Deepotsav In Ayodhya: Muslim Artisans Adorn Court Of Lord Ram
New Age Islam News Bureau
13 November 2020
Abdul and Shahzade decorating Ram’s court in Deepotsav
-----
• Asaduddin Owaisi Another Jinnah, Divides Muslims:
Urdu Poet Munawwar Rana
• Guarantee Fundamental Rights To All Citizens: UK PM
To Pakistan
• State Bank Of Pakistan Bans Online Payments For
Indian Content
• Bangladesh’s Government Caught in the Crossfire as
Its Public Assails France
• Saudi Prince Vows ‘Iron Fist’ Against Extremists
After Diplomats Ambushed
• Algerian Party Slams Saudi Over Muslim Brotherhood
India
• Deepotsav In Ayodhya: Muslim Artisans Adorn Court Of
Lord Ram
• Asaduddin Owaisi Another Jinnah, Divides Muslims:
Urdu Poet Munawwar Rana
• Netaji’s Great Grandniece, National President Of
Hindu Mahasabha, Files Plea To Become Party In Land Suit For The Removal Of A
17th Century Mosque From Near The Krishna Janmasthan Temple In Mathura
• Congress leaders in Maharashtra slam Asaduddin
Owaisi for cutting Muslim votes of MGB in Bihar
• Pakistan not sincere about bringing 26/11 terror
accused to justice, says India
• India joins UK in raising concern over killing of
Ahmadi man in Pakistan
--------
Europe
• Guarantee Fundamental Rights To All Citizens: UK PM
To Pakistan
• French Opposition Leader Slams Hatred Against
Muslims
• Austria government approves range of anti-terrorism
measures
• Russia plans to build a naval base in Sudan to
resupply its fleet
• Delegation from Russia to visit Turkey for talks on
Armenia-Azerbaijan ceasefire deal
--------
Pakistan
• State Bank Of Pakistan Bans Online Payments For
Indian Content
• Inquiry ordered into students’ harassment at Islamia
College University
• MQM challenges in court ‘ethnic-based, illegal’
creation of Keamari district
--------
South Asia
• Bangladesh’s Government Caught in the Crossfire as
Its Public Assails France
• Protests in Bangladesh over persecution of Uyghurs
in China
• Abdullah ‘Exchanges View’ on Afghan Peace with Herat
Officials, Civil Society Activists
• Australia moves to forestall trial by ICC, appoints
Afghan war crimes prosecutor
• Bomb Blast Jolts ANA Output in Paghman, Kills 2
--------
Arab world
• Saudi Prince Vows ‘Iron Fist’ Against Extremists
After Diplomats Ambushed
• Man sets himself on fire in Cairo's Tahrir Square,
Egypt security sources say
• Abu Dhabi, Tel Aviv Collaborating to Return
Terrorists to Southern Syria
• ISIS claims attack on Jeddah’s non-Muslim cemetery
in Saudi Arabia
• Helicopter crash kills 6 Americans, 2 others in
Egypt’s Sinai
• Displaced Iraqis desperate as camps close
• UN human right expert demands lifting of Saudi-led
sanctions against Qatar
--------
Africa
• Algerian Party Slams Saudi Over Muslim Brotherhood
• French Forces Kill Senior Al-Qaeda Leader Moussa In Mali:
Minister
• UN votes to crack down on al-Shabaab extremists in
Somalia
• Russia set to open naval base for nuclear warships
in Sudan
• Nigerian military kills Boko Haram militants in air
op
--------
North America
• Pressure Campaign Of Sanctions On Iran Will Go On
Under Biden: US Official
• US-UAE weapons deal is detrimental to peace
• 6 Americans among dead in helicopter crash in Egypt
--------
Mideast
• Israeli Forces Kidnap Director Of Al-Aqsa’s
Manuscripts Centre, Arrest More Palestinians
• Israel speeds up settlement construction amid fears
about Biden's possible freeze plans
• ‘Yemenis aren’t going hungry, they’re starving:’ UN
issues solemn warning
• Intelligence Ministry Confirms Capturing Terrorist
Ringleader behind 2018 Attack in Southwestern Iran
• Iran Asks IAEA to Verify S. Arabia, Israel's
Activities
• Jerusalem renews settlement moves that angered Biden
during his visit in 2010
• Turkey will use S-400 system just like NATO members
employ S-300: Defense minister
--------
Southeast Asia
• Guan Eng: Motion will be tabled to challenge
Speaker’s ruling favouring Bintulu MP after ‘insult’ against Dr Noor Hisham
• RCEP: Malaysia respects India’s decision, hopes it
will join in the future, says PM Muhyiddin
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/deepotsav-ayodhya-muslim-artisans-adorn/d/123464
--------
Deepotsav In Ayodhya: Muslim Artisans Adorn Court Of
Lord Ram
Nov 13, 2020
Abdul and Shahzade decorating Ram’s court in Deepotsav
-----
Ayodhya: Deepotsav in Ayodhya will just not be about
sublime splendour, but will reinforce the temple town’s secular ethos with two
Muslim artisans, Nawaz Sharif and Shahzade Waris anointing the magnificent Ram
Durbar, the main draw of the Lord’s coronation procession to Saryu banks. Apart
from the duo, at least 10 other Muslims are busy giving final touches to 11
tableaux, which will be on display at the Deepotsav venue.
Religious barriers blur as Abdul Rashid, Shahid Warsi,
Shahanshah, Mohammad Hasan Ali, Harun Warsi, Rehan Warsi, Mohammad Ali,
Mohammad and Shareef quietly chisel away intricate patterns in the tableaux
amidst round-the-clock chant of Ram hymns in the run-up to the grand Diwali
festivities. “Communal harmony is the hallmark of Ayodhya,” said Shahid Warsi.
Talking about participation of Muslims in a
government-sponsored religious ceremony, Salig Ram Tiwari, a member of the
team, said, “Muslim artisans are skilled and they know the art of decorating
Ram Darbaar with grace. Hindus and Muslims work together and eat together in
Ayodhya. There are no walls here.”
Nawaz Sharif, the key artisan decorating the court of
Lord Rama, said, “There was no discrimination against Muslims during hiring of
artisans for decorating the Ram Durbar. This work is just not fulfilling, but
is crucial for our livelihood in times of Covid-triggered recession. We are
very happy about bagging this job and what’s most important our creations will
be viewed by crores of people worldwide during live telecast.”
Most Muslim artisans involved in preparation of the
Ram tableaux are residents of neighbouring Barabanki’s Dewa Sharif locality,
which houses the mausoleum of the 18th century Sufi saint Haji Waris Ali Shah.
The dargah also draws crores of devotees, many from the Hindu community.
Eleven tableaux prepared by Muslims include the Ram
Darbar, Putreshthi Yagya, Gurukul Shiksha, Ram Sita Vivah, Ahilya Uddhaar,
Panchvati Rameshwaram Setu, Pushpak Vimaan, Kewat Prasang, Shabri Ram Milaap
and Lanka Dahan.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/muslim-artisans-adorn-court-of-lord-ram/articleshow/79200917.cms
--------
Asaduddin Owaisi another Jinnah, divides Muslims: Urdu
poet Munawwar Rana
Nov 13, 2020
Asaduddin Owaisi
----
LUCKNOW: Urdu poet Munawwar Rana on Thursday equated
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi with Pakistan founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah and said
such leaders have divided and destroyed Muslims, reports Arvind Chauhan. He
said the community will not allow another Jinnah to flourish in India.
Rana’s reaction came in the wake of Owaisi’s party
winning five seats in Bihar election and supposedly cutting into the opposition
grand alliance's votes on many seats. Calling Owaisi a stooge of the BJP, the
67-year-old poet said the AIMIM chief always divides Muslim votes which
eventually benefits the saffron party.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/owaisi-another-jinnah-divides-muslims/articleshow/79202226.cms
--------
Guarantee Fundamental Rights To All Citizens: UK PM To
Pakistan
Written By: Siddhant Sibbal
Nov 12, 2020
File photo: Imran Khan and Boris Johnson Photograph:(
Twitter )
-----
New Delhi: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has
asked Imran Khan-led government in Pakistan to "guarantee fundamental
rights" to all citizens of south Asian countries.
The matter was raised in the British Parliament by
Minister for South Asia and the Commonwealth Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon with
Pakistani's Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari.
The issue cropped up after recent reports of the
killing of Mehmood Khan, an Ahmadi in northern city of Peshawar. He is the
fourth Ahmadi to be shot dead in the city. Ahmadi are minorities in Pakistan
and their views are considered heretical in mainstream Islam.
While raising the matter of killing, a British MP
said, "We should not ignore humanitarian injustices and plight of
persecuted minorities."
"Hatred preached in Pakistan, ends up on the
streets of Britain and it is in the interest of our own security that the
British Government makes it clear to Pakistan, that state supported persecution
must end," he said.
India has highlighted the deteriorating situation of
minorities in the Pakistan multiple times in the past, especially the forceful
conversion of minority Hindu, Sikhs and Christians.
Last week, India had summoned top Pakistani diplomat
in Delhi after the management of the Holy Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara was given
over to a panel with no Sikh representation.
https://zeenews.india.com/world/guarantee-fundamental-rights-to-all-citizens-uk-pm-to-pakistan-2324308.html
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State Bank Of Pakistan Bans Online Payments For Indian
Content
Shahid Iqbal
13 Nov 2020
KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan has asked banks to
stop online payments for electronic media content from India with immediate
effect.
“We are in receipt of a letter from the cabinet
division, Government of Pakistan, whereby they have instructed to stop
different modes of payments, including credit cards, for subscribing (to)
Indian Content in Pakistan, including Zee5 video-on-demand service,” said the
circular issued on Nov 9.
“In this regard, it is advised to ensure meticulous
compliance of aforementioned instructions of Government of Pakistan and submit
compliance status to SBP (by) Nov 13, 2020,” the circular added.
When contacted, former chairman of the Pakistan
Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) Absar Alam said that Indian content
has already been banned in Pakistan, so the new circular could hit online
payments for Direct to Home (DTH) service.
Circular issued after instructions from cabinet
division
He said those who have DTH facility are mostly using
Indian content and they make online payments.
“Now the subscriber cannot pay directly from Pakistan,
but the Indian provider can get payments from other countries like the United
Arab Emirates,” said Mr Alam.
In India, DTH broadcasting service refers to the
distribution of multichannel TV programmes by using a satellite system and
providing TV signals directly to subscribers’ premises. No data is available
about how many Pakistanis are using this option to subscribe to Indian content.
Bankers said they only have to ensure that no payment
is made from Pakistan for Indian content.
In response to a question, an official of one of the
biggest local channels said the organisation subscribes to only some content
from India and all the payments are made through Dubai, so no online payment
from Pakistan is required.
Sources in the entertainment circles said they were
sure that the ban was imposed against the background of a drama serial that is
broadcast by Indian channel Zee5.
The BBC reported on Nov 2 a Pakistani web series
called “Churails” had caused a furore in the country for its bold subject
matter and edgy portrayal of its female leads.
The 10-episode serial features a group of women from
diverse backgrounds who get together to start a secret detective agency called
“Churails” — the Urdu word for “witches”.
According to BBC, the electronic media regulator asked
Indian video-on-demand platform Zee5, which streamed the show, to take the
serial down for Pakistani audiences. The platform initially complied with the
instructions only to later restore it.
The show ran into controversy when Pemra banned it in
Pakistan after a backlash over a clip that went viral on social media.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1590107/sbp-bans-online-payments-for-indian-content
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Bangladesh’s Government Caught in the Crossfire as Its
Public Assails France
By Austin Bodetti
November 12, 2020
Bangladesh finds itself at a crossroads because of
events half a world away. On October 16, a Chechen refugee beheaded a French
schoolteacher who had presented derogatory caricatures of the Muslim prophet
Muhammad in class. Just two weeks later, a Tunisian immigrant stabbed three
residents of Nice to death in what French President Emmanuel Macron termed an
“Islamist terrorist attack.” French authorities responded with a crackdown on
Islamists that Muslims across the world, including in Bangladesh, have
criticized as Islamophobic.
On November 2, at least 50,000 demonstrators gathered
in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka to protest Macron’s strident rhetoric against
religious fanaticism, which has veered into criticism of Islam itself. While
Macron described France as “under attack,” French security forces closed a
mosque linked to “the Islamist movement,” dissolved religious associations, and
raided over 120 homes. Critics accuse France of conflating Islam with violent
extremism.
Macron presaged his administration’s contentious
offensive with a controversial speech in early October, asserting that France
needed to develop “an Islam of Enlightenment.” Though popular with a domestic,
non-Muslim audience that supports France’s aggressive interpretation of
secularism, Macron’s policies have provoked condemnation throughout the Muslim
world. Kuwait and Qatar are boycotting French products, and France recalled its
ambassador to Turkey after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan questioned Macron’s
mental health.
Bangladeshi protesters found vivid ways to display
their own anger at France. One Dhaka mosque pasted a picture of Macron with a
superimposed boot print in its entryway, inviting worshippers to step over his
face. The same image appeared on the floor at a shopping mall in Gulshan Thana,
the wealthy Dhaka neighborhood that houses the French embassy. On social media,
demonstrators have even posted videos of themselves lining up to hit printouts
of Macron’s face.
Despite protesters calling on Bangladesh to enact
measures similar to the Kuwaiti and Qatari embargoes, the South Asian country
has less room to maneuver than its counterparts in the Persian Gulf. The
relationship between Bangladesh and France — little discussed in the news media
— has yielded important economic, military, and political benefits for leaders
in Dhaka. A Bangladeshi-led boycott of French goods could jeopardize these
burgeoning ties.
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“It’s our long-standing policy having respect for each
other,” Bangladeshi Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen said in the wake of the
protests. Momen warned Bangladeshis against letting the religious dispute
undermine Bangladesh’s promising economic relationship with France.
In 2015, Bangladesh exported $1.76 billion in
clothing, fish, plastics, and other products to France, compared to just under
$1.3 billion in 2012. The Bangladeshi embassy in Paris has also celebrated
other examples of French investment, namely a $253 million cement factory in
the town of Chhatak as well as “challenging investments” undertaken by the
French companies Adhipress, Degrémont, Sanofi, and Total SE. As early as 2006,
Danone launched a joint venture with Grameen Bank, a Bangladeshi financial
institution.
Given the damage that the coronavirus has dealt to
Bangladesh’s economy, the South Asian country needs its partnership with France
more than ever. Analysts predict that the pandemic, which has killed over 6,100
in Bangladesh, could double the number of Bangladeshis below the poverty
threshold to 40.9 percent. During the early months of the pandemic, global
brands canceled as much as $3 billion in orders of Bangladeshi-made garments.
As Bangladesh seeks to rehabilitate an economy
dependent on international trade, the South Asian country will likely take
steps to avoid antagonizing its business partners. When protesters converged on
the French embassy in Dhaka in early November, Bangladesh’s police laid barbed
wire across roads to prevent the demonstrators from reaching the compound.
Bangladesh’s security forces may have their own
incentive to stay on good terms with France. Citing “diplomatic sources in
Paris,” the Bangladeshi newspaper New Age reported during French Defense
Minister Florence Parly’s visit to Dhaka in March that France was considering
selling Bangladesh the Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft and unspecified combat
drones. Though unconfirmed, the report suggests that the Bangladesh Armed
Forces want to continue a relationship begun in 2012, when Bangladesh purchased
two military helicopters from Airbus.
Bangladesh and France’s ties across a range of sectors
will deter Bangladeshi leaders from taking too hard a line against Macron.
Between 2012 and 2018, the French Development Agency gave Bangladesh 367
million euros for “urban development infrastructures, green energy and
improving safety standards and environmental and social performance in the
textiles industry.” In the wake of the pandemic, Bangladesh will need
humanitarian aid that much more.
Back in March, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina expressed her country’s interest in collaborating with the United
Kingdom to combat the coronavirus. With France working to develop a vaccine,
Bangladeshi officials may seek to coordinate with their French counterparts as
well. Bangladesh has already permitted China to test one of its own vaccines in
the South Asian country, and Bangladeshi leaders are also seeking priority access
to a vaccine made in India. Bangladeshi sentiment may stand in the way of
similar cooperation with France, however.
Junaid Babunagaori, a top official in the Islamist
advocacy group Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh, has urged Hasina to condemn Macron
and even requested that the United Nations “take stern action against France.”
The group’s secretary general, Junayed Babunagari, went a step further,
pressuring the country’s leadership to cut diplomatic ties with France.
If Bangladesh makes any near-term moves seen as
benefiting France — whether courting French investment, importing French
warplanes, or purchasing a French vaccine — officials in Dhaka risk provoking
the wrath of Bangladeshi demonstrators, Islamists, and voters alike.
Macron may be offering Bangladesh a way out. In a late
October interview with Al-Jazeera, the French president said, in response to
Muslims’ criticism of his words and actions, “I understand the sentiments being
expressed and I respect them” — a small but significant peace offering. While
Macron’s remarks did little to quiet Bangladeshi protesters, his interview with
a Qatari publication implies a willingness to walk back his most incendiary
rhetoric. Bangladesh, in turn, can refrain from criticizing Macron if he
attempts to make further amends for his comments.
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At the same time, Bangladesh may feel less pressure to
act when other countries in the region are leading a rebuke of Macron and
France as a whole. Indonesian President Joko Widodo lambasted the French leader
for having “insulted Islam,” and Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has
wrestled with violent extremism at home, tweeted, “This is a time when
President Macron could have put a healing touch and denied space to extremists
rather than creating further polarization and marginalization that inevitably
leads to radicalization.”
The most likely path forward for Bangladesh will
capture the fewest headlines: waiting until protests subside before pushing
ahead with any major French-linked initiatives. This approach will all but
guarantee that Bangladesh and France continue to cooperate on economic and
military matters, as the two countries did before Macron’s latest controversy.
In the end, though, the strategy’s success will depend on how Bangladeshis
themselves react.
Journalist Shakil Bin Mushtaq contributed reporting
from Dhaka, Bangladesh.
https://thediplomat.com/2020/11/bangladeshs-government-caught-in-the-crossfire-as-its-public-assails-france/
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Saudi prince vows ‘iron fist’ against extremists after
diplomats ambushed
November 13, 2020
RIYADH: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged
Thursday to strike extremists with an “iron fist” after a bombing against a
gathering of Western diplomats was claimed by the Islamic State group.
The bomb blast struck a World War I commemoration at a
non-Muslim cemetery in Jeddah on Wednesday, just two weeks after a guard at the
French consulate in the Red Sea city was wounded by a knife-wielding Saudi
citizen.
The attacks, which underscore Muslim fury over French
satirical cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, come as Saudi Arabia prepares for
the G20 leaders’ summit later this month – the first to be hosted by an Arab
nation.
“We will continue to confront any extremist… behaviour
and ideas,” Prince Mohammed said in an address to the Shura Council, the top
government advisory body.
“We will continue to strike with an iron fist against
all those who want to harm our security and stability,” he said, according to
the transcript of his speech published by the official Saudi Press Agency.
Prince Mohammed, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, warned
those seeking to carry out jihadist acts of a “painful and severe punishment”.
Wednesday’s attack in Jeddah left at least two people
wounded, including a Greek policeman and a Saudi official.
A British citizen was also believed to have been
wounded.
Diplomats from France, Greece, Italy, Britain and the
US attended the Armistice Day commemoration ceremony in Jeddah, their embassies
said.
The IS on Thursday claimed responsibility for the
bombing, saying it was to protest the cartoons printed by the satirical French
magazine Charlie Hebdo.
A statement by IS’s propaganda arm Amaq said the
attack “primarily targeted the French consul”.
The group offered no evidence of its involvement.
In a separate incident on Thursday, Dutch police
arrested a man after multiple shots were fired at the Saudi embassy in The
Hague, causing damage but no injuries.
It was not clear whether the incident, which the Saudi
government condemned as “cowardly”, was linked to the attacks in the kingdom.
Extreme vigilance
The French embassy in Riyadh, meanwhile, has urged its
nationals in Saudi Arabia to exercise “extreme vigilance”.
The warning followed an attack at the Jeddah consulate
on Oct 29, the same day a knife-wielding man killed three people at a church in
Nice in southern France.
French President Emmanuel Macron has vigorously
defended the right to publish cartoons, but he has also tried to assuage Muslim
fury over his remarks.
Macron’s stance has prompted protests in several
countries at which portraits of France’s president were burnt, and a campaign
to boycott French products.
Saudi Arabia – home to Islam’s holiest sites – has
criticised the cartoons, saying it rejected “any attempt to link Islam and
terrorism”.
In his speech, Prince Mohammed said he hopes “the
world will stop attacking religious symbols under the slogan of freedom of
expression” as that creates a “fertile environment for extremism and
terrorism”.
Saudi Arabia, long accused of exporting its
ultra-conservative Wahhabist Sunni doctrine around the world, is itself a
victim of domestic terror attacks.
Prince Mohammed, who pledged in 2017 to return Saudi
Arabia to an “open, moderate Islam”, has sought to roll back the influence of
the ultra-conservative religious establishment.
“Extremism is no longer tolerated in the kingdom of
Saudi Arabia,” Prince Mohammed said in his speech.
The heir to the Saudi throne has curbed the influence
of the once-powerful religious police, as he permits mixed-gender music
concerts, cinemas and other entertainment options that appeal to a majority
young population.
But simultaneously, the prince has launched a sweeping
crackdown on dissent and free speech, arresting women activists, clerics and
journalists as well as royal family members.
Saudi Arabia is also grappling with a sharp
coronavirus-led economic downturn, which has triggered unpopular austerity
measures, including the tripling of its value-added tax and the suspension of a
monthly allowance to state employees.
While acknowledging the “great pain” caused by the
austerity drive, Prince Mohammed spoke of government efforts to tackle high
unemployment and fight rampant corruption.
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/world/2020/11/13/saudi-prince-vows-iron-fist-against-extremists-after-diplomats-ambushed/
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Algerian party slams Saudi over Muslim Brotherhood
Aburrazzak Abdullah
12.11.2020
The Movement of Society for Peace, Algeria’s largest
Islamic party, said on Thursday that the statement by Saudi Arabia's highest
religious body about the Muslim Brotherhood has spread discord among Muslims.
"The statement of the Saudi Council of Senior
Scholars about the Muslim Brotherhood is political and has nothing to do with
Sharia [Islamic law] as it spreads discord among Muslims,” the party said in a
statement.
It added that the position of the Saudi scholars
"is inconsistent with the reality".
The Saudi council in a statement had called the Muslim
Brotherhood a violent terrorist group which does not represent Islam.
On Tuesday, Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood said it has
always been a victim of violence and dictatorial regimes.
The group was blacklisted by Egyptian authorities in
2013 following the ouster of Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s first freely elected
president, in a military coup. He died during trial in 2019.
This May, Saudi Arabia officially blacklisted the
Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/algerian-party-slams-saudi-over-muslim-brotherhood/2041744
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India
Netaji’s Great Grandniece, National President Of Hindu
Mahasabha, Files Plea To Become Party In Land Suit For The Removal Of A 17th
Century Mosque From Near The Krishna Janmasthan Temple In Mathura
Nov 13, 2020
Agra: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose's great grandniece
and national president of Hindu Mahasabha Rajyashree Chaudhuri has also filed a
petition to become a party to the case filed earlier for the removal of a 17th
century mosque from near the Krishna Janmasthan temple in Mathura.
Talking to media persons in Mathura on Thursday,
Chaudhuri said her organisation will back the petitioner in favour of the Hindu
community. “Not only Krishna Janmasthan, Kashi Vishwanath, Tejo Mahal (sic) are
also on our agenda,” she said, claiming that the Eidgah adjacent to “Krishna’s
birthplace is illegal”.
Rajyashree, whose great-grandmother was one of
Netaji’s six sisters, took over as the national head of Hindu Mahasabha in 2018
-- only second Bengali to lead the right-wing organisation after Jana Sangh
founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who was its president between 1943 and 1946.
In October, a Mathura court admitted the plea seeking
removal of the mosque situated adjacent to a Krishna temple.
The suit, filed by Lucknow resident Ranjana Agnihotri
and five others, including a Delhi resident, claims that the mosque is exactly
where Krishna was born and they have sought the ownership of the entire
13.37-acre land. It also sought cancellation of a compromise decree between the
governing body of the temple complex and the management trust of the mosque in
1968.
In the petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Vishnu
Shankar Jain, it has been stated that Shree Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan is
a registered society that has overpowered the trust, which was “non-functional
since 1958 and had fraudulently entered into a compromise with the Committee of
Management Trust Masjid Eidgah on October 12,1968”.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/netajis-great-grandniece-files-plea-to-become-party-in-mathura-mosque-land-suit/articleshow/79196732.cms
--------
Congress leaders in Maharashtra slam Asaduddin Owaisi
for cutting Muslim votes of MGB in Bihar
Nov 12, 2020
MUMBAI: Muslim Congress leaders and Urdu commentators
have slammed AIMIM of Hyderabad-based MP Asaduddin Owaisi for playing spoilers
for the secular Mahagathbandhan, the grand alliance of RJD-Congress-Left
parties in the Bihar elections.
Out of the 20 seats that it contested, MIM won five
but dented into the votes of six Mahagathbandhan candidates. Also, though MIM
won five seats, the total number of Muslim MLAs has reduced from 24 in 2015 to
18 in 2020.
Congress MLA Amin Patel questioned Owaisi’s failure to
increase his footprint in Hyderabad and Telengana. “His party has been confined
to winning just seven seats in Hyderabad. Instead of improving its tally in
Telengana, MIM goes out to other states to cut secular votes. Before damaging
secular candidates in Bihar, Owaisi did the same thing in UP and Maharashtra.
It is for the Muslim masses to decide if he is serving the cause of secularism
or helping the BJP,” said Patel.
"It was proved in Maharashtra elections last year
that MIM works for the BJP. Like in Maharashtra, Owaisi chose the Muslim-concentrated
area of Seemanchal and swayed a chunk of Muslim youths with his emotional
speeches. He has harmed the cause of secularism," said Mumbai Congress's
Vice-president Zakir Ahmed.
Responding to the allegations of being a spoiler and
B-team of the BJP, Owaisi told a section of the media:"Do they want
Muslims to remain hostage to and bondage labourers of the so-called secular
parties? I am a citizen of this country and the Constitution allows me to field
candidates from anywhere in the country. They are blaming us out of
frustration." "Instead of blaming us, the Congress should do
introspection,"said former Byculla MLA Waris Pathan.
City Congress general secretary M Asif Farooqui said
that Seemanchal has been traditionally voting for the Congress for decades."I
accept Congress may not have addressed all the issues facing the community but
Owaisi plays the identity politics and many people get misled that he is a
messiah. If he is not part of the government, how can he help bring any change
in people's life?, " asked Farooqui.
Senior Urdu commentator Hasan Kamal questioned
Owaisi's claims that he sympathises with Muslims. "I must reiterate that
MIM is a B-team of the BJP and works to help the BJP win elections. He did it
in UP, Maharashtra and now Bihar," said Kamal.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/congress-leaders-in-maharashtra-slam-asaduddin-owaisi-for-cutting-muslim-votes-of-mgb-in-bihar/articleshow/79189065.cms
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Pakistan not sincere about bringing 26/11 terror
accused to justice, says India
Nov 13, 2020
NEW DELHI: India again slammed Islamabad on Thursday
for not including the names of key Mumbai attacks conspirators in Pakistan
Federal Investigative Agency’s (FIA) updated list on most wanted terrorists,
saying Pakistan was yet to show any sincerity in bringing the accused to
justice.
While the list includes a select few members of
Pakistan based UN designation terror group LeT, including the crew members of
the boats used to execute 26/11, it glaringly omits the mastermind and key
conspirators of the terror attack, said the government in a statement. “It’s a
matter of serious concern that, despite its own acknowledgement as well as the
availability of all necessary evidence, Pakistan is yet to deliver justice to
the families of 166 victims, even as we near the 12th anniversary of the
attacks,” said MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava.
There has been no progress in the Mumbai trial in
Pakistan despite India offering to host a judicial commission from Pakistan to
examine witnesses in Mumbai. As first reported by TOI last month, India has
also asked Pakistan to book Pakistan-American Mumbai plotter David Headley for
his role. JuD chief Hafiz Saeed has also not faced any action for his role in
the attacks. “It’s a fact that the 26/11 terror attack was planned, executed
and launched from Pakistan’s territory. The list makes it clear that Pakistan
possesses all the necessary information and evidence on the conspirators and
facilitators of the Mumbai terror attack based in Pakistan,” added the
official. The spokesperson recalled that India has repeatedly asked Pakistan to
give up its “obfuscation and dilatory tactics” in discharging its international
obligations in the Mumbai terror attacks trial.
“Several other countries have also called upon
Pakistan to expeditiously bring the perpetrators of the dastardly terror
attacks to justice,” he said.
On reports of minorities being killed in Pakistan, the
government said it was unfortunately a sad reflection of the state of
minorities in the country. “Over a period of time, we have seen the space for
people from the minority community to practise their religion shrink
continuously. Besides, their condition remains deplorable. We have been
consistently raising the issue of the safety, security and well-being of
minority communities with the Government of Pakistan,” said the spokesperson.
An 82-year-old Ahmadi man was believed to have been
shot and killed by some gunmen, apparently because of his faith, in Peshawar.
The remark was in response to a question on the killing.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/pakistan-not-sincere-about-bringing-26/11-terror-accused-to-justice-says-india/articleshow/79202141.cms
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India joins UK in raising concern over killing of
Ahmadi man in Pakistan
Nov 12, 2020
India has expressed concern over the killing of
82-year-old Ahmadi man, Mehmood Khan in the northern city of Pakistan's
Peshawar. This is the fourth such killing of an Ahmadi, who are considered
minorities in Pakistan, and their views heretical in mainstream Islam.
Ministry of external affairs spokesperson Anurag
Shrivastava in response to a question said, "This is, unfortunately, a sad
reflection of the state of minorities in Pakistan. Over a period of time, we
have seen the space for people from the minority community to practice their
religion shrink continuously. Besides, their condition remains
deplorable."
Pointing out, he elaborated, "We have been
consistently raising the issue of the safety, security and well-being of
minority communities with the Government of Pakistan."
https://www.dnaindia.com/world/report-india-joins-uk-in-raising-concern-over-killing-of-ahmadi-man-in-pakistan-2856199
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Europe
French opposition leader slams hatred against Muslims
Yusuf Ozcan
13.11.2020
A French opposition leader said Thursday there is
hatred against Muslims in France disguised as secularism.
“There is hatred towards Muslims under the guise of
secularism in this country. Secularism does not mean to hate a religion,”
Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the France Unbowed movement and an MP from a
Mediterranean region with a large Muslim population, told the BFM-TV channel.
Melenchon said Muslims should be respected and
constant suspicion towards them should also end.
He said he would continue repeating these statements
even though some people would not like it.
He also stressed that he stands against hatred towards
Muslims.
Noting that he has received the signatures of 150,000
citizens in support of his candidacy in the 2022 presidential election,
Melenchon said the method of fighting against terrorism should change.
His remarks come after recent anti-Islamic statements
by French President Emmanuel Macron and other politicians.
Last month, Macron described Islam as “a religion in
crisis" and announced plans for tougher laws to tackle “Islamist
separatism” in France.
Tensions further escalated after middle school teacher
Samuel Paty was murdered and beheaded on Oct. 16 in a Paris suburb in
retaliation for showing his students blasphemous cartoons of the Muslim Prophet
Muhammad during a class on freedom of expression.
Insulting cartoons by the French weekly magazine
Charlie Hebdo were also projected on buildings in some French cities.
Macron defended the cartoons, saying France would “not
give up our cartoons,” sparking outrage across the Muslim world.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/french-opposition-leader-slams-hatred-against-muslims/2042174
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Austria government approves range of anti-terrorism
measures
12 November 2020
Austria’s government has approved a wide range of
anti-terrorism measures, days after a sympathizer of the Takfiri Daesh
terrorist group went on a shooting rampage in the heart of the capital, Vienna,
killing four people and wounding nearly two dozen others.
The terrorist attack occurred on November 2, when
20-year-old Kujtim Fejzulai, a dual citizen of Austria and North Macedonia,
moved through Vienna’s inner city and began shooting at passers-by for nine
minutes until he was shot dead by police.
The assailant, who had been sentenced to 22 months in
jail in April 2019 for attempting to travel to Syria to join Daesh but been
released in December last year, killed four people and wounded 22 others during
the shooting spree.
On Wednesday, the Austrian government approved
anti-terrorism measures, including the ability to give life sentences to
individuals convicted of terror offenses, placing people convicted of
terror-related offenses under electronic surveillance upon release, and
criminalizing extremist acts.
According to Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, the
government also intends to facilitate the process of closing associations
believed to be playing a role in the “radicalization” of individuals and to
enable the public to report potential violent activities on an online platform.
The measures, which will be brought before the
Austrian parliament for a vote next month, also include the preventive
detention of individuals convicted of terror offenses.
Kurz said that even if those individuals had served
their sentences for their crimes but were not yet considered as being
completely de-radicalized, “we will make it possible to lock those people up in
order to protect the public.”
The measures, if approved by the parliament, will also
enable the government to strip dual citizens convicted of terrorism offenses of
their Austrian citizenship.
On Monday, some 1,000 Austrian police and intelligence
service officers reportedly raided houses, businesses, and associations
purportedly linked to the Muslim Brotherhood movement and the Palestinian resistance
movement of Hamas.
Austrian prosecutors stressed that those raids were
not connected to the shooting spree last week.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/12/638435/Austria-government-approves-range-of-anti-terrorism-measures
--------
Russia plans to build a naval base in Sudan to
resupply its fleet
13 November 2020
Russia plans to build a naval base on Sudan's Red Sea
coast to resupply its fleet, according to a draft agreement with Khartoum
signed off by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.
The planned deal, published on the Russian
government's website Wednesday, outlines a "logistical support
centre" to be set up in Sudan where "repairs and resupply operations
and rest for crew members" can take place.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
Its capacity will be capped at 300 military and
civilian personnel and four ships, including nuclear-powered vessels, the text
added.
The base will stand on the northern outskirts of Port
Sudan, according to coordinates named in the detailed document.
Russia will also gain the right to transport via
Sudan's ports and airports "weapons, ammunition and equipment" needed
for the base to function.
The deal is slated to stand for 25 years -- as long as
neither party objects to its renewal.
So far Russian authorities have not named a date for
the accord to be signed with Khartoum.
Moscow has in recent years turned its eyes to Africa
as it renews its geopolitical clout.
It has wooed Sudan with military and civilian nuclear
cooperation, signing a deal between the countries' armed forces in May 2019 set
to last seven years.
In January last year Russia acknowledged, as a
political crisis reached its peak in Sudan, that its military advisors had
already been on the ground "for some time" alongside forces loyal to
the government.
Former Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir asked
President Vladimir Putin to "protect" his country from the US when he
visited Russia in 2017.
He said military cooperation should be stepped up to
"re-equip" Sudan's armed forces.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/11/13/Russia-plans-to-build-a-naval-base-in-Sudan-to-resupply-its-fleet
--------
Delegation from Russia to visit Turkey for talks on
Armenia-Azerbaijan ceasefire deal
12 November 2020
A Russian delegation will visit Turkey on Friday to
discuss the creation of a joint centre for monitoring a truce deal between
Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, the Turkish foreign minister
said.
A Turkish role in implementing the truce was not
explicitly mentioned in a nine-point agreement the leaders of Azerbaijan and
Armenia signed with Russian President Vladimir Putin this week.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
The deal put an end to more than six weeks of fighting
that left more than 1,400 dead and saw Azerbaijani forces recover large swathes
of territory they lost to ethnic Armenian separatist in a 1988-1994 war.
But both Turkish and Azerbaijani officials this week
insisted that Ankara -- which diplomatically backed Baku in the conflict --
will play a role in monitoring the deal.
Russia is sending 1,960 military personnel and
armoured personnel carriers as part of an independent peacekeeping mission.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the
details about the joint Russian-Turkish centre's functions and operations will
be discussed on Friday "with a delegation coming from Russia".
The centre "will completely control whatever
happens on the field, whether or not there are any violations, with the help of
drones and other elements," he told a press conference in Baku carried by
Turkish broadcasters.
Azerbaijan purchased military drones from Turkey that
proved effective in the conflict, destroying the separatist forces' tanks and
other military equipment.
Cavusoglu added that if Armenia breached the deal,
"it will pay a price".
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2020/11/12/Delegation-from-Russia-to-visit-Turkey-for-talks-on-Armenia-Azerbaijan-ceasefire-deal
--------
Pakistan
Inquiry ordered into students’ harassment at Islamia
College University
13 Nov 2020
PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor, Shah
Farman, who is also chancellor of the public sector universities in the
province, has directed the Governor Inspection Team to conduct inquiry into
alleged harassment of girl students by teachers of Islamia College University
and submit its report within two days.
An official statement issued here on Thursday said
that the governor took notice of the protest march against harassment of girl
students by some faculty members. Islamia Law Fraternity, a student body of the
university, had organised awareness walk against harassment on the campus on
Wednesday.
“The chairman of the inspection team has been directed
through a notification to conduct transparent inquiry into the protest march
and submit its report within two days,” the statement said. It added that
harassment in educational institutions could not be tolerated and there would
be no compromise on the honour of students.
The statement said that government would provide
complete protection to the students in all educational institutions including
Islamia College University.
Maimoona Khan, who is vice president of the Islamia
Law Fraternity, told Dawn that cases of harassment of girls by teachers and boy
students were growing in the university. She said that the walk was organised
in the backdrop of the growing cases of harassment of girls and subsequent
failure of the university’s administration to take action against the culprits.
Governor directs inspection team to submit report
within two days
She said that the university’s anti-harassment
committee had become dysfunctional. She said that despite registration of four
to five complaints, the administration did not take any action. “Teachers apply
different tactics and put inappropriate demands to the girls to blackmail
them,” she said, adding that boy students also attempted to harass the girl
students.
Sources said that a student had lodged complaints
against chairperson of a department. They said that the issue was brought into
the notice of the registrar.
The university registrar, Dr Ibrar, when contacted,
confirmed that parents of a girl student had come to his office and lodged
complaint against chairperson of a department on Monday last. He said that the
university’s anti-harassment committee would start proceedings in the case on
Friday.
Initially, he said, the parents of the affected
student visited his office last week and lodged verbal compliant against a senior
professor. He said that on his advice written complaint was lodged to fulfil
legal formalities.
“The administration will take the case to its logical
end,” said Dr Ibrar, adding that the administration would also investigate the
motives behind the awareness walk which was organised without taking permission
from the administration.
“This is the first case of harassment registered in
the history of the university, which I have received,” he said, adding that
some people might have ulterior motives behind the walk to malign senior
faculty members.
MPA Khaleequr Rehman, who had served as adviser to the
chief minister on higher education, admitted that the menace of harassment in
educational institutions was common and such complaints were frequently
reported from different institutions.
“Harassment of girl students in our educational
institutions is a harsh reality and cases are being reported,” he said, adding
that provisions related to harassment would also be incorporated in the
proposed university Act.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1590072/inquiry-ordered-into-students-harassment-at-islamia-college-university
--------
MQM challenges in court ‘ethnic-based, illegal’
creation of Keamari district
Ishaq Tanoli
13 Nov 2020
KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan leaders
on Thursday slammed the Sindh government for carving out the seventh district
out of Karachi and approached the Sindh High Court against the creation of
Keamari district.
They contended that it was not an administrative
decision, but an attempt to divide the city on ethnic lines and strengthen the political
position of the Pakistan Peoples Party.
The MQM leaders, Khawaja Izharul Hasan and Salman
Mujahid, were talking to journalists on the premises of the SHC after filing an
application along with a party supporter from Keamari to become an intervener
in the petition already pending before the SHC challenging the notification
issued in September to notify Keamari district.
They were of the view that it was a
politically-motivated decision made without consulting the stakeholders and the
people of the area, adding that the decision was made to achieve political
goals by the ruling party in Sindh as the final result of the population census
2017 has not yet been announced while the delimitation of local government
jurisdictions in the province has also not yet been carried out.
The MQM leaders further said that provincial
government had so far submitted nothing in court to justify the move apart from
a notification of the new district.
It was contended in the application that despite
pendency of the petition in question, the provincial authorities had also
notified the district municipal corporation of Keamari.
Opposition Leader Naqvi gets bail in NAB inquiry
It further argued that under the relevant laws, it was
mandatory to hold a public hearing before creating a new district and contended
that the move was unconstitutional and illegal and pleaded to set aside the
notification of the new district.
Initially, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf MNA from Karachi
Aamir Liaquat Hussain had petitioned the SHC against the Sindh government for
carving out a new district out of Karachi and contended that it was done in
violation of law and proper procedure had also not been followed.
The provincial government had created the new district
of Keamari through a notification issued on Sept 4.
Additional secretary summoned in price hike case
A divisional bench of the SHC on Thursday directed the
additional secretary of the services, general administration and coordination
department (SGA&CD) to appear on Dec 8 in court, in a petition filed
against the menace of profiteering, black marketing and hoarding of essential
commodities in the province.
When the two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad
Ali Mazhar took up the petition for hearing, the secretary of agriculture,
supply and price department of Sindh contended that he was holding the
ex-officio charge of director general of bureau of supply and prices since the
regular post of DG was not mentioned in the budget book issued by the
SGA&CD.
The bench said that in order to seek clarification,
the additional secretary was directed to turn up on the next hearing.
Responding to a question of the bench regarding
compliance with regard to certain duties and responsibilities of their
department, the secretary of agriculture and deputy director of bureau of
supply and prices contended that various functions were already being performed
by them and requested for some time to submit details in writing. Subsequently,
the hearing was adjourned till Dec 8.
The petitioner, advocate Tariq Mansoor, sought
enforcement of laws pertaining to control of hoarding and black marketing of
essential commodities in the province.
He contended that under the Hoarding and Black Market
Act, 1948 the federal government should appoint special judges to hold trial of
the offences under this act, but despite the fact that the law was in the field
since 1948 such appointments were not made yet.
The petitioner further maintained that the provincial
authorities had also failed to implement the Sindh Essential Commodities Price
Control and Prevention of Profiteering and Hoarding Act, 2005 and Sindh
Registration of Godowns Act, 2005 in letter and spirit while the commissioner
was authorised to take cognizance under the Karachi Essential Articles (Price
Control and Anti-Hoarding) Act 1953, but it was also not being put into
practice.
Opposition Leader Naqvi gets bail
Another divisional bench of the SHC on Thursday
granted interim pre-arrest bail to Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh
Assembly Firdous Shamim Naqvi in an inquiry being conducted by the National
Accountability Bureau.
The opposition leader through his lawyer moved the SHC
and after the preliminary hearing, the two-judge bench headed by Justice
Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro granted interim bail against a surety bond of Rs1
million till Nov 27. The bench also issued notices to NAB for next hearing.
The lawyer for the petitioner contended that the
anti-corruption watchdog was probing an allotment of land in the favour of
Habib Group of Companies and the petitioner was one of the directors of the
group in 2006.
He submitted that NAB had summoned Mr Naqvi again in
this regard and sought pre-arrest bail.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1590050/mqm-challenges-in-court-ethnic-based-illegal-creation-of-keamari-district
--------
South Asia
Protests in Bangladesh over persecution of Uyghurs in
China
Nov 13, 2020
Protesters rallied on Thursday at Dhaka National Press
Club under the banner of ‘Uyghur Muslim Rights Council’ (Uyghur Musalmaner
Odhikar Parishad) to demand political and religious rights for the persecuted
people in Xinjaing Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.
The event was observed as a token of support to Uyghur
Muslims to mark the occasion of Independence Day of ‘the Islamic Republic of
East Turkistan’ which is observed worldwide on November 12.
The Uyghur Muslims are reportedly persecuted by the
Chinese government and are not allowed to practise their Islamic faith by the
Communist government of China.
During the protest march, Islamic scholars and Ulemas
displayed placards depicting atrocities perpetrated by the Chinese, demolition
of ancient Mosques to construct public toilets, weeping Uyghur women being
paraded to detention centres, and enforced birth control measures to control
Muslim population.
The demonstrators also demanded a UN fact finding team
be allowed to visit various detention camps, and stop harassment of Uyghur
Muslims.
Protests against the treatment meted to Uyghurs in
China was also held in Rajshahi region of the country.
https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/protests-in-bangladesh-over-persecution-of-uyghurs-in-china-342841
--------
Abdullah ‘Exchanges View’ on Afghan Peace with Herat
Officials, Civil Society Activists
By Mohammad Arif Sheva
13 Nov 2020
HERAT, Afghanistan – Chairman of the High Council for
National Reconciliation (HCNR) Abdullah Abdullah praised “Herat for continued
support for peace and hospitality”, as he exchanged view with local officials
and civil society representatives in Herat Friday.
On Friday morning, Abdullah headed to Herat province
in a bid to discuss ongoing peace process with local authorities and civil
society activists.
“Exchange views with official, representatives, civil
society & people of Heart on the #AfghanPeaceProcess, peace talks in Doha,
regional diplomacy for peace & high level of violence during the talks,” he
said in a tweet.
Abdullah did not provide further details on his trip,
but said he “thank the people of Herat for their continued support for peace
& hospitality.”
“Arrived in #Herat Prov. to attend the Herat Security
Dialogue 9 on #AfghanPeaceProcess organized by @AISS_Afg, & exchange views
with the officials, representatives, civil society, Ulema & women of
western region on peace efforts, talks in Doha & regional peace diplomacy,”
the tweet added.
This came after the HCNR Chairman wrapped several
international trips to Pakistan, India, Iran, and recently to Uzbekistan on
Afghan peace process, amid struggle on peace talks between the Afghan and
Taliban negotiating teams in Qatari capital Doha.
https://www.khaama.com/abdullah-exchanges-view-on-afghan-peace-with-herat-officials-civil-society-activists-345345/
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Australia moves to forestall trial by ICC, appoints
Afghan war crimes prosecutor
13 Nov 2020
SYDNEY: Australia on Thursday moved to prosecute
alleged war crimes by its special forces deployed in Afghanistan, years after
harrowing reports emerged of civilians and prisoners being killed.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison — citing allegations of
“serious and possibly criminal misconduct” — appointed a special investigator,
a move to forestall any prosecution at the International Criminal Court.
After the September 11, 2001 terror attacks more than
26,000 Australian uniformed personnel were sent to Afghanistan to fight alongside
US and allied forces against the Taliban, Al Qaeda and other Islamist groups.
Australian combat troops left the country in 2013, but
since then a series of often-brutal accounts have emerged about the conduct of
Australia’s elite special forces units.
They range from reports of troops killing a
six-year-old child in a house raid, to a dead foe’s hand being severed, to a
prisoner being shot dead to save space in a helicopter.
For years the government had tried to suppress
whistleblower reports of the alleged wrongdoing, with police even moving to
investigate reporters involved in bringing those accounts to the public.
Meanwhile, the Australian Defence Force’s
Inspector-General conducted one of several closed-door probes into what it
called “rumours and allegations” of “possible breaches of the Law of Armed
Conflict”.
The Inspector-General identified more than 50
incidents, most relating to the unlawful killings of “persons who were
non-combatants or were no longer combatants” as well as “cruel treatment”.
Morrison said a redacted version of the
Inspector-General’s report would be released within days, “this will be
difficult and hard news for Australians”.
The appointment of a prosecutor represents a
significant escalation in the legal process and could lead to criminal charges
against military personnel.
The military is revered in Australia and its campaigns
– from Gallipoli to Kokoda – have played a crucial role in fostering the
country’s identity, as independent of colonial power Britain.
“Serving men and women and our defence forces, both
past and present, share the expectations and aspirations of the Australian
people for our defence forces, and how they engage in their conduct,” said
Morrison.
“This is going to be very difficult for Australians”
he added. “This requires us to deal with honest and brutal truths, where
expectations and standards may not have been met.” There had been speculation
that Australia’s failure to fully investigate the reports could lead to the
International Criminal Court stepping in.
Asked if the appointment of a prosecutor would
mitigate that risk, Morrison said: “We believe so, yes. That is the important
advice we have taken on this. We need to deal with this as Australians
according to our own laws, through our own justice processes.”
https://www.dawn.com/news/1590121/australia-moves-to-forestall-trial-by-icc-appoints-afghan-war-crimes-prosecutor
--------
Bomb Blast Jolts ANA Output in Paghman, Kills 2
By Mohammad Arif Sheva
13 Nov 2020
KABUL, Afghanistan – At least two people were killed
and further four wounded in an explosion near an Afghan National Army’s outpost
in Paghman district, west capital city Kabul, Friday morning, local police
said.
The explosion occurred in Arghandi area of Paghman
district, with photos circulating on social media show the explosion had
damaged the army outpost.
Officials did not provide further details on the
victims, whether the blast inflicted to people or security forces at the
location.
No group or individual has immediately claimed
responsibility for the attack.
The attack comes amid widespread concern over goring
violence throughout Afghanistan, despite efforts to resume peace negotiations
in Doha.
https://www.khaama.com/bomb-blast-jolts-ana-output-in-paghman-kills-2-34534/
--------
Arab world
Man sets himself on fire in Cairo's Tahrir Square,
Egypt security sources say
13 November 2020
A man set himself on fire in Tahrir Square in central
Cairo on Thursday and was being treated for burns at a hospital in the capital,
security sources said.
There was no immediate official comment on the
incident.
Videos circulating on social media appeared to show
the man filming himself as he walked along the street and then in the square,
complaining about alleged corruption.
Dressed in a suit and tie, he started shouting before
setting fire to his clothes.
Another video taken from a balcony overlooking the
square showed security guards and bystanders rushing to put out the flames with
water and loose clothes.
A source from Cairo's security directorate said the
man was under guard at a local hospital, where he had told officials that he
worked at Egypt's Central Auditing Organization.
Security in Tahrir Square, home to the mass
demonstrations that toppled former President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, is closely
monitored, and authorities have clamped down on public acts of protest.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/11/13/Man-sets-himself-on-fire-in-Cairo-s-Tahrir-Square-Egypt-security-sources-say
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Abu Dhabi, Tel Aviv Collaborating to Return Terrorists
to Southern Syria
2020-November-12
The Arabic-language al-Khalij Online news website
quoted the sources as claiming that the UAE is attempting to form a military
organization under the title of Syrian opposition in line with its efforts to
confront Turkey and Iran's presence in Syria.
They added that Abu Dhabi has relied on a number of
former Syrian opposition groups, including military commander of Jeish
al-Thaura which included members of al-Mo'taz, al-Yamouk, al-Mohajerin and
al-Ansar terrorist groups with close ties with the UAE intelligence apparatus,
to implement its plans.
The UAE has been one of the main supporters of
terrorist groups in Syria by supplying them with money and weapons.
Also, several reports, photos and footages have in the
past few years shown that Israeli hospitals were treating the injured ISIL
terrorists fighting in Syria.
Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu had made a
visit to the field hospital established by the Israeli authorities on the
occupied Syrian territories to treat insurgents.
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13990822000614/Ab-Dhabi-Tel-Aviv-Cllabraing-Rern-Terrriss-Shern-Syria
--------
ISIS claims attack on Jeddah’s non-Muslim cemetery in
Saudi Arabia
Tuqa Khalid
12 November 2020
The ISIS extremist group claimed responsibility on
Thursday for the attack on an event at a non-Muslim cemetery in Jeddah, Saudi
Arabia, that injured two people on Wednesday.
The ISIS claim was made in a statement published on
the militant group’s Amaq news agency, according to the SITE Intelligence
Group.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
It said ISIS fighters “planted an explosive device
in... the cemetery in the city of Jeddah yesterday,” where European diplomats
were gathered.
The Spokesman of the Mecca region principality Sultan
al-Dosari had said on Wednesday: “Security authorities have launched
investigations into a failed and cowardly attack that took place while the
French Consul was attending a ceremony in Jeddah Governorate.”
“The attack resulted in a minor injury of a Greek
consulate employee and a Saudi security man… Investigations are ongoing.”
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2020/11/12/ISIS-claims-attack-at-on-Jeddah-s-non-Muslim-cemetery-in-Saudi-Arabia
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Helicopter crash kills 6 Americans, 2 others in
Egypt’s Sinai
12 November 2020
A helicopter crash in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula
involving a multi-national observer force killed eight people on Thursday --
six Americans, a French national and a Czech citizen, the force said.
“During a routine mission in the vicinity of Sharm
el-Sheikh, Egypt, nine members of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO)
were involved in a helicopter crash,” it said in a statement.
Another member of the force, an American, survived and
was medically evacuated, the MFO added.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/11/12/Helicopter-crash-kills-6-Americans-2-others-in-Egypt-s-Sinai
--------
Displaced Iraqis desperate as camps close
12 November 2020
Iraq has started closing camps housing tens of
thousands of people, including many who fled their homes during the final
battle against ISIS, but aid groups warn this could create a second wave of
displacement with dire consequences.
Read more: Next four years under Biden ‘crucial’ to
Israel-Palestine peace process: Experts
Among those having to leave are 50-year-old Umm Ahmed
and her two sons, who have lived at the Hammam al-Alil camp since 2017 when
their house in Mosul was destroyed in an air strike by the US-led coalition as
it battled to retake the city from ISIS.
“I don’t have any income, no one provides for us. The
camp became our home,” said Umm Ahmed, who cannot take on manual work due to a
disability. She says her sons both have mental health problems.
ISIS upended the lives of millions of Iraqis when they
took swathes of the country in 2014 and imposed a brutal rule that in some
places like Mosul would last three years.
“Before ISIS, my son used to clean the streets and we
would survive with whatever income he managed to get. But now, he is too ill to
work,” said Umm Ahmed.
Hammam al-Alil, 25 kilometers (15 miles) south of
Mosul, is one of several camps due to shut this month. The operation had been
scheduled for earlier this year but was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic,
according to Khalid Abdul Karim, who heads the displacement and migration
office in Mosul.
Each family would receive 1.5 million dinars
($1,263.03) in aid during the first year and the authorities are coordinating
with international aid organizations to ensure they receive assistance once
they settle elsewhere, Abdul Karim said.
But aid organizations say it will be harder to reach
the most vulnerable if spread across the country, and some could face violence
and arrest on returning home if they have relatives who were affiliated with
armed groups, including ISIS.
Around 100,000 people are at risk of becoming homeless
as the closures were not properly planned and coordinated, the Head of Support
for Iraq at the humanitarian organization Norwegian Refugee Council, Ahmad
Azzam, told Reuters.
Packed up her belongings, an Iraqi woman from the
province of Baji says she has no relatives to take care of her and her
children. Her husband died during the war and she has been living in the camp
since.
Her children, like thousands of others born under ISIS
rule, have no identification papers, without which they will struggle to access
basic services, including education.
“Whether they give us support money or not depends on
their conscience,” Umm Ahmed said as she watched her neighbors load their
things onto a pickup truck and set off towards an uncertain future.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/11/12/Displaced-Iraqis-desperate-as-camps-close
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UN human right expert demands lifting of Saudi-led
sanctions against Qatar
13 November 2020
A United Nations human rights expert has called on
authorities in Saudi Arabia and a number of regional countries to end the
economic and diplomatic blockade that they imposed on Qatar in June 2017,
saying the restrictions have harmed civilian lives in the gas-rich kingdom.
Alena Douhan, UN Special Rapporteur on the negative
impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights, said
in a report on Thursday that the adverse effects of the sanctions had harmed
the Qatari population’s ability to enjoy several fundamental rights and
freedoms connected to family life, education, work, health, private property,
religion, expression, and justice access.
“During my [two-week] visit, I met a large number of
victims of human rights violations caused by the sanctions, including couples
in mixed marriages and their children, migrant workers who lost their jobs and
benefits, Qatari nationals with jobs or businesses in the four countries that
imposed the sanctions, and many others,” the UN expert said.
She said that she also met government officials,
diplomats, lawyers and journalists besides representative of international
agencies as well as non-governmental humanitarian and social organizations
during her visit to Qatar.
Douhan underlined that unilateral punitive measures
are only legal if the UN Security Council enforces them and if they do not
violate fundamental human rights.
“Measures directly affecting fundamental human rights
shall not be used as the means of influencing the government,” she said.
She then called on the boycotting Arab countries to
resume cooperation and to settle their political disputes with Qatar through
the rule of law.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and
Egypt severed diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar on June 5, 2017, after the
quartet officially accused Doha of meddling in regional affairs and supporting
terrorism.
Qatar's Foreign Ministry condemned the decision as
unjustified and based on false claims and assumptions.
The four Arab countries also imposed an air, land and
sea blockade on Qatar.
On June 9, 2017, Saudi Arabia and its allies issued a
13-point list of demands, including the closure of al-Jazeera television news
network and downgrade of relations with Iran, in return for the reconciliation.
The document also asked Qatar to cut all ties with the
Muslim Brotherhood and the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah. Qatar
rebuffed the demands as "unreasonable."
The call for immediate lifting of sanctions against
Qatar comes as little progress has been made regarding a possible resolution to
the rift between Doha and the four blockading countries.
Amid no signs of reconciliation in sight, Saudi
Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain have been gravitating towards the Israeli regime.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed
US-brokered normalization agreements with Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh
Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al
Zayani during an official ceremony hosted by US President Donald Trump at the
White House on September 15.
Palestinians, who seek an independent state in the
occupied West Bank and Gaza with East Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital, view
the deals as betrayal of their cause.
Meanwhile, Palestinian rights advocates have condemned
a recent visit by a group of Israeli settlers to the UAE, voicing concerns that
Abu Dhabi's normalization deal with the Tel Aviv regime strengthens the
occupation and dispossession of Palestinian land.
Khalil Jahshan, executive director of the Arab Center
Washington DC, said the visit proved that the recent deals between Israel and
Arab countries were meant to normalize Israeli “excesses.”
“There's no better word to describe it other than the
Yiddish word 'chutzpah',” which can be translated as shameless audacity,
Jahshan said.
“Now you have Arab partners to Israel seeking to
legitimize that illegal aspect of Israeli policy,” he added, noting that
settlements are the “antithesis of peace.”
Earlier this week, a group of Israeli settlers, led by
outspoken annexation advocate Yossi Dagan, concluded a visit to the UAE. Dagan
said in a Facebook post that settlement representatives held a “marathon” of
business meetings in Dubai.
Zeina Ashrawi Hutchison, a Palestinian-American
activist, also said the settlers' visit and the prospect of direct trade
between the UAE and the settlements make Abu Dhabi “complicit” in Israeli
abuses against Palestinians.
“The UAE normalizing with Israel at the expense of
Palestinian rights, backstabbing the Palestinian cause and selling Palestinian
freedom for a shred of a share in the military-industrial complex are all
hugely problematic for so many reasons,” Ashrawi Hutchison commented, referring
to the Persian Gulf state’s efforts to procure F-35 stealth fighter jets from
the US.
“But to also specifically have talks with, invest in
and legitimize Zionist colonial settlements make the UAE government spineless
and complicit in Israeli war crimes against the Palestinian people,” she added.
More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230
settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian
territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds.
Since Trump took office in December 2016, Israel has
stepped up its settlement construction activities in defiance of United Nations
Security Council Resolution 2334, which pronounced settlements in the West Bank
and East Jerusalem al-Quds “a flagrant violation under international law.”
All Israeli settlements are illegal under
international law as they are built on occupied land.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/13/638497/Senior-UN-official-demands-Saudi-led-sanctions-against-Qatar-to-be-lifted
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Africa
French forces kill senior al-Qaeda leader Moussa in
Mali: Minister
13 November 2020
French forces have killed Bah ag Moussa, a military
leader of al-Qaeda's North Africa wing, during an operation in northeastern
Mali, Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly said on Friday.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
The former Malian army colonel, also known as Bamoussa
Diarra, was a right-hand man of Iyad Ag Ghali, the leader of Mali's most
prominent extremist group, Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), which
has repeatedly attacked soldiers and civilians in Mali and neighboring Burkina
Faso.
“A historic figure of the jihadist movement in the
Sahel, Bah ag Moussa is considered responsible for several attacks against
Malian and international forces,” Parly said in a statement.
Moussa, who was on the US terrorism list, was killed
on Tuesday after an operation involving ground troops and helicopters and comes
after a series of operations that have seen French forces kill dozens of
terrorist fighters in recent weeks.
“This is a major success in the fight against
terrorism,” Parly said.
Former colonial power France has more than 5,100
personnel spread across the region with a large portion in Mali operating
against rising militancy.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2020/11/13/French-forces-kill-senior-al-Qaeda-leader-Moussa-in-Mali-Minister
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UN votes to crack down on al-Shabaab extremists in
Somalia
13 November 2020
The UN Security Council voted Thursday to prevent the
sale or shipment to Somalia of components of improvised explosive devices if
there is “significant risk” they may be used to manufacture the often deadly
devices that are increasingly being used in attacks by al-Shabab extremists.
It also urged the Somali government to keep cracking
down on the militant group’s illegal financing methods that UN experts estimate
raised over $21 million last year.
The resolution, adopted by a 13-0 vote with Russia and
China abstaining, reaffirmed the arms embargo on Somalia and banned the resale
or transfer of any weapons or military equipment sold or supplied to help
develop Somalia’s National Security Forces and security sector.
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channel online or via the app.
a-linked al-Shabab remains the most active and
resilient extremist group in Africa, controlling parts of southern and central
Somalia and often targeting checkpoints and other high-profile areas in the
capital, Mogadishu. It has fired several mortars this year at the heavily
defended international airport, where the US Embassy and other missions are
located.
In their latest report, experts monitoring the arms
embargo and other sanctions against Somalia said: “The threat posed by
al-Shabab to peace, security and stability in Somalia goes beyond the impact of
the group’s conventional military action and asymmetric warfare to include
sophisticated extortion and `taxation’ systems, child recruitment practices and
an effective propaganda machine.”
The panel said al-Shabab raised more than the $21
million it spent last year on fighters, weapons and intelligence. Its
investigation found the extremist group generated approximately $13 million in
just four case studies – a “taxation” checkpoint in Lower Juba, its extortion
of businesses in Kismayo, two bank accounts associated with the group’s collection
of taxes on imports into the port in Mogadishu, and “zakat” – an annual
religious obligation.
The resolution adopted by the Security Council “notes
with concern al-Shabab’s ability to generate revenue and launder, store and
transfer resources.”
It calls on the Somali government “to continue working
with Somali financial authorities, private sector financial institutions and
the international community to identify, assess and mitigate money laundering
and terrorist financing risks.” It encouraged the government to consider a
national identification program to help reduce the risks.
The council condemned al-Shabab attacks in Somalia and
beyond, saying the group “continues to pose a serious threat to the peace,
security and stability of Somalia and the region, particularly through its
increased use of improvised explosive devices.” It also expressed “grave
concern” at the presence of affiliates linked to the Islamic State extremist
group in Somalia.
The resolution demands that countries prevent the sale,
supply or transfer of a list of components including explosive materials,
explosive precursors, explosive-related equipment and related technology “if
there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the item(s) will be used, or a
significant risk they may be used, in the manufacture in Somalia of improvised
explosive devices.”
It requires any country supplying an item on the list
to Somalia to notify the committee monitoring UN sanctions at least 15 days in
advance with details and the purpose for the sale or transfer.
Russia’s deputy UN ambassador, Anna Evstigneeva, noted
that the amendments “meant to optimize the arms embargo” were made at the
Somali government’s request and expressed hope that “they will support
normalization and reduce the terrorist threat coming, in the first place, from
Al-Shabaab.”
But she said Russia abstained because the resolution
didn’t take on board “our principled and duly substantiated proposals,”
including references to Djibouti and Eritrea, whose relations pose “no threat to
international peace and security,” and to human rights in Somalia, which should
be dealt with by the Geneva-based Human Rights Council.
China’s deputy UN ambassador, Dai Bing, said Beijing
abstained because the council didn’t accept its amendments calling for the
council to explore benchmarks for assessing the lifting of the arms embargo on
Somalia weren’t accepted.
“The current embargo has been a serious impediment to
enhance security capacity of the Somali government,” he said. “The text fails
to make a deep response to the strong desire of the Somali government to have
the arms embargo lifted.”
US political coordinator Rodney Hunter welcomed the
continuation of UN sanctions and the extension of the work of the panel of
experts for another 12 months.
He said every council member has committed to uphold
the arms embargo “in the interest of securing peace and stability both in
Somalia, and in the broader region.” To achieve that, Hunter said, the United
States also supports “the increased focus on thwarting Al-Shabaab’s
exploitation of the financial system.”
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2020/11/13/Terrorism-UN-votes-to-crack-down-on-al-Shabaab-extremists-in-Africa
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Russia set to open naval base for nuclear warships in
Sudan
13 November 2020
Russia has signed a draft deal to build a naval
logistics base in Sudan, where it will station up to four nuclear warships on
the Red Sea coast.
Russia’s Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin approved the
draft agreement on establishing a naval base in the Red Sea and will submit the
proposal to President Vladimir Putin in due course.
"The project stems from a mutual desire of Moscow
and Khartoum to strengthen and develop military cooperation to increase the
defense capacity of both states,’ Mishustin said in a statement.
"The presence of the Russian naval logistics base
in Sudan, which is set for defense purposes, meets with goals of maintaining
peace and stability in the region, and not to pose any threat to other
countries."
Once endorsed, the agreement will allow Moscow to
station up to four warships, including those with nuclear capabilities, and up
to 300 service members in a Sudanese port at any one time.
It will also enable Moscow to use the Sudanese port
for repairs and resupply.
The naval base will be constructed in the city of Port
Sudan, which is Sudan’s main international trade hub, and the largest city on
the Red Sea coast.
"The Sudanese side has the right to use the
mooring area upon agreement with the authorized body of the Russian side,"
said the draft text.
In return, the African county will receive weapons and
military equipment free of charge to protect the base.
Under the deal, which will extend for 25 years, Sudan
will also commit to develop and modernize the country's infrastructure in order
to maintain and supply Russian warships and provide hospitality services for
crew members.
In 2017, Russia signed an agreement with the
then-President of Sudan Omar al-Bashir to speed up the modernization of
Sudanese forces.
Last year, after a military coup ousted al-Bashir, a
7-year contract of military cooperation came into force.
The contract stipulates, in particular, "an
exchange of opinions and information on military and political issues and the
issues of strengthening mutual trust and international security.’
Sudan, Russia’s second-largest weapons buyer in
Africa, is pursuing a deeper partnership with Moscow as it became a
Russia-friendly country years ago.
Russia has recently sought to help Sudan escape its
isolation from the global economy caused by western sanctions.
Sudan was put on the so-called terrorism list of the
United States in 1993 over allegations that Omar al-Bashir was supporting
terrorism. Under al-Bashir, Sudan was a staunch foe of Israel.
Earlier this year, the US lifted many sanctions on
Sudan and called on Khartoum to follow the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and
Bahrain in establishing ties with Israel in return for Sudan's removal from the
terror list.
Sudan, however, said it does not want to link its
removal from a US “terrorism list” with the normalization of relations with
Israel.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/13/638499/Russia-naval-base-warship-Sudan-Red-Sea
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Nigerian military kills Boko Haram militants in air op
Adam Abu-bashal
13.11.2020
Several Boko Haram militants were killed Thursday in
an air raid targeting one of their camps in northeast Nigeria, according to a
top defense official.
Defense Ministry spokesman John Enenche told reporters
that the operation was carried out over the Sambisa Forest in Borno state where
Boko Haram members were holding a meeting.
He said a large number of terrorists were killed and
the camp was destroyed.
Boko Haram launched a bloody insurgency in 2009 in
northeastern Nigeria but later spread its atrocities to neighboring Niger, Chad
and Cameroon, prompting a military response.
More than 30,000 people have been killed and nearly 3
million displaced in a decade of Boko Haram's violence in Nigeria, according to
the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Violence by Boko Haram has affected 26 million people
in the Lake Chad region and displaced 2.6 million others, according to the UN
Refugee Agency.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/nigerian-military-kills-boko-haram-militants-in-air-op/2042180
--------
North America
Pressure campaign of sanctions on Iran will go on
under Biden: US official
12 November 2020
The US special representative for Iran insisted
Thursday that a pressure campaign of sanctions targeting Iran would persist
into the administration of Joe Biden, even as the president-elect has pledged
to potentially return America to Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers.
Elliott Abrams, who also serves as the US special
representative to Venezuela, said sanctions targeting Iran for human rights
violations, its ballistic missile program and its regional influence would go
on.
For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
That, as well as continued scrutiny by United Nations
inspectors and American partners in the Mideast, would maintain that pressure,
he said.
Iran now has far more uranium than allowed under the
deal since President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the accord in
2018.
The Mideast also has been roiled by tensions between
Tehran and Washington, which pushed the two countries to the brink of war at
the beginning of the year.
“Even if you went back to the (deal) and even if the
Iranians were willing to return ... this newly enriched uranium, you would not
have solved these really fundamental questions of whether Iran is going to be
permitted to violate long-term commitments it has made to the world community,”
Abrams told The Associated Press in an interview at the US Embassy in Abu
Dhabi.
Read more: US policies in the Middle East: An in-depth
analysis of Biden’s plans
Iran’s politicians have increasingly discussed the
possibility of the US returning to the deal, which saw Iran limit its
enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
Alireza Miryousefi, a spokesman for Iran’s mission to
the UN, dismissed Abram’s comments.
“The policy of maximum pressure and sanctions against
Iran has failed,” Miryousefi told the AP. “The US effort to abuse this corrupt
policy is futile and will only lead to further isolation of the US on the
international stage.”
Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, which would have
been under 300 kilograms (660 pounds) in the deal, now stands at over 2,440
kilograms (5,380 pounds), according to the latest report by UN inspectors.
That’s potentially enough material to make at least
two nuclear weapons, experts say, if Iran chose to pursue the bomb.
Iran also is enriching uranium to as much as 4.5
percent purity, higher than allowed under the accord but still far lower than
weapons-grade levels of 90 percent.
Tehran abandoned all limits on its enrichment months
after Trump’s pullout from the agreement, even as the deal’s other
international partners China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and Germany
have tried unsuccessfully to salvage it.
Meanwhile, Iran has begun construction at its
underground Natanz enrichment site after a fire and explosion it described as
“sabotage” struck its advanced centrifuge assembly plant in July.
Abrams described the construction as “another Iranian
challenge” to the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN agency that Iran
still allows to monitor its nuclear sites.
He also criticized Iran for its slow response in
allowing the IAEA to investigate a suspicious site outside of Tehran where it
discovered particles of uranium of man-made origin.
Iran long has insisted its nuclear program is for
peaceful purposes. However, the IAEA has said Iran “carried out activities
relevant to the development of a nuclear explosive device” in a “structured
program” through the end of 2003.
“Iran denies that it ever had a nuclear weapons
program,” Abrams said. “Therefore, it can’t now say, well, things you found
from 2003, were part of our old nuclear weapons program. They’re caught in
their own lie.”
Abrams mentioned US citizens still imprisoned by Iran,
who activists and their families insist are chips in future negotiations.
He also said the United Arab Emirates’ normalization
deal with Israel also put new pressure on Iran, especially as the US plans a
$23 billion arms deal for Emiratis to purchase F-35 stealth fighter jets and
drones.
“I hope that next year the leverage that we’ve built
up through our sanctions program is used (with) any form of pressure including,
for example, Iranian fears about a developing relationship between Israel and
Arab states in the region,” he said. “All of this pressure should be brought to
bear to get Iran to change its conduct.”
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/11/12/Pressure-campaign-of-sanctions-on-Iran-will-go-on-under-Biden-US-official
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US-UAE weapons deal is detrimental to peace
12 November 2020
By Jeremy Kuzmarov
Yeah, I think this deal is detrimental to peace. I
think the UAE is a very repressive regime. They've been involved covertly in
supporting the war in Yemen, which is in alliance with Saudi Arabia, which has
caused terrible human cataclysm in Yemen, and terrible suffering for the Yemeni
people, and weapons that the US has provided in the past have been used to kill
civilians.
So, this is just very bad, I think. I think, the Obama
administration had huge arms sales but Trump has just expanded it even further.
And there's really no regard for human rights issues as far as the regimes that
Trump is willing to sell arms with.
And I think this deal went forward because of the
recent agreement Israel and the UAE and signed this restore normal diplomatic
relations so that may have set the groundwork for this deal.
But I think it's very bad for the region and some of
these repressive and autocratic regimes have ever more sophisticated weaponry
including drones which they could use to spy on their own people, or again
these weapons could be used in wars like in Yemen to kill civilians.
So I think it's something that progressives should be
opposed to, and I would hope that the new Biden administration will be
pressured to cut back on some of these kinds of deals.
Will there be a change in US foreign policy under
Biden?
Well, I think that's the case, because you have to
look at who's financing the two major political parties, and there was actually
a good article in the Nation magazine that points to the fact that Biden
received more money from military contractors than Trump. Biden received
something like $24 million from these companies like Lockheed Martin and
Raytheon. Some of them were hedge funds who had major stock ownership who were
giving money to Biden.
So, yeah I mean Trump was heavily tied with the
so-called military-industrial complex, and I mean yeah these, this arms deal to
UAE, I mean the big beneficiary of these companies like Lockheed Martin or
General Atomics which manufactures drones or Raytheon, and they give to both
parties, and increasingly they're giving more to the Democrats because I think
they view Trump as unstable.
And he gives a bad image for the United States, and
also Trump in some areas, he was threatening to cut back troops like in
Afghanistan, and Africa. He's mentioned that he might want to cut back on
troops in the Africom. So they don't like that.
And, you know, Biden has said that he will basically
sustain the military budget. He's not planning any major cuts to the US
military budget, which is more than the next eight or nine countries combined.
Like the US spends upwards of $800 billion on the military every year. And it's
just a bonanza of untrammeled profits for the corporations that give money to
both parties and increasingly to the Democratic Party.
So yeah I wouldn't think there will be a major change.
There'll be a change in tone from the White House and a little more rationality
from the commander-in-chief, but I think he's going to be continuing a very
militaristic policy and sustaining the US Empire’s military bases.
And there may be more of a shift toward Southeast
Asia, and towards containment of Russia seems to be the priority of the Biden
administration. So it's possible there would be some retreat from the Middle
East, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Jeremy Kuzmarov is J.P. Walker assistant professor of
history, University of Tulsa and author of The Myth of the Addicted Army:
Vietnam and the Modern War on Drugs (Massachusetts, 2009) and Modernizing
Repression: Police Training and Nation Building in the American Century
(Massachusetts, 2012).
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/12/638481/US-UAE-weapons-deal-is-detrimental-to-peace
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6 Americans among dead in helicopter crash in Egypt
Servet Gunerigok
12.11.2020
WASHINGTON
Six American service members were killed along with
two partner nation service members when a UN helicopter crashed Thursday in
Egypt near the Israeli border, according to the Pentagon.
"The Defense Department is deeply saddened by the
loss of six U.S. and two partner nation service members in a helicopter crash in
the Sinai Peninsula operating with the United Nations Multinational Force and
Observers (MFO)," Acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller said in a
statement.
"I extend the Department’s condolences to the
families, friends and teammates of these service members," said Miller.
The crash occurred during a routine mission in the
vicinity of Sharm el-Sheikh, which also killed a French and a Czech national,
according to a MFO statement.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said the
agency is in close contact with MFO leadership and are standing by to support
their investigation.
"We will provide more details as they become
available. We will not release the names of those lost until next-of-kin
notifications are completed," Hoffman tweeted.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/6-americans-among-dead-in-helicopter-crash-in-egypt/2042038
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Mideast
Israeli Forces Kidnap Director Of Al-Aqsa’s
Manuscripts Centre, Arrest More Palestinians
12 November 2020
Israeli forces along with undercover agents have
kidnapped the director of al-Aqsa Mosque’s Manuscripts Center during an
operation in East Jerusalem al-Quds and detained several Palestinians in a
series of separate raids across the occupied Palestinian territories.
Palestinian media, quoting sources, said Israeli
troops stormed al-Thawri neighborhood south of al-Aqsa Mosque, on Wednesday
evening, and broke into Radwan Amr’s house, before detaining him.
Amr, an academic and activist, is well known for exposing
the Israeli regime's Judaization plans
in Jerusalem al-Quds. His mother, Zeina, works as a teacher at the al-Aqsa
Mosque compound and his father is expert on revealing Israeli violations.
The Israeli occupying authorities have recently
escalated their persecution campaign against Palestinian officials and
employees of the Islamic Waqf (Endowment) organization that oversees Muslim
holy sites in the Israeli-occupied Jerusalem al-Quds.
In recent months, Israeli settlers have repeatedly
violated the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied Old City of East Jerusalem
al-Quds under the strict protection of regime forces as part of break-ins into
the Islamic holy site.
Outside the compound and particularly at its gates,
Israeli soldiers have also imposed restrictions on Palestinian worshipers’
access to the mosque, demanded their ID cards, frisked them, and searched their
bags.
Hardline Israeli legislators also regularly violate
the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied city, a provocative move that
infuriates Palestinians.
Israeli forces kidnap Palestinians, attack youths in
West Bank
Separately, the Palestinian Information Center said on
Thursday that Israeli forces abducted several Palestinians in large-scale
overnight raids in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds.
A number of activists, university students and even
minors were among the detainees.
The Israeli troops kidnapped the Palestinian youths
after breaking into their homes in the West Bank cities of Bethlehem, al-Khalil
(Hebron) and Nablus.
Some Palestinians were also forcibly taken away by
Israeli troops in the Ramallah villages of al-Mughayyir and Kafr Ni'ma.
They also stormed the Tulkarem refugee camp and the
Ramallah town of Kobar during the abduction campaign. Local residents said
violent clashes occurred between troops and local residents at the old cemetery
in Kobar and elsewhere across the region.
A series of violent clashes also broke out as Israeli
forces stormed Qalandiya refugee camp in east Jerusalem al-Quds. They also
abducted two Palestinian youths from at-Tur town of the occupied region.
The circumstances surrounding the kidnappings are yet
unknown, but the Israeli forces carry out such swoops on a nearly daily basis,
taking away Palestinians whom the regime usually accuses of acting against its
so-called interests.
More than 7,000 Palestinians are reportedly held in
Israeli jails. Hundreds of the inmates have apparently been incarcerated under
the practice of administrative detention, a policy under which Palestinian
inmates are kept in Israeli detention facilities without trial or charge.
Some Palestinian prisoners have been held in
administrative detention for up to eleven years.
Palestinian inmates regularly stage hunger strikes in
protest at the administrative detention policy and their harsh prison
conditions in Israeli jails.
The new development comes at a time of rising tensions
between Israelis and Palestinians in the wake of prime minister Benjamin
Netanyahu’s intention to annex parts of the West Bank.
Conditions have also been tense since US President
Donald Trump announced his decision on December 6, 2017 to recognize Jerusalem
al-Quds as Israel’s ‘capital’ and relocate the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to the
occupied city.
The developments also come as Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv signed a US-mediated
agreement at the White House to normalize ties in September.
The normalization deals have drawn widespread
condemnation from Palestinians, who seek an independent state in the occupied
West Bank and Gaza, with East Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital. They say the
deals ignore their rights and are a betrayal of the Palestinian cause.
The UAE and Bahrain justified their deals with Israel
as a means to stop the annexation plans in the West Bank and bring peace to the
region. Nevertheless, Israel is still going ahead with its expansion plans.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/12/638464/Palestine-al-Thawri-al-Aqsa-Mosque-Radwan-Amr-Jerusalem-al-Quds-West-Bank-
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Israel speeds up settlement construction amid fears
about Biden's possible freeze plans
12 November 2020
Israeli authorities are reportedly expediting approval
of plans for the construction of more settler units across the occupied
territories, amid growing fears that the projected winner of US presidential
election Joe Biden would oppose such plans once he enters the White House early
next year.
According to Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the so-called
Jerusalem City Hall and the Israel Lands Authority (ILA) have been identifying
and speeding up approval of construction plans beyond the Green Line, part of
the border that Israel drew between the West Bank and the rest of historical
Palestine, over the next two months to prevent them from being stopped by the
next US administration.
The report highlighted that Biden had an important
role in Israeli settlement construction freeze in Jerusalem al-Quds during the
administration of former US President Barack Obama, where he served as vice
president.
This is while the outgoing administration of US
President Donald Trump staunchly supported the Israeli regime’s settlement
expansion and land expropriation policies.
Meanwhile, the Jerusalem Municipality has given the
green light for the construction of 108 settler units north of the holy city in
in Ramat Shlomo settlement.
The Palestinian Arabic-language Safa news agency,
citing a report published by public Israeli KAN 11 television network, said the
so-called Jerusalem Local Planning and Building Committee has endorsed plans
for the units to be built in Ramat Shlomo settlement.
Anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now also told AFP that
plans for 96 homes in the east Jerusalem settlement of Ramat Shlomo were given
the green light by the municipal planning committee on Tuesday.
Israel announced plans to build 1,600 settler units in
Ramat Shlomo, which adjoins the Palestinian neighborhoods of Shuafat and Beit
Hanina, in March 2010.
That announcement, according to AFP, came as Biden,
now US President-elect, was visiting Israel, provoking fierce US opposition and
souring ties with Washington for months.
"After straining relations with Biden and the US
in 2010 over the approval of settlement units in Ramat Shlomo, one would think
that Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu would at least try not to remind the
incoming Biden administration of that time," Peace Now spokesman Brian
Reeves said.
He added, "Approving units in the exact same
location, just as Biden is about to enter office, is both counter to Israel's
interests and recklessly provocative toward Biden personally."
More than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230
settlements built since the 1967 Israeli occupation of the Palestinian
territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem al-Quds.
Since Trump took office in December 2016, Israel has
stepped up its settlement construction activities in defiance of United Nations
Security Council Resolution 2334, which pronounced settlements in the West Bank
and East Jerusalem al-Quds “a flagrant violation under international law.”
All Israeli settlements are illegal under
international law as they are built on occupied land.
Under an agreement reached between Israel and the
United Arab Emirates nearly two months ago on normalization of ties, the Tel
Aviv regime has supposedly agreed to "temporarily" suspend applying
its rule to further areas in the occupied West Bank and the strategic Jordan
Valley that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had pledged to annex.
While Emirati officials have described the
normalization deal with the Tel Aviv regime as a successful means to stave off
annexation and save the so-called two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, Israeli leaders have lined up to reject the bluff of Abu Dhabi's
crown prince and de facto ruler of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al
Nahyan, that Israel's annexation plans were off the table.
The Israeli prime minister has underlined that
annexation is not off the table, but has simply been postponed.
Netanyahu signed agreements with Emirati Foreign
Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahrain's Foreign Minister
Abdullatif Al Zayani during an official ceremony hosted by Trump at the White
House on September 15.
Palestinians, who seek an independent state in the
occupied West Bank and Gaza with East Jerusalem al-Quds as its capital, view
the deals as betrayal of their cause.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/12/638460/Israel-speeds-up-settlement-construction-amid-fears-Biden-would-freeze-plans
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‘Yemenis aren’t going hungry, they’re starving:’ UN
issues solemn warning
12 November 2020
The United Nations (UN) has issued a solemn warning
about a looming catastrophe in Yemen that would be affecting millions of Yemeni
people, including women and children, as the country grapples with years of a
Saudi-led war and blockade.
Top UN officials raised the alarm during a virtual
meeting of the UN Security Council on Yemen on Wednesday as they appealed for
further funds to prevent the tragedy.
"We are on a countdown right now to a catastrophe
in Yemen. The people… they've been ravaged by years of conflict, food
[insecurity], hunger, malnutrition. Now, there's a toxic combination taking
place of surging violence… [and a] deepening of the economic and currency
collapse… And COVID-19 is ratcheting up the misery to a whole new level,"
the UN food agency's Executive Director David Beasley told the 15-member
council.
"And so we've got to get the world to open up its
eyes and realize what we've truly seen in the unfolding humanitarian disaster
before it's too late. If we choose to look away, there's no doubt in my mind
Yemen will be plunged into a devastating famine within a few short
months," he said.
The UN has previously described Yemen as the site of
the world's largest humanitarian crisis, with 80 percent of the people being in
need of help.
UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock warned in late 2017
that the war-torn country was at the time facing "the largest famine the
world has seen for many decades with millions of victims."
During the virtual meeting on Wednesday, Lowcock
described the humanitarian situation in Yemen as "agonizing," and
called on the international community to take action to prevent the food crisis
in the impoverished Arab country.
"Yemenis are not going hungry. They are being
starved. All of us, parties to the conflict, Security Council members, donors,
humanitarian organizations, and others should do everything we can to stop
this," Lowcock told the Security Council.
"More money for the aid operation is the quickest
and most efficient way to support famine prevention efforts right now. So I
again implore donors to fulfill their outstanding pledges and to increase their
support," he said.
Lowcock also said that the world body had received
less than half of what it needed — about $1.5 billion — this year for its
humanitarian operations in Yemen, while it had received $3 billion in 2019.
Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies
launched the devastating war on Yemen in March 2015 with the goal of
suppressing a popular uprising that had toppled a Riyadh-friendly regime.
The war has taken a heavy toll on Yemen's infrastructure,
destroying hospitals, schools, and factories. The UN says over 24 million
Yemenis are in dire need of humanitarian aid, including 10 million suffering
from extreme levels of hunger.
Children are among the most vulnerable victims of the
Saudi war on Yemen, but the issue has barely drawn any international response.
The UN children's agency warned in late June that the
shortage of humanitarian assistance amid the coronavirus pandemic threatened to
push more children in Yemen to the brink of starvation.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/12/638450/Yemenis-are-not-going-hungry-they-are-starving-UN-issues-solemn-warning
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Intelligence Ministry Confirms Capturing Terrorist
Ringleader behind 2018 Attack in Southwestern Iran
2020-November-12
The statement said that the leader of the separatist
and terrorist group, which had planned several other large-scale operations in
Tehran and Khuzestan in recent years, has been planning a new terrorist
operation.
“This terrorist group, which is directly supported by
the Saudi intelligence services and the Zionist regime, has been managing
terrorist operations in Iran despite the issuance of international arrest
orders for the group's leaders,” it added.
“The main perpetrator of the bloody terrorist attack
in Ahvaz is now in the hands of the Intelligence Ministry; he also has revealed
details of other terrorist and bloody operations of this group," the
statement said.
Farajollah Chaab, also known as Habib Osivad is the
former leader and the current vice-president of the Al-Ahwaziya terrorist
group, which claimed responsibility for the September 2018 terrorist attack on
a military parade in Ahvaz, Southwest of Iran, which killed 26 and injured 69
others.
The terrorists attacked the bystanders watching the
annual Armed Forces' parades, marking the start of the Sacred Defense Week,
commemorating Iranians' sacrifices during the 8 years of the Iraqi imposed war
on Iran in 1980s, in disguise of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and
Basij (volunteer) forces, killing and wounding several people, including
innocent women and children.
None of the officials participating in the military
parades in Ahwaz city in Khuzestan province was injured in the attack.
Last February, the Danish Security and Intelligence
Service (PET) and the Netherlands police separately arrested and charged four
members of an anti-Iran terrorist group on suspicions of spying for Saudi
Arabia and plans to conduct terrorist attack in Iran.
Three members of the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation
of Ahwaz (ASMLA) or al-Ahwaziyeh terrorist group carried out espionage
activities from 2012 to 2018, PET said in a statement on February 3.
It said the three individuals “collected information
about individuals in Denmark and abroad and passed on this information to a
Saudi intelligence service," among other things.
A pretrial detention hearing is due on February 4.
In August, the Iranian Intelligence Ministry announced
it has arrested Jamshid Sharmahd, the ringleader of an anti-Iran terrorist group
based in the United States.
Sharmahd directed "armed operations and acts of
sabotage" in Iran from the US, according to the Intelligence Ministry.
Following a complicated operation, the ringleader of
the group, named Tondar (Thunder), was arrested and he is "now in the
powerful hands" of Iranian security forces, it said at the time.
Also, in October 2019, the Intelligence Organization
of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corp (IRGC) had managed to arrest Rouhollah
Zam, the administrator of counterrevolutionary website Amad News, in a
neighboring country.
The meticulous intelligence operation involved
outmaneuvering the intelligence services of certain Western countries,
especially France, which offered Zam guidance and protection for his operation.
“Intelligence forces had been keeping a watchful eye
on Rouhollah Zam’s movements for a long time and he stepped into the
intelligence trap set by IRGC some two years ago. Ultimately, we were able to
arrest him through cooperation with other intelligence services,” Second
Brigadier General Mohammad Tavallaei, a high-ranking IRGC official, said at the
time.
In June this year, Iran’s Judiciary sentenced Zam to
death after he was convicted of corruption on earth.
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13990822000471/Inelligence-Minisry-Cnfirms-Capring-Terrris-Ringleader-behind-20-Aack
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Iran Asks IAEA to Verify S. Arabia, Israel's
Activities
2020-November-12
Takht Ravanchi made the remarks at a virtual meeting
of the UN General Assembly on Wednesday that endorsed the IAEA’s annual report.
He said it is “of utmost importance” for the IAEA to
consider available information on Riyadh’s nuclear activities, adding, “If
Saudi Arabia is seeking a peaceful nuclear program, it should act in a very
transparent manner and allow the agency’s inspectors to verify its activities.”
Additionally, he noted, the IAEA needs to take “an
unbiased and professional approach” toward Israel, which has refused to adhere
to the agency’s safeguards, is not a party to the Nuclear Non-proliferation
Treaty (NPT) and is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons.
Referring to Iran’s cooperation with the IAEA,
Takht-Ravanchi said Iran alone receives 22 percent of all the agency’s
inspections even during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Iran and the agency have agreed to work in good faith
to resolve these safeguards-related questions,” he stressed.
In late August, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi
visited Tehran, where he held talks with Iranian officials over safeguards
implementation issues.
The two sides then issued a joint statement and said
they had agreed “to further reinforce their cooperation and enhance mutual
trust to facilitate” the full implementation of Iran’s Comprehensive Safeguards
Agreement (CSA) and the Additional Protocol (AP) thereto, which has been
provisionally applied by Iran since 16 January 2016.
To help facilitate the resolution of the issues raised
by the agency, the statement said, Iran agreed to voluntarily provide the
IAEA’s inspectors with access to two locations specified by the nuclear
watchdog.
In a speech to Wednesday’s General Assembly meeting,
Grossi welcomed the agreement he reached with Iranian officials in August “on
implementation of some safeguards implementation issues,” including access to
the two sites.
“Evaluations regarding the absence of undeclared
nuclear material and activities for Iran continue,” he said, adding that
inspections have taken place and samples from the two locations are being
analyzed.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the Iranian envoy underlined
the important role of nuclear energy in economic and social development of
countries.
He also stressed that the IAEA is tasked with
promoting the peaceful use of nuclear energy and strengthening international
cooperation in this regard.
The Islamic Republic has achieved significant
achievements in using the nuclear energy in the fields of electricity
generation, medicine, agriculture and industry, Takht Ravanchi said.
He said Iran believes that the IAEA’s safeguards
should not violate the countries’ rights to peaceful nuclear activities and
that proliferation concerns should not restrict these rights, and that any
attempt meant to limit the peaceful use of nuclear energy must be rejected.
The Iranian ambassador further described the 2015 Iran
nuclear deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),
as an important multilateral achievement that enjoys strong international
support, warning that the agreement is under intense pressure from Washington’s
unilateral measures.
“The United States’ withdrawal from the JCPOA,
re-imposition of illegal sanctions against Iran and non-compliance with UN
Security Council Resolution 2231 have prevented the Islamic Republic of Iran
from enjoying its rights under the resolution,” he noted.
US President Donald Trump, a stern critic of the
historic deal, unilaterally pulled Washington out of the JCPOA in May 2018, and
unleashed the “toughest ever” sanctions against the Islamic Republic in
defiance of global criticism in an attempt to strangle the Iranian oil trade,
but to no avail since its "so-called maximum pressure policy" has
failed to push Tehran to the negotiating table.
In response to the US’ unilateral move, Tehran has so
far rowed back on its nuclear commitments four times in compliance with Articles
26 and 36 of the JCPOA, but stressed that its retaliatory measures will be
reversible as soon as Europe finds practical ways to shield the mutual trade
from the US sanctions.
Tehran has particularly been disappointed with failure
of the three European signatories to the JCPOA -- Britain, France and Germany
-- to protect its business interests under the deal after the United States'
withdrawal.
On January 5, Iran took a final step in reducing its
commitments, and said it would no longer observe any operational limitations on
its nuclear industry, whether concerning the capacity and level of uranium
enrichment, the volume of stockpiled uranium or research and development.
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13990822000187/Iran-Asks-IAEA-Verify-S-Arabia-Israel's-Aciviies
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Jerusalem renews settlement moves that angered Biden
during his visit in 2010
12 November 2020
Israel has approved building of about 100 settlement
homes at the same site where settlement expansion plans unveiled during a 2010
visit by then-US vice president Joe Biden angered Washington, an NGO said on
Thursday.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app
Anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now told AFP that plans
for 96 homes in the east Jerusalem settlement of Ramat Shlomo were given the
green light by the municipal planning committee on Tuesday.
In March 2010, the Jewish state announced plans to
build 1,600 homes in Ramat Shlomo, which adjoins the Palestinian neighborhoods
of Shuafat and Beit Hanina.
That announcement came as Biden, now US
President-elect, was visiting Israel, provoking fierce US opposition and
souring ties with Washington for months.
“After straining relations with Biden and the US in
2010 over the approval of settlement units in Ramat Shlomo, one would think
that Prime Minister (Benjamin) Netanyahu would at least try not to remind the
incoming Biden administration of that time,” Peace Now spokesman Brian Reeves
said.
“Approving units in the exact same location, just as
Biden is about to enter office, is both counter to Israel’s interests and
recklessly provocative toward Biden personally.”
Israeli public radio put the number of homes approved
in Ramat Shlomo at 108.
President Donald Trump broke with decades of US
practice by not criticizing Jewish settlement construction in Israeli-annexed
east Jerusalem or the occupied West Bank.
Right-wing groups in Israel have raised fears a Biden
administration will renew criticism of settlements.
The left-leaning Israeli daily Haaretz said on
Thursday that the Jerusalem municipality was deliberately pushing construction
while settlement-friendly Trump is still in office.
“Jerusalem City Hall and the Israel Lands Authority
have been identifying and expediting approval of building plans,” the paper
wrote.
“Once the administration in Washington changes, the
municipality and the Lands Authority expect a construction freeze.”
Israel captured mainly Arab east Jerusalem from Jordan
in the 1967 Six-Day war and later annexed it, in a move not recognized by the
international community.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/11/12/Jerusalem-renews-settlement-moves-that-angered-Biden-during-his-visit-in-2010
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Turkey will use S-400 system just like NATO members
employ S-300: Defense minister
12 November 2020
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar downplays
concerns over his country's intention to utilize its highly advanced
Russian-built S-400 air defense systems, saying Ankara will use the armament
just as other members of the NATO military alliance employ their S-300 defense
systems.
“Just as the S-300 [missile defense] system, which
exists in some NATO member states, is used in the alliance, the S-400 system
will also be used [in Turkey] in the same way,” Akar told members of the
Turkish parliament's Planning and Budget Committee on Thursday.
Akar noted that Turkey would continue on the control
and preparation process of the S-400 system "as planned."
He then called on the United States to form a joint
working group on the compatibility of the S-400 system and F-35 stealth fighter
jets.
“We're ready to discuss the technical concerns of the
US on the compatibility of S-400s and F-35s,” the Turkish defense chief pointed
out.
Back on October 22, Akar told Bloomberg television
news network that Turkey will use S-400 anti-aircraft weapon systems as a
stand-alone weapon just like what Greece is doing with its Russian-built S-300
systems.
He added that Greece has the Russian S-300s in its
inventory, along with some other NATO countries that use Russian-made weapons.
Ankara and Washington have been at loggerheads over
Turkey's purchase of the S-400 systems, which the United States says are not
compatible with NATO defenses and pose a threat to Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth
fighter jets.
Back in April 2018, Erdogan and his Russian
counterpart Vladimir Putin said in Ankara that they had agreed to expedite the
delivery of the S-400. At the time, it was said that the delivery could be made
between late 2019 and early 2020.
The United States is categorically against Turkey’s
purchase and suspended Turkey’s participation in the joint production of the
fifth generation F-35 fighters.
The S-400 is an advanced Russian missile defense
system designed to detect, track, and destroy planes, drones, or missiles as
far as 402 kilometers away. It has previously been sold only to China and
India.
Ankara is striving to boost its air defense,
particularly after Washington decided in 2015 to withdraw its Patriot
surface-to-air missile system from Turkish border with Syria, a move that
weakened Turkey’s air defense.
Before gravitating towards Russia, the Turkish
military reportedly walked out of a $3.4-billion contract for a similar Chinese
system. The withdrawal took place under purported pressure from Washington.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/11/12/638467/Turkey-will-utilize-S-400-system-just-like-NATO-members-using-S-300-Defense-chief
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Southeast Asia
Guan Eng: Motion will be tabled to challenge Speaker’s
ruling favouring Bintulu MP after ‘insult’ against Dr Noor Hisham
12 Nov 2020
BY EMMANUEL SANTA MARIA CHIN
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 12 — A motion will soon be tabled in
Parliament by DAP MP RSN Rayer to challenge Parliament Speaker Datuk Azhar
Azizan Harun’s ruling to not punish Bintulu MP Datuk Tiong King Sing for his
statements deemed as insulting to the Health Ministry, its director-general and
frontliners battling Covid-19.
DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng stated his party’s
intention to file the motion against Azhar after party colleague and Kepong MP
Lim Lip Eng was booted out of the Dewan Rakyat for insisting the Speaker make a
ruling against Tiong.
“A motion will be tabled by YB Jelutong (Rayer) on the
Speaker’s decision at that time not to instruct YB Bintulu (Tiong) to retract
his statements, interjections, and insults towards Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham
(Abdullah),” Guan Eng said referring to the Health Ministry’s director-general.
“But at the same time, we hope the Speaker will admit
that it was a mistake on his part, and the ruling he made must be reviewed,”
Lim said during a press conference in Parliament that was broadcasted “live” on
the party’s Facebook page.
The Bagan MP then condemned Azhar for initially
instructing police officers to escort Lip Eng out of Parliament.
“Efforts to instruct police is something that should
not happen because it challenges the superiority of Parliament,” he said.
Guan Eng added that he hoped the government would step
up and distance itself from Tiong’s comments, considering how the Bintulu MP
holds the position of the prime minister’s special envoy to China, a post
equivalent in rank to that of a federal minister.
Meanwhile, the Kepong MP said it was unbecoming of
Tiong as a federal lawmaker to make such comments against the frontliners,
pointing out how Malaysia was once regarded as one of the top five nations that
successfully curbed the spread of the disease.
“As an MP, we should be giving words of encouragement
to appreciate all the Health Ministry’s officials, and not like the Bintulu MP
who belittled, insulted, and humiliated not only Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham but all
the Health Ministry’s frontliners as well.
“That is why I am angered and cannot accept the
decision by the deputy Speaker and Speaker concerning the comments made by
Bintulu MP,” he said during the broadcast.
This latest turn of events came after Lip Eng was
booted out of Parliament earlier today by Azhar after he called the latter’s
ruling to allow Tiong’s comments to slide “stupid”, angering the Speaker who
immediately called for the Kepong MP to retract his comments.
A shouting match then ensued, before Azhar booted the
Kepong MP out of the hall and barred him for five days.
As two sergeant-of-arms stood by Lip Eng who remained
inside despite being asked to leave, Azhar then requested the Dewan Rakyat
secretary to instruct the police to assist with escorting the Kepong MP out of
the chambers before the DAP man left on his own accord.
Tiong yesterday, while debating the Budget 2021 Bill,
claimed that Dr Noor Hisham hardly visited his constituency during the Covid-19
period. He then wondered aloud if the latter feared death and if that was the
reason for his absence.
The comments triggered DAP's Rayer, who came to the
defence of Dr Noor Hisham, resulting in the former being booted from the Dewan
Rakyat after refusing to take his seat as ordered by Deputy Dewan Rakyat
Speaker Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said.
In response, Dr Noor Hisham remarked that as a Muslim,
he sees death as inevitable and one which does not discriminate, then adding
how he visited Sabah hospitals back in August to check on the state’s
preparation for an election amid the pandemic.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/11/12/guan-eng-motion-will-be-tabled-to-challenge-speakers-ruling-favouring-bintu/1921929
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RCEP: Malaysia respects India’s decision, hopes it
will join in the future, says PM Muhyiddin
13 Nov 2020
KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 13 — Malaysia respects India’s
decision of not joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)
but remains hopeful that the Asean Dialogue Partner country will join the trade
pact in the future, said Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The prime minister, in his intervention at the 17th
Asean-India Summit yesterday, expressed his appreciation for India’s active
participation and valuable contributions in the RCEP negotiations and forming
the RCEP Agreement.
India opted out from the RCEP negotiations in November
2019. With that, the RCEP, which is scheduled to be signed on the last day of
the 37th Asean Summit and related meetings this Sunday, will include the 10
Member States of Asean as well as Australia, China, Japan, South Korea, and New
Zealand.
Muhyiddin noted that Malaysia and Asean view India as
an important and strategic partner and that trade between Asean and India have
increased tremendously over the years.
He said in 2019, India was the sixth largest trading
partner among Asean Dialogue Partners with total merchandise trade reaching
US$77 billion (RM320 billion).
“This partnership augurs well in the pursuit of
Asean’s economic development initiatives and also in the evolving economic
architecture in Asia. In this context, both sides must redouble the efforts to
exploit greater potential that exists in trade and other economic relations,”
he said at the summit, held within the 37th Asean Summit and related meetings.
Asean-India dialogue relations from a sectoral
dialogue partnership in 1992 was upgraded to a full dialogue partnership in
December 1995.
The relationship was further elevated with the
convening of the Asean-India Summit in 2002 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Meanwhile, Muhyiddin said he is pleased that officials
from both sides have agreed on the way forward for the review of the Asean-India
Trade in Goods Agreement (Aitiga).
Malaysia, he said, looks forward to the review to make
Aitiga more user-friendly, simple, and trade facilitative for businesses.
Malaysia strongly believes that the review is
important to ensure Aitiga remains relevant and ensure further improvements on
trade relations and enhancing the supply chain for the prosperity of both Asean
and India, he said.
The prime minister said he hoped all sides refrain
from imposing unnecessary and increasing protectionist measures that may impair
the difficulties and challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Both Asean and India must work together to ensure
that our borders remain open and trade procedures are more facilitative,” he
said.
Muhyiddin also highlighted the importance of adopting
digital solutions in (economic) recovery efforts by seizing opportunities
provided by digital transformation such as e-Commerce and the Fourth Industrial
Revolution.
“Malaysia believes that digital transformation will
help us “futureproof” the economic growth of our region. Therefore, Asean and
India must accelerate digitalisation and business reform to tackle these new
challenges particularly to achieve sustainable growth as well as for the
business to stay afloat,” he said.
The prime minister is leading the Malaysian delegation
at the biannual summit virtually from here (Kuala Lumpur) which runs till
Sunday.
The summit is chaired by Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen
Xuan Phuc in his capacity as Asean Chair 2020 under the theme ”Cohesive and
Responsive Asean.”
Asean, established in 1967, comprises Brunei,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand, and Vietnam. — Bernama
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/11/13/rcep-malaysia-respects-indias-decision-hopes-it-will-join-in-the-future-say/1922275
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