G20 Booklet Says Mughal Emperor Akbar Introduced Doctrine Of 'Sulh-i-Kuli i.e., Universal Peace, As A Tool Against Religious Discrimination'

New Age Islam News Bureau

14 September 2023

 

Sul-e-Kulli

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India

·         Court directs ASI to preserve objects of Hindu religion found during Gyanvapi mosque survey

·         Jammu & Kashmir: Two army officers, A colonel, a majo, and a DSP killed during gunfight with terrorists inside a dense forest in Kashmir

·         Two Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists 'encircled' by Jammu and Kashmir Police in Anantnag

·         Baba Ramdev faces legal action in Rajasthan for ‘hurting Muslim religious sentiments’

·         Locals in Pakistan praise India for successfully hosting G20 Summit

·         Scores of people turn up at houses of Army officers killed in encounter with terrorists in J&K
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Europe

·         British, Lebanese armed forces hold largest ever joint military exercises

·         UK Ministry of Defence calls Ukraine's move away from Russian nuclear fuel important stage

·         Ukraine's Security Service and Navy conduct unique special operation near Yevpatoria

·         Rentable wombs in Ukraine major cause for concern

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North America

·         What Ever Happened to Sharia Law in America?

·         CAIR Supports Right to Remove Confederate Street Names in Tennessee

·         CAIR-NY Calls for ‘Thorough and Swift’ NYPD Probe of Attack Targeting Imam Idriz Budimlić

·         Biden accused Obama of having ‘no grace’ – emails

·         US Expects Iran's Frozen Assets to Move To Qatar 'In Coming Days': Department Spokesperson

·         Trump legal cases expose corrupt political system in US: Putin

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Arab World

·         Member of the Supreme Political Council Al-Houthi: The West Is Working to Separate Islamic Nation from Its Sanctities

·         Saudi Centre For Organ Transplantation Performs 20 Organ Transplants On 19 Patients

·         Public Prosecution: 2-year jail each for Saudis and expats who possess drugs for use

·         Saudi Arabia’s King Salman appoints 155 judges at Ministry of Justice

·         Saudi deputy minister meets Pakistan’s ambassador

·         Saudi authorities foil drug smuggling attempts

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Africa

·         Fears Mount of Surging Death Toll in Libya Flood Disaster

·         At Least 5,000 Dead, Thousands More Missing After Libya Storm

·         Proceeds of kidnapping being used to finance terrorism — ONSA

·         Residents flee as terrorists sack Taraba communities, several feared kidnapped

·         Malians divided on response to surge in deadly violence

·         Rwanda strikes deal to build nuclear reactor

·         Niger denounces military cooperation agreement with Benin

·         Moroccan villagers try to adjust to life after quake devastation

·         Madagascar opposition condemns 'institutional coup' before vote

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Pakistan

·         Pakistan’s Afghan ‘Troubleshooter’, Asif Durrani, In Tehran for Talks

·         Where And How Pakistan Is Keeping Its nuclear weapons

·         Trio wanted in Sara Sharif case arrested in UK

·         Pakistan Ex-PM Imran Khan's Jail Remand Extended by Two Weeks

·         President Arif Alvi tosses polls date ball into judiciary's court

·         Three held in UK on return from Pakistan over girl’s death

·         Imran, Qureshi’s remand extended in cipher case till 26th

·         PM Kakar leaves Nawaz arrest decision to LEAs

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South Asia

·         Appointing of New Chinese Ambassador, Zhao Xing, to Afghanistan; Respects Afghanistan's National Sovereignty

·         Afghan Soldier Who Was Arrested At US-Mexico Border After Fleeing Taliban Is Granted Asylum

·         Over 700,000 Afghan migrants return from Iran in 2023: UNHCR

·         Over 150 Afghan Immigrants Detained in Pakistan in One Day

·         Turkey Detains Over a Hundred Illegal Refugees, Including Afghans

·         Climate change takes heavy toll on mental health in Bangladesh

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Mideast

·         Raeisi: Iran Cannot Tolerate Presence of Terrorist Groups on Its Border with Iraq

·         ‘Iran And Its Proxies Have Rained Hell’: US House Passes Trio Of Bills Targeting Islamic Republic

·         Israeli airstrike on Syria's west coast kills two soldiers, Syria air defence systems intercept most of missiles

·         Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity

·         Credible reports of at least 13 mass graves in Darfur’s El Geneina and surrounding areas: UN

·         Iraq jails police for failing to halt torching of Swedish embassy after Quran burning

·         IRGC chief to Tel Aviv: Threats against Iran will only shorten Israel’s life

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Southeast Asia

·         Survey: Major Religious Groups in Malaysia Each Feel Their Own Members Most Discriminated Against

·         Johor Islamic Department detects 266 unregistered private religious schools in the state

·         Shipping company engineer charged with murder of civil servant

·         No permit application for 'Selamatkan Malaysia' rally: police

·         King Graces Groundbreaking Ceremony ForAl-Sultan Abdullah Mosque In Telok Melano

Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau

URL:     https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/g20-booklet-mughal-king-akbar-religious/d/130677

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G20 Booklet Says Akbar Introduced Doctrine Of 'Sulh-i-Kuli ie Universal Peace, As A Tool Against Religious Discrimination'

 

Sul-e-Kulli

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14.09.23

Rajya Sabha member Kapil Sibal took a swipe at the government on Wednesday over a G20 booklet praising Mughal emperor Akbar, alleging that it has one face for the world and another for "India that is Bharat".

Sibal cited a G20 booklet titled "Bharat: The Mother of Democracy", the 38th page of which talks about Akbar. "Good administration should embrace everyone's welfare, regardless of religion. That was the kind of democracy the third Mughal Padishah Akbar practised," the booklet said.

Sibal said on X: "G20 Magazine: Government hails Mughal emperor Akbar as proponent of peace and democracy! One face: For the world another: For India that is Bharat! Please inform us about the real mann ki baat!"

The booklet said Akbar introduced the doctrine of "Sulh-i-Kuli ie universal peace, as a tool against religious discrimination".

"To create a harmonious society, he propounded a new syncretic religion known as 'Din-i-llahi' or Divine Faith. He also established the 'Ibadat Khana (House of Worship)' where wise men from different sects met and debated. A group of nine wise people, known as Navaratna, served as his counsellors while implementing his pro-people schemes," the booklet said.

"Akbar's democratic thinking was unusual and way ahead of its time," it said.

Bribe cuffs on UP rail official

New Delhi: The CBI has arrested a principal chief material manager of North Eastern Railway in Gorakhpur on the charge of accepting a bribe of Rs 3 lakh.

Searches at the residences of the accused in Gorakhpur and Noida yielded Rs 2.61 crore in cash and some documents.

The arrested person has been identified as K.C. Joshi, a spokesperson for the CBI said.

According to the CBI, a case was registered against Joshi on a complaint alleging that he had demanded Rs 7 lakh for not cancelling the registration of the complainant’s firm on the GeM portal.

“It was further alleged that the complainant’s firm was supplying trucks to the railways on a yearly contract at the rate of Rs 80,000 per truck per month,” the CBI spokesperson said.

Source: telegraphindia.com

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https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/rajya-sabha-member-kapil-sibals-dig-at-government-over-praise-for-akbar-in-g20-booklet/cid/1965994

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Sanskrit To Be Taught In Uttarakhand Madrasas, Says Waqf Board Chairman

 

Shadab Shams also promised to implement the NCERT syllabus in madrasas, besides upgrading their infrastructure. (File)

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Written by Avaneesh Mishra

Dehradun | Updated: September 14, 2023

Sanskrit will be taught in madrasas in Uttarakhand that are registered with the state Waqf Board, its chairman announced Wednesday.

Shadab Shams also promised to implement the NCERT syllabus in madrasas, besides upgrading their infrastructure. Shams said the curriculum will be an amalgamation of scientific learning and Islamic studies, and that students will be able to learn both Sanskrit and Arabic along with English.

In November last year, Shams had announced that all madrasas under the Waqf Board would have a uniform dress code with classes running from 8 am to 2 pm, just like other schools. He had also said that the Uttarakhand government would form a committee to survey all the madrasas in the state.

“The people of Devbhoomi are different from others. If our language, culture, and traditions are different from others, then our education pattern should also be different from others. Our children should learn our languages and prioritise that. We will appoint Sanskrit acharyas and Arabic teachers in our madrasas so that we can teach both languages. Our children will speak Sanskrit, Arabic and English too,” Shams told The Indian Express.

There are 117 madrasas under the Uttarakhand Waqf Board. In the first phase, the board will develop four of these — one each in Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and Nainital districts — into model madrasas.

Shams said: “There will be namaz five times in the model madrasas. After the early morning namaz at around 6.30 am, an hour will be designated for Quran studies. From 8 am to 2 pm, the madrasa will run like a proper school. During that time, a school uniform would be mandatory just like any English-medium school,” he said.

Shams said spiritual leaders favour the implementation of Sanskrit in madrasas and appealed to them to adopt madrasas with less funds.

Source: indianexpress.com

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https://indianexpress.com/article/india/sanskrit-to-be-taught-in-uttarakhand-madrassas-says-waqf-board-chairman-8938683/

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UK PM Faces Tough Questions, Like Persecution Of Muslims And Christians, After Return To House Of Commons From G20 Summit

 

Rishi Sunak at the House of Commons on Monday.

Sourced by the Telegraph

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14.09.23

Amit Roy

Question: “Did he ask what Prime Minister Modi is doing to stop all the persecution of Muslims and Christians, with their mosques and churches being burnt, and with people being killed and persecuted?”

Place: The House of Commons, UK.

Time: Less than 24 hours after the G20 summit ended in New Delhi.

Sometimes questions — and the opportunity to ask them — are more important than answers.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was asked some searching questions on Monday about his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he returned from Delhi and made a statement to the Commons on what he had achieved at the G20 summit.

None of the Opposition questions was friendly — yet no one prevented them from being asked.

The cut and thrust of the debate impressed P. Chidambaram, the Congress veteran and a former Union finance minister, who went on X (formerly Twitter) and urged the people of India: “Please read the reports of the debate in the House of Commons when MPs questioned PM Rishi Sunak on his talks with PM Modi.

“Hard questions by the Opposition, prompt answers by the Prime Minister.

“It is not important who prevailed in the debate. What is important is that a debate took place in Parliament within hours of the PM’s return to Britain.

“How I wish such a debate took place in India’s Parliament.

Such questions and answers were normal in Parliament when Jawaharlal Nehru was Prime Minister.”

At the Commons, Rishi could not rely on full tosses even from MPs on his own side.

For instance, Rehman Chishti, Conservative member for Gillingham and Rainham who first backed Boris Johnson and then Tom Tugendhat for Tory leader before reluctantly giving his support to Rishi last summer, said: “India takes Russian oil, and some now say that it refines that oil and sells the products into Europe, circumventing those sanctions. Did the Prime Minister have those conversations with Prime Minister Modi? If so, will India now change its behaviour?”

Rishi replied: “Our position is long-standing and consistent: we urge all countries to follow our lead, and the lead of others, in sanctioning Russia. Obviously, each country will approach that in its own way.”

Another Tory MP, Desmond Swayne, member for New Forest West, was equally disobliging.

He said: “In 2015, I went to Delhi to implement the coalition government’s decision to end grant development aid to India. That policy has not changed, has it?”

Rishi answered: “The policy did change and we stopped providing traditional development aid to India in 2015. Most UK funding is now in the form of business investments which not only help India reduce carbon emissions and address climate change, but deliver jobs and opportunity for British companies here at home.”

Barry Sheerman, Labour MP for Huddersfield, injected a touch of sarcasm: “Many of us were very impressed by the close relationship that the Prime Minister obviously has with Prime Minister Modi. When he had private time with Prime Minister Modi, did he ask him, first, why he has not condemned Russia for the invasion of Ukraine? Secondly, did he ask what Modi is doing to stop all the persecution of Muslims and Christians, with their mosques and churches being burnt, and with people being killed and persecuted?”

Rishi’s response gave little away: “The Prime Minister and I discussed a range of issues. As I have said, we talk about human rights and defending democracy in all our international engagement, because those are values that we believe in very dearly.”

At one point, Rishi said: “I held warm and productive discussions with Prime Minister Modi on strengthening our relationship in defence and technology and on a free trade deal between our nations.”

Labour leader Keir Starmer pointed out that the UK-India Free Trade Agreement, promised for Diwali last year (by Boris), hadn’t materialised, adding Rishi’s global economic approach had “no strategy and no direction”.

The Prime Minister said: “We only need a deal that works for the British people and delivers on our priorities. That is why it is right not to rush these things, as he would do, clearly. We do not put arbitrary deadlines on them. I take the time to make sure that they are right for the British people.”

Source: telegraphindia.com

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https://www.telegraphindia.com/world/rishi-sunak-faces-tough-questions-after-return-to-house-of-commons-from-g20-summit/cid/196

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US Probing Prosecutions of Migrants from Muslim-Majority Countries Exposed By LA Times Investigation

 

Shamsuddin Shams, an Afghan man who was a journalist back home, was prosecuted in 2022 in Texas after crossing the border to seek asylum. He spent eight months in prison. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)

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SEPTEMBER 13, 2023

HAMED ALEAZIZ

The Department of Homeland Security has opened an investigation into the federal government's use of a little-known law to disproportionately prosecute and imprison migrants from Muslim-majority countries. A Los Angeles Times investigation published late last month revealed the disproportionate nature of the prosecutions in Del Rio, Texas. The Department of Justice's manual for U.S. attorneys says that a "person's race, religion, sex, national origin or political association, activities or beliefs" should not affect a prosecutor's decision "to commence or recommend prosecution or take other action against a person." For an 18-month period beginning in late 2021, federal prosecutors in Del Rio charged more than 200 migrants under U.S. 19 1459, a rarely used law that demands that people crossing into the United States do so at a checkpoint and report to a customs office. Migrants from Muslim-majority countries make up a tiny percentage of the people who cross the southern border without authorization. But more than 60% of the migrants the Del Rio prosecutors charged during that period were from Muslim countries. The investigation is being led by Homeland Security's Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties. Because the office lacks jurisdiction over the Justice Department, its inquiry will focus on whether U.S. Customs and Border Protection's referrals of migrants for prosecution disproportionately targeted people from Muslim countries. "CRCL has opened a complaint investigation pertaining to allegations that CBP's referrals of noncitizens for criminal prosecutions under 19 U.S.C. 1459 is targeting individuals from Muslim-majority countries. CRCL is unable to provide further information at this time because the investigation is ongoing," a department spokesperson said in a statement. The Times report was met with concern from civil liberties advocates and politicians. "Discriminatory practices not only erode the moral fabric of a society but also tarnish a nation's reputation on the global stage. We call on federal authorities to investigate this alleged discriminatory treatment, to hold those responsible accountable and to rectify these unjust practices," Corey Saylor, advocacy director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement. The group called on the Justice Department's inspector general or civil rights office to launch its own investigation of the prosecutions. A department spokesperson did not comment on the matter. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., this month also had called for an investigation. "The Biden Admin must fully investigate these discriminatory practices by border authorities," she wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Federal officials have refused to explain what triggered the increased prosecutions. The Del Rio prosecutions using the little-known law appeared to stop soon after the Times presented government officials with preliminary data. Since then, federal authorities in Del Rio have prosecuted more than 50 people for the more commonly charged crime of illegal entry. Those prosecutions still appear to disproportionately affect migrants from Muslim countries: Roughly 50% of those charged are from Muslim nations. Homeland Security's civil rights office regularly conducts internal investigations based on "complaints filed by the public regarding Department policies or activities, or actions taken by Department personnel," according to its website. The office previously investigated the detention of Iranian Americans at the U.S.-Canada border in 2020 and has conducted many investigations into conditions under Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.

Source: heraldonline.com

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https://www.heraldonline.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article279315614.html#storylink=cpyhttps://www.heraldonline.com/news/politics-government/national-politics/article279315614.html

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Saudi Ambassador To Tehran Hails New Chapter In Iran-Saudi Ties, Says Relations Will Be ‘Strong’ In All Fields

 

Abdullah bin Saud al-Anzi, Saudi Arabia’s new ambassador to Tehran, on September 12, 2023. (Photo by IRNA)

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 13 September 2023

Saudi Arabia’s first ambassador to Iran since the resumption of diplomatic relations has hailed the new chapter of ties between Iran and his country, saying the bilateral relations will be “strong” in all areas.

In an exclusive interview with Iran’s official news agency IRNA late on Tuesday, Abdullah bin Saud al-Anzi, expressed his satisfaction with the beginning of a whole new era in relations between Riyadh and Tehran, stressing that the ties would be “strong in all fields,” including in “trade, economic and investment “sectors.

Speaking on the sidelines of a ceremony at the Chinese embassy in Tehran on the 74th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, al-Anzi emphasized that the revived relations between the two countries “will be constructive, strong and based on common interests, mutual respect and good neighborliness.”

Back in March, Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed under a Chinese-brokered deal to restore diplomatic relations severed in 2016.

According to a joint statement, Iran and Saudi Arabia underscored the need to respect the national sovereignty and refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of one another.

They agreed to implement a security cooperation agreement signed in April 2001 and another accord reached in May 1998 to boost economic, commercial, investment, technical, scientific, cultural, sports, and youth affairs cooperation.

Iran officially reopened its embassy in Riyadh in June, followed by its consulate in Jeddah and its representative office with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. The Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad have also resumed operations.

Elsewhere in his remarks, al-Anzi praised China’s constructive role in mediating the agreement on the resumption of relations between Tehran and Riyadh.

Iran’s ambassador to Riyadh says the Islamic Republic is determined to boost its bilateral ties with Saudi Arabia.

“This agreement focuses on an understanding on [promotion of] bilateral and constructive cooperation in many fields, and it is also a joint security agreement between the two countries that boosts cooperation,” he said.

The Saudi ambassador to Tehran added that the agreement had also a great impact on many issues and was warmly received by the international community, stressing that any agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, as two neighboring and important countries in the region, would also boost peace and security in the region and help achieve prosperity for the two nations.

Al-Anzi further pointed out that Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has formally invited Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi for a visit to Riyadh, voicing hope that the visit would be made at an appropriate time.

Source: presstv.ir

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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/09/13/710790/Saudi-Arabia-Iran-bilateral-ties-China-al-Anzi

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India

Court directs ASI to preserve objects of Hindu religion found during Gyanvapi mosque survey

September 14, 2023

THE HINDU BUREAU

The Varanasi district court has directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to preserve all objects, related to the Hindu religion having historical significance, found during the Scientific Survey of the Gyanvapi mosque premises. The preserved objects will be submitted to the District Magistrate.

The Hindu side has sought an evidence room to preserve the 'evidence' collected during the ASI survey, in addition to reserving the Gyanvapi mosque premises.

Explained | The Gyanvapi Mosque-Kashi Vishwanath dispute and the current case

However, the Muslim side has objected to the use of machines and equipment by the ASI to conduct the survey.

In August, the Allahabad High Court allowed the Archaeological Survey of India to conduct a survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex in Varanasi. However, the court, on Friday, granted four weeks’ additional time to the ASI to complete the scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque complex. The ASI was granted time till October 6, 2023 to complete the survey and submit the report.

Source: thehindu.com

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https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/court-directs-asi-to-preserve-objects-of-hindu-religion-found-during-gyanvapi-mosque-survey/article67306506.ece

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Jammu & Kashmir: Two army officers, A colonel, a majo, and a DSP killed during gunfight with terrorists inside a dense forest in Kashmir

14.09.23

Muzaffar Raina

A colonel, a major and a deputy superintendent of police are feared to have been killed during an operation to flush out militants inside a dense forest in Kashmir on the bloodiest day for security forces in years in the Valley.

There was officially no word on the deaths of the officers till 10pm but several social media handles ran reports on the casualties.

The Congress said the “entire nation is deeply saddened by the news of the tragic encounter in Anantnag, in which our Indian Army jawans lost their lives. Their sacrifice will never be forgotten!”

BJP India’s X handle remained busy posting videos and messages of Prime Minister Narendra Modi being garlanded at the party headquarters in New Delhi. A message posted around 9pm said the BJP Parliament Board had passed a resolution to extend “congratulations to the Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi for the historic and exceptionally successful hosting of the G20 summit in India”.

The last time security forces lost multiple senior officers in a gunfight with militants was in May 2020 when a colonel and a major were among several killed in north Kashmir’s Kupwara, making Wednesday’s losses the worst for officers in three years.

Militant group The Resistance Front, which is a front for the Lashkar, has taken responsibility for Wednesday's killings. The group said it carried out the attack to avenge the death of its commander Muhammad Riaz alias Abu Qasim, who was killed inside a mosque in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir’s Rawalakot last week. Qasim was a resident of Poonch in Jammu.

The army said a gunfight erupted during the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday when it received inputs about the presence of militants in Garol village of Kokernag in south Kashmir.

Sources said the operation was suspended on Tuesday night as the militants managed to escape, taking advantage of thick foliage. The operation resumed early on Wednesday, with the officers leading from the front.

The waiting militants opened fire, injuring Colonel Manpreet Singh, commanding officer of the 19 Rashtriya Rifles; Major Ashish Dhonack and DySP Humayun Bhat. All three succumbed to their wounds, the sources said.

The soldiers had a tough time retrieving the officers, who had multiple bullet wounds, as militants continued their relentless fire. The initial army and police statements did not mention whether any injured person was shifted to hospital, suggesting the possibility of casualties on the ground.

TV footage from the spot showed the army using a chopper for evacuation.

Commanding officer Singh, who had won a Sena medal, was a resident of Punjab’s Ropar district.

Srinagar resident Humayun, in his early thirties, was the son of IPS officer Ghulam Hassan Bhat who retired as deputy inspector-general of police in 2018. Family sources said Humayun married last year and was the father of an infant.

Police chief Dilbagh Singh and the Valley's army chief, Lt General Rajiv Ghai, and other senior officers rushed to the spot.

The killings are a stark reminder of how militancy remains a challenge despite official claims that all is well in Jammu and Kashmir.

While Kashmir’s militancy graph had fallen in the past few years, the Jammu region has seen a revival of militancy. Ten army soldiers, including five elite commandos, died in two militant attacks this year in Jammu’s Poonch and Rajouri districts.

An army soldier was killed and three jawans were injured in Rajouri in a two-day gunfight on Tuesday and Wednesday. Two militants were also killed in the gunfight.

Three soldiers were killed on August 4 in Kulgam district of the Valley in an attack believed to have been carried out by militants operating in Pir Panchal. The attack took place as authorities were busy with preparations to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the scrapping of Jammu and Kashmir's special status.

In May 2020, Colonel Ashutosh Sharma was among five security forces personnel who fell to militant bullets in Kupwara district of north Kashmir. He headed the army’s 21 Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-insurgency force fighting militants in Jammu and Kashmir.

Source: telegraphindia.com

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https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/jammu-kashmir-two-army-officers-policeman-killed-during-militant-operation/cid/1966031

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Two Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists 'encircled' by Jammu and Kashmir Police in Anantnag

Our Web Desk Srinagar, 14.09.23

PTI

The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Thursday said it has "encircled" two Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists in Anantnag district where three security officers were killed in an encounter a day earlier, reports PTI.

"In solemn tribute to the unwavering valor of Col Manpreet Singh, Major Ashish Dhonak& DSP Humayun Bhat who laid down their lives leading from the front during this ongoing operation. Our forces persist with unwavering resolve as they encircle 2 LET terrorists including Uzair Khan," Kashmir Zone Police said in a post on X.

The commanding officer of 19 Rashtriya Rifles, a major rank officer and a Deputy superintendent of police were killed in an encounter with the terrorists at Gadole in Kokernag area of Anantnag district in Wednesday.

The last time security forces lost multiple senior officers in a gunfight with militants was in May 2020 when a colonel and a major were among several killed in north Kashmir’s Kupwara, making Wednesday’s losses the worst for officers in three years.

Militant group The Resistance Front, which is a front for the Lashkar, has taken responsibility for Wednesday's killings. The group said it carried out the attack to avenge the death of its commander Muhammad Riaz alias Abu Qasim, who was killed inside a mosque in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir’s Rawalakot last week. Qasim was a resident of Poonch in Jammu.

The army said a gunfight erupted during the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday when it received inputs about the presence of militants in Garol village of Kokernag in south Kashmir.

Sources said the operation was suspended on Tuesday night as the militants managed to escape, taking advantage of thick foliage. The operation resumed early on Wednesday, with the officers leading from the front.

Source: telegraphindia.com

Please click the following URL to read the full text of the original

https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/two-lashkar-e-toiba-terrorists-encircled-by-jammu-and-kashmir-police-in-anantnag/cid/1966080

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Baba Ramdev faces legal action in Rajasthan for ‘hurting Muslim religious sentiments’

September 14, 2023

By Muslim Mirror Staff

The Rajasthan High Court has issued a directive for yoga guru Ramdev to appear at Barmer’s Chohtan police station on October 5, 2023, for questioning in connection with an FIR against him. The FIR alleges that Ramdev hurt religious sentiments with his remarks made at a religious event in Barmer on February 2, 2023.

Justice Kuldeep Mathur, while hearing a criminal miscellaneous petition filed by Ramdev seeking the quashing of the FIR, extended the stay on Ramdev’s arrest until October 16, 2023. The court’s directive instructs Ramdev to cooperate with the Investigating Officer and appear as and when called for interrogation.

In its order, the court stated, “The petitioner is directed to appear before the Investigating Officer for interrogation on 05.10.2023 at 11.30 am. The petitioner is further directed to appear before the Investigating Officer as and when called by him for interrogation.”

During the previous hearing, the court had stayed Ramdev’s arrest and had directed him to appear before the investigating officer for interrogation on or before May 20, 2023, which he failed to do.

The FIR against Ramdev was filed at Chohtan police station in Barmer on February 5, 2023, by Pathai Khan. Khan accused Ramdev of making deliberate remarks against Muslims that incited hatred and upset religious sentiments. Khan’s complaint alleged that Ramdev’s comments were intended to foster animosity and hatred towards Islam, causing anguish to millions of Muslims.

The court has requested the government counsel to produce the case diary on October 16, 2023, as part of the ongoing legal proceedings.

Source: muslimmirror.com

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https://muslimmirror.com/eng/baba-ramdev-faces-legal-action-in-rajasthan-for-hurting-religious-sentiments/

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Locals in Pakistan praise India for successfully hosting G20 Summit

TIMES OF INDIA.COM | Sep 14, 2023

NEW DELHI: Locals in Pakistan have praised India's efforts for successfully hosting the G20 summit which concluded in New Delhi last week.

"India has taken a good step. This is a proud moment for Indians," one of the locals told news agency ANI.

"When heads of the top 20 countries visit the country, it is an honour for the country. Indian economy will get many benefits from it," another said.

The recently concluded G20 summit brought the world together on wide range of issues i.e. economics, geopolitics or technology.

Another Pakistani resident added that when such a big conference takes place, it shows that the country is making progress.

"The ruler of Saudi Arabia had come there and people expected him to come here too but he did not come. When such a big conference takes place, people see that the country is moving forward," the resident said.

While praising India over the successful Summit, one of the residents also spoke about how Pakistan's foreign policy had failed their nation.

"I think we have failed in our foreign policy and because of this the G-20 summit is being held in our neighbouring country and heads of state are coming. In the last 5-6 years our economy and the security situation have deteriorated. The world has sidelined us," he told ANI.

(With inputs from agencies)

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/locals-in-pakistan-praise-india-for-successfully-hosting-g20-summit/articleshowprint/103650134.cms

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Scores of people turn up at houses of Army officers killed in encounter with terrorists in J&K

14th September 2023

By PTI

CHANDIGARH: Scores of people on Thursday turned up at the residences of Colonel Manpreet Singh and Major Ashish Dhonchak, killed in a gunfight with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag, to mourn the loss, with some saying the Army should give a befitting reply to the ultras for the cowardly act.

A number of villagers turned up at the houses of Singh (in Mohali's Mullanpur) and Dhonchak (in Panipat) in the morning. The families of the two slain Army officers were inconsolable.

The mortal remains of the two are expected to reach their respective places by the evening, the family members said. Officials said the bodies of the two deceased officers have been brought to the Army's 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar.

They said Singh's wife, a lecturer in a college, was given the news of her husband's death in the morning after being told on Wednesday that he was seriously injured. A third-generation soldier, Singh has left behind a two-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son.

Dhonchak's family includes his wife, a two-year-old daughter and three sisters. Those who turned up to express grief and be with the families in this tragic hour said the Army should give a befitting reply to the terrorists.

"Everyone knows that Pakistan has waged a proxy war. Our Army should give a befitting reply once and for all, so that no mother has to mourn the loss of her son, no sister loses her brother again in this manner, no wife loses her husband and no child loses its father," an elderly man who lives in Dhonchak's neighbourhood told reporters in Panipat.

While Dhonchak's family lives in Panipat's Sector 7, his native village is Binjhol in Panipat district. His family said he was supposed to come home on leave next month. Singh's in-laws live in Panchkula's Sector 26 in Haryana.

His wife's brother told reporters in Panchkula that they received information about the tragedy on Wednesday evening. However, Singh's wife was informed about it only on Thursday morning, he said.

Holding on to his two-year-old granddaughter, Singh's father-in-law Jagdev told reporters that the slain officer had received the Sena Medal last year. Singh's uncle told reporters that since childhood, the deceased officer had shown leadership qualities.

"He was always smiling and ready to help others," he said.

A relative of Dhonchak told reporters in Panipat that he sacrificed his life for the sake of the country.

Three Army personnel, including the colonel and the major, and a deputy superintendent of the Jammu and Kashmir Police were killed in the gunfight with terrorists in the higher reaches of the Kokorenag area in the valley.

Singh, the commanding officer of 19 Rashtriya Rifles, Dhonchak and Deputy Superintendent of Police Humayun Bhat were critically injured in the gunfight that ensued in the Garol area of Anantnag district in the morning hours of Wednesday. The officers succumbed to their injuries during treatment.

Source: newindianexpress.com

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Europe

 

British, Lebanese armed forces hold largest ever joint military exercises

13 September, 2023

The United Kingdom announced on Tuesday the start of joint military exercises with the Lebanese army that will last for 10 days.

Exercise Pegasus-Cedar is the largest military collaboration to ever happen between the UK and Lebanon.

They will take place at the Dani Harb Barracks in Ghosta, a hilltop town 36 km northeast of Beirut.

"More than 65 military personnel from the British Army’s Second Battalion 'The Parachute Regiment' (2 PARA) will conduct a fully integrated combined military exercise with their Lebanese counterparts, the Air Assault Regiment, and supported by the Lebanese Air Force," the UK government website announced.

"British and Lebanese troops will practice tactical skills including Weapons Handling, Range Shoots, Reconnaissance and Close Quarters Battle.  Troops will also train with the Lebanese Air Force conducting air support serials and helicopter insertion and extraction techniques," the UK government said.

"The exercise will culminate in two Field Training Exercises. The exercise will test and enhance the capability of both countries’ troops in a challenging environment," it added.

Britain’s Ambassador to Lebanon Hamish Cowell described the exercises as a "landmark moment," adding that British military training teams continue to work alongside their Lebanese counterparts and provide support.

"The Lebanese Armed Forces has been and remains at the forefront of safeguarding Lebanon’s security and stability throughout many challenging times including the current economic crisis. We stand shoulder to shoulder with our Lebanese friends as they perform these vital tasks," said Cowell.

The UK has provided Lebanon with millions of dollars’ worth of military aid. It funded the construction of watchtowers along Lebanon’s border with Syria which helped Lebanese troops monitor the frontier with its war-torn neighbour, which has not yet been demarcated.

Lebanon’s military has been affected by the country’s four-year long financial crisis - one of the worst in world history - with many soldiers having to work extra jobs amid the collapse of the Lebanese lira and hyperinflation.

Lebanon's biggest military donor is the United States.

Source: newarab.com

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https://www.newarab.com/news/uk-lebanon-hold-largest-ever-joint-military-exercises

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UK Ministry of Defence calls Ukraine's move away from Russian nuclear fuel important stage

14 SEPTEMBER 2023

The first-ever fuelling of Ukrainian nuclear power plants with non-Russian nuclear fuel in the history of Ukraine is an important stage in Ukraine's long-term separation from Russia, the UK Ministry of Defence believes.

Source: UK MoD Defence Intelligence review on 14 September, as reported by European Pravda

Quote from the review: "All of Ukraine's NPPs have reactors based on Soviet designs and until February 2022 it relied on Russia for nuclear fuel. Since Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine has accelerated plans to diversify its supply."

Details: UK analysts recalled that nuclear energy provides about half of Ukraine's electricity.

They stressed that Energoatom's success in finding and installing Western fuel is an important stage in Ukraine's long-term separation from Russia, whose impact on Ukraine's energy supply has significantly reduced.

Source: pravda.com.ua

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https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2023/09/14/7419734/

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Ukraine's Security Service and Navy conduct unique special operation near Yevpatoria

 14 SEPTEMBER 2023

The military counterintelligence of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Navy of Ukraine conducted a unique special operation near Yevpatoria on the night of 13-14 September, destroying a Russian Triumf air defence system, worth US$1.2 billion.

Source: UP’s source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU)

Details: The UP source says that drones and Neptun missiles attacked the target.

First, SSU drones hit the "eyes" of the system – its radars and antennas. After disabling the radar stations, Navy units hit the S300/400 Triumf launch systems, using two Neptune cruise missiles.

Source: pravda.com.ua

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https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2023/09/14/7419745/

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Rentable wombs in Ukraine major cause for concern

14 September 2023

Years of civil conflict, complicated by the ongoing proxy war between NATO and Russia, has thrown Ukraine into an economic disaster with unpleasant consequences. War stricken women from poor backgrounds with their men fighting on the front lines are being lured by the surrogate baby industry, a booming business in Ukraine.

The insatiable thirst for rentable wombs in Ukraine has become a cause for concern as sporadic reports on the surrogate mothers have thrown light on a medical underworld infested with abuse and corruption.

We are worried for ourselves, for our own children, for these little babies that stay here, for everyone.

It is terrifying because we sit here and we don’t know what will happen the next minute.

Even though we stay in a basement, when there is an explosion somewhere nearby, we can hear it very clearly. There were some tonight, it is terrifying indeed.

Surrogate Centre Nurse

Wombs for Rent

The insatiable thirst for rentable wombs in Ukraine has long been a cause for concern.

Long before engaging in war with Russia, Ukraine was known as a hunting ground for agencies seeking to prey on desperate women as a hub of prostitution; a lucrative business at the expense of poor Ukrainian girls and women.

Likewise, over the past decade, Ukraine has become a breeding ground for surrogacy, again, with poverty stricken women bearing the brunt. Promoted by celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Elton John and Paris Hilton, this reproductive process was worth an estimated $14 billion in 2022 according to research company, Global Market Insights.

Following the restriction of surrogacy markets in Thailand and Nepal in 2015, and in India in 2019, global demand for surrogacy has been channeled to Ukraine where the process is less expensive and less regulated.

Controlling 1/4 of the global market Ukraine's BioTexComcenter for reproduction is by far the biggest player in the international surrogacy market.

While the center boasts that the company has given the joy of parenthood to thousands of couples around the world, its true history and operations reveal a tragic pattern of abuse, secrecy, malpractice, and even allegations of human trafficking.

Germany says it will continue to support Ukraine against Russia

Germany says it will continue to support Ukraine against Russia, despite warnings that the country has "hit the limit" in the amount of weapons it can give the country from its army reserves.

A report published in Princeton's Journal of Public and International Affairs in 2020 further underscored the foreign exploitation driving the surrogacy boom in Ukraine, asserting that 'while proponents claim that women freely choose to become surrogates, vulnerable women are often manipulated through the presentation of choice'.

Potential surrogates are forced to choose between providing for their families through a practice that may violate their moral beliefs or forfeiting a financial opportunity to provide for their families.

Most Ukrainians do not agree with the surrogacy business, consequently, there is a stigma attached to women who choose to do it. A Ukrainian woman who sold her womb to foreigners told the Guardian: "The only reason why I agreed to do this is just for the financial benefits. Plus, since my husband left for the frontline, I need a way to support my other four children."

I won’t say that this is exploitation. Nobody forces us to do this, on the contrary, we look for such programmes (organizations) because competition is high.

Yes, people do this because of drastic financial situation.

The (opponents of surrogate motherhood) are right to say that we trade our health, our time, and our body, for money.

 Olga Korsunova, Surrogate Mother

Surprisingly enough BioTexCom's Medical Director, Ihor Pechenoha, openly admitted to the Spanish investigative magazine La Marea that his company targets women from poor areas.

We’re looking for women in the former Soviet republics, because logically the women have to be from poor places than our clients.

Ihor Pechenoha, BioTexCom, Medical Director

The world is watching the Russian “special military operation” in Ukraine with bated breath as the slightest misstep can potentially end in such a way that would send shockwaves across the globe.

Despite BioTexCom's promotional materials flaunting its state of the art facilities and luxury accommodations for its surrogate mothers, multiple reports indicate its residential centers are more akin to prisons than hotels.

There are allegations of BioTexCom's lack of proper care for the medical needs and complications of women who bear the babies. These cases, however, are not pursued in Ukraine's chaotic legal system.

The requirements to use a surrogate in Ukraine are simple: a married, heterosexual, couple must show they're medically unable to have children, and, provide at least half of the child's genetic link via sperm or embryo.

On average surrogacy with BioTexCom costs anywhere between $40,000 and $50,000, with an all inclusive VIP package offered for $71,000.

The German national daily newspaper 'Die Welt' obtained a large number of BioTexCom documents from 2014 to 2017, showing just how little the surrogates were paid.

Each contract varied, but on average each surrogate was paid $9,000 to $14,000 for carrying a child to term despite BioTexCom often charging clients five times that amount.

The Ukrainian center is certainly no stranger to controversy.

Russia’s invasion has not deterred hundreds of foreign would-be parents from travelling to war-torn Kyiv and other centres

The most shocking revelation was that they had forged documents and faked DNA tests to allow children born in Ukraine to be sold to parents who were not genetically related to them.

In 2011 BioTexCom provided a child without a confirmed DNA connection to an Italian couple in Brescia.

There were many outrageous stories about women being basically exploited and the genetic relationships was [sic] not confirmed after the birth.

These are the examples that characterize Ukraine and why we have to check everything.

Sergey Antonov, Lawyer

At the same time, numerous women who have been surrogate mothers have raised dozens of allegations including claims that BioTexCom had failed to pay them, or to compensate them, for the loss of a pregnancy or to cover the cost of medical complications that arose during the surrogacy.

We often hear stories of surrogate mothers not being paid the promised amount. There are difficult situations with complications during pregnancy or after the birth, and they (families) don’t want to compensate (the surrogate mother) for the damage.

Sergey Antonov, Lawyer

BioTexCom has also been accused of tax evasion charges, which led to tens of millions of funds hidden via offshore companies registered in countries such as Latvia, Cyprus and the Czech Republic.

In May 2022, the European Parliament condemned surrogacy and called for binding measures to protect women and children in Ukraine.

But in reality little has been done to empower the surrogates, protect the children, or, regulate the industry.

Ukraine seems to have been given carte blanche for violating human rights as long as the country acts as a puppet in the hands of the Western powers.

Source: presstv.ir

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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/09/14/710829/Rentable-wombs-in-Ukraine-surrogate-mothers-major-cause-for-concern

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North America

 

 

What Ever Happened to Sharia Law in America?

September 13, 2023

Jacob G. Hornberger

In the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the official narrative became that the terrorists just hated America for its “freedom and values.” In other words, America was just minding its own business, with Americans enjoying their “freedom and values,” when the terrorists decided to strike on 9/11 because they just couldn’t control their hatred for such “freedom and values.”

There were a few of us at the time declaring what a crock all this was, much to the anger and chagrin of those who were quickly falling for the official narrative. As I pointed out in my recent article “Why They Hate Us,” the U.S. government’s decade-long killing spree in Iraq, which killed hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children, was one of the big factors that gave rise to the deep anti-U.S. anger and rage within the Middle East.

But there was another phenomenon that took place after the 9/11 attacks. That phenomenon was the conviction that the attacks were carried out by Muslims, supposedly as part of a century’s old quest to establish a worldwide caliphate, including the United States (after the discovery of America in 1492).

Thus, the idea was that the 9/11 attacks weren’t just carried out by some general group of terrorists who hated America for its “freedom and values.” Instead, the idea was that these were Muslims who were the tip of the spear in a supposed centuries-old war between Islam and Christianity.

Today, some 20 years later, it is easy to forget about that phenomenon. But I can never forget it because here at FFF we were being inundated with emails attacking us for supposedly siding with the Muslims in their supposed war against Christianity and, in particular, American Christians.

It is difficult to describe the overarching fear of Islam and Muslims during that time. One of the principal concerns that was being expressed was that as soon as the Muslims prevailed in their war against the United States, they were going to establish a system of Sharia law all across the United States.

In other words, no more Constitution. No more Congress. No more federal judiciary. No more president. Instead, America’s way of life was all going to be replaced by Sharia law, imposed and enforced on the American people by devout Muslim clerics.

There was also a deep fear that with their victory over the West, the Muslims were going to take over America’s socialist system of public schools, where Muslim teachers and administrators would indoctrinate America’s children with Islamic principles. Everyone was going to be forced to be a Muslim.

I sometimes wonder how all those people who succumbed to that anti-Islamic and anti-Muslim nonsense feel today about how they reacted in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. I certainly do not ever read any expressions of regret or remorse in the mainstream press. I get the feeling that the people who fell for this nonsense would simply prefer not to think about it and to just put it all behind us.

Of course, all this anti-Islam, anti-Muslim hysteria, along with the hatred for America’s “freedom and values,” was encouraged or supported by those who wanted to ensure that American did not focus on the deadly and destructive interventionist antics that were the root cause of the deep anger and hatred that foreigners had for the United States. By distracting people with the caliphate nonsense, the Sharia-law nonsense, and the “freedom-and-values” nonsense, U.S. officials could continue with their interventionist antics, especially with their deadly and destructive invasions and occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq, which, needless to say, gave rise to the continued threat of terrorist retaliation, which then was used to justify ever-increasing budgets and power of the national-security establishment.

The post-9/11 Islamic-caliphate nonsense and Sharia-law hysteria, of course, brings to mind the old Cold War racket, when the fear was that the Reds were coming to get us as part of a decades-old supposed communist conspiracy to take over the world that was supposedly based in Moscow, Russia — yes, the same Russia that today, we are told, is going to sweep across Ukraine, take over Eastern and Western Europe and England, and then cross the Atlantic and conquer and occupy the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America.

Of course, the jury is still out with respect to all this nonsense on whether Americans will be living under Sharia law or Russian law … or possibly even Red law if communist China gets here first.

Source: fff.org

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https://www.fff.org/2023/09/13/what-ever-happened-to-sharia-law-in-america/

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CAIR Supports Right to Remove Confederate Street Names in Tennessee

(WASHINGTON, D.C., 9/13/2023) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today expressed its support for the right of local communities to remove Confederate street names. 

The city of Forest Hills is seeking to test Tennessee’s Heritage Protection Act, passed five years ago to protect Confederate monuments. The city is testing whether or not the law applies to subdivision streets, where roads are typically mapped out, constructed and named by individual developers without public input approval before they become city streets. The city seeks to rename six streets Confederate leaders. 

SEE: Tennessee defends GOP measure that protects Confederate monuments – Tennessee Lookout

https://tennesseelookout.com/2023/09/13/tennessee-defends-gop-measure-that-protects-confederate-monuments/

“Every community should have the right to remove street names and monuments honoring racist traitors who sought to destroy our nation and defend slavery,” said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. 

He said Washington, D.C., based CAIR has repeatedly called for the removal of Confederate names, holidays, flags, statues, and symbols nationwide.

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.  

Source: cair.com

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https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-supports-right-to-remove-confederate-street-names-in-tennessee/

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CAIR-NY Calls for ‘Thorough and Swift’ NYPD Probe of Attack Targeting Imam Idriz Budimlić

Ismail Allison

September 13, 2023

(NEW YORK, NY, 9/13/2023) – The New York chapter of the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on the NYPD to conduct a “thorough and swift” investigation into the reported attack on Imam Idriz Budimlić of the Islamic Center of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Astoria, N.Y.

The alleged assailant reportedly attacked Imam Budimlić by knocking him to the ground with a punch to the face, causing injuries to his face and multiple fractures to the face/nose. The alleged perpetrator was able to flee the scene. 

SEE: The Imam of the Islamic Center of BiH in New York was brutally beaten 

SEE: Man slugged unconscious outside mosque in Long Island City: NYPD 

According to the press release issued by the Board of Directors of the center, the incident could have been prevented if the NYPD had responded to an earlier call reporting a disturbance at the center on the previous night by the same attacker. The board indicated that the failure to respond on the prior night led to the alleged attacker’s return the next morning, resulting in the second incident about seven hours later.  

In a statement, CAIR-NY’s Executive Director, Afaf Nasher said: 

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Imam and his family during this challenging time. This horrifying act of violence reminds us of the critical need for our law enforcement agencies to demonstrate unwavering commitment to protecting the safety and well-being of all our citizens, regardless of their religious or ethnic backgrounds.” 

She added: “CAIR-NY urges the NYPD to conduct a thorough and swift investigation into the incident and address the lack of responsiveness to the initial call to report the first incident. For far too long, incidents of this nature have gone unresolved, leading to fear, frustration, and a loss of faith in the systems that are supposed to protect us.” 

CAIR-NY’s 2022 report “Feeling the Hate: Bias and Hate Crimes Experienced by Muslim New Yorkers” found that 64% of Muslims have experienced a hate crime, bias incident, or both. Yet only 4% of Muslims reported incidents to law enforcement, citing the lack of trust/accountability in law enforcement as a main reason.  

SEE: Feeling the Hate: Bias and Hate Crimes Experienced by Muslim New Yorkers 

She added that CAIR-NY and the Muslim American community stand in solidarity with all those challenging white supremacy, anti-Jewish hate, anti-Black racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, and all other forms of bigotry.              

CAIR-NY’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.  

Source: cair.com

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https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-ny-calls-for-thorough-and-swift-nypd-probe-of-attack-targeting-imam-idriz-budimlic/

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Biden accused Obama of having ‘no grace’ – emails

13 Sep, 2023

Messages found on Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop have revealed a 2010 conversation in which then-US Vice President Joe Biden’s son accused then-President Barack Obama of plagiarizing his father’s speeches. Joe Biden responded by slamming his boss for having “no grace.”

The September 2010 exchange of emails, first reported by Fox News on Wednesday, started with Hunter Biden suggesting to his father that Obama had stolen his words in a speech the previous day at a union event in Wisconsin. After citing some of the lines from Obama’s speech, Hunter Biden said, “I’m surprised he didn’t finish with the long walk up a short flight of stairs,” alluding to phrasing that Joe Biden used while campaigning unsuccessfully for president in 2008. “Pretty amazing.”

The message was sent to Joe Biden’s personal email address, which was reportedly one of many that he used to communicate with family members. The then-VP responded to his son’s plagiarism accusation by saying of Obama, “No grace.”

Ironically, Biden’s first failed run for president ended in disgrace in 1987, when he was caught plagiarizing lines from the speeches of other politicians, including the late Robert F. Kennedy. He was also forced to admit that he had plagiarized parts of a paper he submitted as a law school student, and media outlets reported that he lied on the campaign trail about his academic record and his involvement in the 1960s civil rights movement.

Biden and Obama had a strained relationship before and during their eight years in the White House, according to a biography released last year. Author Gabriel Debenedetti’s book detailed how Obama considered Biden “condescending” and was frustrated by how he “rambled” in his speeches.

In fact, the then-president considered replacing Biden with Hillary Clinton when he ran for re-election in 2012. He reluctantly endorsed Biden for president in 2020, despite thinking his candidacy could be “unthinkably painful,” Debenedetti wrote.

Biden infamously described Obama in a 2007 magazine interview as the “first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.” He bristled at being given little influence on the president’s decision-making, according to the book, and he “rolled his eyes behind Obama’s back,” considering him humorless and aloof.

Obama was reportedly troubled by Biden’s frequent speaking gaffes, which he believed gave ammunition to political enemies, and he was angered when Biden prematurely revealed that he and the president would support gay marriage. Biden was “personally stung” when Obama supported Hillary Clinton’s candidacy for president in 2016.

Source: rt.com

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https://www.rt.com/news/582929-biden-insulted-obama-in-2010-email/

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US expects Iran's frozen assets to move to Qatar 'in coming days': Department spokesperson

14 September 2023

US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller says Iran's frozen assets will expectedly be transferred to the "final destination" in Qatar in the "coming days or so."

Speaking at a press briefing on Wednesday, Miller did not give the exact details of the transactions and just said that “they move from South Korea, through banks in Europe, ultimately to these end accounts in Qatar.”

In response to a question about the amount of the assets that Iran had now access to and could spend, which had been held by India, Turkey, Japan and South Korea, he said the US does not have "perfect" visibility into the accounts and how they were being used.

The spokesman, however, explained that Washington does have information to conclude that they were spent down by billions of dollars, in some cases all the way to zero.

Meanwhile, he said Washington has complete visibility into the accounts in Qatar and is able to "lock them down" if it sees that Iran is attempting to take actions that are in violation of the agreement between the two sides and breach the US sanctions.

"I’m not going to get into what the exact technical details are, but we have the full agreement to stop their access to this account going forward," the spokesperson added.

On Monday, President Joe Biden’s administration issued a blanket waiver for international banks to transfer six billion dollars in frozen Iranian assets from South Korea to Qatar with no concern about Washington's sanctions.

The report released early Tuesday said the Biden administration has also agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the United States.

The five Iranian detainees were identified as Mehrdad Moein Ansari, Kambiz Attar Kashani, Reza SarhangpourKofrani, Amin Hassanzadeh, and Kaveh Lotfollah Afrasiabi.

The US administration has reportedly issued a blanket waiver to allow transfer of six billion dollars in frozen Iranian money from South Korea to Qatar.

It added that Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed off on the sanctions waivers late last week, a month after US and Iranian officials said an agreement in principle was in place on the issue.

In an exclusive interview with the American broadcast television network NBC on Tuesday, Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi underscored Tehran's full authority on its recently-released assets, saying it is the Islamic Republic that decides how to spend the funds and that the money will be spent "wherever we need it."

President Raeisi says Iran has full authority on its recently-released frozen assets and will decide to spend them "wherever we need it."

He added, “This money belongs to the Iranian people, the Iranian government, so the Islamic Republic of Iran will decide what to do with this money.”

Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations also on Tuesday confirmed that five Iranians detained illegally in the United States on charges of circumventing US sanctions will soon be released as part a prisoner swap deal between Tehran and Washington.

Source: presstv.ir

Please click the following URL to read the full text of the original

https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/09/14/710824/Iran-US-State-Department-Matthew-Miller-frozen-assets-Qatar-Turkey-India-South-Korea-prisoner-swap--

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Trump legal cases expose corrupt political system in US: Putin

13 September 2023

Russian President Vladimir Putin has described the numerous criminal cases lodged against former US president Donald Trump as "politically-motivated persecution" on behalf of his Democratic rivals, which exposes the corrupt political system prevalent in the United States.

Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum gathering in Vladivostok on Tuesday, Putin said the numerous court cases filed by US judicial authorities against Trump were political revenge by his rivals which showed the existing fundamental corruption rooted in US politics.

“As for Trump, for us what is happening in today’s conditions, in my opinion, is good because it shows the rottenness of the American political system, which cannot pretend to teach others democracy," Putin said.

Trump, who is the frontrunner Republican candidate for the 2024 US presidential elections, is stuck in a mire of criminal cases lodged against him. Among other things, he is charged with making an attempt to overturn his 2020 election defeat to Biden.

“Everything that is happening with Trump is the persecution of a political rival for political reasons. That’s what it is. And this is being done in front of the public of the United States and the whole world,” the Russian leader added.

Donald Trump warns that the Ukraine war could escalate into another world war.

Trump, who used to claim to have good relations with the Russian president, has vowed to end the Ukraine war if re-elected.

“We hear Mr. Trump say he will solve pressing problems in a few days, including the Ukrainian crisis. Well, this cannot but bring happiness. This is good,” Putin said.

Meanwhile, Pertinent to Putin's argument, on Tuesday, the GOP speaker of the Republican-led House of Representatives gave the go-ahead for an impeachment investigation into US President Joe Biden.

Democratic lawmakers have denounced the Republicans' move as an attempt to take revenge against Biden, who is a Democrat, for the double impeachment of Trump in 2017 and 2019 during the latter's presidency.

Source: presstv.ir

Please click the following URL to read the full text of the original

https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/09/13/710751/Russia-Putin-US-Legal-case-against-trump-shows-corrupt-political-system

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Arab World

 

 

Member of the Supreme Political CouncilAl-Houthi: The West Is Working to Separate Islamic Nation from Its Sanctities

13/September/2023

SANA'A September 13. 2023 (Saba)-Member of the Supreme Political Council, Muhammad Ali Al-Houthi, said, “The West is working to separate the Islamic nation from its sanctities, and distort the character of the Messenger, may God bless him, his family and grant them peace.”

In the expanded preparatory meeting of the directorates of the southern sector in Sana’a province, on the anniversary of the Prophet’s birthday today, in the presence of the Minister of Culture Abdullah Al-Kabsi, Governor Abdul Basit Al-Hadi,a number of members of the House of Representatives and the Shura Council, Muhammad Ali Al-Houthi denounced the West’s insistence on distorting Islamic sanctities, as well as the insistence of some inside the country. The celebration of the anniversary of the Prophet’s birthday has been linked to heresy.

The senior political member pointed out that the armies that were present in the Republic of Yemen were infiltrated through restructuring and quotas, but the Yemeni army today was built during a difficult stage and in light of a continuous confrontation with the enemy, as is the case with the security services as well.

He indicated that the nation’s free people today In the face of the smear campaign targeting the Messenger of God by the West.

He added, "Some people talk about the suffering of the Yemeni people and ignore the state's efforts to address the humanitarian aspect, and its rejection of any negotiations before handing over salaries, opening ports, releasing prisoners, and opening airports and roads closed by the aggression, especially after we opened all the roads on our part, and we also refused to have Political dialogue while our country’s wealth is still being plundered and before the siege on our country is lifted.”

Muhammad Ali Al-Houthi praised the large attendance at this event, urging continued mobilization and awareness of the importance of active participation in commemorating the central event commemorating the Prophet’s birthday, which will be held on the twelfth of Rabi’ al-Awwal.

Source: saba.ye/en

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https://www.saba.ye/en/news3264207.htm

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Saudi CentreForOrgan Transplantation Performs 20 Organ Transplants On 19 Patients

September 14, 2023

RIYADH: A team from the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation performed transplants on 20 patients with multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) in hospitals across the Kingdom and the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi.

The team transplanted two hearts, a lung, five livers, a pancreas and 11 kidneys.

All the transplanted organs had been donated by relatives of eight people.

The procedures were carried out in King Khalid General Hospital in Hafr Al-Batin, King Abdulaziz Medical City of the National Guard in Jeddah, King Saud Medical City, the Saudi-German Hospital in Riyadh, Al-Mana Medical Center in the Eastern Region, and Cleveland Clinic and Burjeel Hospital in Abu Dhabi.

Director-General of the Saudi Center for Organ Transplantation Dr. Talal Al-Qoufi stressed that the success of the operations was the result of cooperation among all stakeholders.

Source: arabnews.com

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Public Prosecution: 2-year jail each for Saudis and expats who possess drugs for use

September 13, 2023

RIYADH — The Public Prosecution announced that a number of Saudi citizens and expatriates, who were accused of possessing drugs for use, were sentenced to two years in prison each.

The narcotics wing at the Public Prosecution in the Jeddah governorate has completed investigation procedures against citizens and residents on charges of drug possession with the intent to use, and subsequently they were arrested and referred to the competent court.

The court convicted the defendants and awarded them two years in prison as per the provisions of the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Control Law.

The Public Prosecution emphasized that it will take stringent punitive measures against all those who are involved in drug crimes, and will refer all those accused to the competent court.

It will demand deterrent penalties against them so as to protect society from this dangerous scourge that threatens its security and public health.

Source: saudigazette.com.sa

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Saudi Arabia’s King Salman appoints 155 judges at Ministry of Justice

September 14, 2023

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has issued a royal order to promote and appoint 155 judges at the Ministry of Justice.

Minister of Justice Walid bin Mohammed Al-Samaani said the royal order is testimony to the King’s support to the judiciary.

Source: arabnews.com

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Saudi deputy minister meets Pakistan’s ambassador

September 13, 2023

Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for International Multilateral Affairs Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Rassi received the ambassador of Pakistan to the Kingdom, Ahmed Farooq, on Wednesday.

In a separate meeting, Saudi Assistant Minister of State for African Countries Affairs Dr. Sami Al-Saleh received the ambassador of South Africa to the Kingdom, Mogobo David Magabe.

Deputy Minister for Consular Affairs, ambassador Ali Al-Yousef. met with the ambassador of Tajikistan to the Kingdom, Akram Karimi.

During these meetings, all sides reviewed bilateral relations between their countries, in addition to discussing regional and international developments of common concern.

Source: arabnews.com

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Saudi authorities foil drug smuggling attempts

September 13, 2023

RIYADH: Saudi authorities thwarted attempts to smuggle drugs in Najran, Jazan, Asir, and the Eastern Province, Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.

General Directorate of Border Guard spokesperson Col. Misfer Al-Quraini said 39 tons of qat, 837 kg of hashish and 336,694 regulated medical tablets were seized by Saudi border guards.

Initial legal procedures have been taken against those allegedly involved in the smuggling attempts and seized items handed over to the authorities.

Saudi security forces are appealing to the public to report information concerning drug smuggling or dealing by calling 911 in the Makkah, Riyadh and Eastern Province regions, and 999 in the rest of the Kingdom.

Members of the public can also contact the General Directorate of Narcotics Control at 995 or via email at 995@gdnc.gov.sa. All reports will be treated with strict confidentiality.

Source: arabnews.com

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Africa

 

Fears mount of surging death toll in Libya flood disaster

September 13, 2023

Libya was reeling Wednesday from a massive flood disaster that killed at least 2,300 people when a surge of water devastated the eastern city of Derna, leaving another 10,000 missing according to the Red Cross.

Relief missions gathered pace with Turkey, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates among the first nations to rush aid to the war-scarred country, and the UN pledging $10 million in support for survivors, including more than 30,000 people left homeless.

The Mediterranean coastal city of Derna was hit by a huge flash flood late Sunday that witnesses likened to a tsunami after two upstream dams burst when torrential rains brought by Storm Daniel battered the region.

The wall of water ripped away entire buildings, vehicles and the people inside them. Many were swept out into the Mediterranean Sea, with bodies later washing up on beaches littered with debris and car wrecks.

Traumatised survivors have dug through the mud-caked ruins of shattered buildings to recover victims' bodies, scores of which were lying wrapped in blankets out in the open before being buried in mass graves.

The confirmed death toll in the politically fractured North African country reached 2,300 by Tuesday afternoon, but some regional officials were quoted as giving figures more than twice as high.

Another 10,000 people were still missing, said Tamer Ramadan of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

"The death toll is huge and might reach thousands," Ramadan said Tuesday, adding that the organisation had independent sources saying that "the number of missing people is hitting 10,000 persons so far".

- 'Epic calamity' -

Oil-rich Libya is still recovering from the years of war and chaos that followed the NATO-backed uprising which toppled and killed longtime dictator MoamerKadhafi in 2011.

The country has been left divided between two rival governments -- the UN-brokered, internationally recognised administration based in Tripoli, and a separate administration in the disaster-hit east.

Media reports quoted an interior ministry spokesman of the eastern-based government as saying "more than 5,200" people had died in Derna.

The city, a 300-kilometre (190 mile) drive east of Benghazi, is ringed by hills and bisected by a riverbed that is usually dry in summer, but which became a raging torrent that also destroyed several bridges.

Mudslides and flooding also hit nearby areas of eastern Libya where, aid group the Norwegian Refugee Council said, "entire villages have been overwhelmed by the floods and the death toll continues to rise".

"Communities across Libya have endured years of conflict, poverty and displacement. The latest disaster will exacerbate the situation for these people. Hospitals and shelters will be overstretched."

With global concern spreading, several nations offered urgent aid and rescue teams to help address what one UN official called "a calamity of epic proportions".

The United Nations allocated $10 million for disaster relief, said Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator.

"Storm Daniel has claimed thousands of lives, causing widespread damage and wiping out livelihoods in eastern Libya," he wrote on X, formerly Twitter, adding: "We stand with the people of Libya at this difficult time."

- Rescue effort -

Rescue teams from Turkey have arrived in eastern Libya, authorities said, and Algeria, France, Italy, Qatar and Tunisia also pledged to help.

The United Arab Emirates sent two aid planes carrying 150 tonnes of food, relief and medical supplies.

The EU said assistance from Germany, Romania and Finland had been dispatched to Libya, including food, water tanks, tents and blankets as well as hospital tents and power generators.

A Kuwaiti flight took off Wednesday with 40 tonnes of supplies, and Jordan sent a military plane loaded with food parcels, tents, blankets and mattresses.

Climate experts have linked Libya's deadly disaster to a combination of the impacts of a heating planet and of the country's years of political chaos and underinvestment in infrastructure.

Hurricane-strength Mediterranean storms such as Daniel -- which earlier hit Turkey, Bulgaria and Greece -- are known as "medicanes" which can gain strength as warmer air absorbs more moisture.

Climate-linked extreme weather events tend to be the deadliest in strife-torn and poor countries that lack good infrastructure, early warning systems and strong emergency response services.

As the world heats up, Libya's disaster "is illustrative of the type of devastating flooding event we may expect increasingly in the future," said Bristol Univers

Source: africanews.com

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At least 5,000 dead, thousands more missing after Libya storm

September 13, 2023

The eastern Libyan city of Derna on Wednesday counted its dead in the thousands, and feared a very heavy toll, after two dams broke under the pressure of torrential rains, releasing powerful floodwaters that swept away everything in their path.

Given the difficult access to this town of 100,000 inhabitants, uncertainties remain over the number of victims of the disaster, which could have left several thousand people dead or missing, according to the authorities.

Roads were cut off, landslides and floods prevented rescue services from reaching the population, who had to make do with rudimentary means to recover bodies buried by the dozen in mass graves, according to images broadcast on social networks.

Derna and other towns are virtually cut off from the rest of the world, despite efforts by the authorities to restore cell phone and internet networks.

Authorities in the east and their rivals in the west are speaking of "thousands" of deaths.

Osama Ali, spokesman for Libya's "Emergency and Rescue Service" under the internationally-recognized government in Tripoli, told AFP on Tuesday that the floods had left "more than 2,300 dead" and around 7,000 injured in Derna, while more than 5,000 people are missing.

An official of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) reported a "huge" death toll, which could run into the thousands, with 10,000 still missing.

This is the worst natural disaster to hit Libya's eastern province of Cyrenaica since the great earthquake that shook the eastern town of al-Marj in 1963.

On Sunday afternoon, storm Daniel reached Libya's eastern coast, hitting the metropolis of Benghazi before heading east towards the towns of the Jabal al-Akhdar (north-east), such as Shahat (Cyrene), al-Marj, al-Bayda and Soussa (Apollonia), but above all Derna, the most devastated city.

On Sunday night, the two dams on Wadi Derna, which hold back the waters of the wadi that runs through the city, broke.

Witnesses told Libyan media they heard a "huge explosion" before powerful torrents reached the city, overflowing the riverbanks, washing bridges and entire neighborhoods with their inhabitants into the Mediterranean.

Relief efforts trickle in

As early as Tuesday, bodies began to be washed up by the sea, which had turned the color of mud. In images published on Tuesday by Libyan media, a military helicopter can be seen recovering bodies from a beach strewn with debris and pieces of iron.

Both in Libya and abroad, people are mobilized to help the victims, even if help is still arriving in dribs and drabs.

Aid convoys from Tripolitania in the west are on their way to Derna. The Tripoli government, headed by Abdelhamid Dbeibah, has announced the dispatch of two air ambulances and a helicopter, 87 doctors, a team of rescue workers and search dogs, and technicians from the national electricity company to try to quickly restore the power that has been cut off.

Rescue teams sent by Turkey and the United Arab Emirates have also arrived in eastern Libya, according to the authorities.

Source: africanews.com

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Proceeds of kidnapping being used to finance terrorism — ONSA

 September 14, 2023

TНЕ coordinator, National Counter in the Office of the National Security Adviser (NCTC-ONSA), Rear Admiral Yaminu Musa (reta), has said proceeds of kidnapping is being used to partly finance terrorism.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Musa made this disclosure on Wednesday in Abuja during the ‘Anti-Kidnap Multi-Agency Fusion Cell Media and Communication workshop’, organised by ONSA, in collaboration with the British High Commission.

While explaining that kidnapping for ransom is also identified as one of the means of funding terrorism, he contended that “carnage unleashed by kidnappers in affiliation with terrorist groups all over the world leading to loss and disruption of lives and properties, is a major concern, hence the need for collective efforts in advancing measures to check the threat.”

Musa stated: “Evidently, the menace requires concerted and sustained efforts by every citizen, government at all levels, international community and the media which of course is the fourth estate of the realm.

You will agree with me that proceeds of kidnap for ransom enterprise have continued to serve as a platform for financing terrorism not only in Nigeria but across the Sahel.”

He also disclosed that the workshop was pertinent to the success of the government’s effort to curtail the menace of kidnapping, stressing that the media would help to build the kind of relationship the NCTC-ONSA desired on the efforts of security agencies in the protection of lives and properties in the country..

“In an increasingly interconnected world, where information spreads at an unprecedented pace, the media has the power to either amplify or mitigate the impact of security-related news events. The consequences of inaccurate or sensational reporting can be detrimental to public trust, exacerbate fear and anxiety, and even hinder counterterrorism efforts,” Musa averred.

He said it is imperative for the government and the media work to collaborate in order to establish a framework of synergy and standardisation for reporting on security related matters, expressing optimism

such collaboration would not only enhance the accuracy and quality of news reporting, but also contribute to national security.

Programme Manager, National Crime Agency UK, Mr Chris Grimson, said the workshop was a fall out of a number of agreements between Nigeria and the UK to create a multi-agency kidnap fusion cell, adding that the purpose of the workshop was to identity and explore what was needed to create the fusion cell or whatever it turns out to be.

One of the facilitators of the workshop, Rear Admiral Leye Jaiyeola, said “the fusion cell workshop was designed to come up with a joint decision model to allow for an effective multi-agency use and conflict resolution”.

He said that kidnapping had become a major threat in Nigeria, hence the need to develop an agreed national kidnap fusion and coordination mechanism.

“Our focus is to make sure that we maintain a strategic national kidnap operation posture, get all the agencies involved in doing it, so that we will be able to put our feet at the right spot and come up with a set of principles so that the commanders will be able to deliver, “Jaiye-ola remarked.

He posited that “we have looked at coming up with standard operating proce-dure, looked at developing the doctrine itself and this session of workshop is the session that involves relating with the public so that they will build trust and confidence in the security.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the workshop has participants drawn from the media, military, security agencies, ministries, departments and agencies.

Source: tribuneonlineng.com

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Residents flee as terrorists sack Taraba communities, several feared kidnapped

Chuwang Dungs 

September 13, 2023

Residents of at least 15 communities in Bali Local Government, Taraba State, have fled their homes after they were attacked by terrorists, locally referred to as bandits.

Residents said the bandits have been attacking communities in the area since August. The witnesses said more than 40 people were kidnapped or missing following the attack.

Bali is located in the central zone of the state and some 161km from Jalingo, the state capital.

Villagers said the criminals often hide within the surrounding forest and mountains to launch attacks and hide in them afterwards.

Some sacked communities are Garbatau, Mirimidankol, Gidan Hamidu, Dangiwa and Nayinawa.

Others are Garin Gima, Bantaguru, ShaDussa, Garin Bose, Mailabari, and Kaigama among several other communities.

Also on Wednesday, 6 September, they attacked Garba Chede, a large settlement in the locality, according to residents many are still missing, including women and children.

Residents said the growing number of abductions in the area is halting business and farming activities in many of the villages of the LGA.

A resident of Bali town, Sani Ibrahim, told PREMIUM TIMES that because of the recurring attacks, most of the communities fled their homes, and the bandits now live in those communities.

“This is the situation now in Bali. We are in a terrible situation. Even last Wednesday they attacked Garba Chede, where most of the displaced persons are taking refuge, and kidnapped many, including women and children.

“We can’t go to the farm because if you are found in the farm, you will either be abducted or killed. Life has become entirely miserable. We are calling on relevant authorities to come to our aid.

One of the villagers from the Garbatau community, Musa Mainoma, said residents of the affected villages have deserted the area and are now taking refuge in Garba Chede, Sunkani, and Pamamga towns.

He said many of those that fled are still missing and parents are still searching for their missing children.

He said the bandits kidnapped many villagers and rustled cattle and also looted shops in all the villages they attacked.

A resident of Garba Chede explained that over three thousand people who ran away from the farming communities during the attacks are now taking refuge in Garba Chede town.

He said residents of Garba Chede town have offered free accommodation to the victims.

The district head of Gamfurum, Muhammed Gamfurum, confirmed to journalists that 15 communities in the locality are now under the control of bandits.

Mr Gamfurum said the bandits are in the communities living and operating freely.

According to him, hundreds of people from the communities are in the custody of the kidnappers, while those lucky to have escaped from the areas have taken refuge in Garba-Chede, the administrative headquarters of the chiefdom.

He said he narrowly escaped with his wives and children.

“They attempted to abduct me and members of my family severally, but I escaped, and was compelled to relocate from the area with my family.

He said: “We have no option but to run away from our towns and villages to safe areas because the bandits are in large numbers and armed with AK47 guns.

“The bandits treat abductees as slaves; they chain and force them to carry loads. whenever they are moving to another base or location.”

“I am appealing to relevant authorities to, as a matter of urgency, put mechanisms in place to address the situation, as the bandits had in the last week, abducted many, including women and children.” He said.

He disclosed that six victims from the communities regained freedom after paying N7 million ransom.

While confirming the development, the spokesperson for Taraba State Police Command, Abdullahi Usman, said the command has come up with a joint patrol to arrest the situation.

He said the joint patrol comprises the military, police, hunters, and vigilantes.

Mr Usman said the team would soon flush out the bandits who have been making life unbearable for the people.

He said: “Last Friday, the Commissioner of Police drafted more men to join that operation. He briefed them at the headquarters before drafting them, and more men will also be sent to beef up the operation.”

Source: premiumtimesng.com

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Malians divided on response to surge in deadly violence

September 13, 2023

After recent deadly attacks in northern Mali, some people in Bamako say the government should consider restarting or increasing dialogue with armed groups.

There's been a resurgence of deadly violence in Mali's north in recent weeks inolving attacks by Islamist militants on civilians and security forces.

".... We're all Malians, so it would be better to talk to each other and come back to the negotiating table. It's better than fighting. Neither side has anything to gain. So it would be bettER if we came back to the negotiating table," said Souleymane Camara, shopkeeper.

But Abdoulaye Kouyaté, another shopkeeper says dialogue will not help Mali reclaim its territory.

"If you want peace, prepare for war. If they declare war on Mali, there's no problem. We're ready to confront them, that's normal. We'll never be able to liberate the North without war, and after the war we'll negotiate, because we'll all know each other's weight. There will surely be casualties on both sides, but that's really part of reclaiming the territory. War is necessary in this case," he asserted.

The surge in violence comes UN peacekeeping forces vacate their bases ahead of their full withdrawal at the end of the year.

Armed groups from northern Mali on Tuesday claimed they captured the key town of Bourem, between Gao and Timbuktu, before pulling out, fuelling fears of the collapse of a peace deal between the ex-rebels and government forces.

A senior army official said troops had regained control of its positions in Bourem with the help of air support.

Source: africanews.com

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Rwanda strikes deal to build nuclear reactor

September 13, 2023

The Rwandan government signed an agreement on Tuesday with a German-Canadian start-up to build an “experimental” civil nuclear reactor, in order to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.

The reactor will be ready for testing in 2026, according to the start-up that will build it, Dual Fluid Energy.

These “reactors can be used to produce electricity, hydrogen, and synthetic fuels at lower costs than fossil fuels,” Dual Fluid Energy CEO Gotz Ruprecht said at a conference. press office in Kigali.

The use of nuclear power will provide "a stable and reliable source of electricity, reducing dependence on hydrocarbons and helping to meet the growing demand for energy", said Infrastructure Minister Ernest Nsabimama.

Rwanda signed a deal in 2019 to build nuclear power plants in collaboration with Russia's Federal Atomic Energy Agency Rosatom, sparking strong opposition due to concerns over security.

The leader of the main opposition party, the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda, Frank Habineza, deemed the agreement with Dual Fluid Energy "dangerous". There is “no big difference between what Dual Fluid Energy wants to do and what Russia and the Rwandan government wanted to do in 2019,” he told AFP.

“No study can convince me that there is a place in this country where a reactor or a nuclear power plant can be built without endangering the population,” he said.

“Our test reactor is a small device with low combustion and therefore contains little nuclear material. For this reason, it poses no threat to the environment,” assured the Rwanda Atomic Energy Office and Dual Fluid Energy in a joint press release.

South Africa is the only country on the continent to have a civil nuclear program, with two reactors in service for more than 30 years.

Source: africanews.com

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Niger denounces military cooperation agreement with Benin

September 13, 2023

The military in power in Niger said Tuesday evening that they had denounced a military cooperation agreement concluded in 2022 with neighboring Benin, which they accuse of "considering aggression" against their country.

In a press release read on national television, the military regime of Niamey indicated "having called on several occasions for compliance with the obligations" of this agreement signed on July 11, 2022, with Benin which they decided to "denounce".

The military who came to power in Niger through a coup d'état on July 26, claim that Benin has "decided to consider aggression against Niger instead of supporting it".

"The Republic of Benin has authorized the stationing of mercenary soldiers and war materials in view of an aggression desired by France in collaboration with certain countries" of the Economic Community of West African States ( ECOWAS ) against Niger, they assured Tuesday while reiterating their “desire to avoid escalation”.

Military intervention

For several weeks, ECOWAS has been threatening military intervention in Niger to restore constitutional order and reinstate deposed President Mohamed Bazoum, held prisoner and refusing to resign.

This agreement with Benin concerned in particular the exchange of intelligence, air assistance to monitor the movements of jihadists, and joint operations between the two Beninese and Nigerien armies.

Northern Benin, bordering Niger and Burkina Faso, two countries undermined by recurring jihadist violence, has been the scene of attacks and incursions by these groups in recent months.

"Assault"

This weekend, the new authorities in Niamey also accused France of preparing "aggression" by deploying "forces" in several West African countries. Accusations denied by Paris which does not recognize the military regime.

Several military agreements with France were also denounced by the generals in power on August 3 who claim that the presence of 1,500 French soldiers on their territory is now illegal.

Source: africanews.com

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Moroccan villagers try to adjust to life after quake devastation

September 14, 2023

Rescue teams stepped up on Wednesday a massive effort in devastated Moroccan mountain villages as chances faded for finding survivors from last week's earthquake which killed nearly 3,000 people and left many homeless.

Vehicles packed with supplies were inching up winding mountain roads to deliver desperately needed food and tents to survivors of the nation's strongest quake on record and deadliest in more than six decades.

Smaller quakes are still rattling the disaster zone and one sent stones falling in the village of ImiN'Tala, where a person was injured following the jolt, AFP journalists saw.

Search teams were still scouring the rubble for the living. Morocco is now well past the 72-hour window when rescues are considered most likely, yet survivors are in some cases found well beyond that period.

"We're working in a lot of places," said Fahas Abdullah Al Dosanri of the Qatari fire department, part of the international aid effort, adding some villages still cannot be reached by road.

Moroccan authorities reported that crews were working to clear unpaved tracks that have been cut off by landslides.

In the hardest-hit areas south of Marrakesh many villages in the High Atlas mountains were completely destroyed and locals were taking shelter in yellow government-issued tents.

"We just have the food donations, and we have some blankets, but no housing," said 18-yead-old survivor Afrah Fouzia in the tiny mountain village of Tikht, which was so heavily damaged that it is now only rubble.

"Soon the rainy season will start, it will get colder and we'll be completely destitute," she told AFP. "There are a lot of children here."

The tents in Tikht and elsewhere are an indication that aid is reaching some remote places but they are intended to be only temporary and will be totally insufficient once the weather turns.

The challenge of rebuilding

Morocco has allowed rescue teams to come to its aid from Spain, Britain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates but so far declined offers from several other nations, including the United States, France and some Middle Eastern countries.

The United States on Wednesday offered $1 million in support of groups on the ground and said it had deployed a small team to Morocco to help assess the situation.

"We are in discussions with them about what we can best provide to support their efforts," said State Department spokesman Mathew Miller.

The quake was Morocco's deadliest since a 1960 earthquake destroyed Agadir on the Atlantic coast, killing between 12,000 and 15,000 people.

The United Nations estimated that more than 300,000 people have been affected by the latest earthquake, one third of them children.

The rebuilding effort is expected to be enormous for the North African country which was already suffering economic woes and years of drought and now fears a downturn in the crucial tourism sector.

The disaster has left a vast number of homes uninhabitable in rural areas where locals don't have the money to quickly, or maybe even ever, rebuild without help.

"We lost everything," said Mohammed Al Moutawak, a 56-year-old farmer in the village of Ineghede.

Source: africanews.com

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Madagascar opposition condemns 'institutional coup' before vote

September 14, 2023

Opposition parties in Madagascar have denounced what they say is an "institutional coup" after the prime minister, an ally of President Andry Rajoelina, was put in charge of the nation in the run-up to a presidential election.

In a letter to electoral authorities received on Tuesday, 10 of 13 presidential candidates said court rulings that handed the reins of the Indian Ocean island to Christian Ntsay were dictated by Rajoelina and his entourage to favour the president in the November election.

"The powers (that be)... carried out a real institutional coup with the aim of putting the Prime Minister in charge of the state during the presidential electoral period in order to manipulate the results for the benefit of their candidate," the signatories, including two former presidents, wrote.

Voters in Madagascar, one of the poorest countries on the globe despite vast natural resources, head to the polls to elect a president on November 9.

Rajoelina, 49, resigned on Saturday, in line with the constitution, in order to run for re-election.

The President of the Senate was supposed to take over but declined to do so for "personal reasons", leaving the task to a "collegial government" headed by Ntsay.

The move was accepted by the country's top court -- which over the weekend also dismissed appeals to have Rajoelina's candidacy declared void over his dual French nationality -- sparking the anger of the opposition.

"The renunciation made by the President of the Senate is not provided for anywhere in the Constitution," the letter read.

The head of the Constitutional Court dismissed accusations of bias.

"The President of the Senate renounced the office. We cannot force him to take the reins of power," Florent Rakotoarisoa told AFP, adding the decision was lawful and aimed to "ensure the continuity of the State".

'Confidence is crumbling'

On Saturday the court had also rejected appeals filed by three opposition parties to have Rajoelina's name struck off the ballot as "unreceivable".

Media reports in June revealed that Rajoelina had been naturalised as French in 2014.

Under local law that meant he could lose Madagascan nationality and thus the ability to lead the country and run for office.

This version of the facts was vigorously disputed by the ruling party.

Rajoelina had not waited for the court ruling to announce his candidacy, holding a grand campaign launch at a stadium in the capital last week.

He first took power in 2009 on the back of a coup that ousted former president Marc Ravalomanana, who is also running in November.

After not contesting in the 2013 election due to international pressure, Rajoelina was voted back into power in 2018.

Eleonore Johasy, national coordinator for presidential candidate Auguste Paraina, said the Constitutional Court rulings were "taken at odd hours, so that there would be no chance to oppose them."

"Confidence is crumbling. All the shenanigans and manoeuvres do not promote trust in the different authorities," she told AFP.

Source: africanews.com

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Pakistan

 

Pakistan’s Afghan ‘Troubleshooter’, Asif Durrani, In Tehran for Talks

Kamran Yousaf

September 13, 2023

ISLAMABAD: As Pakistan’s relationship with the Afghan interim government is on the edge, the country’s focal person on Afghanistan undertook a visit to neighbouring Iran on Wednesday in order to discuss the evolving situation.

Ambassador Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s special envoy on Afghanistan, held talks with senior Iranian officials including Foreign Minister Hussein Amir-Abdollahian in Tehran.

There was no statement issued by the Foreign Office but the Iranian side in an official handout said Durrani offered his evaluation of the political and security conditions and developments in Afghanistan.

The special representative stressed that Pakistan was determined to cooperate with Iran to help ensure peace and stability in Afghanistan, according to the official news agency of Iran.

Amir-Abdollahian, for his part, said Iran and Pakistan play influential roles in the developments across the region and in Afghanistan.

He also expressed hope that continued consultations between Tehran and Islamabad would help establish peace and calm in the region.

The Iranian foreign minister also stressed the need to support the regional initiatives involving the neighbouring states for the settlement of challenges in Afghanistan.

The visit of Ambassador Durrani came at a time when Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban were at loggerheads over the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The lack of action by the Afghan Taliban against the banned group continues to overshadow the relationship between the two neighbours.

A key border crossing has remained shut since September 6 following an exchange of fire between Pakistan and the Afghan border security forces.

Both sides accused the other for initiating the fire that subsequently led to the closure of Torkham border for all kinds of movement.

The move is seen as an effort by Pakistan to put pressure on the Afghan Taliban to crack down against the TTP, which last week tried to infiltrate into Chitral with a large number of terrorists attacking the two checkposts.

As Pakistan’s relationship with the interim Afghan government remains tense, China on Wednesday appointed a full-time ambassador to Kabul. The new Chinese ambassador presented his credentials to the interim Afghan prime minister in Kabul.

China has become the first country to appoint a full-time ambassador in Kabul since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in August 2021. This is seen as a major signal on part of China to formally recognise the Taliban regime, though there is no clarity from either side at this stage.

The move came just days after Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar, in an interview, said the Afghan Taliban government had no legitimacy.

Since their return to power, none of the countries have yet recognised the Taliban government though many countries including the EU maintain their diplomatic presence in Kabul.

Source: tribune.com.pk

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https://tribune.com.pk/story/2435634/pakistans-afghan-troubleshooter-in-tehran-for-talks

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Where And How Pakistan Is Keeping Its nuclear weapons

 Sep 14, 2023

NEW DELHI: We all know that Pakistan's economy is in shambles. Frequent protests are erupting over high fuel prices and exorbitant power bills. Petrol is being sold at a record high of Rs 300/litre and there are power outages of many hours across many cities.

After trying many times to seek financial help from China and Gulf nations, Pakistan has to ultimately agree to tough IMF conditions for a bailout.

However, amid all this economic catastrophe, Pakistan is still continuing with its obsession of increasing its nuclear arsenal.

According to a research report by the Federation of American Scientists, "Pakistan continues to gradually expand its nuclear arsenal with more warheads, more delivery systems, and a growing fissile material production industry."

"Analysis of commercial satellite images of construction at Pakistani army garrisons and air force bases shows what appear to be newer launchers and facilities that might be related to Pakistan's nuclear forces," the report says.

The scientists have estimates that Pakistan now has a "nuclear weapons stockpile of approximately 170 warheads".

Here are highlights from the report:

*Pakistan currently is producing sufficient fissile material to build 14 to 27 new warheads per year.

Nuclear-capable aircraft and air-delivered weapons

The aircraft most likely to have a nuclear delivery role are Pakistan’s Mirage III and Mirage V fighter squa- drons. The Pakistani Air Force’s (PAF) Mirage fighter- bombers are located at two bases.

Masroor Air Base outside Karachi houses the 32nd Wing with three Mirage squadrons: 7th Squadron (“Bandits”), 8th Squadron (“Haiders”), and 22nd Squadron (“Ghazis”).

A possible nuclear weapons storage site is located five kilometers northwest of the Masroor base.

Land-based ballistic missiles

Pakistan appears to have six currently operational nuclear-capable, solid-fuel, road-mobile ballistic missile systems: the short-range Abdali (Hatf-2), Ghaznavi (Hatf-3), Shaheen-I/A (Hatf-4), and Nasr (Hatf-9), and the medium-range Ghauri (Hatf-5) and Shaheen-II (Hatf-6). Two other nuclear-capable ballistic missile systems are currently under development: the medium- range Shaheen-III and the MIRVedAbabeel.

Land-based missile garrisons

As per the report, an analysis of commercial satellite imagery suggests that Pakistan maintains at least five missile bases that could serve a role in Pakistan’s nuclear forces.

Akro garrison

Gujranwala garrison

Khuzdar garrison

Pano Aqil garrison

Sargodha garrison

The ever expanding nuclear arsenal of Pakistan is not just a matter of concern in India but for the entire world. In the words of US President Joe Biden, "Pakistan is “one of the most dangerous nations in the world due to the lack of cohesion in its nuclear security and command and control procedures".

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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keeping-its-nuclear-weapons/articleshowprint/103649163.cms

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Trio wanted in Sara Sharif case arrested in UK

Asif Chaudhry

September 14, 2023

LAHORE: The father of deceased British minor Sara Sharif, along with his partner and brother, has been arrested by authorities soon after their arrival in the UK.

The trio had left Pakistan on Wednesday and landed at Gatwick airport later that night.

Surrey police in a statement on Wednesday night, said two men and a woman were arrested on suspicion of murder after disembarking a flight from Dubai. They did not name the suspects, but it is believed they are referring to the trio that flew from Pakistan.

Urfan Sharif, Beinash Batool and Faisal Shahzad Malik had earlier boarded an Emirates flight from Sialkot International Airport at 5am. But different accounts presented by officials and a lawyer around their departure raised questions about whether the trio fled or left after some negotiations with British officials.

The Guardian reported that the fugitives flew business class on the last leg of the journey back from Dubai, and that the logistics are understood to have been handled by the British High Commission.

Some reports suggested that Punjab police officials handed the trio over to British authorities, a day after the Child Protection Bureau took custody of Urfan’s five children.

Reports claimed the trio was ‘arrested’ from a close relative’s residence in Sialkot late on Tuesday, and later interrogated at an undisclosed location about the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of 10-year-old Sara, who was discovered dead at their home in Woking, Surrey.

However, Rawalpindi RPO Syed Khurram Ali told Dawn it seemed the absconding trio had surrendered to British authorities to join the investigation into Sara’s death. He said the Punjab police teams had been raiding different parts of the province for their arrest.

He said a special police team had been working in Sialkot for two days, when it was tipped off about their presence at close relative’s home. “Meanwhile, we got a surprise mobile phone call that the suspects were about to leave Pakistan on a flight at 5pm on Wednesday,” Mr Ali said.

He said they put the FIA on high alert and prepared a police team to conduct raids at the Sialkot International Airport. However, they were informed by the immigration authorities that the trio had already fled Pakistan earlier that day. “I confirm that they have not been arrested but they left voluntarily,” Raja Haq Nawaz, a lawyer for Urfan Sharif’s father, told AFP.

Source: dawn.com

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Pakistan Ex-PM Imran Khan's Jail Remand Extended by Two Weeks

 Sep 13, 2023

(Reuters) - Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan's jail remand related to charges of leaking state secrets was extended by two weeks on Wednesday, his lawyer said.

The 70-year-old former cricket star has been at the centre of a political crisis since he lost a confidence vote in parliament in April 2022, and his conviction in a separate corruption case last month resulted in him being barred from contesting national elections.

In late August, a high court suspended Khan's prison sentence for corruption just weeks after he was jailed, but a prior order for his remand in custody in the state secrets case prevented his release.

The latest extension of the remand order will keep Khan in jail until Sept. 26, lawyer Naeem Panjutha said in a post on X messaging platform.

In the state secrets case, Khan is charged with making public contents of a confidential cable sent by Pakistan's ambassador to the United States and using it for political gain, according to a Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) document seen by Reuters.

Khan alleges that the cable proves the United States had pressed Pakistan's military to orchestrate the fall of his government because he had visited Russia shortly before its invasion on Ukraine in February 2022.

Washington and the Pakistani military have denied Khan's accusations.

In the corruption case, Khan was sentenced to three years in jail for unlawfully selling state gifts during his time as prime minister from 2018 to 2022. As a result, the election commission barred him from contesting elections for five years, and although the prison sentence was suspended last month the conviction still stands.

President Arif Alvi, of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Party, on Wednesday suggested in a letter to the Election Commission that it seeks guidance from the judiciary on holding elections within 90 days of the dissolution of a government.

The elections should be held on Nov. 6, he said, according to a statement from his office. The commission had earlier announced that an election date was its decision, and that it could be delayed by some months due to the marking of new constituency boundaries as required by a new census.

Source: tolonews.com

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https://tolonews.com/index.php/world-185081

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President Arif Alvi tosses polls date ball into judiciary's court

September 14, 2023

 Asim Yasin & Mumtaz Alvi

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi Wednesday proposed to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) that a general election should be held by November 6, and then put the ball in the judiciary’s court by suggesting to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to seek guidance from the superior court.

In a letter written to CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja, Dr Alvi mentioned Article 48(5) of the Constitution that empowers and mandates the president “to appoint the date not later than ninety days from the date of dissolution for the holding of general election to the assembly”. He said according to Article 48(5), the general election to the National Assembly should be held on the 89th day of the date of dissolution of the National Assembly i.e. Monday, Nov 6, 2023.

In the letter, the president said that in an endeavour to fulfil the constitutional obligations, the CEC was invited for a meeting to devise modalities for implementing the constitutional intent and mandate but he, in reply, took a contrary view that as per the scheme of the Constitution and framework of electoral laws, it was the domain of the ECP.

Alvi said furthermore, the CEC also responded that following the publication of the last preceding census on August 7, 2023, duly notified delimitation of constituencies was in progress, a mandatory requirement stipulated by Article 51(5) of the Constitution and Section 17 of the Election Act, 2017.

The president, in the letter, said the Federal Ministry of Law and Justice also upheld the view of the ECP. President Alvi said that all the four provincial governments were also of the view that the announcement of the election date was the mandate of ECP. “Further, there is a consensus that to strengthen the Federation and to promote unity and harmony amongst provinces and to avoid incurring unnecessary expenses, general elections to the National Assembly and the provincial assemblies must be held on the same day,” he wrote in the letter. Alvi said that it was the responsibility of the ECP to abide by all constitutional and legal steps stipulated under articles 51, 218, 219, 220 and the Elections Act 2017 for organising and conducting free and fair elections. President Dr Alvi said that taking into account all the above-stated facts, the ECP, in consultation with provincial governments and political parties, under the relevant provisions of the Constitution and in view that some of these matters are already sub judice, might seek guidance from the superior judiciary for announcement of a single date for general election to the National Assembly and provincial assemblies.

As soon as President Alvi’s letter was publicised, some private channels claimed that the ECP had called a meeting on Thursday to discuss the letter. However, the commission clarified on Wednesday night that neither it had summoned a meeting for Thursday nor called its legal team for any kind of consultation. According to the ECP’s Media Coordination and Outreach Wing, an Election Commission spokesman strongly denied the news circulating on various private news channels. He said, “There is no truth in the news that the Election Commission will call a meeting tomorrow. It is clarified that so far the commission has not convened any meeting tomorrow nor has it called its legal team for any kind of consultation.”

In his reaction, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, during an interview with a private news channel said that the “prime mandate” for giving the election date was with the ECP. “The president has suggested a date. They (ECP) will do their due diligence and deliberations on it and the required conditions to conduct free and fair polls. I think the ECP will soon announce [the date] after coming to a conclusion on what will be the appropriate day and date [for elections].” Kakar said the caretaker government was “completely ready” to support the electoral process, adding that the interim set-up’s role was to assist the electoral process and “our preparation is more or less almost complete.”

Also, caretaker Law Minister Ahmad Irfan Aslam held a meeting with the provincial law ministers, during which participants underscored the importance of upholding the principles of democracy and ensuring smooth conduct of elections. They were unanimous in their viewpoint that as per the Constitution, the conduct of general election and announcement of election dates was the sole prerogative of the ECP.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) welcomed the development and said the president had fulfilled his constitutional duty. PMLN leader and former interior minister Rana Sanaullah told Shahzeb Khanzada in the Geo News programme that the letter written by President Arif Alvi to the ECP had no worth. He said the president did not keep in view the respect and prestige of his constitutional office while writing the worthless letter. Sanaullah said the president had no authority to give the election date.

In a statement, PPP Secretary Information Faisal Karim Kundi said the Election Commission of Pakistan is an independent constitutional body, and it was responsible for giving the election date and conducting elections. He wondered why President Alvi was advising the ECP to seek guidance from the superior judiciary for announcing the election date. Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader Farooq Sattar said President Alvi was creating an unnecessary controversy. He should not take sides and keep his office neutral and non-controversial.

Source: thenews.com.pk

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https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/1109565-alvi-tosses-polls-date-ball-into-judiciary-s-court

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Three held in UK on return from Pakistan over girl’s death

September 14, 2023

LONDON: The police Wednesday arrested three British-Pakistani relatives of a 10-year-old girl on suspicion of her murder, moments after the trio landed back in Britain following a month on the run in Pakistan. Sara Sharif’s body was discovered at the family’s home near Woking, southeast England, on August 10. A post-mortem examination revealed she had sustained “multiple and extensive injuries” over a sustained period.

Police had said Irfan Sharif, 41, his partner Benish Batool, 29, and his brother Faisal Malik, 28, fled to Pakistan to take refuge with relatives before Sara´s body was found, sparking an international manhunt.

“This evening... three people were arrested in connection with this investigation at Gatwick Airport,” Surrey Police Detective Superintendent Mark Chapman said in a televised statement.

“Two men, aged 41 years and 28 years, and a woman aged 29 years were arrested on suspicion of murder after disembarking a flight from Dubai,” he added, without naming the trio in line with the UK police practice. The suspects flew from Pakistan to Britain via the gulf hub. “They are currently in custody and will be interviewed in due course.”

Source: thenews.com.pk

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Imran, Qureshi’s remand extended in cipher case till 26th

September 14, 2023

Khalid Iqbal

ISLAMABAD: The Special Court Wednesday extended the judicial remand of PTI chief and former prime minister Imran Khan to 14 days in the cipher case. Former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s judicial remand in the cipher case was also extended to September 26.

Judge Abual Hasnat Zulqarnain also directed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to submit the case challan to the court.

The judge arrived at the Attock Jail to conduct the hearing. Strict security arrangements were made outside the Attock Jail ahead of the hearing.

The FIA team and nine lawyers of Imran’s legal team were allowed into the jail and were present during the in-camera hearing. At the outset of the hearing, the former premier’s attendance was marked.

The court then extended Imran’s judicial remand to another 14 days. The court directed that he be presented again on September 26 and also directed the FIA to submit the case challan.

Meanwhile, Qureshi was presented in the court of Judge Zulqarnain at the Federal Judicial Complex (FJC) upon completion of his judicial remand. However, the court officials informed him that the judge had gone to Attock Jail for a hearing and said they would ask the judge if Qureshi could be allowed to return after marking his attendance. At this, Qureshi asked the authorities why the judge had gone to the Attock Jail. He was informed that there was a hearing in Imran’s case.

Judge Zulqarnain extended Qureshi’s judicial remand by the same period as well, directing his production before the court again on September 26.

Speaking to the reporters outside the FJC, Qureshi reiterated his support for the PTI chief and called for transparent elections to steer the country out of the current “economic, constitutional and political crises”.

Responding to a question, he said, “We never committed treason against the country and will never do so. We can never think of harming Pakistan’s interests. I have such firm belief that there is a gallows in Adiala a few steps away from where I am detained. I am saying with confidence that I am loyal to this country, was and will remain so. And if I have committed treason against this country, then I shall be hanged in that gallows. I will accept it.”

On his party, he said, “Imran Khan is the PTI chairman and there is no ambiguity on this."

“I was invited and I went. I presented a point of view for Pakistan. I have prioritised Pakistan’s interests,” the PTI leader added. Qureshi further said, “We will have to think about Pakistan after setting aside our personal ego. We all will have to review our stances and plan of action so that Pakistan’s interests are not harmed.”

Source: thenews.com.pk

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PM Kakar leaves Nawaz arrest decision to LEAs

September 14, 2023

ISLAMABAD:A day after former premier and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz President Shehbaz Sharif announced that his elder brother would be ending his exile in October, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Wednesday said that the decision to handcuff PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif upon his return to the country lied within the purview of the law enforcement agencies (LEAs), which would make the decision according to the law.

Talking to a private news channel, PM Kakar said: “The law enforcement agencies will decide this matter in light of the law. If they think he should be chained, they will adopt that path and vice versa.”

He said it was the discretion that the LEAs exercised, hoping that they would do it to the “best of their ability”.

Read President Alvi proposes November 6 as election date

To a question regarding growing apprehensions about a likely scenario of Nawaz being arrested upon his return, the interim premier said it was not a challenge for him as it was not up to him to decide whether the PML-N supreme leader should be behind bars or move freely according to his wishes.

Kakar said, “I reiterate that the legal and law enforcement agencies leadership is present. Whatever they decide, whether they send Nawaz behind bars or allow freedom of movement, it will be the decision of the leadership of the judicial process and law enforcement.”

He said the federal government could only intervene in the matter if it felt that the two entities were defying the law.

Nawaz, who is expected to return on Oct 21, was convicted in the Al-Azizia Mills and Avenfield corruption references in 2018. The cases are still subjudice.

The PML-N supremo had left the country in Nov 2019 after the Islamabad High Court granted him temporary relief on medical grounds in the Al Azizia reference. However, he did not return.

In Feb 2020, the then Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government had declared him an absconder and later in the same year, an accountability court declared him a proclaimed offender in the Toshakhana vehicles reference.

Kakar visits G-B

Prime Minister Kakar on Wednesday directed the authorities concerned to formulate a strategy to reconstruct and improve the communication infrastructure of Gilgit-Baltistan.

The prime minister, in a meeting with socio-political leaders of Hunza and visit to Hunar Kohn project of Karakorum Area Development Organisation (Kado), assured early resolution of electricity-related issues faced by the region.

The delegation apprised the PM of the grievances, including issues pertaining to demand and supply of electricity and the allocation of additional seats for Hunza in the G-B Assembly in proportion to the population.

The prime minister instructed for formulation of a strategy for electricity generation in coordination with the power sector.

The G-B political leadership briefed PM Kakar about the challenges confronting the tourism sector, requesting him to order establishment of aerial connectivity with different parts of the region.

PM Kakar directed G-B Chief Secretary to utilise all-out resources for early resolution of the issues.

He also visited the digital hub at Kado's Hunar Kohn project and rehabilitation centre for special persons.

He lauded Kados services for the welfare of local population.

PM Kakar, while interacting with the freelance students of Hunar Kohn project, said the passion of G-B youth for development was commendable.

Socio-political leaders, including former G-B governor Mir Ghazanfar Ali Khan, ex-member of G-B Assembly Rani Attiqa, members of the assembly Col (retd) Ubaidullah Baig and Dilshad Bano attended the meeting.

Source: tribune.com.pk

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South Asia

 

Appointing of New Chinese Ambassador, Zhao Xing, to Afghanistan; Respects Afghanistan's National Sovereignty

By Fatema Adeeb

September 13, 2023

The newly appointed Chinese ambassador to Afghanistan, Zhao Xing, said that his country respects Afghanistan's national sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and will never interfere in Afghanistan's internal affairs.

While presenting his credentials to the Islamic Emirate's PM Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund in Kabul on Wednesday, Xing pledged to make efforts to strengthen relations between Kabul and Beijing.

In meeting with Zhao Xing, Islamic Emirate’s PM stressed the importance of strengthening relations between China and Afghanistan.

According to officials of the current government, Xing was the first ambassador appointed since August 2021 when the Islamic Emirate took over as foreign forces withdrew.

"In his remarks after presenting the credentials to Prime Minister, he told them that China will play a significant role in the economic and peaceful affairs of the country, and that they will not interfere in the internal political affairs of Afghanistan," said Bilal Karimi, the deputy spokesman of the Islamic Emirate.

Meanwhile, some political analysts consider China’s role as important in the political and economic sectors of Afghanistan.

"Without a doubt it proves that China wants to have very close relations with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, so we take this as a good step for the people of Afghanistan,” said Salim Paigir, a political analyst.

"China has had good relations with the people of Afghanistan and the Islamic Emirate since the first day, and this switching of ambassadors is usual. What is important is China's policy towards the people of Afghanistan,” said Kamran Aman, another political analyst.

China's previous ambassador to Afghanistan, Wang Yu, took up the role in 2019 and finished his tenure last month.

The new Chinese ambassador Zhao Xing's credentials were presented to Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, the prime minister of the Islamic Emirate.

Source: tolonews.com

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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-185082

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Afghan soldier who was arrested at US-Mexico border after fleeing Taliban is granted asylum

Sep 14, 2023

HOUSTON: An Afghan soldier who fled the Taliban and traveled through nearly a dozen countries before being arrested at the Texas-Mexico border and detained for months has been granted asylum, allowing him to remain in the United States, his brother said Wednesday.

Abdul Wasi Safi, 27, is one of tens of thousands of Afghan citizens who fled to the US following the withdrawal of its forces from Afghanistan in August 2021.

The soldier, called Wasi by family and friends, and his older brother, Sami Safi, worried that if Wasi Safi wasn't granted asylum, he could be sent back to Afghanistan, where he would likely be killed by the Taliban because he had worked with the US military.

But Wasi Safi's lawyer surprised the brothers Tuesday with news that his asylum request had been granted. The brothers, who live in Houston, had thought a decision wasn't coming until a Nov. 19 court hearing.

"I have tears of joy in my eyes," Sami Safi said. "Now he can live here. Now he can be safe here."

The US Department of Justice's Executive Office for Immigration Review, which handles immigration cases, didn't immediately reply to an email seeking comment about Wasi Safi being granted asylum, which was first reported by the Military Times.

An intelligence officer for the Afghan National Security Forces, Wasi Safi made his way to Brazil last year. Last summer, he started a months-long journey on foot and by boat through raging rivers and dense jungle to the US, crossing 10 countries on his treacherous trek.

At the US-Mexico border near Eagle Pass, Texas, Wasi Safi was arrested in September 2022 and spent several months in detention before being freed following intervention by lawyers and lawmakers.

Those working on Wasi Safi's case say it highlights how America's chaotic military withdrawal from Afghanistan continues to harm Afghan citizens who helped the US but were left behind.

Nearly 90,000 Afghans who worked with American soldiers as translators or in other capacities since 2001 have arrived in the US on military planes since the chaotic withdrawal, according to the US Department of Homeland Security. The Afghan Adjustment Act, a proposed law to streamline their immigration process, has stalled in Congress.

Other Afghans, like Wasi Safi, made their way to the US on their own.

"This was supposed to happen because if you give so much sacrifice to a country's government, to a country's military who promised you 'we will never leave our allies behind,' it was the right thing for the government to do," said Sami Safi, 30, who was a translator for the US military and has lived in Houston since 2015.

Wasi Safi's unresolved immigration status had meant that he wasn't authorized to work. By getting asylum, he will be able to apply for a work permit.

His brother said it will also help him focus on getting treatment for injuries he suffered during his journey to the US A brutal beating by police officers in Panama severely damaged his teeth and jaw and left him with permanent hearing loss.

Sami Safi said getting his brother asylum is part of an effort that he hopes one day leads to bringing their parents and other siblings to the US They continue facing threats in Afghanistan over Wasi Safi's work with the US military, Sami Safi said.

"They were full of joy after hearing about my brother. And we're just only hoping and praying that we get to see them, we get to bring them here, so that my brothers and my sisters can pursue happiness and live a peaceful life," he said.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/afghan-soldier-who-was-arrested-at-us-mexico-border-after-fleeing-taliban-is-granted-asylum/articleshow/103645289.cms

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Over 700,000 Afghan migrants return from Iran in 2023: UNHCR

Fidel Rahmati

September 14, 2023

 The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that in the first half of the current calendar year, approximately 710,000 Afghan migrants have returned from Iran, either voluntarily or involuntarily.

The organization emphasized in its report published on Wednesday that the number of migrant returns during a similar period has increased by 16% compared to the previous year.

According to the UNHCR, 310,000 are migrants detained in Iran without legal residence and travel permits. They have been deported due to “law violations,” and 400,000 have returned voluntarily.

The UNHCR has highlighted that Afghan migrants in Iran face various challenges, including physical violence, lack of access to food, water, adequate sanitation facilities, healthcare, verbal abuse, prison overcrowding, family separation, and loss of property and money.

According to the report, Iranian authorities have not commented on the violation of the human rights of Afghan migrants so far.

The organization added that Afghan migrants had entered Iran due to a lack of access to healthcare facilities, job opportunities, high living costs, passport or visa extensions for return, fear of detention and deportation and extortion by the police or government officials.

Meanwhile, the UN reports that from mid-May to the end of June, approximately 1,200 to 1,500 Afghan citizens without documentation have entered Iran.

This is happening while, according to reports, around five million Afghan citizens live in Iran.

Many Afghan nationals seek refuge in neighbouring countries such as Iran and Pakistan because of the prevailing prosecution, threat to their safety, security concerns, and limited job opportunities in Afghanistan following the Taliban’s takeover.

Source: khaama.com

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https://www.khaama.com/over-700000-afghan-migrants-return-from-iran-in-2023-unhcr/

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Over 150 Afghan Immigrants Detained in Pakistan in One Day

September 13, 2023

The Afghan Immigrant Council in Pakistan reported the detention of more than 150 Afghan immigrants by the Pakistani police in one day.

According to the council, most of the Afghan immigrants have been detained in the Sindh state of Pakistan.

"150 or more people were arrested in Karachi and some border areas of Pakistan, but luckily it has not been seen in Islamabad,” said Mir Ahmad Rufi, the head of the Afghan Immigrant Council in Pakistan.

"In the past two days, more than 250 immigrants who did not have legal documents were detained in Pakistan,” said Faizullah Turk, an Afghan immigrant.

In the meantime, the Islamic Emirate said that efforts are being made to provide facilities for Afghan immigrants in Pakistan.

"The officials of the Islamic Emirate are continually trying to solve their [immigrants'] problems, and we also ask the neighboring countries to behave well with fellow citizens with a spirit of good neighborliness and Islamic brotherhood,” said Bilal Karimi, Deputy Spokesman of the Islamic Emirate.

“The Afghan embassy in Pakistan should provide help to those who do not have documents in Pakistan to prevent deportations,” said Asifa Stanikzai, a migrant affairs expert.

According to some citizens of the country, lack of work and economic difficulties are the main reasons for the migration of the citizens of the country to other countries.

“There is no work, that is why we are forced to go,” said Hassan, an Afghan immigrant.

According to figures from the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation, more than a thousand Afghans who have illegally fled the country are returning to Afghanistan every day from the neighboring nations.

Iran and Pakistan are among the countries that have the largest number of Afghan immigrants.

Source: tolonews.com

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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-185088

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Turkey Detains Over a Hundred Illegal Refugees, Including Afghans

2023-09-13

KABUL (BNA): Turkish media has reported the detention of at least 122 illegal refugees in the Edirne province. These detainees include citizens from Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and Pakistan, according to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu News Agency.

Some of the migrants alleged that they were forcefully expelled from the region by Greek security forces, who they claim subjected them to physical abuse.

In response to the ongoing situation, the Turkish government has announced plans to impose new restrictions on illegal immigrants.

It’s important to note that this year has seen a significant number of Afghan refugees being repatriated from Turkey back to their home country.

Source: bakhtarnews.af

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Climate change takes heavy toll on mental health in Bangladesh

Sep 14, 2023

As Ripon Mondal's family try to recover from the drought that ruined their watermelon crop in central Bangladesh last year, the 19-year-old college student fears that his father's financial worries are just the tip of the iceberg.

"I can feel my father's mental distress," said Mondal.

"He has to pay for our studies, and sometimes I feel terrible about the debts piling up."

The family lives in a village in the Kamarkhola Union area, which is surrounded by four rivers, leaving them far from any mental health services - a reality faced by many people in Bangladesh, especially those in rural and remote parts.

"I would have to cross at least two rivers and travel a long distance to reach a hospital where I can find a psychologist," Mondal said.

As Bangladesh faces worsening climate change impacts on a warming planet - from droughts and floods to sea level rise and storms - health professionals and organisations in the country are increasingly concerned about deteriorating mental health.

Extreme weather and climate disasters can cause or compound anxiety and depression, for example, according to mental health specialists who say such conditions are poorly understood in Bangladesh and that there are far too few trained psychologists.

Nearly a fifth of adults in Bangladesh have mental health issues, found a survey conducted by the government in 2019.

In a first-of-its-kind study for Bangladesh - funded by the World Bank and published in the journal Lancet Planetary Health in February - researchers found that exposure to higher temperatures and humidity along with worsening floods raised the likelihood of people suffering from both anxiety and depression.

Yet the country of about 170 million people has just a few hundred mental health practitioners, according to Syed Tanveer Rahman, a psychology professor at the University of Dhaka.

"When one steps beyond large cities like Dhaka, access to mental health care is still quite limited," said Rahman.

Officials at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) did not respond to requests for comment on the situation.

The government has recognised the toll climate change can take on mental health, and its 2022 adaptation plan pledged to monitor the issue - with a focus on women and disabled people.

Mental health professionals, NGOs and even start-ups say they are trying to improve the situation - by using technology and training volunteers to help rural and isolated communities.

For example, Moner Bondhu is a for-profit mental healthcare platform which has partnered with the U.N. Development Programme to provide psychological aid to people in Dacope, one of the most remote and climate-vulnerable parts of the southern coast.

Disasters have now become so frequent in the area that residents do not have time to cope with the losses and damage incurred from one before another strikes, according to Moner Bondhu's CEO TawhidaShiropa, who founded the start-up in 2016.

"We usually understand resilience as building back the physical assets and infrastructure, but disasters hit minds too, and in multiple ways," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

CLIMATE ANXIETY CONNECTED TO SOCIOECONOMIC SITUATION

Globally, growing scrutiny of and studies on the link between climate change impacts and mental health condition have given rise to terms such as "climate anxiety" and "eco-grief".

Sally Weintrobe, a longstanding member of the Climate Psychology Alliance - a professional group based in Britain - said psychological responses to climate disasters from hurricanes to flooding can be shaped by how people relate to each other within their community, and what resources they have.

People from poorer and climate-vulnerable nations like Bangladesh "are not only victimised, but are also the ones who lack the resources to rebuild their lives," said Weintrobe.

By 2050, 13 million people in Bangladesh could be uprooted within the country by climate change, the World Bank has warned.

Psychologists in Bangladesh said the grief and anxiety caused by climate change often comes from an overwhelming sense of helplessness rooted in communities' economic situation.

"The poor - whose livelihoods are already fragile and whose access to government support is limited - live on under threats looming in the horizon," said Rahman of the University of Dhaka.

Furthermore, there is still a lot of stigma around mental health issues and treatment, and people - especially in rural areas - often turn to traditional medicine and healers for help.

Depon Chandra Sarker, a child psychologist at the Patuakhali Medical College, a government institution, said that seeking support for mental health problems is still rare in local communities "unless someone gets really out of control".

BRIDGING THE MENTAL HEALTH GAP WITH TECHNOLOGY

In remote parts of Bangladesh - including the disaster-prone south - most of the district and sub-district hospitals lack any mental health professionals, according to Sarker.

To tackle this scarcity, the government and NGOs often run mental health campaigns where psychotherapists visit remote communities and provide information and counselling. But one-off initiatives do not always work for climate-hit communities in need of longer-term support, several psychologists said.

Putting technology to good use is seen as one solution.

The country's climate adaptation plan recommends extending telehealth services - delivered over the phone or online - for people whose mental health is affected by climate change.

The start-up Moner Bondhu is already training volunteers at the grassroots level who can put people needing climate-related psychological support in touch with a counsellor by phone.

Meanwhile, some government-employed professionals - such as Bagerhat-based psychiatrist Mehedi Hasan - hold meetings on Zoom to educate health workers and emergency responders about the mental health care disaster-hit people may need.

"You cannot make a clean slate of the world's hazards causing you stress," said Hasan. "The point for the most vulnerable is how to remain functional despite them."

Source: thedailystar.net

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https://www.thedailystar.net/health/news/climate-change-takes-heavy-toll-mental-health-bangladesh-3418551

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Mideast

 

Raeisi: Iran cannot tolerate presence of terrorist groups on its border with Iraq

14 September 2023

President Ebrahim Raeisi has asserted that Iran cannot tolerate the presence of terrorist groups on the country's common border with Iraq.

The chief executive made the remarks in Tehran on Wednesday to Iraq's visiting Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, urging Baghdad to honor its relevant security commitments towards Tehran.

"During the days that Iraq was besieged by the Daesh terrorist group, the Islamic Republic did not withhold any assistance from Iraq, proving itself to be Iraq's friend during its (the Arab country's) tough days," Raeisi said.

The president was referring to the military advisory support that the Islamic Republic began providing for Iraq after the latter found itself in the grip of the Takfiri group's campaign of bloodshed and destruction in 2014.

The remarks came two days after Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said the ultimatum given to Iraq to disarm anti-Iran separatist groups based in the Arab country's Kurdistan region would not be extended.

"Iran’s stance is completely clear. According to the agreement reached with the Iraqi government, the final deadline for the disarmament of the terrorist and separatist forces in Iraq’s Kurdistan region ends on September 19 and that deadline will not be extended in any way," Kan'ani said at a weekly press briefing in Tehran on Monday. The spokesperson noted that the Iraqi government had taken measures in this regard and had stressed that it would honor its commitments.

Hussein, for his part, considered the constant meetings that have been taking place between the countries' diplomatic delegations and ranking officials to be an indication of their strong and developing relations.

"Today, the countries' relations have gone beyond [simple] political, cultural, and economic ties," he said, stressing that "we should preserve these unparalleled relations."

The Iraqi top diplomat laid emphasis on Baghdad's complete commitment to the implementation of standing security agreements between the countries.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein says his country is committed to a security pact with Iran to disarm anti-Iran terrorist groups based in the Kurdistan regime.

"The Iraqi government will, under no circumstances, allow any movement or group to use the country's soil to pose a threat or perpetrate an incursion against the borders of Iraq's neighbors, especially the Islamic Republic, or let them (such groups) deploy themselves on the Iraqi soil," he emphasized.

Source: presstv.ir

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‘Iran and Its Proxies Have Rained Hell’: US House Passes Trio of Bills Targeting Islamic Republic

SEPTEMBER 13, 2023

The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a trio of bills extending sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile and drone programs and condemning its human rights abuses amid no votes from members of the so-called “Squad” of left-wing progressives.

One of the bills approved on Tuesday, the Mahsa Amini Human Rights and Security Accountability Act (MAHSA Act), would apply sanctions to Iran’s supreme leader and president. The legislation is named for the 22-year-old Kurdish woman whose death and alleged abuse while in the custody of Iran’s morality police almost a year ago for improperly wearing her hijab, or head covering, sparked historic anti-government protests across Iran.

The National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI), an Iranian-American group opposed to the regime and a supporter of the bill, said in a statement that the MAHSA Act would help reveal the true nature of the Islamic Republic.

“[The Islamic Republic of Iran] is not a partner worthy of engagement, but a brutal dictatorship whose opponents — the freedom-loving people of Iran — deserve America’s solidarity,” NUFDI said. “Holding the regime’s supreme leader and president accountable for their crimes against humanity with the human rights sanctions in the MAHSA Act has been met with overwhelming support from the Iranian-American community and is a needed first step in offering maximum support to the people of Iran in their quest to establish a secular democracy that will secure their fundamental rights and ensure American security.”

The MAHSA Act passed 410-3, with only Reps. Cori Bush (D-MO), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), and Thomas Massie (R-KY) voting “Nay.”

Massie is a libertarian who frequently votes against foreign policy measures. Bush and Omar did not immediately respond to The Algemeiner‘s requests for comment.

Bush, Omar, and fellow Squad members Reps. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Summer Lee (D-PA), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) also voted against another bill designed to extend sanctions against Iran’s missile and drone program when UN sanctions expire in October. The bill easily passed the House.

Speaking on the House floor in support of the bill, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) said that the drone and missile bill was particularly urgent given Iran’s ongoing support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“Everyone must know that if they purchase Iran’s weapons of war, they will be frozen out of the US financial system, denied use of the US dollar, and denied access to the United States,” McCaul said. “For years, Iran and its proxies have rained hell on the Middle East from the sky with their attack UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles]. Now, Iran’s dangerous arsenal is enabling Russia’s war crimes and devastation of Ukraine. We cannot wait to act until the UN restrictions expire. We need to prevent these weapons sales now, before these deadly missiles and drones are on the battlefield.”

Formally called the Fight and Combat Rampant Iranian Missile Exports Act (Fight CRIME Act), the bill passed 403-8 with Massie once again as the lone Republican no vote.

A third bill condemning Iran’s persecution of the Baha’i religious minority passed 413-2, with Massie and Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) voting “Nay.” A spokesperson for Simpson told The Algemeiner that the “Nay” vote was a mistake and that he would place a statement of correction into the Congressional Record.

Companion legislation for all three bills has been introduced in the Senate and needs to pass before they can be signed into law by the president.

Source: algemeiner.com

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https://www.algemeiner.com/2023/09/13/iran-proxies-have-rained-hell-us-house-passes-trio-bills-targeting-islamic-republic/

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Israeli airstrike on Syria's west coast kills two soldiers, Syria air defense systems intercept most of missiles

14 September 2023

Israel has launched new airstrikes against Syria’s west coast, near the ancestral home region of President Bashar al-Assad, killing two Syrian soldiers and leaving six others injured. 

Syria’s official news agency SANA quoted an unnamed military source as saying that the Israeli strike hit air defense units in the coastal city of Tartous on Wednesday.

“At exactly 17:22 [1422 GMT] this afternoon, the Israeli enemy carried out strikes … from the direction of the Mediterranean Sea targeting some of our air defense sites in Tartous,” the news agency reported.

“The aggression led to the death of two soldiers, and wounded six others,” it added.

A security official told the Arabic-language Sputnik network that this was an "Israeli attack against several targets in the Tartous region. Several fighter jets fired missiles. Syrian air defense systems managed to intercept some of them."

Syrian air defense systems were activated in response to the alleged attack, and most of the missiles launched in the attack were intercepted, Israeli media reported, according to the Jerusalem Post.

The strikes were close to the Russian Navy’s only Mediterranean base in Tartous where Russian warships are docked, while Moscow’s major Hmeimim Air Base is also in nearby Latakia province.

Israel stages airstrikes against the vicinity of the Syrian capital, wounding a Syrian soldier.

Meanwhile, the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that later in the evening, Israeli aircraft again targeted Syria, targeting the scientific research center in the mountains of the village of Taqsis, in the province of Hama, where explosions were heard.

The UK-based group reported no casualties.

Israel has frequently attacked the positions of Syria's military and its allies since 2011, when the Arab country found itself in the grip of rampant foreign-backed violence and terrorism.

The regime's attacks mostly target the positions of Syria's allies that have been aiding the country in its battle against foreign-sponsored terror groups.

Damascus has repeatedly complained to the United Nations over the Israeli assaults, urging the world body's Security Council to take action against Tel Aviv’s crimes. Its demands, however, have fallen on deaf ears.

Source: presstv.ir

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Middle East countries respond to Morocco earthquake, Libya flooding with aid and solidarity

September 13, 2023

ROBERT BOCIAGA

ROBERT EDWARDS

NAIROBI/LONDON: North Africa suffered two disasters in three days when a devastating earthquake struck Morocco on Friday, followed by catastrophic flooding in Libya on Sunday, leaving thousands dead and many more missing, sparking a global aid response.

On Friday night, a powerful earthquake, measuring 6.8 in magnitude, struck high in the Atlas Mountains about 70 km south of Marrakech, flattening whole villages, killing at least 2,900 people and leaving thousands more homeless.

In Morocco’s Al-Haouz province, isolated farming communities have been left cut off, with many fending entirely for themselves. It was the North African country’s deadliest earthquake since 1960 and its most powerful in more than a century.

Just as aid agencies and donor nations were rolling out their response to this catastrophe, another disaster was unfolding to the east in crisis-torn Libya, where Storm Daniel caused two river dams to burst on Sunday afternoon.

The enormous surge of water released by the dams tore through the Mediterranean coastal city of Derna, sweeping buildings, vehicles and people into the sea. The confirmed death toll surpassed 5,000 on Wednesday, with thousands more still unaccounted for.

“Libya’s situation is a roller coaster. We’ve been through so much — conflicts, political ups and downs, and now these floods adding to the chaos,” Mohammed Thabit, a Tripoli-based citizen journalist, told Arab News.

“But remember, we’re a resilient bunch. We’ve faced worse and we’ll keep pushing for a brighter tomorrow, no matter the challenges.”

This grab from a video published on the Facebook account of the Libyan Red Crescent on September 11, 2023, shows members of their team assisting drivers whose cars are engulfed in floods in al-Bayda town in eastern Libya. (Basma Badran, Libyan Red Crescent via AFP)

The city of Derna, 300 km east of Benghazi, is ringed by hills and bisected by what is normally a dry riverbed in summer, which became a raging torrent of mud-brown water that also swept away several major bridges.

Derna was home to about 100,000 people and many of its multistory buildings on the banks of the riverbed collapsed, with people, their homes and cars vanishing into the raging waters.

“In the face of these devastating floods in Libya, it’s a heartbreaker,” Thabit said. “Our dams got some funding, but it seems some folks ran off with the money instead of fixing things. Tough times, but we’re tougher.”

The Libyan Presidential Council has declared the cities of Derna, Shahat and Al-Bayda in Cyrenaica disaster zones and requested international support to confront the effects of the floods caused by the storm.

Libya is in effect under the control of two rival administrations: the internationally recognized government in Tripoli and authorities based along with the parliament in the east.

“The humanitarian needs are huge and far beyond the abilities of the Libyan Red Crescent and even beyond the abilities of the government,” Tamar Ramadan, head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies delegation in Libya, said in a statement to the UN.

“That’s why the government in the east has issued an international appeal for support.”

Margaret Harris, spokesperson for the World Health Organization, said the flooding was of “epic” proportions.

“There’s not been a storm like this in the region in living memory, so it’s a great shock,” she said.

There is also concern for the hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees from more than 40 countries who use Libya as a jumping-off point to reach Europe and who have likely been caught up in the floods.

With global concern spreading about both disasters, several nations have offered aid and deployed rescue teams to Derna and isolated villages across Morocco to help survivors and retrieve the bodies of their loved ones from the rubble.

Offers of assistance came from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, Algeria, Jordan, Iraq, Kuwait, Tunisia and Turkiye. Saudi Arabia on Tuesday expressed solidarity with “Libya and its brotherly people, and the victims of the floods.”

King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman earlier ordered aid flights to Morocco, and the crown prince called King Mohammed VI to affirm the Kingdom’s solidarity with the Moroccan people.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has declared a three-day mourning period and directed military personnel to provide humanitarian aid, including relief teams, rescue equipment and shelter camps for Libya and Morocco.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, president of the UAE, ordered the dispatch of urgent relief and search and rescue teams to Libya, deploying two aid planes carrying 150 tons of food, relief and medical supplies.

A Kuwaiti flight took off on Wednesday with 40 tons of supplies for Libya, while Jordan sent a military plane loaded with food parcels, tents, blankets and mattresses.

None of this has detracted from the Moroccan earthquake response. Rescuers from Spain, the UK and Qatar are helping local search teams to find survivors.

Many villagers in Morocco have had no power or telephone network since the earthquake struck and have had to rescue loved ones and pull dead bodies from under their crushed homes without any assistance.

The UN estimated that more than 300,000 people had been affected, a third of them children, by the powerful seismic event that hit just after 11 p.m. when most families were asleep.

Moroccans have demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of adversity, but as rescue teams race against the clock to locate survivors, experts say restoring a sense of normality should be the priority.

“While buildings and towns can be rebuilt through reconstruction efforts,” it is the “going back to normal for the survivors which is the biggest challenge,” Karim Wafa Al-Hussaini, a historian with roots in Morocco, told Arab News.

“Instilling a renewed sense of normal among the population will be definitely one of the biggest challenges throughout and after the reconstruction projects.”

The earthquake has underscored the fragility of buildings in Morocco’s rural areas, constructed using traditional Amazigh building techniques. Climate change has also left its mark, rendering the structures more susceptible to devastation.

Fatima Ahouli, director of operations with the Morocco-based Imal Initiative for Climate and Development, believes these latest incidents underscore the need for investment in infrastructure designed to cope with natural disasters and extreme weather events.

“This entails the construction of robust infrastructure, such as educational institutions and healthcare facilities, capable of enduring the rigors of severe weather events, all while fostering sustainable resource management practices,” she said.

Morocco’s King Mohammed has launched assessments to evaluate the structural damage and the feasibility of rebuilding the hardest-hit regions. Nevertheless, rescue operations have incurred criticism amid the rising death toll.

Meanwhile, in Marrakech, where state assistance for survivors has been most immediate, many modern buildings remained unscathed by the tremors. Several of the city’s famous historical sites, however, were not so fortunate.

“The earthquake’s fury primarily targeted ancient buildings, some dating back centuries, constructed using traditional clay methods once prevalent in Marrakech,” Yassine Soussi Temli, managing partner at the investment firm Maghreb Capital Advisers, told Arab News.

“The city’s distinctive architectural heritage has borne the brunt of the earthquake’s wrath.”

Reports in the Moroccan media confirmed the collapse of sections of the Tinmel Mosque. Images circulating online depict crumbling walls, a partially fallen tower and sizable heaps of debris.

UNESCO has been apprised of the damage caused to the mosque, which had been nominated for inclusion on its prestigious list of World Heritage Sites, and is planning to send a team to assess its extent.

While some structures within Marrakech’s Old City, itself a UNESCO World Heritage Site, sustained significant damage, other revered sites escaped largely unscathed.

Jemaa El-Fnaa Square, for example, a bustling tourist attraction teeming with vibrant markets, street vendors and gardens, appeared to have weathered the earthquake’s impact relatively unharmed.

The Kutubiyya Mosque, which stands over the square, also remained structurally sound, although there were reports of cracks in sections of the Old City’s iconic red earth walls.

The economic impact of the earthquake is multi-faceted. Although a major tourist destination, Marrakech is not the primary engine of Morocco’s economic growth. That role is reserved for the Rabat-Casablanca axis, the nation’s industrial powerhouse.

Furthermore, the burgeoning region of Tangier, with its thriving port, promises considerable economic potential.

The earthquake will inevitably have an impact on Marrakech’s economy but the government has insisted that the annual meetings of the World Bank Group and IMF will go ahead as planned from Oct. 9-15.

“Morocco’s economic performance, prior to the earthquake, had showcased resilience in the face of global challenges,” Temli said. “The nation had navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and managed inflationary pressures with commendable poise. Morocco had even emerged as a major recipient of foreign direct investment in North Africa.

“I am pretty sure that the government will put all the measures necessary to quickly rebuild the city of Marrakech so that it will continue to receive the millions of tourists it does every year.”

Source: arabnews.com

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Credible reports of at least 13 mass graves in Darfur’s El Geneina and surrounding areas: UN

September 14, 2023

CAIRO: The UN Joint Human Rights office has received credible reports about the existence of at least 13 mass graves in Sudan’s El Geneina, a city in Darfur, and its surrounding areas, the head of the UN’s Sudan mission said on Wednesday.

The mass graves contained victims of attacks by the paramilitary RSF and allied Arab militias on civilians, the majority of whom were from the Masalit community, Volker Perthes told the UN Security Council.

“UNITAMS and UN colleagues are documenting these violations and recall that these acts, if verified, may constitute war crimes,” Perthes said, in an address in which he also announced his resignation as envoy.

Ethnically targeted violence in El Geneina, a city in West Darfur close to the border with Chad, has escalated sharply since conflict between the RSF and Sudan’s army erupted in the capital Khartoum in mid-April.

Source: arabnews.com

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Iraq jails police for failing to halt torching of Swedish embassy after Quran burning

SEPTEMBER 13, 2023

An Iraqi court sentenced 18 police officers to prison after they were found guilty of failing to prevent protesters from setting fire to the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in July over a planned Quran burning in Stockholm.

A Baghdad court passed the sentences, ranging from 18 months to three years, on Tuesday, according to a copy of the judgment obtained by Reuters and confirmed by two interior ministry officials.

It says the officers were convicted of "abstaining from their duties to protect the Swedish embassy and to stop the persons who stormed and set fire to it."

The verdicts and the sentences can be appealed, the document says.

A government source confirmed the jail terms and said the verdict showed the Iraqi state was committed to holding people accountable for the violence.

Fiery protests against Sweden

Hundreds of protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in July and set it on fire over a planned Quran burning in Stockholm.

Anti-Islam protesters, one of whom is an Iraqi immigrant to Sweden who burned the Quran outside a Stockholm mosque in June, had applied for and received permission from Swedish police to burn the Quran outside the Iraqi embassy.

The burnings caused outrage in the Muslim world, prompting weeks of protests in Iraq and a diplomatic spat between Baghdad and Stockholm that led Iraq to expel the Swedish ambassador and recall its representative in Stockholm.

Source: jpost.com

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https://www.jpost.com/international/article-758917

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IRGC chief to Tel Aviv: Threats against Iran will only shorten Israel’s life

14 September 2023

The chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has warned Israel that threats against the Islamic Republic will only shorten the Israeli regime’s life.

Major General Hossein Salami made the remarks in a meeting with a group of individuals active in the field of cyberspace on Wednesday, three days after David Barnea, director of Israel’s Mossad spy agency, threatened to hit Iran’s “highest echelon … in the heart of Tehran.” 

“The Zionists are grappling with many problems, and signs of their decline are evident. Thus, they have resorted to empty rhetoric and threats to assassinate our commanders,” he said.

“Go ahead if your previous assassination operations have increased your security. However, you should know that if you make threats against [Iran’s] security, we will have more options and your life will be cut short,” he said, addressing the Israeli officials.

The Mossad head threatens to assassinate senior Iranian officials as he claims Tel Aviv is prepared to strike “in the heart of Tehran.”

The IRGC chief commander also noted that the Islamic Republic has managed to thwart almost all of the enemy’s destructive and dangerous strategies over the past 45 years while the US has failed to even support its allies.

“The wars in Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq showed that the military option is no longer a viable solution for them (the Americans) and that their plots to install puppet governments have failed in this region,” he added.

“They cannot even provide full support for the Zionist regime, and this inability has turned into an unwillingness to some extent,” he said, adding that the Israelis are gradually losing hope of continued US support.

After months of being snubbed by US President Joe Biden, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will finally meet him next week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, not at the White House.

Washington has frequently expressed unease with several of Tel Aviv’s policies, including its plan to radically overhaul the regime’s judicial system and surging atrocities against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Salami said that the enemies can no longer intimidate Iran with military aggression and sanctions as the decade-long embargo imposed on Iran has, in fact, propelled the nation's advancements in technology, innovation, and societal management.

Iran, he asserted, has launched satellites into space, constructed power plants, dams, roads and railways, and unveiled large petrochemical projects despite the sanctions.

“These facts show that Iran is a real power that cannot be forced to … submit to any superpower,” Salami said.

He also emphasized that the enemies’ strategies to isolate Iran and destabilize the country have all failed.

Source: presstv.ir

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Southeast Asia

 

Survey: Major religious groups in Malaysia each feel their own members most discriminated against

By Zarrah Morden

 14 Sep 2023

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 14 — A survey found that those among major religious groups in Malaysia each felt that their own members experienced the most discrimination.

According to non-profit organisation (NGO) Architects of Diversity’s (AOD) State of Discrimination Survey 2023, 81 per cent of Hindus, 76 per cent of Christians, 63 per cent of Buddhists and 59 per cent of Muslims polled said that members of their own religious group experienced some or a lot of discrimination.

“Most were unaware about discrimination relating to animists (beliefs of many indigenous groups), with 44 per cent opting to respond with 'don’t know’,” the survey report said.

However, when asked whether they had personally experienced any form of discrimination based on their religion such as having religious beliefs or not, 22 per cent responded yes while 68 per cent said no. Another 6 per cent said they did not know while 4 per cent preferred not to say.

About 40 per cent of Hindus said they had experienced religion related discrimination in the past year, while that figure was 26 per cent for Christians, 22 per cent for Buddhists and 20 per cent for Muslims.

AOD said that the survey aims to provide a baseline study on the quantitative nature of discrimination in Malaysia relating to various identities, including religion and race.

The survey received 3,238 responses from Malaysian adults aged 18 and above.

Consistency based on the Population and Housing Census of Malaysia 2020 was ensured in terms of race, age, gender and state.

On Tuesday, another survey said that Malaysian Muslims polled recently felt the three biggest threats to Islam are: the influence of the United States (59 per cent), followed by “Muslim extremists” (58 per cent), and “growing number of Christians” (52 per cent).

The Pew Research Center report said Muslims and Buddhists in six Asian countries — Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka — generally see extremists from their own faiths as one of the biggest threats to their religions.

Source: malaymail.com

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https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2023/09/14/survey-major-religious-groups-in-malaysia-each-feel-their-own-members-most-discriminated-against/90825

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Johor Islamic Department detects 266 unregistered private religious schools in the state

By Ben Tan

14 Sep 2023

ISKANDAR PUTERI, Sept 14 — The Johor Islamic Religious Department (JAINJ) has detected 266 private religious schools that have yet to be registered and approved by its Islamic education division.

State Islamic Religious Affairs Committee chairman Mohd Fared Mohd Khalid said the figure includes 213 religious preschools followed by 31 tahfiz schools, 12 sekolahpondok and 10 Islamic primary schools.

He said JAINJ is actively trying to provide awareness of their obligation to register as educational institutions for the preschools.

“For the tahfiz schools that want to be registered in Johor, the schools need to first go through several approval processes under the Control of Islamic Religious Schools Rules 1981,” he said during the one-day state assembly sitting held at Bangunan Sultan Ismail in Kota Iskandar here today.

Mohd Fared (BN-Semerah) was replying to Gan Peck Cheng (PH-Penggaram) who had asked about the number of unregistered private religious schools in Johor as well as the state government’s efforts to address the situation.

Mohd Fared explained that there are 15 mandatory processes or documents that were needed, including land ownership status, as well as certifications from the Health Department, Fire and Rescue Department, and the police.

In addition, he said they must have a permission letter to teach that is issued by the Syariah law division as it is one of the mandatory documents to ensure that teachers who teach in tahfiz schools have credentials.

“The JAINJ through the Islamic education division will continue to monitor and explain the registration requirements for unregistered religious schools.

“In addition, JAINJ is also prepared to assist if there are tahfiz schools that have constraints in obtaining approval from various parties,” he said.

Earlier, Mohd Fared said it was mandatory for all Johor state private religious schools to be registered under the Religious Schools Control Enactment 1991.

“From our review until July this year, a total of 215 private religious schools have registered, consisting of more than 7,000 students from 10 to 30 years of age.

“So far there are 37 private religious schools, including tahfiz schools, sekolahpondok, and Islamic primary and secondary schools are in the process of obtaining their registration, while some are in the process of completing their documents,” he said.

Source: malaymail.com

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Shipping company engineer charged with murder of civil servant

14 Sep 2023

TANAH MERAH: An engineer with a shipping company was charged at the Magistrates Court here today, with the murder of a civil servant in Machang on Sept 3.

The accused, Harun Narresat Ibrahim, 46, nodded his head in understanding when the charge was read out to him before Magistrate Nik Habri Muhamad, with no plea recorded.

According to the charge, he allegedly killed Tuan Mohd Salleh Tuan Ibrahim, 51, at a restaurant in front of Machang Hospital, Jalan Pasir Puteh Lama about 11.30am on Sept 3.

He was charged under Section 302 of the Penal Code which is punishable by the death sentence or imprisonment of between 30 and 40 years and if not sentenced to death, shall be liable to a minimum of 12 strokes of the cane, upon conviction.

Kelantan state prosecution director Muhammad Zaki Abdul Kudos appeared for the prosecution, while the accused was represented by lawyer Tengku ShazuanTgShariffudin.

The court set Nov 13 for the next case mention, pending the chemistry report, before the case is transferred to the Kota Bharu High Court.

On Sept 3, Bernama reported that a civil servant died after a brawl with another man at a restaurant in Jalan Lama Pasir Putih-Machang in front of the MachangHospital.- Bernama

Source: thestar.com.my

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No permit application for 'Selamatkan Malaysia' rally: police

13 Sep 2023

KUALA LUMPUR – The police have not received any application to hold the “Selamatkan Malaysia” rally being planned to be held in the federal capital this Saturday.

Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Allaudeen Abdul Majid said the provision in Section 9(1) of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 requires the application for a permit to be made at least five days before the date it is held.

"The period has ended but no application has been made by the organisers," he told a press conference at Phase 2 of “Op Hormat Undang-Undang Jalan Raya” by the Kuala Lumpur Police here today.

Allaudeen said that so far, the police had received six reports regarding the proposed gathering purportedly being organised by Perikatan Nasional (PN) Youth.

The police have recorded statements from five individuals, including Pasir Mas Member of Parliament Ahmad Fadhli Shaari and Machang Member of Parliament Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal, to assist in the investigation, he said.

He said the police also recorded statements from Gombak Setia assemblyman Hilman Idham and two journalists who covered Ahmad Fadhli's press conference about the rally. – Bernama, September 13, 2023

Source: thevibes.com

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King graces groundbreaking ceremony for Al-Sultan Abdullah Mosque in Telok Melano

13 Sep 2023

SEMATAN, Sept 13 — In conjunction with the last day of “Kembara Kenali Borneo”, the Yang di-PertuanAgong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah graced the groundbreaking ceremony for the Al-Sultan Abdullah Mosque project in Telok Melano here today.

The RM5 million project aims to accommodate more congregants due to the area’s popularity as a tourist destination.

The mosque, with a capacity of 500 congregants at a time, is situated about 100 meters from the KM0 landmark on the Pan Borneo Highway. The mosque which is to be built on a 0.5-hectare land is anticipated to be a tourist attraction at Telok Melano Beach.

Earlier, Al-Sultan Abdullah arrived at KM0 on the Pan Borneo Highway, Telok Melano Beach, the final stop of the “Kembara Kenali Borneo”, at 12.45pm.

Accompanying him were Pahang Regent Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, Tengku Panglima Raja Colonel Tengku Amir Nasser Ibrahim Shah and Tengku Ahmad Ismail Mu’adzam Shah.

Also present were Sarawak acting Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohamad Asfia Awang Nasar and spouse, Puan Sri Fatimah Mohd Iskandar, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof and spouse Datin Sri Ruziah Mohd Tahir.

Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg and spouse Puan Sri Juma’aniTuanku Bujang, and Minister of Women, Family, and Community Development Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri were also in attendance.

Al-Sultan Abdullah received a rousing welcome from hundreds of Sarawakians including students and local traders, especially those residing in the Telok Melano area.

His Majesty’s arrival concluded the 2,145km journey of the “Kembara Kenali Borneo” which began in Tawau, Sabah.

After leaving Telok Melano, His Majesty then headed to Kuching International Airport and departed from the Land of the Hornbills for the Subang Air Base.

The tour, which was held for the first time to realise the dream of Al-Sultan Abdullah and Raja PermaisuriAgongTunku Azizah Aminah MaimunahIskandariah to reach out to the people of Sabah and Sarawak, ended in Sabah on September 7 before entering Sarawak via Brunei. — Bernama

Source: malaymail.com

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