Bangladesh PM Recalls Indian Singer Lata Mangeshkar’s Role in 1971 Liberation War after Her Death
New
Age Islam News Bureau
07 February 2022
Music legend Lata Mangeshkar passed away in Mumbai on Sunday at age 92. (File)
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• Pakistan
PM Imran Khan condoles Lata Mangeshkar's death, says subcontinent lost one of
the truly great singers
• Frankly
Speaking: Terror threat won’t deter British investment expansion in the Middle
East, UK trade official says
• Pakistan,
China reiterate release of Afghanistan’s funds
• Full
text: Joint Statement Between the People's Republic of China and the Islamic
Republic of Pakistan
• Syrian
opposition groups make new bid to unite against Assad
• Jewish
settlers storm East Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound with Israel security
protection
• Tunisian
president to dissolve top judicial council, amid tension with judges
• 15
People killed, injured including 5 family members in Texas shootings
---------
India
• Khan
Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the forgotten freedom fighter of India
• Muslim
girls fighting against Hijab ban will win: Aakar Patel
• UP's
Muzaffarnagar Not Stadium For Hindu-Muslim Matches, Says Farmer Leader
• Kashmir
a bilateral issue, says Russia, rejects ‘state-affiliated media’ report
• After
Xi-Imran meet, China and Pakistan rake up J&K issue
--------
Pakistan
• Genocide
Watch recognises Pak Army's 1971 genocide in Bangladesh
• China
says opposed to 'unilateral actions' to resolve Kashmir issue
• Pak
PM Imran Khan expresses support to China on Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Tibet
• Islamabad,
Beijing vow to boost links at all levels
• UK
police alert Pakistani dissidents to threats: report
• Imran
Khan turns blind eye to Uyghur Muslim suppression in China
• Immediate
disciplinary proceedings recommended against JUI-F chief’s brother
• Militancy,
once driven out, returns to Balochistan
• 5
Pak soldiers killed in firing from Afghanistan; TTP claims responsibility for
attack
--------
Europe
• UK
government cuts free medication, toiletries for Afghan asylum seekers
• Muslim
man who stopped London knife attack said he had ‘duty to act’
• Former
UK member of European Parliament claims he was victim of Islamophobia by
government minister
• Imam
who supported an al-Qaeda terrorist is given the green light to open a nursery
by Ofsted
• Macron
govt seeks to give Islam a French makeover
• Italy
delivers vehicles to Lebanese military
--------
South Asia
• Islamic
Emirate Welcomes Return of Afghan Pilots
• UN
committed to providing aid for Afghanistan, despite political predicaments
• Islamic
Emirate seeks economic plans to counter crisis
• Tens
of ISIS-K affiliates surrender to Taliban in eastern Afghanistan
• Mullah
Baradar Calls on Govt Bodies to Provide Economic Plans
• IEA
reacts to UN report over Al-Qaida presence in Afghanistan
• Plans
underway to eliminate poverty and create work opportunities: Baradar
• Afghan
journalists face harassment under Taliban: Media body
--------
Southeast Asia
• Keeping
the faith, quietly: Inside Muslim Indonesia’s hidden Jewish community
• Malaysia:
Govt to pay up to 60% for losses due to Umrah travel postponement
• Deputy
minister: Covid-19 SOP for prayers at mosques nationwide effective in curbing
outbreaks
• Singapore
and Malaysia can prosper and emerge stronger from pandemic by working together:
Masagos Zulkifli
• Umno’s
embrace of non-Malays had better not be an election ploy
• Xinjiang
skier becomes joint last torchbearer in Beijing
• Khairy
fails to appeal 2017 High Court ruling on Anwar’s defamation suit
--------
Arab World
• Minors
still detained in Syria prison attacked by ISIS: UN
• Iraq
court suspends Hoshyar Zebari from presidential race
• Blast
targets US-led coalition convoy in southern Iraq
• France,
Luxembourg ask Lebanon for information on cenbank chief’s finances: Sources
• 2
journalists kidnapped by YPG/PKK terror group in Syria
• President
Xi says China, Egypt hold ‘similar visions,’ ‘strategies’
• Anti-drug
judge shot dead in southern Iraq
• Arab
Coalition destroys missile launcher in Yemen: Statement
--------
Mideast
• Iran
Holds Trial of Ringleader of ‘Tondar’ Terrorist Group
• Israel
vows to ‘act freely’ against Iran's nuclear program
• Turkiye
'neutralizes' 8 YPG/PKK terrorists in northern Syria
• Iranian
President: US Expulsion to Establish Peace, Security in Region
• FM:
Only Practical Measures by US Matter to Iran
• Iran:
Vienna Talks Far from Balance in Commitments of Parties
• President
Rayeesi Calls for Expansion of Iran-Sri Lanka Ties
• Israeli,
Palestinian figures propose two-state confederation
• Iran
media report says man confesses to decapitating wife
• Rare
session of key Palestinian body could provide Abbas succession clues
• Israeli
premier, US president discuss 'regional challenges'
--------
Africa
• South
Sudanese want peace, stability after tough decade of self-determination
• Tunisia
rescues 163 migrants off east coast
• African
Union summit cancell decision to grant Israel an observer in pan-African
organization
• Moroccans
in mourning after trapped boy’s death
• Exclusive
interview: Malian premier says France responsible for Mali’s security
situation, economic woes
--------
North America
• Removal
of US sanctions is its red line for revival of 2015 deal, says Tehran
• Alleged
leader of US-based Iran militant group goes on trial
• Israeli
leader talks to Biden about ISIS, Iran
• After
Houthi attacks, senior US general in UAE to bolster defenses
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
--------
Bangladesh
PM recalls Indian singer Lata Mangeshkar’s role in 1971 liberation war after
her death
Feb
7, 2022
Music
legend Lata Mangeshkar passed away in Mumbai on Sunday at age 92. (File)
-------
Singer
Lata Mangeshkar’s demise has created a “great void in the subcontinent’s
musical arena”, Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina said on Sunday, as she recalled
‘the empress of music’ with gratitude for her role in the liberation war of
1971 against Pakistan. “Lata ji, along with her fellow Indian artists,
contributed immensely towards promoting the cause of Bangladesh,” a Bangladesh
government press release said.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
PM Imran Khan condoles Lata Mangeshkar's death, says subcontinent lost one of
the truly great singers
Feb
6, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday condoled the death of singing
legend Lata Mangeshkar, saying the subcontinent has lost one of the truly great
singers the world has known.
The
92-year-old playback singer died on Sunday in Mumbai.
"With
the death of Lata Mangeshkar the subcontinent has lost one of the truly great singers
the world has known. Listening to her songs has given so much pleasure to so
many people all over the world,” tweeted Khan, who was on a four-day visit to
China
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
'Magic
of her voice will live forever': Tributes pour in for Lata Mangeshkar from
Pakistan
Feb
6, 2022
Credit:
DH File Photo
---------
ISLAMABAD/LAHORE:
Eminent personalities from across all spheres of life in Pakistan on Sunday
described Lata Mangeshkar as the "nightingale of the subcontinent"
and the "queen of melody" as they paid tributes to the legendary
singer, who, they said, was the most favourite artiste of Pakistani people and
would rule their hearts forever.
Mangeshkar,
92, died at 8.12 am on Sunday in Mumbai due to multi organ failure after over
28 days of Covid-19 diagnosis.
Pakistani
politicians, artists, cricketers and journalists mourned the death of
Mangeshkar, terming it a “darkest day in the world of music”.
“Lata
Mangeshkar's death marks the end of an era in music. Lata ruled the world of
music for decades and the magic of her voice will live forever,” tweeted
Chaudhry in a condolence message in Urdu from Beijing, where he is currently
part of a delegation led by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
A
legend is no more, #LataMangeshkar was a melodious queen who ruled the world of
music for decades she was uncrown… https://t.co/AoKx6G6k8U
—
Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) 1644121650000
“Wherever
Urdu is spoken and understood, there are crowds of people saying goodbye to
Lata Mangeshkar,” he said.
He
also tweeted separately in English, saying, "a legend is no more. Lata
Mageshkar was a melodious queen who ruled the world of music for decades. She
was the uncrowned queen of music. Her voice shall keep ruling the hearts of
people for all times to come.”
Ruling
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Senator Ali Zadar said, “the nightingale of
subcontinent Lata Mangeshkar was a beautiful sweet voice that was part of every
music lovers' life. May she rest in Peace. She will live forever in our hearts
and continue to give tremendous joy to all future generations across the
world.”
Opposition
Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Senator Sheery Rehman said that Mangeshkar
defined an era of melodic, virtuoso singing, playback cinema and more.
"Sad
to hear of her passing. She had such a vast repertoire, it is impossible to
choose even five favourite songs, so here's one : Aaj Phir Jeene Ki Tamanna
Hai,” she said.
Opposition
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmaker Hina Pervaiz Butt said,
“legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar will forever live in our hearts. My
condolences to her fans living around the globe. We have grown young listening
her sons. Her beautiful voice will live forever.”
Butt
said that she was the most favourite singer of the Pakistani people.
PML-N
President Shehbaz Sharif wrote on Twitter that he grew up listening to her
songs which will remain part of his memory.
“In
the passing of Lata Mangeshkar, the world of music has lost a singing legend
who mesmerised generations with her melodious voice. The people of my
generation grew up listening to her beautiful songs that will remain part of
our memory. May she rest in peace!” he said.
Deposed
prime minister Nawaz Sharif's political secretary Senator Asif Karmani said the
singer was an institution in the art of singing.
“Today
is end of an era. From all over the world the fans of Lata Ji are mourning her
death,” he said.
Ramesh
Kumar Vankwani, who is Patron of Pakistan Hindu Council as well as a leader of
ruling PTI, expressed grief over Mangeshkar's death, saying the singer ruled
the hearts of the people of the subcontinent for a long time and a person who understands
Urdu/Hindi across the world, including India and Pakistan, is sad.
Afrasiab
Khattak of Awami National Party said, “generations of South Asians, and not
only Hindi or Urdu speaking people, grew up listening to the melodious songs of
the legend. She is no more but she will live on in her songs. May the departed
soul rest in peace!”
Krishna
Kumari Kohli, PPP leader and member of the Senate said: “Rest in peace Lata
Jee. Your memories will never be forgotten. Those will always remain with us
forever.”
Film
and TV star Imran Abbas, who also worked in an Indian film, termed Mangeshkar's
demise as the darkest day in the world of music.
"Her
contribution to our memories and music is certainly incomparable. Today marks
the end of an era. She vanquished our hearts for decades and would always be
ruling as a queen of melody for the years to come.”
Comedian
Sohail Ahmed said he was sad to hear the news of her passing away. “She was a
great singer and her songs resonate in our hearts. She was a legend of all times,”
Ahmed said.
Pakistan
Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman and former Test Cricketer Rameez Raja said, “Lata
Mangeshkar was the epitome of grace, humility and simplicity and therefore
greatness… a lesson for all. Kishore Kumar and now her death has left me music
broken.
Known
journalist Mehr Tarar said, “Lag ja galle ke phir yeh haseen raat ho na ho
Shahed phir iss janam mein mulaqaat ho na ho. Rest in peace, Lata Mageshkar
saheba. Thank you for your beautiful voice for so many decades, your
everlasting songs enriched our hearts, our loves, our memories.”
TV
anchor Rauf Klasra said the news of departure of legendary Lata Mangeshkar has
saddened everyone.
"She
entertained generations— a goddess of music. We used to sit around All India
Radio in village to listen old songs before the age of CDs and YouTube and
music Apps. She was part of every family who had radio. Prayers & love,”
Klasra said.
Columnist
Mehreen Zahra Malik said, “Lata Mangeshkar could sing in four octaves — and had
a gift for singing in character, tailoring her voice and emotions for the
actress she was voicing onscreen. Film star Dilip Kumar once called her voice
“a miracle of nature's creativity.”
Famous
actor Adnan Siddiqui expressed sorrow over Mangeshkar's death.
"Irreparable loss to the music world. Grew up on her unforgettable
melodies. Nightingale of India, the void you have left can never be
filled," the actor tweeted.
Singer
and actress Meesha Shafi wrote on Twitter: "Supreme reigning voice of a
century. RIP, Lata Mangeshkar."
Pakistan
supermodel Nadia Hussain Khan in a tweet said, "sadly that voice has gone
to sleep forever."
Singer
Salman Ahmed said: "The great, nightingale and legend of India, Lata
Mangeshkar has passed on. Her silky voice swept up a multitude of emotions,
styles, genres and languages. There will never be another like her. RIP
Lataji."
Popular
film actress Resham in an instagram post said, "a chapter has ended."
Famous
actress Bushra Ansari shared the regret that she never met the singer.
The
Hindu community in Peshawar expressed profound grief over Mangeshkar's demise.
Leader
of the Hindu Community Haroon Sarab Diyal said that Mangeshkar was a great
singer whose services and achievements in the field of playback singing for the
Indian film industry were matchless and could not be filled in the days to
come.
Singers
like her are born in centuries who always worked to promote love and affection
between the two neighbouring countries. She would be remembered as ambassador
of peace in the region, Diyal said.
Diyal
said that Mangeshkar had respect for Pakistan singing icons like Noor Jehan,
ghazal maestro Mehdi Hassan, Ghulam Ali and others.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Frankly
Speaking: Terror threat won’t deter British investment expansion in the Middle
East, UK trade official says
February
06, 2022
Simon
Penney, a veteran banker, highlighted the attractions of Saudi Arabia as a
trade partner for the UK. (Screen grab from Frankly Speaking video)
-----------
DUBAI:
Escalating terror attacks by Iran-backed Houthis will not deter British
businesses from expanding investment in the Middle East, the UK official
responsible for his country’s trade with the region told Arab News.
“The
GCC, and within that the UAE, have been very popular destinations for both UK
exporters and tourists over many years, and we certainly don’t see any drop-off
in that interest,” Simon Penney, UK trade commissioner for the Middle East,
said.
“In
fact, the Gulf more broadly is the UK’s third-largest export market globally,
outside of the EU. We are highly confident and have every reason to believe
that our position as an exporting nation to the Gulf will improve even further
in the years ahead.”
He
was speaking after a spate of air strikes on the UAE, claimed by backers of
Yemen’s Houthi militia, in an escalation of the terror campaign that has seen
drones and missiles aimed at population centers and civilian infrastructure in
Saudi Arabia.
The
UK authorities warned British citizens of an increased threat and urged them to
be vigilant, ahead of a visit by Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, to the
UAE this week. But Penney insisted that such threats would not dent the
enthusiasm of British business for investment in the region.
“We
continue to see a very strong and healthy pipeline of companies doing business
here,” he said.
“In
fact, only last week we had (in Dubai) the Arab Health (trade fair). More than
140 UK companies made the trip out here, which was fantastic to see, not only
in light of the events that you highlighted but also off the back of two years
of COVID-19.”
In
a wide-ranging interview on “Frankly Speaking,” the series of video
conversations with leading policymakers and business people in the region,
Penney — who is also the British consul in Dubai — spoke of the “passionate”
interest of UK business in many sectors of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 economic
transformation strategy, the imminent prospects for a UK-GCC free trade
agreement, and the potential for the Middle East to help compensate for some of
the trade forgone by the UK in the post-Brexit world.
Penney,
a banker in the Middle East before he took up his current role in 2018,
highlighted the attractions of Saudi Arabia as a trade partner for the UK.
“I
have to say I’m very passionate about the Kingdom. I’ve been working there in
my various different jobs for more than a decade now and I’m as enthusiastic if
not more today than I’ve ever been about the opportunities that exist in the
Kingdom and across the whole of the Kingdom.”
He
added: “In fact, only the week before last I had the opportunity to visit NEOM
and I was absolutely blown away by the sheer scale of the project, by the
ambition of the project, from what can only be described, really, as a blank
sheet of paper today.”
UK
interest in Saudi Arabia was strong across all sectors that have been energized
by the Vision 2030 strategy, he said, including healthcare, education, food and
drink, and leisure and entertainment.
“And
energy, of course. You know, as the Kingdom and the world embarks on this
journey of energy transformation toward ‘clean
growth,’ we’re seeing increasing interest around ‘clean growth’ and how
we can work with the Kingdom to develop the technologies of the future,” Penney
said, referring to the goal of simultaneously increasing national income and
cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
British
companies in the region were looking increasingly at Saudi Arabia rather than
other GCC countries.
“In
the UAE alone, we have 5,000 UK companies that call the UAE their home but,
interestingly, as those companies look increasingly across the region for
future business opportunities, it really is clear that Saudi Arabia, in
particular, is going to be a major source of opportunity for those businesses,”
he said.
Penney
touched on the reaction in the UK to the recent proposals by the government of
Saudi Arabia, which will require multinational companies to have their
headquarters in Riyadh in order to conduct official business in the Kingdom.
“I
think it’s varied. I know a lot of large British businesses that have been
working in the Kingdom for quite some time that are actually embracing that
because it makes good business sense — it’s where the majority of the business
that companies are starting to do is, and you know it makes sense to be located
in the Kingdom,” he said.
“I
know other companies have a slightly longer-term watching brief on that. But I
think companies will make decisions around what makes commercial sense.
Certainly, in a lot of the companies that I’ve spoken to, based on what I said
around the scale of opportunity that Saudi presents, that actually it will make
good business sense to do so.”
Penney
said: “It’s not just about Saudi Arabia. We see a lot of activity in Qatar,
obviously, with the FIFA World Cup coming up later this year, but also beyond
that, in Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait. There really is a lot of interest in this
region both ways.”
As
someone who has been closely involved in preparations for a free trade
agreement between the UK and the GCC, Penney outlined the next steps of that
negotiations process.
“We
will be launching negotiations for a GCC free trade agreement in the spring of
this year,” he said.
“We
have just concluded a parliamentary process, which is a uniquely UK process we
need to go through before we can launch FTA negotiations. That 14-week consultation
closed in mid-January.”
He
added: “We’re now going through a process of assimilating and capturing all the
feedback that we received from businesses and stakeholders during that
consultation period. We’re factoring that into the negotiating strategy and
approach the UK will adopt as we commence those FTA negotiations with the GCC.”
Since
the decision to leave the EU, the UK has been seeking to put in place trade
alliances with other major economic blocs as part of the “Global Britain”
strategy. However, Penney insisted a UK-GCC agreement was not just a way of
compensating for business lost with Europe in the wake of Brexit.
“On
the contrary, I think, if anything, it’s going to spur business further. The
GCC already is the UK’s third-largest export market, outside of the EU, third
behind the US and China,” he said.
“So,
already today the Gulf features very highly in the minds of UK exporters. We’re
highly confident that by putting in place a free trade agreement, we’ll be able
to reduce even further some of the barriers and impediments that businesses
face in doing business here, which are not unique to the Gulf.”
Penney
insisted that political uncertainty in the UK, where Prime Minister Boris
Johnson is increasingly beleaguered after a series of scandals, would not deter
Middle East investors from doing business with the UK.
“We
don’t see any let-up in investor interest in the UK,” he said.
“In
fact, since we’ve left the EU and the referendum in 2016, in particular, we’ve
seen investor interest increase exponentially. Confidence in the UK, I would
say, is probably the highest we have seen for a very long time.”
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2019471/middle-east
--------
Pakistan,
China reiterate release of Afghanistan’s funds
07
Feb 2022
During
wide-range bilateral talks between the visiting Pakistani Prime Minister Imran
Khan and the Chinese President Xi Jinping the two stressed provisions of
international aid to Afghanistan and asked for the nearly $10 billion assets of
the country to be unfrozen.
After
the meeting, a joint statement read that the international community should
provide the Afghan people with enhanced humanitarian assistance and support the
country through unfreezing Afghanistan’s cash now frozen in the western banks.
As
per the joint statement, the two are ready to discuss China Pakistan Economic
Corridor (CPEC) with Afghanistan.
Neither
the call for the release of funds is the first nor the callers are the first
ones, other world leaders and international aid agencies had also called for
unfreezing Afghanistan’s assets as the country is going through the worst
humanitarian crisis on earth.
Meanwhile,
the US has always said that their sanctions on Afghanistan only target the
Taliban leaders and do not affect the lives of common people, the case which is
untrue and quite the opposite on the ground.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/pakistan-china-reiterate-release-of-afghanistans-funds-8578875/
--------
Full
text: Joint Statement Between the People's Republic of China and the Islamic
Republic of Pakistan
February
07, 2022
BEIJING,
Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- The following is the full text of a joint statement released
by China and Pakistan on Sunday:
Joint
Statement Between the People's Republic of China and the Islamic Republic of
Pakistan
1.
H.E. Mr. Imran Khan, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan was
invited by the Chinese leadership to visit Beijing from 3 to 6 February 2022 to
attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games 2022. During the visit,
the Prime Minister held talks with H.E. President Xi Jinping, and H.E. Premier
Li Keqiang.
2.
The Prime Minister appreciated the Chinese Government for excellent and
meticulous arrangements and congratulated China for hosting the games in a
streamlined, safe and splendid manner. The two sides agreed that Olympic Games
were a global event that fostered mutual understanding, inclusivity and
friendship among the peoples of the world. The Chinese leadership appreciated
Prime Minister Imran Khan's participation in the Winter Olympic Games as a mark
of iron brotherhood and solidarity between Pakistan and China. Both sides
agreed to maintain high-level exchanges and strengthen institutional linkages
at all levels.
3.
During their interactions, the leaders of the two countries held in-depth
exchange of views on the entire spectrum of bilateral relations as well as
regional situation and international political landscape. The meetings were
marked by traditional warmth, strategic mutual trust and commonality of views
that characterize the Pakistan-China All-Weather Strategic Cooperative
Partnership.
4.
Reiterating his felicitations on the centenary of the Communist Party of China,
Prime Minister Imran Khan lauded the role of CPC leadership with President Xi
Jinping at its core for China's growth and prosperity and appreciated President
Xi for his personal contribution to promoting the enduring Pakistan-China
partnership.
5.
The leaders reaffirmed that close strategic ties and deep-rooted friendship
between Pakistan and China are time-tested and timeless. The bilateral
relationship served the interest of both countries and was the historic choice
of both peoples. The Pakistan side underscored that Pakistan-China relationship
is the cornerstone of its foreign policy and that closest friendship with China
enjoys the abiding support of the people of Pakistan. Both sides reiterated
their support on issues concerning each other's core interests. The Pakistan
side expressed its commitment to One-China Policy and support for China on
Taiwan, South China Sea, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet. The Chinese side
reaffirmed its support for Pakistan in safeguarding its sovereignty,
independence and security, as well as promoting its socio-economic development
and prosperity.
6.
On behalf of Pakistan, the Prime Minister reiterated his invitation to H.E.
President Xi Jinping to pay a state visit to Pakistan and stated that the
people of Pakistan looked forward to welcoming him at an early date. The two
sides reaffirmed their intention to undertake the visit at a mutually
convenient time.
7.
The leadership from both sides was pleased to observe that the 70th anniversary
of the establishment of diplomatic relations celebrated last year marked an
important milestone in the diplomatic history of the two countries. Taking note
of more than 140 celebratory activities organized by the two countries, both
sides agreed that the celebrations had reinvigorated the friendship between the
peoples of Pakistan and China with indelible impressions to inspire future
generations.
8.
Both sides reviewed with satisfaction the outcome of three sessions of Foreign
Ministers' Strategic Dialogue and agreed to hold its next meeting at an early
time.
9.
Commending President Xi's visionary Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Prime
Minister Imran Khan underscored that as the flagship project of BRI, CPEC has
significantly contributed to Pakistan's economic and social development, in
line with its shift to geo-economics and the economic security agenda of
promoting trade, investments, and connectivity.
10.
Both sides acknowledged the major contribution of CPEC projects, particularly
in the areas of energy and transport infrastructure, in strengthening
Pakistan's key role in regional connectivity while modernizing its economic
base. The leaders reaffirmed their support to CPEC's high-quality development
and the commitment to ensuring the smooth operation of completed projects and
the timely completion of projects under construction. The leaders took note of
the signing of a Framework Agreement on Industrial Cooperation and agreed to
further leverage the private sectors and entrepreneurs of both countries to
contribute to Pakistan's industrialization in an all round way. The Chinese
side appreciated the Prime Minister's launch of the Pakistan-China Business and
Investment Forum, and will enhance B2B cooperation between the business sectors
of both countries.
11.
The leaders agreed to task the CPEC Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) to
strengthen cooperation across all areas including in the fields of trade,
infrastructure, industrial development, agriculture modernization, scientific
and technological cooperation and socio-economic well-being of local people.
Noting close bilateral cooperation in the areas of health, environment and ICT,
the two sides agreed to launch the China-Pakistan health, industry, trade,
green and digital corridors.
12.
The two sides highlighted the significance of Gwadar as a central pillar of
CPEC and important node in regional connectivity. According to the "1 +
4" layout, the two sides agreed to jointly accelerate the construction and
operation of Gwadar Port and build Gwadar low-carbon circular industry zone.
They agreed to build high-quality livelihood projects for the socio-economic
development of Gwadar city and its residents.
13.
Both sides expressed their strong determination to safeguard CPEC from all
threats and negative propaganda. Pakistan reaffirmed its commitment to making
all-out efforts for the security of all Chinese personnel, projects and
institutions in Pakistan and the Chinese side expressed its appreciation for
the measures taken by Pakistan in this regard.
14.
Both sides observed that CPEC was a win-win enterprise and pivotal for regional
prosperity and enhanced connectivity. As an open and inclusive initiative,
third parties were welcome to benefit from investment opportunities in CPEC
SEZs.
15.
The two sides reviewed with satisfaction bilateral cooperation and mutual
support after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. Prime Minister Imran Khan
thanked Chinese leadership for provision of COVID-19 vaccines to Pakistan which
have been a mainstay of national mass vaccination drive. Both leaders agreed
that their mutual support, cooperation and solidarity amidst the COVID-19
pandemic was in keeping with the time-honoured traditions of Pakistan-China
friendship and that both sides would continue supporting efforts to overcome
the pandemic.
16.
The two sides reaffirmed their resolve to continue and enhance their existing
cooperation for developing emergency response systems, public health
infrastructure and joint ventures for development of pharmaceutical industry in
Pakistan to tackle similar challenges in future.
17.
The two sides noted with satisfaction the record increase in bilateral trade
volume in 2021. They agreed to further consolidate and expand bilateral trade
relations by fully utilizing the 2nd Phase of Pakistan-China Free Trade
Agreement. The Chinese side welcomes more of Pakistan's high-quality food and
agricultural products to the Chinese market.
18.
Welcoming the establishment of Pakistan's pavilions on Chinese e-commerce
platforms, the two sides agreed to further strengthen cooperation in
e-commerce, setting up online payment systems and cooperating in logistics,
warehousing and customs facilitation.
19.
The two sides noted with satisfaction the successful holding of the 15th
Session of Pakistan-China Joint Committee on Economic, Trade, Scientific and
Technical Cooperation in December 2021. They agreed to leverage this important
mechanism to further enhance overall bilateral economic engagement between the
two countries.
20.
The Pakistan side appreciated China's unrivaled achievement of lifting 770
million people out of absolute poverty and wished the Chinese Government and
people greater success in achieving the goals of socialist modernization and
national rejuvenation. The Chinese side appreciated Pakistan's Ehsaas Programme
for poverty alleviation and reiterated its resolve to support Pakistan for
infrastructure development in several fields including agriculture, education,
health, safe drinking water and vocational training.
21.
Both sides noted with satisfaction robust cooperation between Pakistan and
China in education sector, and committed to further enhance cooperation between
the educational institutions of the two countries. Pakistan side highlighted
that China has become a popular education destination. While ensuring safety
against COVID-19, China will arrange for Pakistani students to return to China
and resume classes in a prudent manner.
22.
Both sides reiterated the importance of people-to-people contacts, tourism
cooperation and cultural exchanges for strong bilateral relations. Building on
the MoU on Tourism Exchanges and Cooperation signed in November last year, the
two sides agreed to celebrate Pakistan-China Year of Tourism Exchanges in 2023
and to establish strong linkages between the tourism promotion agencies and
private enterprises of the two countries.
23.
The two sides agreed to make all possible efforts in support of greater
civilizational exchanges between Pakistan and China and further expand
cooperation for the conservation and presentation of heritage and artifacts of
the two countries. The leaders welcomed the organizing of a Gandhara Art
Exhibition at Palace Museum in Beijing in 2022.
24.
Both sides agreed to continue the momentum in defence cooperation at various
levels between the armed forces of Pakistan and China. They underscored that
stronger defence and security cooperation between Pakistan and China was an
important factor of peace and stability in the region.
25.
China recognized Pakistan's sacrifices and efforts in the fight against
terrorism. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to fighting terrorism in all
its forms and manifestations.
26.
Both sides reiterated that a peaceful and prosperous South Asia is in the
common interest of all parties. They emphasized the importance of pursuit of
dialogue and resolution of all outstanding disputes to promote regional
cooperation and advance the goals of lasting peace, stability and shared
prosperity in the region.
27.
The Pakistan side briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments on the
situation in Jammu &Kashmir, including its concerns, position and pressing
issues at the moment. The Chinese side reiterated that the Kashmir issue was a
dispute left from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved based
on the UN Charter, relevant Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements.
China opposes any unilateral actions that complicate the situation.
28.
On Afghanistan, the two sides agreed that a peaceful, stable, united, safe, and
secure Afghanistan is fundamental for prosperity and progress in the region.
They expressed satisfaction with the outcome of two Foreign Ministers' meetings
of the six neighboring countries on Afghanistan and looked forward to its next
meeting to be held in China. They are ready to discuss with Afghanistan the
holding of the China-Pakistan-Afghanistan Trilateral Foreign Ministers'
Dialogue.
29.
The two sides underscored the need to expedite humanitarian aid to Afghanistan
and its people to avert the looming crisis and called upon the international
community to provide continued and enhanced assistance and support to
Afghanistan including through unfreezing of Afghanistan's financial assets. The
two sides are ready to discuss with Afghanistan the extension of CPEC to
Afghanistan. The Chinese side appreciated Pakistan for hosting the 17th
Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers on Afghanistan on
19 December 2021. The two sides agreed to continue their close cooperation on
Afghanistan in the future.
30.
Both sides expressed satisfaction over the close cooperation at multilateral
fora and resolved to further deepen strategic coordination, consultation and
communication. They reaffirmed their commitment to the purposes and principles
of the UN Charter, and support for multilateralism and win-win cooperation.
31.
Prime Minister Imran Khan welcomed and reiterated support for the Global
Development Initiative (GDI) proposed by President Xi Jinping, which aims to
promote international cooperation and accelerate the implementation of UN 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development. The two sides reaffirmed their commitment
to further strengthening development partnership under the GDI.
32.
Prime Minister Imran Khan thanked the leadership and people of China for the
warm and generous hospitality accorded to him and expressed his best wishes for
China's continued development and prosperity.
33.
The two sides signed or concluded a number of agreements / MoUs, covering
bilateral cooperation in areas of economic and technical, industry, investment,
infrastructure, space, vaccine, digitalization, standardization, disaster
management, culture, sports and vocational education.
Source:
People's Daily Online
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
http://en.people.cn/n3/2022/0207/c90000-9953858.html
--------
Syrian
opposition groups make new bid to unite against Assad
06
February ,2022
Syria's
president Bashar al-Assad gives a press conference after talks with Ukraine's
President Viktor Yanukovych on December 3, 2010 in Kiev. (AFP)
---------
Syrian
opposition forces on Saturday made a new bid to revive their decade-old
campaign against President Bashar al-Assad at talks in Qatar, where a senior
leader said they had to “correct” past mistakes.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
political groups, now mainly based abroad, have seen their influence wane in
recent years as Iran and Russia steadfastly supported the Syrian president
after he launched a deadly crackdown on protesters in 2011 that quickly
descended into civil war.
Riad
Hijab, who defected to the opposition when he was Assad’s prime minister in
2012, told the opening of the two-day meeting that events in Syria were “grim”.
He
said the meeting had to “assess our progress and correct the errors we have
made along the difficult path to achieving a unified, free, democratic state”.
The
opposition chief did not say what mistakes had been made, but his entourage
said opposition parties had failed to communicate with ordinary Syrians and
make themselves relevant to their daily battles.
Hajib
said it was “imperative” for the opposition to “implement effective plans” to
counter Assad’s government and “to expose the false concept that Assad can
abandon Iranian dominance”.
A
list of recommendations aiming to “unify” the opposition would be released at
the end of the talks, a statement said.
Salem
al-Meslet, head of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and
Opposition Forces, told AFP that it was important to “send a message to all
Syrians, listen to their advice and make a new plan”.
With
international talks on Syria’s future at a stalemate, Meslet said a united
opposition would also send a “an important message to the UN envoy” on the
conflict.
The
last round of UN-organized peace talks in October failed to make any progress,
and special envoy Geir Pedersen has highlighted “great mistrust on all sides”.
Syria’s
war has killed close to half a million people and spurred the largest
conflict-induced displacement since World War II.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Jewish
settlers storm East Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque compound with Israel security
protection
06
February, 2022
Radical
Israelis stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex in occupied East Jerusalem on
Sunday, the body responsible for running the site has said.
The
Jewish settlers were protected by Israeli forces, the official Palestinian news
agency Wafa reported, citing witnesses.
A
large number of settlers accessed the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex, the third
most-sacred place in Islam, through the Al-Mugharbah Gate, the Islamic Waqf
Department maintained. It also said they had engaged in acts of worship.
The
Israel Police claimed there had been "distorted and false coverage based
on incorrect information that has no grip on reality".
In
a statement to The New Arab, it contended: "As part of the regular visits
to Temple Mount [the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex], the police acts in accordance to
the visiting rules of the place, which are intended to enable public order,
public peace, and security.
"These
rules are transferred before the visitors enter the mountain area, and any deviation
from the rules is treated accordingly.
"We
will continue to allow visits to Temple Mount, subject to the visiting rules of
the place and to maintain the safety and security of worshipers and visitors to
the holy places in Jerusalem in general, and Temple Mount in particular."
The
status quo at Al-Aqsa means the Jordanian-administered Islamic Waqf is
responsible for the site and Jews are forbidden from praying while there. Many
extremists in Israel have called for abolishing this understanding.
In
October, an Israeli judge ruled that the silent prayer of Jews at the Al-Aqsa
Mosque complex was not a "criminal act". It was the first decision by
an Israeli court to support Jewish prayers at the flashpoint compound.
This
prompted condemnation, including from the Christian Patriarchs and Heads of
Churches in Jerusalem.
The
New Arab has asked the Israel Police if the settlers who were at the Al-Aqsa
complex on Sunday engaged in prayer, as the Islamic Waqf claimed.
Settler
raids at Al-Aqsa are frequently decried as "provocative" by the Waqf,
which maintains Palestinians praying there or protecting the site feel uneasy
at Israeli extremists and security being there.
East
Jerusalem was first occupied by Israel in 1967. It went on to annex the holy
city in 1980.
This
claim to sovereignty is rejected by almost all states and the United Nations
considers East Jerusalem as Palestinian land.
Source:
The New Arab
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/news/israeli-settlers-storm-jerusalems-al-aqsa-mosque-compound
--------
Tunisian
president to dissolve top judicial council, amid tension with judges
Yamena
Salemi
06.02.2022
TUNIS,
Tunisia
Tunisian
President Kais Saied said he plans to dissolve the country’s Supreme Judicial
Council, amid tension with the judiciary.
The
council “has become a thing of the past,” Saied said in a statement on Sunday.
“This
council has become a place where positions and appointments are sold according
to loyalties," he added.
The
statements came shortly before planned protests by Saied’s supporters on Sunday
to demand the dissolution of the council, a body responsible for the
independence of the judiciary.
“It’s
your right to protest and it’s your right to dissolve the Supreme Judicial
Council,” the Tunisian president said.
Saied’s
statements quickly drew fire from the head of Supreme Judicial Council, Yousef
Bouzakher.
“We
consider the decision to dissolve the council…as illegitimate,” Bouzakher told
Anadolu Agency.
He
said the judicial council will continue its work as usual.
“There
is no legitimacy or constitutionality in dissolving the council,” he said,
accusing the Tunisian president of inciting the judicial council.
Tension
has marred Saied’s relations with the council, with the Tunisian leader
criticizing the judiciary over delay in issuing rulings in cases of corruption
and terrorism.
In
July, 2021, Saied dismissed the government suspended parliament, and assumed
executive authority amid mounting public anger over economic stagnation and
political paralysis.
While
Saied insists that his "exceptional measures" were meant to
"save" the country, critics have accused him of orchestrating a coup.
Tunisia
has been seen as the only country that succeeded in carrying out a democratic
transition among Arab countries which witnessed popular revolutions toppling
ruling regimes, including Egypt, Libya and Yemen.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
15
People killed, injured including 5 family members in Texas shootings
February
7, 2022
Nine
people have been killed and six others injured in separate shooting incidents
in the US state of Texas, according to authorities.
Police
said a man shot and killed 4 members of his family and injured three others
before killing himself in Navarro County on Saturday.
The
suspect identified as Kevin Milazzo, 41, shot dead his 68-year-old stepfather,
William Mimms; his mother Connie Mimms, 61; his 21-year-old son Joshua Milazzo;
and his former girlfriend's son, 4-year-old Hunter Freeman.
Milazzo
was reportedly on the run, according to ABC affiliate WFAA. Police intercepted
him on a road and used a monitoring service to shut his engine off.
Officers
approached his vehicle to see Milazzo critically injured with a self-inflicted
gunshot wound to the head. He was taken to the hospital where he was later
pronounced dead.
The
conditions of the three survivors are not immediately known.
Also
police, after midnight on Saturday, responded to the scene of another shooting
in Corsicana, which is about 55 miles outside of Dallas.
According
to Corsicana Police Chief Robert Johnson, a man and a woman were shot and
killed in Corsicana. Two other people were wounded in the shooting.
Shortly
after the incident, police responded to another shooting in the nearby town of
Frost, according to the Daily Sun.
A
man and a child were shot and killed in Frost, while another one was wounded.
Gun
violence in the United States has been a chronic social problem that seems to
have no solution.
According
to the latest data by the GVA, some 400 Americans were killed in gun violence
only in the first four days of 2022.
Source:
ABNA24
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
India
Khan
Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the forgotten freedom fighter of India
6th
February 2022
Frontier
Gandhi, Bacha Khan, or Badshah Khan are a few of the many names of the freedom
warrior Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan who was born to Behram Khan on February 6,
1890.
Khan
was from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, earlier known as the Northwest Frontier Province,
and was a Pakhtun or Pathan.
A
devoted Muslim, Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, led a nonviolent movement throughout
the county against the British and was an advocate for Hindu-Muslim
reconciliation in the Indian subcontinent. He was a political and spiritual
leader was recognised for his peaceful opposition with an oath towards
non-violence, on the path of the Muslim Prophet, Muhammad.
The
becoming of the “Frontier Gandhi”
Khan’s
close friend Amir Chand Bombwal gave him the nickname “Sarhadi Gandhi” as the
former held views as that of Mahatma Gandhi. In 1910, at the age of 20, Khan
opened a school in his hometown Utmanzai which provided education to women and
children, rebelling against the British Raj.
After
witnessing the downtrodden condition of the society, especially his community,
Khan developed the Afghan Reform Society in 1921, followed by a youth movement
called the Pashtun Assembly, for the social upliftment of the community. He
also founded the ‘Pashtun’ a monthly political journal to ensure that people
were well-read and informed.
In
1929, in a revolt against the British, Khan formed the Khudai Khidmatgar, a
nonviolent anti-colonial resistance movement that demanded a democratic,
secular and united nation.
As
the popularity and favoritism towards the Khudai Khidmatgars increased among
Indians, the colonizers launched a series of crackdowns against Khan and his
followers. The Khudai Khidmatgas were subjected to some of the most brutal
persecutions during the Indian independence struggle, in an attempt to suppress
the movement.
Abdul
Gaffar Khan was a prominent part of India’s partition into the Hindu Dominion
of India and the Muslim Dominion of Pakistan, siding with the pro-union Indian
National Congress and All-India Azad Muslim Conference against the
pro-partition All-India Muslim League.
Khan
was arrested during the salt satyagraha, alongside Gandhi, on April 23, 1930.
As the Khudai Khidmatgars gathered in a protest against his arrest in
Peshawar’s Kissa Khwani, the British massacred unarmed protestors in large
numbers with machine guns.
The
Khudai Khidmatgar, which merged with the Congress during the Civil Disobedience
Movement in 1930-31 but retained its identity as a volunteer force.
Only
four leaders held out to the pressures of partition which included Gandhi,
Ghaffar Khan, Ram Manohar Lohia and Jayaprakash Narain.
He
felt deeply deceived when the Indian National Congress reluctantly accepted the
partition proposal without consulting Khan, who had outrightly opposed the
partition. Khan who was upset after his people were pushed into Pakistan,
slammed the Congress saying “you have thrown us to the wolves”.
Khan’s
feeling of being betrayed arose from the fact that the Pakhtuns were only given
a choice between two states and not a proposal of an independent nation.
Khan
moved to Pakistan as his province the North-West Frontier choose the state
during the partition. He regularly detained by the Pakistani government till
the end of his life, over suspicions of being a traitor and his fight for a
better deal for his province and people.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/khan-abdul-ghaffar-khan-the-forgotten-freedom-fighter-of-india-2270726/
--------
Muslim
girls fighting against Hijab ban will win: Aakar Patel
Yunus
Y Lasania
7th
February 2022
Hyderabad:
A Gujarati liberal man. It might sound like an oxymoron, but that conflicting
nomenclature is the impression one gets after meeting journalist and editor
Aakar Patel, who is the Chair for Amnesty International India.
With
India’s media landscape becoming more and more shrill, and polity normalising
hate-speech, Aakar Patel today has emerged as a voice of reason. Having
published back-to-back books in the last two years (Our Hindu Rashtra, Price Of
The Modi years) on Hindutva and the Indian economy under Narendra Modi, Patel
has his finger on the nation’s pulse.
And
if you are active on Twitter, then chances are that you’ve mostly come across
one of his many satirical tweets on the Indian government, or Modi. Siasat.com
sat down for an interview with the man, who has been the editor of different
newspapers (including the regional Divya Bhaskar in Gujarat years ago), to talk
about his second book, the media and the overall situation of Indian society
today. Excerpts:
Q.
In your latest book ’Price Of The Modi Years’, you talk about the ‘godi media’,
or the mainstream media. Post COVID-19 and digital news websites coming in,
what do you think will happen next?
Patel:
In the last 20 years, advertising revenue has become split between digital
websites and TV. Forty years ago, the only option you had was the newspaper.
(for ads). And in the last five years, the share of newsprint, be it papers or
magazines, has shrunk compared to digital or TV. TV has remained the same,
digital has taken the money from print.
We
will start seeing major newspapers shutting down, and we are already seeing
that happen. Take the example of Mumbai Mirror, which was shut due to lack of
advertising to support it.
And
how does affect the quality of journalism or the industry in general? What will
be its impact?
Patel:
In my last job, I worked for Divya Bhaskar (Gujarat) which had 300 beat
reporters. They were highly specialised in what they did. We had a reporter in
Bombay who looked at communities. That is not there in TV. You lose the
citizens’ connect with what is going on in the government.
The
absence of these beat reporters which affect the media in the way that we will
not have information the way we did 20 years ago. Most digital advertising
money go to Facebook and Google, because they know who the reader is. A
website’s owner doesn’t know that.
As
a journalist and editor, you were on a three-member team from the Editor’s
Guild of India which went to Gujarat after the 2002 riots to put out a
fact-finding report. You met Narender Modi then. How was his demeanour then?
Patel:
I think I was chosen because I was the only Gujarati speaking editor. Though I
was based in Bombay, I suspect I was chosen because I was Gujarati. Modi (then
Gujarat chief minister) was eager in fact to meet us and show he had done a
good job. In one meeting, he called all secretaries of the state government,
who were sitting like a bunch of students in the classroom. Any question he
(Modi) could not answer, he would ask them.
Did
you meet Modi even after 2002? Was he open to meeting journalists back then?
Unlike what we have seen ever since he became the PM in 2014.
Patel:
I went to interview him again in 2004. He was quite fond of me, but I think
that may have changed in the recent past. I don’t think he will (want to meet
me) anymore, as he no longer needs journalism as he did in 2004. He wanted to
build a reputation as an image of someone who was modern. He had a fancy for
English newspapers, which he felt would communicate his image. He felt he was
provincial.
But
Modi personally underestimated his own popularity on the side of bigotry,
because he thought of could become a big hero due to the nasty person he was
until he entered the national stage. Maybe he still has notions that he could
transform the polity into a forward looking economy. He felt he had it.
How
was Gujarat say a few decades earlier? Was society there the same back then
too? Is today’s hate-ridden society similar to what some say is like the
Gujarat model of Hindutva that developed under Modi as chief minister earlier?
Patel:
Most Hindus, even if well meaning, do not understand their privilege even if
they are well-meaning. If you are urban and upper class, in a space that is
quite rarified, you don’t know what Muslims are feeling. I was part of that
set. I might not have been prejudiced against a community, but I did not have
too much insight or empathy for what was going on around me. I think that is
true of most Indians who are liberal.
How
was your experience working as the editor of Divya Bhaskar? How did you, as an
urban, privileged journalist, fit in the space of a massive regional paper? And
what were your expectations? And do you think such papers will manage to
survive in the future?
Patel:
Editing a newspaper is a job where your impact has to come in terms of number
of copies sold. You are marginally concerned with what readers feel. To say
that I am going to change what my readers feel, even through text, is not what
you are hired for.
The
owners were quite forward looking and modern. We never came to a discussion
about what it meant, whether it was design, or anything else. The thing is that
Gujaratis are quite conservative and the transition out of print will be slower
there, but it will happen. Papers will be delivered but will not be read.
The
thing with mass market newspapers is that they have no idea as to who the
reader is. Online advertising is quite targeted. For example, a newspaper will
not know online what a reader likes or prefers. Most money in digital
advertising goes to Facebook and Google because those can deliver ad messages.
No media can compare with that kind of knowledge.
You
were not at Divya Bhaskar for too long. What was your expectation as an editor
at DIvya Bhaskar?
Patel:
I was and remain quite fond of the owners, who are from Madhya Pradesh. But I
found it difficult to live in Gujarat, particularly in Ahmedabad. Having lived
in Bombay and then Surat, I was unused to this level of segregation. I don’t
think it will change any time soon. I thought it was a really provincial state.
The
romance of journalism ends when you leave large cities. For the most part, or
even 99% of journalists working in Gujarat, job security is priority. The
nature of their work is completely secondary. The idea of a journalist as a
person of independent mind producing material that society should look at is
bogus when it comes to most or perhaps all newspapers in India.
Amnesty
International India was raided by both the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI
while you were heading it earlier as well. It had to stop operations due to
that, on allegations that certain laws were violated. As its Chair in India,
what will be your next step?
Patel:
My term at Amnesty here ended at the end of November 2019. In 2018 we had a
raid – what is called a search and seizure – by the ED under the accusation
that we were violating the FCRA Act. After that we had out accounts frozen, and
I was kept in the office till 11 pm. We moved the Karnataka High Court and got
relief very soon as the govt had not followed the law.
The
raid was in October and the month that my term ended (November), the office was
raided by the CBI. I rejoined them last year (as Chair) and we hope to resume
operations in India very soon.
Why
do you think the Indian government went after Amnesty here? What does it mean
for a country’s reputation on a global level when something like this happens?
Patel:
India’s international reputation has been battered under modi on two-three
fronts. One is on the front of indices. So if you look at the global indices
like rule of law, democracy, hunger etc, India has fallen. The government has
so far ignored all of this.
India
has been very careful over the decades to reassure the world that it is a
secular, democratic, pluralist space; the same as western democracies. When
India engages with the EU or the US, we don’t say we are a hindutva state which
stops young women from going to school because they have scarves over their head.
The problem is that this hypocrisy produces a problem for the government of
India.
It
is exposed as something it does not say that it is. I think one of the things
civil society should focus on is to ensure that the professional wings of the
state should be pressurised to do the right thing. The BJP does not care how it
is seen abroad. Whether it is seen as Muslim-hating party. It is not concerned
about the reputation of India.
The
BJP is concerned with the reputation of the BJP, because it gets nastier the
more it operates in a polarised system. What does it mean? The best way of
doing that is the 80/20 system, where you say that 20% of the
population(Muslims in this case) is the enemy. How long that works for? I don’t
know.
Even
as a political strategy, long do you think this hate campaign will be
sustainable for?
Patel:
There are two issues with this. In what is the universal experience of mankind
with bigoted democratic politics, it is not that long (politics of
polarisation). Second part is to what extent the competence, or lack of, of
Modi’s govt attributes this to the electoral success of the BJP. Today, five
crore fewer Indians have jobs. So will I always vote for something that
happened 500 years ago?
To
my mind, modernity has a way of bringing society to the right track. And its
record is very good. Fact is that on Issues of slavery, racism, rights of women
over their own bodies, etc., what we call liberals, have always won. Every
battle has been won by left, the right has only ceded space. So (even in
India), It might take some time.
I
think in the long term, the future is bright for all of us. Mankind as a
species moves towards progress. It is the medium term, about 10-15 years, what
we have to fight for. At some point, the Hindu voter should consider the data
the government itself is putting out. Data shows that GDP had come down to
almost zero before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. We were already on a declining
pathway for about two years.
Where
does the media fit into all of this?
Patel:
We assume that in liberal democracies like India the media is independent, but
it is not. It has two anchors it is weighed down by. One is popularity of the
hate content, and second that it has to please the government.
You
live in Bangalore, which is supposedly a liberal city. But not far away in the
state, right-wing Hindu goons chopped up a Muslim man recently. Now we are
seeing Muslim girls in schools not being allowed in for wearing the hijab. A
pattern seems to be emerging in the state…
Patel:
The first part of violence is hate-speech, where you need to mobilise people to
make them okay with violence. Hate-speech is the primary enemy. We have to
connect a murderous attempt on Asaduddin Owaisi to what is said about him. We
need to press legally, and to ask the world to tell India to behave. We are in
a space where the government is not mature enough or does not care.
These
young women in Karnataka are not simply fighting to wear the hijab, they are
saying ’don’t discriminate against me because I am a Muslim’. That is why they
will win. More and more women will say ’I will wear it’. The point here is not
about religious identity as the state sees it. It is about individual right. We
will not stop a Sikh from wearing a turban, so why stop a Muslim woman from
wearing a scarf?
After
the CAA-NRC was brought up, a sense of fear had crept up among Muslims all
across India, given that the community felt their existence in India was
threatened. What has changed since then?
Patel:
I think the women of Shaheen Bagh, and not just in Delhi, but in all these
places where there were 24/7 sit in protests, it killed-off CAA. It made sense
only if there is the NRC. to follow The problem is that the BJP did not expect
a pushback, which brought it in two groups. One is the much smaller group of
liberal Hindus, like academics, students, etc which was in turn able to pull in
political parties.
It
also applied external pressure. The EU had a resolution passed against it, and
the government was not able to handle it, because it is a very ‘bechara’
government. Amit Shah said “You take it for granted that CAA is the prelude to
the NRC”. But he has run away. His words were on record. It was delayed because
of resistance.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/muslim-girls-fighting-against-hijab-ban-will-win-aakar-patel-2270763/
--------
UP's
Muzaffarnagar Not Stadium For Hindu-Muslim Matches, Says Farmer Leader
February
07, 2022
Noida:
With Assembly polls less than a week away in western Uttar Pradesh, farmer
leader Rakesh Tikait made a veiled attack on the ruling BJP on Sunday as he
said Muzaffarnagar is "not a stadium for Hindu-Muslim matches".
The
national spokesperson of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), which is a part of
the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), said those talking on communal lines will not
witness electoral gains in the region.
"Western
Uttar Pradesh wants to talk about development. Those talking about Hindu,
Muslim, Jinnah, religion will lose votes. Muzaffarnagar is not a stadium for
Hindu-Muslim matches," Mr Tikait said in a tweet in Hindi.
In
another tweet, he called on people to question the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
candidates in the upcoming polls about the farmers who lost their lives during
their year-long protest against three agriculture laws of the Centre, which
have now been repealed.
"The
prime minister of the country has not even taken the name of the farmers who
got martyred during the movement. Till date, the prime minister has avoided
calling the farmers who lost their lives in the movement as martyrs. Farmers
should question their candidates," Mr Tikait said.
Mr
Tikait's BKU is headquartered in Muzaffarnagar district of western Uttar
Pradesh.
Muzaffarnagar
had witnessed communal riots in 2013, after which the dominant Jat and Muslim
communities in the region had apparently grown apart.
Source:
ND TV
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Kashmir
a bilateral issue, says Russia, rejects ‘state-affiliated media’ report
Feb
7, 2022
NEW
DELHI: Russia has rejected a report by ‘redfish channel’, categorised on
Twitter as Russia state-affiliated media, describing Kashmir as another
Palestine in the making. The Russian embassy here said in a statement that
Moscow continued to follow a policy of non-interference in bilateral issues.
The
redfish channel describes itself as a multi award-winning digital content
creator which specialises in producing short and in-depth documentaries in
collaboration with people “involved in grassroots struggles worldwide to build
an alternative to the ruling capitalist system”. Many have alleged that it is
backed by Kremlin. In a documentary on Jammu & Kashmir, it has said the the
Union Territory is fast becoming a “settler-colonial state”. The video is
titled “Kashmir: Palestine in the Making’.
The
embassy said though that the “misleading” label of this channel on Twitter as
“Russia state-affiliated media” did not make it “automatically related to any
state support”.
“The
channel functions independently with regard to its editorial policy,” it said.
The embassy, however, expressed hope that the complexity and historical
background of this and other regional issues will be given “due understanding
and balanced approach, which is expected from any professional media”.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
After
Xi-Imran meet, China and Pakistan rake up J&K issue
Feb
7, 2022
NEW
DELHI: China and Pakistan upped the ante on Jammu and Kashmir again as they
brought up the issue in a joint statement, following President Xi Jinping’s
meeting Sunday with PM Imran Khan in Beijing, with China saying it opposed any
“unilateral actions” that complicates the situation.
While
there was no official response by India till late Sunday, sources said China
and Pakistan should remember that the Union Territory is an integral and
inalienable part of India.
According
to the statement, the Pakistan side briefed the Chinese on the latest
developments on the situation in J&K, including its concerns, position and
pressing issues. China “reiterated” that the Kashmir issue was a dispute left
from history and should be properly and peacefully resolved based on the “UN
Charter, relevant Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements”.
This
is not the first time though that China and Pakistan have referred to the
situation in J&K in their bilateral documents. India has in the past
dismissed such references as interference in its internal affairs.
The
Pakistan PM is among the 20-odd leaders visiting Beijing for the Winter
Olympics, an event that has been diplomatically boycotted by India and many
western countries, including the US and UK. The joint statement also emphasised
the importance of “pursuit of dialogue and resolution of all outstanding
disputes to promote regional cooperation and advance the goals of lasting
peace, stability and shared prosperity in the region”.
While
there were also several mentions of CPEC in the joint statement, government
sources said both China and Pakistan are fully aware of India’s position that
the corridor, apparently the flagship project of China’s BRI, is located on
Indian territory illegally occupied by Pakistan and that India rejects any
attempt to change the status quo in the area.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Pakistan
Genocide
Watch recognises Pak Army's 1971 genocide in Bangladesh
February
5, 2022
Genocide
Watch, a US-based organisation that campaigns against all forms of mass murder,
has recognised the crimes committed by the Pakistani forces during Bangladeshs
Liberation War in 1971 as genocide, bdnews24 reported.
"Genocide
Watch recognizes the crimes committed by the Military Forces of Pakistan against
the Bengali population in Bangladesh in 1971 as genocide, crimes against
humanity and war crimes," the organisation said in the declaration on
Thursday in commemoration of 50 years of the genocide.
The
Washington D.C.-based NGO works to predict, prevent, stop, and punish genocide
and other forms of mass murder.
"These
crimes by the Pakistani Military Forces constituted the crimes against humanity
of murder, extermination, deportation or forcible transfer of population,
imprisonment or other severe deprivation of physical liberty, torture, rape,
sexual violence, persecution, enforced disappearance of persons, and other
inhumane acts," the declaration states.
"Strong
evidence supports the conclusion that the crimes committed against the Bengalis
of East Pakistan during 1971 were widespread and systematic and carried out by
the Pakistani Army, other militia forces (Razakars, Al Badr, Al Shams etc.),
and pan-Islamic political forces (including Jamat e Islam, Nezam e Islam and
the Muslim League).
"Conclusive
research by internationally recognized genocide experts indicates that the
nature, scale and organization of the Pakistani Military operations
demonstrates planning and intentional design by the Pakistani junta leadership
and military command to destroy a substantial part of the Bengali ethnic and
national group and a substantial part of the Bengali Hindu religious
group," the report said.
Gregory
Stanton, an expert in genocide studies and founder of Genocide Watch, called
upon the UN General Assembly to adopt a resolution recognising the 1971
genocide in Bangladesh.
He
urged the member states of the United Nations, especially the US, the UK, and
Pakistan, to recognise the crimes committed by Pakistani Military Forces in
Bangladesh as genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.
The
declaration also urged member states of the UN to take necessary measures to
recognise these crimes in appropriate fora, and to charge surviving leaders of
this genocide in national courts with universal jurisdiction.
It
called for proper reparations for these crimes from Pakistan to Bangladesh.
Tawheed
Reza Noor, son of slain journalist Serajuddin Hossain, applied for the
recognition of Genocide Watch in December, the report said.
Source:
Business Standard
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
China
says opposed to 'unilateral actions' to resolve Kashmir issue
Feb
6, 2022
BEIJING:
China on Sunday pledged closer cooperation with Pakistan under the $60 billion
CPEC investment programme and called for resolving the Kashmir issue properly
and peacefully while opposing any "unilateral actions" that could
complicate the situation as Prime Minister Imran Khan held talks with the top
Chinese leadership, including President Xi Jinping.
Khan
called on President Xi on the last day of his four-day visit to China to
discuss a host of issues including the slow pace of the China-Pakistan Economic
Corridor (CPEC) and increasing concerns of Beijing over recurring attacks on
Chinese personnel working in its various projects in Pakistan.
In
his meeting with Khan, Xi said China firmly supports Pakistan in safeguarding
national independence, sovereignty, dignity and fighting terrorism, state-run
Xinhua news agency reported.
He
said China is willing to join hands with Pakistan to push forward the in-depth
development of the CPEC and ensure the implementation of key projects.
"Both
sides reiterated that a peaceful and prosperous South Asia is in the common
interest of all parties,” said a joint statement issued at the end of Khan's
visit to China to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics.
"They
emphasised the importance of pursuit of dialogue and resolution of all
outstanding disputes to promote regional cooperation and advance the goals of
lasting peace, stability and shared prosperity in the region,” it said.
"The
Pakistan side briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments on the
situation in Jammu & Kashmir, including its concerns, position and pressing
issues at the moment. The Chinese side reiterated that the Kashmir issue was a
dispute left from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved based
on the UN Charter, relevant Security Council resolutions and bilateral
agreements. China opposes any unilateral actions that complicate the
situation,” it said.
In
the past, India strongly rejected references made to Jammu and Kashmir in a
previous joint statement by Pakistan and China and asserted that the union
territory as well as Ladakh have been and will remain its integral and
inalienable part.
In
July 2021, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had objected
to reference made to the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in a
statement by the two countries, saying it is in Indian territory that has been
illegally occupied by Pakistan.
"As
in the past, India categorically rejects any reference to Jammu and Kashmir.
The union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the union territory of Ladakh has
been and will remain an integral and inalienable part of India," Bagchi
had said.
The
spokesperson had said that India has consistently conveyed to both China and
Pakistan that the so-called CPEC is in India's territory.
"We
resolutely oppose any attempts by other countries to change the status quo in
areas illegally occupied by Pakistan as also to Pakistan bringing up any
material change in Indian territories under its illegal occupation. We call
upon parties concerned to cease such actions," he said.
The
China-Pakistan joint statement also said that China recognised Pakistan's
sacrifices and efforts in the fight against terrorism adding that both sides
reaffirmed their commitment to fighting terrorism in all its forms and
manifestations.
It
said, "both sides agreed to continue the momentum in defence cooperation
at various levels between the armed forces of Pakistan and China”.
China
has emerged as Pakistan's biggest supplier of weapons including battle tanks,
fighter aircraft and latest naval frigates.
"They
underscored that stronger defence and security cooperation between Pakistan and
China was an important factor of peace and stability in the region,” it said.
In
his meeting with Khan, Xi while calling for “firmer confidence” between China
and Pakistan relations said that “strategic significance” of all-weather ties
are “getting more prominent” as two countries signed several agreements to firm
up all-weather ties.
The
joint statement said “both sides expressed their strong determination to
safeguard CPEC from all threats and negative propaganda”.
Pakistan
reaffirmed its commitment to making all-out efforts for the security of all
Chinese personnel, projects and institutions in Pakistan and the Chinese side
expressed its appreciation for the measures taken by Pakistan.
China
has repeatedly called on Pakistan to step up security for thousands of its
personnel working in the CPEC in view of several attacks on them.
Khan
praised the Chinese leadership for hosting the Winter Olympics which was
diplomatically boycotted by the US and its allies over human rights violations
against Uygur Muslims in Xinjiang.
Coinciding
with his visit, the two sides signed a host of MoUs, covering bilateral
cooperation in areas of economic and technical, industry, investment,
infrastructure, space, vaccine, digitalisation, standardisation, disaster
management, culture, sports and vocational education, the joint statement said.
Prominent
of these agreements whose details are not revealed was the new Framework
Agreement on Industrial Cooperation to begin the construction of the 2nd phase
of the CPEC in which China has so far invested about $25 billion, according to
its envoy to Islamabad, Nong Rong.
In
his meeting with Khan, Xi called on the two sides to “create better future for
bilateral relations with firmer confidence”, state-run Xinhua news agency
reported. He did not elaborate.
The
joint statement said “the two sides are ready to discuss with Afghanistan the
extension of the CPEC to Afghanistan”.
Xi
expressed China's willingness to work with Pakistan to expand cooperation in
the fields such as science and technology, agriculture and people's wellbeing,
build a green, healthy and digital corridor, and support Pakistan's
industrialization to enhance its sustainable development capability.
Xi
said that China is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with
Pakistan on multilateral platforms including the United Nations, to safeguard
world and regional peace and stability.
Source:
Times Of India
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--------
Pak
PM Imran Khan expresses support to China on Xinjiang, Hong Kong, Tibet
Feb
07, 2022
Pakistan
Prime Minister Imran Khan reaffirmed his country’s support for the Chinese
government regarding its policies in the Muslim-majority Xinjiang province,
Hong Kong and Tibet -- regions where the communist government is accused of
carrying out massive human rights violations and genocide. In a joint statement
on Sunday, Khan who is on a four-day visit to the country, expressed Pakistan's
"commitment to One-China Policy and support for China on Taiwan, South
China Sea, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet.
Khan
is visiting China to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics
and meet the top Chinese leadership from political and business areas. The
visit also aims to raise financial assistance for inflation-hit Pakistan. On
Friday, he signed a new agreement with China to kick off the second phase of
the controversial China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Meanwhile,
the support by Pakistan comes at a time when the global community along with
rights groups have been raising concerns about a crackdown on human rights,
centralisation of political power and extensive surveillance by the Chinese
government. Under President Xi Jinping, Chinese authorities have been
committing mass abuses against Uyghurs, Tibetans, ethnic groups, and religious
believers from all independent faith groups, a Human Rights Watch group said in
late January.
According
to the report, the Chinese government has eliminated independent civil society
by persecuting human rights activists, feminists, lawyers, journalists, and
others. The government has eviscerated a once-vibrant civil society in Hong
Kong, expanded tech-enabled surveillance to significantly curtail the rights to
expression, association, and peaceful assembly, and allowed the use of forced
labour, in violation of international law, it added.
Source:
Hindustan Times
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Islamabad,
Beijing vow to boost links at all levels
Syed
Irfan Raza
February
7, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday agreed to
strengthen institutional links at all levels, cementing mutual strategic,
diplomatic and economic ties between the two countries.
While
exchanging views on the entire spectrum of bilateral relations, regional
situation and international political landscape, the two leaders appreciated
the finalisation of a number of agreements and memorandum of understanding in
the fields of trade, infrastructure, industrial development, agriculture
modernisation, science and technology and socio-economic well-being of local
people.
The
meeting held at the Great Hall of People was the last leg of PM Khan’s four-day
trip to China. During the visit, he attended the opening ceremony of Beijing
Winter Olympics and met the Chinese premier, leaders of several countries and
chairman of the China’s National Development and Reform Commission. Mr Khan
also had detailed discussions with corporate leaders and investors besides
attending the luncheon hosted by Mr Xi in the honour of visiting heads of the
states.
President
Xi and PM Khan met for the first time since October 2019 when the latter
visited China.
After
completing the tour, the prime minister, along with his delegation, returned to
Islamabad.
Later,
in a tweet, PM Khan said he had a “great meeting” with the Chinese president.
“We agreed to further enhance our strategic and economic relations and to fast
track the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC),” he
said.
According
to the Prime Minister Office (PMO), Mr Khan and Mr Xi reviewed the entire gamut
of Pakistan-China bilateral cooperation and exchanged views on regional and
global issues of mutual interest, in a warm and cordial atmosphere.
The
two leaders appreciated the signing of a number of agreements covering
industrial, space and vaccine cooperation.
Both
leaders also acknowledged that a peaceful and stable Afghanistan would promote
economic development and connectivity in the region and called on the
international community to promptly assist the Afghan people in averting a
humanitarian catastrophe.
PM
Khan briefed President Xi on people-centered vision of geo-economics and his
government’s policies for Pakistan’s sustainable growth and regional
connectivity. He lauded China’s continued support to Pakistan’s socio-economic
development that had greatly benefitted from the high-quality development of
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Mr Khan welcomed increased Chinese
investments in second phase of CPEC that centered on industrialization and
improving people’s livelihoods.
Sharing
his views with President Xi on growing polarization in the world that
threatened unraveling of global developmental gains and posed serious risks to
the developing countries, Mr Khan highlighted that insurmountable challenges of
climate change and growing inequalities could only be tackled through
unqualified cooperation of all nations in accordance with the purposes and
principles of the UN Charter. The PM lauded President Xi’s visionary Belt and
Road Initiative and Global Development Initiative (GDI) that called for
collective action for sustainable development aimed at win-win outcomes.
The
prime minister observed that persecution of minorities in India and the
atrocities in India-held Kashmir was a threat to regional peace and stability
and pointed out that rapid militarisation of India was undermining regional
stability. He noted that partnership between Pakistan and China was an anchor
for peace and stability in the region and thanked China for its unwavering
support to Pakistan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence and
national development.
While
the Chinese side reaffirmed its support for Pakistan in safeguarding its
sovereignty, independence and security, as well as promoting its socio-economic
development and prosperity, the Pakistani side expressed its commitment to
One-China Policy and support for China on Taiwan, South China Sea, Hong Kong,
Xinjiang and Tibet, according to a joint statement issued on the occasion.
Mr
Khan congratulated the leadership and people of China on successful hosting of
the Beijing Winter Olympics, extended his best wishes on the Chinese Lunar New
Year and renewed his invitation to President Xi to undertake a visit to
Pakistan at his early convenience.
The
Chinese side appreciated the PM’s launch of the Pakistan-China Business and
Investment Forum, and vowed to enhance B2B cooperation between the business
sectors of both countries.
Noting
close bilateral cooperation in the areas of health, environment and information
and communication technology, the two sides agreed to launch the China-Pakistan
health, industry, trade, green and digital corridors.
Highlighting
the significance of Gwadar as a central pillar of CPEC and important node in
regional connectivity, they expressed determination to safeguard CPEC from all
threats and negative propaganda. According to the ‘1+4’ layout, the two sides
agreed to jointly accelerate the construction and operation of Gwadar Port and
build Gwadar low-carbon circular industry zone. They agreed to build
high-quality livelihood projects for the socio-economic development of Gwadar
city and its residents.
They
also decided to expand bilateral trade relations by fully utilizing the second
phase of Pakistan-China Free Trade Agreement. The Chinese side welcomed more of
Pakistan’s high-quality food and agricultural products to the Chinese market.
Hailing
the establishment of Pakistan’s pavilions on Chinese e-commerce platforms, the
two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in e-commerce, setting up online
payment systems and cooperating in logistics, warehousing and customs facilitation.
The
two sides agreed to celebrate Pakistan-China Year of Tourism Exchanges in 2023
and to establish strong linkages between the tourism promotion agencies and
private enterprises of the two countries. They agreed to make all-out efforts
in support of greater civilisational exchanges between Pakistan and China and
further expand cooperation for the conservation of heritage. The leaders
welcomed the organizing of a Gandhara art exhibition at Palace Museum in
Beijing in 2022.
Source:
Dawn
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1673740/islamabad-beijing-vow-to-boost-links-at-all-levels
--------
UK
police alert Pakistani dissidents to threats: report
Atika
Rehman
February
7, 2022
LONDON:
Pakistanis living in exile have been warned by the UK police forces of threats
to their lives and asked to keep a low profile, a report published in British newspaper
The Guardian this week revealed.
The
advice came from the Counter Terrorism Policing, which is a collaboration of
the UK police forces that work with UK intelligence personnel to help prevent
and investigate terrorist activity.
The
development came just a week after a jury convicted Muhammad Gohir Khan, a
31-year-old British man of Pakistani descent, who agreed to kill a Pakistani
dissident based in the Netherlands as part of a contract killing conspiracy. A
photo and address of the target, blogger and activist Waqass Ahmed Goraya, was
provided by a Pakistan-based middleman identified in the trial only as
“Muzammil”. Inquiries into establishing the identity and whereabouts of
Muzammil remain ongoing, the Met Police said in a statement.
The
report said that ahead of the trial, officers from the Counter Terrorism
Policing warned Pakistani political commentator Rashid Murad to “review his
security”.
Defence
analyst Ayesha Siddiqa is among those who face such threats
“Police
have already installed a panic alarm and CCTV at his home and shared guidance
on personal security from the national counter-terrorism security office,” the
report said.
Murad
told the paper two police officers visited his home last year and informed him
that they had intercepted a communication which revealed that some people were
planning to harm him.
“They
didn’t tell me who but indicated they were from the Pakistani authorities,”
Murad alleged.
The
report also mentioned lawyer Fazal Khan as another alleged “target” of the
Pakistani authorities.
Khan
said officers from the Met’s counter-terrorism command told him to notify other
UK police forces if he intended to travel outside London.
“In
the UK, a severe threat exists; London, Birmingham and cities like Sheffield
with big Asian communities and where they [the Pakistani authorities] have
people on their payroll. I was asked not to move around, not to leave the city
and provide the police details of my contacts,” Khan told The Guardian.
The
report said defence analyst Ayesha Siddiqa has also been warned of threats to
her life, and revealed that a well-connected lawyer had told her that the
method used to target her would involve British-based Pakistani drug gangs.
Siddiqa
urged the UK government to pressure Pakistan to also identify an unknown man
named in Khan’s trial who was referred to as Muzammil’s “boss”, believed to be
behind Goraya’s murder plot.
Pashtun
rights campaigner Zar Ali Khan Afridi, who fled to the Netherlands after an
abduction attempt, was quoted in the report as saying that he had received a
life-threatening call from a British number.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1673745/uk-police-alert-pakistani-dissidents-to-threats-report
--------
Imran
Khan turns blind eye to Uyghur Muslim suppression in China
7th
February 2022
Islamabad:
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has turned blind eye to the accusations of
West and rights groups against China over suppressing Uyghur Muslims in
Xinjiang as he supported Beijing on Xinjiang issue on Sunday and the leader
also backed the communist regime on the South China Sea as well as One-China
Principle.
“The
Pakistan side expressed its “commitment to One-China Policy and support for
China on Taiwan, South China Sea, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet,” read a joint
statement released following the meeting of Imran Khan and Chinese Presiden Xi
Jinping in Beijing on Sunday.
Islamabad
gave its support to China on issues related to the One China Policy and the
South China Sea, which the West sees as arbitrary rules policies made by
Beijing to foster its expansionist approach.
“The
Chinese side reaffirmed its support for Pakistan in safeguarding its
sovereignty, independence and security, as well as promoting its socio-economic
development and prosperity,” it added.
Islamabad’s
support to Beijing against the accusation of human rights violation by China in
the Xinjiang region came at a time when recently 243 global groups called for
action against China over human rights abuses in the country.
The
groups in late January had urged the countries to join the diplomatic boycott
of the Winter Olympic Games.
Under
President Xi Jinping, Chinese authorities have been committing mass abuses
against Uyghurs, Tibetans, ethnic groups, and religious believers from all
independent faith groups said the Human Rights Watch in late January.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/imran-khan-turns-blind-eye-to-uyghur-muslim-suppression-in-china-2271005/
--------
Immediate
disciplinary proceedings recommended against JUI-F chief’s brother
February
7, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
The Provincial Election Commissioner Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday asked the
Chief Secretary KP to initiate necessary disciplinary proceedings immediately
against government officer Zia-ur-Rehman on participating in local government
elections campaign of Jamiat-e-Ulema Islam (JUI-F) candidate in D.I.Khan.
According
to ECP sources, a letter was written in this regard under Section-24 of the
Government Servants Efficiency and Disciplinary Rules, 1964 against the
concerned officer under intimation to this office for its onward submission to
the Election Commission.
As
per details, Zia-ur-Rehman, brother of the chief of Jamiat-e-Ulema Islam (JUI-F)
Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman had addressed the political gathering arranged in Iqbal
Marriage Hall, Zafarabad Colony, Tehsil and District D.I.Khan on February 03 as
part of the election campaign of JUI, candidate, namely, Muhammad Kafel Nizami.
The
letter said that being a public office holder (PMS Officer, Government
Servant), his participation in such political activities is a sheer violation
of section 187 of the election act 2017 which is reproduced.
It
said that a notice was already issued to the officer concerned by the District
Monitoring Officer, D.I.Khan on the ground that a person in the service of
Pakistan is guilty of the violation of official duty in connection with an
election if he misuses his official position in a manner calculated to influence
the results of the election.
The
violation of such provision of law is punishable with imprisonment for a term
that may extend to two years or with a fine that may extend to one hundred
thousand rupees or with both.
Source:
Pakistan Today
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Militancy,
once driven out, returns to Balochistan
February
6, 2022
QUETTA:
Regrouping of militant groups, the volatile situation in neighbouring
Afghanistan and foreign support are key factors behind a new flare-up of
violence in Balochistan, according to local political and security analysts.
Terrorism
has reared its head in the mineral-rich province as dozens of security
personnel and militants have been killed in ambushes, clashes, and bomb blasts
across the region in recent months.
Retired
Lt Gen Talat Masood, an Islamabad-based security analyst, told Anadolu Agency
the resurgence of terrorism in the province is not unexpected, given the
vastness of the region, loose control of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, and
involvement of foreign elements.
At
least 20 soldiers were martyred in attacks on security check posts and clashes
with suspected militants in several parts of the province, a key route of the
multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the past week
alone, in a clear indication of the return of otherwise dwindling violence.
The
martyrdom of 10 army troops in an attack on a security checkpoint in the Kech
district near Iran’s border on January 28 was the deadliest incident in months.
The
Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF), a proscribed militant group, claimed
responsibility for the attack.
Another
seven army troops and 13 suspected militants were martyred in two separate
security operations in the Panjgur and Noshki districts on February 3.
“There
is no support (for terrorism) from the Afghan government but it’s because of
the loose border control, of which the militants are taking advantage not only
in Balochistan but in the northwestern tribal region,” said Masood, who served
in the army from 1956 to 1992.
Pakistan
has also seen a surge in terror attacks in the tribal region, mainly North
Waziristan, which borders Afghanistan, since the Taliban took control of Kabul
last August.
Mineral-rich
Balochistan is also a key route of the $64-billion CPEC project, which aims to
connect China’s strategically important northwestern Xinxiang province to
Gawadar port through a network of roads, railways, and pipelines for cargo,
oil, and gas transportation.
With
its 600-kilometre (373-mile) coastline, Gwadar is an important deep seaport
currently operated by China, which aims to attain direct access to the Indian
Ocean via the seaport.
The
economic corridor will not only provide China cheaper access to Africa and the
Middle East but will also bring billions of dollars to Pakistan in the form of
transit fees from the world’s second-largest economy.
COMPLACENCE
The
vastness of the province, which makes up 42 percent of Pakistan, according to
Masood, is another advantage terror groups have been taking to regroup after
short and long intervals.
“Balochistan
is a vast province, and hard to fully control. Therefore, it is not very
difficult for them (militants) to regroup,” he said.
Supporting
the view, Ikram Sehgal, a Karachi-based defense analyst, observed that a no
man’s land between Pakistan and Iran has long been serving as a “safe haven”
for militants.
“The
security forces should not have been complacent after subsiding the insurgency
in recent years. They have reared their head also because of lack of
preparedness from the security forces,” Sehgal, who edits the reputed Defense
Journal of Pakistan, told Anadolu Agency.
He
called for doubling the number of troops within Balochistan and at borders with
Iran and Afghanistan to check the “cross-border movement of terrorists.”
UNIFICATION
OF MILITANTS AND INDIAN HAND
Anwar
Sajidi, a Quetta-based political analyst, sees the “unification” of several
militant groups as a key reason behind the fresh wave of violence across the province.
He
said different separatist outfits have recently formed the Baloch National
Alliance (BNA), an umbrella group, which has improved “coordination” and
“access” in terms of attacks.
Sehgal
and Masood also claim the “Indian hand” behind the rise in terror attacks,
whereas Sajidi, too, does not rule out the possibility.
Masood
said New Delhi is “opening new fronts in Balochistan with the help of dissident
elements along the borders to settle the score on Kashmir.”
Sehgal
contended that India has “reactivated its network” in Balochistan, which is
responsible for the latest wave of violence in the region.
Sajidi
said the possibility of the involvement of a foreign hand in the latest string
of attacks in Balochistan is “there”.
In
2016, Pakistan arrested a spy Kulbhushan Jadhav — who at the time was a serving
officer in the Indian Navy — in Mashkel in Balochistan, a few miles from the
border with Iran.
Disguised
as Mubarak Hussein Patel, a Muslim, he was running a spy network for the
Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), India’s premier intelligence agency, from the
Iranian port of Chabahar.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2022/02/06/militancy-once-driven-out-returns-to-balochistan/
--------
5
Pak soldiers killed in firing from Afghanistan; TTP claims responsibility for
attack
February
6, 2022
At
least five Pakistani soldiers were killed by firing from neighbouring
Afghanistan, Islamabad said Sunday, in an attack claimed by the Pakistani
Taliban.
It
comes just days after Baloch separatists in the southwest killed nine Pakistani
troops in a series of brazen attacks that officials said involved planners from
Afghanistan as well as India.
After
seizing power in August, Afghanistan's Taliban pledged terror groups would not
be allowed to operate from the country, but Pakistani militant groups have long
taken sanctuary across the porous border.
They
include the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which on Sunday claimed
responsibility for the attack in the Kurram district of rugged Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province.
The
TTP has been emboldened by the return to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan
and has stepped up attacks since a month-long truce with the Pakistan
government ended last year.
The
Taliban are separate groups in both countries, but share a common ideology and
draw from people who live on either side of the border.
The
TTP said it killed six Pakistani troops in Saturday night's attack, but the
Pakistan military's public relations wing (ISPR) said five Frontier Corps
members had died.
"Own
troops responded in a befitting manner," it said, adding "terrorists
suffered heavy causalities".
Pakistan
"strongly condemns the use of Afghan soil by terrorists", ISPR said.
The
army "is determined to defend Pakistan's borders against the menace of
terrorism, and such sacrifices of our brave men further strengthen our
resolve".
Premier
in China
It
took four days until Saturday for Pakistani troops to put an end to assaults by
separatists in Balochistan province, with the army putting the final death toll
at 20 militants and nine soldiers.
The
ISPR said intelligence agents intercepted communications during those assaults
on army posts that showed militants had links to Afghanistan and India.
Separatists
have waged an insurgency in the vast southwestern province for years, fuelled
by anger that its abundant reserves of natural resources are not relieving
citizens from crushing poverty.
The
fighting came as Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was making an official
visit to China, which has invested significantly in Balochistan, further
stoking tensions.
Chinese
investments in Balochistan are part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative.
A
Pakistani security official told AFP on Friday that the attacks were an attempt
to derail Khan's visit to China.
The
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project linking China's far-western
Xinjiang region with the strategic port of Gwadar in Balochistan has sparked
claims that the vast influx of investment does not benefit locals.
While
the economic corridor offers a lucrative gateway for China to the Indian Ocean,
the security of its workers has long been a concern.
Pakistan's
government announced late last year it had entered a month-long truce with the
TTP, facilitated by Afghanistan's Taliban, but that expired on December 9 after
peace talks failed to make progress.
The
TTP has been blamed for hundreds of suicide bomb attacks and kidnappings across
the country, and for a while held sway over vast tracts of the country's rugged
tribal belt, imposing a radical version of Islamic law.
Source:
India Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Europe
UK
government cuts free medication, toiletries for Afghan asylum seekers
February
05, 2022
LONDON:
Asylum seekers in Britain being housed in hotels have been told by the UK Home
Office to pay for non-basic toiletries themselves, a letter has revealed.
People
fleeing the Taliban, some of whom worked for the British military or
authorities, say the latest move from the British government shows that it
“does not care” about them anymore.
It
was revealed that the Home Office is spending £4.7 million ($6.36 million) per
day housing asylum seekers in hotels and providing for them — an estimated £127
per person.
Faiz
Mohammad Seddeqi, 30, a former guard at the British Embassy in Kabul, is one
such evacuee from Afghanistan and has been staying at one of the hotels for
almost six months.
He
was evacuated with his wife and son during the Taliban’s swift takeover of
Afghanistan in August last year.
“When
we see this kind of reaction and decision from the Home Office, it means ‘from
onward we don’t care about you and we are not concerned about you — you need to
manage everything by yourself,’” he said.
He
said that the hotel in Watford where he and his family are staying is “not very
clean” and that the food they are given is “not good.”
The
letter he received, addressed from the Afghanistan Resettlement Arrivals
Project at the Home Office, reads: “Until now, in addition to your Universal
Credit payments and the accommodation and meals provided in the bridging
hotels, we have also provided some additional items.
“I
am writing to inform you that from Feb. 11 we will no longer provide those
additional items and you will need to purchase these for yourself using your
Universal Credit payments.”
According
to the letter, asylum seekers will still receive “main meals,” including “baby
food and baby milk,” but will no longer receive “complimentary snacks,
toiletries (aside from basic toiletries) or over-the-counter medication.”
The
letter added: “You will need to pay your own transport or taxi fares to
appointments,” referencing the Home Office’s desire for those being resettled
to find work.
“All
hotel residents continue to receive fully furnished accommodation, including a
choice of three meals a day, constant access to drinking water, basic toiletries
and their utility costs are covered,” a Home Office spokesperson said.
Some
25,000 asylum seekers and 12,000 Afghan refugees are now staying in hotels in
the UK, the Home Office told the Home Affairs Committee this week.
At
the session, MPs were told that the UK government was “optimistic” that it can
find a revised way of working with councils on managing costs.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2018856/world
--------
Muslim
man who stopped London knife attack said he had ‘duty to act’
February
05, 2022
LONDON:
A Muslim man in London who was released without charge after running over a
knife attacker has said it was “his duty to act.”
The
26-year-old Chechen, known as Abraham, works as an electrician and was on his
way to a job in London on Jan. 24.
While
driving through the neighborhood of Maida Vale, he spotted a man stabbing a
woman in the street three times in the chest.
Witnesses
tried to stop the attack by Leon McCaskie on his ex-wife Yasmin Chkaifi, but to
no avail. Both McCaskie and Chkaifi died after the incident.
Abraham
told the Daily Mail: “Should you see an evil it is your duty to stop it with your
hands. If you cannot, then you should stop it by speaking out. So I was
thinking: ‘How could I face God if I don’t help? It is my duty, my religion.’
“In
that moment I knew I had to act. I cannot go away and leave her. I had to help,
to try to save her. I did not have time to consider. I thought the safest and
quickest option was to push the man away from the woman with my car.
“So
I put my car into first gear and drove up onto the pavement. It was a short
distance, 10 or 12 feet, and I pushed him, I made an impact. I managed to avoid
the woman.
“Then
I took my foot off the gas but my car didn’t stop. The momentum continued and I
knew the man was under my car. I opened the door and I saw his hand sticking
out from under it. That sight stays with me and always will: The man’s hand
sticking out.
“My
car hit a garden wall and stalled and I tried to reverse but the engine
wouldn’t turn over. I kept trying to start the car, to free the man, but I
couldn’t. I shouted for help.
“I
took my head in my hands and thought: ‘How has this happened?’ I’d tried to
save a woman’s life and I’d killed a man. I said a prayer: ‘God forgive me for
what I have done’.”
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2018696/world
--------
Former
UK member of European Parliament claims he was victim of Islamophobia by
government minister
February
06, 2022
LONDON:
A British Conservative politician has accused his party of failing to
investigate allegations of Islamophobia against a fellow Tory who has since
risen to the ministerial level in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government.
Sajjad
Karim, a former member of the European Parliament for North West England from
2004 to 2019, told The Independent that he was prepared to place identities on
record after an investigation into Islamophobia in the party failed to take his
claims into consideration.
Karim
said that in 2013 he overheard a conversation in which two Tory politicians,
including the individual now serving as a minister, plotted to use Karim’s
faith as a weapon against him.
“It’s
politically motivated. It was entirely a political exercise to try and
undermine me — to use my religion as a means to undermine me,” he said.
His
claims come just weeks after Tory MP Nusrat Ghani alleged that her Muslim faith
was cited by a party whip as a reason for sacking her from a ministerial
position in 2020.
“I
don’t know Nus Ghani’s case or situation,” Karim said. “All I know is in my
case the discussion was about how my religious and cultural background could be
engineered politically and used against me.”
Karim
said that he stayed quiet about overhearing the conversation at the time,
adding that he had “just got on with it,” but later revealed it in September
2019 to the BBC, after which the party invited him to make a formal complaint.
However,
he demanded that he be allowed to speak in person to the party chairman, James
Cleverly MP, only to be told that Cleverly was too busy.
“I
responded, and said: ‘No I’m not going to use the standard process, this is not
appropriate.’ And then I was emailed back saying that, actually, the … inquiry
was going to be taking place … and that the inquiry would contact me and that I
should give my evidence to the ... inquiry.”
The
inquiry in question, headed by Prof. Swaran Singh into Islamophobia in the
party, published its report in May 2021, which failed to mention the incident.
Furthermore, Karim said that he was never contacted for questioning.
“So
they’ve gone ahead and concluded all of this but I’d been excluded from this,”
he said. “So in terms of my complaint, it was neither dealt with by the
chairman, nor was it a part of the Singh inquiry, and therefore it just has not
been a part of any process in dealing with Islamophobia in the Conservative
Party.
“I
think it’s demonstrative of a lack of real, genuine seriousness in the party to
actually treat Islamophobia as a serious issue,” he added. “It’s seen more as a
nuisance that in some way has got to be dealt with.
“Do
I have any confidence that the current setup has any interest in actually
dealing with my complaint? No, not at all. But that’s not to say that the
Conservative Party per se — the board — ought not to be interested in what has
actually happened here.”
Karim
added that he would name the individuals involved in the allegation. “I will
tell the party the full facts of what I experienced,” he said. “The party has
then got to decide, are they (the minister) a fit and proper person?
“I
think that there is a need for the Conservative Party to think long and hard
today about how we once again become a party that is actually fit for
governance,” he said, adding: “Whilst Boris Johnson is at the helm, I just
don’t see how you can carry out the necessary reforms — he’s just too much of a
distraction.”
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2019416/world
--------
Imam
who supported an al-Qaeda terrorist is given the green light to open a nursery
by Ofsted
6
February 2022
An
imam who expressed support for an al-Qaeda terror attacker has been given the
green light to open a nursery by the education regulator.
Imam
Muhammad Asim Hussain urged followers at the Al-Hikam mosque in Bradford to
attend an event in 2015 in support of Aafia Siddiqui, who is serving an 86-year
prison term in the US for attempting to kill soldiers in a machine gun attack.
In
a recorded video, Mr Hussain said the event would highlight the 'injustice and
most importantly the oppression that has been given and meted out to our sister
Dr Aafia Siddiqui who is currently in imprisonment'.
Siddiqui
hit the headlines last month when Malik Faisal Akram, 44, from Blackburn,
demanded her release after taking four people hostage at a synagogue in Texas.
He was shot dead by police after his captives escaped.
Mr
Hussain left his role at the mosque in 2019 following claims of misconduct but
was re-appointed last year.
Another
founder of the Al-Hikam mosque, Muhammad Adil Shahzad, last year used the
racially derogatory term 'coconuts' to describe 18 Muslim MPs who backed a
Yorkshire teacher who had been suspended for showing a cartoon of the Prophet
Muhammad to pupils.
Mr
Shahzad also called for the teacher to be sacked and said he and his followers
were 'fighting an academic war' against the enemies of Islam.
Despite
the controversies, Ofsted gave the go-ahead for the nursery plans last month.
Celebrating
the news on social media, Mr Hussain, a trustee at the mosque which is a
registered charity, said Ofsted's agreement represented a 'huge milestone' and
posted pictures of the nursery.
However,
the regulator said it would re-examine the case after The Mail on Sunday
brought the imams' previous comments to its attention.
David
Ibsen, executive director at the Counter Extremism Project, said: 'Al-Hikam
should not be permitted to educate young British citizens in its nursery when
there is a track record of espousing objectionable and oppressive beliefs.'
An
Ofsted spokeswoman said: 'We have been alerted to these concerns and are
looking into them.
Source:
Daily Mail
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Macron
govt seeks to give Islam a French makeover
Feb
6, 2022
NICE:
The French government on Saturday forged ahead with efforts to reshape Islam in
France and rid it of extremism, introducing a new body made upof clergy andlaymen
— and women — to help lead the largest Muslim community in western Europe.
With
France bloodied by past Islamic extremist attacks in past years, few disagree
that radicalisation is a danger. But critics also see the efforts as a
political ploy to lure rightwing voters to President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist
party ahead of April’s presidential election. The new body, called the Forum of
Islam in France, is being introduced on Saturday by the French interior
ministry. Supporters say it will keep the country safe and free of foreign
influence, and ensure that Muslim practices in France adhere to the country’s
cherished value of secularism in public life.
Its
critics, including many Muslims who consider the religion a part of their
French identity, say the government’s latest initiative is another step in an
institutionalised discrimination. The new body will include imams, influential
figuresfromcivil society, prominent intellectuals and business leaders. All
hand-picked by the government, and women will make up at least a quarter of its
members, according to reports.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Italy
delivers vehicles to Lebanese military
February
06, 2022
ROME:
The first batch of vehicles donated by Italy to the Lebanese Armed Forces, and
500,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the local population, have been
delivered at the Port of Beirut.
“This
first vehicle delivery is a tangible sign of Italy’s … closeness to Lebanon,
its people and the Lebanese Armed Forces,” said Italian Defense Minister
Lorenzo Guerini.
Rome
remains committed to supporting the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, and to
contributing to the country’s stability, he added.
“The
bond of friendship between Italy and Lebanon has deep historical roots based on
our common Mediterranean identity,” he said.
“Our
continued presence in that country since 1980 is a clear testimony to our
commitment to peace and stability across the entire region.”
Two
20-seat buses, a tanker and an inflatable boat were delivered as a first
instalment of a donation that will be completed by the end of the year.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2019246/world
--------
South Asia
Islamic
Emirate Welcomes Return of Afghan Pilots
February
7, 2022
The
Ministry of Defense (MoD) on Sunday announced that five Afghan air force pilots
who left Afghanistan after the republic government's collapse, have returned to
the country and resumed work.
Officials
at the ministry further said that they will persistently strive to encourage
all professional staff of the previous government to return to Afghanistan.
“Five
Afghan pilots who left country, based on propaganda, answered our call and came
back to Afghanistan,” said Enayatullah Khwarizmi, MoD’s spokesman.
With
the fall of the republic government, many of the experienced military and air
force staff of Afghanistan fled the country to Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, the
United Arab Emirates and the United States of America, but no details are
available about where these five pilots are returning from.
“The
leadership of the Ministry of Defense has consistently called on everyone to
come back and serve their country,” said Khwarizmi.
In
the meantime, Anas Haqqani, a high member of the Islamic Emirate, welcomed the
return of Afghan pilots on Twitter, saying Afghanistan currently needs
professionals.
“Afghanistan
needs everyone who is a specialist: doctors, engineers, pilots and teachers,”
said Sarwar Neyazai, a military expert.
Reports
have stated that around 140 Afghan air force pilots and personnel who were
trapped in Tajikistan after leaving Afghanistan have since gone to the Unites
States.
Source:
Tolo News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-176602
--------
UN
committed to providing aid for Afghanistan, despite political predicaments
07
Feb 2022
The
UN Secretary General’s Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan, Ramiz
Alakbarov said they will continue providing humanitarian aid to the people of
Afghanistan in spite of political obstacles that impacted the lives of millions
of people in the country.
Speaking
at a joint press conference in Kabul on Sunday, February 6, 2022, Ramiz
Alakbarov said that he was proud that the international aid agencies have so
far provided life assistance to over 18 million Afghans.
In
the conference, the Afghan authorities pledged to be distributing aid to people
in need transparently and timely.
Head
of UNOCHA, Isabelle Moussard Carlsen said that 24.4 million people in
Afghanistan need urgent humanitarian assistance and for that, the UN needs $4.4
billion.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Islamic
Emirate seeks economic plans to counter crisis
February
6, 2022
KABUL: A senior official of the Islamic Emirate instructed
the government bodies to present their proposals to counter the existing
economic crisis in the country.
Talking
at an economic conference in Kabul on Sunday, the First Deputy of Prime
Minister, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar promised to offer tremendous efforts to
tackle the ongoing crisis in the country.
“I instruct the officials of all ministries
and departments to share their short- and long-term plans for economic
development with us,” he said.
He
pledged the government would pave the ground for the investors to invest in
Afghanistan.
Afghanistan
is going through a dire humanitarian condition, with millions of people are
facing starvation.
Addressing
the same conference, the Second Deputy
of Prime Minister, Abdul Salam Hanafi, stressed countering corruption, saying
that administrative corruption has significantly dropped.
“We
support the private sectors to improve the economy in Afghanistan and to
attract investors to invest in various fields in the country,” he said.
Source:
Afghanistan Times
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
http://www.afghanistantimes.af/islamic-emirate-seeks-economic-plans-to-counter-crisis/
--------
Tens
of ISIS-K affiliates surrender to Taliban in eastern Afghanistan
07
Feb 2022
Provincial
officials of the eastern Nangarhar province said on Sunday, February 6, 2022,
that up to 50 ISIS-K or Daesh fighters surrendered to them.
The
local officials said that the terrorists surrendered following mediation by
tribal elders of the province.
Head
of the Nangarhar Intelligence Directorate Dr. Basheer said that the fighters
surrendered based on the general amnesty announced by the supreme leader of the
Taliban and added that the process will go on.
This
is the eighth group of the Daesh fighters that surrenders to the Taliban in
Nangarhar province since the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan took over last
year.
The
surrendered militants said that they remorse being par to the ISIS-K and
promised not to join the terror group again.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Mullah
Baradar Calls on Govt Bodies to Provide Economic Plans
February
7, 2022
First
Deputy of the Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, called on the
government institutions to present their plans to tackle the economic meltdown
and root out poverty in the country.
Speaking
to a conference in Kabul today, Mullah Baradar accused the previous governments
of corruption, saying that the funds for Afghanistan over the last 20 years
"poured into the pockets" of certain individuals, so the country is
not self-sufficient.
“I
instruct the officials of all ministries and departments to share their short-
and long-term plans for economic development with us,” he said.
Mullah
Baradar promised that the Islamic Emirate will take significant steps to
address the current crisis in the country.
“This
is the responsibility of all of us--to work for economic progress. We should do
something to reduce the level of poverty and provide work opportunities for the
people in the country,” he said.
He
also emphasized that a safe environment will pave the way for investment inside
Afghanistan.
The
Second Deputy of Prime Minister, Abdul Salam Hanafi, said administrative
corruption in the government departments has been eradicated.
“We
support the private sectors to improve the economy in Afghanistan and to
attract investors to invest in various fields in the country,” he said.
Source:
Tolo News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/index.php/afghanistan-176605
--------
IEA
reacts to UN report over Al-Qaida presence in Afghanistan
07
Feb 2022
Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan reacted to the recent
report of the UN and denied the presence of Al-Qaida fighters in Afghanistan.
The
Ministry in a press release on Monday, February 7, 2022, said that these
ungrounded claims that are based on no evidence and proof can harm the security
of Afghanistan, the region, and the world.
United
Nations in their recent report claimed that the Al-Qaida affiliates are more
active in Afghanistan and they are freely operating inside the country.
The
Foreign Ministry said that Afghanistan has fully been secured after the IEA
gained power last year.
“Islamic
Emirate of Afghanistan is fully committed to the implementation of the Doha
agreement and allows no one to threaten other’s soil from the country and wants
the same from other countries as well.” Reads the statement.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/iea-reacts-to-un-report-over-al-qaida-presence-in-afghanistan-865765/
--------
Plans
underway to eliminate poverty and create work opportunities: Baradar
06
Feb 2022
Economic
Deputy of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar said
that economic growth is their top priority and they are working to eradicate
poverty and unemployment in the country.
Speaking
at the gathering of the economic commission of the IEA in Kabul on Sunday,
February 6, 2022, Mullah Baradar said that economy of Afghanistan was fake that
collapsed following the full withdrawal of foreign troops from the country.
Baradar
has lately been appointed as head of the high commission of the economy of the
IEA by the supreme leader Mullah Hebtullah Akhundzada.
“Previous
government in Afghanistan had fake economies so they collapsed after the
international community left Afghanistan. The money that would come to
Afghanistan from abroad would pour into the pockets of a specific number of
people.” Said Mullah Baradar.
The
Deputy PM further said that they support national and international investors
in Afghanistan and do everything to provide for the investors working facilities.
Meanwhile,
the second Deputy of the PM Mullah Abdul Salaam Hanafi said that Afghanistan is
hundred percent secure and that investors from across the world are welcomed.
Hanafi
added that for the sake of Afghanistan’s economic growth, they fully support
the private sector.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Afghan
journalists face harassment under Taliban: Media body
6th
February 2022
Kabul:
The Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said that journalists and media
workers in Afghanistan are facing increasing “harassment” under the Taliban
regime.
RSF
said the threats, interrogations and arbitrary arrests of journalists have
increased and these actions are in violation of Afghanistan’s press law, TOLO
News reported.
According
to RSF, since the Taliban came to power in August last year, at least 50
journalists and media workers have been detained, lasting from several hours to
nearly a week.
“Threatening
to rip out journalists’ tongues in order to prevent them from covering certain
subjects is completely unacceptable,” said Reza Moini, the head of RSF’s
Iran-Afghanistan desk.
“Journalists
must be able to practice their profession without being under a permanent
threat of arrest and torture. These unlawful threats, which violate
Afghanistan’s media legislation, are all the more horrifying for coming at a
time of growing harassment and increasingly restrictive rules for the right to
news and information.”
According
to the RSF, the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of
Vice had also issued a decree in November last year defining certain rules for
media in Afghanistan.
On
February 3, the International Federation of Journalists also raised concerns on
the status of media in Afghanistan, saying at least 318 media outlets have
closed since the fall of the Western-backed government in 33 of 34 provinces in
Afghanistan.
“The
crisis has hit newspapers the hardest with just 20 out of 114 continuing to
publish,” the report read.
“Fifty-one
TV stations, 132 radio stations and 49 online media outlets have ceased
operations according to the report compiled for the IFJ.”
The
Taliban, however, reacting to these reports, said it is committed to supporting
press freedom.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/afghan-journalists-face-harassment-under-taliban-media-body-2270562/
--------
Southeast Asia
Keeping
the faith, quietly: Inside Muslim Indonesia’s hidden Jewish community
By
Chris Barrett and Karuni Rompies
February
7, 2022
Singapore/Jakarta:
In Tondano, near the north-east tip of the island of Sulawesi, south-east Asia’s
first Holocaust museum was unveiled last month.
The
brainchild of Rabbi Yaakov Baruch, who operates Indonesia’s only synagogue in
the lakeside town, its opening on International Holocaust Remembrance Day was
witnessed by more than 100 invitees, among them local and district government
representatives and foreign diplomats including the ambassador of Germany.
On
show inside the synagogue compound so far is simply a photo exhibition, but for
Baruch it is the fulfilment of a long-held ambition.
“I
had a dream that one day I could open up a museum in Indonesia to educate
people about the Holocaust,” he said.
“Our
goal is that it is not only for Jews. The message of the museum is that racism
and hatred must be fought from early on before it is too late.“
In
the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, however, its establishment
has not been welcomed by all with open arms.
The
Indonesia Ulema Council (MUI), a group of scholars that oversees Islamic
affairs, has called for the museum to be shut.
“I
beg the local government … this hurts the Palestinian people,” said Sudarnoto
Abdul Hakim, the head of the MUI’s international relations unit.
Hidayat
Nur Wahid, a senior figure in the Islamist faith-based Prosperous Justice Party
and the deputy speaker of Indonesia’s upper house, was also scathing. He said
he believed the museum to be a ploy by Israel to try and normalise relations
with Indonesia, which has long rejected diplomatic ties because of its support
for the Palestinian cause.
It’s
an issue that has been in the headlines lately after US Secretary of State
Antony Blinken raised the prospect of establishing formal relations between
Indonesia and Israel during a visit to Jakarta in December. The controversy
about the photo exhibition prompted reporters to last week again pose questions
to Indonesia’s foreign ministry about where it stands on Israel.
Indonesia’s
position, though, remains unchanged. “We support the Palestinian people and we
continue to work for the independence of Palestine within the two-state solution
framework,” foreign ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said.
Baruch
insists the exhibition in Tondano has nothing to do with conflict in the Middle
East. He told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age he forbids members of the
synagogue displaying the Israeli flag “because it only provokes people”.
“I
support the [Indonesian] government’s position,” he said. “We are talking about
faith here, we are not talking about politics.”
The
furore over the museum’s opening, however, offers a glimpse into the life of
the tiny Jewish community in a nation of 230 million Muslims.
Baruch
estimates there are about 50 Indonesian Jews across the archipelago,
descendants of Dutch colonialists and immigrants from Iraq, and a further 500
expatriates living in Jakarta and Bali. “It is difficult to find them because
they hide their identity,” he said.
Indonesia
has traditionally been known for its moderate form of Islam and in Tondano as
well the nearby provincial capital of Manado, which has a large Christian
population, the small Jewish community is embraced and feels safe to openly
display and practise their faith and mark holy days. Before the pandemic,
visitors from a prominent Islamic boarding school in Gontor, East Java, even
came to the synagogue twice a year to study Judaism.
Rising
religious conservatism and intolerance in Indonesia, though, has given the
sprinkling of Jews beyond that inclusive corner of Sulawesi extra reason to
keep a low profile.
“I
had a bad experience when I was in Jakarta,” Baruch said, recalling an incident
in the capital a decade ago. “I was with my [pregnant] wife at a mall and five
big men shouted at me saying ‘crazy Jew’. They said they would kill me unless I
took off my kippah. They wanted to hit me but the mall security suddenly arrived
and saved us, so we could get away.”
When
he has returned to Jakarta since, he has led religious rituals behind closed
doors inside a five-star hotel for security.
Maureen
Elias, a 73-year-old Jewish woman who lives on the outskirts of the Indonesian
metropolis, knows all about worshipping in secret.
“We
do the Sabbath by ourselves and it’s just ourselves celebrating our own festive
days,” she said.
“We’re
not looking for trouble. Safety first. The most important thing is that the
soul goes to heaven.”
She
believes it is “very sad”, however, that people aren’t buried according to
Jewish customs as Judaism is not one of the six officially recognised religions
in Indonesia.
“We
can choose what [religion] to state in our ID cards, be it Islam, Christian,
Hindu, whatever. But my grandma chose Christian,” she said. “So, we will be
buried in the Christian way as stated in our ID card. It is the norm in
Indonesia.”
Discrimination
is deeply embedded. Research in 2014 by the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish
non-government organisation, concluded as many as 75 million Indonesians, or 48
per cent of the adult population, harboured anti-Semitic attitudes. It was a
figure eclipsed in south-east Asia only in Malaysia, according to the ADL.
Mun’im
Sirry, an assistant professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame in
the US, conducted his own study in 2018 and 2019, interviewing 700 university
students around Indonesia as well as 500 high school students in East Java
province. Asked to rank who they disliked the most, Jews came in third behind
LGBTI people and communists, he said.
“Indonesia,
in the past few years, underwent certain type of radicalisation.
[Anti-Semitism] is certainly a very serious problem there,” Sirry said.
“But
most Indonesians are not aware of the presence of a small Jewish community in
the country. And they cannot even conceptualise Judaism as a religion because
Judaism is not one of the officially recognised religions in the country.”
Ultimately,
Baruch would like the minute Jewish minority in Indonesia to be comfortable in
revealing their true religious identity, arguing that concealing it was a
problem in itself.
“We
are trying to be ourselves, to be the way we are,” he said. “I’m asking them
now to have guts by wearing the kippah and by interacting in the
inter-religious groups.”
After
decades of keeping their religious affiliation under wraps, though, it’s not an
approach that will be easy to persuade Indonesian Jews to take up.
Source:
SMH
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Malaysia:
Govt to pay up to 60% for losses due to Umrah travel postponement
February
7, 2022
The
Malaysian government will pay up to 60% of the losses incurred by pilgrims
affected by the month-long temporary postponement of umrah travel imposed since
Jan 8, said deputy religious affairs minister Ahmad Marzuk Shaary.
He
said the Pilgrims Fund Board (TH) and the tourism, arts and culture ministry
had checked the list of pilgrims affected by the postponement.
“We
know of umrah pilgrims who were stranded (following the postponement of umrah
travel) recently.
“They
suffered losses as they had paid for accommodation and made other bookings. The
government will bear part of these losses.
“However,
this is still in the final stage of processing and expected to be completed by
the middle of this month,” he said at an event with fishermen in the Kijang
state constituency here today.
Marzuk,
who is Pengkalan Chepa MP, said the payment would be disbursed by TH directly
to the affected pilgrims.
He
said the pilgrims would be required to go to the nearest TH branch office by
bringing the relevant documents, including details of their umrah package.
“If
they have a TH account, it will be easier as the payment will be credited
directly to their TH account. TH will distribute the allocation provided by the
government through the finance ministry,” he added.
Source:
ABNA24
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Deputy
minister: Covid-19 SOP for prayers at mosques nationwide effective in curbing
outbreaks
06
Feb 2022
KOTA
BARU, Feb 6 — The current standard operating procedures (SOP) for
congregational prayers in mosques, surau and madrasah have proven to be
effective in curbing the spread of Covid-19, says Deputy Minister in the Prime
Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Ahmad Marzuk Shaary.
He
said this could be seen by the fact that no mosque-related clusters have been
reported so far, and therefore, the existing SOP would also be used for the
special tarawih prayers during the month of Ramadan.
“That
is why we have maintained the SOP until today, and if there is a change in the
next two months before Ramadan, it will be announced by the government. If any
(changes are announced), it is up to the views of the respective state
religious councils to use the SOP effectively.
“We
have also learned from several incidents that occurred last Ramadan when there
were clusters of tarawih groups that did not comply with the SOP. Therefore,
the government and the authorities will intensify monitoring so that
congregants comply with the SOP set,” he said.
He
was speaking to reporters after attending the Food Bank Contribution
presentation ceremony by Yayasan Pembangunan Ekonomi Islam Malaysia (YaPEIM) at
Kolej Uniti here today, which was also attended by Kota Baru Kolej Uniti chief
operating officer Mohd Shaharom Azmin and Kelantan YaPEIM Administrative Centre
general manager Nik Mohd Nurul Ihsan Salleh.
The
media previously reported that the Malaysian Islamic Development Department
(Jakim) did not intend to introduce specific SOP for tarawih prayers during
Ramadan this year, and would instead maintain the existing ones in use.
Meanwhile,
commenting on a recent ‘trend’ of couples getting divorced through the WhatsApp
application, Ahmad Marzuk said the divorce was legal, but it was not ethical in
nature.
Source:
Malay Mail
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Singapore
and Malaysia can prosper and emerge stronger from pandemic by working together:
Masagos Zulkifli
Nadine
Chua
FEB
5, 2022
SINGAPORE
- Close cooperation between Singapore and Malaysia will see both countries
prosper and emerge stronger from the Covid-19 pandemic, said Minister for
Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli on Saturday (Feb 5).
In
a Facebook post after a three-day working visit to Kuala Lumpur, he noted two
recurring themes from engagements with his Malaysian counterparts.
"First,
we recognised and affirmed that Singapore and Malaysia are close neighbours
with deep and treasured ties in many ways for as long as anyone can
remember," he said.
"Second,
that by working closely together, we can all prosper and emerge stronger
together from the pandemic.
"With
the VTL resumption, I am confident that this will pave the way forward."
Mr
Masagos was referring to the vaccinated travel lane (VTL) arrangement between
Singapore and Malaysia.
About
100,000 people have entered Singapore from Malaysia under the quarantine-free
travel scheme that started on Nov 29.
Of
these, about 55,000 people have entered via the Causeway under the land VTL,
and some 44,000 people have entered via the VTL for air travellers from
Malaysia.
Mr
Masagos, who is Singapore's Second Minister for Health and Minister-in-Charge
of Muslim Affairs, said he also met Malaysia's Home Affairs Minister Hamzah
Zainudin.
"We
have known each other for many years when we were both in the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and updated each other on developments in both our
countries," said Mr Masagos.
In
a meeting with Malaysia's Minister in the Prime Minister's Department
(Religious Affairs) Idris Ahmad, Mr Masagos described the Islamic Religious
Council of Singapore (Muis), Mendaki and People's Association Malay Activity
Executive Committees Council as engines driving Singapore's Muslim community
towards success.
"I
am happy to share that Minister Idris and myself have agreed to advance new
working cooperation in several key areas that value-add and support the
socio-religious life of Muslims in both countries," he added.
Mr
Masagos arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
In
a meeting with Minister of Rural Development Mahdzir Khalid, he noted that
despite Singapore and Malaysia facing different challenges, both countries have
the same vision to enable families in need.
Source:
Straits Times
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Umno’s
embrace of non-Malays had better not be an election ploy
K.
Parkaran
February
7, 2022
The
political intrigues of the “Sheraton Move” that brought down Pakatan Harapan in
2020 has also cast a pall on the optimism shared by many Malaysians that the
nation will, one day, provide fair and equal opportunities for all irrespective
of ethnicity.
The
downfall of Pakatan Harapan led to Perikatan Nasional taking over with an
almost completely Malay-Muslim government. Of course, Umno gave its shoulders
to lift up PN and nudge out PH.
The
party openly claimed that PH had at least eight non-Muslim Cabinet ministers,
which Umno claimed was not good for national unity. Ironically, this happened
in the year 2020, the year when Mahathir Mohamad’s vision of a mature Bangsa
Malaysia society, with minimal reference to racial origins, was supposed to
flower.
We
are still fighting hard to regain our position as a nation that is fair to all.
The
people have not forgotten that Umno helped to take down the PH government,
but recent statements by certain Umno
leaders that non-Malays must be given their fair share is a breath of fresh
air.
Certain
Umno leaders are now openly, and consistently, saying that this nation is not
just about Malays and Muslims, but also about the others, especially those who
are deeply rooted and committed to the country.
This
was underscored again a few days ago by Umno vice-president Khaled Nordin who
said Barisan Nasional must return to a formula of genuine power-sharing and not
resort to appointing token non-Malays in the government.
“Increasing
non-Malay support must be a key strategy. It is time that they become part of
the government and manage the states and country with Umno, the biggest Malay
party,” he declared.
For
non-Bumiputeras, who form 35% of the population, Khaled’s remarks were
obviously music to their ears, after being often reminded by some fanatical
leaders in the past that Malaysia is a Malay land and others can leave if they
are not happy.
Obviously,
many are asking if Umno’s change of mind is merely a ploy to win the non-Malay
votes, a huge factor in the coming Johor state elections.
Umno’s
sudden strong multiracial stand can be construed, rightly or wrongly, as its
way of wooing the votes it lost to DAP at the last general election. Or it
could be the case of psyching up the masses for a possible coalition with DAP
after the elections if the opposition party manages to win a substantial number
of seats in the state assembly.
It
definitely won’t risk going into the polls with a pre-election pact with DAP as
it will be used by PAS and Bersatu to accuse Umno of selling out the Malays.
If
you ask an eternal optimist like me, Umno’s statements, whether real or not,
mark a good start, because over the last two years certain parties have
positioned non-Malays as a group that is irrelevant politically and one that
Malaysia could do without.
There
have been politicians in the past who, months before any election, wax lyrical
about how important this group is, but then change their tune.
Khaled
has said Umno does not believe in tokenism but I am afraid the party has to go
beyond mere words if the current trust deficit is to be addressed. It has to
make definite pledges on appointing qualified and competent non-Malays to
important positions that can make a difference.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
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Xinjiang
skier becomes joint last torchbearer in Beijing
February
4, 2022
BEIJING:
China chose a cross-country skier born in the troubled Xinjiang region to be a
joint final torchbearer at the climax of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony
today.
Campaigners
say that at least 1 million mostly Muslim minorities have been incarcerated in
“reeducation camps” in Xinjiang, where China is also accused of forcibly
sterilising women and imposing forced labour.
After
initially denying the existence of the camps, Beijing said they were vocational
training centres aimed at reducing the appeal of Islamic extremism.
In
the final moments of the opening ceremony in Beijing’s Bird’s Nest Stadium, the
last two torchbearers were Zhao Jiawen and Dinigeer Yilamujiang.
Born
in Xinjiang, 20-year-old Yilamujiang became the first Chinese cross-country
skiing medallist in an international ski federation-level event, having
finished second in the opening women’s leg in Beijing in 2019.
Chinese
media has reported that she learned to ski as a five-year-old as a way of
getting around her snowy hometown in Altay prefecture, northern Xinjiang, and
that her father is a skiing instructor.
Yilamujiang
trained in Norway for the last three years with the national team, according to
a video on the Beijing 2022 Youtube channel.
“The
only thing we can do now is train hard and win glory for the country,” she says
in the video.
The
video commentary also describes her ethnicity as “Uighur”.
The
US and lawmakers from multiple western nations have accused China of carrying
out a genocide against its Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, a charge Beijing
denies.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
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Khairy
fails to appeal 2017 High Court ruling on Anwar’s defamation suit
07
Feb 2022
KUALA
LUMPUR, Feb 7 — Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has lost his appeal against
the defamation suit filed 14 years ago by Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar
Ibrahim, in relation to a statement made during a political rally.
According
to a report by local daily The Star, a three-man panel of the Court of Appeal
in Putrajaya chaired by Justice Lee Swee Seng saw no “appealable error” made by
the High Court in Kuala Lumpur back in 2017.
Khairy’s
appeal was dismissed and he was reportedly ordered to pay RM50,000 in costs to
Anwar.
In
2008, during a political rally, then-Umno Youth chief Khairy uttered the words
“main belakang” — Malay for “playing from behind” — in relation to Anwar.
Anwar
filed the defamation suit soon after, arguing that the words uttered by Khairy
were defamatory, and implied that Anwar went against Islam and was unfit to
hold political positions.
In
2017, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur ruled in Anwar’s favour and ordered Khairy
to pay RM150,000 in damages.
Khairy
appealed the High Court decision. The Court of Appeal dismissed it in February
2018.
Source:
Malay Mail
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Arab World
Minors
still detained in Syria prison attacked by ISIS: UN
06
February ,2022
The
United Nations said on Sunday that minors were still being detained in a northeast
Syria prison attacked last month by ISIS, calling their conditions
“precarious.”
International
rights groups, including Save the Children and Human Rights Watch have
previously said that 700 boys had been in the Ghwayran jail before the January
20 operation.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Aged
between 12 and 18, they include many who had adult relatives inside the prison
and were transferred from nearby displacement camps housing thousands of
children of extremist fighters.
“UNICEF
met with some of the children still detained in the Ghwayran detention center,”
the UN’s child agency said in a statement.
“Despite
some of the basic services now in place, the situation of these children is
incredibly precarious,” it added, without specifying how many minors were still
detained.
Farhad
Shami of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces told AFP that “hundreds” of
minors were still being held in Ghwayran, refusing to disclose an exact figure.
“They
are being kept in a safe place,” he said
The
ISIS prison break attempt from the Ghwayran jail in Hasakeh city triggered a
week of clashes inside and around the Kurdish-run facility, leaving hundreds
dead, before Kurdish-led forces recaptured the jail.
It
was the largest operation in Syria since the group’s territorial defeat in
2019.
UNICEF
said it was working to immediately provide care for the minors and confirmed
that it “is ready to help support a new safe place in the northeast of Syria to
take care of the most vulnerable children.”
On
Sunday, the SDF said in a statement that UNICEF was the first UN agency granted
permission to visit the jail since the attack.
“The
delegation was provided with information on the status of [ISIS]-linked
teenagers," the SDF added.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Iraq
court suspends Hoshyar Zebari from presidential race
06
February ,2022
Iraq’s
Supreme Court said Sunday it had temporarily suspended Hoshyar Zebari, a
frontrunner for the presidency, on the eve of parliament’s vote on the
position, citing years-old corruption charges against him.
The
court said it had received a complaint from lawmakers that Zebari's candidacy
was “unconstitutional” because of the graft claims, adding that his suspension
was “temporary” while the court considers the case.
Zebari
was one of two main contenders for the largely ceremonial post of president,
which the 329-member parliament was to vote on on Monday.
The
other favored candidate for the presidency is the incumbent Barham Saleh.
Iraq’s
highest judicial body said the complainants consider that Zebari does not
fulfil constitutional requirements that the head of state must have “a good
reputation and integrity.”
The
court cited his 2016 dismissal from the post of finance minister by parliament
“over charges linked to financial and administrative corruption.”
Public
funds worth $1.8 million were allegedly diverted to pay for airline tickets for
his personal security detail.
Zebari,
68, has always denied all corruption accusations.
The
complaint also cited at least two other judicial cases linked to him, including
when he was the country’s long-time foreign minister after the fall of dictator
Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Blast
targets US-led coalition convoy in southern Iraq
Ibrahim
Saleh
06.02.2022
BAGHDAD
A
roadside bomb targeted a military convoy carrying logistics for the US-led
coalition against the Daesh/ISIS terror group in southern Iraq, according to a
local security official on Sunday.
No
injuries were reported in the attack that occurred on a highway in the southern
al-Diwaniya province, the official said on condition of anonymity because he was
not authorized to brief the media.
A
military vehicle sustained limited damage in the blast.
According
to the source, Iraqi authorities have launched an investigation into the
attack.
Recent
months saw a spate of attacks on coalition convoys in central and southern
Iraq.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/blast-targets-us-led-coalition-convoy-in-southern-iraq/2495311
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France,
Luxembourg ask Lebanon for information on cenbank chief’s finances: Sources
06
February ,2022
Lebanon
has received letters from French and Luxembourg authorities asking for
information relating to Lebanon Central Bank Chief Riad Salameh’s bank accounts
and assets, two Lebanese judicial sources told Reuters.
The
sources did not elaborate.
A
spokesperson for Luxembourg’s judiciary confirmed to Reuters in November it had
opened “a criminal case” in relation to Salameh and his companies and assets,
declining to provide further information at the time.
France,
Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Lebanon are also probing Salameh’s personal
wealth. Salameh has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing during his nearly
three-decades at the helm of Lebanon’s central bank.
A
spokesperson for Luxembourg’s judiciary and Lebanon’s justice minister did not
immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday.
The
French embassy in Lebanon said Saturday it could not comment on “ongoing
judicial affairs.”
When
asked for comment, Salameh told Reuters the request for cooperation from
Luxembourg was a “normal procedure” not a “legal suit.”
“If
they had filed a legal suit they don’t need help in the investigation,” he
said.
Salameh
denied reports that he had been charged by Luxembourg authorities, and noted
both Switzerland and France had previously requested similar cooperation from
Lebanon.
Salameh’s
role at the central banks has come under close scrutiny since Lebanon’s
economic meltdown in 2019, which has seen the value of the currency collapse
and swathes of the population pushed into poverty.
The
Swiss attorney general’s office last year said it had requested legal
assistance from Lebanon in the context of a probe into “aggravated money
laundering” and possible embezzlement of more than $300 million under Salameh
at the central bank.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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2
journalists kidnapped by YPG/PKK terror group in Syria
06.02.2022
QAMISHLI
CITY, Syria
The
YPG/PKK terror group has kidnapped two journalists working for a media outlet
close to the Kurdish National Council in Syria, according to local sources on
Sunday.
YPG/PKK
terrorists raided the houses of Sabri Fahri and Baver Molla Ahmet in Qamishli
city in northeastern Syria overnight and took them to an unknown location, the
sources said on condition of anonymity.
The
two journalists work for ARK News outlet based in Erbil in northern Iraq.
According
to the sources, the order to hold the two journalists was issued by Mahmut Ris,
a commander in the PKK terror group in Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq.
On
Saturday, the PKK terrorist group banned the Kurdish Rudaw TV in areas under
its control in northeastern Syria.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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President
Xi says China, Egypt hold ‘similar visions,’ ‘strategies’
05
February ,2022
China
and Egypt “share similar visions and strategies in defending their own
interests,” Chinese leader Xi Jinping said Saturday in a meeting with Egypt's
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Xi
“hailed enhanced political trust” between the countries, citing cooperation in
fighting the pandemic. Their comprehensive strategic partnership is a model of
“China-Arab, China-Africa and China-developing world solidarity,” Xi said,
according to CGTN, the international arm of state broadcaster CCTV.
For
all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
Beijing meeting comes as al-Sisi's government is seeking closer ties with China
while it distances itself from the US and other Western states critical of its
human rights record.
“China
and Egypt share similar visions and strategies in defending their own
interests, pursuing common development, enhancing their people’s well-being and
promoting fairness and justice in the world, as the world is undergoing changes
unseen in a century,” Xi said.
The
sides will “continue to support each other on issues related to core interests
and major concerns,” he said.
Since
taking power, al-Sisi has overseen a widespread crackdown on dissent and
opposition, jailing tens of thousands and drawing international criticism.
In 2017,
the government arrested dozens of Uyghur students studying at Cairo’s al-Azhar
University and deported them to China amid Beijing's ruthless crackdown on
Muslim minorities.
Egypt
was the recipient of several free shipments of Chinese-made Sinopharm coronavirus
vaccines and China says it helped set up Africa’s first vaccine production in
the country.
Al-Sisi
is one of more than 30 world leaders and heads of major international
organizations who flew to Beijing for Friday's opening of the Winter Olympic
Games.
Not
having left China since 2019 amid the pandemic, Xi is holding a series meetings
on the sidelines of the Games with leaders whose countries are anxious to
strengthen relations with the rising superpower.
By
around midday Saturday, Xi had also met with heads of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan
and Serbia. The leaders of Argentina, Ecuador, Qatar, Poland and are also among
those in town.
The
meetings follow a mini-summit between Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin
on Friday that underscored the growing alignment of their authoritarian
countries’ positions as they push back against the liberal world order
dominated by the US.
The
two leaders oversaw the signing of more than 20 agreements covering trade,
energy and other fields and issued a joint statement in which China backed
Russia in opposing
NATO’s
expansion, a move seen as signifying Xi’s growing perception of himself as a
global leader.
“President
Putin emphasized that the strategic significance of Russia-China relations is
unprecedented,” Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Le Yucheng said in a commentary
on the meeting posted to the ministry’s website.
“Russia
firmly supports China’s legitimate position of safeguarding its core
interests,” Le said. “During the talks, the two heads of state reiterated that
any attempt to harm the interests of China and Russia and divide China-Russia
relations is doomed to failure.”
While
China formally eschews all military alliances, the sides have held a series of
joint war games, including naval drills and patrols by long-range bombers over
the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea. In August, Russian troops for the
first time deployed to Chinese territory for joint maneuvers.
Putin
has also noted that Russia has been sharing highly sensitive military
technologies with China that helped significantly bolster its defense
capability.
In
his meeting Saturday with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Xi said China
is “unswerving in its support for Kazakhstan’s safeguarding of its own
independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
China
issued strong support for Tokayev's government during deadly street protests
last month, though unlike Russia, it did not send troops to help restore order.
“China
is ready to deepen security cooperation with Kazakhstan,” Xi said, according to
CGTN.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Anti-drug
judge shot dead in southern Iraq
06
February ,2022
An
Iraqi judge specialized in drug cases was shot dead Saturday in southern Iraq,
an area increasingly known as a trafficking hub, police and forensic sources
said.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Judge
Ahmed Faisal was headed home in his car in the city of Amara, the capital of
Maysan province, when unknown assailants blocked his route and opened fire, a
police officer told AFP on condition of anonymity.
A
forensic source said the judge died of gunshot wounds to the head and chest.
Both
sources said the victim had been shot 15 times with a Kalashnikov.
The
killing was not immediately claimed.
In
September, another anti-drug judge escaped an assassination attempt in the same
province.
Security
in the area has deteriorated, fueled by tribal conflicts and a settling of
political scores.
Parts
of southern and central Iraq bordering Iran have become important drug
trafficking routes in recent years.
Security
forces have intensified efforts to crack down on the trade, often announcing
drug seizures and the arrest of traffickers.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/middle-east/2022/02/06/Anti-drug-judge-shot-dead-in-southern-Iraq
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Arab
Coalition destroys missile launcher in Yemen: Statement
07
February ,2022
A
ballistic missile launcher was destroyed in Yemen’s northern al-Jawf district,
the Arab Coalition fighting in the country’s civil war announced on Monday
morning.
The
coalition earlier announced the beginning of a new military operation in
Yemen’s capital Sanaa, which is being held by the Iran-backed Houthis.
The
operation was enacted out of “necessity to protect civilians from hostile attacks,”
a coalition spokesperson said via the official SPA news agency.
The
Houthis regularly launch cross-border attacks on Saudi Arabia using drones and
ballistic missiles.
In
January, the group launched unprecedented attacks on the United Arab Emirates
capital Abu Dhabi.
Three
foreign workers were killed in the first attack on January 17 after ADNOC oil
tankers exploded, according to the UAE’s official WAM news agency.
The
UAE and Saudi Arabia intervened in Yemen’s civil war in 2015 as part of the
Arab coalition.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Mideast
Iran
Holds Trial of Ringleader of ‘Tondar’ Terrorist Group
2022-February-6
The
trial of Sharmahd, the ringleader of the Tondar (Thunder), a terrorist group
accused of committing terror attacks and anti-revolutionary operations against
Iran, was held in a plenary court session presided over by Judge Abolqassem
Salavati in the capital, Tehran.
The
prosecutor's representative, the families of the victims of the group’s
terrorist acts and the defendant and his lawyers were in attendance.
Judicial
officials said Sharmahd will be tried in two legal and criminal courts.
The
prosecutor's representative said in an address to the court on Sunday that
Sharmahd intended to carry out 23 terrorist acts, but was successful in only
five cases and failed in 18 others.
Behrouz
Hassani Etemad said Sharmahd had confessed to committing terrorist acts and
deadly explosions in a large religious gathering in Shiraz, Imam Khomeini's
mausoleum, Sivand Dam and Jahan Hotel, and also plotting a bombing attack on
the seminary of Iran's late prominent cleric, Ayatollah Lotfollah Saafi
Golpayegani.
“The
defendant had plans to conduct 23 terrorist acts, of which he succeeded in
five. The bombing in Hosseinieh Rahpooyan in Shiraz on April 15, 2008 was
designed and managed by him, which resulted in the martyrdom of 14 people and
the injury of 300 people, 15 of whom were children,” Hassani Etemad said at the
trial session.
The
prosecutor's representative added that the Tondar terrorist group had leveled
slanderous accusations against the noble religion of Islam by using visual,
audio, and social media.
During
the plenary court session, Hassani Etemad said American officials had contacted
the defendant after the explosion in Shiraz, and as Sharmahd confessed, “His
first contact with the FBI was after the bomb blast in Shiraz, where they
mentioned some security points to the defendant.”
Pointing
to Sharmahd’s other meetings with the Americans, the prosecutor's
representative said, "The defendant's confession states that he met with
two local senators and talked to them about the goals and actions of the Tondar
group."
Hassani
Etemad said Sharmahd had admitted to being in contact with nine members of the
FBI and CIA, whose last meeting dates back to January 2020.
Stressing
that Sharmahd had also been in contact with CIA members, the prosecutor's
representative said, “The entire IDs and passwords of the group were in
possession of the FBI officers and that the defendant also had correspondence
with the secretary of state and the president of the United States.”
Hassani
Etemad told the court that Sharmahd, through one of his agents, became
acquainted with two Mossad members and tried to gain their support, saying he
had met a person named Jacob and tried to send one of his plans for a terror
operation to the Israeli regime.
The
court said that the date for the next trial session of Sharmahd would be
subsequently announced.
The
Iranian Intelligence Ministry announced in a statement in August 2020 that it
had arrested the terrorist ringleader, who had directed "armed operations
and acts of sabotage" in Iran from the US.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Israel
vows to ‘act freely’ against Iran's nuclear program
Ahmed
Asmar
06.02.2022
Israeli
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett vowed on Sunday to continue acting against
Iran’s nuclear program, according to local media.
"Whoever
thinks an agreement will increase stability is wrong," Bennett said in
statements cited by The Jerusalem Post newspaper during a weekly cabinet
meeting.
"Israel
will maintain freedom of action in any situation, with or without an
agreement," he added.
The
Israeli premier said that Tel Aviv is strengthening itself militarily against
any possible threat from Iran.
The
biggest "threat to the State of Israel is Iran," Bennett warned.
Iran
and P4+1 (Russia, China, France, the UK, and Germany) held several rounds of
talks in the Austrian capital, Vienna, to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal.
Under
the agreement, Tehran has committed to limit its nuclear activity to civilian
purposes and in return, world powers agreed to drop their economic sanctions
against Iran.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/israel-vows-to-act-freely-against-irans-nuclear-program/2495405
--------
Turkiye
'neutralizes' 8 YPG/PKK terrorists in northern Syria
Faruk
Zorlu
06.02.2022
ANKARA
Turkish
forces “neutralized” eight YPG/PKK terrorists in northern Syria, the National
Defense Ministry said on Sunday.
The
terrorists were targeted while preparing to carry out attacks in the Operations
Peace Spring and Euphrates Shield zones, the ministry said on Twitter.
Turkish
authorities use the term “neutralize” to imply the terrorists in question
surrendered or were killed or captured.
Since
2016, Ankara has launched a trio of successful anti-terror operations across
its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and
enable the peaceful settlement of residents: Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive
Branch (2018), and Peace Spring (2019).
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iranian
President: US Expulsion to Establish Peace, Security in Region
2022-February-6
"All
problems and issues in the region can be resolved provided that extra-regional
powers stop their intervention," President Rayeesi said in a phone
conversation with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi on Saturday.
"Regional
problems are rooted in the Americans' excessive demands and if they are
expelled from the region in a real way which is not a pretense, we will see
that the countries of the region themselves can fully establish peace,
stability and security in cooperation with each other," he added.
Rayeesi
referred to the successful battle of Iran and Iraq against the ISIL and Takfiri
groups, saying that the two countries can use such experience in strengthening
regional security and stability.
Rayeesi
added that Tehran has always attached importance to the expansion of relations
with Baghdad, and said Iraq has a special position in the Iranian
administration's foreign policy to promote ties with neighboring and regional
countries.
Iran
has always underlined the need for a strong and solid government and a powerful
and united society in Iraq, he stated.
The
Iranian president expressed the hope that the "political structure
building in Iraq will materialize through national solidarity and unity in
order to result in increasing stability and progress of the Iraqi nation".
He
also pointed to the sufferings of the oppressed Yemeni people and expressed
hope that the Iraqi government would be able to take the lead in a regional
initiative to lift the siege on the impoverished country and restore the rights
of the Yemenis.
The
Iraqi prime minister, for his part, said his country attaches great importance
to promotion of economic exchanges with Iran.
Al-Kadhimi
added that Baghdad fully welcomes Tehran's policy of expanding relations with
its neighbors and regional states, and hoped the two states would further
promote cooperation.
In
relevant remarks in September, Rayeesi said that Tehran and Baghdad can further
broaden and deepen relations despite the opposition of their enemies.
“I
hope that relations between the two countries will improve day by day, and
despite the will of the enemies of the two countries, we will always see good
relations between Iran and Iraq,” Rayeesi said in a press conference with
al-Kadhimi in Tehran.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
FM:
Only Practical Measures by US Matter to Iran
2022-February-6
The
Vienna talks will definitely proceed only with expert opinions and in line with
national interests, Amir Abdollahian said on Sunday.
Basically,
the talks have a process which does not contain any precondition, he added.
Measures
which are put down on paper could be good, said Amir Abdollahian said,
meantime, stressing the importance of taking practical measures to remove
anti-Iran sanctions.
The
sole issue which is important to Iran is that practical measures should be
taken by the US, he added.
The
Iranian foreign minister went on to say that lifting of sanctions should be
tangible and its effects should be felt.
Although
the US officials repeatedly send messages through intermediaries to Iran and
claim that they have good faith, Iran has seen no serious initiative during the
current talks, he noted.
In
response to a question on reports about a two-year and an interim agreement,
the foreign minister said Iran is after a good agreement and not a temporary
and limited one.
Late
in November last year, the participants in the Vienna talks aimed to remove
sanctions against Tehran and revive Iran's deal with world powers, officially
known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), resumed the talks for
the first time under Iran’s new President Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi. Since then,
Iran has repeatedly emphasized that it seeks a “good agreement” in the Austrian
capital.
The
talks were launched last April over US President Joe Biden’s pledge to rejoin
the JCPOA and rescind Trump’s “failed maximum pressure” campaign.
Over
a year into his presidency, Biden has failed to re-enter the 2015 deal.
Instead, he has kept Trump’s sanctions in place while adding new ones as well.
The
US quit the deal in 2018 and returned the sanctions that the accord had lifted.
Now, the talks are examining the potential of fresh removal of the sanctions.
Reports
said on Friday that the Biden administration has restored a nuclear cooperation
sanctions waiver to Iran, a senior State Department official said.
The
waiver, which was rescinded by the Trump administration in May 2020, had
allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to carry out non-proliferation
work at Iranian nuclear sites.
The
move came as Iran has been requesting removal of economic sanctions.
Shamkhani
reacted to the news on Saturday by saying that Iran has the right to a peaceful
nuclear program.
“Iran’s
legal right to continue research and development and to maintain its peaceful
nuclear capabilities and achievements, along with its security against
supported evils, cannot be restricted by any agreement,” he tweeted.
Iranian
senior analyst Seyed Mostafa Khoshcheshm also discredited the US move,
describing it as a deceitful measure aimed at prioritizing nuclear debates over
economic sanctions in the Vienna talks.
In
a reply tweet to a post left by the Russian representative at the Vienna
negotiations, Mikhail Ulyanov who had welcomed the US waivers as a step
forward, Khoshcheshm said the US continues its game against Iran and its recent
move shouldn't be interpreted as softening tone.
Iranian
Government Spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi said earlier this week that his
country does not accept lifting of the US embargos just on paper and all of
them should be removed in practice.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14001117000621/FM-Only-Pracical-Measres-by-US-Maer-Iran
--------
Iran:
Vienna Talks Far from Balance in Commitments of Parties
2022-February-6
"Despite
limited progress in the Vienna Talks, we are still far from achieving the
necessary balance in the commitments of the parties," Shamkhani wrote on
his twitter page on Sunday.
"Political
decisions in Washington are required for balance of commitments to reach a good
agreement," he added.
Late
in November last year, the participants in the Vienna talks aimed to remove
sanctions against Tehran and revive Iran's deal with world powers, officially
known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), resumed the Vienna
talks for the first time under Iran’s new president Ebrahim Rayeesi. Since
then, Iran has repeatedly emphasized that it seeks a “good agreement” in the
Austrian capital.
The
talks were launched last April over US President Joe Biden’s pledge to rejoin
the JCPOA and rescind Trump’s “failed maximum pressure” campaign.
Over
a year into his presidency, Biden has failed to re-enter the 2015 deal.
Instead, he has kept Trump’s sanctions in place while adding new ones as well.
The
US quit the deal in 2018 and returned the sanctions that the accord had lifted.
Now, the talks are examining the potential of fresh removal of the sanctions.
Reports
said on Friday that the Biden administration has restored a nuclear cooperation
sanctions waiver to Iran, a senior State Department official said.
The
waiver, which was rescinded by the Trump administration in May 2020, had
allowed Russian, Chinese and European companies to carry out non-proliferation
work at Iranian nuclear sites.
The
move came as Iran has been requesting removal of economic sanctions.
Shamkhani
reacted to the news on Saturday by saying that Iran has the right to a peaceful
nuclear program.
“Iran’s
legal right to continue research and development and to maintain its peaceful
nuclear capabilities and achievements, along with its security against
supported evils, cannot be restricted by any agreement,” he tweeted.
Iranian
senior analyst Seyed Mostafa Khoshcheshm also discredited the US move,
describing it as a deceitful measure aimed at prioritizing nuclear debates over
economic sanctions in the Vienna talks.
In
a reply tweet to a post left by the Russian representative at the Vienna
negotiations, Mikhail Ulyanov who had welcomed the US waivers as a step
forward, Khoshcheshm said the US continues its game against Iran and its recent
move shouldn't be interpreted as softening tone.
Iranian
Government Spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi said earlier this week that his
country does not accept lifting of the US embargos just on paper and all of
them should be removed in practice.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
President
Rayeesi Calls for Expansion of Iran-Sri Lanka Ties
2022-February-6
In
his message, President Rayeesi congratulated President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and
the people of Sri Lanka on that country's Independence Day.
"I
offer my sincerest congratulations to Your Excellency on the anniversary of
Independence Day of your country," the Iranian president said.
The
President also expressed hope that the relations between the two countries will
be expanded in various fields and in the mutual interests of the two nations.
"I
wish Your Excellency health and success, and the people of Sri Lanka prosperity
and felicity," he added.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Israeli,
Palestinian figures propose two-state confederation
07 February
,2022
Israeli
and Palestinian public figures have drawn up a new proposal for a two-state
confederation that they hope will offer a way forward after a decade-long
stalemate in Middle East peace efforts.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
plan includes several controversial proposals, and it’s unclear if it has any
support among leaders on either side. But it could help shape the debate over
the conflict and will be presented to a senior US official and the UN secretary
general this week.
The
plan calls for an independent state of Palestine in most of the West Bank, Gaza
and east Jerusalem, territories Israel seized in the 1967 Middle East war.
Israel and Palestine would have separate governments but coordinate at a very
high level on security, infrastructure and other issues that affect both
populations.
The
plan would allow the nearly 500,000 Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank
to remain there, with large settlements near the border annexed to Israel in a
one-to-one land swap.
Settlers
living deep inside the West Bank would be given the option of relocating or
becoming permanent residents in the state of Palestine. The same number of
Palestinians — likely refugees from the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation
— would be allowed to relocate to Israel as citizens of Palestine with
permanent residency in Israel.
The
initiative is largely based on the Geneva Accord, a detailed, comprehensive
peace plan drawn up in 2003 by prominent Israelis and Palestinians, including
former officials. The nearly 100-page confederation plan includes new, detailed
recommendations for how to address core issues.
Yossi
Beilin, a former senior Israeli official and peace negotiator who co-founded
the Geneva Initiative, said that by taking the mass evacuation of settlers off
the table, the plan could be more amenable to them.
Israel’s
political system is dominated by the settlers and their supporters, who view
the West Bank as the biblical and historical heartland of the Jewish people and
an integral part of Israel.
The
Palestinians view the settlements as the main obstacle to peace, and most of
the international community considers them illegal. The settlers living deep
inside the West Bank — who would likely end up within the borders of a future
Palestinian state — are among the most radical and tend to oppose any
territorial partition.
“We
believe that if there is no threat of confrontations with the settlers it would
be much easier for those who want to have a two-state solution,” Beilin said.
The idea has been discussed before, but he said a confederation would make it
more “feasible.”
Numerous
other sticking points remain, including security, freedom of movement and
perhaps most critically after years of violence and failed negotiations, lack
of trust.
Israel’s
Foreign Ministry and the Palestinian Authority declined to comment.
The
main Palestinian figure behind the initiative is Hiba Husseini, a former legal
adviser to the Palestinian negotiating team going back to 1994 who hails from a
prominent Jerusalem family.
She
acknowledged that the proposal regarding the settlers is “very controversial”
but said the overall plan would fulfill the Palestinians’ core aspiration for a
state of their own.
“It’s
not going to be easy,” she added. “To achieve statehood and to achieve the
desired right of self-determination that we have been working on — since 1948,
really — we have to make some compromises.”
Thorny
issues like the conflicting claims to Jerusalem, final borders and the fate of
Palestinian refugees could be easier to address by two states in the context of
a confederation, rather than the traditional approach of trying to work out all
the details ahead of a final agreement.
“We’re
reversing the process and starting with recognition,” Husseini said.
It’s
been nearly three decades since Israeli and Palestinian leaders gathered on the
White House lawn to sign the Oslo accords, launching the peace process.
Several
rounds of talks over the years, punctuated by outbursts of violence, failed to
yield a final agreement, and there have been no serious or substantive
negotiations in more than a decade.
Israel’s
current prime minister, Naftali Bennett, is a former settler leader opposed to
Palestinian statehood. Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, who is set to take over as
prime minister in 2023 under a rotation agreement, supports an eventual
two-state solution.
But
neither is likely to be able to launch any major initiatives because they head
a narrow coalition spanning the political spectrum from hard-line nationalist
factions to a small Arab party.
On
the Palestinian side, President Mahmoud Abbas’ authority is confined to parts
of the occupied West Bank, with the militant group Hamas — which doesn’t accept
Israel’s existence — ruling Gaza. Abbas’ presidential term expired in 2009 and
his popularity has plummeted in recent years, meaning he is unlikely to be able
to make any historic compromises.
The
idea of the two-state solution was to give the Palestinians an independent
state, while allowing Israel to exist as a democracy with a strong Jewish
majority. Israel’s continued expansion of settlements, the absence of any peace
process and repeated rounds of violence, however, have greatly complicated
hopes of partitioning the land.
The
international community still views a two-state solution as the only realistic
way to resolve the conflict.
But
the ground is shifting, particularly among young Palestinians, who increasingly
view the conflict as a struggle for equal rights under what they — and three
prominent human rights groups — say is an apartheid regime.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
media report says man confesses to decapitating wife
06
February ,2022
Iran’s
semi-official ILNA news agency has reported that two brothers in police custody
have confessed to decapitating the wife of one of them, after a gruesome video
of the victim circulated online.
The
report said the two men were arrested four hours after the killing on Saturday
in the southwestern city of Ahvaz. Tens of thousands of people viewed the video
on social media, which showed a man holding a large knife while carrying a
severed head with long hair in another hand.
ILNA
quoted a police officer, Col. Sohrab Hosseinnejad, as saying that “the
defendants confessed to the murder during the police investigation and were
introduced to the judicial authority.”
The
report cited family problems as the likely motive, but added that the issue is
under investigation. Police did not release the men’s names or elaborate
further on the killing or who filmed the video.
Such
violence is rare in Iran.
In
April 2021, a 50-year-old man shot to death his nine-year-old son and seven of
his in-laws in the city of Ahvaz.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Rare
session of key Palestinian body could provide Abbas succession clues
06
February ,2022
A
key Palestinian decision-making body convenes on Sunday for the first time in
nearly four years in a session that could be a stepping stone for two potential
successors to 86-year-old President Mahmoud Abbas.
The
Palestine Liberation Organization’s (PLO) Central Council last met in 2018,
hampered by internal divisions among Palestinians. Hamas and Islamist Jihad
movements turned down an invitation to attend Sunday’s meeting, saying Abbas
had to institute power-sharing reforms first.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Abbas
heads the PLO and the Palestinian Authority (PA), which exercises limited
self-rule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. His main rival, Hamas, runs the
Gaza Strip.
The
elderly leader, who has a history of heart problems, has not proposed a
successor. Both groups have accused Abbas, who hasn’t held a presidential
election since 2005, of not doing enough to heal Palestinian divides which are
holding up a ballot. Abbas blames Hamas for the current split.
The
141-member Central Council, meeting on Sunday and Monday, was widely expected
to appoint two of Abbas’s confidants, Hussein Al-Sheikh and Rawhi Fattouh, to
senior posts, effectively placing them on a short list to replace him,
Palestinian analysts said.
Abbas,
scheduled to speak at the opening session, wants 61-year-old Sheikh, now a key
Palestinian liaison with Israel and the United States, to fill the post of
secretary-general of the PLO’s Executive Committee, replacing the late Saeb
Erekat, the analysts said.
Fattouh,
73, another Abbas aide, is his choice to head the PLO’s highest decision-making
body, the National Council.
Both
men are close to Abbas and are not expected to shift policies over the handling
of the conflict with Israel.
But
even if the appointments are ratified by the Central Council, the path to
succeeding Abbas, elected in 2005 to replace the late Yasser Arafat as PA
president, could prove complicated.
“There
is a long list of successors to (Abbas) and there is a clear internal
conflict,” said West Bank-based political analyst George Giacman. “If something
happened to [him], there will be disputes.”
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Israeli
premier, US president discuss 'regional challenges'
Gözde
Bayar
07.02.2022
Israeli
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke to US President Joe Biden over phone and
discussed a range of issues including regional challenges, his office said in a
statement on Sunday.
Bennett
congratulated Biden on the operation to eliminate Daesh/ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim
al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi in northern Syria, saying that "the world is now a
safer place thanks to the courageous operation of the US forces."
The
two leaders also talked about the "growing Iranian aggression,"
"steps to block the Iranian nuclear program," and the current
situation between Russia and Ukraine.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Africa
South
Sudanese want peace, stability after tough decade of self-determination
Benjamin
Takpiny
06.02.2022
JUBA,
South Sudan
South
Sudanese urged their leaders to understand each other, put differences aside
and focus on bringing stability as the country prepares to mark 11 years of
independence from Sudan.
University
student Peter Marial encouraged the government to work for lasting peace so
South Sudanses can enjoy the fruits of their struggle as the country is set to
celebrates 11 years since the announcement of referendum results on Feb. 7,
2011.
“The
announcement of the referendum was very joyful to us as South Sudanese, such
that we are going to be out of discrimination of Arabs. We enjoy it because we
are going to have our own country but the political crises disorganized our
happiness” Marial told Anadolu Agency.
“The
political crises in the country disorganized our happiness and hope we have
during the referendum results announcement. Now, we are still in the same
crises that we had in Sudan. Although we are an independent country, we are
still seriously suffering in our own country like we were in Sudan.”
He
urged the nation’s leadership to put more effort into bringing stability so
citizens can enjoy the fruits of their struggle.
“I
want our leaders to bring stability in all the sectors like economic health,
education among others,” he said.
Veteran
journalist Jok Anyang said it was a joyful day when it became official that the
country was going to be independent.
“It’s
like crossing the river from a dry place to a green place. By then, we were
hoping that we are going to enjoy what we were not enjoying in Sudan but now,
no change -- things are still the same,” he said.
“As
a young man by then, I have a lot of plans for myself, family and the entire
nation but everything failed due to the conflict that happened in 2013. I want
to achieve something by then but because of crises happening in the country
everything failed. The crises let me down not to achieve what I want to
achieve. When we separated from Sudan, I wanted to open a big center for
training the youth but political crisis in the country didn’t allow me to do
that,” said Anyang.
He
had a request for political leaders: to put aside grievances and give young
people a chance to achieve what they want achieve.
“We
want to enjoy the fruits of our struggle, I want our leaders in the country to
put aside their differences and give us a chance to do something for our
country and the coming generation. We can’t be at war all the time,” said
Anyang. “Let us put aside our difference and join our hands together to bring
peace and stability in our country.”
South
Sudan voted overwhelmingly to declare its independence in final results of the
referendum, opening the door to Africa's newest state and a fresh period of
uncertainty for the fractured region.
A
total of 98.83% of voters from Sudan's oil-producing south chose to secede from
the north.
The
referendum was the climax of a 2005 North-South peace accord that set out to
end Africa's longest civil war and instill democracy in a country that
straddles the continent's Arab-sub Saharan divide.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Tunisia
rescues 163 migrants off east coast
06
February ,2022
The
Tunisian navy has rescued 163 would-be migrants, including women and children,
off the country’s east coast, the defense ministry said on Sunday.
“As
part of a joint operation with the coastguard, a naval unit rescued Saturday
163 illegal migrants,” the ministry said, adding that 162 were Tunisians while
one was Moroccan.
It
said nine women and 16 children were found aboard the boat 12 kilometers (7.5
miles) off the coast of Sfax - a key departure area for migrants seeking to
make their way to European shores, usually in Italy.
The
passengers were reportedly aged between eight and 48, the ministry said, and
set off overnight Friday to Saturday “with the aim of surreptitiously crossing
the maritime borders” to Europe.
The
migrants were taken to the Sfax fishing port, where they were handed over to
the coastguard.
Situated
about 200 kilometers (124 miles) from the Italian island of Sicily, Tunisia has
seen its economy ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic.
Both
Tunisia and neighboring Libya have served as launchpads for migrants making
desperate bids to reach Europe.
The
Central Mediterranean route has become the world’s deadliest migration trail,
according to humanitarian groups.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
African
Union summit cancell decision to grant Israel an observer in pan-African
organization
February
7, 2022
The
African Union summit has cancelled a decision to grant Israel an observer
status in the pan-African organization, an Algerian source said on Sunday.
Algeria
is participating in the two-day AU summit, which opened in the Ethiopian
capital, Addis Ababa, on Saturday.
“The
summit decided to abolish the decision to grant Israel an observer status at
the AU,” the source in the Algerian delegation was quoted as saying by the
private Echorouk TV channel.
“The
decision crowned efforts by Algeria and other countries” to cancel the
decision, he added.
According
to the source, a committee was formed of representatives of Algeria, South
Africa, Senegal, Cameroon, DR Congo, Rwanda and Nigeria to make recommendations
on the issue to the upcoming AU summit.
There
was no confirmation yet of the Algerian source’s statements.
In
July, Israel announced that its ambassador to Ethiopia, Admasu Al-Ali, had
submitted his credentials as an observer member at the AU, which was accepted
unilaterally by Moussa Faki Mahamat, the Chairperson of the AU Commission.
Source:
ABNA24
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Moroccans
in mourning after trapped boy’s death
06
February ,2022
An
eerie silence fell on a Moroccan village on Sunday after the death of a
five-year-old boy who had been trapped in a well for four days.
For
days — and nights — the community of Ighran, a village in a mountainous area in
northern Morocco, had gathered along the edges of the well, cheering on the rescue
workers and volunteers digging deep into difficult terrain to reach the hole
where the boy, Rayan, was trapped. They offered support to Rayan’s parents.
Millions watched the rescue operation on state TV.
The
boy was pulled out Saturday night by rescuers after a lengthy operation that
captivated global attention. Convinced that Rayan was alive, the crowd was
cheering as the child was rushed to an ambulance where his parents had been
waiting.
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the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Just
minutes after the ambulance pulled away, a statement from the royal palace said
the boy has died. Moroccan King Mohammed VI expressed his condolences to the
boy’s parents, Khaled Oram and Wassima Khersheesh.
Messages
of support, concern and grief for the boy and his family poured in from around
the world as the news of Rayan’s death spread overnight Saturday.
Pope
Francis on Sunday described as “beautiful” how people had rallied around
efforts to save Rayan’s life. Francis expressed thanks to the Moroccan people
as he greeted the public in St. Peter’s Square. He praised people for “putting
their all” into trying to save the child.
The
palace statement said Morocco’s king had been closely following the frantic
rescue efforts by locals authorities, “instructing officials to use all means
necessary to dig the boy out of the well and return him alive to his parents.”
The king hailed the rescuers for their relentless work and the community for
lending support to Rayan’s family.
Rayan
fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) well located outside his home on Tuesday
evening. The exact circumstances of how he fell are unclear.
For
three days, search crews used bulldozers to dig a parallel ditch. Then on
Friday, they started excavating a horizontal tunnel to reach the trapped boy.
Morocco’s MAP news agency said that experts in topographical engineering were
called upon for help.
Rescuers
used a rope to send oxygen and water down to the boy as well as a camera to
monitor him. By Saturday morning, the head of the rescue committee, Abdelhadi
Temrani, said: “It is not possible to determine the child’s condition at all at
this time. But we hope to God that the child is alive.”
Source:
Al Arabiya
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--------
Exclusive
interview: Malian premier says France responsible for Mali’s security
situation, economic woes
Bilal
Dinc and Umit Donmez
05.02.2022
BAMAKO,
Mali
Malian
Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga spoke about a wide range of issues with
the Anadolu Agency ranging from the security and political situation in his
country, factors that led to the 2020 coup, to bilateral relations with several
international actors, including Turkiye.
In
this first part of the interview, the prime minister accused France of influencing
decisions of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) bloc
against Mali and the developments that led to Mali's enhanced collaboration
with Russia.
Anadolu
Agency (AA): In your comments on ECOWAS sanctions, you mentioned
"geopolitical considerations. Can you shed more light on this? How did
"geopolitical considerations" motivate the heavy sanctions against
Mali?
Choguel
Kokalla Maiga (CKM): For months, in all the international financial
institutions -- France, the representatives of France -- have opposed the
inclusion of any development project concerning Mali on the agenda. We noted
that every time an ECOWAS summit is announced -- we do not know by what magic
-- the French authorities are well informed about it, including knowing the exact
date and possible sanctions. So, this led us to conclude that certainly, France
is more informed about the outcomes of the summit than the ECOWAS heads of
state.
For
example, the French authorities had announced a month earlier that sanctions
would be imposed on Mali by ECOWAS leaders at the Jan. 9, 2022 summit. The fact
that the sanctions were eventually slapped on the government was a clear
indication. That is why we have indicated that these sanctions certainly are
one of the tactics to destabilize the government and ensure it fails in order
to have a puppet government that would fall into line with the French
authorities.
We
have said it openly that the fact that they oppose everything that would
breathe new life into the country's economy and systematically announce planned
summits and sanctions raises questions about their intentions.
On
military cooperation, the military agreements that bind us are violated by the
French authorities. The proof is that in the north, there were French military
bases that were set up as a result of the defense agreement between France and
Mali. But abruptly, the French authorities decided that they were leaving these
military bases without our notice. This drew our attention to the agreement
because, in any case, if a party can violate it whenever it wants, it is better
that we sit down together to reexamine it; remove what does not suit one of the
parties to find common ground. And so for us, there is no doubt: the decisions
taken against our country were not in the interests of the Malian people in
particular and Africa at large.
It
is incomprehensible that summits of heads of state are inspired by rumors and
media reports from European countries to take resolutions against Mali. What is
that? I want to be clear about that. You know, in Mali, the current leaders are
analyzing the situation in the world, looking at what has happened elsewhere in
terms of geopolitics and defense issues over the last 20 or 30 years and
picking the lessons because those who do not learn from history, will learn it
the hard way.
AA:
What is your assessment of the current security situation in Mali and its
development?
CKM:
I will give you some scenarios before explaining where we are. We have observed
that for 20 years, under the guise of the fight against terrorism, the
'international community' -- because when we talk about the international
community, we are talking about a few countries that get along and speak on
behalf of everyone -- has intervened in Afghanistan for 20 years. At the end of
those 20 years, one day, they decided to leave. And we saw the Afghans in
despair, clinging to planes. Our people have learned from this.
Won't
everyone who is with us one day leave us? And this could be true in Mali, which
has experienced an expansion of security forces. We have the Malian Armed
Forces. You have the French Operation Barkhane, you have the United Nations
operation, MINUSMA (United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization
Mission in Mali), you have the European operations (like EUTM EUCAP), you have
the G5 Sahel, you have Takuba (European military task force).
Despite
this 'security jam' year after year, the security situation is deteriorating.
It's like a patient, the patient is there. The disease was diagnosed, a
prescription and medication were prescribed. He is told that in two months, he
will heal. After eight years, the disease, which had affected one part of his
body, spread to other parts covering 80%. It raises questions whether the
doctors are inefficient, the diagnosis was wrong, or the drugs are ineffective.
That is what the government has done. We wondered why since 2013, when
insecurity broke up, 80% of the territory had been invaded by terrorists, while
there are all these international forces. Should we not look for another
solution? Don't you have to change doctors? Change treatments and diagnosis, or
both or all the three at once?
You
know, there's a famous Chinese politician -- a very wise person -- [Deng
Xiaoping] who said in the 1970s, when the Cultural Revolution was in full swing
in this country, that "it doesn't matter if a cat is black or white as
long as it catches mice." Meaning a political system is only valid as long
as it meets the needs of citizens. It cost him, but history proved him right when
he came back to power as the founder of modern China.
This
is an example that I give so that people can eventually understand our
reasoning.
Looking
at what we saw in Afghanistan, what we saw in Libya, where some countries
obtained from the Security Council a resolution that allowed them to protect
Benghazi from aerial bombardment by Muammar Gaddafi, overstepped that
resolution to go and assassinate the president and sow disorder, we thought the
situation in Mali could be the result of this disorder.
So
you create chaos. You arm people. You tell them to go and divide Mali. The
separatists clearly said that it was France that was behind the separatist
movements of 2011 from Libya. The leaders of the movements said France had
instigated them to invade northern Mali and divide it and create an independent
state. We are not the ones saying that. It is the leaders of this movement who
say so and are supported by French politicians.
We
draw conclusions from that. In 2013, when the Malian government appealed to
France to help it drive out terrorists, there was what is known as Operation
Serval, which took place at the request of the interim government. As they say
today that the government is not legitimate, the government that appealed to
France in 2013 was a government in place after a coup. But let's move on. What
was requested? In the letter that the Malian government addressed to the French
government, of which there is no copy in the archives of Mali, neither in the
defense nor to foreign affairs (ministries). We recently found it in France on
the website of the French Senate. In that letter, France was asked for air
support and intelligence. There were no plans to deploy French soldiers on
Malian territory. The army was against it. France respected this until it set up
a base in Kidal.
After
arriving in Kidal, it blocked the way for the Malian army, creating an enclave
where terrorists had years to reorganize. We are learning from that. They had
to come and help us fight the terrorists. They zcreated the conditions for the
sanctification of terrorism and the partition of Mali and the United Nations
resolutions that it had come to defend because I say in passing that (former)
French President François Hollande had clearly stated the objectives of
Operation Serval: to destroy terrorism, restore state authority throughout the
territory and implement the United Nations resolutions.
After
nine years, we note that terrorism, which was residual in the north, has spread
to 80% of the territory. State authority as of today is not restored throughout
the national territory. The resolutions of the United Nations change every
year. They are written by France. So much so that this year, our government
opposed it.
It
was in the Security Council Chamber that our ambassador discovered a draft
resolution that called for an increase in the strength of MINUSMA by more than
2,000 troops. Our ambassador said that his government is not aware of it. We
cannot, as they say in Africa, shave the heads of Malians in the absence of
Malians. We cannot decide to send a military contingent to our territory
without knowing its origins, missions, strengths, nationalities and objectives.
So we opposed it. We have picked lessons from that too. We have what is called
the "Takuba Force," which was installed in a somewhat cavalier way in
2019. It was after announcing it that African heads of state were summoned to
sign their agreement in Pau, France (5 Sahel Summit of Jan. 13, 2019).
This
operation has been there for almost two years. But zero points -- nothing to
its credit in the fight against terrorism. But that is not the most serious
thing. All the countries that have to send soldiers as part of Operation Takuba
must have a written agreement with the Malian state. This is what was planned.
The Malian government has sent an invitation to a number of countries. But when
a country decides to come to Mali, it makes a written agreement that determines
the conditions of engagement of the military on our territory. It is written in
black and white.
We
do not understand why some European countries, without having an agreement with
Mali, decide to come. That is what happened with the Danish government. I
explained to citizens so that the people would understand. When a Turk wants to
go to Germany, you need an invitation. But when you have the invitation, it's
not enough. You need a visa. That is what happened. Our government has invited
the European states, but each state must have a specific agreement, a visa to
be on our territory. And what we have not understood is why the Danish
government came to our territory without a visa, without authorization. We have
told them that we do not agree. And all the more so since recently, we feel
there is growing French hostility against our government. I have explained to
you all their obstructions aimed to suffocate the government economically.
We
have seen all the games that have happened in the last nine years. We saw
recently when they pushed ECOWAS to take unjust, illegal and illegitimate
sanctions against the Malian state. Total embargo. While the embargo is being
imposed, a French military plane enters our territory from an ECOWAS country,
even though they have said that they are closing the borders. When they cross
our territory, and they realize that we have sufficient means to detect their
presence, they turn off the transponders so as not to be identified. Later,
they turn off their radio so as not to be in touch with the control tower. They
land on the part of our territory. They deposit whatever, and they return to
this ECOWAS country.
The
next day, it is MINUSMA planes that fly over Malian military bases for hours,
while this is not the mandate of MINUSMA, and when our army interrogates, they
say that it was France that asked for it. We have said that it is not the
mission of MINUSMA to come and spy on military bases and therefore, we have
clearly asked not to fly over our territory without authorization.
We
have asked the Danish government to withdraw its forces until it complies with
the agreements between us. When we did that, the French authorities, who want
to govern Mali by proxy, described it as irresponsible acts. They throw all
sorts of insults.
As
a sovereign government, Mali felt that they had gone overboard. And I indicated
in one of my last interviews that Mali has no problem with the European Union.
But what we simply want the European Union to understand: France must not drag
the countries of the European Union into their hidden agenda, which is
different from the one they present to the European Union.
I
also recall that the Western countries in 1885, precisely, on Feb. 28, 1885, at
the Berlin Conference, had divided Africa into zones of influence. Mali gained
independence in 1960. So there is no zone of influence. France cannot manage
Mali's relations with the EU by proxy. Relations with Mali must be based on
partnership. That is all we asked for. Because of this, they throw insults by
talking about the legitimacy of the government. What I wanted to tell them is
that when the government, which they called legitimate, was shooting in mosques
to kill citizens by the dozens, we did not hear France speak at that time. And
that cannot be disputed because UN reports have authenticated it. More
recently, in 2021, Malians who were celebrating a wedding were bombed by French
aviation. The UN report confirmed that the victims were civilians who were
attending a marriage ceremony. France described it as terrorism, but who is
telling the truth? So all these factors led us to say: we have to be careful.
We can no longer allow foreign forces on our territory without a prior
understanding of clear conditions.
We
can no longer leave room for maneuver that can lead states to leave the
commitments made with our state to go and accomplish an agenda that has nothing
to do with what they have announced at the national level, to their public and
to the international community. Well, it sparked what you know, and we were
very clear, we must respect our people, we must respect their sovereignty. We
are not asking for anything else.
AA:
Mali does not hide its intentions to cooperate more with Russia, which has
provoked the fury of France. Why this opening to Russia and why now?
CKM:
Our country, our government, is in a position to collaborate with all those who
want to help it restore security. What is not negotiable is the sovereignty of
our country, its independence decisions, including on defense, and the dignity
of our people.
This
hullabaloo is due to the fact that, as I told you, we have all these doctors,
all these militaries, more than 50,000 men on the ground, yet entire villages
are exterminated. When we ask for the intervention of foreign forces, they tell
us no, MINUSMA did not come to wage war. But right now -- what's going on? We
want to buy planes from European countries, but we are blocked. We want to buy
from the United States; we are blocked. The solution is to go to those who are
not going to block us.
It's
as simple as that. We went and concluded military cooperation agreements with
Russia. We bought weapons from Russia and Russia is not alone as we are dealing
with other partners. But due to the geopolitics geostrategic struggle between
Russia and western countries, we are trying to sacrifice Mali on the altar of
this battle that is not ours. Otherwise, Mali is working with other partners to
equip its army at all levels.
So
today, the results of this cooperation are tangible. In less than a month, our
army has achieved spectacular results. The number of terrorists eliminated in
less than a month is greater than what we have achieved in the last 30 years.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
North America
Removal
of US sanctions is its red line for revival of 2015 deal, says Tehran
07
February ,2022
Iran
said on Monday removal of US sanctions is Tehran's red line in nuclear talks
with world powers in Vienna to revive a 2015 nuclear deal, an Iranian foreign
ministry spokesman told a news conference, adding that talks will resume on
Tuesday.
“The
issue of removal of sanctions and Iran benefiting from it is Iran's red line in
the talks,” Saeed Khatibzadeh said.
On
Saturday, Iran’s foreign minister had said that a US move to restore sanctions
waivers to Tehran was not enough and Washington should provide guarantees for
the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal with major powers.
Washington
on Friday restored the waivers to allow international nuclear cooperation
projects, as indirect US-Iranian talks on reviving the nuclear deal enter the
final stretch in Vienna.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Alleged
leader of US-based Iran militant group goes on trial
06
February ,2022
The
alleged leader of the militant wing of a US-based Iranian opposition group went
on trial Sunday, state TV reported. He’s accused of planning a 2008 bombing at
a mosque that killed 14 people and wounded over 200.
In
2020, Iran’s intelligence service detained Jamshid Sharmahd, an Iranian-German
national and US resident. Iran said he is the leader of Tondar, the militant
wing of the opposition group Kingdom Assembly of Iran.
Sharmahd
confessed to having a relationship with both the FBI and the CIA, state TV
reported. It said he was in contact with nine FBI and CIA agents and his last
meeting was in January 2020.
At
the time of his detention, Iran alleged Sharmahd was behind the 2008 bombing
that targeted the Hosseynieh Seyed al-Shohada Mosque in the city of Shiraz and
that he was planning other attacks around Iran. Besides the 14 killed in the
bombing, 215 were wounded.
Sharmahd,
who supports restoring Iran’s monarchy that was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic
Revolution, had been previously targeted in an apparent Iranian assassination
plot on US soil in 2009.
Iran
hasn’t said how it detained Sharmahd, which came against the backdrop of covert
actions conducted by Iran amid heightened tensions with the US over Tehran’s
collapsing nuclear deal with world powers.
The
Kingdom Assembly of Iran seeks to restore Iran’s monarchy, which ended when the
fatally ill Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi fled the country in 1979 just before the
Islamic Revolution. The group’s founder disappeared in the mid-2000s.
Last
week, Iran said its intelligence units arrested the number two leader of
Tondar, or “Thunder” in Farsi, identified only as “Masmatus.”
Iran
has also accused the group of being behind a 2010 bombing at Ayatollah Ruhollah
Khomeini’s mausoleum in Tehran that wounded several people.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Israeli
leader talks to Biden about ISIS, Iran
06
February ,2022
Israel's
prime minister on Sunday congratulated President Joe Biden for last week's
deadly raid in Syria that killed the leader of the ISIS group, the Israeli
premier's office announced.
In
a phone call with the president, Naftali Bennett told Biden that “the world is
now a safer place thanks to the courageous operation of the US forces,” his
office said.
Bennett
and Biden also discussed Iranian military activity across the Middle East and
efforts to block Iran's nuclear program, it said.
Israel
and Iran are arch-enemies, and Israel has raised vocal concerns about US-led
efforts to revive the 2015 international nuclear deal between Iran and world
powers.
The
deal unraveled after President Donald Trump withdrew from it in 2018. Israel
objected to the initial deal and believes any attempts to restore it will not
include sufficient safeguards to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapons
capability. Israel also says any deal should address Iranian military activity
across the region as well as its development of long-range missiles capable of
striking Israel.
Earlier
Sunday, Bennett said Israel is closely watching world powers' negotiations with
Iran in Vienna, but reiterated his position that Israel is not bound by any
agreement reached by them. Israel has repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if
it believes it is necessary to halt the country's nuclear program. Iran says
its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://english.alarabiya.net/News/world/2022/02/06/Israeli-leader-talks-to-Biden-about-ISIS-Iran
--------
After
Houthi attacks, senior US general in UAE to bolster defenses
06
February ,2022
US
Marine General Frank McKenzie arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Sunday for
talks on efforts to bolster the Gulf state's defenses after a series of missile
attacks launched by Houthi fighters in Yemen.
In
recent weeks, the Iran-aligned Houthis have waged an unprecedented string of
largely failed missiles strikes on UAE targets that have triggered Emirati and
US air defenses and seen American troops briefly taking shelter.
The
attacks have thrown a spotlight on so-far unsuccessful UN-led efforts to broker
an end to the war in Yemen, which since 2015 has pitted the Houthis against a
Saudi Arabian-led military coalition that includes the UAE.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
McKenzie,
who oversees US forces in the Middle East as head of Central Command, said he
moved up his planned visit in response to the Houthi attacks, hoping to
underscore the US commitment to the Gulf state's defense.
“I
think it's a very worrisome time for UAE. They're looking for support. We're
here to help them to provide that support,” McKenzie told reporters shortly
before landing in Abu Dhabi.
Earlier
this month, the Pentagon announced a US deployment of advanced F-22 fighter
jets and a guided missile destroyer, the USS Cole, to partner with the UAE navy
ahead of a port call in Abu Dhabi.
McKenzie
said the F-22s would provide the UAE with “one of the best look-down radars in
the world,” capable of identifying targets including land attack cruise
missiles and drones.
The
USS Cole will operate in waters around the UAE, he said, keeping a lookout for
shipments of illegal contraband.
The
US military has so far described its support to the Emirates as bilateral and
defensive assistance
Asked
about the latest Houthi missile attacks, McKenzie said they could have been
prompted by a range of scenarios, including as a response to battlefield
setbacks.
“Hard
to know all the Houthi reasons behind this,” he said. “I think the Houthis
aren't used to losing ground in Yemen.”
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------