Discouraging Non-Muslims To Eat During Ramazan Is ‘Absurdity’ That Does Not Suit And Does Not Relate To Islam, Says Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh
New Age Islam News Bureau
21 April 2022
Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh Ahmed
al-Tayyeb
-----
• Boko Haram Perversion Of Islamic Ideology, Buhari
Tells ICC Prosecutor
• US Rep Ilhan Omar’s Meeting With Imran Khan in
Pakistan Stirs Controversy
• Macron Warns Le Pen She Risks ‘Civil War’ By Banning
Headscarf In Public Spaces
• At Kannur Church Event, Union Minister Said Islamic
Terrorism Has Caused Much Loss To Christian Churches Citing Examples Of Iraq,
Syria And Sri Lanka
Arab World
• Al-Azhar Muslim Council Of Elders To Curb
Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes In The West Amid Unrest
• Cheap Indian Wheat Faces Quality Checks, High
Freight Cost For Egypt Export
• Erdogan claims that Iraq backed Turkey’s push
against Kurdish militants
• YPG/PKK terrorists set fire to office of Kurdish
opposition group in Syria
• Ezidis in Iraq want terrorist group PKK to leave
Sinjar so they can return home
• OIC urges action against ‘barbaric’ Israeli attacks
on Palestinians
• Twin attack kills 3 Hashd Shaabi fighters in Iraq
--------
Africa
• Images of Sudan's Bashir in hospital draw anger on
social media
• Blast at bar in Nigeria kills 7, injures 19
• Tunisian parties warn country heading towards
dictatorship
-------
North America
• US Muslims Call Out Double Standard After Video Of
Christians Singing On Plane Over Easter Weekend Goes Viral
• US-Saudi relationship ‘historic and remains strong’:
Saudi Embassy in Washington
• US Treasury Secretary reiterates importance of ties
with Saudi Arabia
--------
Europe
• Turkey’s FM says some NATO allies want ‘longer’
Ukraine war to weaken Russia
• Peace process between Israel, Palestine must resume:
EU official
• Muslim worshippers attacked outside East Ham mosque
--------
India
• Hindu Migrant Workers In Hyderabad Opt For Muslim
Names For ‘Safety’ Because Of Issues Pertaining To Muslims In UP
• Indian American Muslim Council Condemns Vandalism Of
Indian Muslim Properties During Ramzan
• Muslim Innovator’s Magic Hands Help India’s Troubled
Farmers Of Karnataka And Outside
• Kerala: CPM Pulls Up Former MLA George M Thomas For
Embarrassing ‘Love Jihad’ Quip
• Top LeT commander among 2 terrorists killed in
encounter in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla
• Terrorism biggest form of human rights violation:
Amit Shah
• Hyderabad: Congress’ Dharna Calls On Muslims To
Boycott CM’s Iftar Party
-------
Southeast Asia
• If It’s Haram To Defend Criminals, There Will Be No Malay
Muslim Lawyers, Says Minister in PMO
• Desecration Of Holy Quran: Respect Religious Beliefs
Of Muslims, China To Sweden
• SIS study: Communication failure now main cause of
marriage breakdowns in Malaysia, above domestic violence
• Hijrah24 able to revive Tabung Haji’s businesses,
investments, says PM Ismail Sabri
--------
South Asia
• ‘Hindus, Muslims Live Peacefully In Bangladesh But
Some Elements Try And Create Conflict’: • US Ambassador For International
Religious Freedom
• World Bank to Resume Three Major Projects in
Afghanistan
• Taliban flouting basic human rights in Afghanistan:
Report
• Afghan refugee gunned down in mosque attack
• Criminal Flogged in Taliban’s Supreme Court
--------
Pakistan
• ‘Criminal Cabinet’ Has Defaced Democracy: Pakistan
Tehreek-I-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan
• In A Veiled Attack, Imran Khan Blames Pakistan Army
Chief Bajwa For His Ouster
• Pakistan-Taliban ties sour over rise in terror attacks,
border incidents
• 'Exiled' Nawaz Sharif to be back in Pakistan after
Eid, face the courts
• PM Sharif meets President Alvi; discusses Pak's
evolving political and economic situation
• Finance Minister Miftah leaves for US to meet IMF
officials for revival of loan facility
• Petition against acceptance of Buzdar's resignation
withdrawn after LHC's rebuke
--------
Mideast
• Gaza Militants, Israel In Biggest Exchange Of Fire
Since 2021 War
• Iranian President: Foreign Meddling, Terrorism Root
Cause of Instability in Afghanistan
• Iran Raps Britain for Forceful Deportation of
Asylum-Seekers
• WFPIST Urges Int’l Organizations, Officials to Bring
to Justice Perpetrators of Blasphemy of Islamic Sanctities
• At least 80 Iran-backed Houthi violations reported
since ceasefire: Yemen Army report
• Iran says ‘technical issues’ in nuclear talks
complete
• Israeli Nationalists To March In Jerusalem’s
Palestinian-Majority Areas Despite Ban
• Iran says 3 Mossad agents arrested for transferring
'classified info'
• Turkish president launches intense diplomatic push
for Palestine
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
--------
Discouraging Non-Muslims To Eat During Ramazan Is
‘Absurdity’ That Does Not Suit And Does Not Relate To Islam, Says Al-Azhar
Grand Sheikh
Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb
-----
April 20, 2022
Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayyeb said that the
sheikhdom cherishes the relationship between Egyptians, Muslims and Christians,
which stems from a correct understanding of religion.
In remarks to the “Sout (voice of) Al-Azhar” magazine,
Tayyeb added: “Restricting non-Muslims in their food and drink during the day
in Ramazan on the pretext of fasting is an absurdity that does not suit and
does not relate to Islam.”
Tayyeb stressed that “A Muslim who cannot stand seeing
his Christian colleague at work eating or drinking, or seeing Christian
citizens in restaurants during the day of Ramazan, how can he stand seeing his
own kids eating during the day in Ramazan? Or is he restricting his children
and forbidding them to eat and drink?!”
“Congratulating Christians on holidays is not out of
courtesy or formalities, but rather comes from our understanding of the
teachings of our true religion, and the relationship between Muslims and
Christians is a true embodiment of unity and brotherhood, and that this
brotherhood will always remain the solid bond that strengthens the country
against difficulties and challenges.”
Tayyeb said that Al-Azhar sees absolutely nothing
wrong with building churches as there is nothing in the Quran or the Prophetic
Sunnah that forbids this matter and therefore Al-Azhar cannot interfere to
prevent the building of a church.
The Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar described the harassment
that happens in some villages and hamlets when building any church as an
inherited customs and traditions that people passed on, and it has no origin in
Islam.
Source: Egypt Independent
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
Boko
Haram Perversion Of Islamic Ideology, Buhari Tells ICC Prosecutor
Adviser, International Criminal Court (ICC)
Prosecutor, Mamadou Racine (left); ICC Chief Prosecutor, Karim Ahmad Khan; President
Muhammadu Buhari; Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama; Chief of Staff to
the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari and Nigerian Ambassador to the
Netherlands, Dr. Eniola Ajayi when Buhari received Khan in audience, at State
House, Abuja…yesterday. PHOTO: PHILIP OJISUA
-----
21
April 2022
President
Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, declared that the Boko Haram insurgency has
neither religious nor ethnic underpinning, adding that majority of Nigerians
now know the truth.
While
receiving Karin Ahmad Khan, Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal
Court (ICC), at State House, Abuja, Buhari said that with concerted public
enlightenment, it has become clear to people that Boko Haram is a perversion of
religion, rather than an Islamic ideology.
He
said: “God is justice. You can’t kill innocent people and shout, Allahu Akbar
(God is great). It’s either you don’t know that God at all or you are simply
being stupid.
“To
say Western education is unacceptable (Haram) is very fraudulent. That is why
we are fighting them, and educating the people.
“And
we are succeeding a lot. We came to office when things were very bad. But we
are educating the people. Education is fundamental. Religion and ethnicity are
out of it. Some people have just made it a lifestyle to cause confusion,
destruction and death.”
The
ICC prosecutor likened extremism to cancer, which spreads and can also recede.
He noted that what Boko Haram does, in collaboration with Islamic State of West
Africa Province (ISWAP), “is perversion of religion.”
He
said ICC believes in complementarity, “which promotes collaboration, as against
confrontation.”
He
counselled Nigeria, in concert with other Sahel/Lake Chad basin countries, to
get the United Nations Security Council to refer atrocities committed by
terrorist groups operating in the region to ICC for investigation and
subsequent trial.
EARLIER,
on Tuesday, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo also received Khan at the Presidential
Villa.
Osinbajo
noted that the proposal to reform the international justice system would
“reassure African countries that there is room for negotiations and that the
ICC is not just out to witch hunt any individual or organisation.”
He
stressed the importance of creating a system that builds relationships and credibility
among member states, “creating a sense that everyone can be treated fairly.”
Commending
the Court for making the bold move, the Vice President said: “The steps you are
taking are very crucial. For Nigeria, you will get all the cooperation, and at
the end of the day, people must feel that the system is just and fair to all.”
In
his remarks, Khan expressed excitement at the visit, noting: “It comes at a
critical time in the history of the continent.”
He
explained that the Court, through the proposed roadmap for reforms, would help
African countries achieve justice, applying the principle of complementarity.
He
pledged the commitment of the Court to work with local authorities to encourage
domestic jurisdictions to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of core
international crimes.
Osinbajo
also received the Egyptian Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Ihab Awad, who came to
brief him on the next meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change to be hosted in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, later in November.
Source:
Guardian Nigeria
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://guardian.ng/news/boko-haram-perversion-of-islamic-ideology-buhari-tells-icc-prosecutor/
--------
US
Rep Ilhan Omar’s Meeting With Imran Khan in Pakistan Stirs Controversy
US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar meets Imran Khan
------
Baqir
Sajjad Syed
April
21, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
US Rep Ilhan Omar’s visit to Islamabad — the first by an American legislator
since the new government took office last week — was dominated by a controversy
over her meeting with ex-premier Imran Khan who claims Washington had conspired
to dislodge his government.
Ms
Omar met a range of Pakistani leaders, including President Arif Alvi, Prime
Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Khar and
National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, but it was her meeting with Mr
Khan that hogged the spotlight.
Former
human rights minister in Khan’s cabinet, Dr Shireen Mazari, tweeted about the
meeting. “US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar called on Chairman PTI in Bani Gala. They
discussed Islamophobia & related issues. @Ilhan expressed her admiration
for @ImranKhanPTI & his position on & work against Islamophobia globally.
IK appreciated her courageous & principled position on issues,” Dr Mazari
said.
Social
media immediately questioned Mr Khan about the meeting with the American
legislator and reminded him of his criticism of US officials meeting opposition
figures.
US
congresswoman also meets president and PM
Not
only journalists, ordinary tweeples and users of other social media platforms
asked for the justification of the meeting, government functionaries also
jumped into the debate and could not resist criticising Mr Khan over it.
Interior
Minister Rana Sanaullah led the charge by asking Mr Khan if his meeting with Ms
Omar was “a conspiracy or interference”.
“Which
conspiracy is being hatched?” he asked while recalling Mr Khan’s stance that
opposition’s meetings with the American officials were conspiratorial. Warning
of an investigation into the meeting, the interior minister said that if Mr
Khan did not himself divulge the details, he (as the minister) “will
investigate since the nation should know the truth, lest Imran Niazi, according
to his tradition, brings out another letter a few days later”.
Omar,
a Somali-American lawmaker representing Minnesota in the US House of
Representatives, is not new to controversies. This time it has got more to do
with the timing of her visit, which took place when Mr Khan has crafted a
narrative of conspiracy by the US around his removal from office through a vote
of no-confidence in the National Assembly. Besides taking a hardline on the
private interactions between politicians and US officials, he has in his
speeches at public rallies vowed no subservience to the US while accusing his
opponents of toeing Washington’s line.
In
background discussions with US officials, it transpired that Ms Omar was on a
“personal trip”, which had not come through the administration. The trip had
been arranged in her personal capacity as the congresswoman, one official
explained.
Her
meeting with Mr Khan had been directly scheduled by her office through a
US-based Pakistani businessman, a PTI leader said.
There
have been several explanations about her trip, even though she has in the past
never shown any interest in Pakistan. One of the more plausible ones is that
her constituency has a sizeable Muslim population and she has herself worked
extensively on Islamophobia and may have wished to connect with the PTI
chairman, who had highlighted the issue leading to UN designating March 15 as
the international day to combat Islamophobia.
Meanwhile,
President Alvi, while talking to Ms Omar, called for “constructive engagement
between the two countries” and emphasised the need for strengthening bilateral
ties.
Ms
Omar highlighted the potential for improving and strengthening ties between the
two countries and “appreciated the role played by Pakistan in combating
Islamophobia”.
She
also met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who told her that Pakistan “wanted to
further deepen bilateral cooperation based on mutual respect, trust and
equality”.
In
her meeting with Ms Omar, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Khar said:
“Pakistan is committed to further strengthening bilateral relations with the
United States and advancing bilateral cooperation in various fields of mutual
interest.”
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1686052/ilhan-omars-meeting-with-imran-stirs-controversy
--------
Macron
Warns Le Pen She Risks ‘Civil War’ By Banning Headscarf In Public Spaces
Photo:
aa.com
-----
Shweta
Desai
21.04.2022
PARIS
Outgoing
President Emmanuel Macron warned his far-right challenger Marine Le Pen on
Wednesday that she will bring France to the brink of a civil war if she imposes
a ban on the Islamic headscarf, or hijab, if she claims victory in France’s
presidential election.
“With
me, there will be no ban on headscarves, yarmulkes and religious signs,"
Macron said during a widely televised debate which was a make-or-break moment
for the finalists to convince the millions of electorates to vote in their
favor in the second and final round of the election on April 24.
The
extreme right discourse which has dominated the campaign also prevailed at the
debate.
Le
Pen said she intends to liberate Muslim women from the uniform imposed by “the
Islamists” by banning the veil in public spaces. Macron opposes the proposed
ban, saying it is unconstitutional and will create a “civil war.” He said the
1905 law on secularism was not about “fighting a religion."
Le
Pen in turn attacked Macron for creating disunity and dividing the French
society during his five years in power. She insisted that her project is about
“giving priority to the French in their own country," which she aimed to achieve
by introducing a citizens' initiative referendum and other reforms to improve
the daily lives of people. She spoke of establishing a public referendum on the
subject of immigration to solve the problem of “anarchy and massive
immigration” and of creating a European Google for data privacy.
For
Macron, this election is crucial, not only as it is a fight of ideologies, but
as a “referendum on what the French are deeply for or against." He deemed
it as a vote on whether to stay or leave the European Union, France’s relations
with Germany, environmental issues, fraternity, and secularism.
Divisions
on Europe
Le
Pen, the National Rally party’s candidate opened the debate, assuring to
restore the harmony between all French and attacked Macron on his economic
failures during the five-year term, focusing on purchasing power, unemployment,
the fuel hike tax that spurred the Yellow Vest protests and incurring 600
million euros ($651 million) in debt through the recovery package for
businesses during the coronavirus pandemic.
"I've
only seen French people tell me that they can't do it anymore, that they can't
make ends meet anymore," she said, calling Macron "the Mozart of
finance who has a very bad economic record.”
Macron
in return counter-attacked Le Pen’s weak positions -- Russia and the European
Union -- and accused her of depending on Russia and President Vladimir Putin
for financing her party through a multi-million euro loan from a Czech-Russian
bank in 2017.
He
said he wanted to ensure that the Ukraine war did not spread and that this was
only achievable by a "strong Europe” which could bring “Russia to its
senses,” noting “we are no one's vassals.”
Le
Pen contested Macron’s pitch to strengthen Europe and claimed France is unable
to defend its interests by being part of the European Union’s policies. While
Le Pen has hinted at leaving certain EU treaties and giving preference to
French laws, Macron has promised to work alongside the EU.
The
two candidates also clashed on the retirement age. Macron wants to extend it
from 62 to 65 to finance social security and health care measures for the
elderly.
On
renewable energies, meanwhile, Le Pen wants to dismantle all wind turbines.
The
event was organized by the TF1 and France 2 channels. The latest Ipsos poll has
predicted a lead for Macron with 56% against 44% for Le Pen.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
At
Kannur Church Event, Union Minister Said Islamic Terrorism Has Caused Much Loss
To Christian Churches Citing Examples Of Iraq, Syria And Sri Lanka
BJP leader and Union minister V Muraleedharan
-----
April
21, 2022
SENIOR
BJP leader and Union minister V Muraleedharan on Wednesday said Islamic
terrorism has caused much loss to Christian churches across the world as he
gave the examples of Iraq, Syria and Sri Lanka.
“Much
Christian blood has flowed in Iraq, Syria and even in India’s neighbouring
country Sri Lanka. Christians were massacred in Sri Lanka on Easter day in 2018
by Islamic extremists at a time when Pope Francis exhorts to love everyone,” said
the Minister of State for External Affairs.
He
was addressing a felicitation event held after the consecration of Archbishop
Joseph Pamplany at Thalassery in Kannur.
Muraleedharan
said there is nothing unusual if the Church leadership has concerns about
Islamic terrorism. The Narendra Modi government sees the anxiety of the Church
with great concern, he said, adding that the Centre would not adopt a negative
approach towards the issues raised by it.
Muraleedharan
also took a dig at the Left, saying that CPI(M) leader George M Thomas and Left
ally Kerala Congress (M) chairman Jose K Mani had shared their concerns over
“love jihad” as well but had to retract their statements.
“It
is a matter of concern that cases are registered against bishops if they use
the word jihad. Who else other than the Church leadership can say that there is
a planned attempt to convert Christian women? There are lot of evidences about
trapping Christian women in love jihad,” the minister said.
CPI(M)
MP John Brittas, in his address, hit back without naming either the minister or
the BJP. “Beware of the wolves in sheep’s clothing,” he said.
The
Union minister’s remarks at a Church event assumes significance against the
backdrop of the state BJP’s move to start a campaign against “religious
terrorism”. Recently, state BJP president K Surendran announced that Union Home
Minister Amit Shah would attend a state leadership meeting of the party on
April 29 and chalk out the action plan against countering “religious
terrorism”.
Source:
Indian Express
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
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Arab World
Al-Azhar
Muslim Council Of Elders To Curb Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes In The West Amid
Unrest
20
April ,2022
The
Muslim Council of Elders, under the Chairmanship of the Grand Imam of al-Azhar
Dr. Ahmed al-Tayeb, has launched an initiative to counter anti-Muslim hate
crimes in the West, a statement released on Wednesday said.
The
Council strongly condemned the burning of the Holy Qur’an by far-right
extremists in Sweden over the weekend in what it described as a “deliberate
attempt to offend Muslims around the world.”
The
violence in Malmo, Sweden began on Thursday after a demonstration organized by
Rasmus Paludan, leader of Danish far-right political party Hard Line.
“The
Council reaffirms that such desecrations of the Holy Qur’an are initiated by
certain groups from time to time with the sole purpose of provoking Muslims.
Likewise, they are being deliberately carried out during the holy month of Ramazan,
in a clear violation of the values of human fraternity and coexistence,” the
statement read.
“Through
the assistance of legal and human rights experts, the Council is in the process
of publishing a legal guideline on managing Islamophobia in the West,” said
Judge Mohamed Abdelsalam, Secretary-General of the Council.
The
initiative will be inspired by the historic Document on Human Fraternity for
World Peace and Living Together which was signed by Head of The Catholic Church
Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of al-Azhar on 4 February 2019. The Document
advocates for world peace and peaceful interfaith coexistence.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Cheap
Indian wheat faces quality checks, high freight cost for Egypt export
20
April ,2022
Indian
wheat could offer a cheaper option for top importer Egypt but will have to
overcome quality controls set by the country’s agriculture ministry as well as
higher freight costs.
Last
week, Egypt’s agriculture ministry announced it had approved India as a wheat
import origin but has placed several conditions including inspection for pests
prior to export and the use of only a specific pesticide, according to a
ministry document seen by Reuters.
“Just
because we approved the origin doesn’t mean we accept anything. There are
technical conditions set by the plant quarantine department,” Ahmed El Attar,
the department’s head, told Reuters.
Quality
concerns linked to the fungal disease Karnal Bunt and the overuse of pesticides
have previously plagued wheat exports from India, with some suppliers receiving
complaints a few years ago.
Traders
and government officials in India, however, have said it had not received any
complaints when exporting large quantities this year to countries such as
Bangladesh, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Oman and Qatar and others.
Traders
also said freight costs would be a challenge for Indian suppliers, adding that
the lowest freight cost on Tuesday stood at $70 a ton.
“The
freight cost for India’s wheat to Egypt would be around $70 a ton against
$30-$40 a ton for the supplies from the Black Sea region,” said Rajesh Paharia
Jain, a leading New Delhi-based trader.
India’s
wheat exports hit 7.85 million tons in the fiscal year to March, an all-time
high and a sharp increase from 2.1 million tons in the previous year.
News
of India’s addition as an approved import origin by Egypt has been welcomed by
both countries. India is trying to cash in on its production surplus and Egypt
is looking for lower prices after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupted its
purchases, some 80 percent of which came from Russia and Ukraine last year.
Recent
export deals from India have been signed at between $330 and $335 a ton
free-on-board, more than $100 cheaper than European offers purchased by state
grains buyer the General Authority for Supply Commodities (GASC) in its latest
tender.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Erdogan
claims that Iraq backed Turkey’s push against Kurdish militants
20
April ,2022
Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said the central government in
Baghdad supported Turkey’s latest offensive against outlawed Kurdish militants
in northern Iraq.
The
Turkish leader’s comments came a day after Iraq summoned Turkey’s ambassador to
Baghdad to lodge a formal protest against Erdogan’s latest military campaign.
Turkey’s
armed forces have reported the death of two soldiers and dozens of Kurdish
militants since the launch Sunday of their third offensive in northern Iraq
since 2020.
Erdogan
told a parliamentary meeting of his ruling party that both Baghdad and the
leaders of the autonomous Kurdish region based in Erbil supported Turkey’s
ground and air assault.
“I
thank the central government in Iraq and the regional administration for their
support to our fight against terror,” Erdogan said.
“I
wish success for our heroic soldiers involved in this operation, which we are
carrying out in close cooperation with the central Iraqi government and the
regional administration in northern Iraq.”
Some
analysts believe that Iraqi leaders -- while lodging formal protests -- are
privately happy that Turkey is trying to punish fighters from the Kurdistan
Workers Party (PKK).
The
group is recognized as a terrorist organization by both Ankara and its Western
allies.
The
PKK has been waging an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984 that has
claimed tens of thousands of lives.
But
officials in Baghdad are publicly voicing displeasure over the Turkish military
push into the mountains of northern Iraq.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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YPG/PKK
terrorists set fire to office of Kurdish opposition group in Syria
Ethem
Emre Özcan
21.04.2022
AL-HASAKAH,
Syria
The
YPG/PKK terrorist group raided and set fire to an office of a Kurdish
opposition group in Syria’s Al-Hasakah province Wednesday.
In
a statement, the Kurdish National Council (ENKS) said a group affiliated with
the PYD/YPG/PKK terror group raided the office of the Kurdistan Democratic
Party of Syria (KDP-S), a member of the Kurdish National Council in Syria, in
al-Darbasiyah subdistrict.
The
office of the KDP-S was set on fire with Molotov cocktails, it said.
The
ENKS also noted that it was not the first such instance and that the offices of
the member parties of the ENKS had been subjected to similar attacks before.
“The
terrorization policy of the PYD against our people and the burning of the
offices of the ENKS and its member parties are happening in front of the
coalition forces and the USA, which supports that organization that uses force against
us,” the statement said.
The
Kurdish opposition group urged the US to put pressure on the YPG/PKK terror
group to put an end to such raids and attacks on offices.
YPG/PKK
terrorists burned the ENKS office in al-Darbasiyah on Dec. 17, 2021 and attacked
two offices of the ENKS and the office of a media organization in Qamishli
district of al-Hasakah on Sept. 28, 2021 with Molotov cocktails.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Ezidis
in Iraq want terrorist group PKK to leave Sinjar so they can return home
20.04.2022
DUHOK,
Iraq
Iraqi
Ezidis have been waiting to return to their homes ever since they had to leave
due to Daesh/ISIS attacks in 2014 in the Sinjar district of Mosul.
They
want the terrorist group PKK to leave Sinjar so they can return from camps
where they lived as refugees for eight years.
The
Ezidis from Sinjar, who have been staying in tents at refugee camps in Duhok,
told Anadolu Agency that they could not return to their homes due the presence
of the terrorist PKK in the district.
The
situation in Sinjar is very complicated and there is no security, said camp
resident Halil Resho.
He
said that they stayed in canvas tents in the camp at Duhok and that one burns
every day. Everyone in the tent has a relative who was kidnapped or killed by
Daesh/ISIS, he added.
Ali
Goro from Sinjar, also staying at a camp in Duhok, said that those in Mosul
returned to their homes, but no one helped them to return.
Goro
said the people of Sinjar cannot return to their homes due to the presence in
the region of the PKK and Hashd al-Shaabi militia (popular mobilization
forces).
He
said that even if they dared to return under these conditions, there is no
infrastructure, water, electricity, school, or hospital.
"So
it’s better for us to stay in tents than return," he said.
In
an Aug. 3, 2014 attack on the Sinjar district, where Ezidis live, Daesh/ISIS
kidnapped and killed thousands of people, including women and children, or
detained them in areas they hold.
Some
300,000 people lived in Sinjar before the attacks, two-thirds of them Ezidis
and the rest Sunni Kurds and Arabs.
Daesh/ISIS
has been active in the Iraqi provinces of Salahuddin, Anbar, Kirkuk, and
Diyala, at a time when the federal government is struggling to contain attacks
by the terrorist group by launching security and military operations in the
country’s northern, western, and eastern regions.
In
2017, Iraq declared victory over Daesh/ISIS by reclaiming all territories the
terrorist group controlled since the summer of 2014, estimated to be about
one-third of the country’s territory.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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OIC
urges action against ‘barbaric’ Israeli attacks on Palestinians
Ibrahim
Mukhtar
20.04.2022
The
Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Wednesday called for international
action to end “barbaric” Israeli attacks against Palestinian worshippers as
tension continues to flare up in occupied East Jerusalem.
In
a statement, the pan-Muslim grouping said Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha
has “dispatched identical letters to several international actors about the
ongoing Israeli violation of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque through incursion,
closure of the Mosque’s gates and barbaric attacks against innocent worshipers,
leading to hundreds of them being injured and arrested.”
The
57-member state body said the letters were sent to the permanent members of the
United Nation Security Council – the US, UK, Russia, France and China – as well
as the UN secretary-general and the EU high representative for foreign affairs.
Taha
warned that the “dangerous escalation of Israel’s aggression against the
Al-Aqsa Mosque is an attack on the religious rights and sensibilities of the
entire Islamic ummah (nation),” adding that it constitutes “a flagrant
violation of the relevant international resolutions and instruments that may
stoke religious war and violence in the region and beyond.”
The
OIC chief urged all international actors to act swiftly to pressure Israel “to
guarantee the rights of Muslims to pray freely in the Al-Aqsa Mosque and to
preserve the existing historical and legal status of the holy sites in occupied
Al-Quds.”
He
also called for intensifying “international efforts to revive the political
track that will end the Israeli occupation” and lead to the establishment of an
independent State of Palestine.
Tensions
have been running high across the Palestinian territories since the beginning
of April amid repeated Israeli arrest campaigns in the occupied West Bank.
Dozens
of Palestinian worshippers were injured Friday when Israeli forces stormed the
flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Daily
settler incursions into the site to celebrate the week-long Jewish Passover
holiday have further inflamed the situation.
Al-Aqsa
Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the
Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Twin
attack kills 3 Hashd Shaabi fighters in Iraq
Ali
Jawad
20.04.2022
BAGHDAD
Three
members of the pro-government Hashd al-Shaabi militia (Popular Mobilization
Forces) were killed in a twin attack on Wednesday in eastern Iraq, according to
a local military officer.
Daesh/ISIS
terrorists attacked with machineguns a security checkpoint of the Hashd
al-Shaabi in Kashkul area in Diyala province, the officer said on condition of
anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media.
A
bomb blast struck when Hashd fighters and civilians gathered at the scene of
the attack, the source said.
Eight
people were injured, including five civilians, he added.
Daesh/ISIS
has been active in the provinces of Salahuddin, Anbar, Kirkuk, and Diyala, at a
time when the federal government is struggling to contain the attacks of the
terrorist group by launching security and military operations in the northern,
western and eastern regions of the country.
In
2017, Iraq declared victory over Daesh/ISIS by reclaiming all territories the
terrorist group controlled since the summer of 2014 which was estimated to be
about a third of the country’s territory.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/twin-attack-kills-3-hashd-shaabi-fighters-in-iraq/2568223
--------
Africa
Images
of Sudan's Bashir in hospital draw anger on social media
20
April ,2022
Many
Sudanese social media users have reacted angrily to a video that emerged of
deposed President Omar al-Bashir walking around a hospital ward where he was
moved on the grounds he was too ill for prison, although some voiced support
for the ex-general.
Bashir,
deposed just over three years ago by a military coup after months of protests,
has been held in Kober Prison while on trial on charges of leading the 1989
army takeover that brought him to power, as well as on corruption and human
rights charges.
Reuters
could not independently confirm the authenticity of the video, which emerged
this week and whose origin is unclear. But the footage has not been disputed by
Bashir's lawyers, one of whom confirmed he is currently staying at the
hospital.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
In
the video, Bashir can be seen greeting visitors outside his hospital room,
smiling, and walking around within the hospital ward, dressed in casual
clothing and wearing a watch.
They
are the first publicly-available images of Bashir outside of courtroom
coverage.
In
another video he can be seen visiting a fellow patient in another room.
“The
former president's presence in the hospital is based on court-approved medical
reports that advised hospital treatment for his condition,” said Abdelrahman
Alkhalifa, one of the defence lawyers on the coup case.
Bashir's
lawyers have at times requested his transfer to the private military-owned
hospital where he is currently staying because of COVID-19 infections as well
as high blood pressure.
While
some on social media prayed for Bashir's recovery and release, others were
angered by what they said was lax treatment.
“It's
clear now that the martyrs of the revolution died for nothing,” said one user.
“Let
him visit whoever he likes, and walk through every hospital in the country,
what's important is he will never rule this country again, and his judgement
will be with god,” said another.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Blast
at bar in Nigeria kills 7, injures 19
Ibrahim
Garba Shuaibu
21.04.2022
KANO,
Nigeria
At
least seven people are dead and 19 seriously injured after an explosive device
went off at a bar in Nigeria’s northeastern Taraba state.
An
eyewitness, Fanen James, said Wednesday that they counted seven bodies before
they were transported to a hospital.
The
police said earlier that three people were dead and 19 others injured
The
incident occurred in the village of Iware in the Ardo-Kola Local Government
Area.
Police
spokesman Usman Abdullahi confirmed the incident to Anadolu Agency, saying the
command received a report from the divisional police officer in the nearby town
of Sunkani.
Abdullahi,
a deputy superintendent of police, said the bomb blast occurred at midnight
Tuesday.
He
said the injured were taken to Federal Medical Center in the state capital,
Jalingo, where they were receiving treatment.
He
added that no arrests have been made so far, but an investigation has begun.
Another
eyewitness, James Bulus, said someone threw an object into the bar and
immediately fled the scene.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/blast-at-bar-in-nigeria-kills-7-injures-19/2568937
--------
Tunisian
parties warn country heading towards dictatorship
Adel
Al-Thabti
20.04.2022
TUNIS,
Tunisia
Tunisia
is taking "resolute steps” towards dictatorship amid a deep political
crisis in the North African nation, three political parties warned on
Wednesday.
In
a joint statement, the Coordination of Social Democratic Forces, which brings
together the Democratic Current, the Republican Party, and the Democratic Bloc
for Labor and Freedoms, cited “the frequency of security and judicial abuses
against protesters and opposition, the repetition of divisive rhetoric of
(President) Kais Saied's speech, and the authorities' continuous ignorance of
the severe social and economic crisis" as examples to back their claim.
The
parties accused Saied of using the security and judiciary “to harass the
opposition” and ignoring the economic and social challenges facing Tunisians.
They also renewed their commitment to confront what they termed as a “creeping
dictatorship” in the country.
On
Monday, the Tunisian president said he was working to "enable the people
to express their will," while warning those who allege the country of
descending towards dictatorship as "dancing on the ropes.”
Tunisia
has been in the throes of a deep political crisis since July 25, 2021 when
Saied dismissed the government, suspended parliament, and assumed executive
authority, in a move decried by opponents as a “coup.”
The
North African country is also going through a severe economic crisis aggravated
by the coronavirus pandemic amid the ongoing Russian war on Ukraine.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/tunisian-parties-warn-country-heading-towards-dictatorship/2568595
-------
North America
US
Muslims Call Out Double Standard After Video Of Christians Singing On Plane
Over Easter Weekend Goes Viral
By
Zainab Iqbal
20
April 2022
US
Muslims have called out a double standard after a video of a group singing
Christian hymns and playing the guitar on a plane over Easter weekend went
viral.
Footage
from the flight, believed to have occurred around 9 April, showed Christians
singing gospel music '30,000 feet in the air' in a video that has sparked
debate about the nature of worship on flights.
US
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, a Democrat and one of a handful of Muslims in the US
Congress, reshared the video on her personal Twitter account on Easter Sunday
and posed the question about how her own family would be received if they
decided to hold a "prayer session" while flying.
"I
think my family and I should have a prayer session next time I am on a
plane," the Minnesota lawmaker said in a tweet. "How do you think it
will end?"
Several
conservatives hit back, accusing the Democrats of hating Christians.
Royce
White, a Republican challenger to Omar's Minnesota seat, wrote: "I'm
coming for your seat. Don't disrespect Christianity!" and added, "The
Democrats you serve don’t believe in God. Their platform is openly anti-God.
Minneapolis will not become Mogadishu. We will not bend the knee."
Vernon
Jones, a Democrat-turned-Republican politician and staunch supporter of former
US President Donald Trump, slammed Omar over the tweet, asking: "Why do
you hate Christians, Ilhan?"
Jalal
Suleman, a New Jersey resident, told Middle East Eye that he didn't understand
why Omar and other Muslims were facing criticism "for calling out the
hypocrisy".
"Flying
while Muslim is a real thing and unless you are a Muslim, you won't know how
difficult it actually is.
"We
have all gotten looks from strangers on a plane. My beard is apparently a cause
for concern. I don’t think that is something that will end any time soon. But
the double standard must stop," he said.
What
about singing nasheeds?
Shazia
Mumtaz, a Pennsylvania resident, told MEE that she wrote "What is this
hypocrisy?" in the video's comments section when she saw the video.
"I
am someone who flies often. I wear a hijab and wear an abaya. I worry about my
safety every single time I travel. I call and speak to my family before
boarding the plane just so no one can hear me speaking another language. I
don’t make eye contact with anyone. I don't text. Heck, I don't even
read," she told MEE.
"I
take the most precautions but I still have people staring at me. Once someone
requested to change their seat when I sat next to them. I didn't make a big
deal out of it, but seeing things like that is extremely hurtful," she
said.
"Imagine
a Muslim group getting up and singing nasheeds (hymns) on a plane? There would
have been a totally different reaction."
In
2006, six imams were taken off a US Airways flight in Minneapolis and were
detained for several hours after some passengers and crew members complained of
what they felt was suspicious behaviour.
The
imams were going home after attending a conference of the North American Imams
Federation. The New York Times reported that one passenger had slipped a crew
member a note which said: "6 suspicious Arabic men on a plane, spaced out
in their seats. All were together, saying 'Allah… Allah' cursing US involvement
with [Saddam Hussein] before flight."
More
recently, in 2020, two men were taken off a flight for texting in Arabic. They
had been taking a business trip when another passenger saw their text messages
and reported them as suspicious even though the person didn't speak the
language, Complex reported.
Imraan
Siddiqi, the executive director at the Council on American-Islamic Relations
Washington, told MEE that some Muslims had faced a torrent of abuse in recent
years while flying across the US.
"The
aeroplane for Muslims has become a place where you have to be on your best
behaviour… don't say Insha'Allah, don't text in Arabic; don't read that book -
or else someone may report you."
Source:
Middle East Eye
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
US-Saudi
relationship ‘historic and remains strong’: Saudi Embassy in Washington
21
April ,2022
An
official at the Saudi Embassy in Washington said Wednesday that ties between
the US and Saudi Arabia were “historic and remain[ed] strong,” following an
article that depicted the relationship as “reaching its lowest point in
decades.”
Ties
between Washington and Riyadh have soured since the Biden administration took
office and made several foreign policy moves seen as targeting Saudi Arabia.
But disagreements do not mean that both countries will stop looking at ways to
bolster bilateral ties, the official said.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
“Over
the course of the last 77 years of Saudi-US relations, there have been many
disagreements and differing points of view over many issues, but that has never
stopped the two countries from finding a way to work together to achieve the
best interests of both nations,” the official said in an e-mailed statement.
The
Wall Street Journal published an article earlier this week titled “How US-Saudi
Relations Reached the Breaking Point,” citing US and Saudi officials.
The
article also referred to meetings between senior Biden administration officials
and Saudi officials in recent months as being tense, with some including
“shouting.”
Two
specific meetings mentioned in the article were between National Security
Advisor Jake Sullivan and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman last year and
another between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Saudi Deputy Minister of
Defense Prince Khalid bin Salman.
The
Saudi official said the meeting between the crown prince and Sullivan was
“cordial and respectful,” while they described the meeting between Blinken and
Prince Khalid as “fruitful.”
A
White House National Security Council spokeswoman later told the Journal that
“there was no shouting” during Sullivan’s meeting with the crown prince.
The
Saudi Embassy official said: “Contrary to this report on the state of affairs
between the Kingdom and the United States, the relationship is historic and
remains strong.
“There
is daily contact between officials on an institutional level and there is close
coordination on issues ranging from security, defense, counterterrorism, to
strengthening economic cooperation and investments, to working together on
climate and energy security.”
The
Journal’s article also mentioned a claim that the Saudi Crown Prince wanted US
President Joe Biden to recognize “his legitimate claim to inherit the throne.”
The
Saudi official said this was “nonsensical.”
“This
story is riddled with fallacies,” the official added.
As
for the Yemen war, where the Biden administration has been trying to help
mediate a peaceful solution, the Saudi official said the US and Saudi Arabia
were coordinating closely to bring peace to the war-torn country through
diplomacy.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
US
Treasury Secretary reiterates importance of ties with Saudi Arabia
20
April ,2022
US
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reiterated the importance of US-Saudi bilateral
ties during a virtual meeting with her Saudi counterpart, the Treasury Department
said Wednesday.
Yellen
met with Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan where she
welcomed the continued partnership between the two countries in combatting
terrorist financing in the region, according to a readout of Tuesday’s meeting.
“The
Secretary and Minister Al-Jadaan discussed the global economy, including the
impact from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on the region, as well as energy
markets and food security,” the Treasury Department said.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Europe
Turkey’s
FM says some NATO allies want ‘longer’ Ukraine war to weaken Russia
20
April ,2022
Some
NATO countries want Russia’s war on Ukraine to last longer to weaken Moscow, Turkish
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told CNN Turk on Wednesday.
“There
are countries within NATO that want the Ukraine war to continue. They see the
continuation of the war as weakening Russia. They don't care much about the
situation in Ukraine,” Cavusoglu said without naming countries in the North
Atlantic alliance.
Turkey
enjoys good relations with both Kyiv and Moscow and has been mediating for an
end to the war. It hosted direct negotiations between the two countries last
month.
But
the Turks shied away from sanctioning the Russians alongside their Western
allies, preferring not to jeopardize their ties with Moscow.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
“We
disagree with the sanctions. It is important here that we continue our
diplomatic contacts with both sides. Turkey is needed here. We are in a country
where both sides trust,” the Turkish foreign minister said.
Ankara
had offered to host a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Peace
process between Israel, Palestine must resume: EU official
Agnes
Szucs
20.04.2022
BRUSSELS
The
recent upsurge of violence in West Bank underlines the immediate need to reopen
the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians, an EU official said on
Tuesday.
The
European Union follows the recent flare of violence in the West Bank “with
great concern,” said Peter Stano, the European Commission’s lead spokesperson
on foreign policy.
The
EU calls on all parties “to exercise maximum restraint to refrain from violence
and to avoid all forms of provocations,” he stressed.
The
latest events underline “again the need to restore the political horizon and to
open the path towards the relaunch of the peace process as soon as possible
between the Israelis and Palestinians."
He
added that the bloc works with both sides, as well as international partners to
support the relaunching of these negotiations.
Tensions
have been running high across Palestinian territories since the beginning of
April amid repeated Israeli arrest campaigns in the occupied West Bank.
Dozens
of Palestinians were injured Friday in clashes with Israeli forces in the
flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem.
Daily
settler incursions into the site to celebrate the week-long Jewish Passover
holiday have further inflamed the situation.
Al-Aqsa
Mosque is the world's third-holiest site for Muslims. Jews call the area the
Temple Mount, claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Muslim
worshippers attacked outside East Ham mosque
21
APR 2022
Police
are investigating allegations of a racially aggravated assault after a group of
worshippers were injured in an attack outside a mosque in East Ham.
Officers
were called at about 21:00 BST on Tuesday to reports a number of men, armed
with bottles and hockey sticks, had attacked members of the Masjid Bilal and
Islamic Centre.
A
bin containing paper was set on fire outside the building on Pilgrims Way.
A
number of people had minor injuries, but did not require treatment.
The
Met Police said officers searched but found no trace of the suspects and no
arrests have yet been made.
Source:
BBC News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-61168457
--------
India
Hindu
Migrant Workers In Hyderabad Opt For Muslim Names For ‘Safety’ Because Of
Issues Pertaining To Muslims In UP
Shaista
Khan
20th
April 2022
Hyderabad:
In the labyrinth like lanes of the Old City, Manoj (27), a native of Gorakhpur
in Uttar Pradesh moves, around selling Pani Puri on an old pushcart every
evening. His business continues till late nights and the man mainly goes around
Muslim dominated areas of GM Chawni, Al Jubail colony, Phoolbagh and nearby
places in Chandrayangutta.
Ask
him his name, and he will introduce himself to you as “Rashid”. Ask him why he
hides his real identity; he replies “Kya Kareh, Darr Lagta Hain, Koi Pakad Kar
Peet Na Deh. Hamare Yaha Thoda Gadbadh Chalta Hain Na Musalman Ko Lekar, (What
to do? I am scared that someone will beat me up. Back home there are issues
pertaining to Muslims)” he says with a sense of fear.
Manoj
migrated to Hyderabad six years ago and since then he has been selling pani
puri in the older areas of the city. “I stay at Sultan Shahi along with my
friends who are from UP while our families stay in our hometown and we send
them money every month,” he says.
Scores
like Manoj migrate to the different cities across India every day in search of
decent livelihood means and do odd jobs. A lot of them land in Hyderabad too,
and are settled in Sultan Shahi, Nashemannagar, Bhavaninagar and other areas in
the south of the city.
“Our
priority is to earn and sustain. We are away from all politics, hatred and
violence. Some people in our native states are doing nonsense which does not
benefit anyone. See because of them we stay in fear elsewhere, they should
understand repercussions of their acts,” said Rakesh, who sells ice cream at
Hafeezbabanagar road till late at night. For most however, he goes by the name.
Both
the migrants are facing the repurcussions of anti-muslim violebce and hate
speeches that are a common recurrence back home. More recently, the violence
following Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanthi thar has gripped states like Madhrya
Pradesh, Karnataka, Delhi, Gujarat and other places has instilled a fear among
non-Muslim migrants who work in the Muslim dominant areas, even though there is
no such cause for worry.
Their
pprehension comes from a perceived fear in Hyderabad, where they feel that the
anti-Muslim violence back in their home states will become a social burden on
them. (It may be be however noted that Karnataka, a state in the south, has now
become the new communal ground in India off-late).
His
colleague Ram adds due to the recent instances of communal disturbances in
India, his family warned him to be careful. ” Wven our elders staying here ask
us not to hang around till late nights on roads. We do not tie any lemon or
mirchi to the cart, nor do we wear a thread in our hands or apply tilak for
fear of being identified. Basically avoid things that help anyone identify our
religion, these are just precautions,” he said.
Hyderabad
is no less than Dubai for the people in UP, Bihar, MP and Jharkhand. “There are
several rags to riches stories. People came empty handed to the city and
returned with bags full of money in a short period. Lot of job opportunities,
low rents and cheap food are advantages. Moreover there is peace here,” says
Babuloo, a native of Varanasi.
According
to them, there is a lot of poverty in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand
and Bihar because of which they come here to take up odd jobs and sustain.
“Basically many are craftsmen engaged in vocations like hand embroidery, saree
printing, chappal making etc. Because of COVID-19 the industry is down so we
took up small jobs and earn about Rs. 8,000 to Rs. 10,000 a month,” said Ajay,
a native of Ghaziabad.
After
the COVID-19 pandemic, many landed in financial distress, and after the
lockdowns were lifted, new communal disturbances in other states amidst rising
inflation is another big point of worry for them. “Kitna bhi kamao, kamhi
padtha hain,” says Ajay.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/hyderabad-hindu-migrant-workers-opt-for-muslim-names-for-safety-2312555/
--------
Indian
American Muslim Council Condemns Vandalism Of Indian Muslim Properties During
Ramzan
20th
April 2022
Washington
DC: The Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC), an advocacy group dedicated to safeguarding
India’s constitutional, on Wednesday condemned the large-scale violence against
Muslims across several Indian states during Ramzan.
In
a report published by IAMC, they invoke news reports and videos circulating on
different social media platforms, which clearly suggest that the violence was
orchestrated by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the Hindu supremacist
paramilitary organization and its militant affiliates like Vishwa Hindu
Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal. The RSS is the ideological parent of Prime
Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Further,
the report illustrates the violence which took place across the states in India
in April.
States
where vandalism took place:
Muslim
homes, businesses, mosques and shrines were attacked, vandalized and burnt in
the BJP ruled Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. In Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone city,
the epicenter of violence, the local administration demolished Muslim homes and
shops, doubly victimizing them after Hindu extremist mobs had terrorized and
targeted them. In Gujarat’s Himmatnagar, the Hindu extremists set fire to a
Muslim shrine.
Delhi:
In
Delhi’s Jahangirpuri, VHP and Bajrang Dal militants, armed with swords,
tridents and guns, took out a rally on Hanuman Jayanti and tried to hoist
saffron flag and pelted stones at a mosque. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
government in Delhi has blamed the BJP for instigating the violence, stating
that the AAP’s Hanuman Jayanti procession had been entirely peaceful.
Uttarakhand:
In
Roorkee, Uttarakhand, Muslims reported that Hindu extremist mobs stormed Muslim
dominated areas of the city, petling stones at properties, attempting to break
into homes, and chanting hateful slogans. Hindu extremists threatened to
bulldoze Muslim-owned homes and forced several Muslim families to flee.
Telangana:
Raja
Singh, a BJP leader from Telangana state, was booked by Hyderabad police for
leading a Hindu extremist rally and delivering an anti-Muslim hate speech.
Singh had claimed that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a close
ally of Prime Minister Modi, would “use a bulldozer to clean the country” and
“turn it into a Hindu Rashtra (nation) very soon.”
Instead
of holding the Hindu extremists accountable, the police in the states ruled by
the BJP have arrested Muslims on false and fabricated charges of violence.
IAMC’s
appeal:
“Every
religious group has a right to celebrate their festivals. However, it is
shameful and despicable that Hindu extremists in India are using their
festivals to terrorize Indian Muslims with physical assaults, vandalism, and
arson. It is alarming that these acts of large-scale violence are being
committed in the presence of the police,” said Rasheed Ahmed, Executive
Director of IAMC.
IAMC
urges the international human rights organizations & civil society groups
to take note of the deteriorating situation in India, which has a potential to
turn into a full-blown Muslim and Christian genocide in the coming months
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/iamc-condemns-vandalism-of-indian-muslim-properties-during-ramzan-2312116/
--------
Muslim
Innovator’s Magic Hands Help India’s Troubled Farmers Of Karnataka And Outside
Ahmad
Adil
21.04.2022
NEW
DELHI
A
septuagenarian Muslim innovator’s magic touch is transforming the lives of
thousands of distressed farmers in India’s southern province of Karnataka and
outside.
Even
as 70% of people depend upon agriculture directly or indirectly in India, the
spate of suicides by farmers due to indebtedness and crop losses has been
testing the nerves of successive governments.
Over
17,000 farmers have committed suicide over the past three years due to
indebtedness and crop losses, according to figures presented in parliament
earlier this year.
Farm
scientist and innovator Abdul Khader Nadakattin, 73, has been designing unique
ways and equipment to help farmers to increase their productivity through skill
development and counseling.
Speaking
to Anadolu Agency coinciding with the World Creativity and Innovation Day,
which is being observed on Thursday, Nadakattin said his last wish is to stop
farmers from committing suicides due to distress. He is setting up a charitable
trust to help farmers financially as well as to provide them counseling.
“Everyone
helps the farmer's family when he commits suicide, but, no one makes effort to
save his life, before the suicide. Through the trust, our focus would remain to
prevent people from committing suicide and farmers would be provided help
financially,” he said.
Recognizing
his contribution, the Indian government conferred the fourth highest civilian
award Padma Shri to Nadakattin earlier this year for helping the farmers.
"All
his innovations demonstrate principles of sustainability, cost-effectiveness,
eco-friendliness, and most importantly social acceptance. His in-depth
knowledge of agro-climatic conditions and soil characteristics has made him an
inspiration to other farmers in the country,” said the government statement,
while announcing the award.
Experts
say that the machines devised by Nadakattin have been helping farmers to save
millions of rupees.
Dedicated
innovator
To
continue innovations, Nadakattin had to sell his property worth millions and at
a time had got so distressed that he thought of committing suicide.
"There
was a time and owned property worth millions. But, then for the research and
work, I sold everything. When the situation was very difficult for me, at one
point in time, I even thought of committing suicide. So, I always want farmers
should get help as much I can through my research and innovation,” he said.
The
septuagenarian innovator said that he urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi during
the award ceremony to support people who are in the research activity.
Tracing
his journey of innovation, Nadakattin said he had first invented a water alarm
when he was still studying in school. He soon moved to work on farms and
focused on working for farmers.
"I
used to be in the fields, so I would think about the problems a farmer is
facing. Then my work in the agriculture field started,” he said.
According
to Nadakattin, he is currently in the final stages of rolling out pathbreaking
innovations.
"My
first innovation was a sowing machine which become popular among the farmers
across the country. I am working on two more innovations,” he said.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Kerala:
CPM Pulls Up Former MLA George M Thomas For Embarrassing ‘Love Jihad’ Quip
Apr
21, 2022
KOZHIKODE:
CPM has publicly censured Kozhikode district secretariat member and former MLA
George M Thomas for warning about the threat of 'love jihad', a phenomenon that
the party refuses to even acknowledge.
In
the CPM's list of disciplinary measures, 'public censure' is more than a rap on
the knuckles but stops short of something more severe like suspension from the
party. The decision was taken at a party district committee meeting on
Wednesday afternoon.
Thomas,
who represented Thiruvambady constituency twice in the assembly, sparked a row
by stating that 'love jihad' was taking place in Kerala, albeit rarely, and
even party documents had mentioned that it was a reality.
CPM's
Kozhikode secretary P Mohanan said though Thomas accepted his mistake, the
party found it necessary to publicly censure him as he had made a public
statement that went against the party's stand. "Comrades should voice
their opinion on issues in line with party policy and stand. The decision was
taken unanimously with the approval of George M Thomas," he said.
Thomas
had voiced his opinion on April 12 while talking to the media on the interfaith
marriage of local DYFI leader MS Shejin (born in a Muslim family) and Joisna
Joseph (a Christian) in Kodenchery panchayat. Thomas said though their decision
to get married didn't fall under love jihad, Shejin's act to marry Joisna
without informing the party was wrong.
Mohanan
had rejected his remarks the next day by saying that CPM's stand on the matter
was 'love jihad was a term contrived by RSS and Sangh Parivar to target, attack
and insult minorities'. Though he tried to put a lid on the matter by terming
George's remarks as a slip of the tongue, CPM's state leadership took a serious
view as the leader had voiced an opinion that contradicted the party stand.
Also, his remarks that party documents had mentioned that love jihad was a
reality was pointed out as a mistake as there had not been a mention of it in
party documents in that sense.
Thomas
was purportedly referring to the in-house party note of September 2021. It said
that 'deliberate attempts are being made to lure youth into communalism and
extremist ideologies. Conscious efforts are on to make educated young women in
professional colleges to think that way'.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Top
LeT commander among 2 terrorists killed in encounter in Jammu and Kashmir's
Baramulla
Apr
21, 2022
SRINAGAR:
A top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander, Yousuf Lattoo, and one more were killed
in an encounter with security forces in Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir
on Thursday, the police said.
Three
soldiers were injured in the initial exchange of fire between the two sides, they
said.
Based
on inputs about the presence of terrorists in Baramulla's Malwah in north
Kashmir, security forces launched a cordon and search operation, a police
official said.
The
search operation turned into an encounter after the terrorists fired upon the
forces, who retaliated.
"Top
LeT terrorist Commander Yousuf Kantroo has been killed in the Baramulla
encounter," Inspector General of Police, Kashmir zone, Vijay Kumar said,
adding that Kantroo was involved in killings of civilians and security personnel.
"Kantroo
was also involved in the recent killing of a special police officer and his
brother, a soldier and a civilian in Budgam district," the IGP said,
adding that the LeT commander's killing is "a big success for us".
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Terrorism
biggest form of human rights violation: Amit Shah
Apr
21, 2022
NEW
DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said terrorism is the biggest
form of human rights violation, and it is absolutely necessary to root out the
menace to protect people's rights.
Addressing
the 13th foundation day of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) here, Shah
said the cases registered against terror funding in Jammu and Kashmir have
helped to a great extent in curbing terrorism in the union territory.
"I
believe there can't be more human rights violation than terrorism. Terrorism is
the biggest form of human rights violation. It is absolutely necessary to root
out terrorism to protect human rights," he said.
The
home minister said the Narendra Modi government has adopted a zero-tolerance
policy towards terrorism and was working to root out the menace from India.
Because
of the terror funding cases of Jammu and Kashmir registered by the NIA, it has
become very difficult now to provide funds for terror acts there, Shah said.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Hyderabad:
Congress’ Dharna Calls On Muslims To Boycott CM’s Iftar Party
21st
April 2022
Hyderabad:
The Congress on Wednesday held a massive dharna in Hyderabad reiterating its
call for boycott of Iftar party to be hosted by Chief Minister K.
Chandrashekhar Rao and demanded that the TRS government provide jobs and loans
to the minority communities.
Led
by Hyderabad City Congress Committee (HCCC) Minorities Dept Chairman Sameer
Waliullah, Congress senior leaders, including TPCC spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin
and others, held the dharna at Masab Tank on Wednesday after Zohar prayers.
“This
is apparent for the first time in history that Muslims are holding a protest
during Ramzan. This is not politics. This is a fight for justice. We are being
denied jobs and loans by the TRS government. The chief minister was trying to
lure the poor Muslims with a pack of Biryani and khajoor once a year. This has
been going on for the last eight years and now the community got tired of such
cheap tactics,” Sameer Waliullah said while speaking to the media at the dharna
in Masab Tank.
Sameer
Waliullah said the previous Congress government ensured educational, economical
and political empowerment of poor Muslims through 4% reservation and other
measures. However, KCR, who came to power on the promise of giving 12% Muslim
reservations cheated the community on multiple fronts.
“The
annual Iftar party is a major tool used by CM KCR to cheat the Muslims. This
event has nothing to do with Iftar, which is an auspicious occasion to break
the Roza. CM KCR and his home minister Mahmood Ali are trying to pollute the
spirit of Ramzan by using occasions like Iftar to humiliate the entire
community.
By
offering a meal once a year, they are giving the wrong message that Muslims don’t
need jobs or loans for self-employment. The Sherwani-Biryani combo will not
impress the minorities anymore,” he added.
Speaking
to media persons on the occasion, TPCC Spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin accused the
TRS Govt of maligning the image of Muslims of Telangana. “Instead of providing
education, jobs, loans, and other opportunities on par with other citizens, the
TRS Govt was humiliating the poor Muslims every year by giving them a gift pack
of about Rs 200.”
The
Congress activists were holding a long banner with the hashtag
#BoycottKCRIftarParty. The slogans on the other placards read “Mr. KCR, Where
is 12% Muslim Reservation? TRS implementing RSS Agenda; KCR is Modi Agent; Poor
Muslims Needs Jobs & Loans, Not Alms.”
Source:
Siasat Daily
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Southeast Asia
If
It’s Haram To Defend Criminals, There Will Be No Malay Muslim Lawyers, Says
Minister in PMO
20
Apr 2022
KUALA
LUMPUR: If it is sinful for lawyers to receive payments from those who had
committed a crime, then there would be no Malay Muslim lawyers in the country,
said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku
Jaafar (pic).
Wan
Junaidi was referring to remarks made by Perlis mufti Asri Zainul Abidin, who
recently said Islam forbade Muslim lawyers from protecting wrongdoers or
sinners, and it was sinful to accept service payment from offenders.
Wan
Junaidi said a clarification on the matter should be given by Malaysian Bar, as
it was the regulating body for the lawyer profession in Malaysia.
"Lawyers
have to pay salaries (to their workers) too. So, I’m asking the Malaysian Bar
to make a decision, otherwise all Malay Muslims cannot serve as lawyers,"
he said.
Wan
Junaidi was speaking to reporters during press conference after a ministerial
breaking fast event at the Berjaya Times Square hotel on Wednesday (April 20).
"Imagine
this, if I lose my case and I’m not allowed to collect fees because it’s
illegal. No on would want to be a lawyer," added the Santubong MP.
Wan
Junaidi also said according to the rule of law, an individual was considered
innocent until proven guilty.
"Only
the courts can decide who is guilty or not," said Wan Junaidi, adding that
lawyers have no power to decide if an individual is guilty or not.
On
Tuesday (April 19), Asri said lawyers must evaluate the kind of cases they
choose to defend in court.
Source:
The Star
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Desecration
Of Holy Quran: Respect Religious Beliefs Of Muslims, China To Sweden
April
21, 2022
BEIJING:
China on Wednesday criticised Sweden after a recent incident took place
involving desecration of copies of Holy Quran, foreign media reported.
"Freedom
of speech cannot be a reason to incite racial or cultural discrimination and
tear society apart," said Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of China's Foreign
Ministry, referring to the incident that triggered widespread condemnation
across the Muslim world.
"We
hope Sweden can earnestly respect the religious beliefs of minority groups,
including Muslims," Wang said, according to the Chinese daily, Global
Times. Last week, Rasmus Paludan, the leader of the far-right Stram Kurs (Hard
Line) group, desecrated a copy of the Muslim holy book in Sweden's southern
Linkoping city. He also threatened to do so in future rallies.
Source:
The News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/952067-respect-religious-beliefs-of-muslims-china-to-sweden
--------
SIS
study: Communication failure now main cause of marriage breakdowns in Malaysia,
above domestic violence
20
Apr 2022
BY
SHAHRIN AIZAT NOORSHAHRIZAM
KUALA
LUMPUR, April 20 — The number one cause of separated marriages in Malaysia last
year was communication breakdowns, according to a study released today by
women’s advocacy group Sisters In Islam (SIS) that is behind the legal aid
clinic dubbed Telenisa.
The
study noted that domestic violence has fallen to second place for the first
time in three years, after topping the list from 2018 until 2020.
“Communication
breakdown was the most stated reason for divorce recorded, at 25 per cent.
Domestic violence fell as the second most reason for divorce in 2021, at 23 per
cent, and it has remained as the top four recorded reasons for seeking divorce
since 2018.
“The
third most recorded reason for divorce in 2021 at 20 per cent was a situation
when the husband fails to provide maintenance, an increase from 18 per cent in
2020. Infidelity was the fourth most recorded reason at 11 per cent, followed
by polygamy at eight per cent,” it was announced during the study findings
revelation breaking fast event at Grand Millennium Hotel here.
SIS
senior legal officer Ireeny Muzammel told Malay Mail their clients said that
they no longer shared the same mindsets with their partners.
“Every
single time they try to have a conversation or a sound discussion with their
partner, it always ends up with them arguing even more and making things worse
than it already was,” she said.
Additional
Ta’liq still taboo among Muslim couples
At
the same event, SIS also said the Ta’liq, a marriage agreement between Muslim
couples, remained underused in the country.
The
Ta’liq could be interpreted as a “safety net” for the wife, and is meant to be
recited by the husband during marriage solemnisation (akad nikah), in which he
makes vows to her.
These
vows include not mistreating her, not abandoning her for four consecutive months,
not failing to provide financial support for the same period, and not causing
any harm or abuse to her. A breach of these vows would entitle the wife to seek
a divorce.
Ireeny
said the Ta’liq remained underused despite there being standard texts for recital
in all of the country’s states.
“The
most highly requested additional conditions or ta’liq are the husband must not
be allowed to enter polygamous marriage without consent, the second is the
husband must not hinder the wife’s right to continue her education or go to
work,” she said.
She
said Telenisa clients have complained that marriage registrars often ridiculed
and rejected the additional ta’liq, even when the groom and the bride agreed to
include these before entering their marriage.
“The
marriage registrar or the religious authority officers would insinuate that
there are complicated procedures for this to be done, i.e. it needs to get
approval and registration from the Syariah Court.
“The
truth is, there is no such requirement under the law for such application to be
done first prior to the registration of additional ta’liq. It is clear under
the law that the marriage registrar has a duty to register any other additional
provisions that are already agreed by both bride and groom,” she added.
Source:
Malay Mail
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Hijrah24
able to revive Tabung Haji’s businesses, investments, says PM Ismail Sabri
20
Apr 2022
KUALA
LUMPUR, April 20 — The Hijrah24 Plan that was launched today is believed to be
able to revive the business and investment activities of Lembaga Tabung Haji
(TH) to ensure the continuity and excellence of TH.
Prime
Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said he was told that the plan was
developed in line with the values and characteristics of Keluarga Malaysia
(Malaysian Family), which inculcated the values of inclusiveness, togetherness
and gratitude.
According
to the Prime Minister, Hijrah24 is TH’s 2022-2024 Strategic Transformation Plan
to drive the organisation forward for the next three years, especially in
facing future challenges.
“I
was informed that this plan covers 24 strategic initiatives to achieve TH’s
aspirations, with focus on strengthening the structure of corporate governance,
operations as well as being driven by the digitalisation initiative,” he said
when launching the Hijrah24 plan here today.
Also
present were Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs)
Datuk Idris Ahmad, TH chaimanTan Sri Azman Mokhtar as well as TH Group managing
director and chief executive officer Datuk Seri Amrin Awaluddin.
Through
Hijrah24, TH has set several main targets, namely increasing the size of the
fund to RM100 billion by 2024 and increasing the number of depositors to cover
more than 50 per cent of Malaysia’s Muslim population.
Also
targeted are the distribution of profits to depositors at a rate in excess of
0.75 per cent of the Islamic rate of return, an increase in users of THiJARI to
more than four million, Customer Satisfaction Index exceeding 90 per cent and
Member Engagement Index exceeding 75 per cent.
“I
wish to congratulate Tabung Haji for its efforts to ensure this Islamic
institution, which is an icon of national pride, continues to be competitive
and remain relevant.
“I
pray that Hijrah24 can deliver come the end of the 2024 period as planned.
Congratulations also to Tabung Haji for always being ready to carry out
transformation to be effective,” he said.
The
Prime Minister said the government placed high hopes on Tabung Haji and would
continue to provide assistance for its efforts and initiatives for the
interests of haj pilgrims and Muslims.
Meanwhile,
Ismail Sabri said TH was one of the largest syariah-compliant investment
management groups in Malaysia, with assets worth RM87.3 billion and deposits
totalling RM86.5 billion from 8.4 million depositors.
The
Prime Minister said that from 1986 to last year, TH had distributed profits
worth RM35.6 billion to its depositors.
“From
2001 onwards, TH has provided haj financial assistance amounting to RM2.02
billion to ease the financial burden of Keluarga Malaysia pilgrims,” he said.
Source:
Malay Mail
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
South Asia
‘Hindus,
Muslims Live Peacefully In Bangladesh But Some Elements Try And Create
Conflict’: US Ambassador For International Religious Freedom
Apr
20, 2022
The
US is encouraged to see that people from different faith groups live together
peacefully in Bangladesh, but there are some elements who divide and create
conflicts, said US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom
Rashad Hussain today.
"By
and large, from my observation, for example, I see Hindus and Muslims are
living together peacefully," he said after holding a meeting with the
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam at the foreign ministry today.
Asked
about his statement on the violence against the Hindu community during Durga
Puja celebration last year, he said he was very concerned about that.
However,
he said, "We were also very encouraged to see strong statement from the
government."
He
said he visited some people of the Hindu communities this morning and their own
assessment was that Hindus and Muslims are living together largely peacefully.
"But,
there are some people who are coming from the outside and trying to create
conflicts so we must not allow those that are trying to divide us and create
that type of division," Rashad Hussain told journalists.
Asked
who were the outsiders trying to create division, he said that's a question for
the law enforcement agencies to investigate.
"We
must encourage those who are trying to bring people together and condemn those
who are trying to divide us."
He
said the US believes in religious freedom of all --Christians, Buddhists,
Muslims and Hindus.
"We
want to see religious freedom for all people everywhere in the world. Whether
it is Pakistan, Bangladesh, India or the United States. That's our message
here."
Hussain,
the first Muslim-American ever to hold the title of ambassador-at-large for
Religious Freedom, was also President Obama's special envoy to the Organisation
for Islamic Cooperation (OIC). He began his four-day visit to Bangladesh on
April 17.
Source:
The Daily Star
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
World
Bank to Resume Three Major Projects in Afghanistan
20
Apr 2022
World
Bank is all set to resume three major projects worth $450 million in
Afghanistan after being halted in reaction to the closure of girls’ schools by
the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
Reuters
has cited its anonymous sources in the bank saying that the projects are in the
sectors of health, agriculture, and livelihood but the one in the educational
sector is yet to get started.
Officials
of the bank have decided to resume preparation for the projects after
Afghanistan’s economic crisis deepened even further.
The
four projects worth $600 million were the money that was released by the bank
from Afghanistan’s Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF).
The
educational sector of Afghanistan was allocated $150 million.
Aimed
at discussing Afghanistan’s economic and security situation, the US state
Treasury has announced that the ARTF’s donors will meet on Friday, April 22,
2022.
UNAMA,
IMF, and Islamic Development Bank are also supposed to take part in the
meeting.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/world-bank-to-resume-three-major-projects-in-afghanistan-7496757656/
--------
Taliban
flouting basic human rights in Afghanistan: Report
21
April, 2022
Kabul
[Afghanistan], April 21 (ANI): Ever since the Taliban took control of Kabul in
mid-August last year, the right to education, especially for girls, has been a
major concern as the Islamic outfit has time and again flouted the basic human
rights in Afghanistan.
The
Taliban have issued a decree banning female students above grade six from
attending their classes in schools. The girls were further told to stay home
until the Islamic Emirate announces its next decision.
The
decision by the Islamic Emirate has drawn severe backlash across the world with
the Foreign Ministers of Canada, France, Italy, Norway, the United Kingdom, the
United States of America, and the High Representative of the European Union
issuing a joint statement to condemn the Taliban’s decision to deny Afghan
girls the opportunity to go back to schools.
The
envoys and representatives of the European Union, US, and the European
countries in a recent joint statement have also said that the international aid
to Kabul will depend on Afghanistan’s ability to ensure access to education for
girls at all levels
Although
the first Taliban regime [1996-2001] remained a pariah state, the international
law obligations of Afghanistan were not extinguished merely on account of that
fact. The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, during its 20 years of existence
from 2001 onwards, was the legitimate vessel for the exercise of Afghanistan’s
sovereignty, assuming all attendant rights and obligations, Global Watch
Analysis said in its report.
Taliban’s
U-turn on girls’ education is most disconcerting. The decision, sudden and
unexpected even for the executing officials, suggests that it might have been
the whims of hardliners that prevailed over any step that returns the country
to normalcy, the report said.
The
order was not accompanied by any reasoning. There is no mention of any timeline
by which schools shall once again be opened for girls, according to the report.
The
system does not provide for any judicial remedy against such a drastic and
draconian move. All these factors taken together, it is evident that the
Taliban regime in Afghanistan does not follow the rule of law, however
conservative, Global Watch Analysis reported.
Source:
The Print
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://theprint.in/world/taliban-flouting-basic-human-rights-in-afghanistan-report/924454/
--------
Afghan
refugee gunned down in mosque attack
April
21, 2022
HARIPUR:
An Afghan refugee was gunned down in a targeted attack during Traveeh prayers
in the limits of Khalabat Township Police Station. However, other people in the
mosque escaped unhurt, police said.
The
motive behind the murder was said to be an old blood feud. Khalabat Township
police said that Haji Sakhi Muhammad, 60, a refugee of Afghan camp No 5, was
offering
Traveeh
prayer close to the window of the mosque of Muhallah Kheewa when two
unidentified motorcyclists came and targeted him from the window with pistol
firing, killing him on the spot.
The
police said the deceased had earlier escaped a murder attempt a
couple
of years ago when two groups of Afghan nationals clashed, leaving five dead in
the Chandani Chowk of Khalabat Township.
Source:
The News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/952080-afghan-refugee-gunned-down-in-mosque-attack
--------
Criminal
Flogged in Taliban’s Supreme Court
21
Apr 2022
Seven
Afghan men were flogged and were given different prison terms in the supreme
court of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan after they confessed their crimes,
Bakhtar News Agency reported.
The
flogging that is also called (Hodood) is the first time that is being applied
in Afghanistan since the Taliban’s takeover.
The
seven men were accused of selling and consuming alcohol and also stealing cars.
The
reports added, two of the criminals were lashed 35 rounds and were given six
months prison terms each for stealing cars and consuming alcohol, the other
couple was lashed 35 rounds for consuming alcohol, and the remaining three
wrongdoers were lashed 35 rounds and given six months imprisonment each for
selling and consuming alcohol.
It
comes after the Deputy Chief of the spying agency (General Directorate of
Intelligence) of the IEA announced that they will start applying “Hodood”.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/criminal-flogged-in-talibans-supreme-court-486576/
--------
Pakistan
‘Criminal
Cabinet’ Has Defaced Democracy: Pakistan Tehreek-I-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan
Ikram
Junaidi
April
21, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan said on Wednesday the face
of democracy had been defaced by the inclusion of “criminals” in the federal
cabinet and renewed his call for early elections, because an “imported
government cannot run the country”.
He
also claimed that the PTI jalsa at Minar-i-Pakistan, to be held on Thursday
(today), would make history.
While
chairing the meeting of PTI’s central leadership, former prime minister Imran
Khan said several members of the newly announced federal cabinet were facing different
cases.
An
“imported government” could not run the country and the economy would suffer
due to the ongoing uncertainty, he said, and insisted that general elections
should be announced without any delay.
Country
on verge of civil war, PTI govt-establishment ties strained months ago: Fawad
Meanwhile,
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas and Awami
Muslim League (AML) head Sheikh Rashid Ahmed also held separate meetings with
Mr Khan.
Mr
Ilyas in his meeting with Mr Khan thanked him for his support to become the
AJK’s premier.
In
a separate development, PTI leader and former information minister Fawad
Chaudhry said the country was on the verge of civil war and continuously moving
towards the situation similar to that of Sri Lanka.
Commenting
on Jamhoori Watan Party’s chief Shahzain Bugti becoming the federal minister
for anti-narcotics, Mr Chaudhry suggested that the word “anti” should be
removed from his portfolio.
He
said it was also unfortunate that Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel had
replaced Dr Faisal Sultan.
The
former information minister claimed that the country was on the verge of civil
war but it could not start just because of Imran Khan as he was speaking with
responsibility in public meetings.
Separately,
Mr Chaudhry admitted during an interview on a private TV channel on Wednesday
that the previous government would continue to have been in power if relations
with the establishment had not been strained.
He
agreed that relations with the establishment had been strained for several
months.
“We
tried hard to mend fences with the establishment while former prime minister
Imran Khan never thought of appointing Lt Gen Faiz Hameed as the army chief,”
he said.
Meanwhile,
AML chief and former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed reached Bani Gala to
have a one-on-one meeting with Mr Khan.
Source:
Dawn
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
In
a veiled attack, Imran Khan blames Pakistan Army chief Bajwa for his ouster
APRIL
21, 2022
Imran
Khan said that all institutions are not corrupt but some "elements indulge
in bad practices"
In
a veiled attack on Pakistan's Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, former
prime minister Imran Khan has alleged that "some elements" in the
powerful establishment who indulged in "bad practices" were
responsible for his unceremonious ouster from power.
According
to experts, Mr. Khan, who was ousted from power on April 10 after the National
Assembly passed a no-confidence motion against him, had apparently lost support
of the Army after he refused to endorse the appointment of the ISI spy agency
chief last year. Finally, he agreed but it soured his ties with the Army.
Addressing
party workers on Twitter at night, Imran said: "There are also humans in
institutions. If one or two individuals do something wrong, the entire
institution is not responsible. If one person (in an apparent reference to Army
chief Gen. Bajwa) makes a mistake, this does not mean that the whole institution
is at fault."
Former
information minister Fawad Chaudhry told a news channel on Wednesday that
relations between the establishment and Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)
government had strained for months.
“We
tried our best, including myself, to remove misunderstandings with the
establishment but could not succeed," he said.
The
Pakistan Army, which has ruled the coup-prone country for more than half of its
73 plus years of existence, has hitherto wielded considerable power in the
matters of security and foreign policy.
Mr.
Khan (69) is the only Pakistani prime minister to be ousted in a no-confidence
motion in Parliament. He was replaced by Shehbaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim
League-Nawaz's (PML-N).
He
called on his supporters to reach Minar-i-Pakistan in Lahore on Thursday to
make it the biggest-ever rally in the country's history.
The
cricketer-turned-politician said that all institutions are not corrupt but some
"elements indulge in bad practices".
Mr.
Khan then said "Pakistan needs the Armed forces more than Imran Khan. Had
the strong Army not been here, Pakistan might have been dismembered into three
pieces."
Since
his ouster, there have been anti-Bajwa and anti-judges trends on social media,
forcing the Army chief and the chief justice of Pakistan to condemn the smear
campaign.
Both
the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Federal Investigation Agency launched
a crackdown on PTI social media activists and arrested 15 people.
Mr.
Khan said that his party lawmakers turned against him when they were not
allowed to carry on with "corruption", in a reference to the Jahangir
Tareen and Aleem Khan groups that left him.
On
the possible return of three-time premier and PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif
in the wake of his party's return to power, Imran said: "If Nawaz Sharif
comes back and gets another 'NRO' (National Reconciliation Ordinance deal), it
will make a mockery of the justice system in Pakistan."
Nawaz
Sharif (72) who is entangled in a number of corruption cases, has been in
London since November 2019 after the Lahore High Court granted him permission
to go abroad for four weeks for medical treatment.
Unlike
his brother Nawaz, newly-elected prime minister Shehbaz enjoys cordial
relations with the powerful Army, according to experts.
Source:
The Hindu
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan-Taliban
ties sour over rise in terror attacks, border incidents
Apr
20, 2022
NEW
DELHI: Is Taliban-Pakistan ties on a downward spiral?
Pakistan,
still seen as the chief patron of the Islamic hardliners over the years. Many
from the Taliban top leadership took refuge in Pakistan after US forces landed
in Afghanistan in 2001. Since the Taliban's takeover of power in 2021,
Islamabad has led the way in lobbying to get recognition for the new regime in
Kabul.
But
an uptick of militant attacks within Pakistan and on the Afghan border is
causing frictions in the relation. Border skirmishes, cross-border airstrikes
and allegations of sheltering hostile elements have further complicated the
relationship.
Terrorist
attacks surge in Pakistan
Militant
attacks in Pakistan have been accelerating since the Taliban took power in
Afghanistan last August. So far this, 155 people have been killed in such
attacks.
Similarly,
compared with 2020, 2021 witnessed a more than 57 per cent increase in militant
attacks and almost 49 per cent more deaths, according to Pakistan Institute for
Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), an Islamabad-based independent think
tank.
Interestingly,
the trend of militant attacks in Pakistan in 2021 was closely shadowing the
trend of violence in Afghanistan- with the Taliban increasing their offensive
in May 2021, a further push in July and capture of provincial capitals and
seizing power in August, says PICSS.
Most
of the attacks have been claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) who want
to establish an Islamic caliphate in Islamabad. Pakistani forces on the Afghan
border have also been targeted.
Pakistan's
foreign office said the attacks were being carried out "with
impunity" and that Islamabad had repeatedly asked Afghan authorities to
act against anti-Pakistan forces operating from within Afghanistan, but to no
avail.
It
said seven Pakistani soldiers were killed in the border area of North
Waziristan last week.
Pakistan
airstrikes kill many in Afghanistan
Afghan
media reported that Pakistani aircraft last Friday carried out bombing raids in
Afghanistan's eastern Khost and Kunar provinces, killing many civilians. Some
reports have put the toll at 41, including women and children.
On
Saturday, the Taliban foreign ministry called in Pakistan's ambassador and
lodged complaints about the civilian deaths in the airstrikes. Taliban
spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid warned Pakistan "not to test the patience of
Afghans on such issues and not repeat the same mistake again otherwise it will
have bad consequences."
Pakistan
has so far refused to comment on the Afghan allegations.
The
Pak-Afghan border dispute and the Durand Line
The
border between the two countries, known as the Durand Line, runs the length of
the 2,670 kilometer. The line, established in the late 19th century during the
British rule in India, runs through the region's ethnic Pashtun population,
often dividing tribes and families.
Successive
Afghan rulers have refused to recognize it as the official border, laying claim
instead to Pakistani territory known as Khyber Pukhtunkhwa Province where
ethnic Pashtuns dominate.
Durand.
Since
taking power in Kabul, Taliban fighters have clashed on several occasions with
Pakistan over a border fence Islamabad is building. Reports and pictures
emerged of Taliban forces destroying recently constructed fences along the
border.
'Allies'
getting cold?
The
Pakistani Army and its intelligence wing the ISI's support for the Taliban is
no secret. There are allegations that they covertly supported the hardline
Islamists, often sabotaging American interests, while accepting American funds
to aid the 'War on Terror.'
Pakistan
was among the handlful of countries to recognise the first Taliban regime that
was ousted in 2001. It is now seen actively lobbying for internaional
recognition for the current regime in Kabul.
In
fact, erstwhile ISI chief Faiz Hameed had flown to Kabul to 'handpick' the
current Taliban cabinet, it is widely believed.
Faiz
was instrumental in sidelining the more moderate voices within the Taliban,
like Mullah Baradar and Sher Mohammad Stanikzai, while ensuring de facto
control for the likes of Hasan Akhund and Sirajuddin Haqqani, a UN-designated
terrorist. The ISI's close links to the Haqqani network is no secret.
It's
not clear, however, whether Pakistan's new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will
be as supportive of the Afghan Taliban as was his predecessor Imran Khan.
Will
Taliban act against its offshoot, the TTP?
The
current tensions between Pakistan and Taliban is about the latter's cold feet
in reining in the TTP, responsible for majority of terror attacks in Pakistan
over the years.
It
has killed more than 70,000 people over the past few decades and engineered
some of Pakistan’s worst terrorist attacks, including one on an army school
that killed 150 people in Peshawar in 2014.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
'Exiled'
Nawaz Sharif to be back in Pakistan after Eid, face the courts
Apr
21, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan's former three-time PM Nawaz Sharif is returning to the country after
Eid to voluntarily face the judicial process in all cases against him, federal
minister and PML-N leader Javed Latif said on Wednesday. He also revealed that
PPP had named the party’s chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari for the vacant
foreign minister's berth and that he would take the oath for the office after
returning from London.
Nawaz,
whose third term as PM ended in 2017 when he was forced to resign in accordance
with the Supreme Court’s decision in the Panama papers case, flew to London in
November 2019 to seek treatment for various ailments.
"Nawaz
Sharif will be seen in Pakistan after Eid," Latif said in a video
statement a day after new PM Shehbaz Sharif's 37-member cabinet took the oath
of office.
On
the cases as pending against Nawaz, the minister said PML-N believed in the
sanctity of the legal process and would accept whatever verdict the courts
gave.
Farhatullah
Babar, PPP’s secretary-general, said party chief Bilawal was visiting London
primarily to meet Nawaz and congratulate him on the new coalition government.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
PM
Sharif meets President Alvi; discusses Pak's evolving political and economic
situation
Apr
20, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
For the first time after assuming the prime minister's office, Shehbaz Sharif
on Wednesday met President Arif Alvi and discussed the evolving political and
economic situation in Pakistan following the ouster of the Imran Khan-led
government through a no-confidence motion.
The
meeting came a day after Alvi, a member of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf
(PTI) party, excused himself from the oath-taking ceremony of Sharif's
34-member Cabinet. In Alvi's absence Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani
administered the oath to new ministers.
The
oath-taking ceremony was scheduled to be held on Monday, but Alvi that time
also refused to administer the oath to the lawmakers, compelling the government
to postpone it. The president also skipped the oath-taking ceremony of Prime
Minister Sharif on health grounds after which Sanjrani had taken over the responsibility.
During
the meeting held at Aiwan-e-Sadr (President's house), Alvi and Sharif discussed
issues related to the evolving political and economic situation in the country,
according to a statement issued by the President's Secretariat.
According
to sources, Sharif inquired about Alvi's health.
The
meeting lasted only for 15-17 minutes, Geo News reported.
The
sources said Alvi and Sharif discussed various political issues, especially the
note sent by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to remove Punjab Governor Umar
Sarfraz Cheema, who on certain legal grounds refused to give oath to chief
minister-elect Hamza Shehbaz.
Hamza
Shehbaz is the son of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
On
April 19, President Alvi had instructed Punjab Governor Cheema to continue to
hold office despite the summary moved by the PMO seeking his removal.
The
meeting between Sharif and Alvi was also a deliberate effort by the new prime
minister to reduce the bitterness and the political tensions that have
enveloped Pakistan after Khan's unceremonious ouster, the News International
reported.
Khan,
Chairman of the PTI, has become the only Pakistani prime minister to be ousted
in a no-confidence motion in Parliament.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Finance
Minister Miftah leaves for US to meet IMF officials for revival of loan
facility
April
21, 2022
Newly-appointed
Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said on Thursday that he was leaving for
Washington, where he was expected to meet International Monetary Fund (IMF)
officials for the revival of a loan facility that was stalled following the
premature end of the Imran Khan government earlier this month.
Ismail,
who has replaced Shaukat Tarin in the role of the country's finance czar in the
new coalition setup, tweeted before leaving for Washington that the purpose of
the visit was to "put back on track our IMF program that PTI and IK (Imran
Khan) derailed, thus endangering our economy".
He
added that he would travel to London on the way, where he would meet PML-N
supremo Nawaz Sharif.
On
Wednesday, Ismail told media persons during a press conference in Islamabad
that his priority was to secure one tranche of $1bn from the IMF and prepare
for the coming budget and not to club two quarterly reviews.
He
further said he was expecting to meet the IMF managing director, chief
executive officer of the World Bank, executive directors of the G-7 nations,
ministers of Turkey, Saudi Arabia and China and the IMF mission chief to
Pakistan.
IMF's
conditions
In
the same press briefing, Ismail revealed that the IMF wanted Pakistan to do
away with subsidies extended by the previous government, including those on
fuel prices and power tariffs — two relief measures that former prime minister
Imran Khan had announced right before the filing of a no-trust motion against
him. The move had invited criticism with many describing it as going against
Pakistan's commitments to the IMF for the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility.
The
IMF had set a series of prior conditions involving steep fiscal adjustment
close to Rs1.3 trillion, Ismail said, adding that the IMF wanted an increase in
fuel prices to breakeven and taxes restored, amnesty scheme discontinued for
industries, circular debt reduced, power rates raised and fiscal savings
ensured in order to completely reverse the PTI government's February 28 relief
package.
The
previous government had a commitment to have a primary balance of Rs25bn which
was now in deficit at Rs1.3 trillion. “We have heard their (IMF) position but
have not made any commitment yet,” Ismail said.
The
PML-N led coalition government, which had severely criticised the previous
Imran-led government for first failing to control fuel prices in the country
and later for "derailing" the IMF programme through fuel and
electricity subsidies, is yet to reverse the measure of reducing petrol prices
with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif last week rejecting the Oil and Gas
Regulatory Authority's (Ogra) proposal in this regard.
Assuring
that no burden would be passed on to the people in the process to meet the
IMF's conditions, Ismail added, "But something would have to be done
because the IMF programme is inevitable.”
The
government would ensure fiscal discipline and tighten its own belt to restore
the IMF programme and no extra burden would be put on the people, he said.
Ismail
further said the government would ensure a "gentle landing" of the
unwinding of the PTI's "unscrupulous" relief package that had put the
country’s economic stability at stake.
The
minister also hinted at doing away with tax amnesty for industries at the
outset and added that the IMF’s greater focus was on ending fuel subsidy
because it was creating a fiscal hole while power tariff could somehow be
delayed because its direct bearing on the budget was not immediate.
He
said about Rs100bn saving could be made by cutting the development budget to
Rs600bn instead of Rs900bn, which might not be spent in any case by the
ministries.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Petition
against acceptance of Buzdar's resignation withdrawn after LHC's rebuke
Rana
Bilal
April
21, 2022
The
Lahore High Court on Thursday dismissed a petition challenging the acceptance
of former Punjab chief minister Usman Buzdar's resignation by ex-governor
Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar after the chief justice berated the petitioner for
having no locus standi in the case.
The
constitutional petition, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, was filed
by Advocate Nadeem Sarwar. The petitioner had contended that Sarwar had
accepted Buzdar's resignation even though it was addressed to ex-PM Imran and
not him, which was a violation of Article 130(8) of the Constitution that
stated: "The chief minister may, by writing under his hand addressed to
the governor, resign from his office."
The
petition had called on the court to declare Sarwar's acceptance of Buzdar's
resignation to be without lawful authority. It also called on the court to
restrain Hamza from taking charge as the chief minister till the petition is
decided.
Hearing
the plea today, LHC Chief Justice Muhammad Amir Bhatti asked the petitioner
what his connection with the case was. Advocate Sarwar responded that it was
necessary for the resignation [submitted by Buzdar] to be handwritten.
The
chief justice expressed his resentment, saying the petition was tantamount to
making a joke out of the court. "Is this a democratic system? ... The
whole of Pakistan is in turmoil ... no one has patience," he said.
The
LHC chief justice said he was dismissing the petition with a fine of Rs1
million. At this, the petitioner urged the judge to allow him to withdraw his
plea.
The
court then dismissed the petition as withdrawn without the imposition of a
fine.
Buzdar
had presented his resignation to former premier Imran on March 28 after a
delegation of senior lawmakers had submitted a no-trust motion against him with
Punjab Assembly secretariat the same day.
Following
Buzdar's resignation, the PTI had announced the PML-Q's Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi
as its candidate for Punjab chief minister.
The
move had come as the ruling party had stepped up efforts to ensure the support
of its allies ahead of a no-trust vote against Imran, against the backdrop of
multiple PTI allies joining the opposition.
On
April 1, Sarwar had formally accepted Buzdar's resignation and summoned a
session of the Punjab Assembly for the election of a new provincial chief
executive. Two days later, Sarwar was removed from the post and replaced with
Cheema.
Over
the weekend, Hamza was elected the new chief minister after garnering 197 votes
during a Punjab Assembly session marred by violence.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Mideast
Gaza
militants, Israel in biggest exchange of fire since 2021 war
April
20, 2022
Palestinian
militants fired volleys of rockets from Gaza into Israel, which responded with
air strikes in the early hours of Thursday in the biggest escalation since an
11-day war last year.
A
rocket from Gaza on Wednesday evening fell harmlessly in a garden in the
southern Israeli city of Sderot, police said.
Israel
struck back in central Gaza after midnight, witnesses and security sources said,
prompting further launches of at least four rockets by militants in the
besieged territory.
Israel
said its jets had targeted a military post and a tunnel complex
"containing raw chemicals used for the manufacturing of rocket
engines".
Hamas,
the Islamist movement which rules the Gaza Strip, said it had fired
surface-to-air rockets at Israeli planes.
The
exchanges come after nearly a month of deadly violence in Israel and the
Palestinian territories, focused on Jerusalem's flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound,
known to Jews as the Temple Mount.
Israeli
police said Thursday that dozens of rioters had thrown stones and petrol bombs
from the mosque.
"A
violent splinter group is stopping Muslim worshippers from entering the mosque
and causing damage to the site," the police alleged.
Seven
Palestinians, all residents of Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, had been
arrested on suspicion of taking part in "violent incidents" on
Wednesday, it added.
-
'Death to the Arabs' -
Hours
earlier, Israeli police had blocked crowds of Jewish ultra-nationalist
protesters from approaching the Muslim quarter of Jerusalem's Old City, aiming
to head off an escalation after four weeks of violence that have left at least
36 people dead.
Last
year, a similar ultra-nationalist march had been scheduled in the Old City when
Hamas launched a barrage of rockets towards Israel, sparking the 11-day war.
Early
Wednesday evening, more than 1,000 ultra-nationalist demonstrators waving
Israeli flags had gathered, some shouting "death to the Arabs", but
police blocked them from reaching Damascus Gate and the Old City's Muslim
quarter.
Far-right
lawmaker Itamar Ben Gvir, a controversial opposition politician, led the
protest after being barred from the Damascus Gate area earlier in the day by
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
"I'll
say it clearly, I'm not going to blink, not going to fold," Ben Gvir told
AFP, as his supporters chanted "Bennett go home!"
"I'm
not allowed to enter Damascus Gate," the former lawyer said. "Based
on what law?"
Bennett
said earlier that he had blocked the rally for security reasons.
"I
have no intention of allowing petty politics to endanger human lives," he
said.
"I
will not allow a political provocation by Ben Gvir to endanger IDF (Israeli
army) soldiers and Israeli police officers, and render their already heavy task
even heavier."
Ben
Gvir retorted Thursday that "some Jews don't surrender to Hamas".
-
'Deeply concerned' -
Tensions
are high as the Jewish Passover festival coincides with the Muslim holy month
of Ramazan.
Palestinians
and Israeli Arabs carried out four deadly attacks in Israel in late March and
early April that claimed 14 lives, mostly civilians.
A
total of 23 Palestinians have been killed since March 22, including assailants
who targeted Israelis, according to an AFP tally.
On
Tuesday, Israel carried out its first strike on Gaza in months, in response to
the first rocket since January from the Palestinian enclave.
UN
chief Antonio Guterres said he was "deeply concerned by the deteriorating
situation in Jerusalem".
He
added that he was in contact with the parties to press them "to do all
they can to lower tensions, avoid inflammatory actions and rhetoric".
Bennett,
himself a right-winger and a key figure in Israel's settlement movement, leads
an ideologically divided coalition government.
His
coalition this month lost its majority in the 120-seat Knesset, Israel's
parliament, after a member left in a dispute over the use of leavened bread
products in hospitals during Passover.
Then
on Sunday, the Raam party, drawn from the country's Arab-Israeli minority,
suspended its support for the coalition over the Al-Aqsa violence.
Source:
Al Monitor
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/04/gaza-militants-israel-biggest-exchange-fire-2021-war
--------
Iranian
President: Foreign Meddling, Terrorism Root Cause of Instability in Afghanistan
2022-April-20
In
addition to the terrorists, the responsibility for these attacks in Afghanistan
lies with the countries that with their irresponsible interventions under the
pretext of establishing security have played the biggest role in destabilizing
the country in recent years, Rayeesi said on Wednesday.
He
condemned the terrorist attacks in the Afghan capital of Kabul which led to the
killing of more than 26 people, mostly students, and offered condolences to the
families of the victims.
Rayeesi
also called on the Afghan governing body to make its utmost efforts to prevent
the recurrence of such incidents, in which the majority of victims are innocent
children and students.
The
Iranian foreign ministry had also on Tuesday condemned the terrorist attack in
Kabul.
Iranian
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh deplored the terrorist attack in
Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood in the Afghan capital which led to the killing of
over 26 people, mostly students.
In
a post on his twitter page, he called on the Afghan authorities to identify and
punish the perpetrators of the terrorist act.
At
least 26 people, including students, were killed and tens of others wounded
after two blasts targeted a boys’ school in Kabul’s Dasht-e-Barchi
neighborhood.
Two
improvised explosive devices (IEDs) blew up outside the Abdul Rahim Shahid high
school in Western Kabul.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
Raps Britain for Forceful Deportation of Asylum-Seekers
2022-April-20
“The
British government’s plan to forcefully transfer asylum seekers is a breach of
its international commitments and responsibilities,” Qaribabadi wrote on his
twitter page on Tuesday.
“The
move entirely neglects human and ethical considerations. The UK's dark human
rights record speaks for itself!” he added.
Earlier,
Iranian Government Spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi had also rapped Britain for
its decision, saying that Iran has been for years hosting the Afghan refugees
without international assistance.
“Britain
plans to send asylum seekers to Rwanda under human rights pretexts. That’s
while Iran has for years hosted Afghan refugees and asylum seekers, even when
it was under sanctions and without receiving international assistance,”
Bahadori Jahromi said on Saturday.
Also
on Saturday, the Iranian foreign ministry lashed out at Britain for forced
deportation of asylum-seekers to Rwanda, calling the move a violation of the
international laws.
"This
British plan to put its responsibility toward refugees on the shoulder of a
third country exposes the refugees to violations of the rights mentioned in
conventions on refugees and human rights agreements and completely ignores
human and moral considerations," Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed
Khatibzadeh said.
He
rejected the objectification of refugees, the use of violence, and humiliating
acts that violate human dignity, and reminded that Iran is hosting millions of
refugees.
"The
British government’s plan to deport refugees comes while this country and other
Western states always ignore the Islamic Republic of Iran’s efforts to manage
and deal with millions of migrants and refugees."
"The
Islamic Republic of Iran has been hosting millions of refugees, especially from
the neighboring country of Afghanistan, while observing human and humanitarian
considerations and receiving minimum foreign aid, which has been repeatedly
recognized and commended by international institutions related to the affairs
of the refugees," Khatibzadeh concluded.
Britain
announced a deal with Rwanda on Thursday to send some asylum-seekers thousands
of miles to the East African country.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14010131000489/Iran-Raps-Briain-fr-Frcefl-Deprain-f-Asylm-Seekers
--------
WFPIST
Urges Int’l Organizations, Officials to Bring to Justice Perpetrators of
Blasphemy of Islamic Sanctities
2022-April-20
The
WFPIST said in a statement that the “regrettable” attempt to set fire to the
divine book in Sweden and Denmark was an insult by extremist and racist elements
that hurt the feelings of the followers of different religions, including
around two billion Muslims.
The
sacrilegious move, it added, was rooted in the “ignorance” and
“authoritarianism” of the perpetrators and had the support of the powers
seeking sedition among followers of Abrahamic religions.
Nevertheless,
such actions, which have many precedents, have failed to divide the world’s
freethinkers and supporters of unity among monotheists, the statement said.
It
called on relevant international and local officials to take “swift and
decisive” action within the framework of existing regulations and punish the
perpetrators and sponsors of the blasphemous attempt in order to prevent its
repetition.
In
relevant remarks on Monday, Iran’s Judiciary Deputy Chief and Secretary-General
of Iran's Human Rights Headquarters Kazzem Qaribabadi also condemned blasphemy
of the holy Quran in Sweden, saying that the European country has turned into a
prison for Muslims.
“Sacrilege
to religious sanctities is under no circumstances whatsoever acceptable,”
Qaribabadi wrote on his twitter page.
He
added that as religious intolerance rages across Europe “Sweden is morphing
into a prison for Muslims with the support of the government”.
“Seems
they’ve missed Medieval Inquisition!” Qaribabadi said.
Rasmus
Paludan, the Danish leader of Sweden’s far-right Stram Kurs (Hard Line) party
tried to burn a copy of the Qur’an in a heavily-populated Muslim area on
Saturday.
Paludan,
accompanied by police, went to an open public space in the southern Swedish
city of Linkoping and reportedly placed the Muslim holy book down and tried to
set it on fire while ignoring protests from onlookers.
On
Sunday, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh denounced the
desecration of the Holy Qur’an by the Swedish far-right group, saying the
blasphemous act is a clear example of hatemongering and in contravention of
speech freedom.
Khatibzadeh
said Iran “strongly condemns the burning of the Holy Qur’an by an extremist
racist Danish element in the Swedish city of Linkoping, which took place under
the pretext of freedom of expression and under the auspices of the Swedish
police”.
Also,
the chargé d'affaires of Sweden to Tehran was summoned to the Iranian foreign
ministry on Sunday to convey Iran’s protest at the desecration of the Holy
Quran by a Swedish far-right group to his government.
Head
of the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s Third Western Europe Bureau summoned the
Swedish envoy.
The
Iranian official expressed Iran’s strong protest at the sacrilege of Islam’s
holy book by the leader of a far-right group under the protection of Sweden’s
police and on the pretext of the freedom of expression.
The
Iranian foreign ministry official strongly condemned the sacrilege of the
Qur'an, reminding the Sweden’s government of its responsibility in this regard.
He
also called on Sweden to take an immediate and categorical step to end
desecration of the Holy Qur'an and guarantee that such acts will not be
repeated in the future.
The
Iranian foreign ministry official added that insulting the sanctities of more
than two billion Muslims of the world and hurting their feelings is the worst
possible abuse of freedom of speech.
“This
regrettable incident, which was carried out under protection of the Swedish
police has marred the image of Sweden among Muslims of the world,” he said.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
At
least 80 Iran-backed Houthi violations reported since ceasefire: Yemen Army
report
21
April ,2022
Yemen’s
Iran-backed Houthis have reportedly launched attacks on the southern front of
Marib, a Twitter account associated with the Yemeni Army media center reported
on Thursday.
At
least 80 violations were reported on April 19 despite a UN-brokered truce that
went into effect early April, including in Hodeida.
The
Yemeni army’s air-defense also reportedly shot down a Houthi drone in western
Saadah.
Under
the terms of the truce, shipments of fuel are allowed to arrive in Yemen’s key
port city of Hodeida and passenger flights to resume from the airport in Sanaa.
Both Hodeida and Sanaa are held by the Houthis.
Earlier
on April 8, there were further reports of truce violations after the UN Special
Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg urged warring parties to exercise “restraint”
after they traded accusations of violations.
“The
Houthis are taking advantage of the ceasefire to strengthen their military
presence” around the strategic city, said a Yemeni military source, speaking on
condition of anonymity to AFP.
Meanwhile,
Yemen’s new leaders took a ceremonial oath of office under tight security on
Tuesday, completing a major shake-up aimed at ending seven years of war with
the Iran-backed Houthis.
The
newly formed, eight-man leadership council performed a largely symbolic
swearing-in in Aden in front of members of a parliament elected in 2003, as
hundreds of soldiers patrolled the southern city, a government official told
AFP.
Yemen’s
President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi handed over his “full powers” to the new
council in a televised address on April 7.
Saudi
Arabia also sent Yemen a total of 15,400 tons of diesel as part of the Saudi
Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen (SDRPY), the official Saudi
Press Agency (SPA) reported on Monday.
The
fuel was delivered to the ports of al-Mahra and Hadhramaut and is expected to
nourish power plants.
Other
developments including ridding the Houthi ranks of children soldiers were
announced by the Iran-backed group, according to a United Nations claim on
Monday.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
says ‘technical issues’ in nuclear talks complete
20
April ,2022
Iran
said Wednesday that “technical issues” in the now-paused negotiations to
restore its 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers have been resolved, but
“political” issues persist ahead of concluding any deal.
Iran
has been engaged for a year in negotiations with France, Germany, Britain,
Russia and China directly, and the United States indirectly, to revive the 2015
deal, known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The
US unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on
Iran, prompting Tehran to step back from nuclear commitments.
Negotiations
in the Austrian capital Vienna aim to return the US to the deal, including
through Washington lifting sanctions, and to ensure Tehran’s full compliance
with its commitments.
“Technical
issues and discussions in the Vienna talks have been completed,” Mohammad
Eslami, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation, was quoted as saying by
state news agency IRNA.
“Only
political issues remain,” he added.
Foreign
ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said early this month that Iran will only
return to Vienna to finalize an agreement, not to hold new negotiations.
The
talks have been paused since March 11 after Russia demanded guarantees that
Western sanctions imposed against Moscow after its February 24 invasion of
Ukraine would not damage its trade with Iran.
Days
later, Moscow said it had received the necessary guarantees.
Among
the key remaining sticking points is Tehran’s demand to delist the
Revolutionary Guards from a US terror list.
That
sanction, imposed by former US president Donald Trump after he withdrew from
the nuclear agreement, is officially separate from the atomic file.
“If
Iran wants sanctions-lifting that goes beyond the JCPOA, they’ll need to
address concerns of ours that go beyond the JCPOA,” US State Department
spokesman Ned Price said Monday.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Israeli
nationalists to march in Jerusalem’s Palestinian-majority areas despite ban
20
April ,2022
A
group of Israeli ultra-nationalists said it is determined to go ahead with a
flag-waving march around predominantly Palestinian areas of Jerusalem’s Old
City later Wednesday, brushing aside a police ban of an event that served as
one of the triggers of last year’s Israel-Gaza war.
Israeli
police said a large number of officers were deployed around Jerusalem’s
historic Old City, home to religious sites for Jews, Christians and Muslims,
out of concern that confrontations could further ignite an already tense
atmosphere in the city during the Jewish holiday of Passover and the Muslim
holy month of Ramazan.
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the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Palestinian
groups said Tuesday evening that they were “raising the state of general alert”
and warned against Israeli radicals holding a flag march in Jerusalem.
“At
this stage the police are not approving the protest march under the requested
layout,” the authorities said in a statement, without elaborating.
They
could not be reached for comment Wednesday on whether the march would be banned
altogether, or just on the proposed route past the Damascus Gate.
In
a similar situation last May, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip fired rockets
toward Jerusalem as Israeli nationalists holding a flag march were making their
way to the Old City.
The
events set off an 11-day war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group
Hamas.
Israeli-Palestinian
tensions have surged in recent weeks after a series of deadly attacks inside
Israel, followed by military operations in the West Bank.
On
Monday, Palestinian militants fired a rocket from the Gaza Strip into southern
Israel for the first time in months, and Israel responded with airstrikes.
These
followed days of clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians at a
flashpoint holy site in Jerusalem.
Noam
Nisan, one of the organizers of the planned march, told Kan public radio that
it would proceed as planned on Wednesday. “A Jew with a flag in Jerusalem is
not a provocation,” he said.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Iran
says 3 Mossad agents arrested for transferring 'classified info'
Syed
Zafar Mehdi
21.04.2022
TEHRAN,
Iran
Iran's
Intelligence Ministry claimed Wednesday to have arrested three people working
for the Israeli spy agency Mossad in the southeastern province of
Sistan-Baluchestan.
In
a statement, the ministry's local branch in the border province said the three
"Mossad agents" were involved in transferring classified information
and documents from Iran.
The
statement, however, did not specify the nationalities of the accused men, who
it said had been arrested with a court order.
The
Israeli spy agency's footprint has dramatically increased in the Islamic
Republic in recent years with a series of sabotage incidents at key nuclear
facilities and targeted killings of top nuclear scientists.
According
to security observers, a vast network of spies exists in Iran today who
covertly work for Mossad.
Last
month, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed to have thwarted
a sabotage plot at the Fordow nuclear facility and arrested the saboteurs.
It
came a day after the IRGC claimed responsibility for an attack on what it said
was an Israeli "strategic center" in Iraq's northern Kurdish capital
Erbil.
The
attack involved a dozen ballistic missiles and was in retaliation for the
killing of two IRGC members in an Israeli airstrike on the outskirts of
Damascus, Syria.
Tensions
between the two arch foes have escalated since the killing of Iran's top
nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in November 2020 on the outskirts of
Tehran, which Iran blamed on Israel.
A
number of security-related incidents have been reported across Iran since then,
including at the underground Natanz nuclear facility in central Iran's Isfahan
province, which has been targeted many times.
At
an event to mark National Army Day on Monday, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi
warned that his country would strike "at the heart" of Israel if it
makes the "slightest move" against Tehran.
The
remarks came as Iran exhibited a range of homegrown weapons, including missile
systems, drones, tanks and other military equipment.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Turkish
president launches intense diplomatic push for Palestine
Zafer
Fatih Beyaz
20.04.2022
ANKARA
Turkiye's
president has been making a flurry of phone calls amid ramped up diplomatic
efforts to stop Israel's attacks on the occupied city of Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa
Mosque.
Recep
Tayyip Erdogan first got in touch with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on
Sunday, conveying his condolences for those killed in the Israeli attacks and
get well wishes for the injured.
During
the call, Erdogan strongly condemned Israel's actions against the worshipers in
the Al-Aqsa Mosque, adding that Turkiye would stand against the provocations
and threats against the status and spirituality of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Erdogan
reiterated Turkiye's support for Palestine, saying, "the events remind us
of the necessity for all Palestinian groups to work towards unity and
reconciliation."
The
president also he expressed his gratitude to his Palestinian counterpart both
for urging restraint and his prudent leadership for unity.
'Unacceptable'
move
On
the same day, Erdogan also discussed recent tensions in Jerusalem with UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in another phone call.
He
told Guterres that Ankara strongly condemns interventions against worshipers at
Al-Aqsa Mosque and finds them "unacceptable."
They
also discussed joint steps that could be taken to achieve peace in the region.
Besides,
the Turkish leader spoke by phone on Monday with Jordan's King Abdullah II,
saying Israel's intervention in Palestine during the Muslim holy month of Ramazan
was regrettable and worrying.
During
the call, the two leaders agreed to cooperate on steps to help bring peace to
the region.
Phone
call with Israeli president
On
Tuesday, Erdogan held a phone call with his Israel's President Isaac Herzog, to
discuss the recent incidents caused by Israeli radical groups and security
forces in Palestine.
After
the call, Erdogan said on Twitter that he voiced his sadness on the injury of
over 400 Palestinians and the death of 18 people, including children, in the
events that took place in the occupied West Bank and Al-Aqsa Mosque since the
beginning of the month of Ramazan.
Expressing
grief over early-morning raids launched on the Al-Aqsa Mosque by fanatic groups
on Sunday and Monday, Erdogan repeated his call for "everyone to make the
utmost effort to preserve the spirituality and sanctity of this blessed place
and these (blessed) days."
"While
the holidays (Eid al-Fitr) should be held in a festive mood, these images,
which are encountered every year because of some radicals, hurt the consciences
and caused justifiable reactions across the entire Islamic world," he
said.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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