New Age Islam News Bureau
18 February 2023
Screengrab of the promo
video, Iran foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian
-----
• ‘Conspiracy to Control Muslim Population’: Taliban
Bans Contraception in in Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif
• Abrahamic Family House: UAE Interfaith Centre Houses
a Mosque, Church and the Country’s First Official Synagogue
• Anonymous Letter to UK Mosques Celebrates Quake
Deaths in Türkiye and Syria
• US Hammers Islamic State with Multiple Raids in
northeastern Syria
India
• Two Muslim Men Found Charred Inside Car; 5 Bajrang
Dal Workers Named in FIR, One Arrested; Allegedly Abducted By Cow Vigilantes
• ‘Can’t change leopard’s spots by bathing it’: Kerala
CM Pinarayi Vijayan attacks Jamaat for talks with RSS
• Delhi Confidential: In UP’s Muslim-dominated Rampur,
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi organises staging of Ramayana
• Centre Decides To Take Over 123 Delhi Waqf Board
Properties; Won’t Allow It, Says Chairman Khan
• Delhi Man, His Father Held for Raping, Trying To
Convert MBBS Student to Islam In Noida
• Pakistan will shiver when cannons under defence
corridor will be built in Bundelkhand: Yogi Adityanath
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South Asia
• Taliban supreme leader comes under attack from
powerful ministers
• United Nations to cut food aid for Rohingya refugees
in Bangladesh, citing fund shortage
• Avalanches kill 12 and destroy 50 dwellings in
Afghanistan
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Arab World
• At Least 53 Killed Syria Attack, Islamic State
Blamed, State Media Says
• Death toll in Turkiye, Syria quake tops 45,000; many
still missing in flattened apartments
• Saudi Arabia sends more humanitarian aid to
earthquake victims in Syria, Turkey
• Blast wounds four US troops in Syria, ISIS leader
killed: Report
• Syrian government forces, opposition fighters clash
in quake-hit region
• Qatari investors plan $6 billion opening bid for
Manchester United
• Saudi FM meets with Palestinian PM, attends Munich
Security Conference panel in Germany
• Families enjoy a taste of the past at coffee
festival in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Dayer
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Europe
• Ukrainian commander wears Daesh insignia on uniform,
video shows
• EU foreign ministers to start meeting by remembering
quake victims in Türkiye, Syria
• Every patient has a story, says Spanish doctor
treating quake victims in Türkiye
• Greek premier says post-quake climate can be chance
to redefine relations with Türkiye
• Greek long jumper to auction his shoes for child victims
of quakes in Türkiye
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North America
• US Says Daesh Commander Killed, Troops Wounded In NE
Syria Raid
• Takfiri terrorist groups created by US, and its
allies: Al-Houthi
• Four US troops, working dog wounded in Syria raid
against Islamic State
• 35 US congressmen send letter to USAID, urging
support for Türkiye, Syria
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Pakistan
• Three Islamists, Two Others Killed In Storming of
Karachi Police Station; Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Took Responsibility
• Netizens call out “Sanghis” for Samjhauta Express
bombings as India continues to deny justice
• Nankana lynching case: ATC grants interim bail to
two accused till Feb 24
• TTP Militant Commander Killed in Terror Attack in
Punjab
• Political instability causing economic crisis in
country: Ashrafi
• Police asked to drop terror charges against Imran
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Mideast
• Israel: ‘All Possible Means on The Table’ To Prevent
Iran Getting Nuclear Weapons
• Hamas: Demolition Of Resistance Forces’ Homes Shows
Israel’s Bankruptcy
• Erdogan Marks Muslim Holy Night of Miraj
• Ghanaian winger Atsu’s body found under rubble in
Turkey quake: Agent
• Europol bust Israel-France gang behind $40 million
money laundering scheme
• Turkey-Syria earthquake death toll passes 45,000,
many still missing
• Iranian police chief gets 15 months in jail amid
rape claim
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Africa
• Turks Selfless Even During Earthquakes: South
African Medic
• Egypt says seeking release of six citizens abducted
in conflict-ravaged Libya
• Ecuadorians collect tons of aid materials for
earthquake victims in Türkiye
• Somalia launches fundraising campaign for quake
victims in Türkiye
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Southeast Asia
• 27 Rejab: PM Anwar Calls on Muslim to Renew Resolve,
Learn From the Prophet
• PM performs Friday prayers at Putra Perdana Mosque
• Pakistan: Two cycling enthusiasts from Indonesia
reach Karachi on their way to Makkah
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/iran-delhi-hijab-raisi-raisina/d/129139
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Iran’s Foreign Minister Pulls out Of Delhi Meet over Image of Anti-Hijab Women Protesters with Iranian President in the Background
Screengrab of the promo
video, Iran foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian
-----
Feb 18, 2023
NEW DELHI: Iran’s foreign minister Hossein
Amir-Abdollahian will not participate in the Raisina Dialogue apparently
because of differences with organiser ORF over a promotional video which showed
anti-hijab women protesters in Iran with an image of Iranian President Ebrahim
Raisi in the background.
Iran wanted the images removed but ORF didn’t agree.
There was no confirmation by either side about what led to the cancellation of
the proposed visit. The MEA also didn’t comment on the issue.
The 1.50-second video features clips on key global
challenges and developments including the war in Ukraine, global pushback to
China’s aggressive behaviour in South China Sea and the women’s protests in
Iran. There was no official announcement about his visit to India. He was
expected to participate in the Dialogue on March 3.
The Raisina Dialogue is considered India’s premier
conference on geopolitics and geo-economics. It is being organised by the
Observer Research Foundation (ORF) in collaboration with the MEA.
The move comes apparently because of differences with
Raisina organiser ORF over a promotional video which showed anti-hijab women
protesters in Iran with an image of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in the
background.
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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‘Conspiracy to Control Muslim Population’: Taliban
Bans Contraception in in Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif
Representative imageReuters
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17th February 2023
Kabul: Taliban fighters have stopped the sale of
contraceptives in two of Afghanistan’s main cities, claiming their use by women
is a western conspiracy to control the Muslim population, according to a media
report.
The Taliban has been going door to door, threatening
midwives and ordering pharmacies to clear their shelves of all birth control
medicines and devices, The Guardian reported.
“They came to my store twice with guns and threatened
me not to keep contraceptive pills for sale. They are regularly checking every
pharmacy in Kabul and we have stopped selling the products,” said one store
owner in the city.
A veteran midwife, who did not want to be named, said
she had been threatened several times.
She said she was told by a Taliban commander: “You are
not allowed to go outside and promote the western concept of controlling
population and this is unnecessary work.”
Other pharmacists in Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif
confirmed that they have been ordered not to stock any birth control medicines,
The Guardian reported.
“Items such as birth control pills and Depo-Provera
injections are not allowed to be kept in the pharmacy since the start of this
month, and we are too afraid to sell the existing stock,” another shop owner in
Kabul said.
Taliban fighters patrolling in the streets in Kabul
told sources that “contraceptive use and family planning is a western agenda”,
The Guardian reported.
Shabnam Nasimi, an Afghan-born social activist in the
UK, said: “The Taliban’s control not only over women’s human right to work and
study, but now also over their bodies, is outrageous.”
Source: Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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Abrahamic Family House: UAE Interfaith Centre Houses a
Mosque, Church and the Country’s First Official Synagogue
Photo Credit: AFP Photo / Abrahamic Family House
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17 February, 2023
The United Arab Emirates has opened a centre housing a
mosque, church and the country’s first official synagogue with the aim of
promoting interfaith coexistence in the Muslim nation.
The oil-rich Gulf federation, which normalized
relations with Israel in 2020, is home to a small but active Jewish community
that usually prays in private.
With three houses of worship in the same place, the
Abrahamic Family House, inaugurated on Thursday in the capital Abu Dhabi, is
the first of its kind.
“The center will be a platform for learning and
dialogue, a model of coexistence,” said its president, Mohamed Khalifa
al-Mubarak.
“Visitors are invited to participate in religious
services, guided tours, celebrations, and opportunities to explore faith,” he
said in a statement released on Friday.
The three houses of worship are of equal stature and
share the same external dimensions.
The only other synagogue in the Gulf Arab region is in
Bahrain, which also has a small Jewish community.
The Association of Gulf Jewish Communities praised the
UAE for opening another house of worship in the region.
“We are particularly excited to see another synagogue
built in the GCC” (Gulf Cooperation Council), it said in a statement.
“There is something very special about a synagogue
being built in a Muslim country.”
The 2020 normalization of relations between the UAE
and Israel was part of the US-brokered Abraham Accords that also saw the Jewish
state establish diplomatic ties with Bahrain and Morocco.
The UAE was the first Gulf country to normalize ties
with Israel and only the third Arab nation to do so after Egypt and Jordan.
The Abraham Accords broke with long-standing pan-Arab
policy to isolate Israel until it withdraws from the occupied territories and
accepts Palestinian statehood.
Source: Al Arabiya
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original story:
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Anonymous Letter to UK Mosques Celebrates Quake Deaths
in Türkiye and Syria
Erkin Guney
Police confirmed another
mosque in Stoke Newington had also received a letter
------
18 February 2023
Anonymous letter celebrating deaths of thousands of people
in Türkiye and Syria in last week's twin earthquakes and wishing more
misfortune to befall Muslims in the region has been sent to mosques in British
capital London.
Turkish mosque Masjid Ramadan and the largest one
Aziziye Mosque said they received the hate-filled letter at a time when the
whole world has mobilised in rescue and relief operations.
"I wish to make it clear that it is not heartfelt
sorrow that I feel that thousands of people died. I'm only sincerely sorry that
more Muslims didn't die," the letter read.
Expressing disturbing glee at the suffering and death
caused by last Monday's earthquakes, the yet-unknown author wished for more
deaths in the region.
'Dark, upsetting, disturbing'
Erkin Guney, chairman of Masjid Ramadan, told Anadolu
Agency that the content of the letter was "very dark, upsetting, very
disturbing."
"Still, I can't put into words that my stomach is
still turning from the content," he said, adding it was filled with
darkness and hatred towards Muslims.
"I can only pray that this person that has
written this letter may have mercy in his soul and may he be filled with love
and (may) someone teach you to be a bit humane, a bit more empathy and
understanding of these tragic circumstances that we are experiencing in Türkiye
and Syria," Guney added.
'Appalling'
Echoing Guney, Ebu Bekir Tezgel, a senior Imam at the
Aziziye Mosque in Stoke Newington, also confirmed that he received a letter
that had very "upsetting statements" about Muslims.
"Shocked" to receive such a letter at a time
when people around the world were united in support of those affected by the
earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria," he said.
"This is unacceptable, disgusting, and a hate
crime."
They had received similar threats in the past but the
scale of this hate crime was "on another level," added Tezgel.
Hate crime has been on a rising trend according to
police in England and Wales in recent years, with a total of 155,841 incidents
in the year ending March 2022, marking a 26 percent rise compared to the year
ending March 2021.
A total of 109,843 were racial hate crimes, while
8,730 were based on religion.
Source: TRT World
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original story:
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US Hammers Islamic State with Multiple Raids in
northeastern Syria
FILE - An American
military convoy proceeds during a joint exercise with Syrian Democratic Forces
at the countryside of Deir el-Zour in northeastern Syria, Dec. 8, 2021.
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February 17, 2023
WASHINGTON —
The United States struck additional key blows against
the Islamic State terror group, removing a couple of senior leaders from the
battlefield in two separate night-time helicopter raids in northeastern Syria.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees
American forces in the Middle East and South Asia, said the raids, carried out
Thursday with the help of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF),
targeted Hamza al-Homsi, who oversaw the terror organization’s network in
eastern Syria, and another operative who led an IS assassination cell.
But despite the successes, U.S. officials said, the
raid against al-Homsi in the vicinity of Deir el-Zour turned dicey when the IS
leader triggered an explosive device, possibly a hand grenade.
The blast wounded four U.S. service members and a
service dog, who were taken to medical facilities in Iraq. They were reported
to be in stable condition and receiving treatment.
There were no other injuries to U.S. or SDF forces in
either of the raids, and initial assessments indicated no civilians were hurt.
The raids targeting al-Homsi and the assassination
cell leader were the latest in a series of operations that have whittled away
at senior IS leadership.
Earlier this week, CENTCOM announced that a raid on
February 10 killed Ibrahim Al Qahtani, an IS official involved with planning
attacks to break the terror group’s members out of prisons across northeastern
Syria.
Last month, a U.S. operation in eastern Syria resulted
in the capture of two IS facilitators, Abdallah Hamid Muslih al-Maddad, also
known as Abu Hamza al-Suri, and Husam Hamid al-Muslih al-Maddad al-Khayr, as
well as one of al-Khayr’s associates.
Just days earlier, another U.S.-SDF operation in
eastern Syria resulted in the capture of an IS official said to be “involved in
the planning and facilitation of ISIS operations in and outside of the region
as well as global recruiting efforts.”
U.S. and SDF forces likewise captured a number of key
IS operatives during a series of raids in northeastern Syria this past
December.
Going back to the start of 2022, the IS core in Syria
and Iraq has lost at least 10 senior level leaders, killed or captured during
operations by the U.S., its partners and allies and in clashes with rival
groups.
That includes the death of Abu al-Hassan al-Hashimi
al-Qurashi, the former IS emir, who died last October during a clash with the
Free Syrian Army in eastern Syria.
A report by the U.S. Defense Department inspector
general, published this month, said IS had been “significantly degraded"
because of steady loss of key leaders, and that the pace of attacks in Syria
and Iraq had been declining as the terror group prioritized survival.
Earlier this week, a U.N. report based on member state
intelligence said there were now only 5,000 to 7,000 IS members roaming free
across Syria and Iraq, "roughly half of whom are fighters."
The U.N. report also said that intelligence services
had detected a “decline in morale” among IS core members in Syria and Iraq,
with the terror group undertaking a concerted effort to move its leaders to
escape what was described as “enhanced counterterrorism pressure."
At its height, in 2014 to 2015, IS boasted
approximately 34,000 fighters, according to official U.S. estimates, though
officials admitted the number could have been much higher.
Some independent analyses concluded IS — also known as
ISIS or ISIL — had as many as 100,000 fighters during the peak of its
self-declared caliphate.
Source: VOA News
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.voanews.com/a/us-hammers-islamic-state-with-multiple-raids/6968046.html
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India
Two Muslim Men Found Charred Inside Car; 5 Bajrang Dal
Workers Named in FIR, One Arrested; Allegedly Abducted By Cow Vigilantes
By: Anshul Singh
FEBRUARY 17, 2023
The charred bodies of two Muslim men were found in a
car in Haryana’s Bhiwani after they were allegedly abducted by cow vigilantes
on suspicion of smuggling cow meat. The Rajasthan police on Friday arrested one
out of five workers of the Bajrang Dal named in the FIR and questioned some
suspects, officials said.
Police identified the two men as cousins, Nasir (25)
and Junaid alias Juna (35), both residents of Ghatmeeka village in Bharatpur
district of Rajasthan. Junaid had a criminal record of cattle smuggling and
five cases were registered against him at different police stations, a police
officer said.
The two were allegedly abducted on February 15 and
their bodies were found at Loharu in Bhiwani on Thursday morning, police said,
adding that the cousins left home for some work in a white Bolero car and did
not return. According to the FIR registered in the case on Thursday, minutes
after leaving the house, eight to 10 men stopped their vehicle on suspicion
that they were smuggling cow meat.
The FIR stated that the men beat them unconscious and
put them inside their car and drove them to a police station. Sources told CNN-News18
that the police refused to take them in as their situation seemed critical.
On Thursday, police in Bhiwani received information
about a burning car with two people inside it and reached the spot along with a
forensics team, which was able to identify the car through its chassis number.
On inquiry, police found that a missing complaint had been lodged in Firozpur
and, subsequently, Rajasthan police was informed.
On Friday, the victims’ bodies were sent to their home
in Bharatpur, where the entire village gathered and held a panchayat. They
demanded Rs 50 lakh each for the kin of both men, a government job for one
family member, and the arrest of all the accused involved.
Bharatpur range inspector general of police Gaurav
Srivastava said, “Those named in the FIR are associated with the Bajrang Dal
but whether they were involved in the crime or not is yet to be ascertained.”
He said half a dozen people have been detained and are being questioned.
One of the key accused in the case is Mohit Yadav
alias Monu Manesar, the Gurugram district president of Bajrang Dal and a member
of a self-proclaimed cow protection team. He was earlier named in an attempt to
murder case registered at Pataudi police station in Gurugram on February 7.
A history-sheeter, Monu runs a Facebook page where he
posts about his work and boasts about being a cow vigilante. He has several
other cases pending against him, ranging from firing in public to promoting
violence, but police have never taken any action against him. While on the run,
he also released a video in which he is saying he had nothing to do with the
latest case against him and demanded a CBI inquiry into the matter. But, he has
not yet surrendered.
Bharatpur superintendent of police Shyam Singh said
the FIR was registered at Gopalgarh police station against five people – Anil,
Srikant, Rinku Saini, Lokesh Singhla and Monu – on the basis of a complaint
lodged by the victims’ family members. The man arrested has been identified as
Rinku Saini, a 32-year-old taxi cab driver associated with a cow vigilante
group. Four people are still on the run.
They have been booked under sections 143 (unlawful
assembly), 365 (kidnapping), 367 (grievously hurt after kidnapping) and 368
(wrongfully keeping in confinement) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Source: News18
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‘Can’t change leopard’s spots by bathing it’: Kerala
CM Pinarayi Vijayan attacks Jamaat for talks with RSS
by Shaju Philip
February 18, 2023
IN A SHARP attack on the Jamaat-e-Islami for being
part of a recent meeting the RSS held with Muslim leaders, Kerala Chief
Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Saturday said it shows the “hypocrisy” of the Muslim
organisation.
“The logic of the Jamaat-e-Islami that the RSS can be
refined and reformed through dialogue is tantamount to the belief that the
spots of a leopard can be changed by bathing it,” Pinarayi said, adding that
the Jamaat should reveal the contents of the discussion.
With Muslims in Kerala seen as disenchanted with the
Congress for not effectively holding off the BJP, the CPI(M) has been trying to
woo the community. It has also been critical of any outreach by the BJP towards
the community.
The Jamaat-e-Islami and its political wing Welfare
Party of India, were once known for their pro-Left stand in Kerala, and backed
it in elections. From 2015 to 2020, a few panchayats in north Kerala were
governed by the LDF with the backing of the Welfare Party. However, the Muslim
organisation and its political wing distanced themselves from the Left in the
last Lok Sabha polls on the ground that the Congress was the largest party
strong enough to emerge as an anti-BJP force. Since then, the CPI(M) has been
openly attacking the Jamaat, including calling it communal.
Pinarayi said Friday that whatever the contents of the
discussion the Jamaat had with the RSS recently, this could not help the
minorities. “At a time that the secular community in the country is fighting
against the extremist Hindutva agenda of the RSS, these steps would only help
favour it. This is a challenge to secular society,” the CM said.
Rejecting Pinarayi’s stand, Jamaat-e-Islami general
secretary T Arif Ali said the dialogue should be seen positively, and that the
meeting was far from a secret, and included other representatives from the
community. “There is nothing wrong with holding meetings. Lynchings and
bulldozer politics figured in the discussion. With attacks against Muslims on
the rise, we asked the RSS to make an earnest effort to stop them,” Ali said.
The Kerala general secretary of the Jamiat
Ulema-e-Hind, a body of scholars, Aliyar Khasimi, also said discussions could
be held with anyone. “Debates are solutions for outstanding issues,” he said.
However, Abdul Samad Pookkottur, a prominent leader of
the Muslim scholars’ body SAMASTHA, said talks such as these held no relevance
when it comes to the RSS, as the latter “does not acknowledge secularism”. “If
someone feels that the Jamaat has surrendered before the RSS, they cannot be
blamed. It is up to the Jamaat to clarify (the contents of) its meeting with
the RSS,” Pookkottur said, adding that “for issue-based discussions”, the
Jamaat could have met the Prime Minister.
Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen president T P Abdulla Koya
Madani criticised both the RSS and Jamaat, calling them “two sides of the same
coin”. “They stand for religious nationalism. Both kept away from the freedom
struggle,” he said.
In other interactions between the RSS and the Muslim
community in Kerala, in December last year, the prominent Kerala Nadvathul
Mujahideen had invited BJP leader and Goa Governor P Sreedharan Pillai for
their state conference. A few BJP leaders had also attended some of the events.
Several CPI(M) leaders, led by party MP John Brittas,
had criticised the Mujahideen, asking whether its leadership believed that the
approach of the Sangh Parivar towards minorities could be changed through
dialogue. Brittas had also raked up the Babri Masjid issue, to underline his
point.
The RSS meeting with Muslim community leaders and
representatives in Delhi last month was its second such interaction. The Sangh
brought up the possibility of amicable resolution of Kashi and Mathura issues,
and the “dangerous” practice of Muslims living in ghettos, at the talks.
Source: Indian Express
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Delhi Confidential: In UP’s Muslim-dominated Rampur,
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi organises staging of Ramayana
February 18, 2023
Playing God: Former Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
is doing something different in Uttar Pradesh’s Muslim-dominated Rampur, the
constituency he once represented. He has organised staging of “Jai Shri Ram —
Ramayan”, a play by director-producer-actor Punnet Issar.
Naqvi has arranged the performance of the hour-long
play, based on ‘Shri Ramcharitmanas’ at the Rathonda Kisan Mela on
Mahashivratri (March 3). Bindu Dara Singh, known for playing Hanuman on
television, is also one of the actors in the play.
Two ambassadors: Ambassador of Israel to India Naor
Gilon tweeted a picture of him next to a 1964 model of Ambassador car from
Gedee Car Museum in Coimbatore with the caption: ‘Two old ambassadors, one in
like new condition’. He threw open the thread for more captions. People came up
with captions such as ‘one still works, and the other is a museum piece’ to
which he said that the other is also on its way to a museum. When someone asked
the models of both, he replied one is a 1964 model and the other “probably
older”.
Points to ponder: After Prime Minister Narendra Modi
asked to focus on ‘Panch Pran’ (five resolutions) during the Amrit Kaal
(2022-2047) in his Independence Day speech last year, some government offices
have started displaying these points on their premises.
For instance, NITI Aayog has displayed these five
resolutions near its reception so that everyone who enters the building can
read it easily.
Source: Indian Express
Please click the following URL to read the full text
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Centre decides to take over 123 Delhi Waqf Board
properties; Won’t allow it, says chairman Khan
18th February 2023
Delhi: The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry
has decided to take over 123 properties of the Delhi Waqf Board, including
mosques, dargahs and graveyards, evoking a sharp reaction from board chairman
and AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan.
Khan asserted that he will not allow the central
government to take over the Waqf properties.
The deputy land and development officer, in a letter
to the board on February 8, informed it of the decision to “absolve” it from
all matters pertaining to the 123 Waqf properties.
The Land and Development Office (L&DO) of the
central ministry said the two-member committee headed by Justice (retired) S P
Garg on the issue of denotified Waqf properties in its report submitted that no
representation or objection was received by it from the Delhi Waqf Board.
The committee was formed by the government of India on
the order of the Delhi High Court, according to the L&DO letter.
The L&DO said the Delhi Waqf Board was the main
stakeholder/affected party to whom the opportunity was given by the committee.
However, it did not appear before the committee or filed any representation or
objection regarding 123 properties.
“It is evident from the above facts that Delhi Waqf
Board does not have any stake in the listed properties, neither have they shown
any interest in the properties nor filed any objections or claims. It is,
therefore, decided to absolve Delhi Waqf Board from all matters pertaining to
‘123 Waqf Properties’,” said the L&DO letter.
Physical inspection of all 123 properties will now be
carried out by the L&DO.
According to Khan, the L&DO has pasted notices at
123 properties, which has caused “widespread anxiety, fear and resentment”
among the Muslim community.
“We have already raised our voice in the court on 123
Waqf properties, our Writ Petition No.1961/2022 is pending in the High Court.
“Some people are spreading lies about it, the proof of
this is in front of all of you. We will not allow anyone to occupy the
properties of the Waqf Board,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.
The DWB chairman in a reply to the Deputy Land and
Development Officer of the central ministry on Friday said that the Delhi Waqf
Board had already filed a petition in the high court in January 2022 against
the formation of a two-member committee on the basis of whose report the action
has been initiated by the ministry.
Khan said that the committee was informed on April 12
last year about Waqf Board’s petition in the high court, challenging its
formation and asking it to defer its proceedings until a final order was passed
by the court. The matter is pending in the high court.
He also said that before the two-member committee, a
one-member panel was formed whose report was rejected without giving any
reason. Also, the government of India had allotted one of the 123 properties to
the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) on permanent basis, after which the Waqf
Board had approached the high court.
“Two-member committee has already submitted its
report. However, no such report is shared with the Delhi Waqf Board. Hence, you
are requested to share a complete set of the report with the Delhi Waqf Board
urgently,” Khan said.
He claimed that there was no direction to constitute a
two-member committee by the high court in its order dated August 20, 2014.
These 123 properties are used by the Muslim community.
The day-to-day management of these 123 properties was done by Mutawallis or the
management committees appointed by the Delhi Waqf Board, he said.
The Delhi Waqf Board has a statutory right under
Section 32 of the Waqf Act, 1995, to exercise the powers of general
supervision, administration and control over these properties, he asserted.
According to the Waqf Act, all the Waqf properties
vest in the concerned Waqf Board, which in the present case, is Delhi Waqf
Board, Khan said.
Source: Siasat Daily
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Delhi Man, His Father Held For Raping, Trying To
Convert MBBS Student To Islam In Noida
Feb 18, 2023
A 30-year-old employee of a private bank in Delhi and
his father were arrested in Greater Noida for allegedly raping an MBBS student
and pressuring her to convert to Islam from Hinduism for marriage.
The man, who lives in the Sangam Vihar area of Delhi,
his 52-year-old father allegedly raped 23-year-old MBBS girl who was studying
at a medical college in Greater Noida.
Accused Met Victim On Social Media
The complainant said that she and the accused had met
on a social media site, where he hid his real identity so that he could become
friends with her, which they did, and later they got into a physical
relationship, police revealed.
“Eventually, she was sexually exploited by him and
then forced into religious conversion, threatened and assaulted,” Additional
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Greater Noida) Dinesh Kumar Singh said.
“Accordingly, an FIR was lodged leading to the arrest
of Mohammad Akhlaq and (his father) Mohammad Moin. Further investigation in the
case is underway,” Singh said.
Case Registered
A case has been lodged under Indian Penal Code
sections 323 (assault), 504 (insult to provoke breach of peace), 506 (criminal
intimidation), 354c (voyeurism), 376 (rape) and under provisions of the Uttar
Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, the police said.
Dankaur Police Station In-charge Sanjay Kumar Singh
told PTI that the aspiring doctor had first come across Akhlaq during her
coaching days on a social media site where he had identified himself as Aditya
Sharma.
Accused Was Married
“It was only in 2021 that both came face to face and
she found out his real name. The accused told her that he had not revealed his
real name, fearing she would stop interacting with him,” Singh said.
The accused also hid from her that he was married with
two children. She approached the police recently only after she found out he
was married, the officer said.
“When informed about the matter, the father of the
accused advised him to ask the girl to convert so that he could do a second
marriage,” Singh told PTI.
Source: India Today
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Pakistan will shiver when cannons under defence
corridor will be built in Bundelkhand: Yogi Adityanath
Feb 18, 2023
BANDA: Attacking India’s hostile neighbour, UP chief
minister Yogi Adityanath said in Banda on Friday that cannon factories will be
set up under the Rs 20,000-crore defence corridor project in Bundelkhand and
“when these cannons will thunder, Pakistan will shiver". He said the
defence corridor will create lots of job opportunities for the region.
After opening the three-day Kalinjar Mahotsav in Banda
district, the CM inaugurated 133 projects and laid the foundation stone of 169
projects — a total of 302 projects worth Rs 665.26 crore inaugurated and the
foundation stone laid.
“This was the Prime Minister's intention that
Bundelkhand should witness development. When I came on my first yatra to
Bundelkhand after our government was formed, only we had taken a pledge for the
region’s growth. Today, the Bundelkhand Expressway is in front of you. We are
going to build an airport right here in Chitrakoot. We are doing the work of
connecting Ken and Betwa rivers. In the times to come, Bundelkhand will become
a heaven on Earth. Our Bundelkhand will not be left behind now.”He said that of
the Rs 33 lakh crore investment proposals received by the state at the Global
Investors Summit, proposals worth Rs 4.5 lakh crore have come for Bundelkhand.
He said these projects will lead to mushrooming of new industries in
Bundelkhand, till now considered the most backward region of the state, and
will thus generate lots of employment.
He also inaugurated two tall statues of Maharana
Pratap of Mewar and Maharaja Khet Singh Khangar of Khangar dynasty at separate
chowks in Banda city on Friday. “Banda looks like Delhi when one sees wide and
clean roads,” said Yogi while praising the improved infrastructure of the
Bundelkhand city. “Roads in Bundelkhand have now been widened and that is
allowing people to travel smoothly and faster. Travel time for long distances
has now reduced due to better roads.”
On tourism promotion, Yogi said, “By reviving
historical forts, promoting tourism, we will increase the employment potential
of the youth here...Those who made Bundelkhand hollow by looting its resources
and by doing politics of casteism, we have to keep away from these families
forever.”
The possibilities of tourism development will further
be explored by linking all forts. He said to preserve forts, they will be
developed as tourist zones, and hotels and restaurants will be established. He
said the Kalinjar festival will be organised in a grand manner as a state
festival.
“In Banda district, more than 88,000 PM houses have
been built in rural areas. 634 families from the tribal community have received
houses under the CM scheme. Earlier SP and BSP governments had deprived the
poor of facilities. In Banda, we have given pensions to 13,595 elderly people
in the last five years, 2,536 widows were given pensions as they were not
getting it earlier. All this is a glimpse (of our work) through which we want
to tell people that the benefits of the government's schemes are being given
without discrimination,” Yogi said.
He said Sajar stone and Kathia wheat will be further
promoted under ‘one district one product district’, so that the farmers and
traders of this region will get better value for it.
While giving a cheque of Rs 9 crore to self-help
groups, he said under the CM's self-employment scheme, a cheque of Rs 25 lakh
was given to a beneficiary. Yogi also said that two crore youths will be given
tablets by the state government. Along with this, certificates were distributed
to the beneficiaries of Ayushman Bharat Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai
Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Vikas Samman Nidhi Yojana and other schemes.
Source: Times Of India
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South Asia
Taliban supreme leader comes under attack from
powerful ministers
Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban's powerful interior
minister, gave a speech on February 11 in which he appeared to accuse
Akhundzada of "monopolizing power" and "hurting the
reputation" of the militant group, RFE/RL reported.
Another influential Taliban official, Defence Minister
Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, said in a February 15 speech in Kabul that the militant
group "should never be arrogant" and must "always respond to the
legitimate demands of the nation".
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that
"all members share the same thoughts, beliefs, and ideology", adding
that Haqqani and Yaqoob were merely making suggestions.
Haqqani and Yaqoob's public comments appear to have
lifted the lid on the widening rifts within the Taliban, which has come under
national and international condemnation for its severe restrictions on women's
rights and human rights abuses, RFE/RL reported.
As the Taliban has attempted to transform from an
insurgency into a functional government after seizing power in 2021, there have
been mounting reports of infighting.
Akhundzada, who rarely travels outside his stronghold
in the southern province of Kandahar, has consolidated power and empowered
ultraconservative clerics who share his extremist views.
It is unclear yet if growing internal and foreign
criticism will force Akhundzada to moderate his policies.
Experts do not expect internal differences to lead to
an open revolt.
Source: MSN
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United Nations to cut food aid for Rohingya refugees
in Bangladesh, citing fund shortage
POPPY MCPHERSON, RUMA PAUL and SUDIPTO GANGULY
17 February, 2023
Bangkok: The United Nations plans to slash food aid to
Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, blaming a funding shortfall for cuts that
agencies warned on Friday would deepen food insecurity and malnutrition in the
world’s largest refugee settlement.
About 730,000 Rohingya, a persecuted mostly Muslim
minority from Myanmar’s Rakhine state, fled to Bangladesh in 2017 to escape an
army crackdown the U.N. said was carried out with genocidal intent. Including
others who left in prior waves, nearly 1 million live in huts made of bamboo
and plastic sheets.
The World Food Program (WFP) said it would reduce the
value of its food assistance to $10 per person from $12 starting next month.
Donor budgets have been stretched by the pandemic, economic downturn and crises
across the globe.
The WFP appealed for $125 million in urgent funding,
warning of “immense and long-lasting” repercussions on food security and
nutrition in camps rife with malnutrition, where more than a third of children
are stunted and underweight.
“That the international donor community is now turning
its back on half a million Rohingya children and their families really shows
the limits of its commitment to some of the most vulnerable people in the
world,” Onno Van Manen, Save the Children’s country director in Bangladesh,
said in a statement.
Two U.N. special rapporteurs, Michael Fakhri and
Thomas Andrews, warned of the “devastating consequence” of the funding
shortfall, saying it was “unconscionable” to cut rations just before the Muslim
holy month of Ramadan, the U.N. human rights agency said in a statement.
Cuts could cause more Rohingya to take desperate
measures to seek work, said Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh’s refugee
relief and repatriation commissioner, who is based in Cox’s Bazar, the border
district where the refugees live.
Rohingya are barred from working to supplement their
income, and Bangladesh has constructed fences around the camps that stop them
leaving.
But an increasing number are fleeing for countries
such as Malaysia and Indonesia via perilous and often fatal boat journeys, as
violent crime adds to longstanding troubles like a lack of educational and work
opportunities and bleak prospects of returning to military-ruled Myanmar.
A boat carrying 69 Rohingya landed in Indonesia’s Aceh
province on Thursday, the U.N. refugee agency said.
“In few places I’ve worked have camp-based populations
had the meagre options of the type that the Rohingya have today,” John Aylieff,
WFP regional director for Asia and the Pacific, told Reuters.
“It’s unthinkable that that population, with all
they’ve been through and with so few other possibilities and options, would on
top of everything face a ration cut.”
Arif Ullah, an 18-year-old refugee living in the
camps, said the existing food allowance was barely sufficient. “If it’s further
trimmed, how will we survive?”
Source: The Print
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https://theprint.in/world/u-n-to-cut-food-aid-for-rohingya-refugees-citing-fund-shortfall/1378242/
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Avalanches kill 12 and destroy 50 dwellings in
Afghanistan
By Fidel Rahmati
February 17, 2023
According to local officials, several avalanches have
destroyed 50 homes and claimed the lives of at least 12 people in Badakhshan, a
province in the northeastern part of Afghanistan.
The incident occurred due to heavy snowfall in the
Raghistan and Deraim districts of Badakhshan, a mountainous province bordering
Tajikistan and Pakistan, the official added.
Earlier last week, an avalanche hit a vehicle in
Badakhshan province, resulting in two fatalities and six injuries.
Most mountain roads have been closed due to heavy
snowfall; vehicles have become trapped, and passengers have perished in
freezing temperatures.
Badakhshan is one of the country’s provinces
consistently hit with severe snowfall and a frigid environment. Most of the
districts in the province became blocked throughout the winter, which made it
difficult for humanitarian organizations to provide air and support.
Source: Khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/avalanches-kill-12-and-destroy-50-dwellings-in-afghanistan/
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Arab World
At Least 53 Killed Syria Attack, Islamic State Blamed,
State Media Says
February 17, 2023
CAIRO —
At least 53 civilians were killed in an attack in
Syria's central desert province of Homs, state media reported on Friday,
blaming the Islamic State group.
The bodies of all of the victims taken to the Palmyra
state hospital had gunshot wounds to the head, state news agency SANA reported,
citing a hospital official.
State media said the victims had been gathering desert
truffles when they were attacked. Homs province is controlled by the Syrian
government and its allies.
Five people who were wounded were transferred to
another hospital. One of the survivors told SANA that the attackers had burned
their cars.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the
attack.
IS once controlled vast swaths of territory there,
losing its hold on land in separate offensives by U.S.-backed fighters,
government forces backed by Russia, regional militants and Turkish-sponsored
rebels.
It now uses sleeper cells to wage hit-and-run attacks
in Syria.
Source: VOA News
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Death toll in Turkiye, Syria quake tops 45,000; many
still missing in flattened apartments
February 18, 2023
More than 45,000 people have been killed in the
earthquake that struck Turkiye and Syria, and the toll is expected to soar with
some 264,000 apartments in Turkiye destroyed and many still missing in the
country’s worst modern disaster.
Eleven days after the quake hit, three survivors were
dug out from the rubble in Turkiye on Friday. The death toll in Turkiye stands
at 39,672, while neighbouring Syria has reported more than 5,800 deaths.
Syria’s toll has not changed for days.
Mosques around the world on Friday performed absentee
funeral prayers for the dead in Turkiye and Syria, many of whom could not
receive full burial rites given the enormity of the disaster.
While many international rescue teams have left the
vast quake zone, domestic teams continued to search through flattened buildings
on Saturday hoping to find more survivors who defied the odds. Experts say most
rescues occur in the 24 hours following an earthquake.
Hakan Yasinoglu, in his 40s, was rescued in the
southern province of Hatay, 278 hours after the 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck
in the dead of night on Feb. 6, the Istanbul Fire Brigade said.
Earlier, Osman Halebiye, 14, and Mustafa Avci, 34,
were saved in Turkiye’s historic city of Antakya, known in ancient times as
Antioch. As Avci was carried away, he was put on a video call with his parents,
who showed him his newborn baby.
“I had completely lost all hope. This is a true
miracle. They gave me my son back. I saw the wreckage and I thought nobody
could be saved alive from there,” his father said.
An exhausted Avci was later reunited with his wife
Bilge and daughter Almile at a hospital in Mersin.
Aid organisations say the survivors will need help for
months to come with so much crucial infrastructure destroyed.
In neighbouring Syria, already shattered by more than
a decade of civil war, the bulk of fatalities have been in the northwest, an
area controlled by insurgents who are at war with President Bashar al-Assad — a
conflict that has complicated efforts to aid people affected by the earthquake.
The sides clashed overnight for the first time since
the disaster, with government forces shelling the outskirts of Atareb, a
rebel-held town badly hit by the earthquake, the Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights reported on Friday.
Reuters could not independently verify the report.
Thousands of Syrians who had sought refuge in Turkiye
from their country’s civil war have returned to their homes in the war zone —
at least for now.
Anger grows
Neither Turkiye nor Syria have said how many people
are still missing following the quake.
For families still waiting to retrieve relatives in
Turkiye, there is growing anger over what they see as corrupt building
practices and deeply flawed urban development that resulted in thousands of
homes and businesses disintegrating.
One such building was the Ronesans Rezidans
(Renaissance Residence), which keeled over in Antakya, killing hundreds.
“It was said to be earthquake-safe, but you can see
the result,” said Hamza Alpaslan, 47, whose brother had lived in the apartment
block.
“It’s in horrible condition. There is neither cement
nor proper iron in it. It’s a real hell.”
Turkiye has promised to investigate anyone suspected
of responsibility for the collapse of buildings and has ordered the detention
of more than 100 suspects, including developers.
Source: Dawn
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Saudi Arabia sends more humanitarian aid to earthquake
victims in Syria, Turkey
17 February ,2023
Ten trucks loaded with humanitarian aid from Saudi
Arabia crossed the Bab al-Salama border crossing into Syria on Friday to help
the victims of the recent earthquake, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center
(KSRelief) provided the trucks, which carried 80 tons of food and shelter
materials.
The aid will be distributed to several quake-stricken
areas in northern Syria, including Azaz, Afrin and Jandris, SPA reported.
On the same day, a twelfth relief plane from Saudi
Arabia departed King Khalid International Airport for Gaziantep Airport in Turkey,
carrying 75 tons of food baskets and shelter materials, according to the SPA
report.
King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed
bin Salman have ordered KSRelief to provide aid to the victims of the
earthquake by operating an air bridge.
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria last
week, claiming the lives of over 41,000 people in both countries.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Blast wounds four US troops in Syria, ISIS leader
killed: Report
17 February ,2023
An explosion wounded four American military personnel
during a raid that killed a senior ISIS group leader in Syria, the US
military’s Central Command said Friday.
“Last night, during a partnered US and Syrian
Democratic Forces helicopter raid in northeastern Syria, an explosion on target
resulted in four US servicemembers and one working dog wounded,” CENTCOM said
in a statement.
The ISIS leader, identified as Hamza al-Homsi, was
killed, while the US troops and the dog are being treated at an American
medical facility in Iraq, the statement added.
Washington leads an international coalition battling
ISIS and conducts periodic raids and strikes targeting the group.
After the extremists lost their last scraps of
territory to local Kurdish-led forces backed by the coalition in 2019, ISIS
remnants in Syria mostly retreated into desert hideouts in the country’s east.
They have since used such hideouts to ambush
Kurdish-led forces and Syrian government troops while continuing to mount
attacks in Iraq.
In October 2019, Washington announced the death of
ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during a raid by US special forces in
northwest Syria.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Syrian government forces, opposition fighters clash in
quake-hit region
17 February ,2023
Syrian government forces and opposition fighters have
clashed overnight in northwest Syria for the first time since an earthquake
devastated the region on February 6, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
reported on Friday.
The northwest, one of the region’s most badly affected
by the earthquake that hit Syria and Turkey, is controlled by fighters opposed to
the government of President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.
The Observatory said government forces had shelled the
outskirts of the opposition-town of Atareb. This coincided with clashes with
heavy machine guns between government and opposition forces at a nearby
frontline, it said.
For the latest headlines, follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
Observatory Director Rami Abdulrahman said 235 people
in Atareb and the nearby areas had died in the earthquake.
More than 4,400 people were reported killed by the
earthquake in the northwest, according to a UN agency, the bulk of the
fatalities in Syria.
Government and opposition forces also clashed in
another part of the northwest near the government town of Saraqeb, while
government forces shelled the outskirts of two villages in Hama province, the
Observatory reported.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports.
The World Health Organization has said it was
particularly concerned about the welfare of people in the northwest, where many
people have felt abandoned as supplies almost invariably head to other parts of
the sprawling disaster zone.
The Syrian conflict has killed hundreds of thousands
of people, uprooted more than half the population and forced millions abroad as
refugees since 2011.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Qatari investors plan $6 billion opening bid for
Manchester United
17 February ,2023
Qatari investors are readying a roughly £5 billion ($6
billion) opening bid for Manchester United Plc, people with knowledge of the
matter said, ahead of what’s expected to be a fierce bidding war for the
English football giant.
A consortium including Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber
al-Thani, the country’s former prime minister and ex-head of the Qatar
Investment Authority, is putting the final touches on a proposal to acquire the
English Premier League club from the US Glazer family.
Deliberations are ongoing and no final decisions on
the size or timing of any proposal have been taken, according to the people. A
representative for Sheikh Hamad didn’t immediately respond to a request for
comment.
Bloomberg News reported this week that the QIA has
been helping with preparations for a bid alongside local family offices. Any
offer is likely to face competition from British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe,
who’s already lined up financing from banks including Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
for a bid of his own.
Manchester United is one of the biggest names in world
sports and has been the subject of increasing takeover speculation since
Bloomberg News reported in the summer that the Glazer family was open to
selling a stake. New York bank Raine Group is advising the Glazers.
A Qatari bid could be complicated by the fact Qatar
Sports Investments, a state-backed entity that’s separate to QIA, already owns
French super-club Paris Saint-Germain FC.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Saudi FM meets with Palestinian PM, attends Munich
Security Conference panel in Germany
February 17, 2023
RIYADH: The Saudi foreign minister Prince Faisal bin
Farhan on Friday met with the prime minister of Palestine Mohammad Shtayyeh on
the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference 2023 in Germany, Saudi Press
Agency reported.
During the meeting, the two sides touched on many
issues and developments in the regional and international arenas.
They discussed the outcomes of the meeting that
brought together Prince Faisal and the Secretary-General of the Arab League,
Ahmed Aboul Gheit, with the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs
and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, in Brussels, regarding ways to revive the
peace process in the Middle East, under the resolutions of international legitimacy
and the Arab peace initiative.
During his trip to Germany, Prince Faisal also took
part in a panel discussion on energy security held on the sidelines of Munich
Security Conference 2023.
A host of senior officials, representatives of
government, academia and civil society institutions participated in the event.
The group of dignitaries exchanged ideas about the
importance of enhancing international cooperation aiming to preserve the global
energy market's stability and continue effective communication to confront
future challenges amid the geopolitical changes the world is currently
experiencing.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2253271/saudi-arabia
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Families enjoy a taste of the past at coffee festival
in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Dayer
February 18, 2023
JAZAN: The Saudi Coffee Festival in Al-Dayer
governorate is drawing large numbers of families in the region, with displays
including a rural pavilion showcasing women’s role in the rural sector and
their participation in daily life.
The festival, which is organized by the Ministry of
Environment, Water and Agriculture’s branch in Jazan in cooperation with the
Al-Dayer governorate, will continue until Feb. 20.
Visitors can learn about farming, tillage and
harvesting tools, and cooking utensils, as well as women’s traditional clothes
and jewelry, and equipment for coffee harvesting, roasting and preparation.
Displays also feature leatherwork produced by rural
women in the past, as well as the region’s current leather products.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2253351/saudi-arabia
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Europe
Ukrainian
commander wears Daesh insignia on uniform, video shows
17
February 2023
A
media report broadcast by the Associated Press from the war front in Ukraine
has shown one of the Ukrainian military commanders wearing Daesh insignia on
his uniform.
In
the video, the commander, referred to as “Kurt,” is stating that the Ukrainian
military needs more advanced weapons to defeat Russia.
“In
order for us to win, we need fighter jets, rockets,” the commander says,
reiterating similar calls by Kiev officials for additional western weapons.
It
is unclear if the patch on the commander's arm signifies the Ukrainian
commander’s current or former links to Daesh (ISIS), or whether he simply
obtained the patch and chose to wear it as a novelty.
However,
the AP report showing the Kiev commander wearing a Daesh patch raises concerns
about increased terrorist activities across Ukraine.
It
is a fact that Washington has funded and trained both extremist forces in the
Middle East as well as Neo-Nazi groups in Ukraine to fight in its proxy wars
aimed to maintain and expand its global hegemony.
Earlier
reports from US forces deployed in Syria showed they had been recruiting and
training dozens of Takfiri terrorists to carry out attacks in Russia and
several other ex-Soviet states, Russia's intelligence agency said.
Russian
Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) revealed that US forces in Syria were training
militants affiliated with Daesh and Al-Qaeda at the Al-Tanf base on the
Syria-Iraq border to carry out attacks inside the former Soviet states.
Earlier
this month, the Akhbar Al-Aan news channel interviewed Abdul Hakim al-Shishani,
a notorious Chechen terrorist who now leads a Foreign Legion brigade in the
Ukrainian army.
Shishani
previously fought against Russian forces in Chechnya in the 1990’s, and more
recently in Syria at the head of the Ajnad al-Kafkaz Battalion, an armed group
that allied itself with Jabhat al-Nusra and other al-Qaeda-linked groups in the
US-led regime change war against the Syrian government, according to the
Jerusalem Post.
Other
videos and photos have also shown patches and insignia used by Kiev forces
bearing the Nazi symbol.
Ukrainian
ultra-nationalists and neo-Nazis are to blame for the years-long crisis in the
pro-Russia regions of eastern Ukraine.
Almost
a year ago, Moscow launched its "special military operation" in
eastern Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russian forces'
mission was to "de-Nazify" the Russian-speaking regions near the
Russian border, and stop NATO advancement.
Source:
Press TV
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/02/17/698390/Ukraine-Kiev-Forces-Daesh-Nazi
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EU
foreign ministers to start meeting by remembering quake victims in Türkiye,
Syria
Agnes
Szucs
17.02.2023
BRUSSELS
The
meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers will start on Monday by remembering the
victims of the Feb. 6 earthquakes and assessing the bloc’s support for Türkiye
and Syria, Anadolu learned on Friday.
EU
foreign policy chief Josep Borrell will begin the meeting "by making a
reference to the terrible earthquake and the very difficult humanitarian
situation in Türkiye and Syria,” a senior EU official told Brussels-based
reporters.
The
EU top diplomats will then discuss the situation in Ukraine with their
Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba, as well as the bloc’s support for the
country, including military aid and ensuring accountability.
According
to the source, the foreign ministers will also discuss a plan recently raised
by Estonia to set up a joint procurement system for purchasing arms for Ukraine
in a similar way the bloc bought COVID-19 vaccines.
The
ministers will adopt sanctions against Iranian individuals under the bloc’s
Human Rights Sanctions Regime, the official explained.
The
bloc's 10th sanctions package against Russia is expected to enter into force on
the war's first anniversary, Feb. 24, and blacklist for the first time Iranian
entities for military support and involvement in the war in Ukraine.
The
EU ministers will also review the situation in Afghanistan, with a special
focus on delivering humanitarian aid to the country that suffers from harsh
winter conditions.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Every
patient has a story, says Spanish doctor treating quake victims in Türkiye
Beyza
Binnur Donmez
17.02.2023
Every
patient has a story, according to a Spanish doctor who is treating earthquake
victims in Türkiye, relating some of the heartbreaking lived experiences of
survivors.
Juan
Carlos Martinez Escoriaza, a gynecologist, spoke to Anadolu from a field
hospital run by the Spanish Technical Aid Response Team (START) in the
Iskenderun district of the southern Hatay province, hit hard by twin
earthquakes on Feb. 6.
"Each
patient we see has a story," Martinez said. "I can speak from a
patient from this afternoon who consulted me about gynecology because she says
that her gynecologist has died and she does not have a consultation here."
"Or
a child who has come to the pediatrics and has been asking for water. Just
water. It is inconceivable to me and it breaks our hearts," he added.
That's
why, Escoriaza said, he and his team had to come to Türkiye to cover some part
of the healthcare shortage in the wake of the quakes.
Noting
that the START field hospital has so far treated more than 700 patients since
it opened on Monday, he said they were 82 aid workers, firefighters, lawyers,
nurses, midwives, and doctors were serving with their different specialties.
According
to a previous announcement by the Spanish Embassy in Ankara, the hospital can
provide care to 200 patients daily and it has the capacity to perform up to
seven major and 15 minor surgeries in the field operating room.
It
can also accommodate 20 patients in its own hospitalization area.
Field
hospitals 'essential' in quake-hit zones
Asked
whether more field hospitals should be opened in the country's 11
earthquake-hit provinces, Escoriaza said such facilities are
"essential."
Having
such hospitals and professionals ready to deploy is the "real
formula" of providing help, he added.
"The
important thing about this is that we have had previous training in Spain and
we are prepared to leave immediately, which is the real formula to be able to
help."
"These
types of hospitals, coordinated by the WHO (World Health Organization), are
efficient," he underlined.
Martinez,
who normally works in the coastal Spanish city of Alicante, said that the
hospital staff was on a 15-day rotation due to exhaustion that was "more
psychological than physical."
More
than 38,000 people have died in two strong earthquakes that jolted southern
Türkiye last week, the country's disaster agency said.
The
Feb. 6 magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in the Kahramanmaras
province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including
Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye,
Sanliurfa, and Elazig.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Greek
premier says post-quake climate can be chance to redefine relations with
Türkiye
Ahmet
Gençtürk
17.02.2023
Greece’s
prime minister said Thursday that the climate emerging following last week’s
earthquakes in southern Türkiye can serve as an opportunity to redefine
relations with Ankara.
For
Greece, standing with Türkiye and Syria was purely a humanitarian task which
did not serve any foreign policy purposes, said Kyriakos Mitsotakis in an interview
with public broadcaster ERT.
Asked
about the prospects for bilateral relations with Ankara, he said the
“earthquakes could present an opportunity to redefine relations between Greece
and Türkiye.”
It
also can allow to redefine relations between Türkiye and the European Union as
a whole, Mitsotakis noted, adding the ultimate decision will be made by the
Turkish leadership.
He
argued, however, that countries do not change their foreign policies overnight.
Mitsotakis
continued by maintaining that Türkiye would need strong European support to
recover from the damage it endured as a result of the quakes.
“And
we want to do everything in our power to help the Turkish people and Türkiye
get back on their feet. It is also for the benefit of our national interests,"
he added.
At
least 38,044 people were killed by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern
Türkiye on Feb. 6, the country's disaster agency said early Friday.
The
magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes were centered in Kahramanmaras and struck 10 other
provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Hatay, Gaziantep, Malatya, Kilis,
Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa. More than 13 million people have been affected
by the devastating quakes.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Greek
long jumper to auction his shoes for child victims of quakes in Türkiye
Ahmet
Gençtürk
17.02.2023
A
famous Greek long jumper will auction his shoes, with the proceeds to be
donated for the child victims of the twin earthquakes that struck southern
Türkiye last week, local media reported Thursday.
The
sports shoes, which were worn by Olympic gold medalist Miltiadis Tentoglou in
his latest performance Wednesday at the World Athletics Indoor Tour in France,
will be auctioned as suggested to him by his coach Giorgos Pomaski, according
to public broadcaster ERT.
Tentoglou,
born in 1998, won a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics with a jump of 8.41
meters.
He
also won four consecutive European titles, in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.
At
least 38,044 people were killed by two strong earthquakes that jolted southern
Türkiye on Feb. 6, the country's disaster agency said early Friday.
The
magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes were centered in Kahramanmaras and struck 10 other
provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Hatay, Gaziantep, Malatya, Kilis,
Osmaniye, Elazig and Sanliurfa. More than 13 million people have been affected
by the devastating quakes.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
North America
US
says Daesh commander killed, troops wounded in NE Syria raid
February
17, 2023
BEIRUT:
The US military said Friday a helicopter raid led by its forces in northeast
Syria left a senior leader with the Daesh group dead and four American service
members wounded.
The
military added in the short statement that the operation was conducted Thursday
night in partnership with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces which is
allied with the US
It
added that “an explosion on target resulted in four US service members and one
working dog wounded.” It did not say in which part of northeast Syria the raid
was conducted.
It
identified the killed Daesh commander as Hamza Al-Homsi.
Despite
their defeat in Syria in March 2019, Daesh sleeper cells still conduct attacks
around Syria and Iraq where they once declared a “caliphate.”
Joint
operations between the US military and SDF fighters are common in northeast and
eastern Syria along the border with Iraq.
The
statement said the service members and working dog are receiving treatment in a
US medical facility in neighboring Iraq.
The
US military killed two Daesh leaders in Syria over the past few years.
In
February 2021, Abu Ibrahim Al-Hashimi Al-Qurayshi, was killed in a US raid in
northwest Syria. Daesh founder Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi was hunted down by the
Americans in a raid in October 2019.
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2253176/middle-east
--------
Takfiri
terrorist groups created by US, and its allies: Al-Houthi
17
February 2023
The
leader of Yemen's Ansarullah popular resistance movement considers Takfiri
terrorist groups to be constructs of the United States and its allies.
The
terror outfits have been created by the West, including the United States, and
the Israeli regime -- which is Washington's closest ally, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi
said during an address on Friday.
"By
creating political crises, the enemies are trying to preoccupy nations and
distance them from the path of productivity and progress," he asserted.
Takfiri
terrorist outfits, most notably among them Daesh, unleashed a campaign of
bloodletting and destruction in Syria and neighboring Iraq in 2014 as the
United States was running out of excuses to extend or enlarge its regional
meddling.
The
US and its allies invaded Syria later the same year under the pretext of fighting
Daesh.
The
US-led military interference was, however, surprisingly slow in confronting the
terrorists, despite the sheer size of the coalition that had enlisted scores of
Washington-allied countries. Numerous reports and regional officials would, meanwhile,
point to the US’s role in transferring Daesh elements throughout the region and
even airlifting supplies to the terror outfit.
'War
for profit'
Al-Houthi
considered the United States to be responsible for sowing warfare and sedition
across other nations so it can help American arms manufacturers profiteer from
pouring weapons into the targeted countries.
Arrogant
powers enabled the deployment of banned arms across several spots throughout
the region, including in Palestine and Yemen, "thus committing
genocide," he said.
Al-Houthi
was referring to the US and its allies' sales of those weapons, such as white
phosphorous and cluster bombs, to their proxies, including the Israeli regime
and Saudi Arabia, for deployment in the targeted locations.
He,
however, warned, "Gone are the days, when we would only listen to the news
about acts of encroachment against [other] nations." "Now, we have
entered the period of taking responsibility versus nations and confronting the
dangers that threaten them."
Advice
toward regional unity
The
Ansarullah leader advised regional countries to avoid playing into the enemies'
hands by letting them benefit from the nations' internal differences.
"Ninety
percent of the enemies' plots against us [take place] through [their] exploiting
the very internal differences," he stressed.
Enumerating
other means of US-led interference in other countries, especially those of the
region, Houthi warned that "the Americans impose [their] mercenaries and
ignorant [officials] on [other] nations as means of delivering heavy blows to
them."
By
infiltrating their mercenaries into various positions of responsibility and
institutions that are in charge of running countries' economic affairs, the
enemies would seek to carry out sabotage operations across the targeted
nations, cautioned the Ansarullah leader.
Source:
Press TV
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Four
US troops, working dog wounded in Syria raid against Islamic State
Jared
Szuba
February
17, 2023
The
US military said four of its troops and a working dog were wounded when a
senior Islamic State leader triggered a blast during a helicopter-borne raid by
the US and local Kurdish-led fighters on his location in eastern Syria late on
Thursday.
The
suspected IS official, identified by the US military as Hamza al-Homsi, was
killed during the operation in Syria’s Deir Ezzor province.
The
four US personnel and dog remain in stable condition after having been
transported to Iraq to receive medical treatment at a US facility, spokesperson
for US Central Command Joe Buccino told Al-Monitor in an emailed statement.
No
members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were hurt in the
operation, nor were any civilians believed to have been at the site, Buccino
said. No other IS fighters were killed or captured during the operation.
“Hamza
al-Homsi oversaw the group’s deadly terrorist network in eastern Syria before
he was killed in the raid,” Buccino wrote.
Why
it matters: The raid marks the first time American personnel have been wounded
in action in Syria since last August, when rocket fire believed to have been
launched by Iran-backed militias on the US-run Conoco support facility in Deir
ez-Zor lightly injured three troops.
The
United States maintains roughly 900 troops in the country to pursue remaining
IS figures with the help of local Syrian fighters, chief among them a
Kurdish-led alliance of militias calling itself the Syrian Democratic Forces.
But
pressure from other players in the conflict — mainly Iran-backed militias and
Turkey, which sees the Syrian Kurdish-led force as a terrorist organization —
has continued to complicate the operations.
The
SDF resumed partnered operations alongside the United States against IS on Dec.
8 after a hiatus in which its commander, Mazlum Abdi, sought to prepare for
what his side saw as a looming attack by Turkey, potentially targeting the
Kurdish-stronghold city of Kobani.
Mick
Mulroy, a former senior Pentagon official and CIA paramilitary officer turned
ABC News analyst, told Al-Monitor that those still fighting should not be
forgotten. "The mission to ensure the enduring defeat of [IS] in Syria
continues," he said.
Source:
Al Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
35
US congressmen send letter to USAID, urging support for Türkiye, Syria
Rabia
İclal Turan
18.02.2023
WASHINGTON
Thirty-five
congressmen sent Friday a letter to the US Agency for International Development
(USAID), urging continued assistance to Türkiye and Syria in the aftermath of
deadly earthquakes hitting the two countries.
Led
by Democratic Representative Gerry Connolly from Virginia, who is a senior
member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, the bipartisan letter urged
USAID Administrator Samantha Power for continued support to earthquake-hit
regions.
“We
commend USAID and the United States government’s swift response to the
humanitarian crisis,” they said.
“By
deploying a Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) and courageous Urban
Search and Rescue Teams from Los Angeles County, California and Fairfax County,
Virginia, within hours of the earthquake, your agency’s rapid action will
unquestionably save lives,” said the letter.
It
listed urgent needs in both countries, such as heavy machinery for the removal
of debris, additional tents, sleeping bags, isolation sheets, non-food items
and among items.
“We
appreciate USAID’s expeditious response and for your attention to meet these
requests and support ongoing efforts by partners in the region that include:
search and rescue efforts, the funding of humanitarian response plans, the
provision of water and sanitation services, an increase in food security and
nutrition programs, the establishment of safe temporary housing for displaced
families and field hospitals to assist those injured in the earthquake, and
continued support for needs existing prior to the disaster,” it said.
The
7.7- and 7.6-magnitude earthquakes on Feb. 6 in southern Türkiye affected more
than 13 million people in 11 provinces.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
Three
Islamists, Two Others Killed In Storming of Karachi Police Station;
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Took Responsibility
By
Akhtar Soomro and Ariba Shahid
February
18, 2023
KARACHI,
Pakistan, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Islamists stormed a police station in the southern
Pakistani city of Karachi on Friday, killing two people in a hail of gunfire
and a series of loud explosions before they themselves were killed, officials
said.
Security
forces retook the building after several hours and killed three militants, a
government spokesman said. Police commandoes and a bomb disposal squad entered
the building and a security sweep was under way.
Two
people had been killed and 11 wounded in the militants' attack, a government
spokesman said.
A
huge explosion was heard inside the station after a series of blasts when it
was first attacked.
The
Pakistani Taliban, or Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), took responsibility for
the attack in a message sent by their spokesman to journalists.
The
station houses offices of the city's most senior police. Deputy Inspector General
Irfan Baloch told Reuters there could have been up to 30 police at the station
at the time of the attack.
The
Islamist TTP, separate from the Taliban ruling neighbouring Afghanistan, has
recently increased attacks on police in the northwest of Pakistan as part of
its campaign against the government in Islamabad.
Overseas
cricket players are competing in the Pakistan Super League, and Karachi is one
of the host cities. There is a game scheduled for Saturday. The police station
is located along the route to the stadium and the players' hotel is a few
kilometres away.
Top
teams shunned Pakistan for years after six policemen and two civilians were
killed in a 2009 attack on a bus carrying the Sri Lankan cricket team in
Lahore.
Source:
Reuters
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Netizens
call out “Sanghis” for Samjhauta Express bombings as India continues to deny
justice
February
17, 2023
ISLAMABAD:
As the 16th anniversary of 2007 Samjhauta Express bombing arrives on Saturday,
netizens are speaking up against Hindu nationalists for perpetrating the
terrorist act condemning Indian government for sitting over multiple pieces of
evidence, denying justice to victim families.
On
February 18, 2007, an improvised explosive device (IED) blast was carried out
in the Samjhauta train, which ran between New Delhi and Lahore, at Panipat in
Haryana. The incident had claimed 68 lives, including 43 Pakistani nationals,
10 Indian citizens, and 15 unidentified persons. About 12 others, including 10
Pakistanis and two Indians, were also injured in the attack.
Initially,
a Muslim group was blamed for the incident, but later on, the National
Intelligence Agency (NIA) arrested Kamal Chauhan of the Hindu extremist organization
Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) in New Delhi. Chauhan was an explosives
specialist, who had planted the bomb in that train.
“Samjhauta
Express blast done by Sanghis,” TrueJay, a Tweitterati wrote.
The
investigations revealed that the said Hindu activist and several other persons
had been involved in the blasts at Ajmer Dargah, Hyderabad’s Makkah Masjid and
Malegaon. The Hindu chauvinists also confessed their involvement in these acts
of terror.
The
Head of Maharashtra Police Inspector General Hemant Karkare and several
political commentators had called it “Hindutva Terror” or the “Saffron Terror”.
Later, Hemant Karkare was targeted and killed during the 2008 Mumbai operation.
It
was also reported that Swami Aseemanand, an RSS leader, was found guilty before
a judicial magistrate for his involvement in the attacks on Samjhauta Express,
and mosques in Malegaon in Maharashtra state and Andhra Pradesh’s state capital
Hyderabad, besides a Muslim shrine in Ajmer in Rajasthan. Indian Army Col
Prohit himself had confessed to have trained Hindu terrorists to initiate an
armed conflict between Pakistan and India.
The
opposition leader in the Indian parliament Rahul Gandhi truly confirmed that
the growth of Hindu extremists presented a greater threat to India than the
Muslims.
Pakistan
had urged India to share findings of the investigation into the Samjhauta train
blasts after it was disclosed that Hindu extremist outfits were behind the
terrorist activities in February 2007.
Speaking
to The Wire, Vikash Narain Rai, a former Haryana police officer who headed the
Special Investigation Team (SIT) from 2007 to early 2010, said the police
recovered an unexploded bomb from the train.
It
was found that all the parts of that ‘incendiary device’ were purchased by the
people linked to the RSS and its associate groups. A special court on March 20,
2019 acquitted Swami Aseemanand and three others in the case. NIA special judge
Jagdeep Singh also dismissed the plea of a Pakistani woman for examining
eyewitnesses from her country.
Pakistan
believes that the systemic Indian decision to gradually exonerate and finally
acquit the perpetrators is not just a reflection of India’s callousness towards
the families of the deceased Pakistanis, but also reflective of the Indian
state policy of promoting and protecting the Hindu terrorists. In fact, India
had been using similar incidents to lay a basis for the false flag operations
against Pakistan, which had also been proved in many other instances to deceive
its public about the culprits and perpetrators.
Swami
Aseemanand, the leader of RSS, and his fellow RSS activists were accused of
their involvement in the Samjhota Express Blast and many other such prominent
attacks. Col. Prohit himself had confessed during the investigation of Samjhauta
express tragedy for giving training to Hindu terrorists to initiate an armed
conflict between Pakistan and India. This statement clearly reflects the sick
mentality of Indian Army,” a netizen Iqra Fatima tweeted.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Nankana
lynching case: ATC grants interim bail to two accused till Feb 24
February
17, 2023
LAHORE:
An anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Friday granted pre-arrest interim bail to two
main accused, involved in lynching of a man, accused of blasphemy in Nankana
Sahib, till February 24.
The
court ordered the accused to furnish surety bonds of Rs 100,000 each for
availing the relief of interim bail, besides asking them to join the
investigation.
ATC
Judge Abher Gul Khan heard the bail applications of Nasr Iqbal Attari and
Muhammad Aleem Attari, who also appeared before the court during the
proceedings.
Earlier,
the petitioner’s counsel argued before the court that his clients had been
nominated in the case and they were accused of making an announcement for
calling the mob. He submitted that allegations levelled against his clients
were baseless. He submitted that his clients wanted to join the investigation, but
it was feared that the police might arrest them.
He
pleaded with the court to grant the benefit of bail to his clients.
At
this, the court granted pre-arrest interim bail to the accused till February
24, and directed them to furnish surety bonds for the purpose. The court also
sought a report from the police concerned till the next date of hearing.
A
few days ago, a charged mob stormed a police station in Nankana Sahib district
and lynched an under-custody accused of blasphemy charge, who was identified as
Waris.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
TTP
Militant Commander Killed in Terror Attack in Punjab
By
Nizamuddin Rezahi
February
17, 2023
The
Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department personnel came under attack by
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistani (TTP) militants in Mianwali Punjab province of
Pakistan on Thursday night, according to official sources.
According
to a statement issued by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on Friday, the
clash continued for twenty minutes between the militants and security officials
during which a key terrorist was killed.
The
statement said the killed militant was an important TTP commander identified as
Habibur Rehman. A Kalashnikov, suicide jacket, and TTP stickers were recovered
from the militant fighter.
The
statement also added that two terrorists managed to escape during the clash,
and a major search operation has been launched to arrest them. There has been
no report on the casualties of the CTD personnel.
The
banned TTP militants have intensified their attacks on different cities in
Pakistan since the group called off their unilateral ceasefire with the
Pakistani government in November. The militants have targeted police stations
and check posts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and areas bordering
Afghanistan — and now they have set their sights in Punjab.
In
the past week, the CDT claimed to have killed a suspected terrorist allegedly
belonging to TTP and has arrested 11 members of the outlawed group fro from
different cities during intelligence-based operations across Punjab.
According
to official reports, January has been the deadliest month since 2018, in which
the militant groups carried out 44 attacks across the country, killing at least
134 people and injuring another 254.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/ttp-militant-commander-killed-in-terror-attack-in-punjab/
--------
Political
instability causing economic crisis in country: Ashrafi
February
17, 2023
ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister’s Special Representative for Interfaith Harmony and Middle East
Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi informed that Pakistan Ulema Council
announced to mark the 33rd foundation day of the PUC from February 18 to 28
across the country. the Council was established in 1990.
Ashrafi,
who is the PUC chairman, said a number of programmes including conventions and
seminars would be part of ten-day celebrations and in March, Paigham-e-Islam
Conference would also be held.
He
said the PUC was member of various national and international organizations and
played its vibrant role for inter-sect and inter-faith harmony on the globe.
Ashrafi
said the PUC had set some targets to achieve in the year 2023 and 2024, and the
system of Khilafat-e-Rashida was on its main agenda.
He
said it would continue its efforts to establish the system of Khilafat-e-Rashida
in the country as it was based on justice and equality.
He
said today’s “judicial system is in dire need of reforms as it is not serving
the purposes of general public who are languishing in jails for years but it
was hearing political cases on top priority”.
Ashrafi
said there would be no use of elections if political and religious parties did
not introduce electoral reforms and make it mandatory for all the contesting
parties to accept the results of elections open-heartedly.
He
raised the question that what would be the solution if someone did not accept
the mandate of winning party in the elections as it would cost huge public
funds spending.
Ashrafi
said Pakistan was lagging behind other nations due to political instability in
the country.
If
Ulema and Mashaykh could be united under the umbrella of Paigham-e-Pakistan
then why not political leaders could reach a consensus in the shape of ‘Charter
of Pakistan’ to get out the country of prevailing social, political and
economic crisis, he added.
He
asked all the stakeholders to create a congenial environment and sit together
at one table to remove their differences and put the country on road to
progress.
Ashrafi
said if someone was accused of desecration of the Holy Quran or blasphemy of
the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) would be punished by the court of
law, also adding that nobody would be given free hand to be complainant, judge
and executioner.
He
said we had to come out of this confusion as such inhuman incidents were
bringing bad names to Pakistan, Muslims and Islam across the world.
He
announced that the PUC had decided not to contest elections until and unless
the misuse of money was strictly prohibited in it but it would extend its
support to like-minded people.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Police
asked to drop terror charges against Imran
Malik
Asad
February
18, 2023
ISLAMABAD:
The legal team of PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Friday wrote a letter to Islamabad
police to remove terrorism charges against him in the First Information Report
(FIR) registered against him and others over a protest outside the Election
Commission of Pakistan (ECP) after the latter disqualified him in the
Toshakhana case.
The
Sangjani police has registered the FIR. The letter stated: “The alleged crime
was neither terrorism nor the applicant and others were found to be members of
any prescribed organisation.”
It
said Mr Khan and others did not commit an act which would fall within the ambit
of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).
According
to the letter, Section 7 of the ATA has been invoked in this matter in
contradiction with the law laid down by the Supreme Court.
The
anti-terrorism court (ATC) on Feb 15 rejected the pre-arrest bail of Mr Khan in
the case over his failure to attend the proceedings.
The
PTI chief was supposed to personally appear before the court on every hearing
for being on pre-arrest interim bail. However, his counsel repeatedly sought
exemption from personal appearance owing to his injuries sustained in the
Wazirabad firing incident.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1737717/police-asked-to-drop-terror-charges-against-imran
--------
Mideast
Israel:
‘All possible means on the table’ to prevent Iran getting nuclear weapons
17
February ,2023
Israel’s
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Friday that “all possible means” were on
the table to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon and said the
international community had to take action to stop Tehran’s proliferation of
advanced weapons.
“Iran
is currently holding discussions to sell advanced weapons, including UAVs and
PGMs, to no less than 50 different countries,” he said, referring to combat
drones and precision-guided munitions.
“When
we speak of preventing Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon, we must keep all the
possible means – I repeat, all possible means on the table,” he said, speaking
on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference attended by officials from
Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.
This
comes amid tension between Iran and the West over Tehran’s nuclear activity and
its supply of arms -- including long-range “suicide drones” -- for Russia’s war
in Ukraine, as well as months of anti-government demonstrations at home.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Hamas:
Demolition of resistance forces’ homes shows Israel’s bankruptcy
17
February 2023
The
Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has condemned the demolition of the homes
of Palestinian resistance forces as a “brutal crime,” noting the policy shows
the “bankruptcy” of the regime.
In
a statement on Thursday, Hamas reacted to the Israeli destruction of the home
of Mohammad Jaabari, a Palestinian accused of being behind a shooting in the
occupied West Bank that killed an Israeli.
“Blowing
up the homes of heroes of resistance forces by Zionist occupiers is a crime
that reflects their bankruptcy and their complete inability to stop the
revolution of the Palestinian nation,” the resistance movement said.
Jaabari
was killed by Israeli forces last year. His body was withheld from his family.
The house was located in al-Khalil and was demolished by a controlled
explosion. The military said the demolition was carried out after an Israeli
court rejected appeals to spare the residence.
Jabari’s
family says an Israeli court issued a decision to demolish their house a few
days ago, and that they were informed of the decision only a few hours before
the raid by the regime forces.
Jabari,
a Hamas resistance fighter, was shot dead by an off-duty Israeli soldier last
October. His brother Wael had been serving life in Israeli prison before being
freed and sent to the Gaza Strip in the Gilad Shalit prisoner swap deal in
2011.
This
is a “brutal crime” aimed at deterring the Palestinian people from the path of
resistance, Hamas said, adding that the continuation of such policies will
neither frighten the Palestinian nation nor undermine their resistance against
occupiers.
The
statement also lauded various campaigns that have been launched to voice
protest against the inhumane policy. It also called for increasing what it
called “heroic operations” and resistance for avenging the blood of Palestinian
martyrs.
Rights
groups and Palestinians have long slammed the home demolition policy as a form
of “collective punishment” against families, noting that it only exacerbates
Palestinian suffering in the Israeli-occupied territories.
Source:
Press TV
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/02/17/698386/Hamas-Israel-bankruptcy
--------
Erdogan
marks Muslim holy night of Miraj
18/02/202
Türkiye's
president late Friday marked the Muslim holy night of Lailat al Miraj.
The
night – also known as the Night of Ascension – is generally observed on the
27th day of the Islamic month of Rajab, the seventh month in the Islamic
calendar.
“I
congratulate the Lailat al Miraj of our august nation and the Islamic world. I
wish this blessed night which we observe during these challenging days and
which is filled with Allah’s infinite wisdom, brings health, peace and
well-being to our country. May our night be blessed,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan said
on Twitter.
Source:
Yeni Safak
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.yenisafak.com/en/news/erdogan-marks-muslim-holy-night-of-miraj-3660780
--------
Ghanaian
winger Atsu’s body found under rubble in Turkey quake: Agent
18
February ,2023
Ghanaian
footballer Christian Atsu has been found dead under the building where he lived
in southern Turkey after last week’s massive earthquake, the ex-Chelsea
winger’s Turkish agent said.
“Atsu’s
lifeless body was found under the rubble,” Murat Uzunmehmet told reporters in
Hatay, where the athlete’s body was found. “Currently, more items are still
being taken out. His phone was also found.”
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Europol
bust Israel-France gang behind $40 million money laundering scheme
18
February ,2023
A
joint investigation supported by Europol has led to the dismantling of a
Franco-Israeli criminal network involved in large-scale CEO fraud.
The
five-day operation, led by France, resulted in eight house searches in France
and Israel, the arrest of the main suspect in Israel and eight arrests (six in
France and two in Israel).
Europol
made a number of seizures including electronic equipment and vehicles, about
$3.2 million from Portuguese bank accounts, $3.3 million from Hungarian bank
accounts, $640,000 from Croatian bank accounts, $428.000 from Spanish bank
accounts, $375,000 in virtual currencies.
The
total value of the seizures is estimated at almost $6 million
The
criminal network, comprised of French and Israeli nationals, targeted companies
located in France.
In
early December 2021, one of the suspects impersonated the CEO of a company
specialised in metallurgy, based in the department of Haute-Marne in
north-eastern France.
The
fraudster asked the company’s accountant to make an urgent and confidential
transfer of $418,000 to a bank in Hungary. The fraud was discovered a few days
later when the accountant, thinking he was acting on behalf of the company’s
CEO, attempted to make a transfer of $536,000.
The
company filed a complaint, and the investigators subsequently found that the
call from the alleged CEO came from a number in Israel.
In
late December 2021, a real estate developer based in Paris also felt victim to
fraud with a similar modus operandi. The damages were much more significant in
this case, however. To perpetrate the fraud, the suspects impersonated lawyers,
saying they worked for a well-known French accounting company. After gaining
the victim’s trust, the fraudster requested a large, urgent and confidential
transfer. Pretending to be consultants, they persuaded the Chief Financial
Officer (CFO) to transfer millions of euros abroad. In total, they defrauded
the company of more than $40 million in a matter of days.
Using
a pre-existing money laundering scheme, these funds were quickly transferred to
different European countries, then to China and finally to Israel.
A
link between these two scams was established in January 2022 when the Parisian
real estate company filed a complaint. The information exchange and international
cooperation facilitated by Europol led to the discovery of accomplices, modi
operandi and funds. The criminal investigation in Croatia contributed to the
discovery of the real identity of the money mules used by the criminal network.
The competent authorities in Croatia blocked and froze over $643,000 in several
bank accounts.
The
Portuguese investigation led to the seizure of approximately $3.2 million held
in multiple bank accounts.
The
Hungarian authorities discovered that more than $7.5 million had been received
in Hungarian bank accounts before being withdrawn in cash or transferred to
bank accounts in other countries. The Hungarian authorities interrogated 16
individuals, two of whom had been arrested previously and are currently under
criminal supervision. They seized more than $1 million in several bank
accounts.
Since
January 2022, Europol has facilitated the exchange of information and provided
specialized analytical support, including financial and cryptocurrency analysis
and expertise. The analysis led to the identification of links between
countries to enable the urgent seizure of criminal assets before the suspects
could launder them.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Turkey-Syria
earthquake death toll passes 45,000, many still missing
18
February ,2023
More
than 45,000 people have been killed in the earthquake that struck Turkey and
Syria, and the toll is expected to soar with some 264,000 apartments in Turkey
destroyed and many still missing in the country’s worst modern disaster.
Eleven
days after the quake hit, three survivors were dug out from the rubble in
Turkey on Friday. The death toll in Turkey stands at 39,672, while neighbouring
Syria has reported more than 5,800 deaths. Syria’s toll has not changed for
days.
Mosques
around the world on Friday performed absentee funeral prayers for the dead in
Turkey and Syria, many of whom could not receive full burial rites given the
enormity of the disaster.
While
many international rescue teams have left the vast quake zone, domestic teams
continued to search through flattened buildings on Saturday hoping to find more
survivors who defied the odds. Experts say most rescues occur in the 24 hours
following an earthquake.
Hakan
Yasinoglu, in his 40s, was rescued in the southern province of Hatay, 278 hours
after the 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck in the dead of night on Feb. 6, the
Istanbul Fire Brigade said.
Earlier,
Osman Halebiye, 14, and Mustafa Avci, 34, were saved in Turkey’s historic city
of Antakya, known in ancient times as Antioch. As Avci was carried away, he was
put on a video call with his parents, who showed him his newborn baby.
“I
had completely lost all hope. This is a true miracle. They gave me my son back.
I saw the wreckage and I thought nobody could be saved alive from there,” his
father said.
An
exhausted Avci was later reunited with his wife Bilge and daughter Almile at a
hospital in Mersin.
Aid
organisations say the survivors will need help for months to come with so much
crucial infrastructure destroyed.
In
neighbouring Syria, already shattered by more than a decade of civil war, the
bulk of fatalities have been in the northwest, an area controlled by insurgents
who are at war with President Bashar al-Assad - a conflict that has complicated
efforts to aid people affected by the earthquake.
The
sides clashed overnight for the first time since the disaster, with government
forces shelling the outskirts of Atareb, a rebel-held town badly hit by the
earthquake, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Friday.
Reuters
could not independently verify the report.
Thousands
of Syrians who had sought refuge in Turkey from their country’s civil war have
returned to their homes in the war zone - at least for now.
Anegr
grows
Neither
Turkey nor Syria have said how many people are still missing following the
quake.
For
families still waiting to retrieve relatives in Turkey, there is growing anger
over what they see as corrupt building practices and deeply flawed urban
development that resulted in thousands of homes and businesses disintegrating.
One
such building was the Ronesans Rezidans (Renaissance Residence), which keeled
over in Antakya, killing hundreds.
“It
was said to be earthquake-safe, but you can see the result,” said Hamza
Alpaslan, 47, whose brother had lived in the apartment block. “It’s in horrible
condition. There is neither cement nor proper iron in it. It’s a real hell.”
Turkey
has promised to investigate anyone suspected of responsibility for the collapse
of buildings and has ordered the detention of more than 100 suspects, including
developers.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Iranian
police chief gets 15 months in jail amid rape claim
17
February ,2023
An
Iran court sentenced a police chief to 15 months in jail, the judiciary said
Friday, after a newspaper linked him to the alleged rape of a girl that sparked
bloody protests.
“On
December 3, the military tribunal sentenced to 15 months in jail the former
police commander of Chabahar, Ebrahim Kouchakzai, and stripped him of his
public functions,” the judiciary’s news agency Mizan Online said.
It
came three months after the newspaper Farhikhtegan reported on November 9 that
Colonel Kouchakzai had in September interrogated a 15-year-old girl in the
southeastern port of Chabahar following the arrest of her brother for alleged
murder.
According
to the report, there was no arrest warrant for the girl, who was alone with
Kouchakzai during the interrogation “in his office with no surveillance
cameras.”
“When
she returned home, the girl said that the police commander had raped her,”
Farhikhtegan reported at the time.
Authorities
ordered an investigation but the medical examiner said the girl had not been
raped, according to the newspaper, adding that the family refuted the findings.
The
case sparked bloody clashes in the restive southeastern city of Zahedan,
capital of Sistan-Baluchistan province, where Chabahar is located.
On
September 30, dozens of people, including members of the security forces, were
killed when thousands took to the streets after Friday prayers at the city’s
Makki mosque, in what has been dubbed “Bloody Friday.”
This
was followed by days of protests and deadly clashes, even as Iran was rocked by
a nationwide protest movement over the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, 22, who
had been arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress
code for women.
Sistan-Baluchistan
is home to the ethnic Baluch minority and had been the site of often deadly
violence even before the Amini protests.
Zahedan
and Chabahar are among the few cities in Shia-majority Iran which are mainly
Sunni.
Mizan
Online did not refer to the alleged rape on Friday, but said that Kouchakzai
had been “sentenced to 15 months in jail for having sparked an atmosphere of
skepticism towards the police.”
He
was also given 15 months for having written “fake police statements” and to 15
months in prison for “scrapping (some) orders, and for threats.”
All
the sentences are served concurrently in Iran, so he will serve 15 months only.
Mizan
Online gave no further details, but said the ruling was “definitive,” adding
that Kouchakzai faces “other charges” and is still under investigation.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Africa
Turks
selfless even during earthquakes: South African medic
Salih
Okuroğlu
18.02.2023
The
Turkish people are “so selfless, humble and loving towards people” even during
the recent devastating earthquakes, a South African rescue medic said Friday.
Emergency
medical technician from the Gift of the Givers, Raina Gihwala, told Anadolu
that she cannot "put into words" how Turkish people have responded to
the quakes
South
African rescue teams made up of 45 people and five rescue dogs were dispatched
to Hatay province, one of the worst-hit provinces, by Turkish authorities late
Wednesday.
Gihwala
said Turks greatly helped South African rescuers during their stay in Hatay.
"When
you see what's happening on the news, you think you have an idea of what to be
expected. But as coming down and seeing it face to face -- that's a devastation
you can't even begin to imagine,” she said. “Even being there for a week and
having multiple rescue teams from all over the world as well as the Turkish, we
still did not touch all surfaces, yet they were buildings and sites that had
not been assessed.”
It
is impossible to reach everywhere in such devastation that large, she said. “It
is not something that can be done fast.”
Gihwala
was in Türkiye a month ago and met Turks in different cities. She said seeing
Türkiye this time “opened my heart” and she was moved by seeing people losing
everything. Gihwala added that people she met a month ago had the same
hospitality, generosity and warmth that was touching.
Depicting
the destruction in the region, she said it was saddening to see the collapsed
buildings and people from all walks of life in despair.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/turks-selfless-even-during-earthquakes-south-african-medic/2823652
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Egypt
says seeking release of six citizens abducted in conflict-ravaged Libya
17
February ,2023
Egypt’s
government said Friday it was “working around the clock” to secure the release
of six of its citizens who were kidnapped in conflict-ravaged Libya.
“The
six Egyptians are detained in an illegal immigration center in western Libya,”
the foreign ministry said in a statement.
The
six Egyptian Coptic Christians had travelled to Libya across the border from
Egypt “with work permits stipulating their presence only in the east of Libya,”
it added.
The
ministry said it was “working round the clock” to secure their release and was
in contact with Egyptian diplomats based in Tripoli who are pursuing the matter
with Libyan authorities.
Lawmaker
Mostafa Bakry tweeted Thursday that the six Egyptians had been abducted “about
a week ago” and were being held for ransom by “criminal gangs.”
Bakry
said the six had only been looking “for work opportunities in construction”
when they were kidnapped.
Media
outlets close to the Coptic Orthodox Church said the men had been abducted
while travelling between Benghazi and Tripoli.
They
said the kidnappers had demanded a ransom of $30,000 for each of the six men.
Egypt’s
foreign ministry said it had met with the families of the abducted more than
once as part of its efforts to gain their release.
Libya
has been gripped by chaos since a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed
longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with rival administrations and
multiple militias vying for control of the oil-rich country.
Since
March last year, an administration in Libya’s east backed by military leader
Khalifa Haftar has challenged the UN-recognized government of Prime Minister
Abdulhamid Dbeibah in western Tripoli, arguing it has outlived its mandate.
Egypt
is one of several countries that back Haftar, while Turkey backs Dbeibah.
After
a 2015 video broadcast by the ISIS terrorist group showed the beheading of 21
Egyptian Copts in western Libya, tens of thousands of Egyptians working in
Libya’s construction, service, agriculture and handicraft sectors fled the
country.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Ecuadorians
collect tons of aid materials for earthquake victims in Türkiye
Rabia
İclal Turan
18.02.2023
BOGOTA
Tons
of aid materials were collected in Ecuador for earthquake victims in Türkiye
following a relief drive launched by the Turkish Embassy in Quito.
Ecuadorians
donated more than 15 tons to the embassy and warehouses of Turkish companies
Donatella Fruit and Yilport in the cities of Guayaquil and Machala.
The
Ecuadorian Foreign Ministry and the country’s Disaster and Risk Management
Secretariat donated 17 tons of materials, consisting of food packages for 2,000
families, 1,000 blankets and 1,546 pairs of boots.
At
a ceremony with Isabel Albornoz, Ambassador-Director of Economic Integration
and Bilateral Trade Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human
Mobility of Ecuador, Turkish Ambassador to Quito Basak Yalcin thanked
Ecuadorian authorities and the people of the country for showing solidarity and
condolence messages.
Albornoz
reiterated her country's condolences and noted Türkiye’s helping hand after the
2016 earthquake in Ecuador.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Somalia
launches fundraising campaign for quake victims in Türkiye
Mohammed
Dhaysane
17.02.2023
MOGADISHU,
Somalia
Somalia’s
recently established Committee for the Relief of the Earthquake Victims in
Türkiye has launched a fundraising campaign in the capital Mogadishu.
The
launching ceremony held in Horn of Africa nation’s capital Mogadishu was
attended by senior government officials, religious scholars, businessmen and
civil societies.
At
the launching ceremony, Somali Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre said the goal is
to raise $5 million in three days and announced that his government contributed
$1 million to the quake relief campaign.
He
said history will not forgive Somalia if it does not stand with our brotherly
nation of Türkiye today, despite the difficulties Somalia is facing as a
nation, including a drought and conflict.
Somali
Interior Minister Ahmed Fiqi said Somalia has an opportunity to return some the
countless support received from “our Turkish brothers and sisters”.
"It
is a chance to show that Somalia does not forget her friend”.
According
to the committee, the chairman of the Somali Bankers Association Ahmed Shirwa,
on behalf of Somalia's business community, announced a donation of $3 million
towards the earthquake victims relief in Türkiye, totaling the amount of money
donated by the government and Somali business community to $4 million.
More
than 38,000 have so far died in twin quakes in southern Türkiye, but hope
endures as more survivors emerge from the rubble.
The
Feb. 6 magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes, centered in the Kahramanmaras
province, affected more than 13 million people across 11 provinces, including
Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye,
Sanliurfa, and Elazig.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Southeast Asia
27
Rejab: PM Anwar Calls on Muslim to Renew Resolve, Learn From the Prophet
18
Feb 2023
KUALA
LUMPUR, Feb 18 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim called on Muslims to
renew their resolve and learn from the experience of Prophet Muhammad SAW
through the Israk and Mikraj events to restore the dignity of the Ummah.
He
said they should strengthen their belief before taking on more complicated
tasks involving the welfare of the people and the country.
In
a post on his Facebook, he referred to the miraculous journey of the Prophet on
the night of 27 Rejab.
He
said it was a spiritual journey that Allah SWT gave to Prophet Muhammad SAW
when he was facing intense hardship and pain with the passing of his wife
Sayidatina Khadijah and uncle Abu Talib.
In
the bitter episode in Taif where the Prophet was ridiculed and humiliated,
which almost broke his spirit, but was restored after the Prophet’s return from
Sidratul Muntaha with a new task to free the people from the shackles of
ignorance, he said.
Source:
Malay Mail
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PM
performs Friday prayers at Putra Perdana Mosque
17-02-
2023
SEPANG:
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim (pix) today joined 2,000 worshippers to
perform Friday prayers at the Taman Putra Perdana Mosque here.
He
arrived at the mosque accompanied by Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri
Amiruddin Shari at 1.20 pm after stopping for lunch at a nearby food court.
Anwar
also listened to the sermon titled “Israk Mikraj: The Amanah and Responsibility
of the Prayer” which was delivered by imam of the mosque Muhammad Syazwan
Hilmi.
Source:
The Sun Daily
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https://www.thesundaily.my/home/pm-performs-friday-prayers-at-putra-perdana-mosque-BC10650760
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Pakistan:
Two cycling enthusiasts from Indonesia reach Karachi on their way to Makkah
February
17, 2023
Azeem
Samar
Karachi:
Two young cycling enthusiasts while pursuing their zero-emission journey on
bicycles from East Java, Indonesia, to Makkah in Saudi Arabia have reached
Karachi.
The
Indonesian Consul General in Karachi, Dr June Kuncoro Hadiningrat, welcomed the
cyclists who began their journey from Blitar, East Java, last month.
After
passing through Batam in Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, Ivan and
Haikal arrived in Karachi on February 15.
The
Indonesian Consul General in Karachi facilitated the accommodation of the
cyclists, as well as assisted in the process of obtaining Iranian visas which
would be used by both of them to enter Iranian territory through Balochistan.
The
Consul General is concerned about the security of the cyclists during their
trip to the border areas in Pakistan and advised them that they should always
raise the Indonesian and Pakistani flags during the trip as a sign of bonding
between the two friendly Muslim nations.
In
addition, the Indonesian Consul General in Karachi will contact the Indonesian
Embassy in Tehran to notify them about the cyclists.
On
their way to the holy city, they would visit Iran.
On
the occasion, the Indonesian Consul General also expressed his appreciation to
the cyclists for their fighting spirit and dedication to reach the holiest
place in Islam.
Source:
Gulf News
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