"All parties supporting the Perikatan government
are welcome to join it. The existence of Perikatan is not a threat to Muafakat
Nasional as it is part of a grand coalition of all parties supporting the
Perikatan government, " said Tuan Ibrahim.
He said a strong force of Umno, PAS and Bersatu would
solve the problem of seat allocations, manifesto, campaigning and coordination
in the next general election.
Although Umno has declined to join Perikatan as a
component party, it is understood that PAS' Muafakat Nasional relationship with
Umno has not been affected.
"Our relationship is strong and solid. Muafakat
Nasional does not have any conditions which forbid any party from joining any
coalition as long as the coalition is not with the opposition. Umno still
supports the Perikatan government, " Mohamad said when contacted.
Another top Barisan leader, however, said the logo -
which is a very simple one now - needed a bit of work if Barisan were to use
it.
"We have decided all political decisions will be
made by consensus. Our support for the Perikatan government is for the sake of
the stability of the country, " he said.
MIC President A Vigneswaran said his party was
committed to supporting Perikatan as long as Barisan and Umno were supporting
the ruling coalition.
Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) Parliamentary chief whip
Fadillah Yusof said GPS would continue to support the "Perikatan plus
GPS" government.
"Our support to Perikatan government is on the
basis of forming a stable government to solve the issues of the people, namely
health and economy. We are committed to a government comprising of Perikatan
plus GPS and reiterate our support for the Prime Minister, " he said.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/malaysias-islamist-party-pas-officially-joins-ruling-coalition-perikatan-nasional
--------
Muhyiddin proposes new chapter in Bersatu to
accommodate non-Malay leaders
22 Aug 2020
BY RADZI RAZAK
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 — Bersatu President Tan Sri
Muhyiddin Yassin today proposed a new chapter in the Malay native party to
accommodate and allow non-Malay leaders to contribute and hold positions in the
party.
He said a committee has been formed under Bersatu
Supreme Council member Tan Sri Rais Yatim to look into the matter.
“We propose a new chapter that could help affiliated
members contribute ideas and hold leadership positions.
“The committee under Tan Sri Rais Yatim will look into
it and bring up the matter to the Supreme Council.
“If this proposal is accepted, we will call for an
Extraordinary General Meeting to amend our party’s constitution,” he said in
his speech at the Kongres Negara 2020 held at the Malaysia International Trade
and Exhibition Centre (Mitec) today.
Earlier, Muhyiddin accepted 11 former PKR MPs and
other leaders aligned to Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali to join Bersatu and also
offered to accept membership of all former PKR supporters who are now spread
under four civil societies group.
Muhyiddin said that he was told that the Penggerak
Komuniti Negara, Pemuda Negara, Nation of Women (NOW) and Wanita Muda Negara
consist of more than 200,000 members from all 222 parliament constituencies in
the country.
“I will see that all applications from Penggerak
Komuniti Negara to become Bersatu members will be accepted,” he said.
Other than Azmin,
Ministers Zuraida Kamaruddin, Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah and Datuk
Kamaruddin Jaafar; Deputy Parliamentary Speaker Datuk Mohd Rashid Hasnon,
Deputy Minister Ali Biju, Puncak Borneo MP Willie Mongin, Ranau MP Jonathan
Yassin, Nibong Tebal MP Datuk Mansor Othman as well as state assemblymen Hilman
Idham, Dr Afif Bahruddin, Dr Daroyah Alwi and Haniza Talha had officially
submitted to join Bersatu.
Another MP, deputy minister and Segamat MP Edmund
Santhara as well as Lubok Antu MP has already applied to join Bersatu last
month.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/08/22/muhyiddin-proposes-new-chapter-in-bersatu-to-accommodate-non-malay-leaders/1896214
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MOH: Daily Covid-19 cases in Malaysia back to single
digit despite recent emergence of new clusters
22 Aug 2020
BY SYED JAYMAL ZAHIID
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 — Ministry of Health (MOH) today
reported eight new Covid-19 cases, back to a single-digit despite the recent emergence
of new infection clusters nationwide.
The cases were all found in Kedah where three of the
biggest active clusters are. Health Director General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham
Abdullah said the cases were all from the Tawar cluster, currently among the
biggest active clusters.
“There are five new cases from the Tawar cluster
reported, bringing the number of positive Covid-19 cases in this cluster to 63
cases,” Dr Noor Hisham said in a statement this evening.
Up until noon today, 2,942 individuals linked to the
cluster had been screened. Almost 90 per cent of them were in Kedah, of which
52 were positive. There are 135 pending results while the rest are negative.
In Penang, 517 were screened and 11 came back positive
and 63 pending results. Meanwhile all 11 persons screened in Perak came back
negative with no new screening held today.
The cumulated number of positive cases in the country
is now 9,257, with the emergence of new clusters increasing the rate of active
cases back to triple digits at 183, MOH reported today.
Meanwhile the three imported cases reported today
involved a Bangladeshi, Dutch and Philippine nationals. The first case was
detected here while the second and third were in Sarawak and Sabah
respectively.
No deaths were reported today while four patients had
been discharged. The country’s recovery rate, among the world’s highest, is now
96.7 per cent.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/08/22/moh-daily-covid-19-cases-in-malaysia-back-to-single-digit-despite-recent-em/1896199
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Dr Afif: Decision to unite under Muhyiddin’s
leadership was a hard one
22 Aug 2020
BY RADZI RAZAK
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 22 — The decision by former PKR
members to join Bersatu and Perikatan Nasional (PN) under the leadership of Tan
Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was a hard one, said former PKR Youth leader Dr Afif
Bahardin today.
The Seberang Jaya state assemblyman said the decision
was political for him personally, and that he made it with the betterment of
the people and saving the country in mind.
Dr Afif resigned from his Penang exco position in
March and now leads a civil society organisation linked to Datuk Seri Azmin Ali
called Pemuda Negara.
“The decision to unite under the leadership of Tan Sri
Muhyiddin Yassin was not an easy decision. The decision to join Perikatan
Nasional was not an easy one.
“We had to not only take into account the sacrifices
of many people, but also the country’s future and its survival. We had to think
about many things, reflect and discuss them. But in the end, we had to make a
decision.
“The decision of Datuk Seri Azmin Ali and our
leadership to move forward and join Tan Sri Muhyiddin and Perikatan Nasional is
more about saving race and country,” he said in his speech during the National
Congress: Unite For Malaysia event at the Malaysia International Trade and
Exhibition Centre (Mitec) here today.
The national congress of 4,000 participants from four
NGOs aligned with the PN government is to announce that Azmin’s PKR faction,
who withdrew its support from PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in
February, is officially joining Muhyiddin’s Bersatu.
Another MP, deputy minister and Segamat MP, Edmund
Santhara, already applied to join Bersatu last month as did Lubok Antu MP Jugah
Muyang.
Former PKR vice-president Baru Bian, who also left the
party during the political turmoil, has joined the United Sarawak Party.
The supporters of the Azmin faction are spread across
at least four NGOs: Nation of Women (NOW) led by former PKR Women’s chief
Haniza Talha; Penggerak Komuniti Negara which is presided over by Zuraida;
Wanita Muda Negara helmed by Nurainie Haziqah Shafii; and Pemuda Negara that is
led by Dr Afif and Azmin’s political secretary Hilman Idham.
According to Dr Afif, Pemuda Negara now has 11,500
members in the country’s 222 parliamentary constituencies.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/08/22/dr-afif-decision-to-unite-under-muhyiddins-leadership-was-a-hard-one/1896177
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Muhyiddin announced as Bersatu president, Ahmad Faizal
deputy president
23 Aug 2020
by Shafwan Zaidon
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 23 — Prime Minister Tan Sri
Muhyiddin Yassin has been officially announced as the president of Parti
Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) today for 2019-2022 term.
Meanwhile, Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal
Azumu was announced as Bersatu deputy president for the same period.
Both were the sole candidates contesting for their
posts while the party chairman post was not contested by any individual.
Party election committee chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid
Albar said the three elected vice-presidents are Agriculture and Food
Industries Minister, Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee, Senior Minister (Education)
Radzi Jidin and Paya Rumput assemblyman, Datuk Mohd Rafiq Naizamohideen.
“A total of 23,438 delegates cast their votes in
divisional meetings nationwide yesterday,’ he said in a statement today.
He said from 179 divisions eligible to meet, 177
divisions held their meetings while two divisions failed to convene meetings
due to the lack of quorum.
According to him, the election held for the first time
also elected the permanent chairman, deputy permanent chairman, and 20 members
of the Supreme Council.
Among the Supreme Council members are Minister in the
Prime Minister’s Department (Economy) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed, Deputy
Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ikmal Hisham Abdul Aziz, Deputy Works Minister
Datuk Eddin Syazlee Shith and Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s
Department (Parliament and Law), Datuk Shabudin Yahaya.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/08/23/muhyiddin-announced-as-bersatu-president-ahmad-faizal-deputy-president/1896318
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UN, Indonesia honor victims of terrorism
Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie
August 22, 2020
The United Nations joined with Indonesia’s Witness and
Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) on Saturday in a peace initiative called the
Guyub Project to honor victims of terrorism in the country as the world
observed the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of
Terrorism.
The UN and the LPSK held several online events where
survivors of terrorist attacks shared their stories. The LPSK also instated a
national moment of silence to be held every year in recognition of those who
had been harmed or killed by terrorism.
“A fundamental component of any effective response to
terrorism is upholding the rights and needs of victims and survivors,” United
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNDOC) country manager for Indonesia Collie
F. Brown said in a statement on Friday.
“This annual occasion provides the UN and our close
partners an opportunity to stop and reflect on the experiences of victims and
survivors, as well as to ask ourselves some hard questions. What can we do to
better recognize their tremendous sacrifice?” he added.
LPSK head Hasto Atmojo Suroto said the recently issued
Government Regulation No. 35/2020 had increased the government’s support for
victims of terrorism.
The regulation provides a path for victims and their
families to seek state compensation through the LPSK without having to obtain a
court order.
“With these more facilitative laws, the LPSK and other
related agencies can directly take quick steps to provide a pathway towards
optimizing the fulfillment of victims’ rights,” Hasto noted in the statement,
adding that the regulation sought to address disparities in justice among victims
of terrorism.
https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/08/22/un-indonesia-honor-victims-of-terrorism.html
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Arab world
Riyadh Global Digital Health summit looks at
technology in combating COVID-19
ARAB NEWS
August 12, 2020
RIYADH: As part of the programs of the Saudi
Secretariat for the G20, a two-day virtual global summit for digital health was
launched in Riyadh on Tuesday.
It aims to adopt new technological solutions, improve
quality and accessibility, and reduce costs to counter the negative effects of
the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Dr. Bandar Al-Knawy, CEO Ministry of National Guard
Health Affairs and summit president, highlighted the steps taken by the Kingdom
in the wake of the pandemic and the successful organization of the annual Hajj
pilgrimage amid the health crisis.
WHO Chief Information Officer Bernardo Mariano Jr.
reviewed the role of his organization in combating epidemics. He said the
coronavirus pandemic has not only affected public health but it has also
affected economic and social aspects of human life.
Mariano Jr. gave a presentation on how to deal with
epidemics in the era of digital technology. He deplored that the public health
sector was not as digitally advanced as other sectors such as media, finance,
and education.
He urged measures to ensure the rapid transformation
of the health sector along modern lines.
Panel discussions were also held on the first day of
the summit covering several health-related issues and on ways to deal with
diseases using modern technology.
The summit brought together leaders of health care
systems, public health, digital health, academic institutions, and businesses
to discuss the vital role of digital health in the fight against current and
future pandemics.
It has been organized by the Ministry of National
Guard’s Health Affairs Department and G20 Saudi Secretariat, in collaboration
with the Saudi Center for International Strategic Partnerships.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1717926/saudi-arabia
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Kuwait parliament drafts plan to limit expat numbers,
ban certain visas transfers
Matthew Amlôt
23 August 2020
Kuwait’s National Assembly has drafted a bill to limit
the number of expatriate workers in the country and ban certain types of visa
transfers, Kuwait-based newspaper Kuwait Times reported Saturday.
Within six months of the law being enacted, a decision
will be made on the maximum number of expats allowed in Kuwait, the Times
reported, by comparing the number of foreign workers compared to the local
population.
The bill will exempt 10 different categories of
workers from the quota system, including domestic helpers, medical staff,
educators, and GCC nationals, the Times said.
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channel online or via the app.
Certain visa types and current procedures would also
be banned, including banning the transfer of visit visas into work visas, or
the transfer of domestic helpers to work in the private or oil sectors, the
Times added.
According to the law, a new committee, the National Committee
for Regulating and Administering Kuwait’s Demography, would also be formed.
Authorities have been working on various plans to
reduce the number of expats in the country. Last week, Kuwait announced it
would stop issuing work permits for expats aged over 60 without a university
degree, and will not extend any residencies and visas beyond August 31.
The new rules were perceived as part of a government
plan to cut the overall number of expats in the country by as much as 360,000
workers. According to this plan, 150,000 of these will be expats aged over 60.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2020/08/23/Kuwait-parliament-drafts-plan-to-limit-expat-numbers-ban-certain-visas-transfers.html
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Saudi public sector staff return on Aug. 30, but health
precautions enforced
DEEMA AL KHUDAIR
August 23, 2020
JEDDAH: Saudi public sector employees will return to
their workplaces on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020, following an announcement by the
Kingdom’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development.
The ministry said it based its decision on health
indicators in the cities and governorates of the Kingdom.
Employees have been working remotely as part of
efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus amid the global pandemic.
The ministry said employees would be required to
follow strict rules imposed in the workplace to prevent the spread.
However, department heads will be able to approve
remote work for employees if the number working remotely does not exceed 25
percent of the entity’s workforce.
Those most at risk of infection, according to the
classification of the National Center for Disease Prevention and Control, will
still be able to work from home.
These include people over the age of 65, and those
with chronic lung disease or severe asthma, chronic heart disease, inherited
immunodeficiency, acquired immune deficiency, or obesity.
The fingerprint login system will remain suspended
until further notice and employees will continue performing their duties
according to the approved flexible hours system.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1723201/saudi-arabia
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Top Saudi doctor defeats COVID-19 following 3-week
treatment
RAWAN RADWAN
August 23, 2020
JEDDAH: One of Saudi Arabia’s top doctors has defeated
COVID-19 and has left the hospital where he was treated for three weeks.
Dr. Nezar Bahabri is an infectious disease consultant
who had a steady presence on TV screens and social media platforms even before
the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early March.
During the outbreak he had been helping spread
awareness about the importance of taking steps to battle the spread of the
disease as well as fighting fake news about it.
The consultant addressed his discharge from hospital
in a short social media post that also explained why he was admitted in the
first place.
“I’m Nezar Bahabri and I was infected by coronavirus,”
was the short but straightforward start to the post.
The consultant confessed to making the mistake of
taking it easy when it came to precautionary measures and wearing a mask,
ignoring the warning signs before his health deteriorated.
“I, like hundreds and thousands of heroes before me,
were performing our duties treating patients infected and got infected with the
same infection that we were treating patients for.”
With an oxygen tank by his side, he sent a message to
“the white army” and urged them to wear a mask and not make the same mistakes
he did.
His second piece of advice was to never ignore the
signs. “Even my patients would tell me that I looked ill, I would ignore (that)
and take pain killers,” he said. “My advice is to calm down and learn.”
Videos of his ICU discharge circulated on social
media, with staff showering him with flowers in celebration of his release
after three weeks in the unit.
But, in line with his usual style, Bahabri continued
to advise his followers and specifically COVID-19 patients to never give up.
He described the three weeks as the hardest of his
life, and reminded people that 80 percent of confirmed COVID-19 patients had
mild symptoms.
“If you are from the 20 percent and your breathing is
constricted, head to the hospital and don’t wait,” he said, adding that if the
fever lasted more than five days then patients must head to the hospital.
“Remember, less than 5 percent of patients with breathing
complications due to COVID-19 are admitted to the ICU.”
He warned anyone with symptoms to stay vigilant and
not to neglect their health. He expressed his gratitude for everyone’s prayers
and said he would continue with his rehabilitation at home until he was fully
recovered.
His final advice to everyone was to be patient. “Life
doesn’t stop,” he said.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1723171/saudi-arabia
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/muslims-cant-be-singled-prosecution/d/122696