Countering Hate With Message Of Harmony: Masjid-e-Azizia Mosque of Hyderabad Opens Doors To One & All
16 May 2022
Volunteers
explain visitors about Islam at Masjid-e-Azizia
-----
India
• Congress to seek legal opinion for
contempt case against Amit Shah's comment on Muslim quota
• Amit Shah’s comments on Muslim quota
nothing less than hate speech: Shabbir Ali
• Truth about Gyanvapi mosque, Taj
Mahal, Krishna Janmabhoomi should come out: RSS leader
• Muslim group wants Congress to field
at least one community candidate in RS polls
--------
Africa
• It will be wrong for a Muslim to take
over from Buhari– Bishop Wale Oke
• Nigerian Christians will vote against
Muslim-Muslim ticket: PFN
• Buhari's Daughter, Zahra, Shares Video
Of Saudi Islamic Cleric Warning Muslims Against Jungle Justice When People
Insult Prophet Muhammad
• Burkina Faso: Armed Islamists Kill,
Rape Civilians
• Imams and pastors must inform
congregants about possibility of extremist attacks – Wa West MP
--------
Europe
• Racist Buffalo Killer Labelled London
Mayor 'Muslim Invader' In Chilling Manifesto
• Cyclists Gear Up For 60 Mile Challenge
To Raise Funds For Islamic Education Centre
• Biden Renews Support for Jordan’s
Long-Running Role as Custodian of Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Mosque
• Republican Senate hopeful Mehmet Oz
calls far-right rival’s comments on Islam ‘reprehensible’
• UNSC to Discuss Adjusting Sanctions on
Islamic Emirate Leaders
--------
Middle East
• Lebanon Vote Brings Blow For Hezbollah
Allies In Preliminary Results
• Palestinians step up pressure on
Israel over Abu Akleh killing probe
• First Commercial Flight In 6 Years
Leaves Yemen’s Sanaa
• Palestinians commemorate 74th
anniversary of Nakba amid outcry over funeral attack
• Ethiopian ex-peacekeepers from Tigray
arrive in Sudan for asylum
--------
North America
• RepublicanKathy Barnette Who Made
Anti-Muslim Comments Surges In US Senate Race
• Reach of Buffalo livestream 'not even
comparable' to Christchurch attack
• Fox News Host Confronts Kathy Barnette
on Anti-Muslim Tweets
--------
Pakistan
• For US, Pakistan’s Become Too Hot To
Handle. A Raging Imran Khan Is Only Making It Worse
• Suicide Blast, Gunmen Kill 8 People in
Pakistan
• Pakistan ups security for ex-PM Khan
over deadly plot claims
• Two Members Of Sikh Community Shot
Dead By Terrorists In Pakistan
--------
Arab World
• Grand Mufti Of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Al
Al-Sheikh, Ternava Stress On Kingdom’s Role In Serving Islam
• Grand Mosque robots answer pilgrims’
questions in 11 languages
• OIC calls to protect displaced,
refugee families
• Dutch artist Satori headlines Riyadh
desert event
• Saudi Civil Defence rescues pet
animals trapped in Alkhobar fire
• Saudi Arabia reports 431 new COVID-19
cases, 2 deaths
• WHO renews Saudi food authority role
as centre for global cooperation
• KAUST attracts 5 global deep tech
startups to Kingdom
--------
South Asia
• Proshanta Kumar Halder, A Bangladeshi,
Living Illegally In India, Arrested By ED For Bank Fraud In Own Country
• Former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani
invited by Taliban to attend assembly in Kabul
• The Taliban in Ghazni Prevents the
Smuggling of Weapons to Pakistan
• WFP Distributes Aid to About 20
Million People In Afghanistan
• Islamic Emirate: Over 130,000 Soldiers
Recruited
--------
Southeast Asia
• Malaysia FM Holds Talks With
Counterpart From Myanmar Shadow Government
• Tat Meng may not return to Malaysia
after successful Korean stint
• 7 judges in the running for 2 top
posts
• Analysts mixed on Ismail’s future
after constitution amendment
• Efforts on to revive flights to
Malaysia, Bangkok from Visakhapatnam, says Andhra Minister
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/hate-message-harmony-masjid-hyderabad/d/127020
--------
Countering Hate With Message Of Harmony:
Masjid-e-Azizia Mosqueof HyderabadOpens Doors To One & All
Volunteers
explain visitors about Islam at Masjid-e-Azizia
-----
May 16, 2022
Hyderabad: People of different faiths
thronged Masjid-e-Azizia at Humayun Nagar on Sunday as it threw open its doors
for public, cutting across gender and religion, to take part in a free guided
tour of the mosque. The aim was to familiarise people with the place of worship
— starting with the Wuzu (ablution), Azaan (call to prayer), Salatul-Jumu’ah
(Friday prayer) to performing daily Namaz, among other things.
Apart from Muslims, the gathering
included Hindus, Christians and even heritage experts from the city.
The Masjid-e-Azizia committee members
along with Jamaat-e-Islami Hind and other volunteers organised the ‘discover
masjid’ programme as part of the interfaith Eid Milap initiative that took
place between 11 am to 1.30 pm. Speaking to TOI, Mateen Ahmed, supervising the
arrangements, explained that the event stands as an opportunity for an
interfaith understanding. “We wanted to show what we do in the masjid and other
activities that we follow as part of our religion. This will show what we have
in common and understand the meaning behind our practices,” Ahmed told TOI.
Irrespective of the religion, people
visiting the mosque found the experience ‘insightful.’ “This experience is an
eye-opener for many who misunderstand the religion. I believe communities
connecting like this can eradicate issues of disharmony among people of
different faiths,” Srinivas Rao, a businessman and resident of Masab Tank,
said. Another participant, Rajyalakshmi, from Humayun Nagar, lauded the
volunteers who conducted the tour seamlessly and by involving everyone. “They
were very welcoming. Not just in ushering us but also in giving straight
answers to questions,” she said. Heritage expert Anuradha Reddy, convenor of
the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) said she
always wanted to visit and understand more about the activities that take place
inside a mosque.
The 56-year-old Masjid-e-Azizia happens
to be the fourth such mosque that had opened its doors and conducted a guided
tour for non-Muslims. “This isn’t the only service that this mosque offers to
non-Muslims. We also provide interest-free gold loans as collecting interest is
banned in Islam. The mosque also houses a clinic that provides free
consultation and discounted treatments that several non-Muslims avail,” Mateen
said.
Source: Times Of India
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'Shivling' , 12 Feet By 8 Inches In
Diameter, Found In Gyanvapi Well, Claim Hindu Lawyers
Gyanvapi Masjid Survey concludes. (Photo: PTI)
-----
Monday, May 16, 2022
New Delhi, May 16: The videography
survey of the Gyanvapi Masjid complex was completed today, while nearly 65 per
cent of the exercise was completed on Sunday.
Heavy security was deployed as the court
appointed committee reached the spot to conduct the survey.
Speaking with Aaj Tok/India Today,
lawyer, Vishnu Jain said that a Shivling was found inside the well. I will go
to civil court to seek its protection, he also said.
The Mosque is located close to the
iconic Kashi Vishwanath temple and the local court is hearing a plea by a group
of women seeking permission for daily prayers before the idols on its outer
walls.
Yesterday, the DM had said that the
survey work on Monday will begin at 8 am and all the parties have been directed
to remain present.
This is completely an archaeological
survey work, since the advocates were not familiar with the survey work, the
work took some time," Madan Mohan Yadav, the counsel for the Hindu side in
the case, had said on Sunday.
The survey was stalled last week amid
objections by the mosque committee, which claimed that the advocate
commissioner appointed by the court for the survey did not have the mandate to
film inside the premises.
In his order on Thursday last, District
Civil Judge (Senior Division) Ravi Kumar Diwakar had turned down a plea by the
mosque committee to replace Ajay Kumar Mishra, who was appointed advocate
commissioner by the court to survey the Gyanvapi-Gauri Shringar complex.
The judge also appointed two more
advocates to help the court commissioner with the survey and said it should be
completed by Tuesday.
The district court had said that locks
should be broken if the keys are not available to access certain areas of the
complex for the survey. It also asked district authorities to register FIRs if
the survey was not allowed.
The Supreme Court had on Friday last
refused to grant an interim order of status quo on the survey. The top court,
however, agreed to consider listing the plea of a Muslim party against the
survey.
Advocate Yadav had said the three court-appointed
advocate commissioners, five lawyers each from the two sides and an assistant
besides a videography team will carry out the survey.
Source: One India
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Gruesome Murder Of Deborah Samuel: Prophet Of Islam (PBUH) Was Insulted, Scorned But Never Killed In Retaliation — Kaduna Based Islamic Scholar
Sheikh Gumi/
Photo Vanguard
----
May 15, 2022
-Says Nigeria is secular , not under
Islamic law
By Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo
Kaduna based Islamic scholar, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi has cautioned Muslims
against killing fellow human beings because of trivial issues; insisting that
the Prophet of Islam ( PBUH) was insulted and scorned but he never killed in
retaliation.
Gumi who was reacting to the gruesome murder of Deborah Samuel in
Sokoto, said that any Muslim who kills a Christian in Nigeria because the
prophet was insulted will not smell the
fragrance of Jannah( paradise).
Deborah Samuel: Prophet Muhammad didn’t
kill anyone for insulting him – Sheikh Gumi
“Nigeria is not an Islamic state, Muslims
in the Country have an agreement with
people of other faiths to live together peacefully and anyone who kills them on
religious guise has committed a grievous sin,” he said.
Gumi spoke while preaching at the Sultan
Bello Mosque Kaduna.
He lashed at some Muslim clerics who were quoting verses they don’t understand
and telling people to kill whoever insults their religion,
He quoted Quranic verses saying Killing a non-Muslim
under the guise that, the person uttered a blasphemous statement against Prophet
Muhammad is not an excuse, “because Allah has told us in the Qur’an the
non-Muslims will insult Allah and His Prophet.
“In fact, it is now the blasphemy will
start after the killing of that lady in Sokoto, the insult will increase, not
reduce,” he said.
“Muslims of Nigeria that want to defend
Prophet Muhammad should be ashamed of themselves because they are corrupt.. the
best way to go if we want to defend the Prophet, is to follow his teachings.”
, “We the clerics need to wake up and
teach the Muslims their religion. We must leave this state of ignorance, we
have turned like animals. We the Muslims are not the only ones in this
country.”
“It is not only that we are not the only
ones in this country, we must know that, there was nothing the unbelievers did
not do to Prophet Muhammad, but he was patient, because he was concious that if
he killed them, the unbelievers he was trying to bring to the fold of Islam
will tag him a killer.”
“There are people who are neither
Muslims not Christians in Nigeria, and everyone is trying to win their souls.
Also, there people who are not Muslims, whom we are preaching Islam to, so that
they can enter the fold of Islam and be salvage in the hereafter.
“If we now begin to kill people, they
will say it is even from the leader of our faith, Prophet Muhammad that we have
learnt it. They will say their religion is a religion of bloodletting. At a
time we are trying to draw attention of people to see the beauty of Islam, we
are now scaring them away.
“It is unfortunate that, we even see
some clerics who are telling people that, whoever insults your religion, just
kill then. They are quoting verses they don’t understand. There is no one who
has the will to kill anyone except through the Islamic justice system. And in
doing this, the conditions of such justice must be completed before anyone can
be killed.”
“Our religion is a civilised religion.
The white people Learnt rule of law from Islam. But today we are the ones in
this level of lack of civilisation, to the extent that an Islamic cleric is
quoting Qur’an and Hadith spreading and encouraging barbarism.”
“People that have not been able to
perfect their own acts of worship the way they are supposed to. People who
don’t know how to pray properly are now the ones that say they want to dispense
justice to people who commit blasphemy.”
“What people don’t know is that, in the
Islamic perspective, the world is divided into two, the Islamic world and the
non-Islamic world, that is countries that are governed by the Islamic law and
those that are governed by other laws.”
“Those who are not Muslims are divided
into two; there are non-Muslims that you engage in war, and there non-Muslims
that, you have agreement with. Those you have agreement with are also divided
into two; those who are living under the Islamic laws and those that are not
binded by the Islamic laws.”
“Nigeria’s non-Muslims are not living
under the Islamic laws, we all have an agreement under the Nigerian
constitution to live together. So, Prophet Muhammad said whoever kills a soul
of non-Muslim that is under such agreement of living together, will not smell
the fragrance of paradise, such person’s distance to paradise will be like a
journey of 40 years.”
“Killing a non-Muslims under the guise
that, the person uttered a blasphemous statement against Prophet Muhammad is
not an excuse, because Allah has told us in the Qur’an the non-Muslims will
insult Allah and His Prophet. In fact, it is now the blasphemy will start after
the killing of that lady in Sokoto, the insult will increase, not reduce”
“What Allah asked us to do in the face
of blasphemy in a society like ours, is to be patient and preach to the people
and make them understand our religion. In our kind of society, we don’t have
the right to kill for blasphemy, otherwise, even many people who call
themselves Islamic clerics who have equally been killed because they have
fallen into blasphemy by calling Allah human being or saying they know tomorrow
or those who have indirectly turned to Babalawo.”
“The Prophet told us that, a time will
come towards the end time, when people will feeling like taking other people’s
life. So, he said, instead of doing that, it is better for you to look for a
rock and be boxing it, so that, you don’t the urge of killing anytime..”
“So, who do we leave just justice for in
the face of blasphemy? It is the authority. We don’t have the right to take up
arms and kill anyone, except in self defence, like when some comes for your
life or an armed robber invades your house. You are not the one to defend
Islam, in fact, you are making the work of those calling people into Islam
difficult.”
“The right thing the students who killed
the lady in Sokoto ought to do, is to report her to the school management, then
the management reports to the Governor or Sultan for them to know how to stop
her. Just by hearing her commit blasphemy, you just went and carried out jungle
justice on her, who taught you that? What do you want our country to turn into?
We must leave these acts of barbarism.”
“Is it even we the Muslims of Nigeria
that want to defend Prophet Muhammad? We that are corrupt? We that cannot even
be differentiated from unbelievers in corrupt acts.”
He said thev best way to go if we want
to defend the Prophet, is to follow his examples by being upright in all
fronts.
Source: Vanguard
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Thousands March In London In Solidarity With Palestinians
The march
comes a day before the commemoration of the Nakba (the Day of Catastrophe), the
ethnic cleansing of Palestinian cities and towns by Zionist paramilitaries in
1948.
----
May 16, 2022
AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Thousands
of protesters took to the streets in central London on Saturday in support of
the Palestinian people and Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was
killed by the Israeli occupation forces a few days ago in the West Bank.
The rally was organized by the Palestine
Solidarity Campaign, the Palestinian Forum in Britain (PFB), Friends of al-Aqsa
(FOA), the Muslim Association of Britain, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
and the Stop the War Coalition.
The London demonstration was held one
day before Nakba Day, which on 15 May each year commemorates the massive exodus
of Palestinians from their homes that happened with the Israeli occupation
state's 1948 creation.
It was also staged in protest at the
Israeli killing of veteran Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, 51, as she
was covering an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank last Wednesday.
"Let us tell Shireen that her last
report from the occupied territories and her funeral scene – as you all have
seen – was the most influential and will continue to be the most visible and
the most etched in our memory," PFB chairman Zaher Birawi said, addressing
the rally.
"Yes, dear friends and comrades, it
was the most influential report, simply because she wrote it with her precious
blood that she gave for the homeland and its capital, al-Quds al-Sharif
(Jerusalem),” Birawi added.
Several speakers at Saturday's rally
criticized Britain's leaders over their stances on the Palestinian cause and
their passivity towards Israeli crimes and violations.
Labor Party MP Zarah Sultana said the
participants in the march were sending a "message to the residents of
Downing Street" that "your silence is complicity, and we will not let
you forget that.”
Meanwhile, protesters chanted for
justice for the slain Al Jazeera correspondent and carried Palestinian flags
and placards showcasing her photo.
Chants of "One, two, three, four,
occupation no more" and "Free, free Palestine" were also chanted
by the protesters.
Source: ABNA24
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https://en.abna24.com/news//thousands-march-in-london-in-solidarity-with-palestinians_1257892.html
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Nakba Memories And Resistance: The Right Of Return Remains In Refugee Diaries
A
demonstrator participates in clashes with the Israeli forces following a rally
marking the 74th anniversary of Nakba or catastrophe, in Ramallah in the
Israeli-occupied West Bank May 15, 2022. (Reuters)
-----
May 16, 2022
RAFAH, GAZA STRIP: Abu Ahmed Adwan was
five when his family was forcibly displaced during the Nakba in 1948. They
sought refuge in a camp in the city of Rafah, adjacent to the
Palestinian-Egyptian border in the far south of the Gaza Strip.
Adwan grew up in the alleys of the
Barbara camp, which got its name from the original village that was abandoned
by the Adwan family and other families that settled together.
“We were neighbors in Barbara before the
Nakba, and here we are in the camp until the return,” Adwan, now in his late
70s, told Arab News.
Today he is the mayor of his village
(the chief of the refugee families from the village of Barbara), and despite
spending his life as a refugee, he still believes in the right of return.
“We will return one day, and if we pass
away, our children and grandchildren will return and rebuild the country.”
Estimates by the UN Relief and Works
Agency for Palestine Refugees show that the number of refugees in the Rafah
camp grew from 41,000 in 1948 to more than 125,000 today. Residents in one of
the largest camps in the Gaza Strip live in overcrowded houses in narrow streets.
In Gaza, refugees represent more than 70 percent of the population of almost
two million people.
Adwan uses a large map of the village of
Barbara, which tops one of the walls of his meeting hall in his home, to
describe the village he visited for the last time about 35 years ago.
He classifies his constant talk of
Barbara, and the refugee stories linked to the memory of the Nakba, as a “kind
of resistance” in order to keep the memories of past generations alive and
encourage the restoration of stolen rights.
He said: “Today’s generation is more
aware than their parents and grandfathers than the generation of the Nakba, and
the experience of the Nakba in 1948 cannot be repeated again.”
Mohammed Adwan, born in 1970, is a freed
prisoner of an Israeli jail. He said: “The camp is the storehouse of the
revolution since the Nakba, and the fathers and grandfathers are its fuel by
constantly talking about Palestine with all this nostalgia.”
He added: “We will return sooner or
later.”
Adwan said that refugee camps play a
role in “resisting the occupation, forming the awareness of successive
generations and preserving the national memory.”
He added: “It was important to preserve
the names of our original towns and villages, by calling them to the refugee
camps, as this is a resistance to the factors of time, and the occupation’s
efforts to falsify reality and distort Palestinian geography.”
The growing population in the camp led
to mixing with city neighborhoods. Simple houses built from brick and roofed
with asbestos have largely disappeared, replaced by concrete houses.
A researcher in refugee affairs, Nader
Abu Sharekh, said that stories told in the homes of the camps, generation after
generation, have made the Palestinian cause “alive and growing.”
The families of each village and city
destroyed in the Nakba gathered in neighborhoods inside the new camps to draft
names. They used original names from their homeland, out of love for the land
and adherence to the right of return, and to keep the names and meanings present
in memory. In each camp there are streets bearing the names of original homes.
“In the camp, the events of the Nakba
are present, and the right of return is an absolute belief,” Abu Sharekh said.
“In wedding parties, they sing historic
songs from before the Nakba like Ataba, Mijna, Dabke and Dahia.
“These traditions remained in
circulation, so that the homeland remains a title to joy, and the right of
return remains in the refugees’ diaries.”
In the camp, old women still wear
traditional dress rich in color.
People have allotted part of their yards
to plant something that reminds them of their lost orchards and farms.
Sometimes the space is used to construct a hut or tent.
Some of the refugees still bake using
traditional clay ovens modeled on the kind lost in their destroyed towns and
villages.
Source: Arab News
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the text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2082791/middle-east
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India
Congress to seek legal opinion for
contempt case against Amit Shah's comment on Muslim quota
May 15, 2022
HYDERABAD: The Congress will seek legal
opinion to file a case of contempt of the Supreme Court against Union home
minister Amit Shah for his comments that the BJP, if voted to power, would
scrap the four percent quota for Muslims being implemented in Telangana.
Former minister and TPCC political
affairs committee convenor Md Ali Shabbir on Sunday lashed out at Shah for
announcing a decision of doing away with four percent Muslim quota even as the
"Muslim quota issue" is pending with the Supreme Court.
"Amit Shah as a union minister
holding all important Home Affairs portfolio should have known that Muslim
quota is not being given on the basis of religion in the state but based on
socio-economic backwardness of 14 groups among Muslims under BC-E category
quota. This was done based on a comprehensive study and report submitted by the
government appointed BC Commission," Shabbir said.
"Amit Shah's remarks were highly
provocative and fall into the category of hate speech. Despite being the
country's home minister, he is neither aware of the history of 4% Muslim quota
nor its present legal position. The case of the 4% Muslim quota in government
jobs and education, introduced by the previous Congress government in 2004-05,
is pending before the Supreme Court. Therefore, by announcing that the BJP
government would scrap the Muslim quota, Amit Shah may have indulged in the
contempt of court. Is Amit Shah superior to the Supreme Court to scrap the
Muslim quota? We will seek legal pinion", Shabbir Ali said.
Amit Shah should've done basic research
before commenting on the Muslim quota. First of all, the Muslim quota was not
given on the basis of religion. Initially, Muslims in undivided Andhra Pradesh
were given a 5% quota which was later reduced to 4% on the directions of the
high court, he said.
The Backward Classes Commission
conducted a deep study and recommended categorisation of 14 socially,
economically and educationally backward groups among Muslims as BC-E. Based on
this report, the then Congress Govt introduced a Bill providing 4% reservation
to 14 identified backward classes among Muslims. This was challenged in the
High Court and later the matter went to the Supreme Court. The Apex Court, in
March 2010, permitted the continuance of the 4% Muslim quota subject to the
final verdict by the Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court. Therefore, no
one, except the Supreme Court has powers to stop the Muslim quota,"
Shabbir Ali said.
Amit Shah's statement on the Muslim
quota clearly shows that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's slogan of 'Sabka Saath,
Sabka Vikas' was a hoax and another 'jumla'. "Why are BJP leaders jealous
and envious of poor Muslims getting free education and a small share in
government jobs? Do they want Muslims to remain illiterate and
unemployed?" he asked.
Source: The Times Of India
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Amit Shah’s comments on Muslim quota
nothing less than hate speech: Shabbir Ali
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENTHYDERABAD
MAY 15, 2022
Former Minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir has
objected to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s promise of scrapping 4% Muslim
quota if it comes to power in Telangana. He described it as highly provocative
and nothing less than hate speech.
In a statement here, he said that
despite being the country's Home Minister, Mr. Shah was neither aware of the
history of Muslim quota nor its present legal position. “The case of 4% Muslim
quota in government jobs and education, introduced by the previous Congress
regime in 2004-05, is pending before the Supreme Court. His statement is contempt
of court. Is Amit Shah superior to the Supreme Court?” he asked.
Mr. Ali said that Muslim reservation was
not given on the basis of religion but on the recommendations of the Backward
Classes Commission by the Congress government in combined AP. The commission
recommended categorisation of 14 socially, economically and educationally
backward groups among Muslims as BC-E.
He said that when Congress provided 5%
reservation based on the report, the Supreme Court permitted the continuance of
4% quota, subject to the final verdict by the Constitutional Bench of the
Supreme Court. “Therefore, no one, except the Supreme Court has powers to stop
the Muslim quota,” Mr. Ali said.
He added that since its implementation,
nearly 20 lakh poor Muslim families in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
benefitted. Mr. Shah’s efforts to polarise Telangana will never succeed, he
said.
Source: The Hindu
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Truth about Gyanvapi mosque, Taj Mahal,
Krishna Janmabhoomi should come out: RSS leader
New Delhi, May 15: Truth about Gyanvapi
mosque, Taj Mahal and Krishna Janmabhoomi in Uttar Pradesh and all other
disputed places in the country should come out before the people, senior RSS
leader Indresh Kumar said on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines
of an event here, he said the people want to know the truth about these places
as they feel that it will help the country get "a right direction".
It's not out of any grudge against
anybody or due to some politics that people want to know the truth of these
places, he added. "A discussion is going on about the Gyanvapi, Taj Mahal,
Krishna Janmabhoomi and various other places in the country. Everyone wants to
know the truth (about them). It's is not out of any grudge against anyone or
due to some politics," the RSS leader told the reporters in response to
their queries. Common people feel that the more truth about these places comes
out the more it will help the country get a right direction.
Kumar, who is RSS national executive
member, appealed to the people to rise above their caste, community, region,
religion, and party, and help the court bring out truth about "such
disputes". A court-mandated videography survey of the Gyanvapi Masjid
complex in Varanasi was carried out peacefully for the second consecutive day
on Sunday, with the major part of the exercise said to have been completed. The
survey, which was stalled last week amid objections by the mosque management
committee, which claimed that the advocate commissioner appointed by the court
for the survey did not have the mandate to film inside the premises, will
continue on Monday.
The mosque is located close to the
iconic Kashi Vishwanath temple and the local court is hearing a plea by a group
of women seeking permission for daily prayers before the idols on its outer
walls. Earlier this week, however, the Allahabad High Court dismissed a plea seeking
a "fact-finding inquiry" into the history of the Taj Mahal and the
"opening of 22 rooms" on the monument's premises, saying the
petitioner failed to point out which of his legal or constitutional rights were
being infringed. The High Court recently directed expeditious hearing in the
Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Idgah Masjid dispute. Two applications were
filed last week in a Mathura court for an early appointment of a senior
advocate commissioner for "verifying the presence of signs of a Hindu
temple" at the mosque site so that they are not tampered with while the
cases are decided legally. The Lucknow bench of justices D K Upadhyay and
Subhash Vidyarthi pulled up the lawyer of petitioner Rajneesh Singh, who is the
media in-charge of the BJP's Ayodhya unit, for filing the PIL in a
"casual" manner and said it cannot pass an order under Article 226 of
the Constitution in the matter. The article empowers a high court to issue to
any person or authority in the area under its jurisdiction orders or writs to
enforce the fundamental rights. The bench said that it was a non-justiciable
issue that cannot be decided or gone into by the court. The bench said that the
petitioner could not point out as to which of his legal or constitutional
rights were being infringed. Dismissing the plea as misconceived, the bench
pulled up the petitioner's counsel Rudra Pratap Singh over and again for moving
the PIL without properly conducting legal research work, and declined to
intervene into factual issues as to what was behind the closed doors of the
Taj.
Source: One India
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Muslim group wants Congress to field at
least one community candidate in RS polls
MAY 15 2022
A Muslim group has urged Congress
President Sonia Gandhi to field at least one candidate of the community from
Rajasthan for the Rajya Sabha elections, to be held next month.
Making the demand, the Rajasthan Muslim
Alliance gave a copy of its letter to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot as well as
Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Out of 10 Rajya Sabha seats from
Rajasthan, four are falling vacant in June 2022.
Going by the number of Congress MLAs in
Rajasthan, of the four vacant Rajya Sabha seats from the state, at least three
party candidates are likely to win the polls for the Upper House, the Muslim
group's coordinator Mohsin Rasheed Khan said in a stat...
He also claimed that neither Congress
nor BJP has made any effort to send any Muslim candidate to the Rajya Sabha in
the last 11 years.
The term of four Rajya Sabha MP from
Rajasthan -- Om Mathur, K J Alphons, Ram Kumar Verma and Harshvardhan Singh --
is going to end next month.
Source: Deccan Herald
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Africa
It will be wrong for a Muslim to take
over from Buhari– Bishop Wale Oke
May 16, 2022
The National President of Pentecostal
Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), Bishop Francis Wale Oke has said that it would be
wrong for a Muslim to take over from President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023.
Bishop Oke further stated that PFN will
not support any political party with Muslim-Muslim candidates in the
forthcoming general election.
The revered Christian cleric spoke on
Saturday in Osogbo during the celebration of 30th anniversary of PFN in Osun
State.
Oke, in a statement issued by the state
Director of Media, Bishop Seun Adeoye explained that Nigeria is a secular state
and that Christians will not fold their arms and allow a situation where the
president and the vice-president would be Muslims.
He said, “The Church in Nigeria is
saying No to a Muslim-Muslim ticket. We are going to mobilise the church
against such political party. PFN has 65 million people and we will vote
against such party.
“Obasanjo handed over to Yar’adua,
Yar’adua to Jonathan and Jonathan to Buhari and who else should Buhari hands
over to but a Christian”.
He called on all PFN members to ensure
they possess their Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVC) and vote out bad government.
On the killing of Deborah Samuel in
Sokoto, the PFN President condemned those who were killing in the name of
religion.
“Killing in the name of religion is
barbaric, unrighteous, ungodly and demonic. We want killings in the name of
religion to stop in Nigeria.
“It is regrettable that one of our
daughters was stoned to death and set ablaze. We urge all religion leaders in
Nigeria to educate their adherents. Nigeria is not again in stone age. It is
criminal offence and the killers should be fished out and brought to book. They
are killers and the punishment meant for killers be meted on them,” he said.
In his speech, the Governor of Osun
State, Adegboyega Oyetola represented by his deputy, Mr. Gboyega Alabi
explained the roles being played by his government to ensure peace in the
state.
Source: Champion News
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https://championnews.com.ng/it-will-be-wrong-for-a-muslim-to-take-over-from-buhari-bishop-wale-oke/
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Nigerian Christians will vote against
Muslim-Muslim ticket: PFN
ADEBOLA AJAYI
• MAY 15, 2022
Wale Oke, the national president of the
Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) on Saturday said the church will
mobilise 65 million Christians to vote against any political party who fields
Muslim-Muslim a ticket during the presidential election in 2023.
Mr Oke, a bishop, spoke on Saturday at
the 30th anniversary of PFN in Osun State. He warned that the church will be
against another Muslim candidate like Muhammadu Buhari.
“The Church in Nigeria is saying ‘No’ to
a Muslim-Muslim ticket. We are going to mobilise the church against such
political party. PFN has 65 million people and we will vote against such
party,” he said.
“Obasanjo handed over to Yar’adua,
Yar’adua to Jonathan and Jonathan to Buhari and who else should Buhari hand
over to but a Christian?”
Mr Oke also condemned the gruesome
killing of Deborah Samuel in Sokoto state “killing in the name of religion is
barbaric, unrighteous, ungodly and demonic.”
The cleric said it is regrettable that
Ms Samuel was set ablaze by mobs in the name of religion.
He said religious leaders should educate
their followers saying religious killings must
stop in Nigeria.
He urged PFM members to get their
Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and vote out corrupt political leaders.
“It is regrettable that one of our
daughters was stoned to death and set ablaze. We urge all religious leaders in
Nigeria to educate their adherents,” he said.
“Nigeria is not again in stone age. It
is criminal offence and the killers should be fished out and brought to book.
They are killers and the punishment meant for killers be meted on them.”
Source: People Gazette
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https://gazettengr.com/nigerian-christians-will-vote-against-muslim-muslim-ticket-pfn/
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Buhari's Daughter, Zahra, Shares Video
Of Saudi Islamic Cleric Warning Muslims Against Jungle Justice When People
Insult Prophet Muhammad
BY SAHARAREPORTERS, NEW YORK
MAY 15, 2022
Zahra Buhari-Indimi, daughter of
President Muhammadu Buhari has shared a video of Saudi Islamic scholar, Sheikh
Assim Al-Hakeem, teaching Muslims how to react to people who insult the
Prophet.
In the video, Sheikh Al-Hakeem advised
Muslims to desist from taking matters into their own hands when there is a case
of blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
Zahra reposted a few seconds of the
video on her Instagram stories on Sunday, in response to the gruesome murder of
a female Christian student in Sokoto, Deborah Samuel, for alleged blasphemy on
Thursday.
She was killed by her fellow students
who are Muslims, and her body was also burnt.
Her remains were laid to rest in her
hometown, Tunga Magajiya, in the Rijau local government area of Niger State on
Saturday
Sheikh Al-Hakeem is said to be one of
the prominent propagators of Islam in English in Saudi Arabia.
The Imam said, "This depends if you
are in a Muslim country. This is a major offence that requires the intervention
of the Muslim ruler. You simply report these individuals to the court or to the
Muslim ruler.
“It’s the duty of the Muslim ruler to
execute after going through the legislative processes and going in front of a
panel of judges."
“You must not take matters into your own
hands because this will turn the community into a jungle,” he said.
Source: Sahara Reporters
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Burkina Faso: Armed Islamists Kill, Rape
Civilians
(Nairobi) – Armed Islamist groups and
government security forces and militia in Burkina Faso are committing increased
abuses against civilians as the conflict there intensifies and widens, Human
Rights Watch said today. The Burkina Faso government, which took power in a January
2022 coup, should better protect civilians from attack and ensure that
government forces respect human rights.
Armed Islamist groups that began
attacking Burkina Faso in 2016 have become increasingly abusive, carrying out
hundreds of killings, summary executions, rapes of civilians, and widespread
pillaging. Also since 2016, government security forces and militias engaged in
counterterrorism operations have allegedly unlawfully killed hundreds of
civilians and suspected Islamist fighters, fueling recruitment into armed
groups. The fighting has forced 1.8 million people from their homes, most from
the Sahel and Centre-Nord regions of the country.
“Armed Islamist groups are demonstrating
day after day their profound disregard for the lives and livelihoods of
civilians,” said Corinne Dufka, Sahel director at Human Rights Watch.
“Government forces and associated militias must scrupulously uphold
international human rights and humanitarian law and desist from killing in the
name of security.”
From April 7 to 21, 2022 in Ouagadougou,
the capital, and in Kaya, Human Rights Watch interviewed 83 survivors and
witnesses to incidents between September 2021 and April 2022 in the Boucle du
Mouhoun, Cascades, Centre-Nord, Est, Nord, Sahel, and Sud-Ouest regions of Burkina
Faso. Human Rights Watch also interviewed medical professionals, security
analysts, government officials, foreign diplomats, United Nations
representatives, and aid workers.
Villagers said that heavily armed
Islamist fighters killed civilians during attacks and planted deadly improvised
explosive devices (IEDs). Fighters in dozens of cases raped and otherwise
abused women and girls who were foraging for wood, traveling to and from the
market, and fleeing the violence. The fighters also burned villages; commandeered
ambulances and looted health centers; destroyed crucial water,
telecommunications, and electricity infrastructure; and engaged in widespread
pillage. Many villagers described seeing numerous child soldiers, some as young
as 12, within the armed Islamist ranks.
A resident of Ankouna described the
aftermath of an armed Islamist attack: “When I returned the next day, the
village was still smoldering. [There were] bodies of six people including my
brother, who had been shot trying to rescue a child 10 meters from his shop. I
saw five people including a 70-year-old dead in one house. They’d been shot in
the back or head.”
Other villagers said that government
security forces and pro-government militias, called Volunteers for the Defense
of the Homeland (Volontaires pour la défense de la patrie, VDP), carried out
unlawful killings and enforced disappearances of dozens of civilians and
suspected Islamist fighters largely in Burkina Faso’s eastern and southern
regions.
All parties to the armed conflict are
bound by international humanitarian law, notably Common Article 3 of the Geneva
Conventions of 1949 and customary laws of war, which provide for the humane
treatment of captured combatants and require prosecuting summary executions,
rape, and enforced disappearances as war crimes.
The government should revoke a 2021
decree that provides immunity from prosecution to members of a special
counterterrorism force for acts committed “in the exercise of their functions.”
In coordination with the United Nations and aid agencies, the government should
increase medical and mental health support to victims of abuse including sexual
and gender-based violence.
“There have been very few
investigations, much less prosecutions, for the atrocities which have
punctuated Burkina Faso’s conflict,” Dufka said. “The government should ensure
the presence of provost marshals with responsibility for troop discipline and
detainees’ rights in all military operations and adopt measures so that
civilian and military courts provide fair trials for suspects.”
For details of attacks on civilians,
please see below.
Abuses by Armed Islamist Groups
Several armed Islamist groups allied to
both Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and the Islamic State in the
Greater Sahara (ISGS) are implicated in serious abuses.
Since late 2021, these armed groups have
dramatically increased attacks on pro-government forces including in and around
the towns of Ankouna, Arbinda, Dablo, Foube, Inata, Namsiguia, Namissiguima,
Pissila, and Tougouri, to which many people fleeing violence in surrounding
villages had fled in 2019 and 2020.
The attacks, said security analysts,
appeared designed to compel widespread displacement from towns perceived to
support the government, thereby consolidating armed group control from their
strongholds in northern Burkina Faso to the central regions. Humanitarian
workers expressed alarm at the dramatic pace of deterioration. Said one,
“Civilian life is being suffocated as roads are mined; villages blockaded;
markets closed; and water points, telecommunication, and electricity
infrastructure sabotaged.”
Armed Islamist groups have concentrated
recruitment efforts on the nomadic Peuhl, or Fulani, by exploiting community
grievances over poverty and public sector corruption. This has inflamed
tensions with other largely agrarian communities, notably the Foulse, Mossi,
Dogon, and Gourmantché, who have been the targets of most armed Islamist
attacks.
Villagers described fighters dressed in
military camouflage or traditional robes known as boubous, with ammunition
vests, turbans covering their faces, and military boots. They used motorcycles,
motorized tricycles, and pickup trucks, often draped with white, black, or red
flags with Arabic writing, and were armed with AK-47 assault weapons, PKM-12
machine guns, pistols, and rocket-propelled grenades. The fighters were heard
speaking in Fulfulde, and to a lesser extent Gourmanchéma, Arabic, and Mooré.
Killing and Summary Execution of
Civilians
Human Rights Watch documented the
killing by armed Islamist groups of 67 civilians during attacks on villages,
farms, and artisanal gold mine sites.
In late March, in Centre-Nord region,
armed Islamists summarily executed three women fleeing an attack. Three
witnesses to the killings believed the victims, all over 50, had been targeted
because they had recognized the armed group’s commander: One witness said:
ur convoy of 40 women on donkey carts
was suddenly surrounded by over 60 terrorists. They kept us there for hours,
asked if our husbands were VDPs, lectured us about how to be good Muslims, and
told us this land was now theirs. They stole our phones, food stocks, money,
clothing, and then burned what they didn’t want. The commander asked my friend
if she recognized him. She replied honestly: “Yes, I know you and your father.
You killed my husband.” He ordered her onto her donkey cart, and then executed
her. We gasped. He hit the donkey and the cart took off with her inside. Then
he executed on the spot two other women in their 60s, who also said they recognized
him.
illagers from Ankouna said armed
Islamists killed 14 civilians during an attack on January 5, including five men
executed in one house and at least two children. A 39-year-old trader said:
was in my shop when at about 4 p.m. scores of
attackers burst into town, riding on motorcycles and pickups. One terrorist
jumped down, spraying bullets into the market area as he walked in a half
circle. Another man fired at us with a gun mounted on a pickup. They stayed for
three hours yelling “Allahu akbar,” burning the village and looting animals and
market stalls.
A resident said, “There were 30 VDPs
[militia members] in the village but only civilians died in this attack.”
Villagers said that armed Islamists
killed nine civilians during a January 15 attack on Namsiguia. “From 6:30 a.m.,
they flooded into town from three directions, shooting wildly, forcing open and
looting shops, then burning the rest, including an ambulance, water pump, and
telecommunication towers,” said one witness. Another who helped collect the
dead said, “I found bodies in the street, and several women killed near the
water point. The eldest was 75, and the youngest a 10-year-old girl.” A VDP
militia member said, “There were over 100 jihadists on motorcycles and pickups
firing machine guns. We fired a few warning shots but quickly ditched our
weapons and ran.”
A 33-year-old woman described an attack
near Nagraogo village on the motorized tricycle in which she and other traders
were traveling. “On our way back from market, eight armed Islamists forced us
to stop,” she said. “They were talking on a walkie-talkie with other
terrorists. They marched the only two men in our group into the bush and
executed them. This is why our men stopped traveling on the roads.”
Residents of several villages said that
farmers had been forced to abandon their land and flee after dozens had been
killed in their farms or as they grazed their animals. Many farmers said they
had been unable to safely work on their farms over the last two or three years.
A man from Bam province described the cases of 16 farmers or herders killed
since 2021: “Their strategy is to isolate and starve us,” he said. A nurse from
a town in Centre-Nord said, “Since 2020, I treated at least 12 men shot while
working their land and registered 16 men killed – 12 in their fields and four
while grazing their cows.”
A 53-year-old herder survived one such
attack that killed his brother in late 2021:
My younger brother and I were tending
our herd south of Dablo. We were separated by 200 meters when I saw terrorists
on two motorcycles jump off, push him down, and shoot him in the head, and then
steal our cows. Two other herders were killed like this the same day.
Security sources described two attacks
on artisanal gold mining sites. On March 10, armed Islamists attacked Tondobi
village in Seytenga commune, killing 10 people. On March 12 they attacked the
Baliata artisanal mine near Dori, killing 11. A family member said that on
March 18, armed Islamists abducted 50-year-old Hama Hamidou, a local official
who managed cattle, took him out of a taxi traveling between Dori and Seytenga,
and executed him.
Rape and Other Violence Against Women
and Girls
Human Rights Watch documented several
dozen cases of rape of women and girls by armed Islamist groups since late
September 2021, most in the Centre-Nord region. Human Rights Watch interviewed
14 rape survivors, many of whom had witnessed other women being raped. One said
that at least nine other women had been raped during the same incident.
Burkinabé elders or medical workers documented other cases, sharing anonymized
records detailing cases they knew of or had treated.
The armed Islamists targeted women and
girls who were gathering firewood, on their way to or from market, or as they
fled attacks on their villages. The women said the assailants tried to extract
information about government forces and militias and told them to convey
ultimatums to their villages to abandon the area. Attackers often demanded that
the women demonstrate their knowledge of the Quran.
Community leaders said the frequent
killings of men as they worked in their fields or went to market had
increasingly pushed women into these roles, putting them at greater risk. “If a
man is found by these people, you know where he will end up,” a male villager
said. “Because of this, our women are forced to do the work we wish we could
do.” An aid worker said, “Women are being forced to take terrible risks to care
for their families.”
A nurse from a village near Dablo said
she had treated over 55 women who had been raped by armed Islamists between
September and December 2021. “The women came from 11 villages,” she said. “The
terrorists attacked Muslims, Christians, and animists alike. They cried – they
couldn’t eat or sleep and were too ashamed to tell their families what
happened.”
A nurse in another area said she had
treated seven women within the same time frame: “One was a girl of 16, and
another, a 40-year-old Christian who told me the assailants ripped off her
cross before dragging her into the bush.” A village elder from Namissiguima
said 10 women from three surrounding villages who had been raped told her they
had not sought medical care.
One woman described what happened to
a17-year-old family member:
We were on five donkey carts collecting
wood when the girl in the last cart screamed – she had fallen into jihadists’
hands. She had lagged slightly behind because her donkey was young and slower
than ours. I ran to save her, but an attacker pointed his gun saying, “If you
want your life, get out of here.” We rushed to tell our men, and four hours
later they found the girl emerging from the bush on foot. She was bleeding and
swollen; they had violated her with brutality.”
A 35-year-old woman, one of four raped
in November 2021 while foraging for wood, said:
We were on donkey carts, seven
kilometers from town, when attackers captured and interrogated us about
soldiers and VDPs in the village. They asked if we were Muslims, ordering us to
recite the Shahada, then they each dragged the woman they wanted into the bush,
covering our faces with a cloth. My rapist said, “Tell your man to put down his
gun; tell him we will never be defeated.”
Islamist armed groups abducted and raped
10 women in mid-March as they fled to Kaya, the Centre-Nord regional capital.
One said:
After the attack, the men fled on foot
through the bush, while we women, with our children and elderly, rode on about
20 donkey carts on the road with our animals and what we managed to take. At
around 6 p.m., a group of 100 jihadists emerged from the bush. They were
heavily armed, some with machine guns, resembling an army. They beat us, stole
our possessions, and forced 10 of us to follow them. The mothers of the younger
women begged and cried saying, “Leave them! Do you read the Quran? You can’t do
this!” The attackers took us into the bush. They said they were going to take
us far away and marry us. Later their commander came and saved us. He seemed
mad at them and said, “Leave these people, you’ve already done enough harm.”
A 25-year-old woman described being
raped in late 2021 after being abducted from her home:
My husband wasn’t home that night. Two
jihadists pointed their guns, forcing me and my toddler to ride on a motorcycle
between them for three hours to their base. They interrogated me about the
whereabouts of the soldiers and the local nurse. I recognized one, who I used
to sell to in the market. I fought so hard, several of them had to hold me
down.… One jihadist held my baby while another raped me. They told me to tell
others to abandon the village, or they’d kill us all.
Many women said the armed Islamists
whipped them during the sexual assault, typically on the back with rubber
cords. Several said the whipping caused welts and bleeding.
A 36-year-old woman who was beaten and
raped along with two others on her way home from the market in Barsalogho said,
“I received 22 lashes with an electric cord, while my friends were hit 17
times. They said if we cried, they would restart the count.” A 37-year-old
woman beaten with four others before being raped, said, “They ordered us down
from the donkey cart, and to sit down in the bush, then struck us 25 times
each. They said we were fake Muslims and told us to call our VDP husbands to
save us. Later, one attacker took me behind a tree and did what he wanted.”
Villagers said older women and
breastfeeding mothers were usually spared sexual assault but were often beaten.
A 30-year-old Christian woman said that over 40 women were beaten during a late
2021 attack on a village near Bourzanga:
During the attack, the attackers
gathered all of us in one house, screaming at us to tell them where our men
were and saying “Why are you still here? We told you leave this place!” One of
them ordered me to remove my crucifix, and I refused saying even if death awaits
me, I wouldn’t abandon my faith. He ripped it off my chest and whipped and beat
me and the others with branches.
A woman said that while she traveled to
Kaya in late October, armed Islamists severely beat her, another woman, and
nine adolescent girls:
We were taking our girls to school in
Kaya. They stole the school fees and held us for hours asking about the
government forces. They cocked their guns to terrify us, and tried to drag the
girls off, but we fought them. That’s when they beat us with a cable. The girls
received 17 lashes and the older women, 20. My back bled from the beating.
Use of Child Soldiers
Numerous villagers described seeing
children they estimated to be as young as 12, many armed with military assault
weapons, among armed Islamist ranks. They were seen in assaults on the towns of
Namissiguima, Namsiguia, Foube, Rofenga, Pensa, Dablo, and in several areas of
Est region, as well as during attacks on convoys of fleeing civilians. Any use
by armed forces of children under 18 is a violation of international law and
may be a war crime.
A witness to an attack in Centre-Nord
region in late 2021 said, “I cowered with my baby as attackers, half of whom
seemed to be children, fired into the market area. A few were so small – their
guns dragged on the ground. One had a string of bullets weighing down his
neck.” A witness to the March attack on Namissiguima said, “From where I hid, I
saw well over a hundred attackers including around 20 children – ages 14, 15,
16, many armed.” A rape survivor said, “While the older terrorist dragged me
away, the children guarded the road.”
A witness described the November 26
attack on Dablo: “In previous attacks there were just a few children, but in
November, almost half the group of 40 were adolescents. I saw some firing
crazily all over the village.” A man who had been abducted and held for several
days in 2021 said, “Of the dozen terrorists who captured me, four were
children. I feared what they might do – children don’t measure the value of
life as adults do.”
Many child soldiers were observed
pillaging, especially livestock, or robbing civilians as they fled attacks.
“They were mostly around 14 or 15 years old, and had brought cords to take away
our animals,” a witness said. A woman in a convoy of civilians fleeing a March
attack in Centre-Nord said, “Scores of jihadists, including many children ages
13 to 15, emerged from the bush, interrogating us and stealing everything.
Three children, all armed, rounded up the animals.”
Several people described seeing child
soldiers setting fire to houses and market stalls. “I saw more than 40
jihadists,” said a witness to a 2022 attack on Namissiguima. “While the men
fired in the air, another group, including children, set the house next door on
fire. I called out for water because I heard screams coming from inside.”
IED Attacks on Roads and Shelling of
Villages
Philippe Renard, chief of the UN’s Mine
Action Service (UNMAS) office in Burkina Faso, told Human Rights Watch that
IEDs have killed 73 civilians and injured 36 since 2021, most in Boucle du
Mouhoun, Centre-Nord, Est, and Nord regions.
Humanitarian workers said these weapons,
whose use is often unlawfully indiscriminate, isolated communities and
undermined the ability of groups to deliver crucial aid and services to
vulnerable populations. “Roads we used just months ago are now littered with
burned-out vehicle carcasses,” an aid worker said. “We’re terrified of hitting
a mine every time we set off to deliver aid,” another said.
Civilians were killed or injured by IEDs
while on donkey carts, bicycles, motorized tricycles, motorcycles, buses, and
other vehicles while searching for firewood and water; traveling to and from
local markets; and fleeing attacks on their villages.
A woman who was wounded by an IED
explosion in Centre-Nord in 2021 said:
My family was fleeing in a bus after our
village, Kougri-Koulga, was attacked. As we approached a bridge near Boulga
village, there was a huge explosion, followed by another and a ball of fire …
the bus turned over. We struggled to escape. I fainted seeing so much blood and
the dead – 11 including a pregnant woman and a baby. Another passenger took me
under a tree, and a few hours later, we walked to safety.
On March 6 and 7, several mortar rounds
struck Namsiguia in Bam province. “The jihadists fired shells, one crashing
into the home of a 60-year-old woman, killing her,” a villager said. “There
aren’t soldiers based here and our VDPs don’t have a base to target.”
“The jihadists consider everyone living
here to be their enemy,” said a resident of Bourzanga, where a civilian was
killed by mortar shelling in March. Human Rights Watch confirmed the weapons
based on photos of the shell casings collected after both attacks.
Pillage and Destruction of Property
Villagers described armed Islamist
groups carrying out successive waves of pillage during attacks: on their
villages, on the larger towns to which they had fled for safety, and after they
fled for a second time, typically to Kaya or Barsalogho. Fighters stole sacks
of grain, cellphones, jewelry, money, clothing, animal carts, motorcycles, and
cooking utensils. Shopkeepers said attackers had looted their entire inventory,
and nurses said the armed Islamists stole medicines and supplies from clinics.
Struggling residents described the
impact of the losses. “From where I hid, I watched them round up all my 42 cows
– all the riches of our family,” said a herder from a village near Dablo.
Describing the January 5 attack on
Ankouna, a villager said, “I was powerless. My family lost 31 cows and 47
sheep. They stole our motorized tricycles and used them to cart away the
merchandise from our shops. How do we recover from this?”
Many civilians, ambushed on roads as
they fled, said that the armed Islamists took everything they owned, even their
shoes. Three women in a convoy of 30 donkey carts fleeing to Kaya after the
March attack on Foube described the pillage by scores of attackers. “They took
what little we had – sacks of millet, clothing, our animals, then burned the
rest,” one said. “They even cut the cords of our donkeys and sent them running.
Then they ordered us to take off our shoes, saying this would remind us not to
return to our villages. We walked for days barefoot.”
Armed jihadists robbed traders plying
market routes of their money and goods. “I’d collected money from several women
to buy goods at the market, but on our way back, jihadists attacked us,
stealing onions and bags of beans I was going to sell,” one trader said. “I
returned with only the clothes I wore.”
“They even poured out the water we’d
brought with us, saying the zone had become theirs,” said a victim of a similar
attack.
Aid workers described the looting by
armed Islamists of medicines and supplies from clinics, and the theft of
several ambulances since mid-2021. “In December, an ambulance carrying a
critically ill woman from Dori to Kaya was commandeered. They forced people
out, and the woman was returned to Dori by donkey cart, but she later died,”
one aid worker said. They had also documented a few cases where wounded
suspects had been removed from medical hospitals by pro-government forces.
Abuses by the Army and Pro-Government
Militias
Human Rights Watch documented 42 alleged
summary executions and 14 enforced disappearances of civilians and suspected
Islamist fighters by state security forces and members of the Volunteers for
the Defense of the Homeland, at times coordinating operations.
The majority of victims were ethnic
Peuhl. In several cases, the incidents documented provoked the displacement of
entire families and in some cases, communities. The incidents reported occurred
between September 2021 and April 2022 and merit further investigation.
Summary Executions and Enforced
Disappearances by the Military
Some of the reported abuses occurred
within the context of major counterterrorism operations. Four witnesses said
that soldiers detained about 40 men on November 23 in Djigoue, near the border
with Cote d’Ivoire, 18 of whom were later found dead several kilometers away.
On November 30, the then-minister of security, Maxime Koné, said the army had
“neutralized about 30 terrorists” in an incident in the same area and at around
the same time. Witnesses provided a list of the dead. A man whose 38-year-old
brother was among the victims said:
Over 100 soldiers riding on pickups and
motorcycles flooded the [Djigoue] market while an airplane flew overhead. I was
in my shop having tea with my brother when some soldiers asked us for our ID
cards. We complied and they left. Some minutes later, my brother left to check on
the workers at his shop. I later learned another group of soldiers had arrested
him minutes later after leaving my shop. We found his body among the dead.
Another resident said:
The soldiers left around 3 p.m. taking
the detained men on several motorized taxis. We heard shots about an hour
later. The next day, after the soldiers left the area we found them, dead in a
line, near where the soldiers had made an overnight camp. The dead were nearly
all Peuhl from 20 to 65 years old, bound and blindfolded with their own
clothing. Now, nearly the entire village has fled, fearing both the army and
the jihadists.
On September 12, soldiers arrested seven
men during a night operation in Ouangolodougou near the Ivorian border. Their
bodies were found the next day about one kilometer away. Residents said they
believed the army was implicated because there had been a large military
operation in the area around the same time. Witnesses said a father and two of
his sons were among the dead. A resident said:
At around 1 a.m., we heard motorcycles,
then banging on the door. I saw soldiers standing at the doors. They shone
flashlights into our eyes. They ordered the women and children into one room,
searched the house, and bound Ali Diallo [age 52] and two of his sons, Amadou,
23, and Mahamadi, 21, a university student who was home for a visit. They also
arrested four other people from a nearby house. The families begged for their
lives…. I heard a soldier saying in French, “It’s over for you.”
“We heard shots that night, and found
their bodies – six in one group, then the seventh some meters away,” said
another resident. “They’d been shot in the head or neck, and their hands were
tied with cords or with their own clothing. The family filed a case with the
local gendarmerie but to our surprise, they were also arrested! They were
finally released after much pressure. But no one has investigated the death of
our people.”
Six of 15 men arrested on February 21 by
soldiers in Todiame, Nord region were forcibly disappeared. One resident said:
Around 11 a.m. soldiers in over ten
pickups and on motorcycles surrounded the village, firing in the air. People
fled into the mosque, and from there the soldiers checked everyone’s ID card.
They tied the hands and blindfolded 15 people, including an elderly man, and
put them into a few army vehicles. They beat them savagely as they took them
away…. Nine people were released a few weeks later after being held in the
gendarmeries in Titao and Ouahigouya. We’ve searched for the other six – in police
and gendarme stations, bases, and prisons – but they are nowhere to be found.
Enforced Disappearances, Killings by VDP
Militia
The government authorized the VDP as a
self-defense group in 2020, providing them arms and minimal training. Most
abuses implicating the VDP occurred in Cascades, Sud-Ouest, or Est region,
especially in and around Fada N’Gourma.
Community leaders from these regions,
which border Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Niger, and Togo, said there has been
considerable ethnic tension between the pastoralist Peuhl, for their perceived
support of armed Islamists, and farming communities, who are perceived to be
pro-government and who make up the majority of VDP militia members in the area.
Peuhl leaders consistently described being victimized by both armed Islamists
and pro-government forces.
Numerous Peuhl men were allegedly
summarily executed after being detained by men who witnesses believe were VDP
militia, several of whom the witnesses knew by name. In several cases, the
reason for the detention, killing, or enforced disappearance of the victim was
unclear to the family members. In several cases they speculated that the
militia used counterterrorism operations as a pretext for settling personal or
community scores.
Three residents said they saw the bound
bodies of eight men whom VDP militia had detained two days earlier, on February
17, in Fada N’Gourma. One witness described the detention of four of the eight
men: “We were gathered for a food distribution when VDPs in red t-shirts went up
to the men saying, ‘You and you…. Come with us.’ They knew exactly whom they
were looking for. They took them away, hands tied, on motorcycles.” Another
witness said, “I saw eight VDPs in this operation, three of whom I know
personally.” Family members said four other men were arrested elsewhere in the
town, including a man with a physical disability who was arrested at his home.
A man who attended the burial on
February 19 said, “The bodies were behind the Bougie village primary school, 10
kilometers from Fada. Their hands tied; they had been executed.” A family
member said, “Terrorists had burned the school a few days before. But we're
confused – our men and the VDP both fear the terrorists! We think this is a
settling of scores and that the VDP are using the fight against terrorism to
cover up their deed.”
Two men detained by alleged VDP militia
members on March 28 in Dankibaroum, five kilometers from Fada N’Gourma, were
found dead several days later. “Three VDPs armed with AKs, one of whom I
recognized, arrested my cousin Boureima, who was working in a shop,” said a
resident. “They handcuffed him and later also arrested the shop owner. We found
their bodies seven kilometers away – both had been shot in the head.”
VDP militia members told Human Rights
Watch about three incidents in which they had executed Peuhl suspects in late
2021 and early 2022 for their perceived support of armed Islamist groups.
Describing one incident, a VDP member said, “We used to turn suspects over to
the gendarmes, but they always released them, so we decided to sort this
problem out ourselves.” Another said, “In January 2022, we captured a Peuhl spy
at the market and guarded him for three days until he told us about his
collaborators. Then we dealt with all of them.”
Community leaders from Cascades and
Sud-Ouest regions showed Human Rights Watch records of 10 people who had in
recent months been either forcibly disappeared or executed by local VDP
militia. The VDP members are sometimes referred to as “Dozos,” traditional
hunters, many of whom have joined the militia.
A Peuhl community leader from Cascades
region said:
The agrarian communities blame all Peuhl
for the jihadist presence and are killing and driving us from our villages and
looting our property. Nearly all the Peuhl have fled either to bigger towns, or
into the national protected forests with their cows, which are jihadist
strongholds. In the forests, they’re forced to live by the terrorists’ rules,
but at least they aren’t being killed.
Several Peuhl villagers described VDP
members engaging in criminal behavior. One Peuhl elder said:
In mid-March, my brother and his two
sons, ages 30 and 19, were kidnapped by Dozos while watering their animals near
Mangodara. The Dozos said they were “terrorists.” We went to the Dozo chief who
demanded 3 million CFA (US$5,000) to secure their release, but after we gave it
to him, they refused to free our people. After that, we all fled. The gendarmes
are investigating, and called us to make a statement but honestly, we’re
terrified to return because of all the VDP and Dozo checkpoints in that area.
Other allegations of killing and
enforced disappearance allegedly involve VDP militia and government security
forces working together. Two witnesses described the arrest on February 27 of
Ali Diallo, 44, a local community leader, by VDP militia and the security
forces. One witness said, “I saw Ali [Diallo] in the market while he was buying
things for his wife, who had just given birth in the hospital. As he was buying
water, he was intercepted by two uniformed soldiers and two VDPs, whom I
recognized. They put a sack over Ali’s head, handcuffed, and drove off with
him.”
His body was found four days later. A
second witness said, “It was under some trees a few kilometers from the
military camp. A sack was on his head, and his pants were down to his ankles.
He’d been shot several times in the back.”
A relative who witnessed the arrest of
Amadou Bande, 46, in Fada N’Gourma on March 16, said that “He was buying a sack
of rice when two VDP on motorcycles jumped down, handcuffed and lifted him unto
a military vehicle, which was just behind them. We’ve looked everywhere for
him.” Bande’s whereabouts remain unknown.
Deadly Attack on Civilians by
Unidentified Forces
On February 28, a powerful explosion
killed more than 30 traders at an animal market in the town of Béléhéde, Sahel
region, which was largely controlled by an armed Islamist group. The cause of
the explosion and responsibility have not been identified. One witness said he
heard a whistle coming from south of the village before the explosion, but two
others present did not hear anything or see any helicopters or airplanes
overhead.
A witness said:
It was a busy market day. The thunderous
explosion went off just as traders rushed toward two cows driven into the
market on a motorized tricycle. A dust cloud covered the market. When it
settled, I saw that the driver, cows, and everyone in the vicinity had been
pulverized. People were running, blood and pieces of human beings were
everywhere. Around 30 died on the spot, and a few more later.
“We live under the yoke of the jihadists
and a few were in the village that day,” said one villager. “But the vast
majority of people killed in this incident were ordinary traders, including
some adolescents, working the cattle market.”
A coalition of civil society
organizations have reported that at least 80 men – all civilians – were killed
during government military operations April 10 and 11 in villages in and around
Oursi and Tin-Akoff communes, Sahel region.
Source: Human Rights Watch
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https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/05/16/burkina-faso-armed-islamists-kill-rape-civilians
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Imams and pastors must inform
congregants about possibility of extremist attacks – Wa West MP
15 May 2022
The Member of Parliament for the Wa West
Constituency, Peter Lanchene Toobu, has called on religious leaders, to
sensitize their congregants, about the activities and threats of extremist
groups in the sub-region.
According to him, given the influx of
extremist attacks in recent times, religious institutions must make it a
priority, to alert their members in order to make them vigilant.
Speaking in an interview with Emefa
Apawu on The Probe on Sunday, the NDC lawmaker stated that even though threats
of extremists is not limited to Ghana, there is the need for the public to be
sensitized accordingly.
“I want imams and pastors to be
conscious enough and be able to preach accordingly. They need to build their
sermons in line with the fact that every individual in this country, be it a
Muslim or Christian, should be conscious of the possibility of an attack. And
probably, this can inform the way we worship. This can inform the way we
gather. This can inform the way we see strangers in our churches and in our
mosques.
Gradually, the whole country will be
conscious enough to appreciate the fact that, we are fighting this canker as a
nation”, he said.
The MP also questioned the preparedness
of the country, in the wake of a terrorist attack.
Earlier, the National Security Ministry
said it is instituting new measures at public places of worship to avert
terrorist attacks in the country.
In a letter dated May 12 and addressed
to heads of religious groups in the country, the security agency stated that
following the increasing concerns over the expansion of terrorist groups in the
sub-region, these measures have become necessary to protect the country.
Among other things, the Ministry
disclosed that there would be the installation of CCTVs at designated public
places of worship.
Other measures include engaging the
services of approved private security guards at the places of worship among
others.
The agency noted that “while the
Ministry of National Security is collaborating with the relevant State Security
and Intelligence Agencies to institute measures to avert terrorist attacks in
the country, your outfit is urged to enhance security, particularly in areas
where mass gatherings are conducted”.
But while contributing to discussions on
The Probe on Sunday, Peter Toobu indicated that the measures are not enough.
Stating that, there is the need for extensive public awareness on the threats
of extremists.
Meanwhile, Deputy Defence Minister, Kofi
Amankwa-Manu, has warned that given the current activities of terrorists in the
sub-region, there is the need for Ghana to pay more attention to its security.
According to him, ‘all is not well’.
Joining the discussion with Emefa Apawu
on The Probe on Sunday, the Deputy Minister cited a recent extremist attack in
Togo; cautioning that, the attackers have devised very sophisticated ways of wreaking
havoc, therefore the need for Ghana to stay alert.
‘So we cannot sit and fold our arms,
thinking that all is well. All is not well. And we need to prepare. We need to
be vigilant. We need to really, like we say in Ghana, ‘shine our eyes the
more’. Because if you look around, all the countries around Ghana, in one way
or the other have been hit. We are the only country left standing.
If I say we’re the only country left
standing, talk of Burkina they’ve been hit. Talk of Togo, Benin, Nigeria,
Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, they’ve all experienced this bitter pill from these
extremists. And when you look at the southward movement of these groupings,
clearly, one thing is obvious, they’re looking to find a coastal country” he
said.
Having emphasised the need for Ghana to
be on the lookout, he however revealed that Ghana’s security apparatus, are on
standby to mitigate any invasions from the lurking extremists in the
sub-region.
Source: Joy Online
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Europe
Racist Buffalo killer labelled London
Mayor 'Muslim invader' in chilling manifesto
16 May 2022
Payton Gendron, 18, has been detained
and is being kept on suicide watch after the mass shooting at a US supermarket
in the city of Buffalo
He is accused of shooting 13 people, ten
of whom were fatally injured, during an attack motivated by his hatred for
black people at a Top Market supermarket in Buffalo, New York.
Eleven of the 13 people who were shot
were black.
According to the Mirror, the gunman, who
is accused of scrawling the N-word on his rifle before carrying out the
massacre, published a horrific 180-page manifesto referencing Mr Khan. On page
165 of his manifesto, under the heading 'Kill high profile enemies', he listed
Mr Khan as one of three men he wanted dead.
Gendron was described by police as
having carried out an act of "racially motived violent extremism".
Police said a white, 18-year-old man in
military gear used a helmet camera to livestream the attack on mostly Black
shoppers and workers on Saturday.
For at least two minutes, he broadcast
the shooting live on the streaming platform Twitch before the service ended his
transmission.
Police said he shot 11 Black victims and
two who were white before surrendering to police. Later, he appeared before a
judge in a paper medical gown and was arraigned on murder charges.
Speaking near the scene of the attack,
governor Kathy Hochul said: "It is my sincere hope that this individual,
this white supremacist who just perpetrated a hate crime on an innocent
community, will spend the rest of his days behind bars. And heaven help him in
the next world as well."
It wasn't immediately clear why Gendron
travelled to Buffalo to stage the assault. A clip apparently from his Twitch
feed, posted on social media, showed him arriving at the supermarket in his
car.
Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph
Gramaglia said the gunman shot four people outside the store, three fatally.
Inside the store, a security guard who
was a retired Buffalo police officer fired multiple shots, but a bullet that
hit the gunman's bulletproof vest had no effect, the commissioner added.
The gunman then killed the guard before
stalking through the store shooting other victims. Upon being confronted by
police, the suspect had put the gun to his own neck before officers talked him
into dropping the weapon.
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown told a news
conference: "This is the worst nightmare that any community can face, and
we are hurting and we are seething right now.
"The depth of pain that families
are feeling and that all of us are feeling right now cannot even be
explained."
At an earlier news briefing, Erie County
Sheriff John Garcia pointedly called the shooting a hate crime.
"This was pure evil. It was
straight up racially motivated hate crime from somebody outside of our
community, outside of the city of good neighbours... coming into our community
and trying to inflict that evil upon us," the sheriff said.
Tops Friendly Markets released a
statement saying, "We are shocked and deeply saddened by this senseless
act of violence and our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their
families."
Source: LBC
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Cyclists gear up for 60 mile challenge
to raise funds for Islamic Education Centre
BY SHUIAB KHAN
REPORTER AND COLUMNIST
The group named ‘Team Buraq’ are made up
of people of all ages and skills and they are hoping to surpass last year’s
staggering figure of £70,000.
The sponsored ride to Blackpool and back
to Blackburn is raising money to fund tthe new Islamic Education Centre being
built off Devonport Road.
The new build is set to replace the
Islamic Education Centre based on the corner of Addison Street as the main
focal point for prayers and religious activities. The project is now in the
final stages with money having been raised by donors and through fundraising
events such as this cycle ride.
The 60-mile cycle ride will take place
on Sunday May 29.
Among the riders is shop owner Raja
Azmat. He had adorned his counter with the appeal.
He said: “It is wonderful to be able to
take part in the cycle ride.
“I do cycle already but this is still
something I am training for. We want to raise as much funds for the mosque as
possible.
“It will be in the heart of the
community and it has been great to see so many of the younger generation
stepping forward to take part in the challenge.”
Azmat's shop is one of the most popular
corner shops in Blackburn.
Hasan Ali, 22, is also taking part in
the challenge. He said: “This is a great initiative and will assist the local
community in so many ways.”
In August last year when the cyclists
returned from the trip they were given a heroes welcome with families and
children taking to the streets with flares.
The mosque which is based in land behind
Foxhouse Street and Whitehead Street will cater for all those living in the
immediate vicinity of the building. It is set to include funeral services as
well as extra space for madressa classes.
The exterior of the mosque has been
completed and work is not taking place to complete the interior. The Islamic
Education Centre this week posted footage of the mosque being linked to the
electrical grid for the first time.
Source: Lanca Shire Telegraph
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Biden Renews Support for Jordan’s
Long-Running Role as Custodian of Jerusalem, Al-Aqsa Mosque
Sunday, 15 May, 2022
US President Joe Biden renewed on Friday
his country’s support for Jordan's crucial role as the custodian of Muslim holy
sites, particularly Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa.
Biden met with King Abdullah II of
Jordan in Washington on Friday amid tensions in the Palestinian Territories
where clashes erupted in recent weeks at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound.
The situation worsened this week with
the killing of veteran Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a dual
Palestinian-American national, when she was covering Israeli raids in the
occupied West Bank area of Jenin.
King Abdullah's visit to Washington is
his second since Biden came to office. He was accompanied by his wife, Queen
Rania, and his eldest son, Crown Prince Hussein.
In a statement following the meeting,
the White House said Biden reaffirmed the close and enduring nature of the
friendship between the United States and Jordan.
“Biden cited the need to preserve the
historic status quo at the Haram al-Sharif and he also recognized the Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan’s crucial role as the custodian of Muslim holy places in
Jerusalem,” the White House statement said.
It added that both leaders consulted on
recent events in the region and discussed urgent mechanisms to stem violence,
calm rhetoric and reduce tensions in Israel and the West Bank.
The leaders then discussed the political
and economic benefits of further regional integration in infrastructure,
energy, water, and climate projects, with Jordan a critical hub for such
cooperation and investment.
“Jordan is a critical ally and force for
stability in the Middle East,” Biden stressed.
Before his meeting with Biden, King
Abdullah II met with a number of officials from the US administration and
several congressmen.
On Thursday, he sat down with US
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon, where the King warned
against the continuous cycle of violence in the Palestinian Territories,
especially in light of unilateral Israeli measures, stressing that the
repercussions would be damaging to regional security and stability.
For his part, Austin expressed his
country’s concern over the latest escalation and violence in East Jerusalem and
the West Bank, commending the King’s "critical role" in de-escalating
tensions, and noting that the US looks to work with Jordan towards security,
stability and just peace for the Palestinians and the Israelis.
Biden is expected to visit the region
late next month, where he will meet in Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in Israel
and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem.
The Biden administration had announced
its support for a “sovereign and democratic” Palestinian state. Biden had
previously announced plans to reopen the US consulate in East Jerusalem.
Former President Donald Trump closed the
Jerusalem consulate and placed its staff within the US Embassy to Israel that
was moved to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv in 2018.
Source: Asharq Al-Awsat
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Republican Senate hopeful Mehmet Oz
calls far-right rival’s comments on Islam ‘reprehensible’
Sun 15 May 2022
Republican Senate hopeful Mehmet Oz has
stepped up his criticism of far-right candidates in Pennsylvania who are
gaining traction ahead of Tuesday’s primary election.
After spending much of the campaign
steering clear of fellow Republican Senate contender Kathy Barnette, Oz said
she was out of step with the Republican party and would be unable to win the
general election in November.
In an interview, he took issue with a
2015 tweet from Barnette in which she wrote that “Pedophilia is a Cornerstone
of Islam”. Oz, who would be the nation’s first Muslim senator, described the
comments as “disqualifying”.
“It’s reprehensible that she would tweet
out something that is defamatory to an entire religion,” Oz told the Associated
Press. “This state was based on religious freedom. I’m proud as a Pennsylvanian
to uphold those founding beliefs that every faith has its merits.”
The Barnette campaign did not respond to
a request for comment.
Earlier in the week, Barnette told NBC
News that she did not make the statement, though it was still live on her
Twitter feed on Saturday.
For months, the race for the Republican
nomination for Pennsylvania’s open Senate seat has been an expensive fight
between former hedge fund CEO David McCormick and Oz, who have spent millions
of dollars attacking each other on television.
But in the final days of the Republican
primary, a third candidate – Barnette, a conservative commentator who has
courted hard-line pro-Trump groups – has emerged. Trump himself has warned that
Barnette’s background hasn’t been properly vetted.
With the election just days away, polls
show a tight three-way race with a sizable number of undecided voters who could
sway the results next week.
Oz has won Trump’s endorsement in the
Senate contest, although some Trump supporters continue to question his
conservative credentials.
Source: The Guardian
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UNSC to Discuss Adjusting Sanctions on
Islamic Emirate Leaders
In June of 2022, the UN Security Council
must decide whether to adjust the current regime of sanctions against
leadership of the Islamic Emirate, said the Hill, a US Washingon-focused news
outlet, saying “it’s a consequential decision.”
The report said that the UN sanctions on
the Islamic Emirate for years had included a ban on the leadership’s
international travel, but the Security Council suspended that ban three years
ago for the sake of a “reconciliation” process.
Analysts believe that the US will not
impose the sanctions but there is a possibility.
“The US use this (sanction) as leverage
but there is a possibility for its suspension to continue because the US is
still hopeful of finding a diplomatic solution for Afghanistan, and traveling
is important for that issue,” said Torek Farhadi, a political analyst.
The Hill noted that the Islamic
Emirate’s leaders used their travel freedom to cut separate deals with Russia,
China and other neighbors, reinforcing their government while "refusing to
negotiate with the elected Afghan government officials."
“A general meeting will be held in UN
Security Council and member of the UNSC will meet,” said Suraya Paikan, a
political analyst.
The Islamic Emirate has not expressed
any comment on the matter.
Under the UN Security Council Resolution
of 1998, which extended an even older set of sanctions from before 9/11, travel
bans on the Islamic Emirate’s leadership accompanied financial sanctions and
weapons embargos.
But the UNSC lifted the travel bans on
senior leaders of the Islamic Emirate in April 2019.
Source: Tolo News
Please click the following URL to read
the text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-178024
--------
Middle East
Lebanon vote brings blow for Hezbollah
allies in preliminary results
May 16, 2022
BEIRUT: Iran-backed Hezbollah has been
dealt a blow in Lebanon’s parliamentary election with preliminary results
showing losses for some of its oldest allies and the Lebanese Forces party
saying it had gained seats.
With votes still being counted, the
final make-up of the 128-member parliament has yet to emerge. The heavily armed
Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah and its allies won a majority of 71 seats when
Lebanon last voted in 2018.
The current election is the first since
Lebanon’s devastating economic meltdown blamed by the World Bank on ruling
politicians after a huge port explosion in 2020 that shattered Beirut.
One of the most startling upsets saw
Hezbollah-allied Druze politician Talal Arslan, scion of one of Lebanon’s
oldest political dynasties who was first elected in 1992, lose his seat to Mark
Daou, a newcomer running on a reform agenda, according to the latter’s campaign
manager and a Hezbollah official.
Initial results also indicated wins for
at least five other independents who have campaigned on a platform of reform
and bringing to account politicians blamed for steering Lebanon into the worst
crisis since its 1975-90 civil war.
Whether Hezbollah and its allies can cling
on to a majority hinges on results not yet finalized, including those in Sunni
Muslim seats contested by allies and opponents of the Shiite movement.
Gains reported by the Lebanese Forces
(LF), which is vehemently opposed to Hezbollah, mean it would overtake the
Hezbollah-allied Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) as the biggest Christian party
in parliament.
The LF won at least 20 seats, up from 15
in 2018, said the head of its press office, Antoinette Geagea.
The FPM had won up to 16 seats, down
from 18 in 2018, Sayed Younes, the head of its electoral machine, told Reuters.
The FPM has been the biggest Christian
party in parliament since its founder, President Michel Aoun, returned from
exile in 2005 in France. Aoun and LF leader Samir Geagea were civil war
adversaries.
The LF, established as a militia during
Lebanon’s 15-year civil war, has repeatedly called for Hezbollah to give up its
arsenal.
“A NEW BEGINNING“
An opposition candidate also made a
breakthrough in an area of southern Lebanon dominated by Hezbollah.
Elias Jradi, an eye doctor, won an
Orthodox Christian seat previously held by Assaad Hardan of the Syrian
Socialist Nationalist Party, a close Hezbollah ally and MP since 1992, two
Hezbollah officials said.
“It’s a new beginning for the south and
for Lebanon as a whole,” Jradi told Reuters.
Nadim Houry, executive director of Arab
Reform Initiative, said the results of 14 or 15 seats would determine the
majority.
“You are going to have two blocs opposed
to each other — on the one hand Hezbollah and its allies, and on the other the
Lebanese Forces and its allies, and in the middle these new voices that will
enter,” he said.
“This is a clear loss for the FPM. They
maintain a bloc but they lost a lot of seats and the biggest beneficiary is the
Lebanese Forces. Samir Geagea has emerged as the new Christian strongman.”
The next parliament must nominate a
prime minister to form a cabinet, in a process that can take months. Any delay
would hold up reforms to tackle the crisis and unlock support from the International
Monetary Fund and donor nations.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2082816/middle-east
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Palestinians step up pressure on Israel
over Abu Akleh killing probe
MOHAMMED NAJIB
May 15, 2022
RAMALLAH: Palestinian Justice Minister
Mohammed Al-Shalaldeh said Israel bears full responsibility for the
assassination of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, and that it was a
premeditated crime that amounts to a war crime.
Abu Akleh was shot in the head on
Wednesday morning during an Israeli military raid in the West Bank town of
Jenin.
Six days after Israel denied its
soldiers were responsible, an Israel Defence Force officer told Haaretz that an
Israeli soldier seemed to have had fired at Abu Akleh and killed her.
The officer added that an Israeli
soldier sitting in an army vehicle with a rifle equipped with a telescopic lens
fired at Abu Akleh from 190 meters and killed her.
During his subsequent interrogation, the
soldier said he did not know he shot at Abu Akleh when he fired, had not seen
her, and did not know her identity.
Al-Shalaldeh said: “Let the one who
fired know that this projectile is in our possession, and the evidence for that
is that we cannot participate with the Israelis in this investigation because
we also have sovereignty under the Israeli occupation, and therefore we do not
allow that it is a joint investigation, and have many similar bad experiences
with the occupying power.”
He added that examining the bullet would
take time due to the nature of forensic investigations.
“All specialists and experts in this
regard take all legal measures, but in principle, we say in terms of evidence,
and the criminal evidence says that the projectile came from … the Israeli
occupation soldiers,” said the minister.
Israeli TV Channel 12 reported that the
US asked Israel for clarification regarding the investigation into the death of
Abu Akleh, who was a Palestinian-American citizen.
The Palestinian public prosecutor
requested an autopsy of Abu Akleh’s body to find out the cause of death and to
locate any evidence to link it to the party responsible for it.
On May 12, the Institute of Forensic Medicine
at An-Najah National University in Nablus revealed that the shot that killed
Abu Akleh left her with no chance of survival even with medical intervention.
Dr Rayan Al-Ali, director of the
institute, said that the bullet created a complete laceration of the brain and
skull on impact.
Al-Ali indicated that the distance of
the shot could not be accurately determined. “All we can conclude now is that
the distance is more than a meter, and this means that the shooting came from a
(distant) source,” he said
He pointed out that the doctors found a
mutilated projectile, and added: “The size of the injury makes us know the
nature of the weapon used, and what we can say now is that it is a long,
belted, high-speed weapon,”
Al-Ali stressed that it was not possible
to disclose any further information at this time.
The director of Al Jazeera’s office in
Ramallah, Walid Al-Omari, confirmed the occupation forces’ role in Abu Akleh’s
death a speech in front of An-Najah University Hospital in Nablus.
The testimonies of eyewitnesses, from
fellow journalists to civilians present at the moment of Abu Akleh’s death,
also imply that the gunfire came from the IDF.
Al-Omari said: “We have a premeditated
crime, and a clear field assassination, where journalists, including Abu Akleh,
wore what distinguishes them and protects them. The shooting of them came
deliberately.”
An internal investigation conducted by
the IDF revealed that an Israeli sniper from the Dovdovan special unit had
fired through a hole in his armoured military vehicle, and likely hit Abu Akleh
by mistake.
“The army’s investigation is a partial
investigation, so they requested the bullet from the Palestinian side because
of its great scientific importance, and examining the bullet enables it to
confirm whether it was fired from an Israeli or non-Israeli rifle,” a senior
Israeli defense expert told Arab News.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2082661/middle-east
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First commercial flight in 6 years
leaves Yemen’s Sanaa
May 16, 2022
SANAA: The first commercial flight in
nearly six years took off from Yemen’s Houthi-held capital on Monday, a major
step forward in a peace process that has provided rare relief from conflict.
The Yemenia plane carrying 126
passengers, including hospital patients needing treatment abroad and their
relatives, took off from Sanaa for the Jordanian capital Amman just after 9:00
am (0600 GMT), AFP journalists saw.
Before take-off, the plane was taxied
through an honor guard of two fire trucks spraying jets of water.
Sanaa’s airport has been closed to
commercial traffic since August 2016.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2082886/middle-east
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Palestinians commemorate 74th
anniversary of Nakba amid outcry over funeral attack
May 15, 2022
GAZA CITY: Palestinians rallied on
Sunday to mark the Nakba 74 years after Israel's creation, with condemnation
widespread over a police raid at the funeral of slain Palestinian-American
journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.
Social media sites were flooded with
stories from the time of the displacement in 1948 and posts commemorating the
Nakba and calling for the right to return.
The annual demonstrations across all
Palestinian cities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip came amid high tensions over
the killing of Akleh, 51, and a series of military confrontations last month
during Ramadan, which saw subsequent Israeli military incursions into
Palestinian cities.
Despite the exchange of threats with
Hamas, Israel reopened on Sunday its only crossing with the Gaza Strip to
Palestinian workers nearly two weeks after closing it over the unrest.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas made
a speech on the commemoration of the Nakba Saturday evening from the city of
Ramallah.
“Staying on [the land], regardless of
the difficulties, complications and brutal crimes of the occupation, is the
best response to the Nakba, and to the mentality of ethnic cleansing,
settlement and Judaization,” he said.
Abbas added: “The great Palestinian
people cannot be defeated, nor can their will be broken, simply because they
have a right and a just cause that cannot be obliterated by false narratives.”
The anniversary of the Nakba comes amid
Palestinian condemnation of the Israeli announcement to build new units in
Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Palestinian factions and the Popular
Committee for Refugees in the cities of Gaza and Ramallah organized two central
marches to commemorate the Nakba.
Palestinian flags were raised at the
events under the slogan “Enough of 74 years of injustice and double standards.”
The march in Ramallah, in which
thousands of people participated, started from the tomb of former Palestinian
President Yasser Arafat and proceeded toward the city center.
The march in Gaza started from Al-Katiba
Square and proceeded toward the UN headquarters in Gaza City.
Hamas issued a statement to mark the
anniversary.
“There is no legitimacy for the
occupation over an inch of our land, our sanctuaries, and we are on the path of
comprehensive resistance until liberation and return.”
The statement added: “Seventy-four years
after the occupation of our land and the displacement of our people, and
despite all the massacres and crimes committed by the enemy throughout its dark
history, in the longest continuous occupation in the world, the Palestinian
people are still steadfast on their land, adhering to their rights and…
[serving as] the finest examples of heroism, sacrifice, patience and jihad.”
The Palestinian News Agency WAFA issued
statistics showing that the number of Palestinians has reached more than 5
million in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Jerusalem following the displacement
of about 800,000 Palestinians in 1948, while the Israeli army has killed about
100,000 Palestinians since then.
Source: Arab News
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Ethiopian ex-peacekeepers from Tigray
arrive in Sudan for asylum
May 15, 2022
KASSALA, Sudan: Some 40 former
peacekeepers hailing from Ethiopia’s war-wracked Tigray region arrived Sunday
in eastern Sudan after seeking asylum, according to an AFP correspondent.
Last month, more than 500 UN
peacekeepers who were deployed in the disputed Abyei region between Sudan and
South Sudan asked Khartoum for asylum, citing fears for their safety if they
were to return home.
On Sunday, an official with Sudan’s
refugee commission confirmed that hundreds of Ethiopian peacekeepers requested
asylum after the end of their mission in Abyei.
“Arrivals of the asylum seekers will
continue daily until they are all moved,” said the official, who spoke on
condition of anonymity.
An AFP correspondent said the
ex-peacekeepers who arrived on Sunday were taken to the Um Gargour refugee camp
in eastern Sudan.
The Abyei region has been contested
since South Sudan gained independence from Sudan in 2011.
The United Nations established a
peacekeeping mission that year and has since deployed some 4,000 mainly
Ethiopian peacekeepers to the region.
Last month, Ethiopia’s defense ministry
said the peacekeepers from Tigray refusing to return were victims of rebel
“propaganda.”
But Tigrayan peacekeepers interviewed by
AFP all said they were worried about their safety, with one senior officer
saying that other returnees had been arrested or killed in Ethiopia.
The war in northern Ethiopia broke out
in November 2020, when Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent troops into Tigray in
response to what he said were rebel attacks on army camps.
Last year, around 120 Tigrayan
ex-peacekeepers who were posted in the Darfur region sought asylum in Sudan,
according to the UN.
Sudan has received tens of thousands of
Ethiopian refugees since the outbreak of the Tigray conflict.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2082671/middle-east
--------
North America
RepublicanKathy BarnetteWho Made
Anti-Muslim Comments Surges In US Senate Race
Willy Lowry
Washington
May 16, 2022
Until recently, few people outside of
Pennsylvania had heard of Kathy Barnette.
The political commentator, who is
running to become the Republican candidate for an open Senate seat in November,
was languishing in the polls before Tuesday's primary election. As such, the
two established Republican candidates paid her little attention.
That has all changed now as Ms Barnette,
whose Twitter account is littered with incendiary comments, many of them disparaging
toward Islam, has pulled even with Dr Mehmet Oz, who is well known for his The
Dr Oz Show, and David McCormick, a former hedge fund manager.
Two separate polls, one by Fox News, the
other by Trafalgar, show Ms Barnette in a near statistical dead heat with the
better-funded and better-known candidates.
Her last-minute surge has jolted the
Republican Party, which fears she would be unelectable in a race against a
Democratic candidate in November.
"Kathy Barnette will never be able
to win the General Election against the Radical Left Democrats," former
president Donald Trump said in a statement last week.
Ms Barnette's campaign did not respond
to requests for an interview.
Speaking on “Fox News Sunday” ahead of
Tuesday’s primary, Ms Barnette said the “overwhelming majority” of the comments
for which she’s now being criticised are old and not complete thoughts and that
she hasn’t embellished her record as critics say.
“They’re mad because I didn’t ask for
permission to be in this space,” Ms Barnette said. “I just walked in because
this is my country, and our country is in trouble.”
According to the Fox News poll, Dr Oz is
leading with 22 per cent, followed by Mr McCormick with 20 per cent and Ms
Barnette with 19 per cent. The margin of error for the poll is three per cent.
Mr Trump, himself known for his
"Muslim ban" that sought to restrict travel from 13 majority-Muslim
and African nations, said Ms Barnette had said things in the past that had
"not been properly explained or vetted".
He did not, however, condemn her
seemingly Islamophobic Twitter posts, which include multiple false claims that
former president Barack Obama is a Muslim, and said she will "have a
wonderful future in the Republican Party" if she can explain those
comments.
"And I will be behind her all the
way,” Mr Trump said.
Ms Barnette also said Mr Obama “loves
all things homosexual” and that Islam “should be banned in the USA.”
The Pennsylvania Senate race is seen as
crucial in November's midterms. The seat is presently held by Republican Pat
Toomey, who is not seeking re-election.
If the Democrats can secure a win, they
may be able to gain control of the evenly divided Senate.
Though they currently have a nominal
majority in the upper house, thanks to Vice President Kamala Harris’s tie-breaking
role, they have no practical mandate as conservative Democrat Joe Manchin often
sides with Republicans.
Ms Barnette’s popularity began rising
after she released a video describing how she was a product of rape and why she
is still anti-abortion.
The video comes after a leaked Supreme
Court ruling revealed the nation's top court is likely to scrap federal
protections for women seeking abortions.
The four-minute video has more than 1.3
million views and has helped Ms Barnette to win the backing of conservative
groups such as Catholic Vote.
Ms Barnette’s ascendancy has caught her
opponents flat-footed and forced them to alter campaign strategies just days
before Tuesday’s primary.
“It’s reprehensible that she would tweet
out something that is defamatory to an entire religion,” Dr Oz told The
Associated Press on Saturday.
“This state was based on religious
freedom. I’m proud as a Pennsylvanian to uphold those founding beliefs that
every faith has its merits.”
For months, Dr Oz and Mr McCormick waged
vicious attacks against each other trying to court Mr Trump’s approval and win
the Senate primary.
Dr Oz, who made a fortune in television
and has pumped millions of dollars into his own campaign, eventually won Mr
Trump's endorsement.
That Dr Oz and Mr McCormick paid so much
attention to each other likely allowed Ms Barnette to sneak up in the race,
said Jessica Taylor, the Senate and Governors editor at The Cook Political
Report that analyses US political campaigns.
“What is stunning is that she has done
this with very little money,” Ms Taylor told The National. “I think she's been
outspent by something like 350 to one."
Source: The National News
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Reach of Buffalo livestream 'not even
comparable' to Christchurch attack
May 16 2022
The spread of the livestream video of
yesterday’s mass shooting in Buffalo, New York was “not even comparable” to the
reach of the livestream posted by the March 15 terrorist in 2019.
Anjum Rahman, who is co-chair of the
Christchurch Call advisory network, said the spread of the content related to
the Buffalo attack was “certainly better” than the March 15 video which was
seen four million times in the hours it took to remove it.
There were interactions on Facebook and
Twitter alone in the thousands, which was “not even comparable” to the
Christchurch attack material viewings.
Acting Chief Censor Rupert
Ablett-Hampson announced on Monday morning that the video and the manifesto of
a white supremacist shooting more than a dozen mostly-black people in a grocery
store in Buffalo, New York, had been banned.
“This footage celebrates the killing of
innocent people going about their lives, doing their grocery shopping.”
Having received and examined a copy of
the livestream on Monday, Ablett-Hampson said the 6 minute 52 second video of
the attack had been classified, on an interim basis, as objectionable under the
Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act 1993 – the same approach was
taken for the killer’s written manifesto on Sunday.
The video reached the “objectionable
threshold”.
“There is no merit in this, and it is
sadly being shared by people who support the actions of the killer.”
As with the manifesto, he urged New
Zealanders not to seek the video out, and it would be an offense to possess or
distribute them.
In the written publication, banned
yesterday, the killer Payton Gendron, 18, says the March 15 Mosque terrorist
inspired him to act.
The document outlines his racist,
anti-immigrant and antisemitic beliefs, including a desire to drive all people
not of European descent from the US.
Gendron shot four people outside the
store, three fatally, said Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia.
Inside the store, a security guard who
was a retired Buffalo police officer fired multiple shots, but a bullet that
hit the gunman’s bulletproof vest had no effect.
The gunman then killed the guard, the
commissioner said, then stalked through the store shooting other victims.
Global Internet Forum to Counter
Terrorism (GIFCT), which had been beefed up since the Christchurch attack due
to collaboration between countries and companies, quickly activated hashed
signatures to identify when the attack appeared online.
But Rahman worried that while content
was marked so platforms could remove them, GIFCT had no powers to make those
platforms do so.
“We need to start seeing some
international consistency...that protect legal rights, but that also provide a
way to deal with this stuff when it happens to ensure that it’s not going
viral.”
Questions needed to be asked about how
platforms planned to prevent content like it being shared in the first place.
Twitch was a product of Amazon, which
was a member of GIFCT, so she wanted to know what it was doing to prevent the
platform being used in that way.
She believed the shooter used Twitch
"for a reason", so it was important to find out why
There might be a case for some platforms
accepting content that shared snippets of the manifest to show why it was
wrong, for example, but “where do you draw the line?”
There were long-term impacts of
terrorism material being available online, she said.
“These people are there, the question is
how do we deal with that and what are we doing about it.”
Just taking content down was not enough,
and more work was needed on finding out why and how they were radicalised in
the first place.
“It’s about protecting communities from
violence and young people being radicalised online.”
Her organisation, Inclusive Aotearoa
Collective Tāhono, was trying to achieve this by investing in a cohesive
society.The Imam of Christchurch’s An-Nur (Al Noor) mosque – where 43 people
were slain in the 2019 terror attack – has called for social media companies to
do more to stop people spreading hate online.
Gendron published a 180-page racist
manifesto heavily referencing the March 15 attack and, like the Christchurch
terrorist, tried to livestream the killings.
Fouda said he was “very saddened by the
shocking news”.
Family and friends of those killed in
the Christchurch terror attack had gathered to remember their loved ones by
unveiling a peace rock in Harrington Park in Christchurch when reports of the
“heinous” attack in Buffalo began.
“The far-right wing terrorist
responsible for the attack used the 15th March terror attack as an inspiration
to work out his violent acts,” he said.
“This sends a strong message to all of
us that we should care more about one another and work together to tackle the
issue of racism in our society,” Fouda said.
“Social media companies must stop people
from using them as a platform for spreading hate.”
A March 15 Whānau Trust spokesperson
said they were sorry to hear of the Buffalo shooting and send their condolences
to everyone affected.
“We are further saddened to hear the
attacker referenced 15 March,” the spokesperson said.
The unveiled Peace Rock includes a poem
by Sirwan Mohamadi, called Peace, Love and Unity, to remember and inspire hope
for a united future.
Fifty-one people were killed in the Christchurch
terror attacks of March 15, 2019, at the An-Nur and Linwood mosques. The lone
gunman is serving a life prison sentence with no parole.
Source: Stuff
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--------
Fox News Host Confronts Kathy Barnette
on Anti-Muslim Tweets
BY FATMA KHALED
5/15/22
Pennsylvania GOP Senate candidate Kathy
Barnette was confronted Sunday on Fox News Sunday about anti-Muslim tweets that
she posted including ones that targeted former President Barack Obama.
Host Shannon Bream asked the Senate
hopeful during a segment about the context in which those tweets were posted.
"Obama is aMuslim. Doing Muslim
like THINGS!," Barnette tweeted in 2016, touting false claims about the
former president's faith. She targeted Obama, who is a devout Christian, again
later that year, by tweeting: "Obama would NEVER lie or evade the American
people. He's a Muslim, errrr, American," in reference to the Iran nuclear
deal.
"Let me just say in almost all of
those tweets...especially when you look at the timeframe we were living in, at
that particular time, we had the Obama administration bringing in a lot of
Syrian refugees at that time," Barnette told Bream, adding that she was
concerned that refugees weren't being properly vetted.
The Fox News host also mentioned one of
Barnette's anti-Muslim tweets that dated back to 2014 in which she said that
Islam "must not be allowed to thrive under any condition" in an
effort to protect freedom.
"The overwhelming majority of the
tweets that are now being presented are not even full thoughts. They're not
even full sentences. And yet people take it and they begin to build their own
narrative around it," Barnette said. "So I can't provide a lot of
context because again, it's almost 10 years ago, that's how far they have to go
back to try to find anything on me."
In 2015, Barnette wrote on Twitter that
"Pedophilia is a Cornerstone of Islam." However, she rejected that
thought when she was asked about it by NBC News correspondent Dasha Burns in a
Meet the Press interview clip that was posted Friday.
"Yeah, no, I don't think that's me.
I would never have said that. Okay, I would have never said that, because I
don't believe that," Barnette said.
In 2019, Barnette took a hit at
Representative Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat, who made history by becoming
the first Muslim woman to ever serve in the state's legislature, after the
congresswoman made comments about former President Donald Trump.
"Aren't you all so glad that you
voted in the first 'openly' Palestinian Muslim? (Sarcasm for ya'll who don't
get sarcasm," she tweeted.
Source: News Week
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https://www.newsweek.com/fox-news-host-confronts-kathy-barnette-anti-muslim-tweets-1706762?piano_t=1
--------
Pakistan
For US, Pakistan’s become too hot to
handle. A raging Imran Khan is only making it worse
TARA KARTHA
16 May, 2022
After Pakistan’s former Prime Minister
Imran Khan seethed and fumed at US President Joe Biden’s refusal to talk to him
over the phone, it now seems that one of the youngest foreign ministers in the
world, Bilawal Bhutto, is to sally forth to Washington to meet his counterpart
Secretary of State Antony Blinken. This is rather an outreach, given that
Blinken hasn’t exactly been on friendly terms with the Bhutto’s predecessor
Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
Outside on the streets, Imran Khan, the
ultimate street corner politician, is drawing crowds, with his allegations of a
‘foreign-funded’ conspiracy to remove his government that seems to be gaining
credence, making any reset in Pakistan-US ties more difficult. What makes it
worse is that the brand new government of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif seems
shaky even before it has started. Allies show little enthusiasm for policy
making and talk of early elections is in the air. Moreover, an already serious
food crisis has been made worse by water shortages hitting the rabi crop, and
the economy is in free fall.
For all these reasons and more, Pakistan
needs the US. But there are two sides to this coin. There is also the question
of what the US thinks Pakistan can deliver in its current state.
One side of the coin: The whirlpool that
is Pakistan
There is little to enthuse any foreign
government in the current state of affairs. After a long delay and public
squabbling, PM Shahbaz Sharif finally appointed 37 cabinet ministers, 13 for
the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), nine for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP),
and the rest going to smaller parties. That the PPP has less number of
portfolios was more due to the hesitancy within the party to accept any
important post within a government that not just had a short shelf life — elections
being due in January 2023 — but also because no one wants to be held
accountable for what is clearly a dire situation. PPP chairperson Asif Ali
Zardari made a very unconvincing argument that the PPP would stay out of the
cabinet to ‘serve the people’, as did the MQM-P (Muttahida Qaumi
Movement-Pakistan). Bilawal himself took on the Foreign Minister portfolio more
than a week later.
Thereafter, the first sluggish movement
has occurred only a meeting with Nawaz Sharif in London, held in the tightest
secrecy, after which major decisions are apparently to be made. Worse is to
follow. The Prime Minister and his son have again requested deferral of a Rs 16
billion indictment case, due to a ‘medical appointment’ in the UK. Not the
greatest way to win the people’s confidence, already dented by his brother
Nawaz’s flight to the UK on medical grounds after a series of highly publicised
corruption charges.
Then there is the public squabbling over
early elections, which shows all concerned in the worst possible light. In
short, political instability is rife, and likely to continue at least till the
next elections, and probably thereafter if the current coalition trends
continue. Not the best ally or friend for a foreign government to look to for
assistance.
Elections anyone?
Then of course is the ageing but raging
ex-Prime Minister on the streets. His story, paraphrased heavily, is that the
US — enraged with Khan’s government — had issued a threat to Pakistani
diplomats that if Khan was removed “all would be forgiven”. This he linked
directly to the issuance of a ‘no confidence motion’ against him, and his final
ouster. The fact that such a no confidence motion had been brewing for more
than a year has been forgotten in the high decibel noise.
In a country where conspiracy theories
jostle with one another, the ridiculous one is steadily gaining more credence —
apparent as the crowds swell at each of his rallies — and made worse as the
present government seems to be bent on proving Imran’s contention that it is
made up of a welter of dynastic self-serving families.
And here is the icing on Khan’s cake. He
hasn’t run away. He’s there, and there really seems to be no serious charge of
corruption against him. His threat of a long march to the capital is dangerous,
and is designed to force elections, and the establishment has few options.
There is every chance that he could succeed, in which case there is also the
chance that Khan will be back at the helm. Don’t forget the rumours that there
is a faction within the army backing him. Any renewed Pakistan-US rapprochement
has to take this into account.
A tottering economy and linked issues
Then there is the economy. The dollar is
trading at about Rs 195, and a highest ever deficit of some Rs 6.4 trillion.
The acting finance advisor Miftah Ismail clearly said the country has no option
but to go back to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which means a rollback
of subsidies announced by the Imran Khan government including on petroleum.
This will take petrol prices to Rs 190 per litre, and diesel to Rs 230. That’s
not just inflationary but will enrage people already tired of inflation. The
IMF’s 24 April statement observes that “prompt action is needed to reverse the
unfunded subsidies which have slowed discussions for the 7th review”. In other
words, a condition for assistance.
Meanwhile, China has yet to show any
signs of agreeing to roll over debt of some $2.5 billion and Pakistan is
feeling the “Ukraine effect” with data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics
indicating a rise in oil import costs by over 96.09pc to $14.81 billion
(July-March) from $7.55 bn over the same period last year. Added to all this,
climate change has hit Pakistan hard, with a reduction of snowfall by a huge 26
per cent, leading to water shortage that could affect the rabi crop. Agrarian
unrest has already been reported. The country is 14th among the 17 ‘extremely
high water-risk’ regions in the world, and ranks 92 out of 116 countries in the
Global Hunger Index, and it is facing a rising food import bill. Much of this
is due to gross mismanagement and corruption. But it could take years to
resolve. Meanwhile, social tensions are likely to rise when all of this is
coupled with the present state of policy paralysis.
The other side of the coin – US
readiness
US priorities have clearly shifted away
from Afghanistan to other issues, including its own internal divisions and a
41-year-high inflation rate. Recent polls indicate a serious dent in President
Biden’s popularity ratings with a 50 per cent disapproval rate, and the economy
being the main negative factor. In simple terms, the US will now focus on
countries where it can work on a solid economic advantage. In Pakistan, even
China has burnt its fingers.
Second, the foreign policy aspect. Khan
had earlier declared that Pakistan could play a role in bringing together the
US and China, recalling the time when Henry Kissinger had travelled to China in
1971 in a secret visit coordinated by the government of then President General
Yahya Khan. This history is being rehashed by Kissinger himself, and will
certainly appeal to the lobby led by him, even as the many Pakistani academics
in established institutions plead Islamabad’s case. The ‘lure’ is that US
reengagement would draw Pakistan away from China. It won’t, despite the
Pakistan Army’s outreach to the US. But it is possible that parts of the
bureaucracy will try.
Third, Islamabad’s tried and trusted
card of being an “Islamic country”. That won’t wash either. Pakistan’s standing
in the Islamic world has never been worse, and countries like Saudi Arabia and
the UAE are changing fast, and away from Islamabad’s narrow creed.
Fourth, the Afghanistan issue. While US
forces have withdrawn, their intelligence will remain active, and for this
Aabpara (ISI HQ) still remains vital and probably the most effective influencer
in Kabul. Apart from intelligence sharing, there is the much touted issue of US
airbases. What is far more likely are small drone stations, which are already
likely to be operating into Afghanistan.
In sum, when Foreign Minister Bilawal
Bhutto visits Washington, he is likely to be confronted by none too
enthusiastic hosts, who find little to tempt them to engage with a severely
unstable country. There is an intelligence community that both distrusts but needs
Islamabad, who will keep it in play to the extent possible. There is also a
wave of anger against India that may work in Pakistan’s favour at least among
the many lobbies in US Congress. That may translate into promises of a few
millions, but as always, with strings attached.
And most importantly, Bilawal himself is
likely to want to keep any offers of US assistance under wraps for the time
being. His tormentor on the streets will take any bilateral Joint Statement and
twist it out of shape into election material. Delhi will naturally keep a close
watch on any warming US-Pakistan relations. But the reality is that the Indian
Ocean beckons, and that is where common interests lie with Washington. There’s
nothing like shared insecurity to strengthen a relationship. It’s just that
simple.
The author is a Distinguished Fellow at
the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi. She tweets
@kartha_tara. Views are personal.
Source: The Print
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Suicide Blast, Gunmen Kill 8 People in
Pakistan
May 15, 2022
Ayaz Gul
ISLAMABAD —
Pakistani officials said Sunday militant
attacks in the country’s northwest had killed at least eight people, including
security force members, children and members of the minority Sikh group.
The deadliest attack occurred in North
Waziristan, a volatile district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, killing three
soldiers and three children, according to a military statement. It said the
children were aged between 4 and 11 years.
The Pakistani district borders
Afghanistan and was a hub of terrorist groups until recently.
“Intelligence agencies are investigating
to find out about suicide bomber and his handlers / facilitators,” said the
military’s media wing, the Inter Services Public Relations.
Separately, police and witnesses said
unknown gunmen shot dead two Sikh shopkeepers in a drive-by shooting in the
provincial capital, Peshawar. The assailants managed to flee after the
shooting.
There were no immediate claims of
responsibility for either attack. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the
militant violence in a statement.
The Islamic State group has previously
claimed attacks on the minority Sikh community.
The outlawed Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan,
known as the Pakistani Taliban, routinely claims attacks against security
forces in the Waziristan district and elsewhere in the country.
Pakistani authorities say fugitive TTP
leaders direct deadly raids from their sanctuaries across the Afghan border.
Islamabad has been urging Afghanistan’s
ruling Taliban to rein in the terrorist group’s activities.
Pakistan and the United States list the
TTP as a terrorist organization.
TTP attacks have spiked in Pakistan
since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August. The violence has
killed scores of Pakistani security forces, straining relations between the two
countries.
Islamabad has held talks with the TTP in
recent months, mediated by the new rulers in Kabul, in a bid to end the
militant challenge but the dialogue has failed to produce any tangible outcome.
Pakistani officials say there still is a
lack of policy clarity on the part of the Afghan side about how to deal with
the TTP and other terrorist groups operating out of Afghanistan, despite their
repeated assurances to the outside world that they would not allow Afghan soil
to be used against other countries.
“They [the Afghan Taliban] tell us again
and again to be patient and say they need more time to sort this [TTP] issue
out,” a senior Pakistani Foreign Ministry official involved in bilateral talks
told VOA.
“But when there are deadly attacks
against Pakistani security forces almost on a daily basis, we fail to
comprehend as to what do they practically mean by patience,” the official said,
speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to publicly
talk to media.
He added that TTP leaders live with
their families in Afghan “hideouts” close to the Pakistani border.
“The Taliban say they are refugees from
Pakistan and want us to encourage them to return home. But some of these
so-called refugees are actually behind cross-border attacks and refuse to
negotiate peace with the Pakistani government.”
Critics say the Taliban government is
reluctant to forcefully evict the TTP from Afghanistan because both share the
same ideology. For years, the TTP sheltered the Afghan Taliban on the Pakistani
side and provided them with recruits to wage insurgent attacks against the
now-defunct Western-backed Kabul government and its U.S.-led foreign military
partners.
“The Taliban, however, have a genuine
fear or apprehension that if TTP fighters are forced to leave Afghanistan they
may instead join Islamic State ranks to pose even a bigger security challenge
to the nascent government,” the Pakistani official said.
Islamic State group attacks in
Afghanistan have increased since the Taliban returned to power there, killing
scores of people, mostly Hazara Shi’ite community members.
Source: VOA News
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Pakistan ups security for ex-PM Khan
over deadly plot claims
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan beefed up
security around former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday, the interior
ministry said, two days after he had claimed at a rally in eastern Punjab
province that there was a plot to assassinate him.
The ministry said in a statement that
dozens of policemen, along with paramilitary troops, have been assigned to
Khan’s Islamabad residence. Security forces would also escort Khan whenever he
leaves Islamabad for any part of the country, the ministry said.
In his speech at the rally in the city
of Sialkot on Saturday, Khan did not elaborate on the alleged plot against him
but claimed he had recorded a video message detailing it all.
Khan’s supporters have held rallies
across the country since last month, when he was ousted by the opposition
through a no-confidence vote in the National Assembly. He was replaced by Prime
Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
Sharif on Monday also ordered maximum
security arrangements for Khan, according to a separate government statement.
Khan lost the grip on power after his
party allies and a key coalition partner defected in early April. Since his
ouster, he has demanded new elections, claiming Sharif’s government was imposed
under an alleged U.S. plot. Washington has denied Khan’s conspiracy claims, and
Sharif’s government has also dismissed them.
Pakistan has seen an uptick in militant
attacks.
On Sunday, a suicide bomber struck near
a vehicle belonging to the security forces in the country’s northwest, killing
three soldiers and three children. Gunmen in the city of Peshawar killed two
members of the minority Sikhs community. On Monday, the Islamic State group
claimed responsibility for the rare attack on Sikhs.
Source: AP News
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Two Members Of Sikh Community Shot Dead
By Terrorists In Pakistan
May 15, 2022
Peshawar: Two Sikh businessmen were shot
dead by the Islamic State terrorists in northwest Pakistan on Sunday, the
latest targeted attack against the minority community members in the restive
province bordering Afghanistan.
Kanwaljeet Singh, 42, and Ranjeet Singh,
38, died on the spot after being attacked by two bike-borne assailants in the
morning in Bata Tal bazaar of Sarband, Peshawar, the capital of northwestern
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to the police.
The attackers fled after carrying out
the attack.
The victims were in the business of
spices and had shops in the Bata Tal bazaar in Sarband, about 17 kms from
Peshawar.
The Islamic State's Khorasan unit (ISKP)
claimed via its propaganda news service 'Amaaq' that it carried out the attack
targeting two Sikhs in Peshawar. The ISKP is an affiliate of the Islamic State
(IS) active in South Asia and Central Asia.
The Counter-Terrorism Department
registered a case of murder of the two Sikh men, Saddar Superintendent of
Police Aqiq Hussain told Geo News.
"The incident appears to be a
terrorist attack. The CCTV footage will be acquired and the suspects will be
arrested soon," he said.
A large number of angry Sikh protesters
blocked the Peshawar-Islamabad road in front of Qila Bala Hissar to register
their protest against the killing. They were holding placards against the
brutal killings and raising slogans - "Stop target killings",
"We want justice."
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly
condemned the incident and directed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood
Khan to ensure immediate arrest and punishment of the culprits. He also ordered
a high level inquiry into the incident.
"Strongly condemn the killing of
our Sikh citizens in Peshawar, KP. Pakistan belongs to all its people. Have
ordered a high level inquiry to ascertain facts. The killers will be arrested
& meted out exemplary punishment. My most sincere sympathies to the
bereaved families," he tweeted.
He urged the chief minister to ensure
steps for the protection of the lives and properties of the citizens,
particularly of non-Muslims.
He observed that enmity with Pakistan
was the reason behind this "act of terrorism" and resolved to
eliminate the enemies of the country, the report said.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah criticised
the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government for the attack and sought a report from the
provincial chief secretary and inspector general of police.
"The KP government has terribly
failed at protecting the minorities," Mr Sanaullah said, indicating past
incidents of violence against Sikhs in the province.
He urged law enforcement agencies and
the provincial government led by Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf to
ensure the security of minorities.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister
Mahmood Khan condemned the attack and directed the police to take immediate
steps to arrest the culprits.
He said that the incident was a
conspiracy to disrupt the inter-faith harmony in the province.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari
called for the immediate arrest of those involved.
"No one will be allowed to disturb
inter-faith harmony in the country and harm national unity," he said in a
statement, adding that the Pakistan Peoples Party was the country's real
representative party and would not abandon the Sikh community.
Meanwhile, the Human Rights Commission
of Pakistan condemned the killing.
"This is not the first time that
the Sikh community in KP has been targeted and we demand that the KP police
identify and arrest the perpetrators promptly," it said.
It also called on the government to
"make it clear that violence against religious minorities will not be
tolerated".
The All Pakistan Ulema Council (APUC)
also condemned the killing.
APUC head Tahir Ashrafi said that the
Peshawar administration should ensure protection of non-Muslims citizens and
arrest the murderers of Ranjeet and Kanwaljeet.
"The continuing attacks on our Sikh
community are an example of the fall out from Pakistan's suicidal policies in
Afghanistan. Be it TTP, Afghan Taliban or ISKP, they are all the products of a
terror supporting mindset who have used the resources of the state to nurture
terrorism," said Mohsin Dawar, Member of the National Assembly, North
Waziristan.
About 15,000 Sikhs live in Peshawar,
mostly in the Jogan Shah neighbourhood of the provincial capital Peshawar. Most
of the members of the Sikh community in Peshawar are involved in business,
while some also have pharmacies.
In September last year, a well-known
Sikh 'hakeem' (Unani medicine practitioner) was shot dead by unidentified
gunmen inside his clinic in Peshawar.
In 2018, Charanjit Singh, a prominent
Sikh community member, was killed by unknown men in Peshawar.
Similarly, news channel anchor Ravinder
Singh was killed in 2020 in the city.
In 2016, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf
National Assembly member Soren Singh was also killed in Peshawar.
According to the 2017 census, Hindus
constitute the largest religious minority in Pakistan. Christians make up the
second largest religious minority.
The Ahmadis, Sikhs and Parsis are also
among the notable religious minorities in Pakistan.
Source: ND TV
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Arab World
Grand Mufti Of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Al
Al-Sheikh, Ternava Stress On Kingdom’s Role In Serving Islam
May 15, 2022
RIYADH — Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia and
President of Council of Senior Scholars and General Presidency of Scholarly
Research and Ifta Sheikh Abdulaziz Bin Abdullah Bin Mohammed Al Al-Sheikh
Sunday at his office here received Grand Mufti and head of the Islamic
Sheikhdom in the Republic of Kosovo Naim Ternava and his accompanying
delegation.
Sheikh Al Al-Sheikh, during the meeting,
highlighted the importance of such meeting between Islamic leaders for
consultation and cooperation on issues that serve Islam and Muslims.
For his part, Ternava praised the
efforts of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and the Crown
Prince, in serving Islam and caring for the Two Holy Mosques and their visitors
of pilgrims and Umrah performers, stressing that these efforts receive the appreciation
of all Muslims around the world.
He also commended the historic positions
made by the leadership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the Kosovo people
since the war.
Ternava highlighted the importance of
the meeting with the grand mufti and advice he received from him, which will
act as guidelines for the Islamic action of the sheikhdom to serve the Muslims
of Kosovo according to the moderate approach adopted by Saudi Arabia.
The Kosovo Grand Mufti also expressed
his appreciation for the hospitality of the grand mufti. — SPA
Source: Saudi Gazette
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Grand Mosque robots answer pilgrims’
questions in 11 languages
May 15, 2022
RIYADH: Robots that provide visitors to the
Grand Mosque in Makkah with guidance can be accessed in 11 languages: Arabic,
English, French, Russian, Persian, Turkish, Malay, Urdu, Chinese, Bengali,
Hausa.
The robots guide pilgrims on how to
perform their Umrah rituals, issue fatwas, answer questions and provide
opportunities for people to communicate with scholars remotely.
The four-wheeled robots have 21-inch
touchscreens and are equipped with a smart stopping system that allows them to
be moved easily and smoothly.
They also have high resolution cameras
that provide clarity in transmitting images, high resolution headphones, and a
microphone with high capture quality that allows clear sound transmission.
The robots work on a Wi-Fi wireless
network system at a speed of 5 GHz which enables fast and high transmission of
data.
Source: Arab News
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OIC calls to protect displaced, refugee
families
May 15, 2022
JEDDAH: Secretary-General of the
Organization of Islamic Cooperation Hissein Brahim Taha called on OIC member
states and the international community to join efforts to protect displaced
families, refugees and those living under occupation, especially in Palestine.
The plea came on International Day of Families, celebrated annually across the
world on May 15.
Taha indicated that this year, the day
comes with many families in OIC member states displaced due to armed conflicts
or natural disasters. He stressed that the OIC recognizes the importance of
preserving the the institutions of marriage and the family, and their central
role in social life and achieving sustainable development, ensuring the
well-being of society and confronting crises.
The secretary-general urged member
states to create an enabling environment to promote and support the family as a
contributor to achieving this development, and to work in providing the
necessary social, educational and psychological services to families of
refugees and displaced persons.
Taha also called on the relevant
institutions of the OIC and its partners to support member states to contribute
to alleviating the suffering of families and the communities that shelter them.
Source: Arab News
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Dutch artist Satori headlines Riyadh
desert event
May 15, 2022
RIYADH: On Friday, a vibrant series of
electronic house music bounced off the hills of the Riyadh desert at the NOX
Camp Desert Resort, bringing together music, art and desert-sport lovers alike
in a one-of-a-kind event.
The exclusive music and art event
organizer, Desert Sound Entertainment, presented their premiere “Mars Escape”
experience to the Saudi community, transporting about 1,000 attendees to
another dimension made distinct by live art, festival makeup and fire performances.
The moon shone, setting up the
atmosphere for the celestial night, the music ascended. Headlined by Satori,
the international DJ lineup included the likes of Alaa Jazaery, Rafa, NarkBeat,
and a surprise performance by local DJ Ibbie.
The 10-hour festival saw a distinctive
blend of artists taking to the main stage. Rafa gave the crowd a sensual and
authentically earthy organic house experience while NarkBeat’s performance left
the crowd in anticipation with sultry Arabian oud sounds. Alaa Jazaeri, founder
of a similar music festival titled “Narratives,” slowed down the groove with an
organic and soulful house music set, taking festival-goers on a mini-journey.
The diverse music echoing the valley of
the desert culminated with Satori, a world-famous Dutch producer whose music
focuses on spirituality and enlightenment. His set took off promptly at
midnight and closed the event. His stop at Riyadh is part of his world tour
this month with upcoming shows in Moscow, Stockholm and London.
“I would not imagine from this side of
the world that people would know me and connect with the music in this way, so
it was really a big pleasure. I’ve been playing in this region of course
already for a few years, if we speak about Dubai or Egypt, I played in Oman and
Lebanon, but never in Saudi,” Satori said in an exclusive interview with Arab
News.
Satori’s mellow sounds, crafted under
the influence of the Japanese term “Satori,” cannot be narrowed down to a
single genre, but rather a feeling. His music combines elements of
self-exploration, earthy melodies, psychedelic tones and vivid energy. The
crescendo of the piano, synthetic electronic beats and kalimba prompted a
series of cheers as people danced. Almost every listener was rhythmically
entranced, surrendering to the sound.
“For me it feels like I’m part of
innovation. There’s something progressing and just to be part of that is really
a great honor. It feels like we’re writing history and I’m kind of part of that
chapter,” he said of his recent performance. “In the end, music is a universal
language, people would connect to that or understand that even if they’re not
used to these types of events. People will feel it.”
While primarily centered around the
musical performances, the Saudi General Entertainment Authority-certified event
also included an array of cultural activities such as art installations,
graffiti sites and street art, virtual reality booths, games, and live
catering. “We wanted to complete the music experience as a whole, connecting
with nature and expressing through art and feeling with music,” assistant
manager, Reema Al-Saud, told Arab News.
Event-goers were ready to indulge in the
cultural aspect of the experience. “This is my first experience, and it gives a
nice vibe,” said attendee Bha’a Mahdi. “I didn’t like that there wasn’t a big
crowd. The place is very, very gorgeous. Incredible. It’s unreal. I liked the
music, but was hoping the music would have more drops and highs. I felt united
with the desert, I even removed my shoes,” he said.
Other members of the audience had
similar comments. “The location is good, the vibe is nice. Just one thing: I
wish there were more people,” said one attendee.
“The ground traps you. The sand doesn’t
give you way to dance or walk,” said another attendee.
This international lineup and diverse
activities come after a new wave of events that cater to those music-lovers,
the latest being Freaks of Nature, bringing new meaning to weekend family
entertainment ventures in Riyadh.
Source: Arab News
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Saudi Civil Defense rescues pet animals
trapped in Alkhobar fire
HEBSHI AL-SHAMMARI
May 15, 2022
RIYADH: Pet owners were relieved after
their animals were rescued from a massive fire that broke out Friday inside
Alkhobar’s Dhahran Mall in eastern Saudi Arabia.
A Civil Defense crew in Alkhobar rescued
animals including cats, dogs and fish from Pets Houses, a pet supplies store in
the largest commercial complex in the Eastern Province.
The animals were transported during
daylight hours after a fire that started on the complex’s roof was put out.
According to a Civil Defense source, it
is part of firefighters’ job in such circumstances to perform search and rescue
operations at the scene to ensure that no one is trapped inside and that any
animals are rescued.
The same source told Arab News that
firefighters evacuated the pets to a safe location outside the mall before the
animals were returned to their owners.
Nawaf Al-Mandeel, general manager of
Pets Houses, said that “the shock was tremendous at Pets Houses,” following the
fire that broke out at Dhahran Mall, where one of the company’s branches is
located.
Al-Mandeel said that Pets Houses does
its best to afford care and a decent life for the many pets at the branch
located in Dhahran Mall. Pet owners regularly come to the branch, he said, to
purchase supplies and learn how to breed and care for their pets as part of the
family.
All animals are subject to periodic
medical checkups by Pets Houses’ veterinarian clinic, which provides for all
their needs, including hygiene, he said.
“We were shocked by the news of the fire
that morning. We contacted the authorities and alerted them to the presence of
pets inside our branch located inside the complex, and they responded
immediately,” Al-Mandeel added.
He described the waiting periods as
“excruciating” until he received the welcome news that all the animals at the
branch had been rescued and transported safely and without any injuries, thanks
to the efforts of the Civil Defense “heroes.”
“The team brought the animals to our
veterinary clinic swiftly to check on their health. The medical team confirmed
the safety of all the animals,” he said.
Badr S. Al-Turaif, general manager of
Rahmah Animal Welfare Association, told Arab News that the association is in
contact with the shop’s management and that the animals are in good health,
adding that they had not been exposed to either fire or fumes as the shop is
located relatively far from the fire site.
“The courageous efforts of the Civil
Defense team are not surprising,” Al-Turaif said. “We always find these heroes
at the center of incidents, providing assistance and saving lives.”
Al-Turaif urged pet store owners to
implement the preventive measures outlined by the Civil Defense to avoid
tragedies in the future. These include setting fire alarms, developing an
emergency and evacuation plan, ensuring adequate ventilation, designing the
shop in a way that allows for the implementation of these measures, and
creating an appropriate environment for animals so that their health and safety
are not jeopardized.
Source: Arab News
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Saudi Arabia reports 431 new COVID-19
cases, 2 deaths
May 15, 2022
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia reported 431 new
cases of COVID-19 on Sunday, according to the Ministry of Health. As a result,
the total number of cases in the Kingdom over the course of the pandemic grew
to 759,226.
The authorities also confirmed two new
COVID-19-related deaths, raising the total number of fatalities to 9,116.
Of the new infections, 125 were recorded
in Jeddah, 92 in Riyadh, 63 in Makkah, 52 in Madinah and 26 in Dammam. Several
other cities recorded fewer than 20 new cases each.
The ministry said that of the current
cases, 61 were in critical condition.
The ministry also announced that 349
patients had recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total number of recoveries
in the Kingdom over the course of the pandemic to 743,921.
It said that 6,189 COVID-19 cases were
still active, adding that 22,586 PCR tests were conducted in the past 24 hours,
bringing the total number to more than 42 million.
Nearly 65 million COVID-19 vaccine doses
have been administered since the Kingdom’s immunization campaign began, with
almost 25 million people fully vaccinated.
The ministry, which has 587 vaccine
centers across the country, urged people who have not yet received a jab to
register for a series through the Sehhaty app.
Source: Arab News
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WHO renews Saudi food authority role as
center for global cooperation
May 15, 2022
RIYADH: The World Health Organization
has renewed the Saudi Food and Drug Authority as a center for international
cooperation in medical devices and supplies for four years.
The decision aims to support the
authority’s role in building a center covering the eastern Mediterranean and
Africa, and promoting the scientific and technical work of the WHO
internationally.
The center will assist developing
countries in monitoring and regulating medical devices, and benefiting from its
expertise in regulatory and supervisory areas.
Ali Al-Dalaan, executive vice president
of the medical devices sector at SFDA, said that the decision was made in light
of recent Saudi efforts, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also a
result of effective Saudi contribution through food and drug specialists
hosting educational workshops in Africa.
The move is set to enhance the Kingdom’s
position among various global regulatory bodies and add weight to its
presidency of the Global Harmonization Working Party. It will also improve the
Saudi contribute to international organizations such as the International
Organization for Standardization and the International Medical Device
Regulators Forum.
Source: Arab News
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KAUST attracts 5 global deep tech
startups to Kingdom
May 15, 2022
JEDDAH: King Abdullah University of
Science and Technology (KAUST) has concluded the Destination Deep Tech program,
selecting five international startups from Spain, Poland, France, Egypt and
Singapore due to their successful expansion into MENA markets.
Destination Deep Tech is an
unprecedented Saudi program that aims to create an innovation environment in
the Kingdom. Startups are selected for their technological advancements.
The five international deep tech
startups showed significant growth during the program’s three-month period,
during which they established important collaborative partnerships with
immediate impact.
From France, Pasqal is a European
startup and pioneer in the field of quantum computing. It provides
comprehensive quantum technology solutions through devices and applications.
Insignes-Labs from Poland develops
antimicrobials to protect a wide range of materials from defective microbes
such as bacteria, algae, fungi and others.
Proteinea, a startup from Egypt, serves
as a platform for artificial intelligence technology, deep learning models, and
biological automation for protein design and production.
CeEntek, a Singapore-based company, is
developing high-performance concrete to increase the sustainability and
efficiency of construction projects.
HOPU, from Spain, is developing IoT
(Internet of things) devices and sensors based on artificial intelligence
technology for applications of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and smart
cities. HOPU does so by monitoring air quality, noise and energy consumption.
The program provides the selected deep
tech startups with the tools they need to expand their projects, including
access to world-class research and development facilities at KAUST, exploring
opportunities for collaboration with academia and industry, and providing
office space in the on-campus Research and Technology City.
Dr. Kevin Cullen, KAUST vice president
for innovation, said: “KAUST is the deep tech heart of the Saudi economy, and
we are very pleased to host these talented international startups at our
university and in Saudi Arabia through the KAUST Destination Deep Tech Program,
which underscores our commitment to developing a strong ecosystem for
entrepreneurship.”
Arno Nijhof, director of The Next Web,
said: “Through this program, we have leveraged our global and KAUST network to
attract leading companies from around the world and provide them with the
necessary support so that they could set up offices on campus. We are very
proud of the achievements with KAUST in our first group. Together we have
managed 80 percent of the companies and supported them to continue to operate
successfully from the campus.”
The Destination Deep Tech program was
launched at KAUST this year in partnership with The Next Web, an international
media organization that supports and connects the global technology environment
through media, conferences and innovation services.
Source: Arab News
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South Asia
Proshanta Kumar Halder, A Bangladeshi,
Living Illegally In India, Arrested By ED For Bank Fraud In Own Country
May 15, 2022
Six people, including the mastermind
behind a Rs 9,000 crore bank fraud in Bangladesh, have been arrested by the
Enforcement Directorate under the anti-money laundering act, officials said.
Proshanta Kumar Halder, a Bangladeshi
national who is accused of defrauding banks of his own country, is also being
probed by the ED for forging his identity as an Indian citizen and then using
the defrauded money to float businesses in India along with buying properties.
Before making the arrests, ED had
carried out search operations at 11 premises linked to Bangladesh nationals -
Proshanta Kumar Halder, Pritish Kumar Halder and their associates across the
state of West Bengal.
Proshanta Kumar Halder was nabbed along
with his five other associates during these searches.
“Proshanta Kumar Halder was found in the
disguised identity of Indian Citizen as Shibshankar Halder. During searches it
was revealed that he along with his other associates fraudulently obtained
various government identities like ration card from, Indian voter ID card, PAN
and Aadhar card,” said the ED.
ED has alleged that these Bangladesh
nationals have also managed to float companies in India on the basis of
fraudulently obtained identities and have even purchased properties in West
Bengal.
“It has been further revealed that the
subject case is an offence of Cross Border Implication under the Prevention of
Money Laundering Act as Proshanta Kumar Halder has been found to be accused in
over 10000 crore Bangladesh Taka (Rs 9000 crore) bank fraud in Bangladesh and
alleged to have siphoned off money outside Bangladesh to various countries.
Besides his Bangladesh and Indian passport, he was also found in possession of
Grenada passport,” added the ED.
The Interpol has also issued a Red
Corner Notice (RCN) against Proshanta Kumar Halder based on a request from the
Bangladesh government.
Along with the prime accused Proshanta
Kumar Halder alias Shibashankar Halder, the ED has also arrested his associates
Swapan Maitra alias Swapan Mistry, Uttam Maitra alias Uttam Mistry, Imam
Hossian alias Imon Halder, Amana Sultana alias Sharmee Halder and Pranesh Kumar
Halder.Live TV
Source: India Today
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Former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani
invited by Taliban to attend assembly in Kabul
May 16, 2022
AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The
ambassador of the Taliban in Moscow says that the Loya Jirga (Afghan Assembly)
will be held in Kabul soon. According to the Taliban official, politicians who
have gone abroad, including former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, have also
been invited to the meeting.
Taliban ambassador to Moscow Jamal
Nasser Gharwal said: "The Taliban will convene an Loya Jirga in the near
future; it is not yet known whether the Meeting will be a Loya Jirga, but
preparations are underway."
According to Gharwal; This forum will be
a large meeting with the presence of Afghan politicians.
He added: "Politicians who have
gone abroad have been invited to attend the forthcoming meeting, which will
also include former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.
The allegations come as some sources
have previously reported that Ashraf Ghani is in Kabul on UNAMA bail, but this
was denied by Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.
Earlier, Ashraf Ghani had said in his
Eid al-Fitr congratulatory message: "Afghanistan has no other way out of
the current situation without a national consensus."
Source: Abna 24
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The Taliban in Ghazni Prevents the
Smuggling of Weapons to Pakistan
Monday, 16 May 2022
Taliban security officials in Ghazni
province have announced the arrest of three people in connection with weapons
smuggling to Pakistan.
The Taliban had identified and wanted
the men as they tried to transport weapons to Pakistan in a truck, according to
the state-run Bakhtar news agency, quoting the Taliban Interior Ministry.
According to the ministry, Taliban
forces launched an operation in Ghazni province’s Qarabagh district to arrest
two smugglers.
The Taliban has previously reported the
arrest of Pakistani weapons smugglers.
Following the fall of the Afghan
government, military equipment is said to have been smuggled to neighboring
countries, particularly Pakistan.
It was recently reported that US weapons
used in Afghanistan had been transported to Indian Kashmir via Pakistan. Indian
officials are reported to have announced the discovery of the weapons.
Source: Khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/the-taliban-in-ghazni-prevents-the-smuggling-of-weapons-to-pakistan99552/
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WFP Distributes Aid to About 20 Million
People In Afghanistan
Monday, 16 May 2022
On Sunday, May 15, the World Food
Program (WFP) tweeted that it has provided relief aid to over 17.5 million
people in Afghanistan in the past six months.
According to a newsletter published by
the organization, millions of Afghans have received food aid and other
essentials.
Earlier, the WFP’s Asia deputy director
expressed concern about the humanitarian crisis and food shortages in
Afghanistan.
WFP’s Asia Deputy Director tweeted that
it is estimated that 18.9 million people will face severe hunger in Afghanistan
by November this year. Food and livelihood donations from generous donors have
been a way of saving the needy.
Following the Taliban’s re-establishment
in Afghanistan, international aid was drastically limited, and the World Bank’s
reconstruction fund was severely restricted.
This year, the United Nations has
requested $5 billion in help for Afghan people both inside Afghanistan and in
neighboring nations.
Meanwhile, the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees (UNHCR) claims to have assisted 5 million Afghans this year,
particularly vulnerable women who are household heads.
According to a tweet from the
organization, the families have received food and other essential necessities
this year.
According to the UNHCR, millions of
Afghan people have been affected by the ongoing crisis, displacement, drought,
and economic disaster.
Source: Khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/wfp-distributes-aid-to-about-20-million-people-in-afghanistan24682/
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Islamic Emirate: Over 130,000 Soldiers
Recruited
“More than 130,000 people have been
registered and this process will continue. With the completion of registration,
the Afghans will see an independent, well-formed and committed military who
will provide security and defend the Afghan soil and borders,” said Inayatullah
Khwarazami, a spokesman for the MoD.
However, the uniform for the new troops
has yet to be determined.
Khwarazami said all former female
employees of the MoD are still being paid and some of them are still working
within the ministry.
“The women who were working in the
Ministry of Defense are still working, for example, they are in the health
department and other departments. The leadership of the Islamic Emirate and
Defense Ministry will make a decision about them. They are still receiving
their salaries,” Khwarazai said.
Veterans suggested that professional and
experienced individuals should be included in the military.
“The important things are the education
and professional training, capability, equipment and budget,” said Asadullah
Nadeem, a military veteran.
“A neutral, real, professional and
independent army should be formed,” said Samar Sadat, a military veteran.
The number of Afghan National Defense
and Security Forces of the former government has reached more than
350,000.
After the former ANDSF collapsed, many
soldiers of the foreign government are currently struggling with severe
economic conditions.
Source: Tolo News
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https://tolonews.com/index.php/afghanistan-178022
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Southeast Asia
Malaysia FM holds talks with counterpart
from Myanmar shadow government
May 15, 2022
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Foreign Minister
Saifuddin Abdullah met his counterpart from Myanmar’s National Unity Government,
a shadow administration outlawed by the ruling military junta, in the group’s
first open engagement with a Southeast Asian country.
The meeting, disclosed by Saifuddin in a
Twitter post, was held on the sidelines of a two-day summit in Washington between
the US and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which excluded
Myanmar’s leader over a military coup last year.
Myanmar has repeatedly called on
countries not to engage with the shadow administration, and other military
opponents that the junta has labeled as “terrorists.”
In his Twitter post, Saifuddin said
Malaysia “stands ready to work toward restoring peace and democracy in Myanmar”
during an informal meeting with Zin Mar Aung, foreign minister of the shadow
administration.
“We took the opportunity to exchange
views on latest developments in Myanmar, where Minister Zin shared insights as
well as challenges faced by NUG, including humanitarian assistance, technical
training and education for the Myanmar refugees,” he said.
Myanmar’s Foreign Ministry in a
statement, however, denounced reports of engagements in Washington between the
US State Department and NUG officials, and said it had sent protest notes to
all ASEAN countries and the US asking them to refrain from talking to the opposition
government.
The ministry also said it rejected a
paragraph contained in a 28-page joint statement released by the US and ASEAN,
which had called for the timely implementation of a five-point peace plan
agreed to by Myanmar.
The ministry said the language used in
the paragraph suggested interference in Myanmar’s domestic affairs and included
references to matters within its sovereign jurisdiction, “including
unacceptable proposals that go beyond the Five Point Consensus.”
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2082701/world
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Tat Meng may not return to Malaysia
after successful Korean stint
Monday, 16 May 2022
BANGKOK: Malaysia are unlikely to get
Wong Tat Meng (pic) to be the coach in the women’s singles department.
There is a vacancy following the
resignation of coach Indra Wijaya in January but national singles coaching
director Wong Choong Hann said they were not in a hurry.
“We are aware that Tat Meng is
available. We are looking at adding depth but for now, we want to review the
form of our women players first,” said Choong Hann.
Tat Meng has ended his stint with South
Korea on a high after three years and five months working as the singles coach.
In his last stint as a coach here in
Bangkok, his players made him proud by lifting the Uber Cup after 12 years.
They defeated China 3-2 in a thrilling
tie at Impact Arena on Sunday.
Although Tat Meng’s contract runs until
end of this year, he has chosen to resign but did not want to reveal the reason
behind his decision.
“I’m just happy to leave the team with
such memorable and fantastic result at the Uber Cup,” said Tat Meng, who is
seen as the man behind the rise of the 20-year-old An Se-young.
“I did not tell the team earlier as I
did not want to distract them.”
His resignation comes in the wake of
South Korea appointing former top singles player Sung Ji-hyun into their
coaching team this year.
“There have been so many memories. I’ve
made good friends. They have really looked after me well. It was a good
experience for me, and I’ve learnt much as a coach too.”
Asked whether he would consider Malaysia
if they approached him, Tat Meng said: ”I have not made any decision right now.
I just want to take a few weeks to rest first.”
However, he’s expected to join another
country’s badminton stable.
Source: The Star
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7 judges in the running for 2 top posts
May 16, 2022
PETALING JAYA: At least seven Federal
Court judges could be in the running to occupy the soon-to-be vacant Court of
Appeal president and Chief Judge of Malaya posts, the second and third most
senior administrative positions in the judiciary.
Court of Appeal president Rohana Yusuf
will retire in November, and Chief Judge of Malaya Azahar Mohamed will leave
office in October.
Both have turned 66, the mandatory
retirement age for judges, but have been given a six-month extension by the
Yang di Pertuan Agong.
The seven, according to seniority, who
could be considered for promotion are Nallini Pathmanathan, Abdul Rahman Sebli,
Zabariah Mohd Yusof, Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, Mary Lim, Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal
and Rhodzariah Bujang.
Nalini, Rahman, Zabariah and Hasnah will
retire in 2025, Lim late next year, and Harmindar in 2024. Rhodzariah will
retire in 2027.
According to procedure, a nine-member
Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC), chaired by Chief Justice Tengku Maimun
Tuan Mat, will meet to propose the names to be sent to the prime minister’s
office.
As required under Article 122B of the
Federal Constitution, the King appoints judges acting on the advice of the
prime minister after consulting the Conference of Rulers.
A retired judge said the selection
criteria, including integrity, competency, experience, the ability to make timely
judgments and good writing skills, will be taken into account.
“Of course, seniority is a factor that
will be considered to hold any administrative post,” said the judge, who spoke
on condition of anonymity.
The judge, who is learned in the
appointment process, said the JAC Act also makes provision for the prime
minister to request for two more names to be selected for his consideration.
Former Federal Court judge Gopal Sri Ram
said there is a possibility of current Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Abang
Iskandar Abang Hashim being appointed the Court of Appeal president, and
Rhodzariah, a Sarawakian, filling his present position.
“East Malaysian judges should not be
marginalised just because two of them could hold senior administrative posts,”
he said.
Sri Ram said the other women judges –
Nallini, Zabariah, Hasnah and Lim – could be considered for the Chief Judge of
Malaya position.
“However, at the end of the day, the
decision is with the JAC, and the Chief Justice is the best to decide who is
the best candidate for each position,” he said.
Former Malaysian Bar president Salim
Bashir said the prime minister must give reasons if he asked for additional
names other than those given by the JAC.
“If the names are rejected, the prime
minister’s office must give an explanation for the public to know,” he said.
Salim said this is because the JAC Act
empowers the prime minister to appoint four eminent persons to sit in the
commission to advocate the views of the public.
Source: Free Malaysia Today
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Analysts mixed on Ismail’s future after
constitution amendment
May 16, 2022
PETALING JAYA: Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s
future as prime minister appears to be hanging in the balance after Umno
unanimously voted to allow party elections to be further postponed until after
a general election.
One political analyst believes the
decision puts party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi “firmly in charge” and opens
the way for the “mainstream faction” of the party to have Ismail replaced eventually.
However, another analyst says Ismail’s
future was now secure as the party has already named him to be the prime
ministerial candidate at the coming general election, with no challengers in
sight.
On Sunday, Umno voted unanimously to
amend its constitution to allow the party elections to be postponed by up to 18
months, or up to six months after a general election.
The party elections, for the 2021-2023
term, had already been postponed from June 30 last year and were due to be held
by Dec 30 this year.
Further postponement, which must be
approved by the registrar of societies, would leave Zahid in a position, as
Umno president and BN chairman, to decide on general election candidates.
Oh Ei Sun of the Singapore Institute of
International Affairs said the constitutional amendment meant Ismail’s days as
prime minister were numbered.
“Umno is going to win quite big (at the
general election) this time, so all these new Umno MPs will be loyal to Zahid
and the mainstream faction of Umno,” he said, which also included former prime
minister Najib Razak.
“That means that Ismail’s days are
basically numbered. They don’t like him, to put it bluntly. So they are likely,
at some point, to replace him with either themselves, or somebody of their
liking.”
However, Azmi Hassan of Akademi
Nusantara said neither Zahid nor Najib have publically admitted any desire to
contest for the prime minister’s seat.
Umno’s Supreme Council had also
unanimously agreed to propose Ismail as Barisan Nasional’s candidate to be the
next prime minister.
Azmi said it was Ismail, who is one of
Umno’s three vice-presidents, who seconded the motion to amend the
constitution, tabled by another vice-president, Khaled Nordin.
“It just goes to show that although he
is a vice-president, his position as the future PM is secure,” said Azmi.
The next general election must be held
the latest by mid-September 2023, but Umno has been pushing for it to be held
earlier to take advantage of the momentum it gained after convincing wins at
the Melaka and Johor state elections.
Source: Free Malaysia Today
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Efforts on to revive flights to
Malaysia, Bangkok from Visakhapatnam, says Andhra Minister
MAY 15, 2022
‘Steps will be taken to showcase Andhra
Pradesh at the World Economic Forum meet at Davos to be held from May 22 to 26’
Minister for Industries and IT Gudivada
Amarnath has said that efforts are being made to revive the international
flights to Malaysia and Bangkok, which were withdrawn due to the COVID-19
pandemic, soon. The Minister participated as the chief guest at the Visakha
Connect and Tourism Mega Meet’, organised by the Air Travellers Association
(India) here, on Sunday.
Speaking to media persons, who met him
on the side lines of the meeting, Mr. Amarnath said that the annual meeting of
the World Economic Forum, to be held at Davos from May 22 to 26, would bring in
investments to the State.
The Davos conference would discuss 18
issues and the State government would focus on 10 proposals pertaining to
issues like agriculture, tourism, education, medical and health and economy.
The conference was a great opportunity to showcase Andhra Pradesh, he said.
Mr. Amarnath recalled that the seed for
the development of IT sector in Visakhapatnam was sown during the tenure of
former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, and now efforts were being made
to promote it further.
Addressing the meeting, he said that
Visakhapatnam would be promoted as a Beach IT destination taking advantage of
the basic infrastructure and vast resources available in the city. He said that
improving air connectivity would also bring in investments and the government
was working in that direction. Visakhapatnam was being developed as a tourist
hub and measures were being initiated to develop a convention centre and resort
in this regard, he said.
Airport Director K. Srinivasa Rao spoke
on the potential of Visakhapatnam International Airport. The airport, which had
handled 2.5 million passengers before the COVID-19 pandemic, was slowly but
steadily recovering and achieved 1.6 million passengers, which was about 63% of
its pre-COVID traffic, he said.
ATA (I) president D. Varada Reddy
underlined the need to provide amenities to common tourists apart from increasing
air connectivity.
Former Vice-Chancellor of Andhra
University G.S.N. Raju said that improving air connectivity would be a boon to
students studying in various universities in Andhra Pradesh.
Source: The Hindu
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/hate-message-harmony-masjid-hyderabad/d/127020