New Age Islam News Bureau
4 Jun 2020
A fundamentalist Muslim preacher is predicting Islam will replace the United States as the world's dominant geopolitical force. Pictured are riot police clearing Lafayette Park in Washington DC on June 1, 2020
-----
• 'We Will Take Over': Australian Leader of Extremist Islamic Group Says US Riots Are An 'Opportunity' For Muslims To Seize Global Leadership and Impose Sharia Law
• Muslim Council of Britain Stands in Solidarity with
the Black Lives Matter Protests
• 'We Gotta Call Out Racism': Milwaukee Muslim
Students Lead March Against Police Violence
• Imam Khomeini's Revolution Was Like Those of
Prophets: Sheikh Isa Qassim
• Taliban Will Pursue Both Peace Talks and Jihad:
Deputy Chief
• Jokowi Visits Palace Mosque in Preparation of the
New Normal
• Saudi Arabia Strongly Reacts to Kabul Mosque Bombing
Which Left Many Dead or Wounded
• Four Leaders Record Statements in Babri Trial Case
• No Compromise on Security, Says Imran
• Food Insecurity Increases In Burkina Faso Amid
Islamic Extremist Activity
---------
Australia
• 'We Will Take Over': Australian Leader of Extremist
Islamic Group Says US Riots Are An 'Opportunity' For Muslims To Seize Global
Leadership and Impose Sharia Law
-----
Europe
• Muslim Council of Britain Stands in Solidarity with
the Black Lives Matter Protests
• 'No Justice, No Peace': Tens of Thousands In London
Protest Death Of Floyd
• Protesters across Europe defy pandemic ban to
condemn US racism
• We need to discuss anti-Blackness in Muslim and
South Asian communities
• Mosques and churches to reopen in regions of
Uzbekistan with improved COVID-19 situation
• CCTV to be installed outside vandalised mosque
------
North America
• 'We Gotta Call Out Racism': Milwaukee Muslim
Students Lead March Against Police Violence
• Muslim Student Sues Scottsdale Community College and
Professor Over Islam Quiz Questions
• Ex-Pentagon chief blasts Trump for dividing
Americans amid anti-racism protests
• White House compares Trump's photo op to Churchill
during Blitz
• My Challenge to White People This Week and Beyond
• Edo pupils recount experiences with WhatsApp, Zoom
lessons
------
Mideast
• Imam Khomeini's Revolution Was Like Those of
Prophets: Sheikh Isa Qassim
• Shabbir Hassanally: Independence Generous Legacy
Iranians Have Received from Imam Khomeini
• Imam Khomeini refuted Imperialism, Marxism, Iran's
envoy says
• Imam Khomeini shattered superpowers' aura of
invincibility: Leader
• Imam Khomeini defines independence, Russian
philosopher says
• Imam Khomeini’s teachings bases of domestic, foreign
policies of Iran
------
South Asia
• Taliban Will Pursue Both Peace Talks and Jihad:
Deputy Chief
• Security Organs Called to Account for Kabul Mosque
Attack
• Reactions to Imam's Death in Kabul Mosque Attack
• Afghanistan reports 758 new cases, 23 new deaths
from coronavirus
• 14 civilians killed, wounded in a roadside bomb
explosion in Kandahar
• Bangladesh urges trading partners for responsible
business conduct
• BCB director Nadel recovers from coronavirus
------
Southeast Asia
• Jokowi Visits Palace Mosque in Preparation of the
New Normal
• New Normal; Jakarta MUI Issues Fatwa on Friday
Prayer
• Jakarta Disinfects Istiqlal Mosque, Cathedral Church
• Malaysian Youths Being Lured By Syndicates With
High-Paying Overseas Jobs, Warns MCA
• Old gas cylinders seized from Islamic school in
Songkhla
-------
Arab world
• Saudi Arabia Strongly Reacts to Kabul Mosque Bombing
Which Left Many Dead or Wounded
• Dubai Imams, Muezzins Requested to Undergo
Precautionary Covid-19 Tests
• UAE strongly condemns terror attack at mosque in
Kabul
• OIC strongly condemns bombing of a mosque in Kabul
• Saudi’s Qassim prepares over 200 mosques for Friday
prayers
• Qatar condemns mosque bombing in Kabul
------
India
• Four Leaders Record Statements in Babri Trial Case
• Delhi Riots: Police to File Two More Chargesheets
• Migrants, Tablighis Form 60% Case Load In Uttar Pradesh
• 4 Dalits Killed in 4 Days in Tamil Nadu, Activists
Say Upper Castes Using Lockdown as Opportunity for Assaults
------
Pakistan
• No Compromise on Security, Says Imran
• Virus kills two MPAs, infects over 4,770 in one day
• American femme fatale Cynthia creates tumult in
Pakistan
• Judicial commission completes APS massacre probe
• Balochistan bans sharing information about Covid-19
patients
• Shopping centres sealed in Peshawar for SOP
violation
• 10 doctors, MNA test positive for Covid-19
------
Africa
• Food Insecurity Increases In Burkina Faso Amid Islamic
Extremist Activity
• Islamist Militants in Mozambique Intensify Attacks
in Cabo Delgado Province
• COVID-19: Kwara gives conditions for reopening of
worship centres
• COVID-19: Oyetola reopens Churches, Mosques for two
weeks; states guidelines
• Covid-19: Benue Relaxes Lockdown, Reopens Churches,
Mosques
• Boko Haram Terrorists Attack Travellers, Kidnap
Soldier, Three Humanitarian Workers In Borno
• 73 Boko Haram militants killed in NE Nige
Compiled by New Age Islam
News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/we-take-australian-leader/d/122032
------
'We will take over': Australian leader of extremist
Islamic group says US riots are an 'opportunity' for Muslims to seize global leadership
and impose Sharia law
4 June 2020
A controversial Muslim preacher is predicting Islam
will replace the United States as the world's dominant geopolitical force.
Ismail al-Wahwah, the Australian spiritual leader of
hardline Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, has suggested riots across the US would
bring down the global superpower.
'Someone can say Europe, someone can say China, speak
about Russia some, but for me the message is, the one who have more values,
true values, and that's us Muslims.
Mr al-Wahwah described the violent mass demonstrations
across the US as an opportunity for Muslims to exploit - following the alleged
murder of black man George Floyd in Minneapolis by a white police officer.
'It's time to use this opportunity to stand up, and to
come back and to take the leadership again,' Mr al-Wahwah said.
Hizb ut-Tahrir is global Islamist political party,
active in 50 countries, that wants Islam imposed as a political system.
The Islamist group's 'Draft Constitution of the
Khilafa State', a blueprint for how its caliphate would govern, advocates the
killing of ex-Muslims, known as 'apostates'.
Despite its fundamentalist Islamic ideology that
endorses slavery and only allows Muslim men to rule, Hizb ut-Tahrir is claiming
to be the party of civil rights and is convinced riots against police brutality
would hasten the downfall of the US.
* The Counter Extremism Project reports Hizb ut-Tahrir
does not advocate violence directly but acts as a conveyor belt for terrorists,
indoctrinating young members who go on to join jihadist groups
* ISIS fighter Mohammed Emwazi, a.k.a. “Jihadi John,”
reportedly attended Hizb ut-Tahrir events while in university in England
* Bangladeshi Islamist Farabi Shafiur Rahman, of
Ansarullah Bangla Team, arrested for killing secular blogger Avijit Roy with a
machete in 2015
'Absolutely, I believe what happened in America today,
what will happen in the coming days and months and years, maybe, that will be a
change in the position of America as a leader in this world.
'We have all elements of success if we do the right
thing with help from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala,' Mr al-Wahwah said in his
Facebook video.
Nonetheless, Hizb ut-Tahrir is so extreme it is banned
in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation.
The group is also illegal in other Islamic nations,
including Pakistan, Turkey and Jordan, along with Germany and Russia, but it
remains legal in Australia.
In July 2018, Mr al-Wahwah was detained at Amman
Airport while travelling in Jordan with his wife, and was kept in custody for
several months.
Ismail al-Wahwah, also known as Abu Anas, was born in
the West Bank city of Hebron which is now jointly controlled by the Palestinian
Authority and Israel. He came to Australia as a refugee in 1997.
The former taxi driver, based in south-west Sydney, is
a controversial figure who had previously been deported from Indonesia and
travelled to Syria in 2013 in support of an Islamic caliphate.
A video from March 2016, translated and shared by the
Middle East Research Institute, showed him urging Muslims to restore the
Islamic caliphate at a conference held in Turkey.
He called on the attendees in Ankara to pledge 'before
Allah to restore the caliphate, to raise the banner, to restore the Sharia, to
unite the Islamic nation and to lead the armies of jihad that will conquer
Europe and America so that the word of Allah will reign supreme'.
In 2014 Mr al-Wahwah delivered an anti-Semitic rant to
a rally in the Sydney suburb of Lakemba that vilified Jewish people, calling
them 'the most evil creatures of Allah'.
In 2017, Hizb ut-Tahrir spokesman Uthman Badar told a
forum at Bankstown, in Sydney's south-west, that ex-Muslims, called
'apostates', should be killed.
'The ruling for apostates as such in Islam is clear,
that apostates attract capital punishment and we don't shy away from that,' he
said.
The extraordinary admission was caught on camera by
Daily Mail Australia and the matter was referred to the Australian Federal
Police by Justice Minister Michael Keenan.
In 2014, another Hizb ut-Tahrir spokesman, Wassim
Doureihi, repeatedly refused to condemn Islamic State when interviewed by ABC
journalist Emma Alberici on the Lateline program.
Last year, he told Hizb ut-Tahrir's 'Unapologetically
Muslim' conference at Campsie in Sydney he refused to condemn ISIS and
considered the Australian national anthem to be oppressive.
'Imagine someone comes into the room and looks at us
both. Looks at us both and says these two are a bunch of paedophiles,' he said.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8385977/Hizb-ut-Tahrir-leader-Ismail-al-Wahwah-says-riots-cause-downfall-Islam-over.html
------
Muslim Council of Britain Stands in Solidarity with
the Black Lives Matter Protests
2nd June 2020
Under the larger Black Lives Matter movement,
thousands have marched in solidarity with black Americans, calling for an end
to a corrupt police and state system that specifically targets people of color.
As Muslims, we must stand against injustice…we stand
in solidarity with our Black brothers and sisters in the United States, UK, and
beyond, wherever anti-Black racism manifests. Black. Lives. Matter.”
O you who believed, be persistently standing firm in
justice, witness of Allah, even if it be against yourselves or parents and
relatives. Whether one is rich or poor, Allah is more worthy of both. So follow
not personal inclination, lest you not be just. And if you distort [your
testimony] or refuse [to give it], then indeed Allah is ever with what you do,
Acquainted.”
As MCB rightfully states, Muslims have an obligation
and duty as believers to stand up to injustice and be with those who are
oppressed – and if this means to protest, then Muslims must support and stand
with those protesting for their lives.
When it becomes an everyday occurrence for innocent
black Americans to be killed by the state, for simply being black, it means
that we cannot remain silent. Silence is now deadly.
The Muslim Vibe is a non-profit media platform aiming
to inspire, inform and empower Muslims like you. Our goal is to provide a space
for young Muslims to learn about their faith as well as news stories affecting
them, so we can reclaim the Muslim narrative from the mainstream.
Your support will help us achieve this goal, and
enable us to produce more original content. Your support can help us in the
fight against Islamophobia, by building a powerful platform for young Muslims
who can share their ideas, experiences and opinions for a better future.
Please consider supporting The Muslim Vibe, from as
little as £1 – it will only take a minute. Thank you and Jazakallah.
https://themuslimvibe.com/muslim-current-affairs-news/muslim-council-of-britain-stands-in-solidarity-with-the-black-lives-matter-protests?utm_source=Mailing+list+-+digest&utm_campaign=0995749b1f-TMV+Daily+Digest&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_171fa92253-0995749b1f-333700246&goal=0_171fa92253-0995749b1f-333700246&mc_cid=0995749b1f&mc_eid=67e5408261
------
'We gotta call out racism': Milwaukee Muslim students
lead march against police violence
June 3, 2020
Last spring, Milwaukee teenagers Dana Sharqawi and
Sumaya Abdi organized protests after mass shootings at mosques in New Zealand.
On Wednesday, they brought people together again at
the Islamic Society of Milwaukee — this time to remember George Floyd and to
protest police violence. They said they were guided by their Muslim faith.
"Our religion tells us that if one part of your
body’s in pain, then the whole body’s in pain," said Abdi, now 19 and a
student at UW-Madison. "So if our black brothers and sisters are in pain,
we’re in pain, too."
"I just want to say I’m so proud of each and
every person that has come here today on this hot, humid, sunny day," Abdi
told the crowd. "That means you have a conscience and you know what’s
going on in our system."
Before the march, the group held silent for Floyd for
8 minutes and 46 seconds: the amount of time Minneapolis police officer Derek
Chauvin had his knee on Floyd's neck.
"We’re here to use our voice for people who
couldn’t use theirs," Sharqawi said. "Our religion centers around the
belief that we are all created equal in the eyes of God. So today we’re here to
prove that: that we’re all equal, we’re one community."
Dana sharqawi, 18, and Sumaya Abdi, 19, explain why
they organized a march today at @ismmke, which is about to begin
pic.twitter.com/vJNynzRDcW
On their three-mile walk in 80-degree sunny heat, the
crowd met some resistance. One person yelled from a lawn chair, "Because
of you we have curfew.” But most spectators showed support.
Workers from McDonald's gave out cups of water and
held open trash bags. At KFC, employees came out and cheered ecstatically for
the group. A UPS driver gave a long honk and rose his fist in the air. A
bicyclist passed out water from his back rack.
"I came out here to support the voices of our
black brothers and sisters here in America," she said. "They’ve been
silenced, they haven’t been heard, and really the murder of George Floyd was
the tip of the iceberg. It’s really important for us to come out and show them
our unconditional support."
Another marcher, 18-year-old Wajahat Ali Shah, said he
was scared to attend the march but an hour beforehand, he noticed some of his
friends making racist comments and he decided to go.
“We gotta call out racism in our communities and do
something about it," Ali Shah said. "This is why I came to this
protest. This is why I scream my lungs out. This is why I support Black Lives
Matter."
He invited his friend, Syed Shah, to come with him.
Shah said he came because he wants to do as much as he can to help his black
friends.
"Our whole entire judicial system is based off
punishing people," Shah said. "It's literally based off slavery. When
they were writing the Constitution saying all men are equal, they didn’t
include black men, they didn’t include women, they said all white rich men were
equal."
Lily Nikolic and Tenley Dugan, both 15, said they came
because, as white students, they are learning how to use their privilege and
bring awareness to racism in their communities.
"I know a lot of people from the suburbs who
aren’t really understanding what’s going on and I feel like it’s important for
everybody to just get out there and try and do what they can," said Dugan,
a student at Rufus King International High School.
The march began at 2 p.m. and ended at 4 p.m. after
speeches by older leaders with the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and Interfaith
Conference Of Greater Milwaukee.
Will Perry, director of the Dawah Islamic Center,
recalled how he marched as a 10-year-old with Father James Groppi over the 16th
Street Viaduct in 1967 as part of the Milwaukee Fair Housing Marches. Though he
didn't know exactly what they were protesting at the time, he knew it was
important to be there.
“May Allah bless you for having the courage to stand
up for something," Perry said. "You may not realize the significance
of it and how it’s going to impact folks later."
“There is hope, when our young people stand up and say
enough is enough,” said Imam Noman Hussain of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee.
"As a Christian, I’m trained to always look, even
in the darkest times of tragedy, for any evidence of hope. I see a lot of it
right here. You are hope," said the Rev. Lisa Bates-Froiland of Redeemer
Lutheran.
https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2020/06/03/milwaukee-muslim-students-march-george-floyd-against-police-violence/3140082001/
-----
Imam Khomeini's revolution was like those of prophets:
Sheikh Isa Qassim
Jun 3, 2020
TEHRAN, Jun. 03 (MNA) – Bahrain's leading Shia cleric
Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim pointed to the characteristics of the Islamic
Revolution founder Imam Khomeini.
In a speech delivered on Wednesday on the occasion of
the 31st demise anniversary of Imam Khomeini, Bahrain's top cleric said that
Imam Khomeini's revolution was like revolutions of prophets.
The Islamic Revolution has dealt with great plots
hatched by enemies, however, it has managed to get through all difficulties, he
said.
The only things that make a great revolution are its
aims and ideals, he said. "If a revolution is not for God and His path, it
will never turn into a major one."
Imam Khomeini was a great man and is a model for the
Islamic Ummah and the humankind, he said, noting that his Revolution is not
limited to a specific time.
Sheikh Isa Qassim noted that the Islamic Revolution is
a source of pride and dignity for all the Islamic Ummah and safeguarding it is
the duty of all the Islamic Ummah.
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/159404/Imam-Khomeini-s-revolution-was-like-those-of-prophets-Sheikh
------
Taliban Will Pursue Both Peace Talks and Jihad: Deputy
Chief
By Sharif Amiri
YESTERDAY - 6:20 PM
According to the UN report, a new group named
Hizb-e-Wilayat-e-Islami has been created outside Afghanistan.
Sirajuddin Haqqani, the deputy leader of the Taliban,
said that despite the group's belief in the peace negotiation talks as one of
the core components of the solution to the conflict in Afghanistan, the Taliban
will still continue the path of jihad (holy war) and strengthen its military
power.
In a message to mark the completion of training of a
group of Taliban suicide bombers at an unknown location, Haqqani said that the
peace process does not mean the Taliban will abandon the path of jihad.
Footage released on the group’s social media platforms
show a group of Taliban fighters wearing suicide vests who are passing in a
parade in front of the Taliban’s military commission.
Messages from other top Taliban officials, including
Mullah Abdullah Ghani Baradar and Mullah Yaqoub, were read out in support of
the suicide squad.
“We believe that the talks are the solution, the
politics of sharia (Islamic) law is one of the paths of our jihad and struggle,
but no one should miscalculate our politics and willingness for talks --- they
shouldn’t expect (the Taliban) to abandon jihad and their military
capabilities,” said Haqqani in a message to the Taliban fighters.
“We will use our ability to further develop the
strength of the military and jihadi forces of the Islamic emirate (Term used
for Afghanistan by the Taliban),” said Mullah Yaqoub.
Meanwhile, a UN report released on Friday stated that
the Taliban has failed to fulfill one of the core parts of the US-Taliban
agreement, namely that it would break ties with al-Qaeda. The agreement was
signed in February in Doha, Qatar, after months of negotiations.
According to the UN report, a new group named
Hizb-e-Wilayat-e-Islami has been created outside Afghanistan which encompasses
the splinter members of the Taliban who are opposing the peace agreement
between the US and the Taliban.
“Whenever one part of them (Taliban) show willingness
for talks, the other part starts opposing them-- like the Haqqani who vowed to
continue jihad,” said Abdul Sattar Hussaini, a member of the Afghan parliament.
Al-Qaeda has 400 to 600 operatives active in 12 Afghan
provinces and is running training camps in the east of the country, according
to the report.
“The Taliban regularly consulted with Al-Qaeda during
negotiations with the United States and offered guarantees that it would honor
their historical ties,” the report states.
Meanwhile, footage shows a large gathering of Taliban
fighters in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa participating in the funeral ceremony of three
Pakistani fighters who were killed in a battle last week with the Afghan border
security forces.
“Three of our friends were martyred, one of them belonged
to North Waziristan,” said one local Taliban commander in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to the UN report, the senior leadership of
al-Qaeda remains present in Afghanistan, as well as hundreds of armed
operatives, al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent, and groups of foreign
terrorist fighters aligned with the Taliban.
Relations between the Taliban, especially the Haqqani
network and al-Qaeda "remain close, based on friendship, a history of
shared struggle, ideological sympathy and intermarriage," said the report.
The report also highlights Daesh’s subversive
activities in the country, saying that the UN monitoring team now estimates
that Daesh numbers are as low as 2,200 in Afghanistan.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/taliban-will-pursue-both-peace-talks-and-jihad-deputy-chief
-----
Jokowi Visits Palace Mosque in Preparation of the New
Normal
Laila Afifa
4 June 2020
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi"
Widodo on Thursday, June 4, personally monitored the preparedness of the
Baiturrahman Mosque located inside the Presidential Palace Complex to hold mass
congregations ahead of the planned 'new normal' phase.
“We can soon use the mosque for mass prayers or
individual prayers,” said the president after the visit to the mosque ended.
He was accompanied by State Secretary Pratikno. Both
wore face masks and frequently disinfect their hands that are placed in the
mosque’s entrance door.
The mosque is where the president conducts his Friday
prayers prior to the COVID-19 pandemic hit Indonesia. Houses of worship were
ordered to temporarily close its doors for the public to prevent spreading the
virus even further.
The new normal phase often promoted by the central
government will open the chance to reopen houses of worship to the public, such
as the State Palace mosque.
“We hope that through several changes, clear signs,
and frequent cleansing of the mosque, we will be able to conduct Friday mass
prayers again. The Baiturrahman Mosque is ready to enter the new normal,” said
Jokowi.
https://en.tempo.co/read/1349586/jokowi-visits-palace-mosque-in-preparation-of-the-new-normal
-----
Saudi Arabia strongly reacts to Kabul mosque bombing
which left many dead or wounded
04 Jun 2020
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia strongly reacted to the
recently mosque bombing in capital Kabul which left many dead or wounded
including a prominent prayer leader.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia in a
statement said it expresses the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s utter condemnation
and denunciation of the bomb blasts at a mosque in the Afghan capital of Kabul,
which has resulted in deaths and injuries.
“The Ministry offers its condolences to the families
of the victims and to the Government and people of the Islamic Republic of
Afghanistan, wishing a speedy recovery to the wounded, and that security and
stability prevail throughout Afghanistan, reaffirming the Kingdom’s rejection
to all forms of violence, extremism and terrorism,” the statement added.
The explosion in Wazir Mohammad Akbar Khan area killed
Mawlavi Ayaz Niazi, one of the prominent prayer leaders of the country and
wounded several others.
Mawlavi Niazi died of the wounds from an explosion
shortly after the blast ripped through the mosque in diplomatic area of Kabul
city earlier on Tuesday evening.
Tariq Arian, a spokesperson for the Ministry of
Interior, confirmed that Mawlavi Niazi succumbed to his injuries following the
explosion.
According to Arian, the incident took place at around
7:45 pm local time in the vicinity of Wazir Mohammad Akbar Khan mosque.
Arian further added that the terrorists had planted
explosives in the vicinity of the mosque which killed one person and wounded
three others.
He also added that the security forces discovered some
other explosives before the militants manage to detonate them.
https://www.khaama.com/saudi-arabia-strongly-reacts-to-kabul-mosque-bombing-which-left-many-dead-or-wounded-08890/
------
Four leaders record statements in Babri trial case
Lucknow, Jun 04, 2020 05:21 PM (IST)
Of the 32 accused in the Babri Masjid demolition
trial, four appeared before a special CBI Court in Lucknow on Thursday.
Among the four who appeared on Thursday, were Dr Ram
Vilas Vedanti, former BJP MP Vinay Katiyar, Santosh Dube and Vijay Bahadur
Singh.
They recorded their statements under Section 313 of
the Criminal Procedure Code.
The remaining accused have sought exemption and will
appear at a later date.
The case involves high-profile accused, including top
BJP leaders L.K. Advani, Dr M.M. Joshi and Uma Bharti, as well as VHP leader
Champat Rai, and has reached a crucial stage.
The Supreme Court on May 8 had ordered that the
special court trial be concluded and verdict pronounced by August 31. — IANS
https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/four-leaders-record-statements-in-babri-trial-case-94468
-----
No compromise on security, says Imran
June 04, 2020
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday
vowed no compromise on national security as he received intelligence briefing
amid escalating tensions with India.
Mr Khan visited the headquarters of the Inter-Services
Intelligence (ISI) for a briefing, which was also attended by Chief of Army
Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Planning
Minister Asad Umar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Dr Moeed Yousuf and
ISI Director General Lt Gen Faiz Hamid.
“A comprehensive briefing was given to the Prime
Minister encompassing complex regional and domestic challenges with special
focus on Pakistan efforts for restoration of peace and stability,” the PM Office
said in a statement.
Mr Khan was quoted as having said at the meeting that
the government would go to any extent to safeguard country’s sovereignty and
national security.
This was prime minister’s second visit to the spy
agency’s headquarters in as many months. He last visited the ISI offices on
April 23.
His latest visit comes at a time when tensions with
India have spiked sharply and Delhi has been regularly accusing Pakistan of
Line of Control (LoC) infiltration and committing ceasefire violations.
On last Sunday, India expelled two Pakistani high
commission officials accusing them of collecting data on the movement of troops
and military cargo.
Army Chief Gen Qamar Bajwa in a visit to the Command
and Staff College Quetta on Monday emphasised that peace in the region depended
on resolution of longstanding disputes – a reference to Kashmir. He had also
called for “meaningful international support” for dealing with the threats to
peace.
Military Spokesman Maj Gen Babar Iftikhar, in a talk
show on a private channel on Wednesday evening, said any military misadventure
by India would be responded with full force.
He warned of dire consequences of any Indian military
action against Pakistan and said that the situation could spiral out of
control.
“India should stop playing with fire,” the
Inter-Services Public Relations director general said while describing the
situation of LoC as alarming.
Rejecting Indian allegations, he said it has become a
routine for Delhi to blame Pakistan for its failures.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1561130/no-compromise-on-security-says-imran
------
Food insecurity increases in Burkina Faso amid Islamic
extremist activity
3 June 2020
Food insecurity is one of the byproducts of attacks by
Islamic extremists in Burkina Faso.
Extremists chased Adama Drabo and his family from
their land in western Burkina Faso, forcing them to abandon a year’s worth of
crops.
Now that food is rotting in storage in the village,
too dangerous for him to retrieve, even as the family is forced to survive on
meagre government rations.
Humanitarian groups are concerned that the coronavirus
pandemic could exacerbate an already dire situation in Burkina Faso, one of the
most impoverished countries in the world.
“If production goes down in this area and if movement
restrictions due to the coronavirus drive up food prices in the markets, it
could push numbers of severely vulnerable people to double or triple,” said
Julia Wanjiru, communications coordinator for the Sahel and West Africa Club,
an intergovernmental economic group.
Food insecurity already affects two million people in
Burkina Faso, according to the latest report from its government and aid
groups.
While the government has lifted restrictions on movement
between cities, its borders with Mali, Niger and Ivory Coast remain closed,
making the importation of food more expensive.
The small town of Tougan is sheltering nearly 6,000
displaced people with new arrivals daily, according to Lassina Sougue, who
directs the government’s humanitarian response in Sourou province.
But on a recent trip to Boucle Du Mouhoun, at least a
dozen people coming from three different provinces all said they were worried
about food and access to their land.
Anticipating a food crisis, the United States has
doubled this year’s funding to World Food Programme for Burkina Faso, to 21
million US dollars and is set to announce an additional seven million US
dollars in the coming weeks, according to an official with close knowledge of
the situation.
https://www.lbcnews.co.uk/world-news/45608b1c349a4f82a59b51bbd8c830c7/
------
Europe
'No justice, no peace': Tens of thousands in London
protest death of Floyd
June 03, 2020
By Michael Holden
LONDON (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people
chanting "no justice, no peace, no racist police" marched through
central London on Wednesday to protest against racism after the death of George
Floyd in Minneapolis.
Floyd, an unarmed black man, died after a white police
officer knelt on his neck, an event that has set off the biggest anti-racism
protests seen in the United States since the 1960s civil rights era.
Demonstrators have also come out in cities around the
world in solidarity with Floyd and to express anger over racism. Protesters in
London chanted "George Floyd" and "Black Lives Matter" as
they marched through the city centre.
On Parliament Square, on Trafalgar Square and at other
locations, thousands knelt on one knee, a form of protest known as "taking
a knee" famously used by American footballer Colin Kaepernick to denounce
police brutality against black people.
Some demonstrators urged police officers lining the
route of the march to also take a knee, and a few of the officers did.
"This has been years in the coming, years and
years and years of white supremacy," 30-year-old project manager Karen
Koromah told Reuters.
"We’ve come here with our friends to sound the
alarm, to make noise, to dismantle supremacist systems," Koromah said,
cautioning that unless there was action the United Kingdom would face problems
like those in the United States.
The demonstrators booed as they walked past 10 Downing
Street, official residence of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and some also booed
and took a knee in front of New Scotland Yard, London's police headquarters.
Some protesters waved banners with slogans such as:
"The UK is not innocent: less racist is still racist", "Racism
is a global issue" and “If you aren’t angry you aren’t paying
attention".
The event was almost entirely peaceful. There were
brief scuffles between police officers and some protesters outside 10 Downing
Street but they were over within minutes.
Johnson, who was inside at the time giving the
government's daily briefing on the coronavirus outbreak, was asked what he
would say to U.S. President Donald Trump about Floyd's death and the protests
it has sparked.
"My message to President Trump, to everybody in
the United States, from the UK is that - and it's an opinion I'm sure is shared
by the overwhelming majority of people around the world - racism and racist
violence has no place in our society."
Johnson has been criticised in the past for comments
that many considered racist. In 2018, when he was foreign minister, he wrote in
a newspaper column that Muslim women wearing burkas looked like bank robbers or
letter boxes.
British police chiefs said they were appalled by the
way Floyd lost his life and by the violence that followed in U.S. cities, but
called on protesters in the United Kingdom to work with police as coronavirus
restrictions remain in place.
"We can see feelings are running really high
today. It's been a peaceful protest," said police commander Alex Murray.
"It’s not like this is just about someone dying,
we live our lives made awfully aware of our race. That’s not right, that’s not
the natural order," said Roz Jones, who came to Britain as a child from
South Africa.
https://wtvbam.com/news/articles/2020/jun/03/no-justice-no-peace-thousands-gather-in-london-after-death-of-floyd/1025169/?refer-section=world
------
Protesters across Europe defy pandemic ban to condemn
US racism
03 June 2020
Thousands of people across Europe have held protest
rallies to condemn racism and police brutality in the US, amid a chorus of
growing global outrage at the police killing of African American citizen George
Floyd on May 25.
Protests over Floyd’s death, which began in the US
city of Minneapolis, have spread to hundreds of cities across the US and the
world.
On Wednesday, large protests erupted in several
European cities, where people defied the coronavirus pandemic bans to express
solidarity with anti-racism protests in the US.
In London, there have been a series of marches and
demonstrations. Tens of thousands of people chanting “no justice, no peace, no
racist police” marched through central London to express their protest.
In London’s Parliament Square, thousands knelt on one
knee, a form of protest known as “taking a knee” famously used by American
footballer Colin Kaepernick to denounce police brutality against black people.
A protester and a police officer clash near Downing
Street during a "Black Lives Matter" protest following the death of
George Floyd who died in Minneapolis police custody, in London, Britain, June
3, 2020.
The London march started in Hyde Park before winding
its way to Parliament Square. Many of the protesters chanted “George Floyd” and
“Black lives matter”.
More rallies are planned for the weekend. The Stand Up
to Racism campaign has asked UK citizens to “take a knee for George Floyd” outside
their front doors.
In Rotterdam, the Netherlands, thousands of
anti-racism activists held a peaceful protest; however, the Dutch police told
them to go home as the rally was too crowded and participants could not keep to
social distancing rules.
In Stockholm, Sweden, thousands of people defied the
ban on public gatherings of more than 50 people and poured into streets to
protest the US police brutality against black people.
Bearing signs and placards with messages such as “I
can’t breathe” and “Black Lives Matter”, the demonstrators gathered for several
hours at a square in the heart of the city during the afternoon, television
footage showed.
Reuters journalists saw demonstrators throwing several
flaming objects which erupted into flames on the street towards the
heavily-guarded embassy in central Athens and police responding with rounds of
teargas.
Demonstrators were holding banners and placards
reading “Black lives matter” and “I can’t breathe”. Police sources estimated
the number of protesters at more than 3,000.
In Paris, nearly 15,000 demonstrators took to the
streets to protest police violence on Tuesday night, defying police orders to
stay home to prevent possible coronavirus infections.
People run from teargas as they attend a banned
demonstration planned in memory of Adama Traore, a 24-year old black Frenchman
who died in a 2016 police operation which some have likened to the death of
George Floyd, in front of the courthouse in Paris, France June 2, 2020.
Videos of Floyd’s death and subsequent protests and
unrest in American cities have been featured prominently in news coverage in
Europe and widely shared on social media, shocking many Europeans.
Nearly 20,000 protesters demonstrate in Paris against
police brutality over the 2016 death of a black man in police custody, inspired
by rallies in the US against racism and police violence.
Some protesters waved banners with slogans such as,
“The UK is not innocent: less racist is still racist”, “Racism is a global
issue,” and, “If you aren’t angry you aren’t paying attention”.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/06/03/626696/George-Floyd-protests-racism-us-blacks-afro-americans
------
We need to discuss anti-Blackness in Muslim and South
Asian communities
By Mariam Khan
4th June 2020
George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis on 25 May. In
the days since we have seen US police officers fire tear gas and rubber bullets
at peaceful protestors who simply want to understand why Black men and women
keep being killed.
This is not a one-off killing, it’s the effect of a
structurally racist society that has brutalised Black people in America for
hundreds of years. It is an undeniable truth that white people benefit from
structural racism the most and need to check their privilege and learn how to
use this to be more than performative allies.
Yes, we need to demand white people have these
conversations, but many of us need to have these conversations within our own
communities. The problem isn’t just over there, it’s here too; in the UK, in
our communities and even in our families, friendship and professional circles.
As a lighter-skinned Pakistani Muslim hijabi woman, I know there are issues
within my community when it comes to anti-Blackness, racism, and prejudice
against Black people and Black Muslims.
Anti-Blackness is rife in the Muslim and South Asian
community and it’s rarely discussed. I believe the perpetuation comes from the
desire in many of us within the community to be closer to whiteness - because
the closer we are to whiteness the closer we are to privilege. These are
colonial mindsets and practices lingering.
Many of us have grown up in homes that have been
fixated on having fair and lovely skin tones and even though the caste system
isn’t a part of being a Muslim, in our South Asian communities we have seen
people divided based on skin colour. These are colonial mindsets and practices
lingering.
How many stories have you heard where someone in the
community wanted to marry a Black man and their parents weren’t happy, and it
wasn’t because of his behaviour but because of his skin tone. How many Aunties
in your community have told you not to tan because you won’t be as pretty? How
many people within the community perpetuate negative stereotypes around Black
people without being questioned?
I believe it should be an obligation upon those of us
who can read to educate others within our communities about racism against
Black people and to challenge stereotypes that collectively this structurally
racist society has built into our subconsciouses.
Many of us don’t challenge the narratives built around
Black people enough. In our communities and spaces, we have fallen into the
trap of believing Black people are bad without questioning why this is the
dominant narrative, who is telling it, or considering any disparities.
Research by the Sentencing Council found that Black
and minority ethnic offenders are far more likely to be sent to prison for drug
offences than other defendants. This research reinforced The Lammy Review,
which was an independent review of BAME individuals facing bias in court. There
is much unlearning to be done and as those who are educated in our communities,
it should be an obligation on us to challenge where we see racism and
anti-Blackness.
We ourselves, in the Muslim and South Asian community,
benefit from our proximity to white supremacy. This is why we too are part of
the problem if we choose to only use our privilege and proximity to continue to
allow white structures to oppress. We, in turn, are the oppressors. Many Asians
build their identities around the idea of being a “model minority” or even “the
good immigrant”. We need to stop playing into these homogeneous groups that are
seen as “acceptable” because we have achieved a certain socio-economic status
or education because this is a form of pitting minorities against one another.
No single minority is better than another based on these factors because those
in power don’t really care to see any of us succeed.
Even within our community spaces and representation in
the media, there is an absence of Black Muslims. I can’t remember the last time
I saw a Black Muslim person on TV but can fairly easily list Arab and South
Asian actors. A study by the Black Muslim Forum, found that 84 per cent of
Black Muslims felt they did not belong to their university’s Islamic society
and 79 per cent faced anti-black discrimination and colourism within secular
settings. There is a problem because even within our own communities there
isn’t a safe space for Black Muslims to speak up and we are failing our
brothers and sisters by not listening.
I know a lot of people deal with racism and
Islamophobia and that there are a lot of things wrong with the world, but Black
Lives Matter, and it is time we stop pushing these incredibly important
conversations to the back. If you can recognise that the way society treats
Black people is wrong and that you yourself wouldn’t want to be treated in this
way, you already know you have a privilege they don’t and you are actively
exercising your racism and anti-Blackness if you chose to do nothing.
https://inews.co.uk/opinion/comment/discuss-anti-blackness-muslim-south-asian-community-2874079
------
Mosques and churches to reopen in regions of
Uzbekistan with improved COVID-19 situation
JUNE 4, 2020
Mosques, churches and other religious organizations
will reopen in Uzbekistan since June 5, reports the nation-wide commission for
coronavirus containment.
The work of religious organizations will be allowed in
“yellow” and “green” areas of the country with improved epidemiological
situation.
Workers have to use individual protection gear (masks
and gloves). They also should keep social distance and mark safe distance for
worshippers (the space between praying people should be at least 1.5 meters).
On May 8, the division into quarantine areas was
introduced in Uzbekistan depending on COVID-19 situation. The areas are divided
into “red” (with confirmed active cases), “yellow” (with no new confirmed cases
but patients remaining in hospitals) and “green” (free of infection) zones.
https://akipress.com/news:642893:Mosques_and_churches_to_reopen_in_regions_of_Uzbekistan_with_improved_COVID-19_situation/
-----
CCTV to be installed outside vandalised mosque
June 3, 2020
By Jonathan Shkurko
Security cameras and improved lighting will be
installed outside the Koprulu mosque in Limassol after it was vandalised with
racist graffiti against Islam and immigrants on Sunday.
The decision was announced by Limassol mayor Nikos
Nicolaides on Thursday after a meeting with Limassol CID chief Ioannis
Sotiriades and with the property manager.
According to Sotiriades, it was also agreed that an
increased number of police officers will patrol the area to avoid any further
incidents.
He added that the police are monitoring other
sensitive areas in Limassol which he believes might be potential targets for
racist incidents.
Both Nicolaides and Sotiriades confirmed their
intention of working together to effectively deal with all forms of violence,
xenophobia and intolerance in town.
The incident gained plenty of traction in Turkey, with
Turkish Foreign Minister claiming on Tuesday that “Islamophobic rhetoric and
actions will not contribute to the efforts towards reaching a settlement of the
Cyprus issue.”
https://cyprus-mail.com/2020/06/03/cctv-to-be-installed-outside-vandalised-mosque/
-----
North America
Muslim student sues Scottsdale Community college and
professor over Islam quiz questions
June 3, 2020
A local Islamic group filed a lawsuit Tuesday in U.S.
District Court against Scottsdale Community College and one of its professors
for teaching material that it says condemns Islam.
A student and the Arizona chapter of the Council for
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) filed the lawsuit, asking that SCC and
professor Nicholas Damask stop teaching the materials in question until they
"do not have the primary effect of disapproving of Islam."
The lawsuit comes after the student, Mohamed Sabra,
posted three quiz questions from a world politics class to social media last
month, igniting a firestorm of online criticism that caused the college's
interim President Christina Haines to apologize for the "inaccurate"
and "inappropriate" questions.
Haines also said Damask would apologize to the student
and remove the questions from his curriculum. Damask pushed back, saying he had
no intention of apologizing and that his academic freedom was being threatened.
The chancellor of Maricopa Community College District,
of which SCC is a part, stepped in and said the questions posted on social
media were taken out of context and fell within the scope of the course.
Chancellor Steven Gonzales said he would launch a Committee on Academic Freedom
and pursue an investigation into how the controversy was handled.
David Chami, an attorney representing CAIR, said the
group filed the lawsuit to prevent Damask from "continuing to poison the
minds of students."
"We have enough hate in this country. We have
enough divide," he said. "We don't need our professors inflaming
those seeds of hatred in students."
In May, Sabra posted screenshots from the quiz to
social media, where they were quickly shared through social media by several
influencers and Muslim community members.
The quiz included statements such as “Contemporary
terrorism is Islamic" and "Terrorism is justified within the context
of Jihad in Islam." The quiz also asserted that Islamic terrorists strive
to emulate the Prophet Muhammed.
The lawsuit says that Sabra answered the questions
based on how Muslims practice their religion, but the answers were marked as
incorrect.
"Mr. Sabra was forced to make a decision; either
disavow his religion or be punished by getting the answers wrong on the
quiz," the lawsuit says.
The district-commissioned investigation details an
email exchange between the professor and the student about the quiz questions.
Damask attempted to explain that the goal of the quiz
was to discuss the motivation of terrorists, not whether something is right or
wrong under Islamic doctrine, according to the report.
“The course may outline these beliefs but that doesn’t
make it acceptable to teach this misinformation to other student[s] who aren’t
fully educated," Sabra responded. "Please review the questions I’ve
attached and get back to me ASAP.”
By the time Damask responded the next morning, the
student had posted the questions on social media, prompting backlash to the
school.
The lawsuit says that Damask asserted in his course
that peaceful interpretations of Islam were false, quoting Damask's course
material as saying, “Contentions that Islam does not promote warfare or
violence cannot be supported on either theological or historical grounds.”
Damask also presented several statistics that did not
contain citations to academic material, according to the lawsuit. One of those
statistics cited in the lawsuit compares killings by Islamic terrorists to
slayings by groups like the Ku Klux Klan, saying, “Islamic terrorists kill on
average more people every 90 days than the number of blacks killed by the Ku
Klux Klan in its entire 120+ year history."
Damask never included any discussion of the Ku Klux
Klan, Nazis, militant fascism or neo-conservativism and their
"scripture-based terrorism" against minorities in the United States,
according to the lawsuit.
"It is an unquestionable fact that the Ku Klux
Klan espoused Protestant Christian ideologies to wage terror in the United
States in an attempt to create their own nation-state, and even believed that
Jesus was the first Klansman," the lawsuit read. "However, none of this
material is discussed in any of Defendant Damask’s modules, despite its impact
on national and international politics."
CAIR said the course's only reading material came from
articles written by anti-Islam extremists, including an excerpt from the book
"Future Jihad" by Walid Phares.
Phares has served as a commentator on terrorism for
Fox News and as an adviser to Mitt Romney and Donald Trump during their
presidential campaigns. Phares was a high-ranking official in a religious
militia that was responsible for massacres during Lebanon’s 15-year civil war,
according to an investigation by Mother Jones.
In 2012, the New York Times reported that Phares
"regularly warns that Muslims aim to take over American institutions and
impose Shariah, a legal code based mainly on the Koran that can involve
punishments like cutting off the hands of a thief."
"Don't you think you should have disclosed that
to your students or put a disclaimer?" Raees Mohamed,an attorney
representing CAIR, said. "What we see is an utter lack of true academic
discussion."
After school officials sent the professor a prewritten
apology letter to sign, Damask reached out to the Foundation for Individual
Rights in Education (FIRE) saying his job and academic freedom were threatened.
FIRE wrote a letter to the college about its attempt
to force Damask to change his course content and issue an apology. The
organization seeks to defend academic freedom, whether for students or faculty.
"SCC's actions in response to Damask are
irreconcilable with its constitutional and statutory obligations as a public
institution of higher education," the letter read. "SCC cannot
abandon its obligations under the First Amendment and Arizona law."
But Mohamed said attorneys aren't arguing against
lively discussion and debate on college campuses, or even that the motivations
of Islamic terrorists can't be discussed in classes.
Rather, academic freedom cannot be used to cloak
anti-Muslim speech and make broad generalizations about the Muslim faith,
Mohamed said.
Ahmed Soussi, CAIR's civil rights director, said that
past court cases have determined that teachers must have discussions about
religions in a secular way, which Damask did not do.
"This is basically Sunday school on SCC's
campus," Soussi said. "This isn't just a rogue professor doing this
one time. He's basically indoctrinating these people."
The district's recent investigation found that SCC
administrators did not follow its procedures for responding to student academic
complaints or discrimination complaints when responding to the controversy.
There are two processes school officials could have
followed: one related to instructional grievances and another related to
discrimination. Both would have required Sabra to file a complaint with school
administrators, but he never filed a written grievance with any appropriate
administrative officer at the college.
The district's report says there is no policy that
permits disciplining faculty members over the contents of their course
material, quizzes or exams, and that faculty members have the right to
determine curriculum.
The lawsuit says that SCC knew that Damask's module
was going to be taught, referencing district policies that require the course
syllabus be submitted to the division/department office at the beginning of the
semester.
"SCC not only condoned the material but approved
of its use in the classroom," the lawsuit says. "Damask has been
teaching this class for 24 years and upon information and belief will continue
to teach and remain the Department Chair."
Chami said that once the quiz questions came to light,
there was no investigation done into the course, or any indication given that
the material would be reviewed for accuracy.
Paul Weser, the division chair, reviewed the course
material and the quiz with Damask’s permission, and he concluded the material
and quiz were appropriate to test students’ understanding of what certain
terrorist groups believe, according to the district's investigation.
https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/scottsdale-education/2020/06/03/muslim-student-and-cair-sue-scottsdale-community-college-and-teacher/5311068002/
------
Ex-Pentagon chief blasts Trump for dividing Americans
amid anti-racism protests
04 June 2020
Former Pentagon Chief Jim Mattis has denounced President
Donald Trump's handling of nationwide anti-racism protests, saying the
president is trying to turn Americans against one another.
Mattis said the president is trying to
"divide" America and failing to provide "mature leadership"
as anti-racism rallies have roiled the country.
The former Pentagon chief, who resigned in December
2018 over policy differences with Trump, broke his silence and condemned the US
president in a fiery statement that was published by The Atlantic on Wednesday.
"Donald Trump is the first president in my
lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to
try. Instead he tries to divide us," Mattis wrote.
“I have watched this week’s unfolding events, angry
and appalled,” Mattis said, urging Americans to “unite without” the president,
who earlier this week called protesters “thugs” and threatened to call in US
troops to quell the protests.
Mattis said, “Militarizing our response, as we
witnessed in Washington, DC, sets up a conflict — a false conflict — between
the military and civilian society.”
His forceful rebuke angered Trump, who took to Twitter
and said, “I didn’t like his ‘leadership’ style or much else about him, and
many others agree. Glad he is gone!” Trump wrote.
Analysts say Mattis, the retired influential Marine
general, could inspire others in uniform and veterans to finally speak out
against the combative commander in chief.
Mattis mostly kept silence since he left Trump’s
administration, arguing that it would be inappropriate and counterproductive
for the him and the military to criticize a sitting president.
Trump’s Pentagon Chief Mark Esper also broke with his
commander in chief over deploying troops to the streets, saying troops should
not be sent to control the wave of protests, at least for now.
This has shed light on turmoil within the Trump
administration, and set off concern among the Pentagon leaders, who fear to
lose public support and that of their active-duty and reserve personnel, 40% of
whom are people of color.
In a massage released to top military commanders on
Wednesday, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley said
that every member of the armed forces swears an oath to defend the
Constitution, which “gives Americans the right to freedom of speech and
peaceful assembly.”
Police fired tear gas against the mostly peaceful
protesters in Los Angeles and New York City, and arrested nearly 5,000 people.
Reports said the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD)
turned the University of California Los Angeles’ (UCLA) Jackie Robinson Stadium
to a “field jail,” for those who were arrested during the Floyd protests.
A group of UCLA professors said they have received
“chilling testimony” from those protesters who said their detention processed
at the stadium.
The baseball stadium is “named after Jackie Robinson,
an icon of the long and unfinished struggle for Black freedom,” the professors
wrote in an open letter.
“UCLA did not receive or authorize a request to use
that space for processing arrestees,” the school said in a statement seen by
Reuters.
It said that the police department “has vacated the
property and we informed them that future use as an arrest processing center
will not be granted by UCLA.”
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/06/04/626712/US-protests-George-Floyd-James-Mattis-Jackie-Robinson
------
White House compares Trump's photo op to Churchill
during Blitz
03 June 2020
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany compares
US President Dpnald Trump's photo op outside a church across from the White
House after police cleared protesters to British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill assessing the damage in London during the Blitz.
"We’ve seen presidents and leaders across the
world who have had leadership moments and very powerful symbols that were
important for a nation to see at any given time, to show a message of
resilience and determination, like Churchill," McEnany says. "We saw
him inspecting the bombing damage. It sent a powerful message of leadership to
the British people."
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/06/03/626699/White-House-compares-Trump-photo-op-to-Churchill-during-Blitz
------
My Challenge to White People This Week and Beyond
June 3, 2020
It’s time to end this fallacy that if you aren’t
wearing hoods or Swastikas and using the “n-word with hard-R,” it means you are
absolved from the many layers of prejudice.
Unfortunately, it’s much deeper and much more complex;
and all of us have a role. Enough with sitting on the sidelines and staying
silent for fear of making things uncomfortable.
We saw the extreme end of the racism spectrum in the
brutal killings of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery. Thankfully, these kinds of
overt, textbook racism is the exception and not the rule. But, even though
these acts of bigoted violence rear their ugly heads infrequently, we
oftentimes act as though everything is black and white … and we ignore the gray
area.
Far too often, this ideology leads to silence and
apathy. These are the paths of least resistance. The issues of race don’t
impact you directly so why bring that drama into your world and risk backlash
or risk losing a friend on social media?
My social media timelines have been flooded with so
many ill-informed rants on everything from Colin Kaepernick to Black Lives
Matter.
It takes strength and courage to educate oneself on
things outside of your comfort zone. However, for many in the white community,
the subject of race relations is best handled by the talking heads on cable
news. It becomes easier to ignore the cause.
I grew up in a predominantly white Southern town. For
many, I represent the only person of color they knew growing up. Yet most
didn’t know I dealt with everyday aggressions:
having my background questioned by white friends for
not being “black enough,” or (my favorite) “you’re only HALF black.” As if that
level of blackness doesn’t count.
Look, I’m far from trying to be the torchbearer for
suffering. My fellow minorities from all walks of life—LGBTQ, Muslim, women,
etc.—have many additional experiences to share.
We are all angered. We are in pain. We are saddened
and hopeless that this shit will never change, or that this cycle of oppression
will continue, or perhaps even worsen.
I’m asking you to take a minute to ask some questions
and conduct some introspection. Avoid missing out on another opportunity to
learn and expand your mind. It’s up to you to be just as outraged as we are
today … and tomorrow … and the next day.
The Black community, the LGBTQ community, women,
Muslims, minorities of all walks of life are all included in this struggle for
justice. But, we can’t win this fight unless we get reinforcements from those
at the top. If you are just as outraged as we are, then show it with the same
level of passion that we bring to the ongoing battle for equality and respect.
Understand that this is not simply black and white.
There is a vast gray area in this fight, with apathy being the chief injustice
in that middle ground. Going forward, your apathy can only be considered as
complicity in the hatred that continues to plague our discourse. Make the
change now to speak out:
And please, start asking some damn questions. Even if
it means not liking some of the answers. And even if it means asking more
questions tomorrow and the next day.
And if these words sound familiar to you, they should.
I wrote the above text nearly three years ago after the events in
Charlottesville and just swapped out a few things to update it.
I got a bunch of likes and a whole lot of “Great post,
Pete.” comments. And like most of the other racial flashpoints of the past, you
went on with your life and went back to not caring that much anymore.
To be fair, this current week feels a bit different.
I’ve been processing and taking things in and noticing more white people
willing to be allies. To that, I say thank you.
But I’m also here to challenge you. Again. Hold on to
that anger and that sadness and that passion beyond this week. When the
collective attention moves on to the next Netflix documentary and we’ve
forgotten about the suffering and the frustration that people of color are
experiencing right now, that’s when your work as an ally really begins. Keep
making things uncomfortable. Keep standing up. Keep speaking out. And perhaps
most importantly, keep listening to people of color.
We all have different stories to tell, experiences to
share, pain that we’ve lived and felt. And if you are truly ready to be an
ally, then it’s up to you to be willing to listen even when you kind of don’t
feel like it or would rather talk about something else.
A $50 annual membership gives you an all-access pass.
You can be a part of every call, group, class, and all our online communities.
------
Edo pupils recount experiences with WhatsApp, Zoom
lessons
Jun 4, 2020
By Usman A Bello
Private schools in Edo State have resorted to social
networking apps for online lessons during the lockdown restrictions. Pupils in
Benin City, the capital of the state, are being taught through Zoom and
WhatsApp, and a number of them have found the learning experience intresting. A
Primary 5 pupil of Federation of Muslim Women’s Associations in Nigeria
(FOMWAN) Nursery and Primary School, Benin City, Rabi Abubakar, said she was
enjoying WhatsApp lessons with her teacher. Miss Abubakar said, “I and my
siblings are receiving the lessons through my mother’s phone. A teacher will
send video lessons and assignments by WhatsApp, and we also copy notes and
answer questions.” ADVERTISEMENT Dear valued readers, subscribe to the Daily
Trust e-paper to continue enjoying our diet of authoritative news. Kindly
subscribe here Another pupil from Sky Point International School, Benin,
Abigail, said the online programme was “interesting” as pupils continued to
learn at home during the lockdown. Abigail said, “We are using our parents’
phones to listen to our teachers and then do assignments given to us. We are
happy with the programme.” Some of the parents who spoke to our reporter
commended the schools for the development, but noted that pupils whose parents
did not have smart phones were not participating. A member of the FOMWAN
Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), Hassan Imuekeme, who spoke to Daily Trust,
described the online lessons as a welcome development. Mr. Imuekeme said, “The
lessons keep children busy at home. Teachers always engage them with
assignments through WhatsApp. My children are happy with it, once they copy the
questions; they solve them using their textbooks or google.” Another parent,
Mrs. Ibrahim, also applauded the schools for the initiative, and said, “It is
better for the children than just sitting at home watching television. Now they
are engaged through virtual learning. “The teachers started by sending videos
by WhatsApp and the children will listen and do assignments and send the
answers through the same channel. Three weeks after, they came up with Zoom,
and the children are seeing their teachers in video conferencing and screen
sharing.” She said the major challenge was that some children did not have
devices to take part in the online lessons, and added that, “We now spend more
on data, but it is a good programme and they should keep it up.” The
Headmistress of FOMWAN Nursery and Primary School, Benin City, Mrs. Mariam
Abdulhamid, said the online lessons which started in May, 2020, would last
throughout the COVID-19 restrictions. Mrs. Abduhamid said, “It is beneficial to
the pupils and parents, and we believe that this is better than doing nothing
during this period.”
https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/edo-pupils-recount-experiences-with-whatsapp-zoom-lessons.html
------
Mideast
Shabbir Hassanally: Independence Generous Legacy
Iranians Have Received from Imam Khomeini
Jun 04, 2020
TEHRAN (FNA)- Shabbir Hassanally, Islamic scholar and analyst,
says the independence brought about by Imam Khomeini to Iran through leading
Islamic Revolution in 1979 has made the country immune to hegemonic
superpowers’ warfare and their sanctions.
Shabbir Hassanally told FNA in an exclusive interview
that “[Imam Khomeini] ensured that the people of Iran were sovereign… [and]
that Iran would never come under the occupation - psychological or physical -
of any superpower”, and added that the way Iran has been handling the Western
sanctions indicates how the inherited independence plays a key role in
exercising sovereignty.
He further added the comprehensiveness of Iran’s
independence inherited from Imam Khomeini is understood when Iran manages to
defeat the US hegemony by supporting Damascus in the all-out war waged by the
West and its regional allies, targeting US forces stationed in Iraq’s Ain
al-Assad airbase and sending tankers to Venezuela.
Shabbir Hassanally is an Islamic scholar and political
commentator and analyst. His research area is the unity between the Muslim
schools of thought. He lectures at various Islamic centres and appears on TV as
a political analyst.
Q: The Islamic Republic of Iran has become one of the
most important players in the West Asian region. How do you see Imam Khomeini’s
role in promoting the country to its position today?
A: One of the most important differences between Iran
under the US-controlled Shah, and Iran following the victory of the Islamic
Revolution was that of independence.
Under Shah, Iran was not in any way an independent
country; everything about Iran was controlled in Washington, and the Shah was
just a representative of Washington.
Sure, he had some ideas on how to keep the population
he was "governing" in-line (for the benefit of the US regime) and so
he seconded the services of other vassals of the US regime, such as so-called
Israel and others, but in reality, he was little more than an employee of the
Empire and did only their bidding.
In fact, during the time of Shah, the Arab Zionists
who occupy so-called Saudi Arabia had no real issue with "the
Persian" Iranians; such issues are primarily created by the Empire since
it serves the Empire's interests to have people at each other's throats, so
they do not focus on the grand scale of theft and criminality that the Empire
is doing to them.
It should also be noted that during the time of the
dead Shah, and may he rot in the lowest pits of hell, Iran was a very close
ally of the European Zionists occupying Palestine. A part of the plan of the US
hegemon was to have so-called Israel on one end, and the Shah's Iran on the
other end, to completely close in the Arab and Muslim world, and ensure it is
obedient to the US Empire. Of course, the victory of the Islamic Revolution
destroyed that plan - and indeed all the other plans of the Empire.
Imam Khomeini's impact on both Iran, as well as on the
world is vast, and cannot be summed up in just a few words; however, one key
way that he ensured the independence of Iran, under the banner of the Islamic
Republic, was to eject the influence and control of the US regime - using a
tool that the US regime constantly claims to uphold and stand for.
That tool, of course, is the idea of democracy (but I
should say a true democratic system, not the lies that are dressed as democracy
in the Western world.)
He ensured that Iran would never come under the
occupation - psychological or physical - of any superpower; and following the
referendum in March/April of 1979, he ensured that the people of Iran were
sovereign; and that the desires of the superpowers - western or eastern - would
come to nothing.
Furthermore, when the Western superpowers, coerced
their lackey, Saddam Tikriti, to engage in a war of aggression with the newly
formed Islamic Republic, and when they ensured that this Tikriti criminal had
every tool of violence and murder at his disposal, the Islamic Republic of
Iran, under the wise leadership of the Wali al-Faqih (Guardian Jurist), and as
a truly independent country, stood firm.
Even when the entire world stood against Islamic Iran,
Iran did not waver; sure it hurt, it lost many beautiful and most beloved souls
and heroes; but the Islamic Republic stood firm.
It is because of this Islamic mentality, that of true
Islam (not the Takfiris spewed by DAESH or its controllers in Washington,
London, Tel Aviv or Riyadh), that of reliance on God, and on being
self-sufficient; and not being pawns of the Empire.
Iran has, since the start, been under extreme
sanctions, and sure they hurt and make things difficult; that is a given;
having to build your own tools, when you know others have already built them,
but because of international bullies you are prohibited from buying those
tools; sure it is painful; however, it is also a blessing in disguise.
Because of these sanctions; Islamic Iran, and its
honourable people have become truly independent; they have developed their own
military equipment, their own technology, and much more besides.
This is also from Islamic teachings, that sometimes
something which you think is good for you, is actually bad, and something that
you think is bad for you is actually good. In the Holy Quran, God, the Mighty,
the Wise, in Chapter 2 (Al-Baqarah, The Cow), Verse 216, says:
"Warfare has been prescribed for you, though it
is repulsive to you. Yet it may be that you dislike something, which is good
for you, and it may be that you love something, which is bad for you, and Allah
knows and you do not know."
We should also understand that the illegal and evil
sanctions placed on the Islamic Republic of Iran by the US regime and indeed
the rest of the so-called civilized world are indeed an act of war, and this
has been said as much by both leaders in Iran, but also free and honest
commentators and politicians the world over.
So yes, warfare (of multiple types) is a reality
sadly, but the lesson is that sometimes something that you hate is good for
you, and something that you love is bad for you.
Without the sanctions, the Islamic Republic of Iran
would have become just another country, that while governed by Islam, would not
have the impetus to develop itself, and would instead like a sheep be fully
reliant on the technology of the Empire. The sanctions, God be praised, have
ensured that this is not the case and that Islamic Iran continues to excel and
make great progress in all areas, despite the sanctions and on the back of its
own hard work and reliance on its own people.
Specifically, countries in the West Asia region, who
profess to follow Islam, should reflect on this, and understand that while
Islam is on their tongues, it has yet to reach their hearts, and as a result,
their true allegiance is to the Empire, and not to God, the Most Sublime.
In the Holy Quran, God also speaks of this,
specifically to the Desert Arabs (such as those who currently occupy places like
"Saudi" Arabia, Bahrain, the so-called United Arab Emirates and
such.) In Chapter 49 (Al-Hujuraat, The Chambers), Verse 14, God says:
"The Bedouins say, ‘We have faith.’ Say, ‘You do
not have faith yet; rather, say, ‘‘We have embraced Islam,’’ for faith has not
yet entered into your hearts. Yet if you obey Allah and His Apostle, He will
not stint anything of [the reward of] your works. Indeed Allah is
all-forgiving, all-merciful.’"
Islamic Iran's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, even
under these sanctions on medical equipment and medicines by the US regime, was
admirable and indeed exemplary.
The images and stories of the millions of people who
came together, who worked as a unit, these are lessons for the people of the
world who are under the yoke of occupation by the US and its masters and
controllers.
These lessons, as was the case with the great lesson
of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, under our beloved Imam Khomeini, prove that
the time of Empires of coercion and evil is over; and that the rule of the
divine upon the hearts of humanity is upon us.
To conclude, without the Islamic Revolution being
victorious, without the presence of the Godly gift that was Imam Khomeini, you
can be sure that Iran would have been another Saudi Arabia style entity, the
people would have been greatly oppressed, the governance would be in the hands
of a single-family (in Iran's case this would have been the criminal Pahlavi
family, that now resides in Washington, Paris and London) and its actual
influence would have been less than zero. Only doing the bidding and paying the
bills of the Empire, without a care for its own people.
We should be greatly thankful to God, the Mighty, the
Wise, that He gave us the great gift that was Imam Khomeini, who woke up both
Iran and the world, and showed us what it means to truly be free.
Again, May God, rest his pure and blessed soul in the
best of abodes, and close to Muhammad (PBUH) and the Family of Muhammad (PBUT),
and to the that of the righteous Martyrs and Truthful ones, of the Prophets and
the Lovers of God.
Q: Why do you think Iranians have remained loyal to
the ultimate objectives of the Islamic Revolution 1979?
A: Imam Khomeini showed both Iran and the wider world
what it means to be truly free; to not be enslaved by the created, but rather
to work towards the teachings of the Creator.
A person will always aspire to a cause that is greater
than him/herself, the cause of the Empire - be it Eastern or Western is
temporal, and indeed far more inferior than any other cause. The Empires want
hegemony, they want temporal control, but they fail to realise - and this
pandemic has shown the world also that they do not have any control - and that
only He, who is the most sublime and wonderful Creator, the most perfect
Creator has control.
Imam Khomeini showed this to us, and once a person is
shown even a tiny glimpse of the actual reality, of the actual Truth; then that
person will never let go, and will always work to protect and move towards the
Truth.
The powers of Global Arrogance, Imperialism, the US
regime and its controllers, lackeys and allies have tried very hard to break
the back of the Islamic Republic of Iran and to disappoint the people of Iran,
and indeed the wider population of both believers and free people who are with
the Islamic Republic and Islamic Revolution.
The Operation Martyr Qassem Soleimani (may God rest
his pure soul), targeting US forces positions in Ayn al-Asad airbase located in
Al Anbar Governorate of western Iraq, showed the US regime - and all other despots
and tyrants - that they are not immune, and the perception of their great
power, will not prevent a truly independent people from standing tall and being
able to hit back (though of course as the Leader of the Muslim Ummah and the
Islamic Revolution, Imam Khamenei, said, this operation against the US regime
was but "a slap in the face.")
Irrespective of the lies of the Western media, the US
regime and its lackeys, indicating that "all is well" following this
response by Islamic Iran to the US regimes cowardly murder of Hajj Qassem
Soleimani and Hajj Abu Mahdi al-Mohandes (may God rest their pure souls) the
reality of this response was understood, and the US and its allies realised
that their presence in the region was at an end.
This is historic. The US regime, that has been
considered invincible since it dropped the two nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in 1945, has had no country stand against it with firmness and the
ability to hit and hurt it back since then.
We could go into the cold war, but that will extend
this response to a point that will become unacceptable, and before anyone
begins to suggest that al-Qaeda hit the US in 2001, let us be under no illusion
that the events in 2001 were little more than a false flag event designed to
let the more Machiavellian elements of the US Empire formally begin their
attempt at the conquest of the West Asian region.
The same myth that was upheld for the Zionist regime
occupying Palestine was dispelled in 2006 by the Islamic Resistance movement in
Lebanon, and this Islamic Resistance movement was a direct result of Imam
Khomeini's guidance and teachings, redirecting all towards the true Islam of
Muhammad (Peace be Upon Him)
As another instance, the Iranian oil tankers arriving
in Venezuela, carrying both spare parts and refined fuel for our brethren in
Venezuela has shown that the myth regarding US dominance over the seas is
finished.
This myth was perpetrated due to the US giving the
illusion that since it spends the most on "defence" (in reality
offence) and has “the most beautiful weapons”, they are somehow the
"kings" of the world, and cannot be defied.
Well, the Islamic Republic of Iran, has defied and
broken this myth into tiny pieces and is currently in the process of just
cleaning up the mess.
The same with Iran supporting and helping Syria when
the Empire wanted to break the back of Syria, Iran did not falter, the same
with Iraq, and Venezuela is the same; it is a friend, and in need, on account
of the crimes of the US regime.
It will break the trade embargo both on itself and on
Venezuela and will engage in open and free trade with Venezuela, and the US can
make all the threats it wants to, but the US also knows the consequences of its
threats.
The very fact that the US has done nothing except
watch helplessly as the tankers arrive into Venezuela is testimony to the fact
that the Empire is now dead. The US regime knows if it touches - and it has
been told this clearly - if it touches even one flake of paint on the Iranian
tankers, then what happened in Ain al-Assad will be a "pleasant
memory".
We should remember, that one of the first times that
the Empire tried to crush Islamic Iran, was the so-called "Operation Eagle
Claw" (or the failed Tabas expedition.)
The US regime tried to break into Iran, and
"liberate" its spies and criminals that had been arrested (but were
being treated with great humanity and decency) in the liberated Den of Spies
(formally the US embassy) in Tehran.
Many people got scared when they heard that the US was
undertaking a military operation to "free" its spies. What was Imam
Khomeini's answer to this event?
Did He not make their stratagems go awry, and send
against them flocks of birds pelting them with stones of shale, thus making
them like chewed-up straw?
This is the secret, the key to the victory of the
Islamic Revolution, and the persona of Imam Khomeini, may the blessings and
peace of God be upon his pure soul.
The people of Iran, and indeed the free people across
the world, know that Imam Khomeini was like this, that he only worked for the
pleasure of Allah, of God, and to help the people, and take them out of the
darkness of occupation by the tyrants and despots, and into the light of being
aware and being with God, the Most Sublime.
This is why, the people of Iran, and the free people
of the world, as long as they remember this, will remain loyal to the Truth and
will be following the path set by Imam Khomeini, which is the same as the path
of Imam Husayn in Kerbala, standing against the tyrants, which is the same as
the path of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), standing against the occupation of
humanity by the devils in human form.
Indeed, this is the same path as all the divine
prophets of history, mentioned in the Torah, the Bible and the Holy Quran.
This core component of Imam Khomeini's personality,
his reliance on God, was something that has permeated the entirety of society,
not just in Islamic Iran, but across the entire globe, this rejection of
tyranny, this understanding that the tyrants and despots, that the Emperor and
Empires are little more than paper tigers, and cannot withstand the word of
truth spoken against them.
We can see evidence of this through history, and in
our time, such that the despots attempt to silence countless people who speak
the Truth, be it the African American person standing up to the stormtroopers
of the US regime, killing their brethren in cold blood, or the child in Palestine,
in Kashmir or Yemen and elsewhere standing up to the troops armed to the teeth
by the weapons of the Empire, who choose, and prefer to live free or accept the
death of dignity, but who refuse to bend the knee to the despots and tyrants.
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990314000668
------
Imam Khomeini refuted Imperialism, Marxism, Iran's
envoy says
June 3,2020
IRNA – Iran's Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said
on Wednesday that Imam Khomeini refuted Imperialism and Capitalism in the west
and Marxism in the east by founding Islamic Republic of Iran.
In a webinar on the Late Imam Khomeini's Thoughts on
International Affairs attended by thinkers from Iran, Argentina, Russia,
Belarus, Armenia and Kazakhstan, Jalali said that before the Islamic Revolution
in Iran, the world was divided into two blocks: Capitalism in the west that
considered religion as an individual matter that cannot participate in the
society and government and Marxism in the east that believed religion was opium
for the public.
Iranian diplomat went on to elaborate that with the
Islamic Revolution in Iran, Imam Khomeini proved, firstly, that not only
religion wasn't a tool for silencing the society, but also it can work as a
motive for a revolution; and, secondly, by introducing a religious democracy,
he showed that religion has a capacity for running the country.
Jalali also said that Imam Khomeini didn’t oppose
latest human achievements as he accepted the 'separation of powers' as useful
for governing.
The webinar was held to commemorate Imam Khomeini on
the anniversary of his demise on June 3, 1989.
https://en.irna.ir/news/83810045/Imam-Khomeini-refuted-Imperialism-Marxism-Iran-s-envoy-says
-------
Imam Khomeini shattered superpowers' aura of
invincibility: Leader
June 3, 2020
AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): in a televised address
to the nation, Ayatollah Khamenei paid homage to the late revolutionary leader
and recounted his legacy.
The Leader recalled how Imam Khomeini (God’s mercy
upon him) also transformed the people’s attitude towards the so-called
superpowers and their presumed invincibility to the point that the then US
rulers acknowledged that the Imam had “humiliated” them.
"At that time, no one assumed that anything could
be done contrary to what the US willed. Imam Khomeini proved that superpowers
are not invincible. We witnessed what happened to the Soviet Union. And today
we are watching the US and see what is transpiring there," Ayatollah
Khamenei said, adding Imam Khomeini (God’s mercy upon him) taught the masses
how these big powers can be overcome.
Commenting on the massive public protests that have
swept the United States in recent days, the Leader said the “cold-blooded”
murder of an African American by a white pole officer in Minneapolis
exemplified the US’s overall “behavior and essence” that has manifested itself
in Washington’s atrocities throughout West Asia and elsewhere in the world.
From a young age, Imam Khomeini would advise in favor
of “rising up in the path of God,” Ayatollah Khamenei noted, and reminisced how
the late leader would invoke “spiritual revolution” among people through his
speeches.
Imam Khomeini thus managed to eventually bring about
“change across the whole Iranian nation,” and prompted the people to abandon
the spirit of lethargy and capitulation in the face of oppression, the Leader
stated.
Imam Khomeini also caused the nation to abandon its
feelings of self-deprecation and consider itself entitled to self-esteem, and
extended the nation’s attitude towards religion beyond a simply personal
matter, Ayatollah Khamenei remarked.
The revolutionary attitude is still alive today, said
the Leader, citing the country’s scientific and defensive achievements and
noting that Iran has attained the “deterrent status” thanks to its defense
power.
The Leader then underlined the importance of continued
pursuance of change as a means of betterment, and proceeded to name some
instances of desired change in various arenas.
Across the social sphere, the Leader sternly warned
against allowing the population’s median age to rise.
https://en.abna24.com/news//imam-khomeini-shattered-superpowers-aura-of-invincibility-leader_1043018.html
------
Imam Khomeini defines independence, Russian
philosopher says
Jun 3, 2020
IRNA – The head of Institute of Philosophy of Russian
Academy of Sciences said that Imam Khomeini showed the world how to make a
country and government independent of the big powers.
Speaking in the international webinar held by the
Iranian Embassy in Russia, Andrey Smirnov said that Imam Khomeini stressed
independence of countries from the West and the East.
Smirnov said that the West tries to expand its
dominance over the world and remove any obstacle in their path, that’s why they
are trying to destroy the Islamic Revolution.
But Iran opens its way on its own. Of course it
doesn’t mean that Iran is alone; it has a lot of friends in the world, he
added.
Iran doesn’t follow other countries’ economic methods;
it has its own model, which infuriates some other countries, he added.
https://en.irna.ir/news/83810022/Imam-Khomeini-defines-independence-Russian-philosopher-says
-----
Imam Khomeini’s teachings bases of domestic, foreign
policies of Iran
Jun 3, 2020
Beijing, June 3, IRNA – Iran’s ambassador to China
said on Wednesday on the 31st anniversary of Imam Khomeini’s demise that Imam
Khomeini believed in mutual respect and equity in foreign policy, which is the
base of Iran’s diplomacy too.
Mohammad Keshavarzzadeh said in a ceremony in the
presence of Chinese intellectuals that mutual respect is accepted by all
countries, but a few countries suffer “delusions of grandeur”, which is seen in
their political literature and stances.
Keshavarzzadeh said that based on their economic
development, they think that they are the superior race, while all their wealth
comes from exploitation of other countries. And that’s why they try their best
to keep other countries away from advanced technologies.
You see how the White House is trying to throw a
spanner in the works of Iran’s peaceful nuclear program, while the US owns the
biggest nuclear arsenal in the world, he said.
He added that Imam Khomeini believed that the US was
interfering in Iran’s domestic affairs under Shah’s rule and didn’t let the
Iranians decide their own fate, an example of which was the toppling of the
democratically-elected government of Iran in 1953.
He said Imam Khomeini's teachings involved
“self-confidence”, meaning that if a country becomes independent and struggles
for its goals, it will definitely reach its goals.
Iran’ advances in nano technology, nuclear science,
biotechnology, and other fields, also Iran’s sending tankers to Venezuela
without being afraid of the US sanctions and hitting the invading US stealth
drone wouldn’t have been possible without Imam Khomeini’s teachings.
https://en.irna.ir/news/83810002/Imam-Khomeini-s-teachings-bases-of-domestic-foreign-policies
-----
South Asia
Security Organs Called to Account for Kabul Mosque Attack
By Khalid Nikzad
YESTERDAY - 6:36 PM
The Ministry of Interior has pledged to share the
outcome of its investigation into the attack as soon as possible.
Critics and citizens in Afghanistan on Wednesday
voiced strong criticism about the security strategy of the Afghan security
institutions hours after a bomb exploded inside Wazir Akbar Khan mosque, which
is located in a highly fortified area of Kabul. At least two people were
killed, including the mosque's imam Mohammad Ayaz Niazi, and eight others were
wounded.
The explosion happened at Wazir Akbar Khan mosque in
downtown Kabul on Tuesday evening, according to a statement by the Ministry of
Interior Affairs.
“I saw the honorable Dr. (Ayazi) falling on the
ground, I became despondent and lost my strength,” said Faqir Mohammad, an eye
witness.
“What kind of security is this? The security organs
should feel shame, they must die,” said Tahir Khan, a resident in Kabul.
“The Minister of Interior said that he will fire
district police chiefs if a high profile resident is assassinated, but why has
he not fired the PD10 police chief?” asked Noor Rahman, a resident in Kabul.
“This indicates the weakness of the security
institutions and poor management of the Ministry of Interior and all the people
are aware of it,” said Zia Yaftali, a member of parliament.
“It is very shameful when an attack on such a scale
happens only two kilometers away from the presidential palace. The minister of
interior and the district police chief should step down,” said Abdul Qader
Farooqi, a resident in Kabul.
He graduated from Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt,
and specialized in the study of Islamic economy. He also earned a doctorate in
international relations in Islamic jurisprudence.
After he returned from Egypt, he started as a
professor at Kabul University and also was an imam at Wazir Akbar Khan mosque.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/security-organs-called-account-kabul-mosque-attack
-----
Reactions to Imam's Death in Kabul Mosque Attack
By Tamim Hamid
YESTERDAY - 5:31 PM
President Ghani has assigned a six-member delegation
to investigate the incident.
President Ashraf Ghani on Wednesday at a ceremony in
Kabul paid tribute to Wazir Akbar Khan Mosque’s imam, Mohammad Ayaz Niazi.
On Tuesday evening an explosion at Wazir Akbar Khan
Mosque in downtown Kabul left two dead including Niazi and eight others
wounded, according to a statement by the Ministry of Interior Affairs.
Ghani at the ceremony said that the Ulema, the
academic community--especially students of Kabul University who were students
of Niazi--are "all mourning today.”
President Ghani called on the Taliban to remain
committed to the ceasefire and to help build concrete steps for intra-Afghan
talks.
Let the ceasefire that brought hopes among the people
during the Eid-ul-Fitr continue, and distance yourself from the violent
extremism to help kickstart intra-Afghan talks as soon as possible,” the palace
said in a statement, quoting Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
He also assigned a six-member delegation led by Abdul
Hakim Munib, acting minister of hajj and religious affairs, to investigate the
incident, says the Presidential Palace in statement.
He graduated from Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt,
focusing on Islamic economy and had a doctorate in international relations from
the perspective of Islamic jurisprudence.
Former Afghan president Hamdi Karzai paid his respects
to Niazi at Sardar Mohammad Daoud Khan hospital in Kabul and called him a
“great” religious scholar and “patriot.”
US Chargés d’Affaires Ross Wilson in a tweet condemned
the “terrorist attack” against the Wazir Akbar Khan mosque, saying that “houses
of worship are refuges of prayer and love, not violence and death.”
"I strongly condemn the despicable attack on the
Wazir Akbar Khan Mosque in Kabul. Attacks on sites of prayer and public
gatherings are unacceptable. Afghans deserve to live in peace and safety. NATO
stands with the Afghan people in the fight against terrorism.”-NATO Senior
Civilian Representative to Afghanistan Stefano Pontecorvo said.
No group has claimed responsibly for the attack. The
Taliban condemned the explosion and the group called the attack a "big
crime."
Abdullah Abdullah, head of the High Council for
National Reconciliation in a tweet said: “criminal terrorists struck once again
at a towering religious figure in our country. They view great religious
scholars as a major threat against their extremist ideology.”
“It is terrible to hear about the martyrdom of Dr
Mohammad Ayaz Niazi in a terrorist bombing inside Wazir Akbar Khan Mosque.
Terrorists killed him, but they can never wipe out his legacy of true religious
scholarship and practice,” said Abdullah.
Also, the ulema has gathered in northern Takhar
province and condemned the attacked and called it “an organized attack,” adding
that the current situation is not “acceptable for the Ulema.”
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan/reactions-imams-death-kabul-mosque-attack
------
Afghanistan reports 758 new cases, 23 new deaths from
coronavirus
03 Jun 2020
Microscopic illustration of the spreading 2019 corona
virus that was discovered in Wuhan, China. The image is an artisic but
scientific interpretation, with all relevant surface details of this particular
virus in place, including Spike Glycoproteins, Hemagglutinin-esterase, E- and
M-Proteins and Envelope.
The public health authorities recorded 758 new
positive cases of the novel coronavirus across the country, the Ministry of Public
Health said.
According to Ministry of Public Health data, the
addition of new cases inrease the tally to 17,267 since the outbreak of the
virus in the country.
The authorities recorded 332 of the new cases in
Kabul, 216 in Herat, 54 in Kandahar, 52 in Balkh, 48 Jawzjan, 19 in Logar, 11
in Kunar, 11 in Faryab, 5 in Nuristan, 5 in Badakhshan, 3 in Nangarahr and 2 in
Samanagan province.
The ministry also added that 8 people died of the
virus in Kabul, 4 in Herat, 3 in Panjshir, 2 in Ghazni, 2 in Parwan, one in
Kandahar, one in Baghlan, one in Samangan and one in Khost province.
Meanwhile, the ministry said a total of 78 people
recovered during the same period and a total of 1,522 people have fully
recovered so far.
https://www.khaama.com/afghanistan-reports-758-new-cases-23-new-deaths-from-coronavirus-08889/
------
14 civilians killed, wounded in a roadside bomb
explosion in Kandahar
03 Jun 2020
A roadside bomb explosion killed at least 9 civilians
in southern Kandahar province of Afghanistan, the local security officials
said.
Jamal Barekzai, a spokesperson for Kandahar Police
Headquarters, said the incident took place earlier today in Khosh Rod Village
of Arghistan district.
Barekzai further added that the explosion ripped
through a civilian vehicle which also wounded at least 5 others.
No individual or group has so far claimed
responsibility for the incident but the security officials blame Taliban for
the explosion.
The anti-government armed militants frequently use
improvised explosive device as the weapon of their choice to target the
security forces.
However, majority of such attacks inflict casualties
on ordinary civilians.
https://www.khaama.com/14-civilians-killed-wounded-in-a-roadside-bomb-explosion-in-kandahar-08888/
------
Bangladesh urges trading partners for responsible
business conduct
June 04, 2020
Bangladesh has urged its trading partners to practice
responsible business conduct during the coronavirus pandemic that is rattling
the global economy, mostly the developing countries.
"It is no time for economic or trade
protectionism. LDCs should be given their previously committed market
access," said Ambassador Rabab Fatima, permanent representative of
Bangladesh to the UN in New York.
Addressing a virtual meeting on "SDG Financing in
the era of Covid-19 and beyond" yesterday, she highlighted the challenges
of the disrupted global supply chain and its devastating impacts on exports in
countries like Bangladesh where factory workers are losing jobs on a large
scale.
Mentioning the pandemic as a global health as well as
an economic and social crisis, she told participants that the consequences
would be borne by the peoples and economies of the vulnerable countries for
years to come.
The SDG implementation plans in many countries are on
hold as they are diverting their limited resources to meet emergency health
needs as well as to expand social protection system, she said.
Referring to the fall in remittance and the challenge
of managing the return of migrant workers for countries like Bangladesh, Fatima
said migrants are facing health, socio-economic and protection crisis.
She called upon the migrant destination countries to
ensure the rights of migrants and to keep them in their respective response and
recovery plans.
The PR informed the meeting that the Bangladesh
government has announced a $12.1 billion stimulus package, which is 3.7 percent
of its GDP, for various sectors of its economy as well as support measures for
different groups.
She underscored the need for a stronger global solidarity
and cooperation to overcome this unprecedented crisis and said equitable access
to finance will also be a vital step to ensure resilient and sustainable
recovery from Covid-19.
"Private creditors as well as the idle private
capital should be incentivised for investment in the vulnerable developing
countries."
Fatima also called for more vigorous efforts to
finance climate actions, which will support the vulnerable countries in
building better resilience against any future disaster.
https://www.thedailystar.net/country/bangladesh-urges-trading-partners-responsible-business-conduct-1908769
-----
BCB director Nadel recovers from coronavirus
June 04, 2020
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) Director and Awami
League's Organizing Secretary Shafiul Alam Chowdhury Nadel, who tested positive
for coronavirus on May 21, has recovered after remaining in isolation for two
weeks. Nadel, whose test on Wednesday came out negative, mentioned that he was
never terrified and has always remained mentally strong while fighting the
disease.
"Yesterday my test came out negative. I have
recovered from coronavirus," said a delighted Nadel to The Daily Star.
Nadel also mentioned that he never had any severe
symptoms.
"I actually never had any telling symptoms. I had
slight fever and a sore throat. I did not face any more trouble during the
isolation. But I do wonder how much antibody my body has created," said
Nadel.
Nadel mentioned how important it is to stay strong
mentally to recover from this virus.
"I was never petrified after being tested
positive. I was strong mentally. Many people also called and asked me to stay
strong. Starting from BCB president to almost everyone called and enquired
about my health. Actually it is very important to stay mentally strong during this
period," concluded Nadel.
https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/bangladesh-cricket/news/bcb-director-nadel-recovers-coronavirus-1908809
------
Southeast Asia
New Normal; Jakarta MUI Issues Fatwa on Friday Prayer
Laila Afifa
3 June 2020
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI)
of the Jakarta region has issued an edict or fatwa stating that Friday prayer
can be carried out in two groups during the coronavirus or Covid-19 pandemic as
the city will enter a new normal era.
The regional council head KH Munahar Muchtar said the
fatwa is released to abide by the physical distancing order, in which a
mosque's capacity must be at 40 percent from its normal capacity at maximum.
Thus, the council fears people could not attend the mass weekly prayer.
“It is permissible to be applied in an emergency
period (mosques can no longer accommodate congregations). But mosques in
Jakarta have a large capacity, they also have vast fields,” said Muchtar to
Tempo on Wednesday, June 3.
In addition, Friday prayer can be offered in praying
rooms or mushalla, halls, fields, and other appropriate places in order to
divide congregations who normally flock in large mosques. “We refer to four
mazhab (Islamic schools of thought),” said Muchtar.
Even though the location for the prayer is eased,
Muchtar reminded the prayer’s main requirements such as sermons and the number
of congregations should be at least 40 people.
Muchtar added that MUI Jakarta has notified the fatwa
to the city administration, hoping the upcoming Friday prayer can be held at
mosques.
https://en.tempo.co/read/1349340/new-normal-jakarta-mui-issues-fatwa-on-friday-prayer
-----
Jakarta Disinfects Istiqlal Mosque, Cathedral Church
Laila Afifa
3 June 2020
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta's Fire and Rescue
Department (Gulkarmat) disinfected the Istiqlal Mosque and the Jakarta
Cathedral on Wednesday, June 3. The service was carried out as an effort to
break the chain of Covid-19 transmission.
Gulkarmat head Satriadi Gunawan said they used 12
units of disinfection equipment. Thirty-two officers comprising the military,
the police, Satpol PP and staff members of the Transportation Office conducted
the disinfecting.
"We hope that the spraying of disinfectant will
break the chain of Covid-19 spread," Satriadi said in a written statement,
Wednesday.
The Jakarta Fire and Rescue Department routinely
disinfects public areas as mandated by Governor Decree no.462/2020 on the
Acceleration of Jakarta's Covid-19 Mitigation.
https://en.tempo.co/read/1349332/jakarta-disinfects-istiqlal-mosque-cathedral-church
-----
Malaysian youths being lured by syndicates with
high-paying overseas jobs, warns MCA
03 Jun 2020
By MARTIN CARVALHO
KUALA LUMPUR: Young Malaysians are being lured on
social media by offers of high-paying jobs abroad by illegal syndicates, warns
Datuk Seri Michael Chong.
"We had 21 such cases last year and five so far
this year, mainly involving young Malaysian women,” said the MCA Public
Services and Complaints Department head.
"They were recruited by syndicates who are now
turning to social media to offer jobs with high-paying salaries in US currency
with promises of holiday-like work conditions," he told reporters at a
press conference at Wisma MCA here on Wednesday (June 3).
He said most of the cases involved young women in
their early 20s who were duped into taking jobs in South Korea, China and
several other Asian countries.
He added the victims end up being arrested for
suspected illegal money laundering activities by the police after about three
months.
"It is a double con job as agents of the
syndicates will contact the families and 'introduce' a 'lawyer' to get their
children out of jail.
"The families end up paying a lot of money to the
so-called lawyer but get no help in the end," he said, adding that one
family ended up paying about RM100,000 in bogus legal fees.
In the latest case, Chong said a 23-year-old man is
currently being held for ransom by a syndicate in the Philippines who demanded
RM10,000 from the victim's family for his release last week.
Chong advised victims and their families to contact
the respective Malaysian embassies or consulates in the country where they are
being detained.
MCA Youth chief Nicole Wong Siaw Ting reminded young
Malaysians not to fall victim to such syndicates, especially those desperate to
find employment in light of the current economic situation.
"My worry is that we will see an increase in such
cases as this may be the new norm with syndicates turning to social media to
dupe young Malaysians," she said.
She called on victims and their families not to remain
silent but to reach out to MCA or the authorities here for help.
https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2020/06/03/malaysian-youths-being-lured-by-syndicates-with-high-paying-overseas-jobs-warns-mca
-----
Old gas cylinders seized from Islamic school in
Songkhla
4 JUN 2020
SONGKHLA: Authorities have seized 27 old cooking gas
cylinders from a religious school in Saba Yoi district, after local residents
expressed fears they could be used for making bombs.
Col Pramote Prom-in, spokesman of the Internal
Security Operations Command (Isoc)'s Region 4 Forward Command, said the empty
steel cylinders were seized from Darulfrugon School in tambon Than Khiri on
Wednesday afternoon.
Abdul-ashi Waelamae, an ustaz (islamic scholar) at the
school, allowed the officers to take the 27 cylinders to Saba Yoi police
station. He said the school had no hidden agenda in keeping them. They could
not be returned to the supplier.
Abdullor Salae, kamnan of tambon Than Khiri, was
present and witnessed the removal of the cylinders, Col Pramote said.
The seizure followed a complaint by nearby residents
that a large number of cooking gas containers were being stored at the
religious school. They feared the cylinders could be used as containers for
bombs.
Isoc’s Region 4 Forward Command earlier asked people
who have steel cooking gas cylinders to replace them with potentially less
lethal containers made from composite materials and less likely to be used
by insurgents for making bombs.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/1929364/
-----
Arab world
Dubai imams, muezzins requested to undergo
precautionary Covid-19 tests
Saman Haziq
June 4, 2020
Imams and muezzins of mosques in Dubai have been asked
to undergo tests for Covid-19 coronavirus, Khaleej Times can confirm.
"We received a call from the authorities saying
we had to undergo the test on Wednesday, which, of course, is a precautionary
measure to ensure that all the employees of the mosques are fit and free from
the virus," one of the imams confirmed.
"We are fully prepared to reopen the mosque as
soon as we get the go-ahead. We have placed multilingual signboards spelling
out the guidelines that must be followed at all times by the worshippers.
Although all worshippers must get their own prayer mats when they come to pray,
we have made arrangements to offer disposable prayer mats for those who forget
to bring it," the Imam said.
Bright floor markers for physical distancing have been
placed to indicate the distance that needs to be maintained between the
worshippers, he added.
According to fresh instructions received by Imams, the
first row will be reserved for the Imam. Worshippers will offer prayers in
alternate rows after that, with physical distancing floor stickers guiding them
to remain at least 1.5 metres apart.
Last week, some mosques in Dubai displayed copies of
notices of detailed guidelines that worshippers must adhere to once the
authorities announce the opening up of mosques. The guidelines issued by the
Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department specified measures like
wearing a mask and gloves while praying; worshippers having to bring their own
prayer mats; and maintaining a 1.5m distance between individuals.
According to the guidelines, women's prayer halls will
remain closed while people above 60 and children below 12 years will not be
allowed in for their safety.
https://www.khaleejtimes.com/coronavirus-pandemic/dubai-imams-muezzins-requested-to-undergo-precautionary-covid-19-tests
-----
UAE strongly condemns terror attack at mosque in Kabul
04-06-2020
ABU DHABI, 4th June, 2020 (WAM) -- The UAE has
strongly condemned the terror attack that targeted a mosque in the Afghan
capital Kabul, resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.
In a statement on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and International Cooperation expressed its utter denunciation of these
criminal acts and its rejection of all forms of violence, which aim to
undermine security and stability and contravene all religious and human values
and principles.
The ministry also expressed its sincere condolences to
the families of the victims of this heinous crime, while wishing a speedy
recovery to the injured.
http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302846221
-----
OIC strongly condemns bombing of a mosque in Kabul
04 Jun 2020
Jeddah, June 4 (BNA): The Organization of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) General Secretariat strongly condemned the bombing of a
mosque in the Afghan capital, Kabul, which resulted in deaths and injuries.
The OIC offered its condolences to the families of the
victims, government and people of the Republic of Afghanistan, expressing its
wishes for the speedy recovery of the injured, Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
reported.
The organization renewed its support for Afghanistan,
and its firm position of rejecting extremism and terrorism in all forms.
https://www.bna.bh/en/OICstronglycondemnsbombingofamosqueinKabul.aspx?cms=q8FmFJgiscL2fwIzON1%2bDiUwxfi6zu8b9U7iBvPKimc%3d
-----
Saudi’s Qassim prepares over 200 mosques for Friday
prayers
June 04, 2020
DUBAI: Islamic authority in Qassim region have
approved 205 mosques to perform Friday prayers according to new regulations,
state news agency SPA reported.
The first call to prayer will be announced 20 minutes
earlier, and khutbas – religious address delivered by the imam – to last at
maximum for 15 minutes.
Mosques across the Kingdom, except for those in
Makkah, have opened their doors to worshippers on Sunday, May 31, as
coronavirus restrictions ease.
Last week, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Islamic Affairs
Sheikh Abdullatif Al-Sheikh called on Muslims to respect ongoing safety
measures inside mosques, such as bringing their own prayer mats, wearing masks
and washing hands prior to entering the vicinities.
Al-Asheikh said preventative measures will remain in
place to ensure a safe return of worshipers to mosques for Friday prayers from
May 31 until June 20.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1684571/saudi-arabia
-----
Qatar condemns mosque bombing in Kabul
June 03 2020
The State of Qatar voiced its strong condemnation and
denunciation of the bombing which targeted a mosque in the Afghan capital of
Kabul, leaving one dead and others injured.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs reiterated the firm position of Qatar on rejecting violence and
terrorism, regardless of motives and reasons.
The statement expressed the Qatar's condolences to the
family of the victim and to the government and the people of Afghanistan,
wishing the injured a speedy recovery.
https://www.gulf-times.com/story/664739/Qatar-condemns-mosque-bombing-in-Kabul
------
India
Delhi riots: Police to file two more chargesheets
Written by Somya Lakhani | New Delhi | Published: June
4, 202
The Crime Branch of the Delhi Police is set to file
two more chargesheets in cases pertaining to northeast Delhi riots that took
place in February.
The police investigation in the murder of brothers
Hashim Ali and Amir Ali on February 26 night in northeast Delhi’s Johripur has
found that “during the peak rioting, a WhastApp group was created on the
intervening night of February 25 and 26, which has 125 members”.
According to the Delhi Police statement shared by
Additional PRO Anil Mittal Thursday morning, “two active members of the
WhatsApp group were located and joined in the investigation. During the
investigation, their mobile phones were scanned and the specific WhatsApp group
created on February 25 was also identified”.
The police claim that during the investigation, “it
was revealed that while some members of these groups were only sending and
receiving chats, few others were involved in active rioting”.
In the statement, Delhi Police also claim that “around
9.40 am on February 27, three dead bodies were recovered” from the area, and
“one body was found on the same day around 4 pm from Johripur nallah”. On the
basis of eyewitness accounts and technical evidences, nine people were arrested
for the murder of Hashim, and 11 were arrested for the murder of Amir.
The statement further states: “Both the deceased were
real brothers who were murdered on February 26 between 9 pm and 10 pm. All the
accused persons are presently in judicial custody. Their several bail
applications have been rejected.”
On Thursday, the Crime Branch will also file a
chargesheet in the murder of Dilbar Negi, who used to work at Anil Sweet shop
in Shiv Vihar.
The brief statement shared by the Delhi Police
Thursday morning added, “At about 3 pm, a mob of Muslim community came from
Brijpuri Pulia side and started rioting. The rioting mob targeted the
properties of Hindus i.e. Anil Sweets, Anil Dairy & Pastry shop, book shop,
DRP school, and godown of Anil Sweet shop, by torching them till late night and
the mob of the same rioters community remained dominant till late night.”
The statement also mentions that, in the meantime,
“one Rahul Solanki of Mahalaxmi Enclave was also shot dead late evening. In
close proximity, as many as 12 cases of rioting, arson, and murder were
registered.”
The statement says that Negi “on the fateful day had
gone to the godown of Anil Sweet shop for lunch and to rest. He could not be
located till late night. The riots continued on February 25. On February 26
afternoon, local police of Gokalpuri police station came to know about the dead
body of a male person at the godown of Anil Sweet shop.”
Police claim that the body was charred and was later
identified as Negi’s. In the note, the police claim that “available CCTV
footage was collected, as most of the CCTV cameras in close proximity had been
destroyed by the rioters. The CDRs of the witnesses and suspects were analysed
and on the basis of eye-witness accounts and technical evidences, 12 accused
persons were arrested.” Police said that accused persons had applied for bail
several times “which were opposed on the merits, hence dismissed… all the
accused persons are presently languishing in judicial custody.”
https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/delhi-riots-police-to-file-two-more-chargesheets-6442483/
-----
Migrants, Tablighis form 60% case load in Uttar
Pradesh
Jun 04, 2020
by Avaneesh Mishra
Nearly 60 per cent of the coronavirus case load in
Uttar Pradesh is made up of migrant workers and Tablighi Jamaat members and
their contacts, according to the data released by the state Health Department.
As per Wednesday’s bulletin, 2,798 (31.5 per cent) of
the total 8,870 positive cases are Tablighi Jamaat members and their contacts,
while 2,466 (27.8 per cent) are the inter-state migrants who returned to the
state amid the nationwide lockdown. They together constitute 59.34 per cent
cases of the state. The remaining nearly 40 per cent, according to the state
health officials, are made of foreign travellers who tested positive in the
month of March and first week of April, and those who got infected through in
hospitals in several parts of the state.
A quick look of the state government’s released data
shows that in the last one week, 490 new cases were linked to Tablighi Jamaat
members. In the same period, 646 inter-state migrants tested positive.
Notably, the government had recently submitted to the
Allahabad High Court that there is no Tablighi Jamaat member at any of its
quarantine centres in the state at present, and all have been released and sent
home. As per the government’s submission, a total of 325 foreign Tablighi
Jamaat members were quarantined in the state. Out of them, 46 were sent back to
their countries, while 279 are lodged in jail, it said. “One Indian national
Tablighi Jamaat member is still undergoing treatment for Covid at the district
hospital in Mirzapur,” the document that was submitted to the court on May 30
added.
The state recorded 141 fresh cases of coronavirus in
the past 21 hours. Bulandhshahr reported the maximum – 19 cases – followed
Hardoi 16 and Jaunpur 10.
Claiming that the state has been making all efforts to
contain the pandemic, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath earlier said that over 4
crore people have been screening in the state, and that more than 78.86 lakh
houses have been surveyed by 1 lakh teams.
Principal Secretary (Health) Amit Mohan Prasad said
that more than 3 lakh Covid tests have been conducted and the state capacity of
testing has reached close to 10,000.
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/migrants-tablighis-form-60-case-load-in-uttar-pradesh-6441873/
-----
4 Dalits Killed in 4 Days in Tamil Nadu, Activists Say
Upper Castes Using Lockdown as Opportunity for Assaults
May 12, 2020
TDN World Desk: Covid lockdown has manifolded the
distress of the oppressed Dalits in Tamil Nadu. Since first phase of lokdown,
which began on mrach 25, more than 30 major incidents of caste-based violence
occured in the state, as claimed by Madurai-based NGO Evidence.
As reported by News 18, in last four days only four
dalits were killed. Caste-based violence has also incresed and the culprits are
roaming free as court has ruled that the accused need not to attend the hearing
due to coronavirus lockdown.
Kathir, who is executive director of Evidence group,
told media, “In a lot of incidents, there are 40-50 people attacking in groups.
How is this possible in a lockdown?”
“In the last four days, four Dalits have been
murdered. Honour killings, group attacks, murders, rape and harassment have all
happened. They say domestic violence has increased in the society. Caste-based
violence has also increased now, and the victims are not even able to complain
properly due to the lockdown. Under SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, if the
accused moves for bail, they have to intimate the victim. The High Court has
now said accused don’t need to appear because of the virus. Now people are
using this in their favour and moving for bail. Government should take a policy
decision on this.”
The evidence group claimed that four particular cases
of murder took place against the Dalits and lower-castes in just four days.
M Sudhakar who hailed from Morappanthangal village in
Arani, was murdered on March 29. Sudhakar belonged to the Oddar caste. His ofence
was to love his love a girl who belonged to the Vanniyar caste. Two accused,
including the woman’s father have been arrested in the case.
On May 8, three dalits were murdered. Two in
Udayakulam village in Tuticorin.On the same day in Salem, Vishnupriyan, a
Dalit, was murdered by upper caste groups, Evidence says.
In Nilakottai the upper-caste people have boycotted
the Dalits community saying they are not hygienic people. They people are in
severe misery since most of them don’t have bathrooms in their houses.
Government latrines are not useable. They are forced to defecate in open space.
“They say TASMAC revenue hit Rs 175 crore on the first
day it was opened. At least 80 per cent of that would have come through the
poorest of poor people. They’re people who struggle for food, so it’s likely
that the money is from loans. Two Dalits were murdered in Thoothukudi because
of this. It’s a cycle and it’s all linked,” says Kathir
http://www.tdnworld.com/news/india/4-dalits-killed-in-4-days-in-tamil-nadu-activists-say-upper-castes-using-lockdown-as-opportunity-for-assaults/
------
Pakistan
Virus kills two MPAs, infects over 4,770 in one day
June 04, 2020
Ikram Junaidi
ISLAMABAD: The novel coronavirus kept up its
relentless surge on Wednesday, claiming the lives of one lawmaker each from the
Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies and infecting a record 4,772 people in
a single day. The total number of cases has now jumped to 83,247.
In yet another worrisome development, 16 employees of
the Ministry of National Food Security and Research Development tested positive
for Covid-19, leading to the closure of its offices for two days.
According to a document available with Dawn, the third
and the fourth floors of Pak Secretariat’s B block and the Shaheed-i-Millat
secretariat shall remain closed on Thursday and Friday (today and tomorrow) for
disinfection. The employees who tested positive have been told to quarantine
themselves at their homes until they test negative.
But on a positive side, the highest number of tests —
17,310 — were conducted on Wednesday, lending credence to claims made by the
National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) about the country’s improving
testing capacity.
British High Commissioner Christian Turner met Dr
Zafar Mirza, the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Health, on
Wednesday to exchange views regarding the virtual Global Vaccines Summit being
hosted by the United Kingdom on Thursday (today).
The summit is expected to raise seven billion pounds
to ensure that when a vaccine for Covid-19 is developed, it is available to all
countries,
The UK has pledged a record funding of £1.65 billion
to GAVI, the Global Vaccine Alliance, which distributes vaccines in poor
countries.
Dr Mirza said Pakistan would take part in the summit
and thanked the High Commissioner for his country’s help in fighting the novel
coronavirus.
“I am pleased that the UK is co-hosting the Global
Vaccines Summit to find a vaccine and to ensure that it is available to all.
The UK and Pakistan are the best example of international friendship and it
matters now more than ever.
“In Pakistan, we are repurposing our multi-million
pound aid programme to help defeat this terrible virus and mitigate its
impact,” he said.
“We are looking forward to the development of a
coronavirus vaccine and its equitable distribution to all countries. PM Khan
has already given a call for ‘people’s vaccine’ to be made available to all,”
Dr Mirza said.
Britain has so far pledged £764 million to end the
coronavirus pandemic as quickly as possible. Prime Minister Boris Johnson
committed a record funding of £250m at the Coronavirus Global Response
Initiative the UK co-hosted last month to raise funds for vaccine research.
The deceased lawmakers were identified as Shaukat
Manzoor Cheema, a PML-N MPA from Wazirabad in Punjab, and Mian Jamsheduddin
Kakakhel, a PTI MPA from Nowshera.
Mr Cheema succumbed to the deadly coronavirus at the
Pakistan Liver and Kidney Institute (PKLI), Lahore, whereas Mr Kakakhel in
Islamabad.
The 68 year-old, three-time MPA from Wazirabad was a
diehard PML-N worker and considered to be close to both Nawaz Sharif and
Shahbaz Sharif.
Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar expressed his deep sense
of sorrow and grief over the death of Mr Cheema and expressed his heartfelt
sympathy with the bereaved family.
Mr Jamsheduddin, who had also served as a provincial
minister, was admitted to a private hospital in Islamabad after contracting
coronavirus a few days ago. He was 66.
A family member of the deceased MPA said he tested
positive for Covid-19 on May 28 after which he was admitted to the hospital and
for three days he had remained on ventilator due to his precarious health
condition.
Funeral of the deceased was held at Ziarat Kaka Sahib,
which was attended by people in large number, including former federal minister
Mian Muzaffar Shah, adviser to Chief Minister and MPA Khaliqur Rehman, other
political figures and government officials. Mian Jamsheduddin was first elected
to the KP Assembly in the 2013 general elections on a PTI ticket and had served
as provincial minister for excise and taxation. He was again elected as MPA in
the 2018 general elections.
Meanwhile, two more MPAs from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Assembly also tested positive for the coronavirus on Wednesday. Both the
lawmakers belong to the Awami National Party (ANP).
https://www.dawn.com/news/1561127/virus-kills-two-mpas-infects-over-4770-in-one-day
------
American femme fatale Cynthia creates tumult in
Pakistan
Jun 3 2020
Islamabad, June 3 (IANS): A new femme fatale has
captured the imagination of Pakistani hoi polloi's consciousness.
American Cynthia D. Ritchie, claiming to be an
adventurist, self-proclaimed filmmaker, journo and blogger, is front and centre
of the new controversy.
Training with Pakistani female commandos in a black
gear and shades (watch YouTube video), Ritchie, an American now living and
reporting out of Pakistan, is reportedly close to the ruling establishment.
Reminiscent of David Coleman Headley, an American
adopted by Pakistan's ISI, Ritchie is now caught in a violent political
maelstrom.
Pakistani-American Headley, 59, is currently in an
undisclosed US prison after pleading guilty in Chicago to a dozen terrorism
counts and cooperating with authorities in the US and India. He is serving a
35-year sentence.
He admitted to numerous reconnaissance missions from
Chicago to Mumbai for the purpose of surveying terrorist targets for the 26/11
Mumbai terror attacks. In the past, Headley broke down the role of Pakistan's
ISI secret intelligence organisation and said the government agency was in
cahoots with Lashkar-e-Taiba, a bloodthirsty Pakistani terror outfit which
global most wanted Hafiz Saeed is said to have founded.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has taken an
antagonistic view of her utterances. The PPP filed an FIR against Ritchie for
her alleged hateful comments against the late Benazir Bhutto.
PPP Peshawar district President Zulfiqar Afghani
registered a case against the blogger from the US at the Gulbhar police
station. It is obvious that the ruling establishment and the ISI in cahoots are
using her as a stalking horse against the principal opposition party PPP.
Advocate Mehr Sultana, who is the Provincial Secretary
Information of the PPP's women wing, has stepped into the cage match, asking
the government to expel Ritchie for "hateful and slanderous comments"
against former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
In a statement on Tuesday, the PPP leader said that
her review article against former PPP Chairperson and first female Muslim Prime
Minister Benazir Bhutto was causing provocation and deep resentment among the
leaders, workers and supporters of the party.
She said the conspiracies of Ritchie against PPP and
pictures with Pakistani military representatives sent a negative message among
the masses of the country.
Sultana said that Ritchie, who had introduced herself
as a tourist, journalist and belly dancer, was interfering in the internal
affairs by making such demeaning comments about Benazir Bhutto.
"Shaheed Benazir Bhutto is the name of an
ideology as she had followed Bhutto footprints and rendered matchless sacrifice
for the sake of people and democracy," Sultana added.
All hell broke loose last week when PPP filed a
complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency's (FIA) cybercrime wing against
Ritchie for "hateful comments and slander" against former Prime
Minister Benazir Bhutto, reported Dawn.
Ritchie, in her tweet, had made some remarks which
were "very derogatory and slanderous" about Bhutto and Asif Ali
Zardari's marital life, according to the PPP lawyer.
Ritchie made the comment on a tweet discussing the
recent violent confrontation between model Uzma Khan and a woman named Amna
Usman, who accused the model of having a relationship with her husband of 13
years and used this allegation to justify her violent treatment of the model.
To buttress her point about the Bhuttos, Ritchie
posted the front page of the book "Indecent Correspondence: Secret sex
life of Benazir Bhutto". The book written by Roshan Mirza deals with the
sexual adventures of some high-profile Pakistani women.
"These women engage/hire go-go boys for their
sexual escapades... And strange enough that these women are not from a
sexually-liberal country, but from a political dynasty of Pakistan," Mirza
wrote.
http://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay.aspx?newsID=715521
------
Judicial commission completes APS massacre probe
June 04, 2020
PESHAWAR: A single-member judicial commission has
completed probe into the 2014 Army Public School massacre and is likely to
submit its report to the Supreme Court by the end of the current month.
“Peshawar High Court Justice Mohammad Ibrahim Khan of
the judicial commission has recorded the statements of around 140 people,
including injured students, parents of martyred students and the army and
police officials, and examined the investigations conducted by the police and
security agencies,” focal person of the commission Imranullah Khan told
reporters here on Wednesday.
During the in-camera proceedings here, some parents
had also requested the commission to summon former prime minister Nawaz Sharif
and former army chief General Raheel Sharif. However, the commission rejected
the request declaring the appearance of the two before it is not necessary.
The commission was formed by the Peshawar High Court
on Oct 12, 2018, on the Supreme Court’s orders. It had become functional on Oct
19, 2018.
Among the key army officers, whose statements were
recorded by the probe body, were former Peshawar corps commander Lt-General
Hidayatur Rehman, then chairman of Army Public Educational Institutions (APEI)
BoG Brigadier Mudassir Azam, officer of 102 Brigade, HQ-11 Corps, Brigadier
Inayatullah, Major Dr Asim Shehzad of Army Medical Corps, and secretary of the
BoG Colonel Hazrat Bilal.
The commission also recorded statements of some senior
police officials, including former provincial police officers Salahuddin Mehsud
and Nasir Durrani, former DIG of counterterrorism department Alam Shinwari,
former home and tribal affairs secretary Syed Akhtar Ali Shah, former capital
city police officer Ijaz Khan, former SP (cantonment) Faisal Shehzad and former
SP (city) Mustafa Tanveer, and others.
The commission had sent a letter to the defence
ministry on Feb 11, 2019, to ensure the appearance of eight army officers
before it for recording statements in connection with the APS attacks, which
killed 147 people, mostly students.
In Apr last year, it sent a reminder to the defence
ministry seeking information about the dates on which those military officers
will be available for the purpose.
The then Supreme Court chief justice, Mian Saqib
Nisar, had taken notice of the matter in Apr 2018 during a visit to Peshawar
when several parents of the APS students martyred by militants on campus had
approached him with a request to address their grievances.
The parents questioned why proper security measures
were not adopted after the National Counter Terrorism Authority had informed
different provincial and federal authorities on Aug 28, 2014, that militants of
the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan would carry out attacks against the Army
Public School and College and other educational institutions run by the
Pakistan Army.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1561190/judicial-commission-completes-aps-massacre-probe
------
Shopping centres sealed in Peshawar for SOP violation
June 04, 2020
PESHAWAR: Several shopping centres were sealed in
Peshawar on Wednesday for violating the standard operating procedures (SOPs)
devised for checking the spread of coronavirus. In Upper Dir and Shangla, the
administration sealed the general bus stands for not following SOPs set by the
government.
According to a spokesman for Peshawar district
administration, Sajid Khan, the action was taken as these shopping centres had
been violating the rules while the restaurant was sealed for allowing customers
in a large number in violation of the lockdown guidelines.
In addition, the district administration also took
action against 138 people, including traders, for not wearing face masks in
different bazaars.
Assistant commissioner Ubaidur Rahman Dogar visited
Dir bazaars and general bus stand to examine if the shopkeepers and
transporters were following the SOPs as they had promised with the government.
In Shangla, the district administration sealed two
public transport stands at Bisham city for not adopting SOPs after easing the
lockdown imposed after Covid-19 pandemic.
Deputy commissioner Imran Hussain Ranjha raided the
bus stands and various shops to examine the situation. They sealed two of the
bus stands for not taking precautionary measures against Covid-19 as after
easing the lockdown the government had instructed owners of the bus stands and
shopkeepers to adopt SOPs for tackling Covid-19.
Later, the deputy commissioner told mediapersons that
they were going to further ease the lockdown, but for this the traders, fuel
stations and all other private centres must follow the safety measures.
Also, assistant commissioners of all tehsils in
Shangla distributed face masks among people to create awareness of the virus
threat among them.
In Lakki Marwat, the administration officials called
upon traders to wear masks and ensure implementation of Covid-19 precautionary
measures. The instructions were issued during separate meetings chaired by
assistant commissioner, Lakki, Nadir Shahzad and additional assistant
commissioner, Naurang, Aminullah Khan here on Wednesday.
The administration officials sensitised the
businessmen to the preventive steps and SOPs issued by the government to
control spread of coronavirus.
Mr Shahzad said that the government had allowed
traders to open their businesses by implementing the SOPs, therefore they
should fulfil their responsibilities.
dawn.com/news/1561180/shopping-centres-sealed-in-peshawar-for-sop-violation
------
Balochistan bans sharing information about Covid-19
patients
June 04, 2020
QUETTA: The government of Balochistan on Wednesday
decided to ban sharing personal information of Covid-19 positive patients.
“Unfortunately, the Covid-19 patients are facing
discrimination because their names and other personal information are being
shared on social, print and electronic media who along with dealing with the
infection also have deal to with added mental stress,” said Rubaba Buledi,
Parliamentary Secretary for Health.
As a result, many people are avoiding testing for the
virus despite showing symptoms, she added.
“Therefore, hospitals and testing laboratories have
been directed to not share personal information of patients in Balochistan
because we are receiving complaints especially from rural areas of leaking
personal information of female patients,” Buledi said.
Covid-19 causes mild or moderate symptoms for most
people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health
problems, it can cause more severe illness or death.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1561135/balochistan-bans-sharing-information-about-covid-19-patients
-----
Shopping centres sealed in Peshawar for SOP violation
June 04, 2020
PESHAWAR: Several shopping centres were sealed in
Peshawar on Wednesday for violating the standard operating procedures (SOPs)
devised for checking the spread of coronavirus. In Upper Dir and Shangla, the
administration sealed the general bus stands for not following SOPs set by the
government.
According to a spokesman for Peshawar district
administration, Sajid Khan, the action was taken as these shopping centres had
been violating the rules while the restaurant was sealed for allowing customers
in a large number in violation of the lockdown guidelines.
In addition, the district administration also took
action against 138 people, including traders, for not wearing face masks in
different bazaars.
Assistant commissioner Ubaidur Rahman Dogar visited
Dir bazaars and general bus stand to examine if the shopkeepers and
transporters were following the SOPs as they had promised with the government.
In Shangla, the district administration sealed two
public transport stands at Bisham city for not adopting SOPs after easing the
lockdown imposed after Covid-19 pandemic.
Deputy commissioner Imran Hussain Ranjha raided the
bus stands and various shops to examine the situation. They sealed two of the
bus stands for not taking precautionary measures against Covid-19 as after
easing the lockdown the government had instructed owners of the bus stands and
shopkeepers to adopt SOPs for tackling Covid-19.
Later, the deputy commissioner told mediapersons that
they were going to further ease the lockdown, but for this the traders, fuel
stations and all other private centres must follow the safety measures.
Also, assistant commissioners of all tehsils in
Shangla distributed face masks among people to create awareness of the virus
threat among them.
In Lakki Marwat, the administration officials called
upon traders to wear masks and ensure implementation of Covid-19 precautionary
measures. The instructions were issued during separate meetings chaired by
assistant commissioner, Lakki, Nadir Shahzad and additional assistant
commissioner, Naurang, Aminullah Khan here on Wednesday.
The administration officials sensitised the
businessmen to the preventive steps and SOPs issued by the government to
control spread of coronavirus.
Mr Shahzad said that the government had allowed
traders to open their businesses by implementing the SOPs, therefore they
should fulfil their responsibilities.
dawn.com/news/1561180/shopping-centres-sealed-in-peshawar-for-sop-violation
------
10 doctors, MNA test positive for Covid-19
June 04, 2020
TOBA TEK SINGH: Five more doctors of public hospitals
in the district were detected as Covid-19 positive on Wednesday, of them two
are women doctors.
Deputy District Officer Health Dr Kashif Bajwa told
reporters that swabs of three doctors of Gojra THQ were sent to the public
health laboratory which tested positive. They have been quarantined in their
homes in Gojra.
He added that DHQ hospital’s gynae ward’s two female
medical officers had also tested positive. Two more doctors on general duty in
the hospital had come under Covid-19 spotlight. Also, a Pirmahal tehsil
headquarters hospital medical officer who tested positive was already in
quarantine in his home and toll of Covid-19 positive doctors had reached to six
in the district.
Senior health department officials told reporters that
the three doctors were deputed at the gynae ward of the hospital. These doctors
have been quarantined in their houses for their treatment under the supervision
of Sialkot health department, the officials added.
The hospital management said the corona tests of all
the senior and junior doctors and paramedical staff were being conducted at the
Allama Iqbal Memorial Teaching Hospital. Their test results were pending.
Also, a Sialkot-based senior physician, who is also
Pakistan Medical Association’s Sialkot Chapter-preisdnet, also became a
coronavirus positive.
The medical superintendent (MS) of the Sahiwal DHQ
Teaching Hospital and the local market committee chairman have tested positive
in Sahiwal.
Also, a coronavirus patient, of Dadra Bala, in Noor
Shah, died at the DHQ Teaching Hospital. Dr Zahid Kamal Siddiqui, principal of
the Sahiwal Medical College, told reporters the district had 35 coronavirus
cases and six coronovirus related deaths so far, which was the lowest number in
Punjab districts.
Up to 35 Punjab Constabulary constables quarantined in
a local women college hostel have protested against the non-provision of
facilities to them.
They climbed the rooftop of the building and chanted
slogans against the authorities. Their demands included healthy food, and
respectful treatment to them.
They added their several colleagues had tested
negative for the virus, but they had not been allowed to be out of the
quarantine. Deputy Commissioner Sidra Younas has initiated an inquiry into
their concerns.
DHQ Medical Superintendent Dr Mohammad Khan said one
case (55) was from Rokhri village and the other (50) of Mitha Khan village of
Isakhel tehsil.
Dr Khan added that due to relaxation in lockdown,
positive Covid-19 cases were on the rise and nine people, out of 17, tested
positive for the virus on Wednesday.
He said that so far 55 positive Covid-19 cases had
been reported in the district, of them 16 had been discharged while 13 were
under treatment at the DHQ Hospital and 16 in quarantine.
According to focal person Dr Zakir Hussain, 50
positive cases were reported in the district in the last 24 hours. With the
increase in the positive cases here, the total number of positive cases rose to
311.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1561193/10-doctors-mna-test-positive-for-covid-19'
------
Africa
Islamist Militants in Mozambique Intensify Attacks in
Cabo Delgado Province
June 3, 2020
Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jammah (ASWJ) was incorporated into
Islamic State Central Africa Province (IS-CAP) in 2019 and includes militants
from Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. The group has been responsible for attacks
that have killed hundreds and displaced thousands from their homes since 2017
(CTGN Africa, January 31, 2019; The East African, August 11, 2018).
IS-CAP made its first claim of an attack in the region
in June 2019. The organization issued a statement at that time claiming to be
involved in a gunfight with Mozambican military forces in the region. It later
boasted that its fighters had captured weapons, ammunition, and rockets in the
clash. The group’s claims of responsibility have increased significantly over
the past several months (The East African, June 5, 2019). Although the group’s
exact agenda is still unclear, some reports suggest it wants to establish an
Islamic caliphate in the natural gas-rich province.
In recent weeks, the militants have carried out some
of their most daring assaults, seizing government buildings, blocking roads,
and hoisting black and white Islamic State flags in Cabo Delgado’s towns and
villages. In the attacks, villages have been burnt down and people beheaded.
The militants have also killed government soldiers before retreating into the
bush. At least 1,000 people have died and nearly 150,000 have been displaced
after two years of violence (Africa Diplomatic, April 1; ClubofMozambique, May
19).
The group launched a series of coordinated attacks
throughout April and May in an attempt to control movement between the towns of
Macimboa da Praia and Montepeuz and the route to neighboring Tanzania
(AllAfrica , May 14).
On April 8, 52 youth were killed by the militants in
the village of Xitaxi in Muidumbe district after they resisted forced
conscription into the group. Reports from local residents described the youth
being either shot dead or beheaded (Arabnews, April 21).
Another key attack occurred on May 12, when the
militants targeted Koko and Nacate villages in the southern Macomia district of
Cabo Delgado. They entered Koko village at 2 PM local time and began to burn
down the surrounding buildings. When the attacks ended, 47 houses and several
granaries had been razed (Club of Mozambique, May 14).
On the same date, the militants captured Auasse, a
town center near the port of Macimboa da Praia. A major electricity power
substation serving Macimboa and Palma was destroyed, disrupting electricity and
telecommunications in the region. The militants also destroyed a police station
and captured an armored vehicle believed to have been donated to Mozambique by
China. The attackers later used the vehicle to destroy two small bridges
linking key towns in the region.
Miengueleua, a large town in Muidumbe, was attacked
twice on May 11 and 12. During this attack, the militants also took time to arm
themselves with weapons hidden along the Messalo River. Later, the port of
Macimboa da Praia came under attack on May 12 and 13. In attacks along the
coast of Macomia, the militants held public meetings with the local people
(Club of Mozambique, May 14).
Cabo Delgado covers 82,624 square kilometers and has
an estimated population of 2.3 million people. Located 2,600 kilometers from
the capital Maputo, the province is extremely poor and largely neglected. While
it’s rich in mineral resources such as rubies, oil, timber, and gold, the Cabo
Delgado is also rife with illegal activities such as drug and ivory smuggling
(ClubofMozambique, December 16, 2019).
In 2010, international oil and gas prospecting
companies discovered huge deposits of natural gas in the province. The
insurgency did not start until years later, with what was then ASWJ carrying
out its first attack in October 2017.
With the recent spike in attacks, concerns have been
growing that the assaults are threatening natural gas projects valued at $60
billion, which Exxon Mobil and Total SA are planning to spearhead in the region
(Club of Mozambique, May 24).
The fighting in Cabo Delgado has so far involved less
sophisticated tactics and weaponry. The militants are known to use mobile
phones to communicate and motorcycles to move from one point to the next.
Despite the less sophisticated tactics, Mozambican
forces have largely failed to make any notable gains. The Mozambican security
forces have had a few recent successes, however. On May 1, these troops
repelled militants who had burned down a tourist camp in Metuge district in the
province. No casualties came from the attack as most people living in nearby
villages had fled after learning of the planned assault.
In early May, the Mozambican police and army backed by
South African private military companies (PMCs) halted the militants’
aggressive two-month push south in Quissanga district. For a month, they had
taken control of the district and were moving south towards the city of Pemba
(AllAfrica , May 7). Similar short-lived military offensives have been common,
but have failed to yield notable results.
Signaling a shift in strategy, Mozambique is
reportedly in talks with South Africa for possible support in fighting the
militant group. The country has been using PMCs to augment its forces to
counter the group, but this week, President Filipe Nyeusi finally called for
regional support to fight the insurgents.
Admitting to the severity of the situation and drawing
in regional governments has widely been seen as the missing cog in the battle
against the Mozambican insurgents. A united approach in extinguishing the
violence is more urgent now than ever as the frequency and scale of attacks
continues to increase and $60 billon in gas projects hang in the balance.
https://jamestown.org/program/islamist-militants-in-mozambique-intensify-attacks-in-cabo-delgado-province/
-----
COVID-19: Kwara gives conditions for reopening of
worship centres
June 3, 2020
Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin
Kwara State Government said worship centres may reopen
from Friday on the condition that they satisfy certain criteria already agreed
with various religious umbrella bodies in the state.
The government however warned the concession for
churches and mosques to reopen does not mean that the state has flattened the
curve of transmission of COVID-19 pandemic.
The decision came hours after the Kwara State
Technical Committee on COVID-19 held a marathon meeting with the leadership of
the Muslim and Christian communities, including the Jama’atu Nasrul Islam (JNI)
and the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).
“We are definitely not out of the woods as cases
continue to rise especially because of violation of travel restrictions,”
Kayode Alabi, Deputy Governor and Chairman of Kwara State Technical Committee
on COVID-19, told reporters.
“Today, June 3rd, 2020, the Kwara State Government
Technical Committee on COVID-19 held a meeting with various religious leaders
and umbrella bodies, especially the Jama’atu Nasrul Islam (JNI) and the
Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).
“The meeting centred around whether or not to reopen
the worship centres across the state, as suggested by the Federal Government.
The below are the outcomes of the meeting:
“We are definitely not out of the woods as cases
continue to rise especially because of violation of travel restrictions
“It is preferred that worship centres should remain
shut until it is clear that the curve of transmission has been flattened.
“However, in line with the presidential advisory and
the positions of our religious umbrella bodies in Kwara State, worship centres
in Kwara State may reopen from June 5th (Friday) provided they satisfy the
following conditions:
“Worship centres shall be organised (by the respective
head of the congregation) in such a way that one attendant is at least one
metre away from the next.
“Children remain restricted from worship centres.
People above 65 or persons with underlying health conditions are urged to stay
away from worship centres.
“Muslims should perform ablution from their own
houses. Ablution spots are not allowed for now to avoid the spread of the
virus.
“Muslim women are to stay away from mosques, as
suggested by the leadership of the Muslim community in the state; each worship
centre is to dedicate a few minutes before service or prayers to educate
attendants about COVID-19 and its dangers; adequate ventilation is to be
ensured at each worship centre.
“Government shall hold affected religious leaders
responsible for non compliance with all COVID-19-related safety measures in
their worship centres. This is as agreed by the religious umbrella bodies.
“The leadership of religious communities agreed that
any worship centre that violates these provisions would be shut down and its
leadership strictly held accountable.”
https://thenationonlineng.net/covid-19-kwara-gives-conditions-for-reopening-of-worship-centres/
-------
COVID-19: Oyetola reopens Churches, Mosques for two
weeks; states guidelines
June 3, 2020
Osun State Governor, Gboyega Oyetola, has directed
Mosques and Churches in the State to open for two weeks, after separate
meetings with religious leaders in the state.
Oyetola during the meetings on Wednesday, discussed
with Christian and Muslim leaders in the state on guidelines for reopening of
churches and mosques across the state for two weeks.
The governor disclosed that the decision to reopen
worship centers partially was in response to the request by religious leaders
and the resolve of the Federal Government to lift ban on religious activities.
He said the state government had prepared some
guidelines that must be followed in order to forestall possible spread of
coronavirus as a result of the reopening, adding that further actions by the
government would be determined by the effect of compliance level to the
guidelines by churches and mosques during the two-week period.
Reeling out some of the guidelines at the meeting held
in his office at the Government Secretariat, Abere, and Government House
respectively, Oyetola said only regular church services of not more than one
hour, and maximum of two services would be allowed, and that Jumat service
including khutbah (sermon) and prayers must not exceed 20 minutes.
He said vulnerable individuals such as those from age
65 and above and people with underlying ailments such as tuberculosis,
diabetes, among others, are to continue worshipping at their respective homes.
He also directed that all church and mosques premises be fumigated to ensure
that the worship environments are free of virus and other infectious diseases.
Continuing, Oyetola said: “Worshipers are to keep
reasonable space in churches and mosques and no worship centres must be filled
to capacity during any service and solat, respectively. There should be
provision of washing facilities or sanitisers for worshipers before entering
the churches and mosques.
“Also, use of face mask is important, sharing of
worship devices such as microphones and other musical gadgets should be
discouraged. Water and food distribution during service should be discouraged.
“Worshippers must avoid exchange of banters and social
distancing must be strictly observed. Windows in churches and mosques should be
opened during worship for ventilation. Signage and notices should be placed at
strategic locations to remind worshippers of best hygiene practices to be
observed.”
He also mandated churches and mosques to provide
thermometers to check temperature of worshippers, adding that whoever is with
high temperatures should not be allowed into the worship centres.
The governor added that vigils and children activities
remain suspended, adding that worship centres with support of security
operatives should set up taskforce to enforce compliance with measures put in
place by the government.
https://dailypost.ng/2020/06/03/covid-19-oyetola-reopens-churches-mosques-for-two-weeks-states-guidelines/
-----
Covid-19: Benue Relaxes Lockdown, Reopens Churches,
Mosques
June 3, 2020
The Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, Wednesday
announced a review of the Covid-19 measures in line with the Presidential Task
Force on the pandemic.
The state government announced the reopening of
churches and mosques with effect from June 3, 2020, but with staggered worship
sessions.
This, according to Ortom, implies that a church or
mosque, which before now held two worship sessions, should henceforth conduct
four or more sessions in a day to ensure physical distancing.
“Churches and mosques should endeavour to provide
water, soap and alcohol-based hand sanitizers for worshippers, and should
insist on wearing of masks,” he said
Other measures announced are that public gatherings
are permitted with a maximum of 30 persons who must comply with the protocol of
Covid-19, inter-state movement remains banned, except those on essential
services.
The prevailing curfew in the state has also been
reviewed to now last between the hours of 10pm to 4am daily, until further
notice.
He appreciated the people of the state for the
cooperation and understanding they’ve shown throughout the period of the
pandemic.
https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2020/06/03/covid-19-benue-relaxes-lockdown-reopens-churches-mosques/
------
Boko Haram Terrorists Attack Travellers, Kidnap
Soldier, Three Humanitarian Workers In Borno
JUN 03, 2020
At least four persons were abducted in an ambush
suspected Boko Haram insurgents laid along Monguno Road in Borno State on
Tuesday, SaharaReporters has gathered.
A camp manager at Monguno working with the Borno State
Emergency Management Agency, two aid workers and a soldier were abducted by the
attackers, who mounted a check point before Gasarwa Village, about 40
kilometers from Monguno Local Government Area of the state.
“The Boko Haram militants had gun trucks with anti-air
craft gun. They were well kitted in military camouflage. They took away a
soldier and three other people were taken along Monguno/Maiduguri highway
around 11am on Tuesday,” a source said.
Boko Haram insurgents have continued their attacks in
the North-East despite the efforts of security operatives.
The attack is coming hours after Coordinator of
Defence Media Operation, Maj-Gen. John Enenche, said troops of Operation Lafiya
Dole killed three Boko Haram commanders and 67 other fighters during
counter-attacks in Firgi/Banki axis of Borno State.
http://saharareporters.com/2020/06/03/boko-haram-terrorists-attack-travellers-kidnap-soldier-three-humanitarian-workers-borno
------
73 Boko Haram militants killed in NE Nige
2020-06-03
LAGOS, June 3(Xinhua) -- Nigerian troops have killed
73 Boko Haram militants including senior members of the sect in an operation in
the restive northeastern state of Borno, a military spokesperson said
Wednesday.
In a statement sent to Xinhua, defense spokesperson
John Enenche said the operation carried out last week confirmed the death of
some high ranking commanders of Boko Haram alongside other militants.
Many others wounded with narrow chances of survival
during the operation, Enenche said, noting that a large number of equipment of
the militants including gun trucks, motorcycles and bicycles were destroyed by
the troops.
The military operation follows a failed attack by the
militants on a military base at Banki Junction in Borno, said Enenche.
Boko Haram has been trying to establish an Islamist
state in northeastern Nigeria since 2009, extending its attacks to countries in
the Lake Chad Basin, posing enormous security, humanitarian and governance
challenges to countries including Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Benin and Niger.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-06/03/c_139111657.htm.
------
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/we-take-australian-leader/d/122032