Love Jihad: National Commission For Minorities Observes There Is No Bar On Interfaith Marriage With Mutual Consent
New Age Islam News Bureau
05 May 2022
National Commission for
Minorities Chairman Iqbal Singh Lalpura (in the middle), with Syed Shahzadi
(right) and Rinchen Lhamo (left) addressing a press conference on Wednesday. |
National Commission for Minorities/Twitter
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• On Eid, A Village in Maharashtra, That Has No Muslim
Household, Gifts Loudspeaker To Mosque
• 'I Find Strength To Fast': Ukraine's Muslims
Celebrate Eid Under Russian Bombs
• Treasure Diversity To Sustain Peaceful Co-Existence:
Ghanian Speaker Urges Christians, Muslims
• Pakistan, the 5th Most Dangerous Country for
Journalists; Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists Calls to Ensure Rights of
Media Employees
India
• Over 200 MNS workers detained, many mosques avoid
using loudspeakers
• Cross-border tunnel detected in Jammu, terrorists'
plan to disrupt Amarnath Yatra foiled: BSF
• India, France discuss unitedly dealing with
terrorism, challenges in Indo-Pacific
--------
Europe
• Man shouts racist slurs, threatens to kill Syrian
children in Germany
• Anti-Racism Group Uncovers Islamophobic Social Media
Posts By UK Election Candidates
• Iranian prisoner’s family harassed by MKO terrorists
outside Stockholm court
--------
Africa
• South Sudan’s President, Salva Kiir Urges Muslims to
Pray for Peace in South Sudan
• Tunisia probes leaked ‘presidential aide’ recordings
--------
Pakistan
• With Taliban Not Doing Pakistan’s Bidding,
Islamabad’s Grand Strategic Plan is Falling Apart
• Sharif leverages personal relations with Saudi
Arabia, resets ties soured by Imran Khan
• Material being prepared for my character
assassination: Imran Khan
• April saw 24pc increase in militant attacks: report
• Remand of MNA Sheikh Rashid Shafique Extended For
Two Days in Masjid-i-Nabwi Incident
• Shireen Mazari writes to UN over 'misuse of
blasphemy laws' against Imran
--------
South Asia
• Anas Haqqani Of The Islamic Emirate’s Qatar Office:
Girls’ Schools Will Resume Soon
• Afghanistan Journalists Center Calls on Taliban to
Revive Access to Information Laws
• The Resurgence of the Durand Line Dispute Could
Alter Afghanistan’s and Pakistan’s Relationships
• Uzbekistan Seeks to Engage Taliban Without
Alienating West
--------
North America
• Islamophobia In USA: Man Tried To Set Fire At Muslim
Community Centre Of Portland
• Muslims being targeted with violence around the
world: Biden
• US now preparing for a world with and without Iran
nuclear deal
--------
Southeast Asia
• Thai Govt Upbeat On Lasting Ceasefire With Muslim Insurgents
• Another lonely Raya for Malaysia’s elderly gays
• Follow Malaysia’s lead on engaging with Myanmar’s
NUG, Asean nations told
• Philippine police arrest suspected Daesh recruiter
in Zamboanga Sibugay
--------
Arab World
• Crowds In Syria Await Prisoners Freed In Mass
Amnesty
• Over 720 Hours Of Broadcasting In Various Languages
At The Grand Mosque
• UN demands release of staff held by Yemen’s
Iran-backed Houthis
• Saudi Arabia arrests 61 for attempting to smuggle
hashish, khat
• Saudi central bank raises interest rates in line
with US Fed's decision
• Expats prepare to vote, marking the start of Lebanon
elections
--------
Mideast
• Israel Settlers Raise Flag At Hebron's Ibrahimi
Mosque Ahead Of 'Independence Day'
• Turkey closing ‘Mekameleen’ signals end of era for
Muslim Brotherhood
• Israeli Police Enter Al-Aqsa Mosque As Jewish Visits
Resume
• Islamic Jihad claims new drones made in Gaza
• Iranian minister threatens Afghan refugees over
census
• Muslim party may resume membership in Israeli
coalition
• Iran: Ball in US Court to Compensate for Trump's
Illegal Moves
• Swedish-Iranian to be executed on spying charges by
May 21: Report
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/love-jihad-minorities-interfaith-marriage/d/126937
--------
Love Jihad: National Commission For Minorities
Observes There Is No Bar On Interfaith Marriage With Mutual Consent
National Commission for
Minorities Chairman Iqbal Singh Lalpura (in the middle), with Syed Shahzadi
(right) and Rinchen Lhamo (left) addressing a press conference on Wednesday. |
National Commission for Minorities/Twitter
------
04th May 2022
NEW DELHI: The National Commission for Minorities
(NCM) on Wednesday took exception to the use of the term "love jihad"
for certain cases of interfaith marriage and said there was no bar on couples
professing different faiths tying the nuptial knot with mutual consent on
attaining legal age.
Replying to queries at a press conference, NCM
chairperson Iqbal Singh Lalpura, however, said the commission had in the past received
some complaints from parents alleging that their ward was misled into
interfaith marriage.
Many of these complaints were later found to be true,
he said.
"What is love jihad? I have not found this term
in any dictionary," the NCM chairperson said when asked for his comment on
the BJP's campaign against 'love jihad' in Kerala and other parts of the
country "I have not seen any complaint on 'love jihad' like this by any
particular community. I am not the representative or spokesperson of the BJP.
Only they (BJP) can tell you (about love jihad)," Lalpura added.
He said everybody has right to marry a person of his
or her choice.
"There is no bar on interfaith marriage if the
couple have mutual consent," he said.
The NCM chairperson said that the commission had
received some complaints in the past alleging that one of the couples was
"misled" into interfaith marriage.
"Many of them were correct also. We ask the state
governments concerned to ensure justice," he said.
Lalpura said the commission had received some
complaints from the parents alleging that their daughter or son had been
"misled and taken away without the consent of the family".
"We ask the states to verify all these things and
take necessary action," he added.
Source: New Indian Express
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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On Eid, A Village in Maharashtra, That Has No Muslim
Household, Gifts Loudspeaker To Mosque
The message of unity in
diversity was loud and clear through this gesture by the Hindus
----
May 5, 2022
NAGPUR: A Maharashtra village without a single Muslim
household gifted a loudspeaker to a mosque in an adjacent hamlet on Eid,
sending out a message loud and clear on where it stands on the ongoing row over
the use of sound systems at places of worship.
Residents of Kelwad village in Buldhana district
hosted a group of Muslims from Kinhola, around 6km away, on Tuesday and handed
over the loudspeaker to the cleric in charge of the mosque as a token of amity.
Kinhola is the only village in that belt to have a mosque.
“Hindus and Muslims have been living together in these
villages for centuries. We don’t have any problems or complaints about each
other. Politicians are trying to create this new rift between communities for
polarisation of votes,” said senior citizen Ganesh Nikam, who came out with the
idea of gifting a loudspeaker to the Kinhola mosque.
Umesh Patil, president of the village peace committee,
said that the initiative was also meant to be a symbolic protest. “We believe
the motive behind suddenly raising the loudspeaker issue is to start communal
riots in the state. Hindus and Muslims live peacefully in rural Maharashtra”.
Social worker Nandu Borbale appealed to rural youth
not to join the anti-loudspeaker protest. “Neither politicians nor upper class
people will send their sons and daughters to sing Hanuman Chalisa in front of
mosques. We want no more of such provocations. Our village youth should
concentrate on their studies,” he said.
The Maulana of Kinhola mosque said the shrine already
had loudspeakers installed, but gladly accepted another one from the residents
of Kelwad as a “gift of love” in troubled times.
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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'I Find Strength To Fast': Ukraine's Muslims Celebrate
Eid Under Russian Bombs
Ukrainian Muslims, including
some soldiers, gather to perform Eid al-Fitr prayers at the Islamic Cultural
Centre in Kyiv on 2 May 2022. [Getty]
-----
Ibrahim Al-Marashi
04 May, 2022
As Muslims around the world celebrated Eid al-Fitr,
marking the end of the lunar month of Ramadan, for Ukrainian Muslims it was a
bittersweet festivity.
Many have spent the month fasting during the daylight
hours, away from home, either as refugees or fighting on the front lines
against Russia’s invasion, only to break their fast during a lull in the war.
Many are internally displaced in Ukraine, separated
from their families. Others embraced Islam later in life and are separated from
their spiritual family, the Muslim community of Kyiv.
On this Eid, while Muslims celebrated the fact that
their country survived the initial Russian invasion, they enter an uncertain
future, unsure where they will be spending their next Ramadan.
Ukraine's Muslims
Prior to the 2014 annexation of the Crimea Peninsula,
Muslims comprised about one percent of Ukraine’s population. While the
Statistical Office of Ukraine does not have figures available, Sheikh Said
Ismagilov, the mufti, or spiritual leader of Ukraine’s Muslims, estimates that
the numbers range close to a million before the 2022 invasion, or 2%.
Most of Ukraine’s Muslims are Crimean Tatars, the
indigenous community of the Peninsula, and other Muslims from the former USSR
or Russia proper, including Azeris, Uzbeks, and Muslims fleeing from the North
Caucasus and the turmoil there.
Ukrainian Muslims also include those who might have
been raised in Christian or secular households and embraced Islam later in
life.
The community also consists of Arab, Turkish, or South
Asian Muslim immigrants. After the annexation of Crimea, most Ukrainian Muslims
lived in the capital Kyiv. All of these Muslims came together for Friday
prayers in Kyiv prior to the war, and last year’s iftars included food ranging
from biryani to Palestinian mansaf.
Almost all of Ukraine’s Muslims have been displaced
due to the war.
Crimean Tatars
The history of the Crimean Tatars is that of
dispersion and diaspora. Some fled the Peninsula centuries ago, when it became
part of the Russian empire, primarily moving to the Ottoman Empire and living
in today’s Turkey.
In 1944, Soviet leader Joseph Stalin deported more
than 191,000 Crimean Tatars to Uzbekistan for allegedly being sympathetic to
the invading Germans, even though a good number fought in the Red Army. Herded
into cattle train cars, more than half died on the way.
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the Tatars
were able to return to the Peninsula, which was part of an independent Ukraine.
Nonetheless, since World War Two their homes had been occupied and they were
never given any reparations or compensation.
In 2014, after the Russian annexation of Crimea, Tatar
local assemblies were banned, and the community was discriminated against for
being sympathetic to Ukraine. Close to 10 percent of the Tatars left the
peninsula, some going to the capital, many going to the nearest Ukrainian city
Kherson, which was occupied by Russia early in the 2022 war.
Some Crimean Tatars have therefore been made refugees
twice in the last decade, in 2014 and 2022. Others went to Zaporizhzhia, the
city next to the devastated Mariupol, which could be the next target of
Russia’s offensive.
Ramadan under bombs
Ukrainian Muslims of all backgrounds witnessed
disruptions to their lives prior to Ramadan 2022.
Lisa, who embraced Islam as an adult, spoke to The New
Arab about her experience of Ramadan in Ukraine during the war. When asked
about the difficulties she faced, her first and most immediate concern was not
for herself, but about the Ukrainian Muslims on the front lines and the
difficulties they faced, fasting while defending their homeland.
She fled the capital Kyiv, where there was a Muslim
community, to a small town in the Ukrainian countryside to the west with her
children. There she commemorates Ramadan and Eid in a town where there are
practically no other Muslims.
“Most of the people here do not understand the
traditions associated with my faith,” she said.
“At first I even forgot that Ramadan is approaching
with all the relocation and terrible news coming day after day. I wasn’t
prepared for war. No one was. My mom reminded me that Ramadan starts in two
days. I had no second thoughts on whether I should fast or not,” Aishe, who is
of Crimean Tatar heritage, and fled to the Netherlands, told The New Arab.
Despite the circumstances, she was determined to fast,
even though her weight dropped to 45 kg while displaced in Ukraine. Before
Ramadan she volunteered at the refugee centre, but felt guilty for going there
only three times during the holy month.
In the context of the war, the meaning of Ramadan took
on new significance. One thing that stood out to her about Ramadan during war
is her willingness to forgive.
“I can manage to restrain myself from being angry or
thinking and feeling bad about people who invaded my country. I am so proud of
myself that in this difficult situation I find the strength to fast and Allah
helps me a lot.”
She too is isolated, living in a foreign country,
separated from her fellow Ukrainian Muslim community, but others have been
welcoming and understanding of their faith.
“All the people who hosted us in the western part of
Ukraine were very kind and tolerant to my Muslim background. The food they gave
us was halal and they cooked just halal food while we were in their house,”
said Elnara, who left Kyiv with her daughter on the 25th of February for the
western part of Ukraine.
As the Russian offensive continued to move westward,
Elnara and her daughter moved to Germany, where a family took them in.
“This family was also so tolerant of our religion.
They bought just halal food for us,” she explained. However, she decided not to
fast this year.
“We lived three families in one house. Some people
slept in the kitchen. It was impossible to eat while people were sleeping
there,” most likely speaking of the suhur meal prepared before sunrise. She
simply did not have the luxury of concentrating on the “spiritual value of
fasting during this stressful period of time”.
'To our victory, and beyond'
Sheikh Ismagilov, the mufti of Ukraine’s Muslim
community, is a native of Donetsk and like other Crimean Tatars had to flee his
hometown after Russian-backed separatists occupied eastern Ukraine’s Donbas
region in 2014. As he was an outspoken critic of the invasion, he faced the
threat of arrest.
He remains undeterred and continues to be a voice of
Ukrainian Muslims as well as a critic of the Russian invasion, particularly the
Russian Muslim religious leaders who have backed Putin’s actions.
As a result of the war, he has become an imam-chaplain
of the military forces defending Ukraine, along with a network of imams who
attend to the needs of Muslim soldiers, including burial rites.
When asked by a local Ukrainian news organisation, “Do
you plan to remain in Kyiv until victory?” he replied, “Until the victorious
end, yes. I would go to the border, if need be. Being a member of the
battalion, I expected to be but a fighter, not a cleric. So yes – to our
victory, and beyond.”
On this Eid, the Ukrainian Muslims that spoke to The
New Arab had one message for the world: that they and their nation not be
forgotten as global attention fades from the war.
Ibrahim Al-Marashi is an associate professor of
history at California State University San Marcos. He is co-author of Iraq's
Armed Forces: An Analytical History and The Modern History of Iraq.
Source: The New Arab
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/analysis/ukraines-muslims-celebrate-eid-under-russian-bombs
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Treasure Diversity To Sustain Peaceful Co-Existence: Ghanian
Speaker Urges Christians, Muslims
Alban Sumana Bagbin (3rd
from right), Speaker of Parliament, interacting with some participants at the
event. Among them are Emmanuel Kwesi Bedzrah (left), MP for Ho West; Alhaji Ben
Abdallah Banda (2nd from left), Representative of Vice-President Dr Mahm
-----
May - 04 - 2022
BY: Nana Konadu Agyeman
The Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford
Bagbin, has urged the citizenry to consciously treasure and protect the
differences among them in order to sustain and foster peaceful co-existence.
He described the diversity in the Ghanaian society as
“a huge resource that we should harness for the growth and development of our
communities”.
“Diversity signifies the beauty of God’s creation and
it is not for nothing that God created the world and divided us into nations,
tribes and different races as well as languages,” he said.
Addressing the 10th annual night of power in the Holy
month of Ramadan by the Muslim Caucus of Parliament, Mr Bagbin said “It is for
us to cherish God’s wisdom, power and authority and glorify Him, and it is also
for us to recognise one another and live in peace and harmony so that the
society will benefit from the beauty and wisdom of diversity.
“The differences among us in terms of religion, tribe,
culture etc is, therefore, the manifestation of our strength and we should
treasure, enhance and protect it rather than construe it as a weakness,” the
Speaker said.
The event, which was held on the theme: “Sustaining
democracy and socio-economic development in post-COVID Ghana: The role of the
Muslim communities”, brought together a number of people from all walks of
life, mainly Muslims and Christians to break the fast in recognition of the
Holy Ramadan.
Tolerate
The Speaker noted that the beauty of the country lay
in the unity and diversity among its people, a reason that made him proud to be
Ghanaian.
He, therefore, emphasised the need for efforts to be
made to sustain the country’s democracy and build back better as a necessity
for peaceful coexistence and tolerance of one another.
Live in peace
In a speech read on his behalf, the Vice-President, Dr
Mahamadu Bawumia, advised his fellow Muslims not to allow themselves to be used
by anyone or group of people to disturb the peace of the country.
“Our peaceful co-existence is a special grace bestowed
on us by Allah and we shall all suffer the wrath of Allah if we fail to
preserve and pass it on to the next generations,” he said.
‘Let’s open to each other’
The Chairman of the Muslim Caucus in Parliament, Mohammed-Mubarak
Muntaka, highlighted the various factors that had enriched the diversity and
peaceful co-existence among Christians and Muslims over the years such as
inter-marriages and being each other’s keeper.
Source: Graphic
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original story:
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Pakistan, the 5th Most Dangerous Country for
Journalists; Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists Calls to Ensure Rights of
Media Employees
Representative Photo
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04 May 2022
The Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ)
called on the Shahbaz government to ensure and protect the rights of
journalists and media employees on World Press Freedom Day (May 3rd).
PFUJ president Shahzada Zulfiqar and secretary-general
Nasir Zaidi emphasized the importance of press freedom, free speech, and
expression in a joint statement released on Monday. “Freedom of the press is
the hallmark of any developed and healthy society and it cannot be compromised”
as reported by Dawn.
According to the International Federation of
Journalists (IFJ), Pakistan is the fifth most dangerous country for journalists
to practice their profession.
From they year 1990 to 2020, 138 journalists died in
the line of duty in the country, according to media reports.
The PFUJ expressed its concern regarding the freedom
of media in Pakistan by saying “in at least nine cases, journalists were
intimidated or silenced altogether, whether in the form of assault, enforced
disappearances, murder or overt censorship.”
According to Dawn, the PFUJ described the Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) government’s period as “terrible for the media.”
Those who refused to bow to the government’s demands
were reprimanded and harmed financially, which damaged both media individuals
and corporations, forcing the industry into financial turmoil.
The administration should immediately create a
environment supportive of press freedom by engaging in a dialogue with
stakeholders to formulate a framework to safeguard press freedom in the
country, according to the statement. Journalists suffer a variety of dangers,
including physical assaults, kidnappings, enforced disappearances,
imprisonment, and torture, in addition to lethal attacks. Pakistan is one of
the top 10 countries where the violators of the freedom of the media and
journalists not punished.
Source: Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.khaama.com/pakistan-the-5th-most-dangerous-country-for-journalists42021/
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India
Over 200 MNS workers detained, many mosques avoid
using loudspeakers
by Sushant Kulkarni
May 5, 2022
Police on Wednesday said the situation remained mostly
peaceful in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, with many mosques opting not to use
their loudspeakers while some others lowered the volume during azaan. Workers
of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) also cooperated with directions of the
police, said officials.
However, over 200 workers and local leaders of the MNS
were placed under preventive detention by the Police in Pune and
Pimpri-Chinchwad during the day. All of them were released in the evening.
Both police jurisdictions had deployed large teams at
several sensitive locations in the backdrop of the ‘deadline’ given by MNS
chief Raj Thackeray, who had asked people to play the Hanuman Chalisa if
loudspeakers were not removed from mosques by May 3. Police teams were also
deployed in Pune Rural jurisdiction, which comprises predominantly semi-urban
and rural regions of Pune district.
Pune Police Commissioner Amitabh Gupta said, “The
situation remained peaceful throughout the day. Many mosques on their own chose
not to use loudspeakers and some others used them at lowered volumes. We had
put in place significant deployment across the city, with ACPs, DCPs and senior
inspectors monitoring the situation. Some political party workers were placed
under detention as a precautionary measure. We had also served preventive
notices to several leaders and workers.”
Officials from Pune City Police’s Special Branch said
58 workers and leaders of the MNS were placed under detention during the day
after many of them performed a ‘maha aarti’ at temples in the city.
Pimpri-Chinchwad Police Commissioner Ankush Shinde
said, “The situation in Pimpri-Chinchwad jurisdiction remained peaceful. Many
mosques voluntarily avoided use of loudspeakers. During the day, we detained
over 150 persons as a precautionary measure. Adequate force deployment was made
at various places to avoid any untoward incident.”
At a rally in Aurangabad last week, and on earlier
occasions, Thackeray had said that he was firm on the May 3 ‘deadline’ given by
him for removing loudspeakers from mosques across the state. He had further
urged Hindus to play the Hanuman Chalisa outside mosques from May 4 if the
loudspeakers were not removed.
MNS’ Pune city unit chief Sainath Babar said, “The MNS
will remain firm and continue to act on the stand taken by party chief Raj
Thackeray on loudspeakers on mosques or any other places of worship. If these
loudspeakers are not taken down, we will play the Hanuman Chalisa in the same
area. However, we also want to appreciate and congratulate the mosques which,
as per Supreme Court’s guidelines, chose not to use the loudspeakers.”
Janab Zahid Bhai Shaikh of All Pune Masjid Action
Committee said, “There are nearly 650 small and large mosques in Pune city and
surrounding areas. Most of them chose not to use the loudspeakers and some
lowered the volume. We will speak to those who continue using loudspeakers. We
are also waiting for some kind of guidelines from the state government on this
issue.”
Source: Indian Express
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of the original story:
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Cross-border
tunnel detected in Jammu, terrorists' plan to disrupt Amarnath Yatra foiled:
BSF
May
5, 2022
JAMMU:
The BSF on Thursday said it has detected a cross-border tunnel along the International
Border in Jammu and Kashmir's Samba district and claimed to have foiled the
plans of Pakistan-based terrorists to disrupt the upcoming Amarnath Yatra.
An
alert has been sounded in the Jammu region.
The
150-metres-long tunnel was detected in an area under the Chak Faquira border
outpost in Samba on Wednesday evening, BSF officials said.
"With
the detection of this tunnel, BSF-Jammu has foiled the nefarious designs of
Pakistan-based terrorists to disrupt the upcoming Amarnath yatra," BSF DIG
S P S Sandhu said.
The
tunnel was freshly dug and originated from the Pakistan side. Its opening was
about 2 feet and so far 21 sandbags, used to strengthen the exit of the tunnel,
have been recovered, he said.
Sandhu
said the tunnel will be searched in detail during the day.
An
official, on condition of anonymity, said, "A newly dug tunnel at a
distance of 150 metres from the International Border and 50 metres from the
border fence was detected opposite Pakistani post Chaman Khurd (Fiaz) which is
900 metres from the Indian side."
He
said the opening of the tunnel was about 300 metres from the border outpost
Chak Faquira and 700 metres from the last Indian village.
The
detection of the tunnel comes nearly a fortnight after security forces gunned
down two suicide bombers after they attacked a CISF bus and killed an assistant
sub-inspector in the Sunjwan area of Jammu on April 22.
Inspector
General of BSF Jammu Frontier, D K Boora lauded the devotion and dedication of
the troops in detecting the tunnel and said this was the fifth one detected in
less than one-and-half years.
"This
shows the evil strategy of Pakistan establishment to create trouble in
India," Boora told reporters here.
Source:
Times Of India
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of the original story:
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India,
France discuss unitedly dealing with terrorism, challenges in Indo-Pacific
May
5, 2022
PARIS:
India and France have agreed to unitedly deal with the menace of terrorism and
the challenges in the Indo-Pacific, amid China flexing muscles in the
strategically vital region.
A
joint statement issued after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met French President
Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday said that the two countries were committed to the
shared values of democracy, fundamental freedoms, rule of law and respect for
human rights.
It
noted that India and France have built one of the premier strategic
partnerships for advancing peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific
region.
They
share a vision of a free, open and rules-based Indo-Pacific region, based on
commitment to international law, respect for sovereignty and territorial
integrity, freedom of navigation and a region free from coercion, tensions and
conflicts, the joint statement said.
India,
the US and several other world powers have been talking about the need to
ensure a free, open and thriving Indo-Pacific in the backdrop of China's rising
military manoeuvring in the resource-rich region.
China
claims nearly all of the disputed South China Sea, though Taiwan, the
Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam all claim parts of it. Beijing has
built artificial islands and military installations in the South China Sea.
China also has territorial disputes with Japan in the East China Sea.
"The
Indo-France Indo-Pacific partnership encompasses defence and security, trade,
investment, connectivity, health and sustainability. Besides bilateral
cooperation, India and France will continue to develop new partnerships in
various formats with like-minded countries in the region and within regional
organisations," the joint statement said.
The
first Indo-Pacific ministerial forum held in Paris in February 2022 during the
French presidency of the Council of the EU launched an ambitious agenda at the
EU level based on the EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo Pacific, it
noted.
The
statement also asserted that counter-terrorism cooperation is a corner stone of
the Indo-French strategic partnership, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region.
India
and France "strongly condemned all forms of terrorism including use of
terrorist proxies and cross-border terrorism," in a veiled reference to
Pakistan.
"They
reiterated their resolve to closely work together in the common fight against
global terrorism including through combating the financing of terrorism,
countering radicalisation and violent extremism, preventing misuse of the
internet for terrorist or violent extremist purpose, acting against
internationally designated entities and individuals," the statement said.
Both
sides expressed their willingness to coordinate actively in the run up to the
third edition of the "No Money for Terror” international Conference to be
hosted by India this year.
India
and France reaffirmed their commitment to deepen India-European Union Strategic
Partnership and look forward to working closely together in the implementation
of the India-EU Connectivity Partnership and the decisions made at the India-EU
Leaders' Meeting in Porto in Portugal May 2021.
"They
welcomed the recent launch of the India-EU Trade and Technology Council that
will foster high level coordination on strategic aspects of trade, technology
and security as well as the restart of negotiations on India-EU Agreements on
Trade, Investment and Geographical Indicators," the statement said.
India
and France enjoy a robust economic partnership with a bilateral trade of $7.86
billion (2020-21) and cumulative Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of $9.83
billion since April 2000.
Source:
Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Europe
Man
shouts racist slurs, threatens to kill Syrian children in Germany
03.05.2022
BERLIN
An
investigation has been launched after a man shouted racist slurs and threatened
to kill two Syrian children in the western German city of Kassel, authorities
said on Tuesday.
The
unidentified suspect approached the children, a 13-year-old girl and her 3-year-old
brother, while they were walking on a street near the allotment gardens in
Frasenweg, the police said in a statement.
Shouting
at the kids for getting too noisy, he further yelled racial slurs, insulted the
two minors, repeatedly threatened them, and even made death threats, according
to the police.
Authorities
asked for the public’s help to identify the suspect and said witnesses should
contact the police.
Germany
witnessed growing racism and xenophobia in recent years, fueled by the
propaganda of far-right groups and parties, including the main opposition party
Alternative for Germany, or the AfD.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Anti-racism
group uncovers Islamophobic social media posts by UK election candidates
May
5, 2022
A
UK anti-racism campaign group has called five local election candidates
"bigoted and unpleasant" after uncovering Islamophobic comments made
to voters and on social media.
Hope
Not Hate found posts that criticised the wearing of the hijab and described
Islam as a “death cult”.
The
candidates – four in London and one in the northern English city of Newcastle –
are listed as standing in UK local elections on Thursday.
One
of the "troubling" candidates identified by Hope Not Hate is John
Moss, a sitting councillor and candidate in Chingford, East London.
He
was suspended by the ruling Conservative Party in June 2019 after it was
revealed he posted a string of Islamophobic messages on Twitter, including one
in which he referred to Islam as a “death cult”.
In
another post he said "an 'Islamophobe' is by definition somebody
frightened of Muslims. Maybe we should nominate every 11 year old girl?”
Gregory
Davis, a researcher at Hope Not Hate, condemned Mr Moss over the tweets.
"Despite
promising to apologise to his local mosque as a condition of his suspension
being lifted, it was later revealed that he had in fact sent a local campaigner
to apologise on his behalf and did not make any effort to contact them
himself," Mr Davis said.
"While
he has deleted the highlighted posts, there are a number of alarming tweets
still visible on his profile, including repeated calls for the 'carpet bombing'
of civilian areas occupied by ISIS in Syria and Nigeria, as well as a racist
statement about native Americans."
Another
Conservative councillor, Stephen Savva, is due to stand in the Enfield area of
north London.
He
has posted tweets that called for "the removal of all immigrants" and
urged people coming to the UK from abroad to "stop dressing funny".
He
has been suspended by the party following the investigation by Hope Not Hate,
but will still appear on ballot papers on Thursday.
In
one tweet, Mr Savva said 2015 Great British Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain
“wouldn’t suffer any [Islamophobic] abuse” if she “integrated more” and did not
wear a hijab.
In
another he said: "How about the removal of all immigrants? Wouldn't that
be wonderful? Just think of all the homes that would suddenly become available?
All those school places?"
The
Enfield North Conservative Association said it took "reports such as these
extremely seriously".
Another
candidate in Enfield, Chris Joannides, has also previously been suspended by
the party over a social media post.
"He
was suspended for a Facebook post that likened people who wear the burqa to
bags of rubbish," Mr Davis said.
"His
response was to reject the allegations as a 'smear' and refer to the posts in
question as 'blokish banter'.”
Joyce
McCarty, a sitting councillor in Newcastle for the opposition Labour Party,
will appear on the ballot despite being suspended over allegations of
Islamophobia. He accused fellow councillors of being part of a “Muslim plot” to
deselect a fellow councillor and made threats of retaliation.
Meanwhile,
David Dean is a Conservative candidate in the south-west London seat of Merton
despite previously being suspended by the party after he was accused of making
an inappropriate comment to a voter.
"He
was suspended from the Conservative Party in May 2016 due to comments he made
while campaigning on behalf of Zac Goldsmith," Mr Davis said.
"He
allegedly told a voter that 'as a white man, [London Mayor Sadiq Khan] would
treat him like dirt' and that 'he’d be a pariah in his own town'.
Mr
Dean did not deny making the comments, but dismissed them as “a bit of banter”
that was “taken out of context”.
"In
January 2017, a party spokesperson apparently announced that Cllr Dean had been
expelled from the party, yet just three months later he was back on Merton
Council’s Conservative group and has been re-selected to stand in this year’s
local elections," Mr Davis said.
The
Conservatives currently trail Labour by about six points ahead of the local
polls.
The
vote comes as the Conservatives deal with the effects of the pandemic and the
"partygate" scandal, when Prime Minister Boris Johnson was found to
have breached lockdown rules, and the rising cost of living.
Source:
ABNA24
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Iranian
prisoner’s family harassed by MKO terrorists outside Stockholm court
May
5, 2022
Members
of the infamous Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO), an anti-Iran terrorist
group culpable of killing thousands of civilians in the country, have
reportedly harassed the family of a former Iranian official, who has been
illegally imprisoned in Sweden since 2019.
An
eyewitness told Press TV’s correspondent Robert Carter that Hamid Nouri’s
family members were harassed and sworn at outside the Stockholm District Court,
where Nouri’s trial is taking place.
“First
of all, I’m really happy that I could find you to open my heart, actually,
regarding what’s happening here,” the witness, an Iranian national, told Press
TV.
He
elaborated that he was passing by to go to work when he first saw the MKO
members screaming and swearing at Nouri’s family in Persian.
There
were “a bunch of people screaming and saying really really shameful and bad
words toward an old woman,” he said, adding that this is something “I have
never seen in my whole life. It never existed in my world. So, I was just
shocked by what I’m hearing.”
Referring
to the MKO members, he said they belong to a notorious group that has committed
numerous atrocities against the Iranian people.
The
eyewitness added, “Those people standing there are the most hated group in
Iran. They are a terrorist organization. They have been [terrorizing], killing,
torturing, bombing, and doing many crimes against Iranian civilians.”
In
remarks on Monday, Secretary of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights Kazem
Gharibabadi slammed Nouri’s trial as “unlawful and unfair,” adding that he has
been detained based on false accusations and that Iran regards his detention as
“forced disappearance” since his family had been kept unaware of the arrest.
Nouri
was arrested upon arrival in Sweden at Stockholm Airport in 2019 and was
immediately imprisoned. He has been held in solitary confinement for over two
years and his family has not been allowed to visit him in prison.
Iran’s
Foreign Ministry summoned the Swedish ambassador to Tehran on Sunday to protest
Nouri’s continued imprisonment, which it described as “totally illegal” and
driven by “false allegations made by the MKO terrorist organization and the
hostile smear campaign against the Islamic Republic.”
Swedish
prosecutors have requested the maximum penalty of life imprisonment for Nouri,
accusing the former Iranian judiciary official of prisoner abuse in 1988.
Source:
ABNA24
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Africa
South
Sudan’s President, Salva Kiir Urges Muslims to Pray for Peace in South Sudan
By
Chol Mawel
May
4, 2022
South
Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has urged the Muslim community to pray for peace
across the East African country.
In
a statement, Kiir appealed to Muslims to seize the opportunity brought about by
Eid el-Fitr to pray for the unity and stability of South Sudan.
“On
a day like this, we are reminded to recommit ourselves to prayers. It is also
the day we take the opportunity to pray for peace and forgiveness s a country,”
partly reads the statement issued on Monday.
“As
our Muslim brothers and sisters across South Sudan join Muslims around the
world in celebrating the end of the holy month of Ramadan, my family and I send
our warmest greetings,” it added.
The
South Sudanese leader said the country, retarded due to civil war, can only
progress if its citizens accept peaceful coexistence and forgiveness.
“As
you open your families’ doors to your friends and neighbours during these Eid
al Fitr festivities, let the joy and happiness radiating from this celebration
amplify the message of peace and forgiveness within our communities,” he
stressed.
Kiir
further urged the Muslim community to use Eid el Fitr occasion to renew their
determination to uphold God’s teaching and help the needy people.
Separately,
Kiir also held a phone conversation with the head of Sudan’s Sovereign Council,
Gen. Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan during which he stressed the need for stronger ties
between the two neighbouring countries.
An
aide to the president told Sudan Tribune Monday that Kiir and Al-Burhan wowed
to work together to implement their respective peace agreements.
“It
is important to implement the two agreements so that we get out of these
situations. They are people who want to exploit and take advantage of the
situations in our two countries. It is clear from the onset that Sudan and
South Sudan, especially the leadership in the two countries are the victims of
plans and foreign agendas,” he explained, further adding “These plans are clear
and they are prepared to be implemented by their agents”.
Kiir,
according to the aide, promised to send his presidential adviser to Khartoum in
the coming days for an update on the progress made in the implementation of the
2015 peace agreement revitalized in 2018 and to also use the visit as the
opportunity to learn what the authorities in Sudan have done regards the
implementation of the Juba peace agreement.
Meanwhile,
Burhan reportedly commended Kiir and wished him well.
“He
pledged the cooperation of his administration on a host of issues and to boost
ties on security and stability,” disclosed the presidential aide.
Source:
The Tower Post
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://thetowerpost.com/2022/05/04/salva-kiir-urges-muslims-to-pray-for-peace-in-south-sudan/
--------
Tunisia
probes leaked ‘presidential aide’ recordings
04
May ,2022
Prosecutors
in Tunisia have opened an investigation to determine the authenticity of
recorded conversations purported to involve a former top aide criticizing
President Kais Saied, Tunisian media said Wednesday.
The
11 recordings, widely shared and debated since the first leaks on Friday,
allegedly feature Nadia Akacha, who was Saied’s chief of staff and closest
advisor for around two years before she quit in January.
The
woman in the recordings alludes to events in the presidential palace and
private meetings between Saied and foreign officials since the president’s July
2021 power grab, in some cases criticizing the president and staff members.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Akacha
has denied that it is her in the recordings, describing them as fakes that aim
to undermine her former boss.
The
41-year-old, a constitutional lawyer like the president, was appointed as
Saied’s legal advisor in late 2019 before becoming his head of staff in January
2020.
She
travelled widely with the president both domestically and abroad.
In
January she stepped down, citing “fundamental differences of opinion” over the
national interest.
Tunisian
media have reported she has since been living in France.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
With
Taliban Not Doing Pakistan’s Bidding, Islamabad’s Grand Strategic Plan is
Falling Apart
MAY
05, 2022
The
best laid plans of men and mice (and in the instant case, of military men and
their mujahideen allies) often go awry. Nowhere does this pithy observation
holds true than in the AfPak region. For two long decades, Pakistan
successfully played a double-game with the US-led international coalition that
was engaged in stabilising and securing Afghanistan. While ostensibly Pakistan
was a frontline ally in the War on Terror (and received tens of billions of
dollars for its ‘service’), it was at the same time propping up, protecting and
providing all forms of assistance to the Taliban terrorists and their
associates.
For
both Pakistan and Taliban there was a convergence of interest. The Taliban had
their back to the wall and needed Pakistan’s support for coming back into the
game. This was in spite of the fact that the Pakistanis had treacherously
ditched the Taliban after 9/11 and had backed the US invasion that ousted their
regime. It was also in spite of the fact that during the two decades that
Pakistan supported the Taliban insurgency, many atrocities and indignities were
heaped on the Taliban by the Pakistani intelligence agencies.
For
their part, the Pakistanis needed the Taliban who they saw as their only allies
in Afghanistan. Simply put, the Pakistanis believed that Taliban was a
strategic necessity for which it was ready to defy the US-led international
coalition. The Pakistanis convinced themselves that the Taliban would be
beholden to them and would never allow any anti-Pakistan activity from Afghanistan.
What is more, they would follow Pakistan’s lead on the issue of connectivity to
West and Central Asia.
On
paper, therefore, the Taliban victory in Afghanistan was seen as a huge
strategic victory for Pakistan. Naturally, there was a lot of crowing and celebration
in Pakistan after the Taliban occupied Kabul and declared their Emirate. But
the celebrations were quite short-lived. Within days of the Taliban coming into
power, it became clear that all the assumptions of the Pakistanis were proving
false. In the nine months since the Taliban re-occupied Afghanistan, the
security situation in Pakistan has deteriorated alarmingly. Not only is there a
resurgence in the attacks of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) but there is
also a major uptick in the attacks by Baloch freedom fighters. As if this was
not enough, the Islamic State chapters – Khorasan and the Pakistan – have also
become very active.
In
just the first three months of 2022, nearly 350 people have been killed in
terrorist attacks in Pakistan. Over a 100 security force personnel have been
killed in ambushes, clashes and targeted attacks in the first quarter of this
year. Cross-border attacks by TTP fighters have become a norm. Clashes with
Taliban border guards have also become a routine affair. Inside Pakistan, the
TTP has been claiming around 40 attacks a month on average. These include
sniper attacks, ambushes, IED blasts, targeted killings, attacks on posts and
convoys.
Meanwhile,
the Islamic State activities have also seen a spike. The bombing of a Shia
mosque in Peshawar that killed more than 60 people was the most horrific, if
also sensational, attack by the IS. But there are reports of target killings of
cops not just in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province but also Islamabad. There are
claims of an attack in Sheikhupura in Punjab. The IS Pakistan chapter is also
targeting religious clerics from the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) whom it
considers as going against the faith. Alongside the actions of the Islamist
terror groups, there has been a big uptick in the attacks by Baloch separatist
groups. The ‘fidayeen’ type attacks in Panjgur and Noshki, and the latest
suicide bombing by a highly educated Baloch woman in Karachi targeting Chinese
scholars/teachers have sent shock waves throughout Pakistan.
What
is extremely worrying for Pakistan is that there is an increasing
sophistication in the type of attacks being launched. Many of these attacks are
not simple hit-and-run type actions but complex operations. In addition, the
equipment that is being used is acting like a force multiplier. A lot of these
are the weapons left by the withdrawing US troops. Equally worrying is the fact
that these ideologically disparate groups seem to have struck a sort of
tactical alliance with each other. As a result, there is a lot of exchange in
terms of support and techniques and tactics of terror. The ISKP (Islamic State
– Khorasan Province), which has been viscerally opposed to other armed groups
like Taliban and Al Qaeda, has never really targeted either the TTP or the
Baloch freedom fighters. Even the Al Qaeda is believed to have a soft spot for
the Baloch groups. While these groups may target each other in future, for now
they have a common enemy in Pakistan.
But
more than anything else, the greatest worry for Pakistan is the fact that the
Taliban regime in Afghanistan has taken virtually no action against the groups
targeting Pakistan. The belief that once Taliban are back in power, they will
put the TTP and the Baloch freedom fighters out of business has been shattered
by the ambivalent stance of the Taliban. Not only have the Taliban not taken
any offensive action against any of the terrorist groups aligned with them,
they have given protection to many of these groups, and allowed them to operate
unhindered. Just like Pakistan provided strategic depth to the Taliban when the
latter was fighting the US-led international coalition, today the Taliban
Emirate is providing strategic depth to the TTP and the Baloch in their fight
against the Pakistani state. Taking a leaf out of the Pakistani playbook for
dealing with US demands to ‘do more’, the Taliban have flatly denied any
presence of the TTP inside Afghanistan.
There
are a number of reasons why the Taliban are not going to move against the
militants operating against Pakistan. One, the Taliban have experienced
Pakistani treachery and don’t trust them. They will therefore like to keep some
leverages over the Pakistanis. Two, the Taliban want to dispel the impression
that they are Pakistani puppets. Within Taliban there are those beholden to
Pakistan – the Haqqanis, for instance – and there are those who have a visceral
dislike for the treatment meted out to them by the Pakistanis. By standing up
to Pakistani demands, the Taliban regime is papering over its own fault-lines
and also convincing not just the rank and file (which isn’t fond of Pakistan)
but also people at large that they are first and foremost Afghans. Three, the
TTP is born from the same womb as the Afghan Taliban. Ideologically and
ethnically they are two sides of the same coin.
Four,
the TTP gave sanctuary and support during the worst times to the Afghan
Taliban. They fought with the Afghan Taliban and have sworn fealty to them.
They have often functioned as a phalanx of the Afghan Taliban who cannot dump
them just like that. Five, the Afghan Taliban claim that any precipitate action
against the TTP will push them in the waiting arms of the ISKP which will be a
disaster for them. This is the same logic that the Pakistanis used with the
Americans to not act against the Afghan Taliban shuras inside Pakistan.
Finally, the Afghan Taliban have serious problems of their own. They are facing
not just the ISKP which is drawing blood on a daily basis and undermining
Taliban claim of having restored order and peace in Afghanistan, but are also
facing the first stirrings of resistance from the National Resistance Front
(NRF). The last thing the Taliban need is to see their enemies close ranks
against them.
The
Taliban dilemma is that they desperately need to engage with the international
community. For this they will need to dilute their ideological programme. But
the moment they do that, it will drive the puritans away and open Taliban to
charge of kowtowing to the infidels. The Pakistani dilemma is that if it
doesn’t take any unilateral action against groups operating from Afghanistan,
it will only strengthen them and allow space to them inside Pakistan; if it
takes unilateral action, like it did when it launched airstrikes against TTP
targets inside Afghanistan, it will lead to a storm of protests from the
Taliban. The Taliban defence minister Mullah Yaqoob has already issued a stiff
warning to Pakistan to desist from any attacks inside Afghanistan or else be
ready for retaliation.
But
Pakistanis have been carrying covert operations in Afghanistan for sometime
now. Assassinations of TTP commanders and targeting of some Baloch movement
leaders are believed to be part of Pakistani covert operations. The problem is
that these operations have only steeled the resolve of the anti-Pakistan
forces. Worse, they are raising hackles inside Afghanistan and it won’t be long
before the Taliban hit back using their own proxies.
Clearly,
as things stand, Pakistan’s grand strategic plans that were based on its Afghan
policy have started to come unstuck. The Taliban regime in Afghanistan is not
turning out to be what was expected. With a collapsing economy and rising
discontent inside Pakistan, the wave of terrorism that is now emanating once
again from Afghanistan will only add to the existential crisis confronting it.
And this time, there is no India or the US to blame.
Source:
News18
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Sharif
leverages personal relations with Saudi Arabia, resets ties soured by Imran
Khan
May
04 2022
By
Rahul Kumar
New
Delhi, May 4: In Shehbaz Sharif—the Pakistani Prime Minister, the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia has reposed massive confidence. Within a fortnight of taking over
as the Prime Minister, Sharif made his first foreign visit to Riyadh to reset
ties with the kingdom which had been strained by his predecessor Imran Khan.
Saudi
Arabia was one of the initial countries to have recognised Pakistan after the
partition of India and has historically maintained good relations with ample
moral and financial support to Islamabad.
Sharif's
visit resulted in Saudi Arabia providing an $8 billion package to Islamabad to
prop up its dwindling foreign exchange reserves and revive its sinking economy.
Pakistan is in the grip of high inflation, depreciating rupee and a crumbling
economy, scouring around for emergency funds, including from the International
Monetary Fund.
Geopolitical
analyst Mark Kinra told India Narrative that Sharif has used his personal
contacts to strengthen relations with the Saudis.
Kinra
says: "The Sharif family has had deep ties with the Saudi royal family for
decades. Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif along with Shahbaz Sharif and other
relatives moved into exile in Saudi Arabia after he was ousted in a coup by
General Pervez Musharraf in 2000. They lived in the Kingdom until 2007. Sharif
family owns properties and runs businesses in the Kingdom, which makes them a
preferred candidate for the Kingdom in serving the interests for both the
parties."
By
agreeing to this enormous package, which includes doubling of the oil financing
facility, providing additional money and rolling over the existing debt, Saudi
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has snuffed out the lingering bitterness
between the two governments created during Imran Khan's tenure as Prime
Minister from 2018 till April 2022.
Kinra
adds that the Sharif family is re-setting ties between Pakistan and Saudi
Arabia, which got soured during the tenure of Imran Khan.
"Imran
Khan not only aligned himself with Turkey but also tried to delegitimise Saudi
Arabia as the leader of Muslim world, thereby creating new fronts, which
triggered Saudi Arabia," says Kinra.
In
solidarity with Sharif, the Kingdom has also come down heavily on the rowdy
supporters of Imran Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) who had
humiliated Sharif on two occasions during his official visit to Saudi Arabia.
The Kingdom has arrested five Pakistanis and will put them on trial for
"violating the regulations" and "disrespecting" the
sanctity of the mosque.
Last
Thursday, PTI supporters belted slogans of "chor, chor", or
"thief, thief" at Sharif and his entourage at the
Masjid-e-Nabawi--the Prophet's Mosque, considered to be the second-holiest site
in Islam, causing acute embarassment to Pakistanis globally.
For
the second time on Friday, Sharif was once agains shouted at by disgruntled
Pakistani supporters of Imran Khan. They shouted at him when he was entering a
Saudi building under heavy security.
Videos
of PTI supporters manhandling Baloch leader and Narcotics Control Minister,
Shahzain Bugti, and chanting slogans against Information and Broadcasting
Minister, Marriyum Aurangzeb, in Saudi Arabia have gone viral on social media,
showing PTI and Imran Khan in poor light.
Pakistan
has formally requested the Saudi Arabia government to take "appropriate
action" against Pakistani pilgrims, who embarassed Pakistan
internationally at one of Islam's holiest shrines.
Source:
Daiji World
Please click the following URL to read the full text of
the original story:
https://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay?newsID=954666
--------
Material
being prepared for my character assassination: Imran Khan
May
5, 202
PTI
Chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday claimed that his
opponents have hired companies that are "preparing material" for his
character assassination.
He
expressed those views during an interview with actor Shaan Shahid on Hum News.
During the interview, the actor asked the cricketer-turned-politician about
marketing companies being used in politics and fifth-generation warfare.
His
remarks also come as PTI-linked social media accounts have warned supporters of
the dangers of "deepfakes", videos which use a form of artificial
intelligence called deep learning to create life-like but fake videos of
people.
"I
had to face mafias, the biggest of which is the Sharif mafia [...] they always
attack on a personal level because are indulging in corruption for the past 35
years. When someone [points out] their corruption, they attack a person's
character," Imran said.
He
said that his ex-wife Jemima Goldsmith was also targeted in the past and a
campaign was run against her accusing her of being part of the "Jewish
lobby". He said that a false case was also filed against her accusing her
of exporting antique tiles from the country.
Continuing
after a short commercial break, the former premier said that the Sharifs had
made preparations to launch a character assassination drive against him after
Eid.
"Now
that Eid is over, you will see they are fully prepared for my character
assassination. They have hired companies that are readying the material,"
the former premier said.
He
added that 60 per cent of the federal cabinet was out on bail. "The father
(Shehbaz) is on bail and so is the son (Hamza). Maryam is also out on bail and
Nawaz Sharif has been convicted [while] his sons have fled abroad. So what
[other] defence will they have?"
He
said that in a democracy, they were required to give an answer for the
allegations levelled against them. "You can't come up in any democracy if
you are out on bail; you can't get any position."
The
PTI chairman claimed that instead of giving an answer for the billions of
rupees they had stolen, the Sharifs would now focus on his character
assassination.
"What
was Jemima's crime? She was my wife [...] now they have found Farah [Khan].
Farah's crime is that she is a close associate of Bushra begum (his
wife)," he said.
He
went on to say that the Sharifs had also made further preparations and
"made tapes" similar to the ones of former chief justice of Pakistan
Saqib Nisar and late Judge Arshad Malik.
"This
is mafia style. I only want the nation to understand that if you want to smear
anyone's name, there are companies that can help you to achieve this."
He
added that the PTI had announced its long march to Islamabad by the end of May
due to which the Sharifs wanted to lower his respect in the eyes of the public
and assassinate his character.
"But
they have been doing this before too. This is not something new."
Campaign
for 'true freedom' to begin from Mianwali
Earlier
today, the PTI chairman announced that he would be kicking off his campaign for
"true freedom" from Friday (May 6) by staging a rally in Mianwali.
In
a video message, he said that he would be coming to Mianwali before Maghrib
prayers. He stated that this campaign was part of the movement to rid the
country of the "imported government".
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1688094/material-being-prepared-for-my-character-assassination-imran-khan
--------
April
saw 24pc increase in militant attacks: report
May
3, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
A 24pc increase in the number of militant attacks was recorded in April as
compared to March 2022, according to statistics released by Pakistan Institute
for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS).
In
April, militants carried out 34 attacks in which 55 people were killed,
including 34 security forces personnel, 13 civilians and eight militants. As
many as 25 people were injured including 11 security personnel and 14
civilians. The militants had carried out 26 attacks across the country in March
2022 in which 115 people were killed and 288 were injured.
Most
of the attacks took place in erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas
(Fata) followed by main Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
PICSS
recorded 16 militant attacks in erstwhile Fata in which 31 people were killed,
including 21 security personnel, seven militants and three civilians, while 10
people were injured including six security personnel and four civilians.
In
KP, militants carried out 10 attacks in which 17 people were killed, including
12 security personnel and five civilians, while six people got injured, of
which three were civilian and three security personnel.
In
Balochistan, four militant attacks left one security official and one civilian
dead while five people were injured including one security official and four
civilians.
In
Sindh, four militant attacks took place in which four civilians and one
militant was killed. The attacks in Karachi also included the suicide bombing
of a Chinese teachers’ van at the University of Karachi.
In
Punjab, no militant attack took place during the month.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1687960/april-saw-24pc-increase-in-militant-attacks-report
--------
Remand
of MNA Sheikh Rashid Shafique extended for two days in Masjid-i-Nabwi incident
Amjad
Iqbal
May
3, 2022
TAXILA:
A court in Attock on Monday granted the police another two days’ physical
remand of Member National Assembly (MNA) Sheikh Rashid Shafique, nephew of
former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, in the case registered over
Masjid-i-Nabvi incident.
Mr
Shafique was arrested at the Islamabad International Airport (IIA) upon his
arrival from Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Police
produced the MNA in the court of duty magistrate Jamal Mehmood amid tight
security on Monday. The district court complex was sealed and even lawyers were
not allowed to enter the premises.
During
the hearing, the police sought an extension in the remand so that they could
recover the mobile phone utilised in uploading a video message by the suspect.
The
magistrate granted the police another two days’ remand and directed them to
produce the suspect before the court on the second day of Eid. Subsequently,
the judge adjourned the hearing till May 4.
The
case had been registered against 150 people, including former prime minister
Imran Khan, ex-ministers Fawad Chaudhry, Sheikh Rashid and Shahbaz Gill as well
as Mr Shafique, in connection with sloganeering against Prime Minister Shehbaz
Sharif and his delegation at Masjid-i-Nabvi in Saudi Arabia.
The
case was registered at the New Airport police station of Attock on the
complaint of
Qazi
Mohammad Tariq Advocate under section 295, 295-A and 296 of Pakistan Penal Code
(PPC).
On
the night following the Masjid-i-Nabvi incident, MNA Shafique had posted a
video from his cell phone on social media at the holy site, supporting the
incident.
He
had also hinted that the same would happen to the delegation when they visit
the holy Kaba in Makkah.
Talking
to reporters outside the judicial complex, former special assistant to the
prime minister on overseas Pakistanis Zulfi Bukhari said religion was being
used for political purposes and all these conspiracies were being hatched by
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah.
Mr
Bukhari said what was happening against the prime minister was a public
reaction.
Leader
of the opposition in Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh said: “The imported
government wants to create an atmosphere of hatred in the country.” Fear of
disenfranchisement forced Pakistanis abroad to chant anti-government slogans.
Syed
Yawar Abbas Bukhari said the sanctity of holy prophet (peace be upon him) was
obligatory on every Muslim.
The
government is playing with the beliefs of the people.
Raising
a voice against Islamophobia is the work of PTI and Imran Khan. If calling a
thief a thief is wrong, is it not an insult to raise slogans in favour of
someone?
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1687961/remand-of-mna-shafique-extended-for-two-days
--------
Shireen
Mazari writes to UN over 'misuse of blasphemy laws' against Imran
Javed
Hussain
May
4, 2022
Former
human rights minister and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) core committee member
Shireen Mazari has written to special rapporteurs of the UN, calling for their
intervention to cease the Pakistani government's "misuse of the blasphemy
law" against Imran Khan and senior PTI leaders.
The
letter dated May 2, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, has been
addressed to the UN's special rapporteur on extrajudicial summary or arbitrary
executions, special rapporteur on the freedom of opinion and expression, and
special rapporteur on the freedom of religion and belief.
It
stated that Pakistan had been engulfed in a political crisis ever since the
Imran Khan-led government was ousted in the aftermath of a "regime change
scheme" and replaced with a government led by Shehbaz Sharif, who has been
named in "multiple money-laundering and corruption cases and is out on
bail".
In
March, Mazari recalled, Imran's government had concluded in a cabinet meeting
that there had been a "US-backed regime-change conspiracy" against
the former prime minister assisted by the "establishment" and
"opposition political parties".
"This
conclusion was premised upon the content of a cipher message received from
Pakistan's envoy in Washington DC detailing a formal meeting between Mr Donald
Lu of the State Department with the envoy and 3 other members of the embassy
along with note-takers on both sides."
The
cipher message, the letter stated, reflected the anger of the US over Imran's
visit to Russia just as the Ukrainian military conflict was about to begin. It
continued that if the no-trust motion against Imran succeeded, "all would
be forgiven".
Mazari
then mentioned that the events that followed included the submission of the no-confidence
motion, the National Assembly (NA) deputy speaker's rejection of the motion and
the Supreme Court's intervention in the matter which ultimately resulted in
Imran's ouster.
"Since
then, there has been a groundswell of public anger reflected in huge rallies by
Imran Khan's parties across the country as he leads a movement for the
restoration of democracy and sovereignty of Pakistan," the letter said.
However,
it added, the government, "backed by the establishment", had
responded with repressive measures.
Subsequently,
the PTI leader drew UNHCR's attention to what she called three major human
rights violations conducted against Imran.
"One:
A complete blackout of media coverage by state-owned media as well as almost
all private channels through a carrot (advertisements) and stick
(establishment). In this connection, the government-controlled PTCL, which
provides cable connections to cable operators, has denied this access to any
private channel seen covering Khan's massive rallies."
The
second violation highlighted by Mazari was the registration of blasphemy cases
against Imran and PTI leaders in connection with the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident
where Shehbaz Sharif and his federal ministers were heckled by a crowd of
Pakistani pilgrims.
She
argued that it was not a planned incident as similar treatment had taken place
with opposition members at other places as well. "To use the Madina
incident as an excuse to file charges of blasphemy means endangering lives of
Imran and party's leadership," Mazari wrote.
"It
also provides for making immediate arrests and one member of the NA from the
PTI-allied party was immediately taken into custody on arrival at Islamabad
airport on blasphemy charges."
The
letter added that even though an FIR was not registered, Interior Minister Rana
Sanaullah had warned Imran and his supporters of arrests.
Subsequently,
Mazari requested the United Nations Special Procedures mechanism to intervene
with the Pakistani government to: immediately cease the misuse of the blasphemy
law against political opponents, stop media censorship, and stop denying the
right to peaceful protest through repressive measures and blocking of protest
sites.
Imran,
PTI leaders booked
On
Sunday, Faisalabad police had registered a case under ‘blasphemy laws’ against
the PTI chairman and over 150 others, including some stalwarts of the party, in
the wake of the Masjid-i-Nabwi incident.
The
FIR was registered under the following sections of the Pakistan Penal Code: 295
(harming or defiling a place of worship with intent to insult a religion),
295-A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of
any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 296 (disturbing
religious assembly) and 109 (abetment).
Complainant
Muhammad Naeem, a resident of Faisalabad, nominated top leaders of the PTI and
Imran's close associates, including Chaudhry, Gill, Suri, Sahibzada Jahangir,
Aneel Musarrat as well as Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and his nephew Sheikh Rashid
Shafiq.
The
complainant alleged the Masjid-i-Nabwi episode was a “planned and thought-out
conspiracy” and supported his claims by referring to videos and speeches made
by certain PTI leaders.
Subsequently,
on Monday, PTI leader and former information minister Fawad Chaudhry filed a
writ petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), calling for the cases to be
termed “illegal”.
Fawad
said that the newly appointed interior minister had been targeting the PTI
leadership and had also "openly threatened" them with dire
consequences.
The
petition urged the court to direct the respondents to "immediately stop
the unlawful and illegal harassment of the petitioner and his colleagues [...]
in the interest of justice equity and fair play."
It
also called for placing all the FIRs registered against the PTI leadership in
various parts of the country on record.
Pilgrims
accost, chant slogans against PM Shehbaz, federal ministers
Last
week, a group of Pakistani pilgrims had accosted, heckled, and chanted slogans
at Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his entourage at the Masjid-i-Nabwi in
Madina during their three-day visit — their first foreign trip since assuming
office — to Saudi Arabia.
According
to videos circulating on social media, Pakistani pilgrims at the mosque started
chanting slogans of "chor, chor" (thieves, thieves) as soon as they
saw the prime minister.
In
another video, the pilgrims could be seen heckling and hurling obscenities at
federal ministers Marriyum Aurangzeb and Shahzain Bugti, as the pair are
escorted by Saudi guards. In another video, a pilgrim could be seen pulling
Bugti's hair from behind.
Following
the incident, the media director of the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Islamabad
confirmed that some of the pilgrims involved in the incident had been arrested.
The official said that the protesters had been taken into custody for
"violating the regulations" and "disrespecting" the
sanctity of the holy mosque.
Politicians
and other religious figures had swiftly condemned the incident, however, some
had blamed the PTI. For his part, Imran Khan said he could "not even
imagine" asking anyone to carry out sloganeering at the sacred place.
"I
have spoken about Islamophobia at every forum," he said in a snippet from
an interview that will be aired on the first day of Eidul Fitr.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
South Asia
Anas
Haqqani Of The Islamic Emirate’s Qatar Office: Girls’ Schools Will Resume Soon
04
May 2022
Anas
Haqqani, a senior member of the Islamic Emirate’s Qatar office, told the
audience in a gathering in the southeastern province of Khost on Wednesday
(today) that a clerics’ conference will be held soon, and that problems with
girls’ schools would be addressed. The gathering of clergy will resolve the
school issue, he stated.
Haqqani,
who recently visited Khost, said that attendants have been chosen, including
religious clergy, intellectuals, and experts, and that the meeting will take
place soon.
Haqqani
stated that rather than violence and “bloodshed,” the issue should be resolved
through negotiations without addressing or referring a specific group or
people.
He
said “you will hear good news. It will make everyone happy” following his
position on the fact that “many people have been displeased. They have every
reason to be disgruntled”.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/anas-haqqani-girls-schools-will-resume-soon9842/
--------
Afghanistan
Journalists Center Calls on Taliban to Revive Access to Information Laws
By
Arif Ahmadi
04
May 2022
Kabul,
Afghanistan – Honoring the World Media Freedom Day on Tuesday, Afghanistan
Journalists Center (AFJC) expressed “deep concern” over the increasing number
of media practitioners being arrested throughout the country, said AFJC in a
written statement to Khaama Press.
The
center underscored the sudden collapse of the media outlets since the Taliban
takeover last August, warning of the “consequences” such a process could bring
in the country.
“On
this day, the Afghanistan Journalists’ Center expresses its deep concern over
the increase in the number of arrests of journalists and media workers and the
sudden collapse of the media in the country, and warns of the consequences of
this process,” said AFJC in a statement.
Statistics
from last 12 months by the AFJC show at least four journalists and media
practitioners have lost their lives in Afghanistan: three as a result of two
ISIS-affiliated explosions in Kabul and one person during coverage of the war
between the Taliban and former government forces in Kandahar.
The
report also showed about 130 other incidents against journalists and media
practitioners, where about 90 cases were short and long-term detention up to a
month, including violence and threats.
Most
of these cases have been recorded during the past 8 months, which reflects on
the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan since last August, according to the
statement.
Meanwhile,
hundreds of male and female journalists have left the country since the fall of
the Islamic Republic on August 15. And, more than half of about 600 media
outlets – mainly the radios, televisions, and print publications – were shut
down due to financial crisis the sudden brought about to the companies.
Currently,
about 30% of other media outlets that have been operating despite the odds are
on the verge of financial collapse, forcing many others to operate
intermittently for a few hours a day or week.
Aside
for the unprecedented increase in threats and intimidation of journalists and
media workers, findings by the AFJC shows the show access to information in the
country has been severely restricted.
The
announcement by the Islamic Emirate to approve the law on mass media and to try
to revive the Media Complaints Commission as a step towards preventing
arbitrary actions against journalists and investigating complaints against
journalists through the law, should be considered, the report said.
While
recent efforts by the Taliban government to appoint a spokesperson for
respective ministries and efforts by the Ministry of Information and Culture
facilitate access to information seemed promising, AFJC’s findings suggest
their move were rather less productive than expected.
Afghan
Journalists Face Ever-Increasing Restrictions
Considering
the record high number of violence against media practitioners during the
Taliban rule in past eight months, the Afghan Journalists’ Center called on the
Islamic Emirate officials to make a firm political commitment and enforce laws,
asking the current government to reconsider the law on mass media and access to
information.
“…There
is a need to revive and reactivate the joint government-media committee, which
was established during the Islamic Republic to deal with security issues and
incidents of violence against media employees,” as the statement read.
Global
Attention on Increasing Restrictions against Afghan Reporters
The
ever-increasing restrictions against Afghan reporters has drawn global
attention, with the United Nations (UN) and the Committee to Protect
Journalists (CPJ) decrying the arrests, demanding the Taliban government to
stop harassing local journalists and stifling freedom of speech through
continued threats, arrests, and intimidation.
“The
Taliban must immediately … stop detaining and intimidating members of the
Afghanistan press corps,” a statement from CPJ said, as Aljazeera reported.
Meanwhile,
the UN Mission in Afghanistan expressed “concerns” over the ongoing detentions
of local journalists and “the ever increasing restrictions being placed on
media in Afghanistan.”
“Time
for the Taliban to stop gagging & banning,” the mission, known as UNAMA,
said on Twitter. “Time for a constructive dialogue with the Afghan media
community.”
Source:
Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/afjc-calls-on-taliban-to-revive-access-to-information-laws/
--------
The
Resurgence of the Durand Line Dispute Could Alter Afghanistan’s and Pakistan’s
Relationships
05
May 2022
By
Saqalain Eqbal
A
resurgence of the Durand line dispute could result in a shift in
Afghanistan-Pakistan relations.
Pakistan
and its western neighbor Afghanistan are disintegrating much before the
Taliban-led regime in Kabul has completed one year in power.
According
to Asian Lite International, “Durand’s Curse” by former diplomat Rajiv Dogra,
is the first book published in the world about the Durand accord, which split
Pathans and has plagued the world ever since. Dogra has extensive knowledge and
experience in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, having served as India’s Consul
General in Karachi.
Mortimer
Durand drew an arbitrary line on a scrap of paper in 1893, and it still bleeds
Afghanistan and hounds the rest of the world.
Asian
Lite International notes that Rajiv Dogra’s analysis of the border issue as the
‘Durand’s Curse’ gains increased significance for scholars and policymakers in
this context. ‘Durand’s Curse’ is the culmination of extensive research. For
the first time, fascinating details from long-buried historical archives reveal
a tale of intrigue and deception against Afghanistan. Dogra has succeeded in
portraying an immensely gripping chronicle of the Indian subcontinent’s history
by bringing to life the battles, tragedies, and Afghan indignation against
injustice in this heart-wrenching account of Afghanistan’s misfortunes.
The
Durand Line runs through the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (NWFP), Federally
Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), and Balochistan in modern-day Pakistan. In
Afghanistan, it also covers ten provinces.
Dogra’s
book succinctly encapsulates the entire chaos by a statement that reads
“Afghanistan today can be described as a strong nation but a weak state, while
Pakistan is a strong state with no strong sense of nationhood.”
The
Durand Line, which was contested in the context of the Pashtun homeland
movement, has recently become the source of increased border tensions between
Pakistan and Afghanistan. Despite Pakistani intelligence’s estimate of expected
hostility along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Asian Lite International
claimed that the Afghan side has been relentless in its attacks.
In
the interest of peace and progress between the two ‘brotherly’ countries,
Pakistan had to formally request Kabul to protect the Pakistan-Afghan border
region, ensuring stern action against those involved for terror operations, on
April 17. Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO) in Islamabad has explicitly said that
border hostilities have increased significantly in recent days.
The
Taliban are enraged at a fence being built by Islamabad along their Durand
line, a 2,700-kilometer (1,600-mile) frontier.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Uzbekistan
Seeks to Engage Taliban Without Alienating West
May
04, 2022
Uzbekistan
has emerged as a key interlocutor with the Taliban, engaging with its southern
neighbor across a range of issues while insisting that it will not formally
recognize the interim government in Afghanistan before the world community.
That
nuanced position has allowed it to begin exploring opportunities for economic
cooperation with Kabul without alienating the United States and other Western
powers that have sought to isolate Afghanistan with asset seizures and other
sanctions.
Ismatulla
Irgashev, special representative to Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, said
during an interview in Tashkent that his government is "working
closely" with the Taliban. "We have long established solid contacts,
talk regularly, [and] discuss cooperation."
Uzbekistan
sees the Taliban "as a reality that must be accepted," he explained.
Seeking a peaceful and stable neighbor, he added, "We see no other option.
We share a border, deep history and culture."
"Imagine
what happens if we don't engage. … More conflict, another civil war, more
blood, poverty, suffering, threats to the neighbors and the international
community."
Reflecting
on President Mirziyoyev's description of Afghanistan as an integral part of
Central Asia, Irgashev said, "We see a common future with immense common
interests, no matter who is in power there."
In
the short term, Uzbekistan has become a key hub for the delivery of
humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, earning it the appreciation of donor nations.
"We
… very much welcome the strong humanitarian support that you've been providing
to the Afghans," said U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken during talks
in March.
Mirziyoyev
recently dispatched a delegation to Washington, urging more assistance to
Afghanistan. Irgashev claimed Tashkent has persuaded the European Union to
return diplomats to Kabul and hopes the U.S. will ultimately take similar
steps.
"The
Taliban don't want to be isolated," Irgashev said. "They want
international recognition."
While
urging greater engagement with the Taliban, Irgashev said Tashkent is committed
to moving ahead with formal recognition only in concert with the international
community.
"We
will not recognize them alone," he said. "When it happens, we want a
collective voice and stand."
Most
world governments cite three conditions for recognition of the Taliban — the
formation of an "inclusive" government, protection of the rights of
women, and steps to ensure that Afghan territory will not become a base for
international terrorists.
The
concern about terrorism is one that Uzbekistan and the United States
"share very deeply," said U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan Daniel
Rosenblum. "Terrorist groups operate there. There's some evidence that
they've been growing in number and ability to operate since the change of
government last summer," he told VOA.
But,
he said, Uzbekistan "has been extremely collaborative and communicative
about its Afghanistan policy."
Irgashev
said he believes it will be difficult for the Taliban to quickly meet the other
conditions for recognition.
"For
20 years at least, the Taliban fought the West and its mission. They promised a
government based on Taliban principles. How can we expect them to revise their
agenda so fast?" he asked.
"But
they realize they need to make changes to be accepted internationally. They
need time to adjust step-by-step. We've discussed these complexities with
Americans and Europeans."
Irgashev
pointed out that most members of the interim government in Kabul "have
very little, if any, experience with governance or management." In his
view, he added, "they also need time to work out internal
disagreements."
Arguing
for greater engagement with the Taliban in the meantime, Irgashev noted that
they are in firm control of Afghanistan, their rule challenged only by minor
resistance movements based mainly in the Panjshir Valley.
"The
Taliban is an independent military and political force that controls the entire
country," Irgashev said, stressing that they are the first government in
Kabul in 40 years to rule without direct foreign backing.
Tashkent's
thinking is also colored by practical economic concerns, not least the prospect
of securing a trade route from landlocked Uzbekistan through Afghanistan to
Pakistani seaports on the Indian Ocean.
"We
believe the Taliban shares these goals and is committed to work with us on
these endeavors," Irgashev said. "There will surely be problems and
challenges but we're working on trade, transportation, communication, and other
sectors."
Source:
VOA News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.voanews.com/a/uzbekistan-seeks-to-engage-taliban-without-alienating-west/6557338.html
--------
North America
Islamophobia
In USA: Man Tried To Set Fire At Muslim Community Centre Of Portland
May
5, 2022
Portland
police are looking for tips after a man tried to set fire to the Muslim
Community Center of Portland's building in North Portland on Tuesday evening.
The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) said the case is being investigated as an
arson and possible bias crime.
Shortly
after 6:45 p.m., surveillance cameras captured a man pouring "an
undetermined type of accelerant" on the back of the Muslim Community
Center building. The suspect lit the accelerant on fire, but flames failed to
spread.
"After
unsuccessfully starting the building on fire, the suspect tried a second
time," PPB said. Fortunately, there
was only minor damage to the structure."
The
suspect was wearing a blue hoodie and a face mask, carrying a small blue bag
and wearing a black backpack.
The
beginning of this week marked the end of the month of Ramadan for followers of
the Islamic faith, which culminates in the holiday of Eid al-Fitr.
Source:
ABNA24
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Muslims
being targeted with violence around the world: Biden
4th
May 2022
Washington:
Around the world, Muslims are being targeted with violence, US President Joe
Biden said on Monday asserting that Muslims make America stronger every single
day even as they still face real challenges and threats in the society that
they live in.
At
a White House reception to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, Biden said he has appointed
the first Muslim to serve as Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious
Freedom.
It’s
especially important because today, around the world, we’re seeing so many
Muslims being targeted with violence. No one, no one should discriminate
against oppressed or be oppressed for their religious beliefs, he said to
applause from the select gathering at the White House.
Arooj
Aftab, a Pakistani vocalist and composer, was one of the speakers at the event
along with First Lady Jill Biden and Dr. Talib M. Shareef, Imam of Masjid
Muhammad, known as The Nation’s Mosque’ in Washington, DC.
Today,
we also remember all those who are not able to celebrate this holy day,
including Uyghurs and Rohingyas and all those who are facing famine, violence,
conflict, and disease, Biden said.
And
honour the signs of hope and progress toward the world we want to see, including
the ceasefire, which allowed the people in Yemen to honour Ramadan and
celebrate Eid in peace for the first time in six years, he added.
But
at the same time, we have to acknowledge that an awful lot of work remains to
be done abroad and here at home. Muslims make our nation stronger every single
day, even as they still face real challenges and threats in our society,
including targeted violence and Islamophobia that exists, he said.
Biden
said, making the US more equitable, more inclusive for Muslim Americans is an
essential part of the enduring work to form the more perfect union.
We’re
the only nation in all the history of the world that’s been organised not based
on a religion, race, ethnicity, geography, but on an idea. Think about that. An
idea, he said.
In
a tweet after the event, Biden said, Jill and I were honoured to host an Eid
al-Fitr reception at the White House tonight, and we send our warmest greetings
to everyone celebrating across the world. Eid Mubarak!
Meanwhile,
Vice President Kamala Harris too wished people on the occasion.’
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/muslims-being-targeted-with-violence-around-the-world-biden-2320345/
--------
US
now preparing for a world with and without Iran nuclear deal
May
04, 2022
WASHINGTON:
The United States is now preparing equally for both a scenario where there is a
mutual return to compliance with Iran on a nuclear deal, as well as one in
which there is not an agreement, the State Department said on Wednesday.
“Because
a mutual return to compliance with the JCPOA is very much an uncertain
proposition, we are now preparing equally for either scenario,” Department
spokesperson Ned Price said in a briefing.
Meanwhile,
the US Senate voted 86-12 — with strong bipartisan support — for a “motion to
instruct” sponsored by Republican Senator Ted Cruz seeking a report on
terrorism-related sanctions on Iran and saying such sanctions are necessary to
limit cooperation between China and Iran.
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2075746/middle-east
--------
Southeast Asia
Thai
govt upbeat on lasting ceasefire with Muslim insurgents
May
05, 2022
Thai
authorities have expressed hopes for a lasting ceasefire with Muslim
separatists after a de-escalation in violence in the three Muslim-majority
southernmost provinces during the entire month of Ramadan.
Thai
peace negotiators and representatives of militant groups agreed to a ceasefire
back in March for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and the truce, which runs
from April 3 to May 15, has so far been kept apart from a bomb that killed a
villager in Pattani province on April 15.
The
fact that the truce has been kept by insurgents bodes well for a similar
long-term ceasefire, according to Gen. Wallop Raksanoh, the head of the
government’s negotiation team.
The
government team is scheduled to resume talks with the representatives of
insurgents, who want to gain complete independence for Thailand’s
Muslim-majority southernmost region, in June.
The
next round of talks will seek to expand the scope of the current ceasefire
agreement and make it longer-lasting, the general said.
More
than 7,000 people, both Muslims and Buddhists, have died and tens of thousands
of others have been injured in bombings, drive-by shootings and other attacks
in addition to operations by security forces since 2014 when an armed
separatist insurgency erupted against Thai state in the southernmost provinces.
Both
Islamist militants and Thai security forces have committed numerous rights
violations, the former by targeting civilians and the latter by engaging in
extrajudicial killings, summary arrests and torture, according to rights
groups.
The
prospect for lasting peace has proved elusive so far because hardline ethnic
Malay insurgents have said they would accept no political settlement short of
full independence, while the military-allied government appear dead-set against
granting even greater autonomy to the restive provinces.
The
Thai state has sought for decades to inculcate young Muslims in the area with a
sense of “Thainess” through cultural and educational projects.
At
the same time, however, Thai security forces have antagonized and alienated
large numbers of local Muslims in the restive provinces through heavy-handed
anti-terrorism measures, analysts say.
“The
militants seek independence and an end to what they see as Thai colonialism.
Their insurgency is rooted in ethnic Malay nationalist resistance to Thai rule
that followed the extension of Siamese sovereignty over the Patani sultanate at
the beginning of the 20th century,” explains Matthew Wheeler, a senior analyst
at the International Crisis Group.
In
addition to such political grievances, the three Muslim-majority provinces,
which border Malaysia, remain among the poorest in Thailand with endemic
poverty among villagers.
Source:
UCA News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.ucanews.com/news/thai-govt-upbeat-on-lasting-ceasefire-with-muslim-insurgents/97153
--------
Another
lonely Raya for Malaysia’s elderly gays
Hakimie
Amrie Hisamudin
May
5, 2022
PETALING
JAYA: There was a time when Kai looked forward to Hari Raya celebrations with
family and friends at his hometown in Penang.
These
days, while millions of Malaysians marked the end of the fasting month with
forgiveness and festivities, Kai is reminded only of the pain of rejection by
his loved ones because of his sexuality.
“It’s
not my fault that I was born a gay person. I didn’t ask for this,” Kai told
FMT, declining to use his real name. While others marked the end of the fasting
month with forgiveness, Kai sees little reason to do so. “There’s no need to
beg forgiveness from anyone for being myself,” he says.
After
he was kicked out of his family home by his parents, Hari Raya Aidilfitri has
never been the same for Kai. The 55-year-old has not seen his family for the
past three decades.
For
many years, he was angry with his parents and ashamed of himself, he said. He
almost gave in to society’s norms. “To think that I almost got married just to
hide my true self,” he said.
Kai
said self-acceptance came only years later, thanks to the support of others in
the LGBTQ community of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. “I
learnt that family is more than just blood ties,” he said.
This
week, in the midst of family reunions across the country, Kai marked Hari Raya
alone at his home in Kuala Lumpur, not unlike many other Muslim LGBTQ.
Retired
librarian Noordin, 65, has been living alone since he moved out of his parents’
home decades ago.
“I
had no particular plan to celebrate Hari Raya. To me, Hari Raya is just like
any other day, with no more excitement, unlike during my childhood days. I
would make myself available if there are any invitations to visit. Otherwise,
I’d rather spend time by myself,” he told FMT.
Social
activist Ismail Baba said the lack of social and legal recognition for the
LGBTQ population, and discrimination by society, had led them to live in
isolation.
Ismail,
a former social studies professor at Universiti Utara Malaysia, said a life
alone had left many members of the community unable to take care of themselves
in their twilight years.
“They
may end up in care or nursing homes, especially when they do not have children,
partners, and family members to look after them. Yet, most care facilities may
not be able to accept LGBTQ older adults because of stigma and discrimination.
This will push them further into isolation,” he told FMT.
This
sense of loneliness is something Sam, an elderly Kuala Lumpur-based gay man,
knows so well. He hopes younger LGBTQ members will find it easier to find
acceptance by their loved ones.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Follow
Malaysia’s lead on engaging with Myanmar’s NUG, Asean nations told
May
4, 2022
PETALING
JAYA: Asean countries have been urged to follow Malaysia’s lead and back a
proposal for the bloc to engage with the National Unity Government (NUG) in
Myanmar.
In
a statement, Charles Santiago, who is the Asean Parliamentarians for Human
Rights chairman, said countries in the region should ignore the Myanmar
military junta’s views on the proposal.
This
comes after the junta, known as the State Administration Council (SAC), slammed
a proposal by foreign minister Saifuddin Abdullah for Asean to engage with the
NUG, especially when it comes to humanitarian relief.
Myanmar’s
foreign ministry labelled it as being “irresponsible and reckless”, which could
“abet terrorism and violence” in the country”.
Describing
the SAC’s response as “outrageous”, the Klang MP said its remarks against
Putrajaya’s proposal showed its “nervousness” in the face of increasing
international isolation.
“It
is especially galling that Myanmar’s SAC dares to describe Saifuddin’s proposal
as irresponsible and reckless,” said Santiago.
“A
junta that has staged a coup d’état against a democratically elected
government, has thrown Myanmar into chaos and is committing all kinds of
atrocities against the population of the country to consolidate its power,
utterly lacks any moral authority to make such accusations.”
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Philippine
police arrest suspected Daesh recruiter in Zamboanga Sibugay
May
04, 2022
MANILA:
Philippine police said on Wednesday they had arrested a suspected Daesh
recruiter and firearms supplier in southern Zamboanga Sibugay province.
The
suspect, identified as Abdul Salikala, was seized during a raid by security
forces in the municipality of Tungawan on Tuesday.
Police
described him as “an ISIS-inspired supporter,” using another term for the
terror group Daesh.
A
warrant for Salikala’s arrest had been issued in relation to a 2011 murder
case.
“He
was also monitored recruiting both male and female individuals to be part of
the IS/Daesh in Siocon,” police said in a statement.
According
to police, Salikala had transported “undetermined numbers of high-powered
firearms” from the municipality of Alicia in Zamboanga Sibugay to undisclosed
locations in Siocon municipality, in neighboring Zamboanga del Norte province.
Ramboanga
Sibugay police spokesperson Maj. Shellamie Chang told Arab News the suspect and
some members of his family based in Zamboanga del Norte were supporters of
Salahuddin Hassan of Dawlah Islamiya — also known as the Maute group — a
militant organization in the southern Philippines that pledged allegiance to
the Daesh in 2015.
“They
are recruiting members of Daesh” Chang said. “They are connected to someone in
Manila and, accordingly, the family is working together.”
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2075696/world
--------
Arab World
Crowds
in Syria await prisoners freed in mass amnesty
04
May ,2022
Families
of prisoners held for years in Syrian jails gathered Wednesday, hoping their
loved ones were among the “hundreds” the government said had been released in a
mass amnesty.
A
crowd of hundreds waited in the center of the capital Damascus, with dozens
camping out overnight holding a vigil that their missing family might be among
those to be safely returned.
“I’ve
been expecting my five children and my husband since 2014,” Umm Maher said,
waiting near the capital’s Jisr al-Rais bridge, the main arrival point for
buses entering the city.
“The
oldest is 25 and the youngest 15. We have nothing to do with terrorism,” she
added, referring to what many say is a blanket charge often used to detain
civilians.
President
Bashar al-Assad has issued several amnesty decrees during the country’s
devastating 11-year war, which broke out after the regime cracked down on
mostly peaceful protesters.
But
human rights activists said recent release – following a decree issued on
Saturday – is the most comprehensive in relation to terrorism charges.
The
new decree calls for “granting a general amnesty for terrorist crimes committed
by Syrians” before April 30, 2022, “except for those leading to the death of a
person.”
On
Tuesday, the justice ministry said that “hundreds of prisoners have been
released over the past two days in several regions.”
The
Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that more than 250
detainees have already been freed, with the justice ministry promising more
will be released in coming days.
Half
a million people have been detained in regime prisons since the start of the
war, with about 100,000 dying either under torture or due to poor detention
conditions, according to the Observatory.
Activists
also accuse the regime of torturing detainees to death, of rape, sexual
assaults and extrajudicial executions.
Umm
Abdo was waiting for her two sons, who disappeared in 2013.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Over
720 hours of broadcasting in various languages at the Grand Mosque
May
04, 2022
MAKKAH
— The Languages and Translation Unit has delivered the message of the Two Holy
Mosques to the rest of the world, in different languages, through the
Al-Haramain digital platform and FM radio frequencies.
The
broadcasts come within the Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques’
participation with the Makkah Region initiative titled “How to be a role model
in the digital world.”
The
Unit is represented by the General Administration of Digital Broadcasting in
Languages, the initiative of the Minbar (pulpit) Al-Haram initiative, and the
digital broadcasting initiative in international languages 24 hours a day from
the Grand Mosque in Ramadan.
The
Director-General of the General Administration of Digital Broadcasting in
Languages Mishari Al-Matrafi, said that the number of beneficiaries of the
Minbar Al-Haram initiative to broadcast the translation of Friday sermons
during Ramadan and the Eid Al-Fitr sermon, amounted to more than 223,877.
Source:
Saudi Gazette
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
UN
demands release of staff held by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis
04
May ,2022
The
United Nations on Wednesday demanded the immediate release of two staff members
held by the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen since November, saying their
whereabouts remained unknown.
“As
families across Yemen gathered to mark Eid al-Fitr this year, UNESCO
Director-General Audrey Azoulay and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Michelle Bachelet urged the immediate release of two of their staff members who
have been detained since early November last year in Sanaa,” their offices said
in a joint statement.
They
said that despite repeated assurances dating back to November that they would
be freed straight away, “their whereabouts remain unknown” and their offices
are “deeply concerned” about their well-being.
Azoulay
and Bachelet urged the Houthis to release them “without further delay.”
“Under
international law, UN staff are accorded privileges and immunities, which are
essential to the proper discharge of their official functions,” the joint
statement added.
The
Houthis took control of the Yemeni capital Sanaa in 2014, prompting an Arab
Coalition military intervention the following year and triggering what the UN
calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Saudi
Arabia arrests 61 for attempting to smuggle hashish, khat
04
May ,2022
Saudi
Arabia has thwarted attempts to smuggle drugs into the Kingdom and arrested 61
suspects, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Wednesday.
The
smuggling attempts took place in the regions of Jazan, Najran and Asir.
The
suspects attempted to smuggle 760 kilograms of hashish and 45.6 tons of the
narcotic plant khat.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Of
the 61 suspects, 41 were Saudi citizens, 11 were Ethiopian, seven were Yemeni
and two were Pakistani.
The
Kingdom’s authorities have been heavily cracking down on narcotics and
smuggling attempts.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Saudi
central bank raises interest rates in line with US Fed's decision
TAIF
ALBALAWI
May
04, 2022
RIYADH:
The Saudi Central Bank said on Wednesday it increased its main interest rates
by 50 basis points, in tandem with the US Federal Reserve’s move to try to tame
inflation at multi-decade highs.
SAMA,
as the bank is known, raised its repo rate and reverse repo rate to 1.75
percent and 1.25 percent, respectively.
“In
line with the Saudi Central Bank’s objective of maintaining monetary and
financial stability, the Saudi Central Bank has decided to raise the Repurchase
Agreement rate by 0.5 percent to 1.75 percent from a previous 1.25 percent, and
the Reverse Repurchase Agreement rate by 0.5 percent to 1.25 percent from a
previous 0.75 percent,” it said in a statement.
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2075761/business-economy
--------
Expats
prepare to vote, marking the start of Lebanon elections
NAJIA
HOUSSARI
May
04, 2022
BEIRUT:
Lebanese expats voting on Friday will inaugurate the first phase of this
month’s parliamentary elections.
Expats
will vote in 59 countries, but just 10 nations will commence the first phase of
voting on Friday. The expats in these countries, which include Saudi Arabia,
Qatar, Kuwait, Syria and Iraq, have a Friday weekend.
The
second phase of voting takes place on May 8 in countries that have a Sunday
weekend.
The
elections in Lebanon will take place on May 15 with candidates competing in 15
districts in all of the governorates and districts to select new
representatives for 128 parliamentary seats.
The
term of the current parliament, elected four years ago, will end on May 21.
The
code of conduct for candidates and media outlets comes into force 24 hours
before the vote.
All
means of invitation, intimidation and sectarian polarization have been used by
the ruling parties to ensure their continuation in parliament, defeating
tireless attempts by the opposition to turn the tables.
Regions
with Christian influence top the list of candidates, with 269 registered in
Mount Lebanon and 292 in the north.
The
south, a region with a Shiite majority, has the lowest rate of candidacy, with
just 105 standing, while Beirut registered 174 and the Bekaa region 203.
Nadim
Abdelmalak, president of Lebanon’s supervisory commission for elections,
criticized “the chaotic opinion polls that claim the victory of one candidate
and the failure of another, despite the warnings sent by the commission to
those concerned. The election requires every opinion poll prepared for the
announcement to be provided to the commission.”
Abdelmalak
criticized “the magnitude of hate speech and treason, given that the electoral
law requires that such rhetoric be mitigated, steering away from abasement,
revilement, incitement to sectarian conflict and sometimes terrorism, perhaps
used to reinforce sectarianism.”
The
Lebanese Association for Democratic Elections said that money has been spent to
buy loyalties to secure victory, in addition to providing aid, promises and
electoral bribes.
The
association added that violence, pressure tactics, influence, public resources,
racist and sectarian rhetoric, libel and defamation had all been used by some
candidates seeking an electoral advantage.
Intimidation
began in the Sarafand region of southern Lebanon to prevent opponents of Shiite
groups Hezbollah and the Amal Movement from announcing their candidacy.
Intimidation
was also exercised in the northern Bekaa region by the same duo against other
Shiite candidates, including Sheikh Abbas Al-Jawhari. Gunshots and rockets were
fired in an electoral meeting he held.
Candidate
Hassan Raad was beaten at a religious gathering in Baalbek. The Amal Movement
and Hezbollah have previously pushed some families to disown female candidates
participating in competing lists.
As
a result, three Shiite candidates — Ramez Amhaz, Hayman Mchayek and Rifaat
Al-Masri — withdrew from the election.
Intimidation
also took place in the northern region of Jbeil. An unidentified drone was seen
hovering over the district of candidate Faris Saeed, who opposes Hezbollah and
the Iranian influences in Lebanese politics. A car was also spotted around his
house in Qartaba allegedly monitoring his activities.
The
inciteful atmosphere reached the highest level when Sheikh Nazir Jishi called
for the election of Hezbollah’s candidates and attacked the Lebanese Forces
Party, using derogatory terms against women in predominantly Christian tourist
areas, to the extent that he was renounced by Hezbollah and the Supreme Islamic
Shiite Council.
The
visits of Gebran Bassil, president of the Free Patriotic Movement, to some
regions have been met with popular denunciations against the backdrop of
Bassil’s alliance with Hezbollah. During his visit to the northern Lebanese
region of Akkar, Bassil’s convoy was blocked, and images and signs of the party
were burned, escalating into a violent clash.
Sunni
voters are divided into two categories. The first, with the majority being
loyal supporters of Saad Hariri’s Future Movement, will abstain from voting,
whereas the second group says there is a chance for change, noting that the
Sunni scene controls more than half of the electoral districts in Lebanon.
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2075651/middle-east
--------
Mideast
Israel
settlers raise flag at Hebron's Ibrahimi Mosque ahead of 'Independence Day'
04
May, 2022
Israeli
settlers on Wednesday raised their national flag atop the Ibrahimi Mosque, the
second-holiest Islamic site in Palestine, ahead of Israel's so-called
'Independence Day'.
The
Ibrahimi Mosque is in illegally occupied Hebron and second in spiritual
significance only to Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem, where the Israeli flag was raised
and national anthem sung in place of the Muslim call to prayer on Tuesday
evening.
The
Jewish extremists at the Ibrahimi Mosque were protected by Israeli soldiers,
official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
Nedal
Al-Jaabari, leader of the local Waqf, or Islamic endowment, which is in charge
of administering the mosque, slammed the raising of the flag.
He
said it was a breach of the sacred nature of such places of worship and against
international treaties and standards.
Al-Jaabari
added that the move was made within a broader effort to turn the mosque into a
Jewish site.
The
Israeli flag has been raised there several times in the past decade by settlers
and troops.
The
Ibrahimi Mosque was also the location of a 1994 massacre of Muslim worshippers
by Jewish radical Baruch Goldstein.
The
attack killed 29 people and left 125 injured.
Hebron's
Old City is home to around 40,000 Palestinians and has an extremist settler
presence of up to 850 people.
Israel
occupies the area and maintains a discriminatory system that sees Palestinians
banned from using particular roads which Israeli settlers and overseas visitors
are allowed to roam freely.
Israelis
will celebrate the 1948 establishment of their state from Wednesday evening to
Thursday evening, soon before Nakba Day.
Source:
The New Arab
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/news/israel-settlers-raise-flag-hebrons-ibrahimi-mosque
--------
Turkey
closing ‘Mekameleen’ signals end of era for Muslim Brotherhood
May
04 2022
The
announcement of the shutdown of the Muslim Brotherhood’s “Mekameleen” channel
and the suspension of the TV outlet’s broadcasts from Turkey have indicated
that the era in the Islamist group’s media activity has come to an end, while
Ankara seeks to reap the dividends from a new phase in its relations with
Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
“Mekameleen”
was among the satellite TV channels used in the past by (President Recep
Tayyip) Erdoğan’s Turkey to put pressure on its Arab neighbours and also carry
out the agendas of both Ankara and the Brotherhood in the region.
The
TV channel put out a statement on Friday announcing the definitive end of its
broadcast and the closure of its studios, eight years after it started
operating from Istanbul. It said that it “will resume broadcasting and start
again its activity from other countries, soon,” but did not specify from which
countries or at what date.
Turkey
had expelled a number of media professionals from its territory, as a prelude
to closing the channels after the goals for which they were created were no
longer part of Ankara’s priorities.
Muslim
Brotherhood-affiliated TV channels operating from Turkey were part of Ankara’s
propaganda arsenal against Egypt and Arab Gulf countries. In the past few years,
hey spearheaded a multifaceted showdown between the international organisation
of the Muslim Brotherhood and Cairo.
From 2018, Ankara also employed them to assail and pressure Saudi Arabia
by trying to spin to its advantage the case of murdered journalist Jamal
Khashoggi.
As
part of its regional policy shift, Ankara is now seeking reconciliation with
Cairo, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. For that purpose, it needs to further demonstrate
its intent to introduce tangible changes in its regional agenda. That includes
distancing itself from the Muslim Brotherhood.
The
move to close “Mekameleen” coincided with Erdoğan’s first visit to Saudi Arabia
since the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi four years ago.
During
his visit, Erdoğan spoke of launching “a new era” in Turkish-Saudi relations
and his desire to strengthen political, military, economic and cultural ties.
Former
Egyptian Deputy Foreign Minister, Ambassador Hassan Haridy told The Arab Weekly
that “the demise of the Brotherhood channels comes in the context of the
gradual return of Egyptian-Turkish relations to normal, a step preceding the
exchange of ambassadors between the two countries”. He noted that Cairo had
objected to appointing an ambassador to Ankara as long as hostile channels
continued to air from Turkish soil.
Turkey’s
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu recently declared that his Egyptian
counterpart, Sameh Shoukry, will visit Turkey soon, but he did not specify the
exact date of that trip.
He
pointed out that relations with Cairo are improving and are expected to move to
higher ground, despite the differences in views between both countries. He asserted that improvement in relations
will benefit both countries.
Analysts
say that Ankara has tried to send a useful signal to Egypt and Arab Gulf countries
through the closure of the TV channel but retains in its service a gamut of
soft power and propaganda tools that can carry out its bidding, including
criticism of Egypt if it needed.
Qatar-owned
“Al-Jazeera” TV channel continues to promote the political agendas of Qatar and
Turkey and to show that neither country has abandoned the Brotherhood and both
also intend to maintain their influence among Islamists in certain Arab
countries where they have sought to position themselves since the “Arab spring”
upheaval.
Islamist
groups’ expert Munir Adib said Ankara is expected to continue its action
against the Brotherhood TV channels pending the outcome of the political
rapprochement between Turkey and the Arab countries.
High
among Turkey’s concerns are its economic crisis and the need to secure more
investments from Arab Gulf countries, analysts say. This focus, they add, does
do not serve the interests of the Muslim Brotherhood nor of its relations with
Ankara.
Erdoğan
now seeks to further boost ties not only with Saudi Arabia and the UAE but also
with Egypt even if it means further undermining the Muslim Brotherhood’s
regional propaganda operations.
Source:
Ahval News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://ahvalnews.com/turkey-egypt/turkey-closing-mekameleen-signals-end-era-muslim-brotherhood
--------
Israeli
police enter al-Aqsa Mosque as Jewish visits resume
05
May ,2022
Israeli
police entered a flashpoint holy site in Jerusalem to clear away Palestinian
protesters on Thursday, after Jewish visits that had been paused for the Muslim
holidays resumed.
Recent
weeks have seen several rounds of clashes at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, the
third holiest site for Muslims, which is built on a hilltop that is the holiest
site for Jews, who refer to it as the Temple Mount. It lies at the emotional
heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
As
the visits resumed, dozens of Palestinians gathered, chanting “God is
greatest.” Scuffles broke out when the police went to arrest one of them.
Police fired rubber-coated bullets on the sprawling esplanade as some
Palestinians sheltered inside the mosque itself. The police could later be seen
just inside an entrance to the mosque.
The
police said they responded to dozens of people who were shouting incitement and
throwing stones, and that one police officer was lightly injured.
But
unlike in previous confrontations, Palestinian witnesses said there was no sign
of rock-throwing initially. Some of those who sheltered inside the mosque began
throwing stones when police started to enter the building. The witnesses spoke
on condition of anonymity because of security concerns.
Under
informal arrangements known as the status quo, Jews are allowed to visit the
site but not pray there. In recent years, they have visited in ever-increasing
numbers with police escorts and many have discreetly prayed, angering the
Palestinians as well as neighboring Jordan, which is the custodian of the site.
The Palestinians have long feared that Israel plans to eventually take over the
site or partition it.
Israel
says it is committed to maintaining the status quo, and accuses the group Hamas
of inciting the recent violence.
The
visits, by mostly nationalist and religious Jews, resumed Thursday after being
paused for the last 10 days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the Eid
al-Fitr holiday.
Thursday
is also Israel’s Independence Day, and in recent days fringe groups had called
on Jewish worshippers to celebrate by waving Israeli flags at the holy site.
The calls were widely circulated by Palestinians on social media, along with
calls to confront any such display.
Hussein
al-Sheikh, a senior Palestinian official who serves as the main liaison between
the Palestinian Authority and Israel, tweeted about the controversy, saying
that raising the flag would show “outrageous disregard” for Palestinian
feelings and mark the “continuation of extremist racist campaigns.”
Hamas
warned Wednesday that Israel was “playing with fire and dragging the region
into an escalation for which the occupation bears full responsibility.”
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Islamic
Jihad claims new drones made in Gaza
May
5, 2022
GAZA
CITY, Gaza Strip — As part of their ongoing military preparations and less than
a year after the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip in May 2021, the military
factions in the Gaza Strip continue to threaten to respond to Israeli actions
in the Palestinian territories using new military equipment they are
developing.
Al-Quds
Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad, announced April 28 having locally
manufactured, for the first time, a new drone it called the “Jenin drones” to
carry out attacks against Israel.
Islamic
Jihad made the announcement in a video posted on its website, showing an
earlier version of the new drone, which it had used against Israeli military
vehicles stationed near the border with Gaza in September 2019. The video
footage shows the drone dropping an explosive device from a medium altitude
range, before returning to the Gaza Strip safely.
Later,
the video shows members of the brigade equipping the drone with small-sized
missiles at the headquarters of Al-Quds Brigades, showing that the drone is now
able to carry more advanced military bombs than before.
In
another video released April 28, on the eve of International Quds Day, which
falls on the last Friday of Ramadan every year, Al-Quds Brigades’ spokesman Abu
Hamza said that the Jenin drone became part of the brigades’ air force that
Islamic Jihad continues to develop inside the besieged Gaza Strip since 2007.
Abu
Hamza continued, “Three years after using the drone in Gaza its capacity today
is not the same as it was three years ago. The armed Palestinian resistance
possess defensive and offensive capabilities.”
This
is the first time that Al-Quds Brigades announces the introduction of drones to
its own arsenal to target Israeli military sites at the Gaza border.
Izz
ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, announced during the May 2021
conflict with Israel the use of the locally made drone known as Shehab.
Al-Qassam
Brigades first revealed the use of Palestinian-made drones — dubbed “Ababil 1”
— during the confrontation with Israel in the 2014 war. Back then, however, it
seemed the announcement was more of a propaganda.
Two
years later, on Dec. 15, 2016, unidentified gunmen shot dead Tunisian engineer
Mohamed Zouari, who specialized in the manufacture of drones. The Israeli
Mossad turned out to be behind the assassination of Zouari over his role in
developing drones for military purposes for Hamas.
Israel
sees the Palestinian drones as another threat, in addition to the rockets fired
from the Gaza Strip and the military tunnels.
In
April, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced that the Israeli army
would deploy an experimental laser interception system on the Gaza border to
intercept rockets, anti-tank missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). This
system is called the “Iron Beam.”
Bennett
made the announcement in an April 14 tweet. “This may sound like science
fiction, but it’s real,” he wrote, describing the new technology as a “game
changer.”
He
continued that the laser system is “the world’s first energy-based weapons
system that has proven to actually work. The Iron Beam’s interceptions are
silent, they’re invisible and they only cost around $3.50.”
The
defense system is said to be deployed on land, in the air and at sea, according
to Republic World.
It
seems the Islamic Jihad’s announcement on the eve of International Quds Day
came as an indirect message to thank Iran for its support. Quds Day was
initiated by the late leader of the Iranian Revolution, Ayatollah Khomeini, in
1979 to be celebrated annually on the last Friday of Ramadan, in support of
Palestinians against the Israeli occupation.
On
April 29, thousands of people took to the streets simultaneously in Tehran and
the Gaza Strip, organized by Islamic Jihad, to commemorate International Quds
Day, after a two-year halt due to the coronavirus pandemic.
While
Iran supports the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon with Iran-made
drones, it backs the Palestinian factions on the logistic and moral levels due
to the Israeli siege that has been imposed on Gaza since 2007.
The
blockade, which prevented Iranian weapons from entering the enclave, has pushed
Hamas and Islamic Jihad to manufacture drones locally, using the knowledge and
support provided by Iran and other countries.
In
an April 29 televised speech marking Quds Day, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah
Ali Khamenei said, “The Islamic Republic of Iran continues to support and backs
the Palestinian resistance front.”
The
types of drones in Gaza are divided into reconnaissance and combat drones.
Military
analyst and former PLO artillery unit commander Wasef Erekat told Al-Monitor,
“The resistance factions in Gaza have managed to manufacture a large number of
UAVs, some of which collect images and information about the Israeli forces
deployed on the borders. These can carry 10-20 kilograms [22-44 pounds] of
explosives. Another type of locally made drone can carry up to 200 kilograms
[441 pounds] of explosives.”
He
added, “There is a remarkable development in the types of Palestinian drones,
some of which can reach longer distances and carry explosives. They have a
higher efficiency than incendiary balloons that were launched from Gaza and
disturbed Israel over the past years.”
Erekat
said that the Israeli army has repeatedly intercepted several drones on the
Gaza border while they were on reconnaissance missions to collect information,
whether for the benefit of Hamas or Islamic Jihad.
Source:
Al Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/05/islamic-jihad-claims-new-drones-made-gaza
--------
Iranian
minister threatens Afghan refugees over census
Adam
Lucente
May
5, 2022
An
Iranian minister said today that Afghan refugees in the country must
participate in the census.
Interior
Minister Ahmad Vahidi said that not participating in the census is “illegal”
and “called on the Afghan nationals to cooperate.” The government wants to
determine exactly how many Afghans are in Iran in light of the influx following
the Taliban takeover last year, the official Islamic Republic News Agency
reported today.
Iran
conducts censuses every few years to determine the size of its population.
Why
it matters: The move could complicate an already complex relationship between
the Islamic Republic and the Taliban. Iran has had mixed relations with the
radical Islamist group since they emerged in Afghanistan in the 1990s, and
Iranian politicians are divided on how to deal with them. Following the Taliban
victory last year over the previous US-backed government, Iran sought to
establish relations. Taliban diplomats are now stationed at the Afghan embassy
in Tehran.
The
relationship has not been without its issues so far. Last month, Iran closed
consulates in Afghanistan after protests there against the treatment of Afghan
refugees in Iran.
Around
780,000 Afghan refugees are currently in Iran, according to the United Nations.
This
is not the first time the refugees have been targeted by the Iranian
government. Tens of thousands of Afghans who fled the Taliban were deported
from Iran last year, per the UN. Refugees have also reported facing hunger and
abuse in Iran.
Source:
Al Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/05/iranian-minister-threatens-afghan-refugees-over-census
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Muslim
party may resume membership in Israeli coalition
Mazal
Mualem
May
4, 2022
Ra’am
party chairman Mansour Abbas was in Jordan April 28 for a meeting in the palace
with King Abdullah II. Abbas had been invited to attend a Ramadan Iftar diner,
but once the meal was over, he and the king discussed the implications of
clashes between worshippers and Israeli security forces in the al-Aqsa mosque
compound. Abbas was the first Israeli political figure to meet with the king
since the beginning of the current tensions on Temple Mount.
In
Israel, every meeting with the Jordanian king scores positive political points,
especially with Israeli Arabs. That makes it clear why Prime Minister Naftali
Bennett approved the trip. Bennett’s future, and the future of the coalition,
depends on Abbas. Thus, a meeting in the palace, which benefits the Ra’am
leader, has internal political implications in Israel.
When
the Knesset returns from its spring recess May 9, the coalition will face a
major fight for survival. It lost its slender majority April 6, when Knesset
Member Idit Silman of Yamina resigned.
Topping
this coalition disaster was the April 17 decision by Ra’am’s religious
leadership, the Shura Council, to provisionally freeze all party activities in
the coalition, to protest Israeli aggression on the Temple Mount. It later
emerged that the decision was coordinated between Abbas and Foreign Minister
Yair Lapid. This unprecedented formula allowed the party to alleviate some of
the public pressure it was facing in the wake of events on the Temple Mount.
That
in itself was hardly a good sign for the troubled coalition. Ra’am was actually
signaling that it is in trouble: If it fails to obtain benefits for its
electorate, it will be forced to leave the coalition. That would mean the
immediate collapse of the current government.
Abbas
now holds the keys to the coalition’s continued survival. He is also under
enormous pressure from certain factions in his party, who want to end their
partnership with the government. He is working to prevent that, but with no
assurance of success.
The
meeting between Abbas and the king could help stabilize the coalition by
allowing Ra’am to renege, even slightly, on its total freeze on Knesset
activity.
Abbas
is telling his religious Muslim base is that he remains committed to them, and
to their interests regarding the al-Aqsa mosque. After all, Jordan is
considered the guardian of the holy Muslim sites in Jerusalem. A visit to the
palace indicates the key role Abbas plays in determining Israeli policy, as
well as the respect he has earned from King Abdullah.
On
the other hand, pictures alone are not enough to calm the unrest among the
Arab-Israeli sector, incited by Abbas’ arch-rivals in the Knesset, the Arab
Joint List. Abbas must prove that he has achieved something from his
partnership with the government, which is why he met with Lapid last week and
with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on Sunday. He wanted to reach an agreement
with them to rejoin the coalition.
According
to reports from these meetings, Abbas presented a list of conditions to Lapid
and Bennett, including the immediate transfer of the infrastructure and
construction budgets for the Arab sector that were promised to him in the
coalition negotiations; the immediate recognition of the unrecognized Bedouin
villages in the Negev; and an increased Jordanian presence on the Temple Mount.
People close to Bennett have made it clear that they have no intention of
agreeing to this third condition.
As
a result of Abbas’ meetings, senior members of the coalition anticipate that at
its May 15 meeting, the Shura Council will ease up on its complete freeze on
Ra’am’s participation in the coalition, though it will instruct him to do so
gradually.
It
is clearly in Abbas’s interest to continue his party’s partnership with the
coalition. The fact that the party, under his leadership, is part of the ruling
government is a historic first, whereas if the coalition falls, he will face a
new election without having obtained any real benefits for the Arab sector.
The
tense verbal exchanges between Abbas and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza also
carry implications for the coalition’s survival. On Saturday, less than a day
after the shooting of a security guard in the West Bank settlement of Ariel,
Sinwar accused Abbas of treason for being part of the coalition. “Serving as a
safety net for this government is a crime for which you [Abbas] will never be
forgiven. You are rejecting your religion, your Arab identity, and your
national identity.”
Abbas
did not hold back. He first said, “We won’t be scolded by him,” and in a
different interview said Ra'am believes that "the processes of partnership
and tolerance that we are leading in Israel will bring peace between Israel and
the Palestinian people closer.”
Senior
member of the coalition sighed in relief. Abbas did not succumb to Sinwar’s
pressure, nor did he apologize. On the other hand, they are also aware that the
Arab sector in Israel hears all this criticism, and that at least some members
of the community are influenced by it.
Opposition
parties on the right, however, claimed that the Temple Mount is now being
controlled by Abbas, Sinwar, and King Abdullah. This also has an impact on
coalition members from the right, who are subject to pressures of their own
from their electorate.
Bennett’s
Yamina party is uneasy because of this. Reports say Knesset member Nir Orbach
admitted privately that he is facing a complicated situation, which he finds
difficult personally. He was further quoted as expecting the government to help
with certain achievements to benefit the right, which he can then present to
his religious nationalist electorate.
To
what degree do the members of Yamina really feel that the end is near? Interior
Minister Ayelet Shaked, who is number two in the Yamina party, held a meeting
recently with the staff of her ministry and other political figures,
instructing them to prepare to “clear their desks.” Shaked believes that the
coalition will survive for only a short time, so she wants them to complete the
major reforms that she promoted.
Source:
Al Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/05/muslim-party-may-resume-membership-israeli-coalition
--------
Iran:
Ball in US Court to Compensate for Trump's Illegal Moves
2022-May-4
"It
is the US side that must take action to redress Trump’s illegal moves by
adopting a realistic approach and moving toward a political initiative,"
Amir Abdollahian said during the phone talk.
"Iran
will also continue down the path of diplomacy to reach a deal while
safeguarding its red lines," he added.
Amir
Abdollahian then spoke about the recent visit by Ireland’s foreign minister to
Tehran.
The
top Iranian diplomat thanked Coveney for his constructive efforts, saying that
in addition to political initiatives, the Islamic Republic of Iran has on
numerous occasions shown the required resolve to reach a good, robust and
lasting agreement in the sanctions removal talks.
The
Iranian foreign minister, meantime, referred to the Ukraine crisis, and said,
"I have twice conveyed the messages of the Ukrainian foreign minister to
my Russian counterpart. We are opposed to war and the displacement of human
beings in Ukraine, Yemen, Palestine, Afghanistan, and other parts of the world
and believe that everyone must move toward political solutions to establish
lasting peace and security."
During
the phone call, the top Irish diplomat described the rising international
tensions as a result of the Ukraine war as worrying.
Coveney
called the Islamic Republic of Iran’s initiatives over the course of the
negotiations praiseworthy and underscored the need to reach a good deal that
will fulfill Iran’s demands and those of the other parties to the Vienna talks.
The
Irish foreign minister added that his country will spare no efforts to reduce
international tensions, especially regarding the conclusion of a nuclear deal.
Amir
Abdollahian and his Irish counterpart stressed the necessity of pursuing the
process of expanding Iran-Ireland bilateral ties and also continuing
consultations with each other.
In
a relevant development in mid-March, Iranian President Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi in
a message to his Irish counterpart Michael D. Higgins called for the expansion
of mutual cooperation between Tehran and Dublin in different fields.
"Relations
between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Ireland have always
been friendly and based on mutual respect," President Rayeesi said in his
message to his Irish counterprt to congratulate him on the anniversary of that
country's independence.
He
also expressed hope that the positive attitude of the two countries' officials
will lead to the further growth and development of relations between the two
countries.
"The
Republic of Ireland's valuable approach to the pursuit of peace and
multilateralism and its non-permanent presence in the Security Council have
given rise to the hope that we will see effective steps towards the promotion
of world peace and stability and the development of international security,"
President Rayeesi added.
The
Iranian president also wished his Irish counterpart health and success, and the
people of the Republic of Ireland prosperity.
In
a relevant development in mid-December 2018, Iranian and Irish heads of the
parliamentary friendship groups issued a joint statement, stressing the need to
expand bilateral cooperation.
We
acknowledge the privileged opportunities and capabilities that exist for the
development of cooperation between Iran and Ireland. These capacities and
opportunities need to be realized in a variety of political, economic,
commercial, scientific and cultural fields, the statement reads.
It
adds that "the current volume of annual trade exchanges between Iran and
Ireland is about €140 million, which is not proportionate to the capacities and
capabilities of both sides. Supporting more trade and economic cooperation is
prerequisite for strengthening relations between the two countries”.
"We
have common views on important international issues, including the elimination
of weapons of mass destruction, the promotion of multilateralism, opposition to
unilateralism and the fight against terrorism," said Iran and Ireland
heads of parliamentary friendship groups in the statement.
"Iran
and Ireland attach great importance to the diplomatic and peaceful resolution
of regional and international crises," the statement concludes.
In
a relevant development in March 2018, Iranian Ambassador to Dublin Javad
Kachouiyan and Chairman of Ireland's Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade
Brendan Smith in a meeting underlined the two countries' enthusiasm for the
further broadening of relations and cooperation in all fields, specially
economic spheres.
During
the meeting, they exchanged views on promoting bilateral relations and mutual
cooperation, especially in economic, trade and parliamentary fields.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14010214000325/Iran-Ball-in-US-Cr-Cmpensae-fr-Trmp's-Illegal-Mves
--------
Swedish-Iranian
to be executed on spying charges by May 21: Report
04
May ,2022
A
Swedish-Iranian national sentenced to death in Iran on charges of spying for
Israel is to be executed this month, Iran’s ISNA news agency said on Wednesday,
as the trial of a former Iranian official suspected of war crimes ended in
Sweden.
Ahmadreza
Djalali, a disaster medicine doctor and researcher, was arrested in 2016 on an
academic visit to Iran and is to be executed by May 21, the semi-official ISNA
said, citing sources.
Iran’s
judiciary has yet to comment on the report. The Swedish foreign ministry did
not immediately comment, but Sweden has in the past condemned Djalali’s death
sentence.
The
announcement came shortly before the trial of Hamid Noury, a former Iranian
prosecution official arrested by Swedish authorities in 2019, ended in
Stockholm. A verdict has yet to be announced.
If
found guilty, Noury faces a maximum life sentence on charges of international
war crimes and human rights abuses
Noury
is accused of playing a leading role in the killing of political prisoners
executed on government orders at the Gohardasht prison in Karaj, Iran, in 1988.
Amnesty International has put the number executed at some 5,000, saying in a
2018 report that “the real number could be higher”.
Under
Swedish law, courts can try Swedish citizens and other nationals for crimes
against international law committed abroad.
On
Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry summoned the Swedish envoy to protest “the
baseless and fabricated accusations that the Swedish prosecutor made against
Iran during Noury’s court case”, Iranian media reported earlier.
Last
year, the UN investigator on human rights in Iran called for an independent
inquiry into allegations of the 1988 state-ordered executions and the role
played by President Ebrahim Raisi as then Tehran deputy prosecutor.
Raisi,
when asked about the allegations, told reporters after his election in June
that he had defended national security and human rights.
Iran’s
elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals in recent
years, mostly on espionage charges. Rights activists have accused Iran of using
them as bargaining chips. Iran, which does not recognize dual nationality,
denies taking prisoners to gain diplomatic leverage.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/love-jihad-minorities-interfaith-marriage/d/126937