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Islamic World News ( 27 Apr 2013, NewAgeIslam.Com)

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Boston Local Mosque Refuses To Bury Tamerlan Tsarnaev


New Age Islam News Bureau

27 Apr 2013 


Photo: Boston mosque in Cambridge Refuses To Bury Tamerlan Tsarnaev

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Arab World

 Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia: Beware Of Fake Relics of Prophet

 Gunmen kill 10 Iraq security forces members

 Watchdog: Shelling outside Damascus kills 10

 Iraq PM Maliki warns of 'plague of sectarianism'

 Egypt arrests 12 'Black Bloc' members at presidency

 Pan-Muslim body urges release of captive Syria bishops

 Muslim-Christian relationship fuels row in Egypt

 Top Al Gamaa Al Islamiya leader resigns

 Islamist says Egypt should press on with judge reforms

 Kuwaiti writer wins ‘Arabic Booker’ with sophomore novel

 

South Asia

 2 babies born under debris in Bangladesh; death toll 304

 Uighur ‘separatist’ visits Taiwan

 Maldives Parliament’s Committee to summon Sheikh Ilyas for “misleading public”

 Maldives resumes CMAG participation ahead of presidential elections

 Taliban declare ‘spring offensive’ across Afghanistan

 

Southeast Asia

 Christians to continue using ‘Allah’ despite Malaysian government appeal

 Sulu sultanate claims 35 militants killed by Malaysian navy

 ‘Malaysian Spring’ growing beyond Bangsar despite EC curbs

 Hudud is PAS’s agenda, not Pakatan’s, says Mustafa

 Mustafa Ali says will fight Umno’s sex video suit

 

Pakistan

 Pak army officers protest humiliating treatment to Musharraf

 Third strike in four days in Karachi; 11 die in blast at ANP meeting

 Seven countries agreed to allow polling of Pakistan nationals

 Commissioners told to check curbs on women voters

 Neighbourhood watch: Trilateral meeting termed ‘fruitful’

 Will the real Muslim League please stand up?

 Two prisoners charged for assaulting Sarabjit

 Ex-Pak minister Burney goes into hiding

 

Mideast Asia

 Religious fundamentalists could hold the key to Middle East peace

 Iranian scientist returns after release from US

 Israel’s army to stop using white phosphorus

 Erdogan Hails Kurd Rebel Pullout as End of 'Dark Era' for Turkey

 Israel Sees U.S. Response to Syria as Gauge on Iran

 Palestinians' Abbas Says to Start Talks on Unity Government

 Yemen Military Intelligence Official Assassinated by Islamist militants

 

Europe

 Russia detains 140 suspected Islamic extremists

 Cameron backs US claims; calls Assad move a war crime

 Russian envoy warns on Syria chemical arms 'pretext'

 

Africa

 Nigeria's Boko Haram 'got $3m ransom' to free hostages

 Libyans find old treasures at Tripoli book sale

 Sudan rebels widen offensive, move into major town

 Blast hits police station in Libya’s Benghazi

 Jews Ease Back Into Tunisia for Famed Pilgrimage

 

India

 Should Modi have gone out with AK-47 to stop rioters: SIT counsel

 India, China finalize plans to hold anti-terrorism drills

 India proposes 1,500 km-long Kazakh pipeline

 Sarabjit continues to be in coma, family gets visa to visit Pakistan

 Minister to visit S Arabia to discuss new labour law

 Khurshid says polls will reflect Pak peace process

 Bangalore blast suspect’s wife knocks on Madras high court door, says his life in danger

 CDRs show phones of 7/11 accused were not at crime scene

 

North America

 Boston Local Mosque Refuses To Bury Tamerlan Tsarnaev

 NYPD: Part of 9/11 plane’s landing gear discovered

 Obama: proof of Syrian chemical weapons would be 'game-changer'

 A line has been crossed in Syria: Barack Obama

 US 'jihadist rapper' claims to have survived attempt on life by al-Shabaab

 Half of Americans anticipate more terrorist attacks, says poll

 Lawyer: Jailed pair shocked by Boston bomb claims

 Michigan's Muslim inmates being denied halal meals, lawsuit claims

 

Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau

URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/boston-local-mosque-refuses-bury/d/11320

 

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Boston Local Mosque Refuses To Bury Tamerlan Tsarnaev

Apr 24, 2013

According to NBC News, deceased Boston bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev‘s aunt claimed that a local mosque has refused to hold a funeral or bury her nephew in light of what he and his younger brother have done.

Upon releasing Tsarnaev’s body to his family members living in the United States, a local mosque in the Boston area reportedly refused burial and funeral services when approached by the suspected bombers’ uncle. The aunt, Patimat Suleimanova, indicated to NBC News that it was a mosque the family has attended in the past.

Earlier this week, it was reported that a mosque in Cambridge, Mass., had threatened to kick the late Tsarnaev out of its membership for his occasionally disruptive behaviour. Members of that congregation have reportedly been questioned by the Federal Bureau of Investigations.

It seems as though many local Muslims are wary of being associated with the violent actions of the Tsarnaev brothers. A representative of the Islamic Institute of Boston told Huffington Post that “I would not be willing to do a funeral for him. This is a person who deliberately killed people.”

“There is no room for him as a Muslim,” he added.

Other local Muslim groups have indicated that they’ve yet to be contacted for burial requests. Imam Suhaib Webb of the Islamic Society of Boston Cultural Centre told HuffPost he’s yet to receive a request, but that “I don’t think I could ethically lead a prayer for him, but I would not stop people from praying upon him.”

http://www.mediaite.com/online/boston-bombing-suspects-aunt-local-mosque-refuses-to-bury-tamerlan-tsarnaev/

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Should Modi have gone out with AK-47 to stop rioters: SIT counsel

Apr 27 2013

Ahmedabad : Continuing its defence of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, the Supreme Court appointed-Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Friday rubbished Zakia Jafri’s allegations that he was complicit in post-Godhra riots of 2002.

“What was Zakia expecting from accused number one (Modi)? That he should have gone with an AK-47 in his hand to control the rioting mob?” SIT counsel R S Jamuar told the special CBI court, which was hearing the matter for the third consecutive day following Jafri’s petition challenging SIT’s closure report that gave a clean chit to Modi and others.

SIT had probed into Jafri’s charges that Modi and others had a role in the riots.

The lawyer for Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP), Mihir Desai, objected to this and asked why SIT was defending Modi.

“I am not defending Modi. I am assessing the evidence,” Jamuar replied.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for Monday.

Zakia Jafri is the widow of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri who was killed in Gulberg Society by a rioting mob.

During his arguments today, Jamuar also rubbished Zakia’s complaint for including issues pertaining to post-riot circumstances and appointment of allegedly biased public prosecutors for trials in rioting cases.

“Post-riots instances cannot be connected to what happened during the riots. The complaint should have been restricted to the commission of offence,” Jamuar told the court.

He also underlined several points mentioned in the complaint as irrelevant — such as collector’s orders of closing down relief camps to facilitate early elections, transfers of IPS and IAS officers as rewards, among others.

Jamuar said IPS officers Rahul Sharma (whose affidavit has been included by Jafri as proof) and Vivek Srivastava (who had arrested a pro-BJP leader) were transferred to important posts soon after the riots.

Jamuar also rubbished retired DGP R B Sreekumar, saying he filed his affidavit only after he was superseded. He said Sreekumar was unhappy with the government and hence his affidavit.

The SIT counsel also argued there was no delay by the state government in calling in Army. “They wrote to central government that they had failed to control the situation. The then defence minister George Fernandes had arrived on time. The Army was called in, but it was deployed at the border following an attack on Parliament,” Jamuar said.

“On February 28, a full police force was there at the Gulberg Society along with the station head officer (SHO) of Meghaninagar K G Erda. They were at the front gates of the society, but rioters broke through the wall on the backside and started the violence. What could have the police done?” Jamuar said.

Citing IPS officer Rahul Sharma’s reported admission that Ehsan Jafri had opened fire on the mob, Jamuar said, “At least it was admitted that there was firing... there was procession. Under this circumstances, nothing could have been done.”

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/should-modi-have-gone-out-with-ak47-to-stop-rioters-sit-counsel/1108394/

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Arab World

 

Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia: Beware Of Fake Relics of Prophet

27 April 2013

Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh has warned museums, individuals and other bodies against promoting fake relics of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

“The Prophet (pbuh) died more than 1,400 years ago and there is no solid evidence that the so-called relics belonged to him,” he said.

Al-Asheikh warned against accusing people of bribery and promoting rumours about them. “Accusing people without proof is impermissible,” he said.

The grand mufti also warned against what banks call “additional loan,” saying that it would lead to increased interests on the first loan. He described it as deception.

http://www.arabnews.com/news/449592

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Gunmen kill 10 Iraq security forces members

Amid a wave of violence hits Iraq, unknown gunmen kill ten security members including five army intelligence soldiers

27 Apr 2013

Gunmen killed five army intelligence soldiers in two attacks west of Baghdad while others shot dead five anti-Qaeda militiamen north of the Iraqi capital on Saturday, police and doctors said.

One group of soldiers were driving near the site of a long-running anti-government protest when they were stopped by gunmen. They shot one of the gunmen, wounding him, and clashes broke out in which four of the soldiers were killed and another wounded, a police lieutenant colonel and a doctor said.

Gunmen also killed one soldier and wounded another in a similar incident involving a second vehicle in the same area, the same sources said.

And gunmen killed five Sahwa anti-Qaeda militiamen in an attack, on a checkpoint south of Tikrit, which lies north of the Iraqi capital, a second police lieutenant colonel and a doctor said.

The incidents come amid a wave of violence that began on Tuesday when security forces moved in against anti-government protesters near the Sunni Arab northern town of Hawijah, sparking clashes that left 53 people dead.

Subsequent unrest, much but not all of it apparently linked to the Hawijah clashes, killed dozens more people and brought the death toll to over 200 by Saturday.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/70205/World/Region/Gunmen-kill--Iraq-security-forces-members.aspx

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Watchdog: Shelling outside Damascus kills 10

 27 April 2013

At least ten people were killed in shelling on the Syrian town of Douma, northeast of the capital Damascus, on Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog said.

“Ten citizens were killed, a child and nine men... in the town of Douma as a result of shelling by regime forces,” the group said in a statement, after earlier reporting air raids on the town.

Nearby, in the town of Moadamiyet al-Sham, the group reported air raids and tank fire, as well as shelling of the Barzeh district of the capital, which has been under fire for three straight days.

According to the Observatory, the area saw some of the worst fighting in more than two years between regime and rebel forces on Friday.

The area in the northeast of the capital is a residential neighborhood and has been divided in two, with one side held by the regime and the other by rebel forces.

Elsewhere, regime forces carried out air raids against parts of Damascus and Aleppo province and strikes were also reported in western Latakia and southern Daraa.

On Friday, at least 127 people were killed in violence throughout the country, according to a toll from the Observatory, which relies on a vast network of activists and medical staff inside Syria.

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/27/Watchdog-Shelling-outside-Damascus-kills-10-.html

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Iraq PM Maliki warns of 'plague of sectarianism'

Iraq's prime minister has warned that a plague of sectarianism is threatening Arab nations, after the most widespread violence there since US troops left.

Nouri Maliki said sectarian conflict had returned to Iraq "because it began in another place in this region" - an apparent reference to Syria.

The violence has left some 170 people dead across the country since Tuesday.

On Saturday, at least five anti-al-Qaeda Sunni militiamen and three security forces personnel were killed.

Full report at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22323144

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Egypt arrests 12 'Black Bloc' members at presidency

April 27, 2013         

CAIRO: Egyptian police arrested 12 members of the "Black Bloc" -- a violent group opposed to the Muslim Brotherhood -- after clashes outside Cairo's presidential palace, the official MENA news agency said Saturday.

Protesters hurled rocks and fire bombs at the walls of the presidential palace in Heliopolis, and torched a police vehicle, a security source told MENA.

"Security forces arrested 12 youths who were among rioters involved in the events around the presidential palace on Friday," the source said, adding the judiciary would take action against those involved.

Full report at:

http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2013/Apr-27/215296-egypt-arrests-12-black-bloc-members-at-presidency.ashx#ixzz2Rf99HYnv

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Pan-Muslim body urges release of captive Syria bishops

April 27, 2013

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation urged on Saturday an "unconditional" release of two bishops kidnapped this week in Syria.

OIC secretary general Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu condemned the kidnapping on Monday of Aleppo's Greek Orthodox Bishop Boulos Yaziji and Syriac Orthodox Bishop Yohanna Ibrahim by armed men as they were en route to the northern city from the Turkish border.

Full report at:

http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2013/Apr-27/215291-pan-muslim-body-urges-release-of-captive-syria-bishops.ashx#ixzz2Rf9DW9T3

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Muslim-Christian relationship fuels row in Egypt

Maggie Michael, The Associated Press

 April 27 2013

An alleged romance between an Egyptian Muslim college student and a Coptic Christian man heightened sectarian tension on Friday in a small rural Egyptian town where police fired tear gas to disperse stone-throwing Muslims who surrounded a Coptic church in anger over the inter-faith relationship, a security official and priest said.

The Muslim protesters accuse Saint Girgis Church of helping 21-year-old Rana el-Shazli, who is believed to have converted to Christianity, flee to Turkey with a Coptic Christian man.

Stories of conversions to Christianity or Islam, inter-faith romances and the illegal building and expanding of churches have caused a series of deadly sectarian incidents in recent years. Full report at:

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/04/27/muslim-christian-relationship-fuels-row-egypt.html

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Top Al Gamaa Al Islamiya leader resigns

Assem Abdel Maged prefers to spare the Islamist group he is a leading member of any responsibility for his increasingly bolder stances - like his controversial call to protest at judges' homes

 27 Apr 2013

A leading member of the well-known Islamist group Al Gamaa Al Islamiya, Assem Abdel Maged, announces his resignation on Friday.

Abdel Maged sees that the restrictions and standards imposed on the members of Al Gamaa Al Islamiya has made it similar to any other party or group and have made the group incapable of facing the counter-revolution.

Full report at:

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/70195/Egypt/Politics-/Top-Al-Gamaa-Al-Islamiya-leader-resigns-to-work-ag.aspx

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Islamist says Egypt should press on with judge reforms

April 27, 2013         

CAIRO: Egypt's Islamist-dominated parliament must move quickly to adopt judicial reforms that have sparked a revolt by judges, the deputy leader of the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm argued on Friday.

The proposed reforms, which would get rid of more than 3,000 judges by lowering the retirement age, have widened the rift between President Mohamed Mursi's government and a judiciary seen by its critics as a last bastion of the old regime that was toppled in the 2011 revolution.

Essam el-Erian, a member of parliament from the Freedom and Justice Party which dominates the legislature, said in a Facebook post that passage of a new law defining the powers of the judiciary should not be delayed.

Full report at:

http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2013/Apr-27/215261-islamist-says-egypt-should-press-on-with-judge-reforms.ashx#ixzz2Rf95SSBI

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Kuwaiti writer wins ‘Arabic Booker’ with sophomore novel

Apr 25, 2013

ABU DHABI: “The Bamboo Stalk” by Kuwaiti writer Saud Alsanousi won the sixth International Prize for Arabic Fiction Tuesday.

The novel was chosen as the best fiction work to be published in the last 12 months, selected from 133 submissions from across the Arab world. Alsanousi’s book tells the story of Issa, the son of a Kuwaiti father and a Filipino mother.

While his mother has depicted Kuwait as a mythical country, upon his return there as an adult, the hero finds himself caught between the ties he shares with his father’s family and the prejudices of a traditional society – which views a child of Kuwaiti-Filipino heritage as socially unacceptable.

Full report at:

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Culture/Books/2013/Apr-25/214948-kuwaiti-writer-wins-arabic-booker-with-sophomore-novel.ashx#axzz2Rdd4P4P6

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South Asia

 

2 babies born under debris in Bangladesh; death toll 304

Agencies | Apr 27, 2013T

SAVAR: Two infants, born under the debris of the eight-storey commercial building which collapsed here, were miraculously rescued along with their mothers, a Bangladeshi fire official said on Friday.

According to the official, pregnant women were among the several garment factory workers trapped under the concrete ruins of the Rana Plaza in Dhaka's suburb. "Two infants have been born under the debris. They along with their mothers were among the 2,348 people rescued," he said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/2-babies-born-under-debris-in-Bangladesh-death-toll-304/articleshow/19748253.cms

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Uighur ‘separatist’ visits Taiwan

 April 27, 2013

TAIPEI — A controversial figure accused by China of inciting violence in the ethnically divided Xinjiang region, where clashes with police this week saw 21 people killed, arrived in Taiwan Friday in a visit likely to irk Beijing.

Dilshat Rexit, a spokesman for the World Uighur Congress, an exile group branded by Beijing as “separatist”, said he was planning to meet with Taiwanese politicians to discuss Uighur issues in China and attend a seminar.

There are about nine million mostly Muslim Uighurs in western China’s vast Xinjiang province. Many complain of religious and cultural repression by Chinese authorities.

The visit comes at a time of high tension after local government officials in China said 15 police and social workers were killed in Xinjiang Tuesday, adding that six Uighurs shot dead in the clashes were suspected of terrorist plotting.

Full report at:

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130427163121

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Maldives Parliament’s Committee to summon Sheikh Ilyas for “misleading public”

By Ahmed Nazeer | April 27th, 2013

Parliament’s committee responsible for the new Penal Code has decided to summon Chair of Adhaalath Party Religious Council and a member of Maldives Fiqh Academy, Sheikh Ilyas Hussein.

The committee decided to summon Ilyas on the grounds that he had made ‘’misleading’’ comments that the purpose of the penal code was to “destroy the religion of Islam”.

The decision was made during last Thursday’s meeting. During the meeting Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Nazim Rashad proposed that the committee summon Ilyas to clarify doubts he have regarding the Penal Code and to let him know how much the Penal Code encouraged the principles and penalties in Islam.

Full report at:

http://minivannews.com/society/parliaments-penal-code-committee-to-summon-sheikh-ilyas-for-misleading-public-57037

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Maldives resumes CMAG participation ahead of presidential elections

By Neil Merrett | April 27th, 2013

The Maldives government said it has been “welcomed” back as a fully participating member in the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) during the group’s 39th meeting held in London yesterday (April 26) following its suspension last year.

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dhunya Maumoon stated this week that the invitation for the Maldives to attend the CMAG meeting reflected the “recognition” of the work by President Dr Mohamed Waheed government’s in “strengthening democracy in the Maldives”.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) meanwhile said it understood the country’s participation in CMAG was a diplomatic attempt to ensure free and “inclusive” elections went ahead in September of this year. The opposition party contended that the elections were also expected to be scrutinised by a number of international groups including the Commonwealth.

Full report at:

http://minivannews.com/politics/maldives-resumes-cmag-participation-ahead-of-presidential-elections-57023

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Taliban declare ‘spring offensive’ across Afghanistan

 27 April 2013

Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan on Saturday announced the start of their annual "spring offensive" against the U.S.-backed government, vowing a nationwide series of attacks as foreign troops withdraw.

The Islamist extremists said that multiple suicide bombings, "insider attacks" by Afghan soldiers and "special military tactics" would target international airbases and diplomatic buildings to inflict maximum casualties.

They warned Afghans working for President Hamid Karzai's "stooge" regime to distance themselves from the government to avoid being caught up in the promised violence, and called for young people not to join the police or army.

Full report at:

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/asia/2013/04/27/Taliban-declare-spring-offensive-across-Afghanistan-.html

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Southeast Asia

 

Christians to continue using ‘Allah’ despite Malaysian government appeal

 April 27, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Christians will not stop calling their God “Allah” even if the courts stop them from doing so in Muslim-majority Malaysia, says UPKO president Tan Sri Bernard Dompok, whose party is part of the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition government.

The Sabah Christian and caretaker plantation industries and commodities minister dismissed Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s support of a government appeal against the 2009 High Court ruling allowing the community to use the Arabic word “Allah” as that would affect the coalition’s Christian vote in Sabah in the May 5 general election.

“Whatever the outcome of the appeal is, the fact is no government can enforce a prohibition of this nature,” Dompok told The Malaysian Insider.

“So the Christians will continue to use it without any hindrance. I don’t think any government at all, not even a PAS government in future, can stop Christians from using this,” he added. Apart from Christians, Sikhs too use the term to describe God.

Full report at:

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/christians-to-continue-using-allah-despite-government-appeal-says-dompok/

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Sulu sultanate claims 35 militants killed by Malaysian navy

 April 27, 2013

MANILA, April 27 — The sultanate of Sulu yesterday said that 35 of its men in Sabah were killed on Wednesday, but not by Philippine forces as previously reported but by the Malaysian navy.

The Philippine Star reported today that Abraham Idjirani, spokesman for the sultanate, as saying that he had received this information from a commander of the sultanate in Lahad Datu in Sabah.

“He called me up and informed me that members of the Malaysian Navy on speedboats were the ones who shot them on Wednesday night while in Malaysian waters. The bodies were then taken to Philippine waters where they were dumped overboard,” the Philippine daily quoted Idjirani as saying.

Full report at:

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/sulu-sultanate-claims-35-militants-killed-by-malaysian-navy/

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‘Malaysian Spring’ growing beyond Bangsar despite EC curbs, say residents

 April 27, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — The “Malaysian Spring” movement of little coloured flags has grown from a roundabout in middle-class Bangsar to nearby suburbs in the city to show support for some Election 2013 candidates despite the Election Commission (EC) frowning on the practise, say Bangsar residents.

Some 16,000 multicoloured mini flags, dubbed “flowers”, were planted inside the Jalan Tempinis roundabout in Lucky Garden on April 14, and adopted by PKR’s Nurul Izzah Anwar as part of her Lembah Pantai re-election campaign in the May 5 general election to prevent Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) officers from uprooting them.

Full report at:

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/malaysian-spring-growing-beyond-bangsar-despite-ec-curbs-say-residents/

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Hudud is PAS’s agenda, not Pakatan’s, says Mustafa

 April 27, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Hudud is a PAS agenda and not Pakatan Rakyat’s (PR) but the Islamist party will only implement the Islamic criminal law through democratic means when the coalition wins power, party secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali said today.

He said Umno has been using the Islamic law to trap PR component parties and show that there were differing views in the hope of wrecking the coalition.

“This is PAS’s agenda and not PR’s agenda. If PAS wants, we do it through the democratic process ... not automatically,” Mustafa (picture) told a press conference at the PAS headquarters here.

Full report at:

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/hudud-is-pass-agenda-not-pakatans-says-mustafa/

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Mustafa Ali says will fight Umno’s sex video suit

 April 27, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 — Datuk Mustafa Ali said today he will meet Umno’s court challenge after being slapped with a defamation suit for claiming the country’s largest political party to be behind a sex video allegedly starring the senior PAS leader.

But the PAS secretary-general refused to comment further on the scandalous video that surfaced on the Internet just days before Nomination Day on April 20, saying he has passed the matter to his lawyer to handle.

“I will fight Umno’s suit, they sued three, me, Zul and Asmuni,” Mustafa (picture) told a news conference, referring to Zulkifli Sulong, the editor-in-chief of the party’s paper Harakah Daily, and his lawyer for the case, Asmuni Awi.

Full report at:

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/mustafa-ali-says-will-fight-umnos-sex-video-suit/

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Pakistan

 

Pak army officers protest humiliating treatment to Musharraf

IANS | Apr 27, 2013

ISLAMABAD: A group of Pakistan's military officers have protested, before a parliamentary panel, the treatment being meted out to former president PervezMusharraf, a media report said on Saturday.

The delegation of 75 officers from Command and Staff College, Quetta, led by Col. Saqib Ali Cheema, met the chairman of the senate standing committee on defence and defence production Mushahid Hussain Sayed at the parliament house to express concern over Musharraf's arrest, reported Dawn.

"The military officers were of the opinion that under the constitution, the armed forces cannot be criticised," a source was quoted as saying.

Hussain said: "We are all proud of professionalism of our armed forces and in the constitution, judiciary and armed forces are national institutions which should not be subject to any kind of criticism."

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pak-army-officers-protest-humiliating-treatment-to-Musharraf/articleshow/19752669.cms

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Third strike in four days in Karachi; 11 die in blast at ANP meeting

 April 27, 2013

KARACHI: As the city observed a day of mourning for people killed in Thursday’s bomb blast near an MQM election office in North Nazimabad’s Nusrat Bhutto Colony area, Karachi was aggrieved by a gruesome militant attack on the street corner meeting of a candidate of another liberal democratic party, the ANP, on Friday evening.

This was the third militant attack in four days as the militants appeared determined to keep the MQM, ANP and PPP out of the electoral process, possibly encouraged by the reluctance of two mainstream parties actively engaged in electioneering in Punjab to condemn the wave of terror attacks in three other provinces.

Full report at:

http://beta.dawn.com/news/794469/third-strike-in-four-days-in-karachi-11-die-in-blast-at-anp-meeting

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Seven countries agreed to allow polling of Pakistan nationals

 April 27, 2013

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office confirmed on Friday that concurrence of seven governments had been obtained for voting by overseas Pakistanis there. Responding to a question at his weekly news briefing here on Friday, Foreign Office spokesman Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had short-listed nine countries where polling could be held. The spokesman said concurrence from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom had been received while response from the United States and the United Arab Emirates was awaited.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2013/04/27/seven-countries-agreed-to-allow-polling-says-fo/

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Commissioners told to check curbs on women voters

 April 27, 2013

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has issued directives to the all divisional commissioners in the province to engage with elders, prayer leaders and civil society activists in their respective areas to prevent denial of the right of vote to women in the May 11 election.This was stated by provincial information, social welfare and women development minister Musarrat Qadeem here on Friday during a Provincial Commission on the Status of Women (PCSW), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa function.The function was organised to consult stakeholders from government and civil society on the Election Commission of Pakistan measures to improve the women’s participation in the election and monitor restriction for women voters for action by the relevant authorities.

Full report at:

http://dawn.com/2013/04/27/commissioners-told-to-check-curbs-on-women-voters-2/

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Neighbourhood watch: Trilateral meeting termed ‘fruitful’

 April 26, 2013

ISLAMABAD: United States Secretary of State John Kerry hosted Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani at Brussels this week. The tripartite talks were held to address growing tensions between the two neighbours and ensure their cooperation encourages the Taliban to join the reconciliation process.

Kerry described the April 24 dialogue as “very extensive, very productive and constructive” when he, Kayani and Karzai addressed reporters.

Full report at:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/540983/neighbourhood-watch-trilateral-meeting-termed-fruitful/

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Will the real Muslim League please stand up?

 April 27, 2013

KARACHI: There are over 250 registered political parties registered today, and 21 of these are various factions of the Muslim League, each of whom claims to be the true heir of Jinnah’s Muslim League.

“All other factions of the League are just mere namesakes,” says Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader Siddiqul Farooq. “They are drawing room politicians and their credibility is shrinking with the passage of time. PML-N is the only true, popular party that represents the ideology of Jinnah.”

According to Farooq, the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), led by the Chaudhry brothers, is on its way to ruin, while Musharraf’s All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) is not even a real political party.

Full report at:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/541157/will-the-real-muslim-league-please-stand-up/

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Two prisoners charged for assaulting Sarabjit

PTI | Apr 27, 2013

LAHORE: Police today registered a case of attempted murder against two prisoners for brutally assaulting Indian national Sarabjit Singh, who was in a "deep coma" in a hospital here.

Official sources told PTI that the FIR against prisoners Amer Aftab and Mudassar was registered following a complaint from Assistant Superintendent Ishtiaq Ahmed Gill of Kot Lakhpath Jail.

The two men were booked under sections 324 (attempted murder) and 334 (causing severe injuries) of the Pakistan Penal Code.

Quoting the FIR, a police official said the two prisoners attacked Sarabjit after opening the gate of his barrack in one of the most secure sections of the jail.

The official said another two prisoners, Ehsanul Haq and Muhammad Safdar, had claimed that they had come to save Sarabjit from the attackers.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Two-prisoners-charged-for-assaulting-Sarabjit/articleshow/19752056.cms

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Ex-Pak minister Burney goes into hiding

Yudhvir Rana, TNN | Apr 27, 2013

AMRITSAR: United Nations former expert advisor on Human Rights and Pakistan's former federal minister for human rights Ansar Burney has gone into hiding after receiving threats from Taliban's and fundamental elements in Pakistan.

In an e-mail message received from Burney on late Saturday evening , he informed that he had gone into hiding due to severe life threats received from Taliban elements. Earlier in the day Burney, while talking to TOI, had anticipated a conspiracy to eliminate Sarabjit Singh for electoral gains. In the e-mail he said that he had been receiving life threats from Talibans, fundamentalists and extremist elements in Pakistan for speaking in favour of Sarabjit Singh.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Ex-Pak-minister-Burney-goes-into-hiding/articleshow/19757259.cms

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Mideast Asia

 

Religious fundamentalists could hold the key to Middle East peace

Jonathan Freedland

26 April 2013

Everybody knows that religious fundamentalists are part of the Middle East's problem. Everybody knows that Muslim and Jewish extremists make a hard situation harder, delaying the day Palestinians and Israelis find a way to live in peace. Everybody knows that the great Israeli writer Amos Oz is right when he says that so long as the conflict is "a battle over real estate" it can be solved, but once it becomes a holy war only catastrophe beckons.

But what if that conventional wisdom is wrong – or rather, what if it lumps together all religious hardliners too crudely, mistakenly including one group that might not be part of the problem at all, that might in fact be the key to the solution?

The question arises because of one unexpected side-effect of Israel's most recent elections and the new coalition that followed. For the first time in years the ultra-orthodox Jewish parties find themselves in opposition, sitting alongside Labour, the civil rights activists of Meretz and the 11 members of the mainly Arab parties, representing Israel's Palestinian citizens. So long inside successive ruling coalitions, the ultra-orthodox, or haredi, parties are, for now at least, outsiders. That simple fact suggests an intriguing possibility.

Full report at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/apr/26/religious-fundamentalists-key-middle-east-peace

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Iranian scientist returns after release from US

 April 27, 2013 

TEHRAN, Iran — An Iranian scientist held by the US since late 2011 has returned to Iran.

The scientist, Mojtaba Atarodi, said US authorities had treated him "generally well."

The microchip expert at Tehran's high-profile Sharif University, Atarodi was in US custody since December 2011 over allegations he bought high-tech equipment in violation of US sanctions on Iran.

Full report at:

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130427163230

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Israel’s army to stop using white phosphorus

 April 27, 2013

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM – Israel’s army has announced it will stop using munitions containing white phosphorus, for which it was internationally condemned during a military operation against Gaza in 2008-2009.

Shells containing the chemical “will no longer be used,” the army said in a statement released late Thursday. “In around a year, the Israeli artillery will have developed a new munition which can create smoke screens and that uses only gas. This will replace the current munitions which contain small amounts of phosphorus,” it said.

Full report at:

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20130427163139

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Erdogan Hails Kurd Rebel Pullout as End of 'Dark Era' for Turkey

April 27, 2013

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday hailed the planned withdrawal of Kurdish rebel fighters from Turkey as the end of a "dark era" but warned against potential sabotage of a historic peace process.

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which seeks autonomy for Turkey's Kurdish southeast, on Thursday ordered its fighters in Turkey to begin withdrawing to its main base in the mountains of northern Iraq under a carefully choreographed peace plan.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/04/27/world/europe/27reuters-turkey-

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Israel Sees U.S. Response to Syria as Gauge on Iran

By DAVID E. SANGER and JODI RUDOREN

April 27, 2013

JERUSALEM — As President Obama wrestles with how to respond to new assessments that Syria appears to have used chemical weapons, leaders in Israel say they will be watching for clues about how he might handle the Iranian nuclear issue in the future.

In Syria’s case, Mr. Obama has said that the use of chemical weapons would “change my calculus,” but he has not said how. Even while Israel appeared to be egging on Mr. Obama toward taking action, with officials here saying Tuesday that it appeared sarin gas had been used by the Syrian government, those officials also conceded that none of the military options were good.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/27/world/middleeast/israel-sees-obamas-response-on-

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Palestinians' Abbas Says to Start Talks on Unity Government

April 27, 2013

RAMALLAH (Reuters) - Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Saturday he would begin talks with rival factions including Islamist Hamas to form a unity government, a crucial step towards healing years of damaging internal divisions.

But, underscoring the chasm between Abbas's Fatah movement and Hamas, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Abbas had not consulted his group about his move and the Islamists had only heard about it in media reports.

Hamas and Western-backed Abbas, who heads the more secular Fatah that holds sway in self-rule areas of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, have been at loggerheads since Hamas seized the Gaza Strip in a brief civil war in 2007.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/04/27/world/middleeast/27reuters-palestinians-abbas-unity.html?ref=middleeast&gwh=E6E93C2D40D235C1615516A70D7A3993

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Yemen Military Intelligence Official Assassinated

April 27, 2013

ADEN (Reuters) - Two suspected Islamist militants shot dead a provincial military intelligence chief in Yemen on Saturday, a security official said, the latest in a series of assassinations in the impoverished state's lawless south and east.

The gunmen opened fire from a motorbike, killing Colonel Ahmed Abdulrazzaq, intelligence head in Yemen's Hadramawt Province, outside his home in Mukalla on the Arabian Sea.

Stability in Yemen is seen as important beyond the country's own borders because of its location next to top oil exporter Saudi Arabia and international shipping routes. It is also home to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which Washington says is the movement's most dangerous arm.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2013/04/27/world/middleeast/27reuters-yemen-assassination.html?ref=middleeast&gwh=BBED1493539F6D0EEBA5739C998B8B7D

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Europe

 

Russia detains 140 suspected Islamic extremists

 26 April 2013

Russian police and security agents have detained 140 people at a mosque in Moscow on suspicion of involvement with Islamic extremism.

A statement from the Federal Security Agency reported by Russian news agencies said among those detained in the Friday action were 30 citizens of unspecified foreign countries.

The detentions come a week after the two suspects in the fatal Boston Marathon bombing were identified as originating from the Russian region of Chechnya and sympathizing with Islamic extremists.

Full report at:

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/26/Russia-detains-140-suspected-Islamic-extremists.html

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Cameron backs US claims, calls Assad move a war crime

Kounteya Sinha, TNN | Apr 27, 2013

LONDON: Britain has backed America's claim that Syria's serving government used chemical weapons against its own people and that president Bashar al-Assad's move is a war crime.

British prime minister David Cameron said on Friday that there was "limited but growing evidence" of the use of chemical weapons, "probably by the regime".

Cameron who however denied any plans to invade Syria like Britain had done in Iraq said "this is a war crime, and we should take it very seriously."

On whether there could be British troops on the ground in Syria, Cameron said "I don't want to see that and I don't think that is likely to happen, but I think we can step up the pressure on the regime, work with our partners, work with the opposition in order to bring about a regime change."

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/Cameron-backs-US-claims-calls-Assad-move-a-war-crime/articleshow/19747984.cms

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Russian envoy warns on Syria chemical arms 'pretext'

27 April 2013

Claims that chemical weapons have been used in Syria should not become a pretext for a foreign military intervention in the country, Russia's deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov said on Saturday.

“If there is serious evidence of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, it should be presented immediately and not concealed,” said Bogdanov, who is Russian President Vladmir Putin's Middle East envoy, during a visit to Beirut.

“We must check the information immediately and in conformity with international criteria and not use it to achieve other objectives. It must not be a pretext for an intervention in Syria,” added Bogdanov, according to an Arabic translation of his remarks.

Full report at:

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2013/04/27/Russian-envoy-warns-on-Syria-chemical-arms-pretext-.html

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Africa

 

Nigeria's Boko Haram 'got $3m ransom' to free hostages

April 27, 2013

Islamist militant group Boko Haram was paid more than $3m (£2m) before releasing a French family of seven, a Nigerian government report says.

The confidential report, seen by Reuters news agency, does not say who paid the money.

Both France and Cameroon deny paying a ransom while Nigeria has not commented on the issue.

The French family, including four children, were captured in Cameroon in February and freed last week.

The were handed over to the Cameroon authorities last Thursday.

The Nigerian report also says that Cameroon freed some Boko Haram detainees as part of the deal, according to Reuters.

If confirmed, transfer of such a significant amount of money given to Boko Haram could serve to strengthen the firepower of the group, the BBC's Will Ross in Lagos reports.

Over the past week, violence in northern Nigeria has escalated as suspected members of Boko Haram have targeted the army and police. Reports say more than 200 civilians have died in the violence.

Full report at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-22320077

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Libyans find old treasures at Tripoli book sale

Flicking through an old book about Libyan history he never imagined he could buy under Muammar Gaddafi, Ashraf Hussein points to a picture of Tripoli's main square in the 1920s

26 Apr 2013

"This is where we are standing now, Martyrs Square. Back then it was called Piazza Roma," the 31-year old history masters student said, referring to Libya's Italian colonial days.

"Such books were forbidden before because they told the true history of Libya - Gaddafi did not want that. I bought many such books today."

Hussein was one of the hundreds of Libyans who descended on the capital's Martyrs Square this week to browse through thousands of books in Tripoli's first major second hand book sale after the 2011 war that ousted Gaddafi.

Full report at:

http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContentP/18/70188/Books/Libyans-find-old-treasures-at-Tripoli-book-sale.aspx

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Sudan rebels widen offensive, move into major town

27 April 2013

Sudanese opposition forces have moved into a major town in North Kordofan state, residents said on Saturday, widening their anti-government offensive in one of their most audacious acts in years.

North Kordofan has been largely free from the rebel activity taking place in the Darfur region to its west, and South Kordofan to its south.

Residents of Umm Ruwaba, the second-largest town in North Kordofan, said an unidentified rebel group arrived Saturday morning on at least 20 vehicles.

Full report at:

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/27/Sudan-rebels-widen-offensive-move-into-major-town-.html

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Blast hits police station in Libya’s Benghazi

 27 April 2013

An explosion hit a police station in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on Saturday, causing extensive damage but no casualties, a security source said.

“The explosion damaged a large part of the building. An explosive device was probably thrown,” the source said on condition of anonymity.

“Fortunately, the officers and police were in another part of the building. That is why there are no injuries.”

Full report at:

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/27/Blast-hits-police-station-in-Libya-s-Benghazi.html

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Jews Ease Back Into Tunisia for Famed Pilgrimage

April 27, 2013

DJERBA, Tunisia (AP) — Jews are gathering on a bucolic Tunisian island resort for an annual pilgrimage under a heavy police presence, as organizers try to revive an event depleted by fears of anti-Semitism.

Jewish leaders hope the three-day pilgrimage to the Ghriba synagogue, Africa's oldest, on the island of Djerba is regaining momentum after attendance plummeted in the wake of a 2002 al-Qaida bombing.

Full report at:

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2013/04/27/world/africa/ap-af-tunisia-jewish-pilgrimage.html?ref=africa&_r=0&gwh=3A29755C9384DCED100A29B18F7BC0E8

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India

 

India proposes 1,500 km-long Kazakh pipeline

SANDEEP DIKSHIT

 April 27, 2013

India and Kazakhstan, seeking to step up their energy links, discussed the concept of an ambitious pipeline that would bring hydrocarbons to the country via several countries. The two sides had first broached the subject during Kazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov’s India visit last month.

In the second meeting on the subject on Friday, the 1,500 km-long pipeline was described by Mr. Idrissov as a “philosophical concept” which he and Mr. Khurshid felt would take time to implement. Till then, both sides will keep a close eye on the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) which is slowly taking shape.

Full report at:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-proposes-1500-kmlong-kazakh-pipeline/article4658613.ece

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India, China finalize plans to hold anti-terrorism drills even as PLA intrusion in Ladakh continues

PTI | Apr 27, 2013

BEIJING: India and China have finalized arrangements to hold joint anti-terrorism exercises later this year even as they are grappling with the issue of intrusion by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) forces into the Depsang Valley in Ladakh.

Separately, officials of the two countries are also poised to hold talks on river waters next week to address New Delhi's concerns over Beijing's plans to construct new dams on Brahmaputra as well as liberalization of visa regime between the two countries ahead of external affairs minister Salman Khurshid visit here on May 9.

This week, a three-member Indian delegation, headed by Brigadier YK Joshi, visited Chengdu, the headquarters of the military brigade that is largely focussed on Tibet and China's borders with India, official sources here told PTI.

They discussed preparations for the exercises being resumed after gap of four years, the sources said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/India-China-finalize-plans-to-hold-anti-terrorism-drills-even-as-PLA-intrusion-in-Ladakh-continues/articleshow/19756948.cms

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Sarabjit continues to be in coma, family gets visa to visit Pakistan

PTI | Apr 27, 2013

AMRITSAR/NEW DELHI: Four members of Sarabjit Singh's family have been granted visa by the Pakistan high commission to meet the Indian prisoner who is in "deep coma" and put on ventilator support after being assaulted by jail inmates in Lahore.

Sarabjit's sister Dalbir Kaur on Saturday said that the high commission in Delhi has issued visa to the family and she along with his daughters Poonam, Swapandeep Kaur and the prisoner's wife Sukhpreet Kaur would be travelling to Lahore.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Sarabjit-continues-to-be-in-coma-family-gets-visa-to-visit-Pakistan/articleshow/19755706.cms

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Minister to visit S Arabia to discuss new labour law

TNN | Apr 27, 2013

NEW DELHI: Overseas Indian affairs minister Vayalar Ravi will lead a delegation to Saudi Arabia from April 28-29 to discuss the implications of the newly-introduced Nitaqat law. The law that came into effect last month mandates that companies must hire one Saudi national for every 10 expatriate workers. The delegation will include minister of state for external affairs E Ahamed and advisor to PM T K A Nair.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Ravi-to-visit-S-Arabia-to-discuss-new-labour-law/articleshow/19749764.cms

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Khurshid says polls will reflect Pak peace process

By GAURAV C. SAWANT

 April 27, 2013

ELECTIONS in Pakistan will reflect if there is a growing peace constituency in Pakistan, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told HEADLINES TODAY at Almaty, Kazakhstan.

The minister confirmed that New Delhi is watching the dance of democracy in Pakistan very closely, but said it is too early to predict the results.

“Elections are something everybody monitors. But it is very difficult to judge outcomes.

We have some sense of what perhaps could happen.

Full report at: Mail Today

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Bangalore blast suspect’s wife knocks on Madras high court door, says his life in danger

TNN | Apr 27, 2013

CHENNAI: Two suspects arrested from Chennai in connection with the April 17 bomb blast in Bangalore are innocent, and are being kept in illegal custody and tortured, a petition filed in the Madras high court has said. The suspects — Peer Mohideen and Basheer Ahmed - were picked up from a city lodge on April 20.

A division bench of Justice K N Basha and Justice P Devadass, before which the habeas corpus petition filed by Mohideen's wife Syed Ali Fathima came up for hearing on Friday, has issued notice to the city police and CBCID.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bangalore-blast-suspects-wife-knocks-on-Madras-high-court-door-says-his-life-in-danger/articleshow/19749483.cms

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CDRs show phones of 7/11 accused were not at crime scene

MAYURA JANWALKAR

Apr 27 2013

Mumbai : Call data records (CDRs) produced before the special MCOCA court hearing the July 11, 2006 Mumbai train bombings case have indicated that phones belonging to three men accused of planting bombs on Virar-bound trains at Churchgate were actually nowhere near the station on that day.

The CDRs were produced before the court on Thursday. Defence lawyers said Friday that the examination of an officer from Bharti Airtel had backed the statements of the three men, Ehtesham Siddhiqui, Faizal Sheikh and Asif Khan Bashir Khan alias Junaid, all of whom have denied planting the bombs.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/cdrs-show-phones-of-711-accused-were-not-at-crime-scene/1108342/

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North America

 

NYPD: Part of 9/11 plane’s landing gear discovered

 27 April 2013

A piece of landing gear believed to be from one of the planes destroyed in the Sept. 11 attacks has been discovered wedged between a New York City mosque site and another building.

New York Police Department spokesman Paul Browne said Friday the part includes a Boeing identification number. Police haven’t said how big the part is.

Browne says the piece was discovered Wednesday by surveyors inspecting the lower Manhattan site of a planned Islamic community centre on behalf of the building’s owner. He says the inspectors called police who secured the scene, documenting it with photos.

Full report at:

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/04/27/NYPD-Part-of-9-11-plane-s-landing-gear-discovered.html

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Obama: proof of Syrian chemical weapons would be 'game-changer'

President says US allies 'could not permit the use of chemical weapons' but stops short of saying red line had been crossed

Dan Roberts

 26 April 2013

President Barack Obama warned the Syrian regime on Friday that proof it had used chemical weapons on its civilian population would be a "game-changer", but cautioned that more evidence was required.

Speaking at the White House, Obama said that confirmation Bashar al-Assad had deployed chemical agents in the protracted Syrian civil war would alter his administration's "calculus", but stopped short of declaring that a "red line" had been crossed.

Obama's cautious comments reflected the lack of a consensus in Washington over how to respond to claims that Syria has used sarin gas in recent incidents. US congressmen briefed by secretary of state John Kerry on Friday said the most likely option would involve joining other countries in arming specific rebel groups.

Full report at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/26/obama-proof-syria-chemical-weapons

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A line has been crossed in Syria: Barack Obama

Apr 27 2013

Washington : Noting that 'a line has been crossed" by the Assad regime in Syria by killing a large number of people, US President Barack Obama has said the use of chemical weapons and related issues have made the situation more "urgent" in the conflict-torn country.

"I think that, in many ways, a line has been crossed when we see tens of thousands of innocent people being killed by a regime," Obama told reporters in a joint media appearance with King Abdullah of Jordan at the White House yesterday.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/a-line-has-been-crossed-in-syria-barack-obama/1108432/

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US 'jihadist rapper' claims to have survived attempt on life by al-Shabaab

Omar Hammami says he was shot in neck by 'assassin' from Somalian Islamist group he is believed to have once fought for

David Smith

26 April 2013

An American "jihadist rapper" in Somalia has claimed that he survived an attempt on his life by Islamist militants who have turned against him.

Omar Hammami, who moved from Alabama to Somalia in 2006 and is believed to have fought for the radical al-Shabaab group until a bitter falling out, tweeted on Thursday: "Just been shot in neck by shabab assassin. not critical yet."

He continued: "Sitting in tea place then 3 shots behind to left. pistol i think. they ran." In another tweet he commented: "Cheaper than a drone, but expensive on shabab's credibility. the shooter's been i.d.'ed as known shabab assassin."

Full report at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/26/us-jihadist-rapper-attempt-life-al-shabaab

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Half of Americans anticipate more terrorist attacks, says poll

PTI | Apr 27, 2013

WASHINGTON: Half of the Americans feel that a terrorist attack in the United States could be imminent, a latest Gallup poll has said in the immediate aftermath of the Boston bombings that killed three people and injured more than 200 others.

In its latest poll, Gallup said 51 per cent of those surveyed believed that there is more likelihood of a terrorist attack.

"This is significantly higher than the 38 per cent anticipating a terrorist attack when Gallup last measured this in August 2011 during the relatively quiet news environment leading up to the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks," it said.

Full report at:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Half-of-Americans-anticipate-more-terrorist-attacks-says-poll/articleshow/19752292.cms

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Lawyer: Jailed pair shocked by Boston bomb claims

 Apr 27 2013

Boston : Two university friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev who were jailed by immigration authorities the day after his capture had nothing to do with the deadly attack and had seen no hints that he harbored any violent thoughts or terrorist sympathies, a lawyer for one of them said Friday.

Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev, who are from Kazakhstan, were classmates with Tsarnaev at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. They appeared alongside him in a recent photograph of a group of young men visiting New York City's Times Square. They were detained on April 20 after being questioned in connection with the bombing, which had killed three people and injured more than 260 others a few days earlier.

Full report at:

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/lawyer-jailed-pair-shocked-by-boston-bomb-claims/1108437/

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Michigan's Muslim inmates being denied halal meals, lawsuit claims

 April 25, 2013

A federal lawsuit was filed today against the Michigan Department of Corrections, alleging several Muslim inmates aren’t getting enough “nutritional” food during the month-long fast of Ramadan and are being forced to eat foods that violate their religious beliefs.

According to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit, the state’s “Ramadan Bagged Meal” contains about 1,100-1,400 calories, which is roughly less than half the amount of calories that the other inmates get on any given day. Under state prison policy, all inmate meals total 2,600 to 2,900 calories a day.

Full report at:

http://www.freep.com/article/20130425/NEWS06/304250131/Michigan-inmates-halal-Ramadan-lawsuit

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URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/boston-local-mosque-refuses-bury/d/11320

 

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