Muslim Boy Assaulted For Not Chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ In Madhya Pradesh, One Booked
New Age Islam News Bureau
30 December 2022
Muslim Boy Assaulted For Not
Chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ In Madhya Pradesh, One Booked
----
• UK Counter-Terror Prevent Scheme To Downplay
Far-Right Threat And Strengthen Anti-Muslim Scapegoating Under The Cover Of
Combatting Islamic Extremism
• Pakistan Army Resolves To Fight Back As Baloch
Separatists And Islamic Zealots Link Up
• OIC Chief Calls For Muslim World To Mobilize Against
Taliban Ban On Female Education
• Palestinians Fretful As Netanyahu Returns As PM Of
Israel’s Most Far-Right Cabinet
India
• 'Pakistan Should Take Care Of Minorities': India
Amid Reports Of Hindu Woman's Beheading
• Indian realtor among 3 bidders for Pakistani
diplomatic property in Washington DC
• 500 Most Influential Muslims 2023: Mahmood Madani,
Aisha Bewley Top List
• Sheezan Khan consumed drugs, slapped Tunisha Sharma
on sets, claims mother Vanita
--------
Europe
• Great Mosque Of Paris Files Complaint Against Michel
Houellebecq's 'Brutal' Islamophobic Remarks
• 'Fatwa' Against Churchill: Scholars Accuse BBC Of
Trying To Rewrite British History To Promote A 'Woke Agenda'
• Funds secured for restoration of burned Bayezid
Mosque
• Missed chance: UK considered supporting US strike on
Bin Laden months before 9/11
• Türkiye foils Greek plans to decimate Muslim
cemetery in W. Thrace
• Funeral held for Muslim man mistakenly cremated in
Germany
• French singer Julien Drolon embraced Islam after
walking 1000 km to find God
• Russia’s Putin welcomes return to power of Israel’s
Netanyahu
--------
Pakistan
• Pak National Assembly Speaker rejects PTI's demand
of en masse resignations
• Pakistan's Afghan policy failing in the face of an
assertive Taliban
• PM Shehbaz chairs NSC meeting amid rising terror
incidents
• Pakistan, Turkish FMs resolve to work together for
regional peace, prosperity
• Three soldiers martyred in exchange of fire with
terrorists in Kurram
• Muslim rulers do not care about public opinion, says
Imran Khan
--------
South Asia
• Fleeing Afghan Journalists Live in Limbo in
Pakistan, Iran
• Norwegian Refugee Council Chief Urges West to Engage
with Islamic Emirate
• Delivering Humanitarian Aid in Afghanistan to
Continue: UN
• Afghanistan Remains an Important Focus of Pakistan’s
Foreign Policy
--------
Mideast
• Jordanian Monarch Warns Of 'New Intifada’ Amid
Israel's Intensified Crimes Against Palestinians
• Palestinians to intensify resistance against
Israel’s settlement expansion: Hamas
• Iran, Hezbollah, Syria Sole Supporters Of
Palestinians: Islamic Jihad Chief
• Israeli Envoy To France Resigns In Protest Of New
Netanyahu Gov't
• Palestinian forces urged to unite against Netanyahu
regime
• Record number of Israeli settlers stormed al-Aqsa
Mosque compound in 2022: Official
--------
Southeast Asia
• Muslim Radicals Halt Christmas Celebrations In
Indonesia; President Visits Churches
• Risking death at sea, Rohingya Muslims seek safety
in Indonesia
• Al Jabbar Mosque as new landmark to promote West
Java
--------
Arab World
• Egypt’s President Backs Bigger Private Role In Line
With IMF Demands
• Saudi Arabia: 100 new Muslim converts perform Umrah
• At least 10 workers killed in attack near oil field
in Syria’s Deir Ezzor
• Syria’s Kurds launch offensive against ISIS after
deadly prison attack
• Dubai court authorizes jailed Brit’s fraud
extradition: Lawyers
• Edutainment for kids, adults at Riyadh Toy Festival
• Ten oil field workers killed in Syria attack: State
media
--------
Africa
• Former President of Niger, Grand Mufti of the
Caucasus join Muslim Council of Elders in 2022
• UN denies support for forming new gov’t in Libya
• More children suffering from malnutrition in Somalia
amid looming famine
• Turkish government support to South Sudan since
independence totals $10 million
• Over 42,000 people displaced in South Sudan communal
violence: Official
• UN: 30,000 flee ethnic violence in South Sudan
--------
North America
• US Killed Almost 700 ISIS Operatives In Iraq, Syria
In 2022: Central Command
• Biden warns Netanyahu US will oppose Israeli
policies that endanger the two-state solution
• Biden says looks forward to working with Netanyahu,
supports two-state solution
• Türkiye's foreign minister to attend Sunday
inauguration of Brazil's president-elect
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/muslim-assaulted-jai-shri-ram-/d/128755
--------
Muslim Boy Assaulted For Not Chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’
In Madhya Pradesh, One Booked
Muslim Boy Assaulted For Not
Chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ In Madhya Pradesh, One Booked
----
Dec 30, 2022
Police have booked a 22-year-old man in Madhya
Pradesh’s Khandwa for assaulting a 10-year-old Muslim boy. The man allegedly
stopped the boy, a Class 5 student, who was on his way to his tuition classes,
forced him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’, and slapped the boy on his cheeks when he
did not speak.
Pandhana Police registered a case against the man
under Sections 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage
religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs)
and 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code
(IPC).
Khadwa DSP Anil Chauhan said Pandhana police station
received a complaint where a 10-year-old child’s father said that when the
child was going to tuition, Ajay alias Raju Bhil stopped him on the way and
forced him to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’.
After deliberation, action will be taken, he added.
The family of the victim told police that their child
was preparing for Navodaya Vidyalaya and was taking tuition for it. They said
Ajay alias Raju's father, Laxman Bhil, who knew the child, stopped him near
Durga Colony.
Source: India Today
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
UK Counter-Terror Prevent Scheme To Downplay Far-Right
Threat And Strengthen Anti-Muslim Scapegoating Under The Cover Of Combatting
Islamic Extremism
William Shawcross [Photo: UK Government]
----
Thomas Scripps
A row is underway in Britain’s ruling Conservative
Party over a soon-to-be-published review into the Prevent counter-terror
scheme. It shines a light on the government’s plans to double down on the
scapegoating of Muslims and speed the establishment of a state surveillance
infrastructure under the cover of combatting Islamic extremism. This is
combined with efforts to downplay the danger of the far-right.
Originally commissioned in January 2019, the review
has been subject to repeated delays. The latest is an argument between Home
Secretary Suella Braverman and Communities SecretaryMichael Gove, who will be
responsible for the day-to-day administration of the scheme.
Braverman is reportedly concerned that the report is
so unguarded in its denunciation of “extremist” organisations, or organisations
supporting “extremist narratives”, that the government will be hit with costly
libel suits. She is insisting names are redacted. Gove wants the text released
in full.
This is a minor difference between two ardent
reactionaries. Braverman—who does not hesitate to demonise migrants, asylum
lawyers and refugee advocacy groups—intends to smooth the implementation of the
review’s recommendations. Gove speaks for those who want as provocative a
crusade as possible.
The review was set up by the government to prepare an
onslaught on democratic rights. It was authored by William Shawcross, a fellow
of the right-wing Policy Exchange thinktank and former director of the
neo-conservative Henry Jackson Society. While director, he commented in 2012,
“Europe and Islam is one of the greatest, most terrifying problems of our
future. I think all European countries have vastly, very quickly growing
Islamic populations.”
Previously, Shawcross had described “Britain’s
humiliation” at the hands of an “immigration free-for-all “and a “bullying
‘multicultural’ ideology” which has “cosseted extremist Islamist preachers of
hatred”. He has referred to “Islamo-fascist” Muslims as a “vast fifth column”
in Europe “who wish to destroy us.”
A fervent supporter of the illegal invasion of Iraq,
his 2011 book Justice and the Enemy perverts the post-WWII Nuremburg Trials of
Nazi leaders into a grotesque defence of “the war on terror”, extraordinary
rendition and the use of torture in Guantanamo Bay.
Amnesty International and 16 other groups boycotted
the review over Shawcross’s involvement, publishing an open letter stating that
“the UK government has no interest in conducting an objective and impartial
review of” Prevent.
Shawcross was appointed after the government’s first
choice, Lord Carlile, was forced to step down by a legal challenge led by
Rights Watch UK over his “close ties with and publicly declared support for the
Prevent strategy,” in the words of rights group Liberty.
The Shawcross Review on Islamism and the far-right
Carlile and Shawcross were selected to defend and
extenda discredited programme broadly seen for the attack on democratic
rightsit is, and to deal with the inconvenient factfor the government—that the
scheme is flagging up the growth of far-right, fascist forces.
According to leaked material from the review, Prevent
is criticised for being too weak, with the report arguing, the scheme “too
often bestows a status of victimhood on all who come into contact with it”. In
the words of the Guardian, shown the leaked text, “it says a more hardline
approach should be taken towards Islamist extremism”.
This means widening the focus of the programme to
target broader sections of the population. The Guardian writes that Shawcross
is critical of Prevent having “concentrated on proscribed organisations” while,
in the report’s extremely loose phrase, “ignoring Islamist narratives”.
Among these is a complained-of campaign “driven by a
number of Islamist groups to undermine and delegitimise Prevent”, including by
“stirring up grievance and mistrust” towards the scheme.
According to the Telegraph, the Shawcross report
praises the current legal duty of school and other public sector workers to
report people, including children, to the Prevent scheme as one which “works
well”, and “especially… in schools.” It suggests extending the requirement to
cover immigration officials and staff in job centres.
The report then takes aim at Prevent’s alleged “double
standard when dealing with extreme right-wing and Islamism”. Shawcross writes
that Islamist extremists are “severely under-represented” in referrals to
Prevent because officials are putting a focus on right-wing extremism “above
and beyond the actual threat it pose[s].” This is attributed to an effort to
“try and fend off accusations” that Prevent is “stigmatising minority
communities”.
The latest figures, for the year to March 31, 2021,
show 4,915 referrals to Prevent—1,333 of which were passed to a panel for
consideration, with 688 taken on as cases. Of these cases, 46 percent related
to “Extreme Right-Wing radicalisation”, 30 percent “mixed, unstable or unclear
ideology”, and 22 percent “Islamist radicalisation”. Far-right cases have been
the majority group for each of the last three years.
Among the more serious known cases are those of
neo-Nazi former army driver Dean Morrice, sentenced for 18 years for possession
of explosives and encouraging terrorist offences, and Daniel Wright, Liam Hall,
Stacey Salmon and Samuel Whibley, sentenced to a total of more than 30 years
for possession of a 3D printed gun and encouraging terrorism.
In explaining away these facts, Shawcross complains
that Prevent’s view on right-wing extremism is “so broad it has included mildly
controversial or provocative forms of mainstream, rightwing-leaning commentary”
and that an internal report “listed a prominent Conservative politician and
member of the Government as being among figures ‘associated with far-right
sympathetic audiences’”.
Despite his intentions, this only confirms how the
far-right are given succour by the political establishment and the media,
centred on the government itself. Prevent was created with the deliberate aim
of demonising Muslims while creating the apparatus for surveillance and
intimidation against the working class. The idea that it is zealously
overreaching against the right-wing is laughable. Rather, the extreme lurch to
the right in “mainstream” politics and the media has brought it within the
peripheral view of the scheme and forced a series of reluctant
acknowledgements.
Boris Johnson’s leadership of the Tory Party earned it
the endorsement of fascist group Britain First and fascist activist Tommy
Robinson. Leading Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg had already received a promise of
“protection” from Britain First members in 2018. He has spoken at the annual
dinner of the Traditional Britain group, whose founder, Lord Sudeley, praised
Adolf Hitler at a meeting of the Tory Monday Club, adding, “the fact may be
that some races are superior to others.”
In 2020, top Tory adviser Dominic Cummings hired
eugenicist Andrew Sabisky into the government, whose Social Darwinist views had
been publicly expressed by senior Tory figures before.
In 2019, Rees-Mogg was one of several leading Tories
to endorse an announcement by Turning Point—McCarthyite witch-hunters of
left-wing students and academics—that it intended to set up operations in the
UK. Its founding event was attended by the UK editors of Breitbart and
InfoWars.
Preparation for state repression
Shawcross’s review is intended to help sweep all this
back under the carpet and “refocus” the Prevent scheme on its intended
objectives. Doing so is made more urgent for the ruling class by the escalation
of social and international tensions to a height not seen for decades—an
international strike wave and war with Russia.
Prevent now dovetails with the state-backed “left
antisemitism” campaign, driven by the same concerns, outlawing anti-Zionism by
branding it anti-Jewish hatred. A sympathy with the Palestinians will
presumably be labelled an extremist “Islamist narrative”, as well as
anti-Semitic.
The real guiding principles of both policies were set
out in 2019—the year the Prevent review was ordered—in a report published by
the UK government’s Commission for Countering Extremism (CCE) which declared
large sections of the left “extremist” in clear preparation for a campaign of
state repression.
For now, this proceeds indirectly, under the cover of
Prevent and combatting anti-Semitism. However, in February last year the
government ordered a review of “left-wing extremism” headed by John Woodcock,
Baron Walney—the former Blairite Labour MP who resigned in 2018 protesting a
“left” takeover of the party under Jeremy Corbyn.
This is a closely coordinated state campaign, with the
Labour Party intimately involved. The CCE is headed by Robin Simcox, who
controls the Counter Extremism Group (CEG) think-tank which hosted Gove and
Shawcross this September.
In April 2020, Shawcross was part of a consortium
which bought the Jewish Chronicle—a publication so committed to slandering
Corbyn supporters as anti-Semites that it has had to pay significant damages in
libel suits. The consortium included Woodcock, along with former Prime Minister
Theresa May’s director of communications Robbie Gibb and John Ware, the
producer of the hatchet job “investigation”Is Labour Anti-Semitic?
Woodcock was rewarded by Boris Johnson for his attacks
on the Labour “left” with a peerage and appointed as his Independent Adviser on
Political Violence and Disruption. His political biography is near identical to
that of John Mann, now leading the “left anti-Semitism” witch-hunt.
Across all these operations, planned attacks on the
left are coupled with covering for the far-right—and directed by individuals
with deeply reactionary political connections. Simcox, as reported by the
Byline Times, has spoken at the extreme right-wing Center for Immigration
Studies, which was named a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Centre, and
Heritage Foundation.
Woodcock, on a 2017 trip to Turkey, praised President
Recep Erdoğan’s “fight against terrorism” and met with members of the far-right
Nationalist Movement Party.
A warning of the dangers presented to the working
class by these developments is provided by events in Germany, where the
Socialist Equality Party (Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei) was placed and
remains on the watchlist of the Federal Office for the Protection of the
Constitution (Verfassungsschutz), named as a “left-wing extremist”
organisation. This was done under the direction of Hans-Georg Maassen, a man
intimately connected to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
In the court case taken by the Socialist Equality
Party against the German government, the government has been forced to
effectively admit its intention to re-establish the anti-socialist laws of
Imperial and Nazi Germany.
Source: WSWS
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/12/29/nidw-d29.html
--------
Pakistan
Army Resolves To Fight Back As Baloch Separatists And Islamic Zealots Link Up
Members of Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Photo
Credit: Social media
-----
By
P. K. Balachandran
December
29, 2022
The
separatist Balochistan Liberation Army and the Islamic Tehreek-e-Taliban
Pakistan team up targeting Pakistan’s Security Forces.
Even
as it faces a serious economic downturn, terrorism is dealing Pakistan hard
blows. In the North Western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, Islamic zealots of the
Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are mounting attacks on the security forces.
In the South West, the secular but separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA)
is on the prowl again.
The
latest development is that the TTP, which demands that Pakistan be ruled by
Sharia laws, and the ethnicity-based BLA, have joined hands against the
Pakistani State.
According
to the Inter-Services Public Relations, top army commanders under chief
Gen.Syed Asim Munir met on December 27 and 28 and “resolved to fight against
terrorists without any distinction and eliminate this menace as per aspirations
of the people of Pakistan.” The army’s reaffirmation comes in the wake of a
recent uptick in terrorist attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and in
Balochistan.
Having
lost half of the country through the secession of Bangladesh in 1971, Pakistan
can ill-afford to ignore another armed separatist insurgency. Equally, it
cannot afford to let a Taliban-like violent movement to impose Sharia on it and
turn it into another Afghanistan.
On
the economic front, Pakistan’s outlook dire. It is unable to pay its debts. In
2023 it has to pay back a foreign debt of US$ 26 billion, according to
Bloomberg. Right now, Pakistan has forex only for five weeks’ imports.
Inflation has skyrocketed. And, on top of it all, Pakistan is still to
rehabilitate 30 million people rendered homeless by the recent floods.
Baloch
Insurgency
The
roots of the insurgency in Balochistan lie in decades-long economic grievances.
Balochistan is resource-rich (including gold), but remains very backward. The
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) passes through it to culminate in the
Chinese-built port of Gwadar. But the local Balochis have gained little from
these multi-billion dollar projects. Protests have only led to violent
repression, disappearances and more alienation.
Two
incidents occurred on December 24, in which at least five security men were
killed in Turbat and Chaman. The TTP took responsibility for the Chaman attack.
On Sunday December 25, which was Pakistan’s founder M.A.Jinnah’s birthday and
Christmas, at least six security men were killed. The bloodiest incident
occurred in Kohlu’s Kahan area, when five army men, including a captain, lost their lives in an
IED blast. The BLA claimed responsibility.
Pakistan
has been fighting insurgents in Balochistan since 2004. The BLA is against
China’s investments which they feel have been of no use to them. In May 12,
2019 five people, including a soldier, were killed after BLA gunmen stormed the
only five-star hotel in Gwadar, the port city which Pakistan is hoping to
develop into a major commercial hub. In November 2018, the BLA had attacked the
Chinese Consulate in Karachi in which four persons (not Chinese) were killed.
In April 2022, a BLA female suicide cadre blasted a van carrying Chinese
language teachers in Karachi in which three Chinese were killed. In July 2019,
the US State Department proscribed the BLA.
The
BLA is essentially a secular movement, demanding independence from
Pakistan. But the government’s
non-political and muscular approach has only exacerbated the situation. As the
daily Dawn put it: “Years of policies led by the Establishment to pacify Balochistan
have failed. Therefore, along with kinetic action, the state must also look at
why it has been unable to bring socioeconomic uplift to this resource-rich, but
appallingly poor province.”
Though
basically secular, the BLA has an Islamic touch too. A report in Dawn recalled
that religiously inspired militancy has had a presence in Balochistan for
long. One of the most lethal sectarian
terror groups, the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, (LJ ) operated out of Balochistan at one
time. The Jhangavi’s actions had claimed hundreds of lives. It is suspected
that the cadres of the Jhangvi are now collaborating with the
Tehreek-i-Pakistan (TTP).
The
TTP, on the other hand, are pan-Pakistan Islamic zealots, who want Pakistan’s
constitution to be based on the Sharia. But Pakistan does not want to be
another Afghanistan.
In
November, the TTP had withdrawn from its June 2022 ceasefire agreement with the
Pakistani government. On November 18, the TTP stormed the Counter Terrorism
Department (CTD) office at Bannu in the Khyber Pakhtunkwa Province, held the
police interrogators of its cadres hostage, and demanded safe evacuation to
Afghanistan. This set off alarm bells in Washington too, where the State
Department Spokesman, Ned Price, said that the US will “unconditionally” support
Pakistan in its fight against terrorism.
Unlike
other terrorist groups operating in Pakistan, the TTP has no links with the
Pakistani State. Other terror groups are used by State agencies to carry out
its designs against India, but the government has no leverage over the
TTP.
Pakistan
had witnessed a 51% rise in terrorist attacks in one year since the Taliban
came to power in Afghanistan, Dawn reported, quoting the Islamabad-based think
tank, Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies. The spike in terror incidents saw
the killing of almost 500 people between August 15, 2021 and August 14, 2022,
the report said.
The
nature of the TTP is delineated by Georgetown University’s Abdul Sayed and
Clemson University’s Amira Jadoon in their August 16, 2022 paper: Understanding
Tehrik-e- Taliban Pakistan’s Unrelenting Posture.
Afghan
Taliban’s Role
In
June 2022, the Pakistan government and the TTP entered into a ceasefire
agreement. But the Afghan Taliban remained neutral on the agreement. This was
for two reasons: (1) it had its own problems with Islamabad over the disputed
border, the Durand Line; (2) it was preoccupied with the fight against the
Islamic State of Khorasan (IS-K) within Afghanistan.
At
any rate, the Afghan Taliban, being now in power, did not want to be under the
tutelage of Pakistan though Pakistan had helped it come to power by sheltering
its cadres for years and interceding on its behalf with the US. Opinion on
Pakistan among the Afghan Jihadis was also tainted by Islamabad’s support for
the US War on Terror, which resulted in massive killings.
The
Afghan Taliban’s standoffishness and reservations about Pakistan encouraged the
TTP to take a tough line vis-à-vis Pakistan and eventually break the ceasefire
in November.
Sayed
and Jadoon point to yet another reason for discord between the TTP and
Pakistan: the TTP’s unwillingness to compromise on its demand of reversing the
2018 merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Agencies (FATA) into the
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province in Pakistan. The TTP considers a separate
FATA as essential for asserting the Pakhtuns’ separate identity. The TTP is the
militant voice of the Pakhtuns in Pakistan. But Pakistan’s fear is that if FATA
were restored it will eventually be claimed by Afghanistan, because the Afghan Taliban
are dominated by Pakhtuns.
Exploiting
Popular Alienation
Since
Pakistan’s economy is on a downward spiral, there is widespread alienation from
the government, the political parties and even the military. Continued military
action against militant groups in the tribal areas has affected innocents. This
is exploited by the TTP. The TTP is also exploiting the grievances of ethnic
groups, such as the Baloch, though the Baloch liberation movement is mostly
secular.
Above
all, the TTP is strongly advocating Islamization and the imposition of Sharia
in full, which other political groups, including the avowedly Islamic ones, are
not pressing for fully and with single-minded devotion. According to Sayed and
Jadoon, there is an influential urban intellectual constituency favoring
drastic Islamization as the only way to rescue Pakistan from the current
political, social and economic morass. This appears to be the most worrying
part.
Source:
Eurasia Review
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
OIC
Chief Calls For Muslim World To Mobilize Against Taliban Ban On Female
Education
Photo: https://amu.tv/en/30055/
----
The
Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Hissein
Brahim Taha, on Thursday called on the International Islamic Fiqh Academy
(IIFA) to urgently launch a campaign to unite scholars in the Islamic world
against the Taliban’s decision to ban women from getting an education.
According
to a statement issued late Thursday by the OIC, Taha told the Fiqh Academy “to
quickly launch a global campaign to unite scholars and religious authorities in
the Islamic world against the Taliban government’s decision to prevent girls
from education, including university education, and its other repercussions, and
to explain the true teachings of Islam, which calls for the education of
girls.”
According
to the statement, Taha’s call came at the opening of the second meeting of the
2022 IIFA Bureau, held via video conferencing on Thursday, December 29, 2022.
The
secretary-general chaired the meeting and said: “The decision of the Taliban
government to prevent girls from education, including university education, and
to dismiss female faculty members from their positions on the pretext that this
contradicts Islamic law, was the latest challenge to be reviewed by the IIFA in
addition to issues of minorities, escalating hostility to Muslims in Western
countries, and other pressing issues”.
However,
Taha stressed the priority of the Afghan dossier in the OIC and IIFA agendas.
He also pointed out that the Taliban’s decision was not based on texts in
Islamic law. He also indicated that a team of scholars visited Afghanistan in
June and held extensive meetings with Taliban scholars and government leaders.
He
also stressed that the Taliban’s decision to deprive Afghan females of
education increases misconceptions spread about true Islam.
“It
was agreed that Islam granted women all their rights, including the right to
education and work, explaining that the Taliban’s decision deepens the
fallacies that are spread from which Islam is free,” Taha said.
Taha’s
remarks come amid growing outrage around the world at the Taliban’s increasing
list of orders against women – the latest being a ban on females getting any
education above grade six and the ban on women working for NGOs.
Source:
AMU
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Palestinians
Fretful As Netanyahu Returns As PM Of Israel’s Most Far-Right Cabinet
Benjamin Netanyahu at a vote in the assembly hall of
the Knesset, on Dec. 28, 2022,
------
29
December 2022
Palestinians
have denounced Benjamin Netanyahu’s swearing-in as Israel's prime minister in a
comeback at the head of the Tel Aviv regime’s most far-right cabinet in
history, which has promised to expand illegal settlements in the occupied West
Bank and pursue other anti-Palestinian policies.
Netanyahu,
73, who is facing corruption charges in court, told the parliament, Knesset,
that his top goal would be to thwart Iran's nuclear program and “ensure
Israel's military superiority in the region.”
He
also voiced hopes of expanding the circle of normalization with Arab countries
following US-brokered agreements with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan
and Morocco.
Opponents
heckled him with chants of "Weak! Weak!". They said Netanyahu had to
make costly deals to secure new partners after centrist parties boycotted him
over his legal woes.
The
parliament voted to approve his cabinet and elected former minister Amir Ohana
as the Knesset's speaker.
Former
Israeli intelligence minister Eli Cohen, an architect of the so-called Abraham
Accords, was named as foreign minister.
Moreover,
Israel's new minister of military affairs Yoav Galant is a former general, a
staunch ally of Netanyahu and a vocal advocate of Israeli settlements in the
occupied West Bank.
Netanyahu
was ousted in June 2021 by a motley coalition of leftists, centrists and Arab
parties headed by right-winger Naftali Bennett and former TV news anchor Yair
Lapid. It didn't take him long to come back.
Following
his November 1 election win, Netanyahu entered into talks with ultra-Orthodox
and extreme-right parties.
His
allies include the Religious Zionism formation and Jewish Power Party, whose
leaders Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir oppose Palestinian statehood and
both have a history of inflammatory remarks about Palestinians.
Smotrich
will now take charge of Israeli settlement expansion policies in the West Bank,
and Ben-Gvir will be the national security minister with powers over the
police, which also operate in the occupied territories since 1967.
Senior
security officials have already voiced concern over the new Israeli
administration’s direction, as have Palestinians.
Smotrich
and Ben-Gvir “have a very strong thirst for power,” and their priority remains
the expansion of West Bank settlements, Denis Charbit, professor of political
science at Israel's Open University, said.
The
cabinet is the result of “Netanyahu's political weakness, linked to his age and
his trial,” Charbit added.
Netanyahu's
conservative Likud party said in its guidelines for the new Israeli
administration that it would “promote and develop settlements.”
“These
guidelines constitute a dangerous escalation and will have repercussions for
the region,” Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesman for Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas, said.
Abbas
has criticized Netayahu’s cabinet, saying its “motto is extremism and
apartheid.”
Palestinian
Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh also voiced his disapproval of Israel’s
administration.
“This
cabinet is the most extremist, the most threatening, and the most insolent. I
know for a fact that the international community will not deal with many
members of this administration, therefore to us, we are against all the
cabinets that practice killing and oppression on our people,” Shtayyeh said
during a rally in the occupied central West Bank city of Ramallah.
Moreover,
the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement expressed its dismay with Israel's
new administration.
“It
is clear that a cabinet that is led by Netanyahu and include Smotrich and Ben
Gvir as members, will surely create policies that are far more provocative, it
is tampering with explosives detonators, whether through trying to change the
status quo of al-Aqsa Mosque or the settlement craze that started showing, or
the aggression on prisoners,” Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasem said.
“This
administration has created a wide opportunity for a massive escalation on the
ground, on all fields, and we in Hamas, clearly warn against these policies
that provoke the Palestinian people, and create an explosion detonator,” he
pointed out.
Source:
Press TV
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India
'Pakistan
should take care of minorities': India amid reports of Hindu woman's beheading
Dec
29, 2022
NEW
DELHI: India on Thursday said that Pakistan should take care of its minorities
amid reports of a brutal beheading of a Hindu woman in the neighbouring
country.
"...In
the past too we have said that Pakistan should take care of its minorities and
fulfil its responsibility of their safety, security and well-being. I would
like to reiterate that," MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said after a
40-year-old Hindu woman was beheaded in Pakistan's Sindh on Wednesday.
Bagchi
added he does not have a detailed report on the specific incident.
Earlier,
Krishna Kumari, senator of Pakistan Peoples Party from Tharparkar Sindh, rushed
to the village and confirmed the news of the brutal murder of the Hindu woman.
"Daya
Bheel, 40-year-old widow brutally murdered and her body was found in very bad
condition. Her head was separated from the body and the savages had removed the
flesh from the whole head. Visited her village Police teams from Sinjhoro and
Shahpurchakar also reached," she tweeted.
"Daya
Bheel, who was brutally murdered -- her case won't be highlighted in the media,
nor will Politicians in Islamabad or the Sindh government issue a statement.
Will the police apprehend culprits? Will Hindus be treated as equal citizens in
their motherland Sindh? tweeted The Rise News, a nonprofit news organization.
Recently,
the UK government this month imposed sanctions on its Muslim cleric Mian Abdul
Haq for forced conversions and marriages of girls and women from religious
minorities, according to a Toronto-based think tank.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Indian
realtor among 3 bidders for Pakistani diplomatic property in Washington DC
Dec
29, 2022
NEW
DELHI: An Indian realtor has bid $5 million (Rs 41.42 crore) for a Pakistani
diplomatic property located in Washington DC. The building once housed the
defence section of Pakistan's embassy in the US capital, said a report in The
Dawn.
The
highest bid of almost $6.8 million (Rs 56.33 crore) is a Jewish group that
plans to build a synagogue in the building. "The third bidder with about
$4 million ( ₹33.13 core) is a Pakistani realtor," said the report, citing
Pakistani diplomatic source.
The
building, located on R Street NW, is one of three properties owned by the
Pakistani embassy in Washington DC. After photos of the present and old
Pakistani embassy flooded social media with reports claiming they were up for
sale as well, officials clarified that this was not true.
The
current embassy is in a new building constructed in the early 2000s, the old
one was on Massachusetts Avenue.
The
Pakistan embassy moved to the new building in the early 2000s. Islamabad,
however, kept the old building and has reportedly spent around $7 million on
its renovation. The R Street building, however, is reportedly in a dilapidated
condition. Nearby residents have even complained about it being a security
hazard.
The
building was bought by then-Pakistani ambassador Syed Amjad Ali between 1953
and 1956.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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500
Most Influential Muslims 2023: Mahmood Madani, Aisha Bewley top list
Sakina
Fatima
29th
December 2022
The
list of 500 influential Muslim personalities in the world has been released for
the year 2023. In this, Maulana Mahmood A Madani, the President of Indian
Islamic and Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (JUH) and Aisha Bewley, a renowned
Arabic-English translator have been named Persons of the Year— 2023.
The
Persons of the Year— man and woman are recognized for their significant
contributions in the past year or over their lifetime.
This
list has been released by Muslims 500 and the Islamic NGO ‘The Royal All Al
Bait Institute for Islamic Thought’ (RABIIT), whose headquarter is in Amman,
the capital of Jordan
Man
of the Year— Maulana Mahmood A Madani
Maulana
Mahmood Madani, President of Indian Islamic and Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, is placed
15th on the list and has been given the title of Man of the Year.
Maulana
Mahmood Madani is an Islamic scholar, public speaker, social worker and
preacher of Islamic humanitarian values, tolerance, and peace.
Madani
was born on March 3, 1964 in Deoband, Uttar Pradesh.
His
grandfather Hussain Ahmed was a freedom fighter and head of Darul Uloom. Madani
studied at Darul Uloom Deoband Islamic Madrasa. After graduation in 1992, he
moved ahead in the business field but after some time he started walking on the
path of social service and politics.
Maulana
Mahmood Madani, associated with social work for a long time, received considerable
recognition for his relief work after the 2001 earthquake in Gujarat. After the
ethnoreligious violence in 2002, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind launched a campaign for
relief work under the leadership of Maulana Mahmood Madani.
This
relief work had further increased his stature. He was elected General Secretary
of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind from 2001 to 2008.
Maulana
Mahmood Madani started his political career with the Samajwadi Party after he
was recognised for his social and political work. Madani was a Rajya Sabha member
from Uttar Pradesh from 2006 to 2012.
Maulana
Madani has also raised his voice against issues like the Citizenship
(Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
He
also played an important role in starting the nationwide protest against the
CAA. During that time protests were held at more than 1000 places across the
country. In a TV program, he had said, ‘We are not restless, we are choosy
Indians. We chose India’.
Through
the platform of JUH, he has fought the twin battles of condemning terrorism in
all its forms as well as calling out those who would use the issue to scapegoat
the Muslim community.
He
has defended hundreds of cases of Muslims who have been falsely implicated in
terror cases. He has also taken on other cases with regard to securing the
rights of Indian Muslims (including the right to citizenship, and the right to
practice religious duties).
Coupled
with this defence of Muslim rights, Maulana Madani has always been a vocal
supporter of unity in diversity and has consistently emphasised harmonious
relations between different faiths in India.
Woman
of the Year— Aisha Bewley
Aisha
Bewley has been named the Woman of the Year in the 2023 edition of the Muslim
500, after being recognised for her immense work and contributions to Islamic
scholarship.
Aisha
Abdurrahman Bewley, born in the United States in 1948, is one of the world’s
most prolific and accomplished translators of classical Islamic works from
Arabic to English.
After
converting to Islam in 1968, she has spent the past five decades faithfully
learning the Islamic tradition and making its key texts available to the global
English-speaking Muslim community, sometimes in collaboration with her husband,
Abdalhaqq Bewley, with whom she translated The Noble Quran.
She
received a master’s degree in Near Eastern languages from the University of
California, Berkley and continued her studies at the American University in
Cairo.
Since
graduating, Bewley has worked tirelessly to make Islamic literature accessible
to the English-speaking Muslim community.
Her
greatest achievement was translating the Holy Quran into English with the
support of her husband, Abdalhaqq Bewley. Both worked on the project for
several years, after which the entire translation was published under the title
“The Noble Quran”.
A
majority of her works have been published for free online. Students, teachers,
and many alumni have turned to the internet for its resources at no cost.
The
subjects she has covered in translation and in her own writings range from the
Noble Quran, translation of the Quran (tafsir), Hadith, works on Islamic law,
Sufism, and Islamic history among others.
Source:
Siasat Daliy
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Sheezan
Khan consumed drugs, slapped Tunisha Sharma on sets, claims mother Vanita
Dec
30, 2022
Tunisha
Sharma’s suicide has shocked the nation. The actress hanged herself in the
make-up room of her co-star and former boyfriend Sheezan Khan. While he is
under police custody until December 30, Tunisha’s mother Vanita Sharma made
shocking claims about Sheezan in a press conference. She alleged that he
consumed drugs on the sets and also forced Tunisha to follow Islam.
'SHEEZAN
FORCED TUNISHA TO FOLLOW ISLAM'
Tunisha
Sharma died by suicide on December 24. The 20-year-old actress’ funeral took
place on December 27. While Sheezan continues to be under police custody,
Tunisha’s mother Vanita Sharma made shocking claims about their relationship.
In a press conference, she alleged that Tunisha once checked Sheezan's phone.
Apparently, Tunisha caught her speaking to some other girl, post which, both
had a fight. Vanita claimed that they broke up because of this.
She
also said that Tunisha died by suicide in Sheezan's room. Vanita alleged that
she may have been alive after breaking the door of that room but Sheezan may
have left her to die.
She
also claimed that Tunisha informed her that Sheezan used to consume drugs on
the sets. “There were changes in Tunisha's behaviour. Sheezan forced her to
follow Islam. She also posted on her Instagram that morning but what happened
after that, we have no idea,” says Vanita.
Source:
India Today
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Europe
Great
Mosque Of Paris Files Complaint Against Michel Houellebecq's 'Brutal'
Islamophobic Remarks
Fatih
Karakaya
29.12.2022
PARIS
The
Great Mosque of Paris is filing a complaint against French writer Michel
Houellebecq over his Islamophobic remarks, it announced on Thursday.
The
decision was taken after a "long conversation" between Houellebecq
and another writer, Michel Onfray, was published in magazine Front Populaire in
November, said the statement.
In
the article, Houellebecq said that people in France were "arming
themselves" and could attack Muslim establishments when "entire
territories fall under Islamic control."
"People
are arming themselves. They are procuring rifles and taking shooting courses …
I think acts of resistance will occur when entire territories fall under
Islamic control. Attacks and shootings will be perpetrated in mosques,
coffeeshops mostly visited by the Muslims, well, Bataclan in reverse," he
said.
For
officials of the Great Mosque of Paris, these "lapidary remarks" were
"unacceptable and unbelievably brutal."
"They
do not seek to elucidate any public debate but arouse discriminatory rhetoric
and acts," it added.
The
statement noted that while criticizing religion was permitted in democratic
society, the comments in the article were "calling to reject and exclude
the Muslim component in its entirety."
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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'Fatwa'
Against Churchill: Scholars Accuse BBC Of Trying To Rewrite British History To
Promote A 'Woke Agenda'
December
29, 2022
A
group of history scholars is questioning whether viewers should trust the
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), accusing the national broadcaster of
presenting a slanted view of the nation's history.
"The
BBC, of all institutions, should never accept as fact arguments put forward by
politically motivated campaigners. Sadly, it appears that tendentious and
provocative arguments seem to be given preference, and they have often been
relayed without proper concern for accuracy," a spokesperson for History
Reclaimed told the Daily Telegraph of the organization's report, which accused
the BBC of "rewriting British history to promote a woke agenda."
The
report, entitled "Can we trust the BBC with our history?," was
released Wednesday and was authored by scholars from some of the United
Kingdom's top universities, including Oxford and Cambridge universities. It
details numerous examples of what the report called a "consistent
bias" in programming related to British history, which the report said was
mostly painted in a negative light.
"At
their best, the BBC’s programmes are of high quality and are widely praised.
But regrettably, it seems that the BBC, for all its merits, does not always
respect the objectives set out in its charter and its claim to be strictly
impartial," the spokesperson said.
Some
examples the report cited include a travel documentary series that highlighted
a 17th century slave holding port on Bunce Island, which the report said left
viewers with the impression that "enslavement was a purely British
enterprise."
However,
the report argues the series omitted the fact that "it was Britain’s Royal
Navy which was later sent to suppress the slave trade, or that in doing so
between 1808 and 1860 the West Africa Squadron captured 1,600 slave ships and
freed over 150,000 African slaves."
The
report also goes after the BBC's coverage of legendary World War II-era leader
Winston Churchill, with author and broadcaster Lord Roberts accusing the
network of pursuing a "fatwa" against the former prime minister.
The
report notes that the BBC was forced to admit some of its coverage on
Churchill's supposed racism did not explore the full context of the issue,
which it acknowledged did not "meet the standard of impartiality
appropriate to a report in a news bulletin of this kind."
"The
examples we have highlighted have other common features. They give a voice only
to one side of a disputed past, even presenting false history as uncontested
fact," the report reads. "Furthermore, those presenting or being
interviewed as experts generally have little or no expertise in the subjects on
which they are making pronouncements."
The
report lists suggestions for how the BBC could improve its history programming
in the future, including the establishment of an "advisory panel of properly
qualified historians."
"The
BBC has laudable objectives and plays an important role in British soft power
worldwide," the report concludes. "But recent pandering to
politically motivated activists, especially in the historical sphere, has
contributed to calls for the end of the license fee. If the BBC carries on
broadcasting politically motivated, gratuitously divisive and factually
unreliable material such as the examples used in this report, calls to end the
license fee will only get stronger."
When
reached for comment by the Telegraph about the report, a BBC spokesperson
defended the network's programming, accusing the scholars of
"cherry-picking" examples.
Source:
Fox News
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Funds
secured for restoration of burned Bayezid Mosque
29.12.2022
Greece
has earmarked 10.5 million euros in EU funds to restore the 15th-century
Ottoman Bayezit Mosque in the northeastern border town of Didymoteicho that was
destroyed in a large fire in 2017.
Culture
Minister Lina Mendoni said on Thursday the project has been included in the EU
Recovery and Resilience Fund with a budget of 10,531,772 euros and is expected
to be completed in 2025.
“The
Bayezit Mosque, an emblematic monument of Didymoteicho and one of the most
important monuments of the Ottoman Empire will be restored, with a guaranteed
budget and a specific timetable,” she said.
“Thanks
to the cooperation of the competent services of the Ministry of Culture and
Sports with the scientific team of the National Technical University of Athens,
the correct restoration proposal was drawn up, so that the monument could be
restored in accordance with the principles of science and ethics.”
The
minister said the restoration process is complex due to the great technical
difficulties presented by the stone-built shell as well as the reconstruction
of its wooden roof.
The
Ottoman monument will be restored back to its last historical phase of the
beginning of the 20th century, while highlighting elements of previous phases
to showcase its structural history, as well as the interventions made in
various time periods. In addition, further EU funding from the ESPA 2014-2020
program totalling 3,428,876 euros is already being used to complete
accompanying works such as the shaping of the surrounding area.
Early
in the morning of March 22, 2017, a huge fire broke out in the mosque
destroying its ornate oak roof and parts of the walls. The blaze was so big
that the Fire Service had to bring in crews from all over Thrace to put it out.
A
report by the Fire Service issued a few days later attributed the blaze to the
negligence of the maintenance crew that did welding work, saying sparks had
fallen on the wooden support beams of the roof starting a slow-burning flame
that eventually engulfed the monument.
Source:
Ekathimerini
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https://www.ekathimerini.com/culture/1201252/funds-secured-for-restoration-of-burned-bayezid-mosque/
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Missed
chance: UK considered supporting US strike on Bin Laden months before 9/11
Nicky
Harley
London
Dec
30, 2022
Former
British prime minister Tony Blair was urged to raise the issue of assassinating
Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a meeting with the US nine months before the
September 11 attacks, newly released archives show.
In
a briefing letter sent to Mr Blair on December 13, 2000, from his private
secretary Sir John Sawers, who later became head of MI6 and a British diplomat
to Egypt, he was urged to use an upcoming meeting with US president Bill
Clinton to discuss the topic of killing Bin Laden.
The
new information is revealed in the latest declassification of secret files by
the National Archives.
On
the topic of Bin Laden and terrorism, Sir John advised the prime minister to
inform the president the UK was in favour of "whacking" the terrorist
leader.
Britain's
stance was partly a response to a terrorist attack a few months earlier on the
US missile destroyer, USS Cole, while it was moored in Yemen's port of Aden.
In
the attack on October 12, 2000, a rubber boat loaded with explosives was blown
up as it rounded the bow of the destroyer, which had just pulled into the port
for a refuelling stop.
The
explosion killed 17 US Navy sailors and injured 37 others.
Al
Qaeda later claimed responsibility for the attack and the US had been
considering military action.
"The
Americans do not yet have proof that UBL [sic] was responsible for the attack
on the USS Cole," Sir John wrote to Mr Blair.
"They
won’t launch strikes until they have a smoking gun. And that may not be until
after January 20.
"You
should tell him that you might be in the Gulf in the first week of January, and
would not want air strikes then. They also need to be reminded that our
personnel, eg in Pakistan, will be vulnerable to reprisals if the Americans
have longer notice than us.
"We’re
all in favour of whacking UBL, but we need a bit of notice and a chance to
influence timings."
In
June 2001, an Al Qaeda recruitment video featuring Osama bin Laden boasted
about the attack and encouraged similar attacks.
Mr
Clinton and his successor, George W Bush, were later criticised for not taking
action after the USS Cole attack and before September 11, 2001, an atrocity
that killed almost 3,000 people.
A
report commissioned to investigate the September 11 attacks, was told by
president Bush's National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice that when the
Republican administration took office on January20, 2001 the evidence against
Al Qaeda was "not clear".
Source:
The National News
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Türkiye
foils Greek plans to decimate Muslim cemetery in W. Thrace
DEC
29, 2022
Türkiye’s
intervention prevented Greece’s plans to build a football field over an
Ottoman-era Muslim cemetery that was leveled earlier this year in Western
Thrace, an official revealed Wednesday.
A
cemetery belonging to the Turkish minority in Horozlu (Petinos), a village in
Western Thrace's Xanthi (Iskeçe) region, was destroyed by Greek authorities on
March 16. Municipal authorities of Bulustra (Avdira) "were planning to
turn a part of the cemetery into a sports field," Mustafa Trampa, the
mufti (Muslim cleric) of the Turkish minority in the Western Thrace city of
Iskeçe, told Anadolu Agency (AA).
Their
plans were foiled when the Turkish Foreign Ministry took up the issue, he
added.
Ankara
had strongly condemned the move, with the Foreign Ministry issuing a statement
on March 18 denouncing the cemetery's destruction and calling for restoration
"to its former state."
"After
Türkiye's statement, the issue gained international prominence," informed
Trampa, adding that officials in Bulustra were forced to "withdraw the
decision immediately."
He
criticized Greek authorities for undermining the Turkish minority's efforts to
protect the historical site. "Greece is doing everything it can to remove
all traces of Ottoman history, be it baths, mosques, madrasas, or cemeteries,
throughout the country and in Western Thrace," said Trampa, who became the
mufti of Iskeçe this September.
In
its March statement about the Horozlu cemetery, the Turkish Foreign Ministry
termed its destruction an "inhuman act."
"Necessary
demarches were initiated before Greece regarding this inhuman act, as it turns
out it is being carried out with directives from the mayor of Bulustra
(Avdira)," the statement read.
"We
expect the Greek authorities, who responded positively to our demarches, to
show the required sensitivity to finalize the investigation as soon as possible
and to bring back the cemetery to its former state," it added.
Greece's
Western Thrace region in the country’s northeast is home to a substantial,
long-established Muslim Turkish minority of 150,000 people, or around a third
of the population. Their rights are guaranteed under the 1923 Treaty of
Lausanne, but since then the situation has steadily deteriorated. After a Greek
junta came to power in 1967, the Turks of Western Thrace faced harsh
persecution and rights violations by the Greek state, often in blatant
violation of European court rulings, as the country began to see its Turkish
Muslim minority as a “hostage” of its ties with Türkiye.
Even
though the junta was toppled in 1974, its mistreatment of the Turkish minority
was taken over and continued by successive democratically elected Greek
governments.
Türkiye
has long decried Greece’s “second-class citizen” treatment and rights
violations of the country’s Muslims and Turkish minority, from closing mosques
and shutting down schools to preventing them from using the terms
"Turk" or "Turkish" while mentioning names of their schools
and foundations, and barring them from electing religious representatives. The
Turkish union has for years struggled to ensure basic rights for the minority
group, calling for international and European Union law, as well as compliance
with the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).
Source:
Daily Sabah
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Funeral
held for Muslim man mistakenly cremated in Germany
29/12/2022
A
funeral was held on Wednesday for a Muslim man whose body was mistakenly
cremated in western Germany.
Abdulkadir
Sargin’s devastated family and friends gathered at the Hannover’s central
mosque for the funeral prayer, and later buried his ashes in a cemetery in line
with the Islamic traditions.
Turkish
Ambassador to Germany Ahmet Basar Sen also attended the funeral and promised
that they will provide all the necessary assistance to the family members.
The
71-year-old man’s body was cremated a few days after his death at the Hannover
Medical School Hospital, as the staff mixed up two dead bodies at the morgue,
and sent Sargin’s body to crematorium.
Cremation
is not permitted in the Islamic tradition and it is regarded as a desecration
of the deceased.
Sargin’s
family members said they are taking legal action against the hospital.
-
Hospital apologizes for body mix-up
The
Hannover Medical School Hospital has issued an apology, and authorities
announced that they are investigating the incident.
“The
MHH (Hannover Medical School Hospital) deeply regrets the mix-up, we express
our sympathy with the relatives. The university has apologized to the family,”
a spokesman for the hospital said in a written statement.
Source:
Yenisafak
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French
singer Julien Drolon embraced Islam after walking 1000 km to find God
Sakina
Fatima
29th
December 2022
40-year-old
Julien Drolon is a distinguished and unique personality, a Frenchman from
Nantes, who, during his search for himself, converted to Buddhism, then
Christianity, and then embraced Islam in 2012.
Julien
Drolon is a French Muslim convert residing in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He is a
former international reporter and singer-songwriter.
In
an interview with Halis Media— (a Malaysian media production), Julien narrates
his journey to Islam and how he felt a responsibility towards those around him
who did not recognize Islam.
Halis
Media belongs to Julien and his Malaysian wife and former Opera singer Zara
Shafie. The vision of Halis Media is to introduce the pure message of Islam to
the world through the most innovative media platforms.
Julien’s
journey to Islam
Julien
grew up in France in Nantes Catholic, and he was spiritual from an early age
and wanted to become a priest.
When
Catholicism did not satisfy Julien, his mother directed him towards Buddhism
and allowed him to travel at the age of 18. He had the opportunity to travel
around the world to more than 50 countries, and Islam was the last thing that
crossed his mind.
His
mother’s generation abandoned Catholicism for many reasons, but they still
believed in God or something spiritual, and Buddhism imposed itself strongly in
the 1990s with the presence of the Dalai Lama. They used films to promote, and
he loved the peaceful meditation part of Buddhism, which is very similar to
solitude in Islam.
What
is the thing that made Julien question his beliefs?
Beginning
his story Julien said, “So there was a time when I was a singer for a couple of
years. When I was in Hongkong for a concert at a festival, I played in front of
my favourite singer. I met him and he attended the concert. I felt very humbled
and was thinking there must be something not right in my life”
“I
didn’t know what it is, but I thought, I am not upon the truth. Suddenly something
made me realize. I have a good life and everything. But there’s something
missing in my life. I know I don’t live my life the right way. I could not say
what it was so that was a trigger,” he added.
Julien
decided to walk 1000 kilometres from the border of Spain towards the west coast
of Spain. It took him 30 days.
“It
was a good experience because I started to try to reflect on God. I met a lot
of Christians along the way. So that was a big event because I was talking to
God while walking and I was asking him to manifest himself in my life. I wanted
to find him. And I believe that walking was part of the process,” he stated.
At
the end of the 1000 kilometres journey, how did Julien feel?
“Sadly,
after walking 1000 kilometres, I arrived in Santiago de Compostela. I attended
a ceremony and there was a Brazilian guy who came towards my way on a bicycle
and kind of like scared me. And I told him an insult in Brazilian and he also
replied with me something bad. When he felt so bad that I just walked 1000 kilometres
I thought I was becoming more holy. So after this event, I realized it’s not
enough to walk. You need to walk with something that is giving you the guidance
to not hurt other people’s feelings.”
When
did Julien hear about Islam?
“When
I was in Abu Dhabi, I had to wait to catch a flight to the Philippines. I had
six hours to kill. I took a taxi and I heard a song – then I thought it was a
song – so I asked the driver ‘What is this song?’ It truly touched my heart. He
stopped the car and said brother, it is not a song. It is the Quran. He
immediately began warning me. He said brother if you want to save yourself from
the fire of Hell; so save yourself and your family and become Muslim,” said
Julien.
“Every
time I heard the call to prayer in Cyprus, Tanzania or in Dar es Salaam, I
would feel something telling me, but I thought that it was a religion specific
to the Arabs, so it did not occur to me to ask but I thought it sounds
appealing to my heart but I’m not gonna pursue that,” he added.
When
he lived in the Philippines and decided to settle there, it put him back on the
path to God and he went back to the church.
Julien
was trying to go back to Christianity, and after Ramzan in 2012, he was
studying Islam at the centre. He prayed to God and said he needed to choose one
of the two religions.
So
Julien went to the Eid prayer with some Muslim friends that he met, but he was
not a Muslim at the time, but loved the spirit, and found it very strong.
Then
he pronounced the Shahada online on peace TV and then went to the embassy,
attended the sermon, and pronounced the two Shahadas in front of everyone.
After
Julian told his mother that he had converted to Islam, she told him, “This is
the worst thing you can go to.”
“The
reason is not that she does not mind me being a Muslim and not a Buddhist, but
rather because the West does not stop selling the idea that Islam oppresses
women when in reality we know that Islam has liberated women.”
“I
haven’t spoken to my mother for a whole year. We had some problems, and I
haven’t spoken to my siblings for a few years, but things are better now, Thank
God,” said Julien Drolon.
Julien
further adds, “The challenge increased after I became a Muslim. I moved to
Malaysia; I had to change my country of residence; Because the Philippines has
become a great temptation (Fitna) for me. I stopped working after a year, and I
had half a million YouTube fans, and I had a lot of followers, but then I
stopped everything. I was making videos with Miss World and some other actresses,
but I stopped everything, then went to Malaysia and started Dawah work, and as
they say: the rest is history. I married a beautiful Malaysian woman who has
been supporting me in all my ventures, and she has been my Khadijah from the
start. When you give up something to Allah, it is always good for you, but you
have to make a sacrifice.”
Since
2012, Julien has been involved in several Dawah projects including New Muslim
Care, which addresses the needs of post-certified converts. Julian is the Business
Development Manager for an agricultural trading company presenting investment
opportunities in Asia.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Russia’s
Putin welcomes return to power of Israel’s Netanyahu
29
December ,2022
Russian
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday welcomed the return of Benjamin Netanyahu
as head of the Israeli government, noting an intention to strengthen
cooperation, the Kremlin said.
Netanyahu
was sworn in as prime minister Thursday after a stint in opposition, heading
what analysts call the most right-wing government in the country’s history.
“I
hope that the new government under your leadership will continue the line of
strengthening Russian-Israeli cooperation in all areas for the benefit of our
peoples, in the interest of ensuring peace and security in the Middle East,”
Putin said in a message to Netanyahu, quoted in the statement.
“In
Russia, we greatly appreciate your personal and long-standing contribution to
strengthening friendly relations between our countries,” Putin said.
After
the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine in February, Israel adopted a
cautious position towards Moscow, seeking to maintain neutrality.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
Pak
National Assembly Speaker rejects PTI's demand of en masse resignations
Dec
30, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervez Ashraf has rejected the Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) demand for the acceptance of en masse resignations of
the members of the National Assembly (MNAs), reiterating his stance that each
member needs to come individually with a hand-written resignation for
verification according to the rules of the National Assembly, according to The
News International.
In
a meeting with a PTI delegation led by Pakistan's former National Assembly
speaker Asad Qaiser at the Parliament House on Thursday, Raja Pervez Ashraf
said that the resignations of PTI MNAs could only be accepted under the
procedure given in the Constitution and rules of business of the National
Assembly, as per The News International report.
The
meeting with the Pakistan National Assembly speaker was attended by National
Assembly deputy speaker Qasim Khan Suri, PTI chief whip Malik Amir Dogar,
Attaullah Khan, Amjad Khan Niazi, Niaz Ahmad Jakhar, Dr Shabbir Hussain
Qureshi, Faheem Khan, Lal Chan Malahi and Tahir Iqbal.
Speaking
to PTI's delegation, Raja Pervez Ashraf said that the resignations accepted by
Qasim Suri were unconstitutional and illegal. He stressed that there was always
a place for dialogue and political reconciliation, as per the news report. He
added that political consensus was the key to resolving the challenges faced by
Pakistan at the present time.
"There
is the question of the mandate of eight lakh people given to each member. How
can the resignations of all the members be accepted at the request of one of
them?" The News International quoted Raja Pervez Ashraf as saying.
Speaking
to reporters after the meeting, Ashraf said that he had recommended that the
PTI members of the National Assembly come back to the House and play their
constitutional role. Referring to a case of Islamabad High Court PLD 2014, Raja
Pervez Ashraf said that the office of the NA speaker was not a post office and
even mentioned Article 64 of the Constitution and Rule 43 of the Rules of
Business of the National Assembly.
Raja
Pervez Ashraf said that some PTI members whose resignations were received by
the National Assembly Secretariat had applied for leave from the House and some
attended the House. According to him, a Member of the National Assembly from
Karachi, whose resignation was accepted, approached Islamabad High Court and
gave an affidavit that he did not resign.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan's
Afghan policy failing in the face of an assertive Taliban
Dec
30, 2022
NEW
DELHI: Pakistan's Afghan policy is unravelling.
Once
considered Islamabad and ISI's protégé, the Taliban have of late shown an
increasingly assertive, and even confrontational approach in dealing with
Pakistan on frictional issues.
The
Chaman border firing incident from early December, in which 9 people were
killed on the Pakistani side, is a stark reminder to the changed equations.
The
Taliban cannot be remote controlled from across the border- a reality that is
now hitting home for Islamabad.
No
longer a 'strategic depth'
Few
doubt that the Taliban's successful takeover of Afghanistan- that sent the US
packing- was covertly aided by Pakistan and its agencies. There were
celebrations in Pakistan when the Islamic hardliners seized power in Kabul.
Then-Pakistan PM Imran Khan is on record stating "the Taliban had broken
the shackles of slavery.”
The
erstwhile ISI chief himself travelled to Kabul to oversee formation of the
Taliban cabinet in August 2021, and ensured that the "moderates"
within the Taliban are sidelined in the new order.
But
Islamabad did not get the returns it expected. The "strategic depth"
that Pakistan had hoped for from its historical patronage of the Taliban seems
to have quickly disappeared.
Pakistan's
miscalculations
Pakistan
thought it can prevail over the Taliban, specially in matters of security
interests.
But
soon after seizing power, the Taliban released members of the Pakistani Taliban
(Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP) from Afghan jails. The group has for long
waged war against the Pakistan government, with a declared objective to seize
power and establish a strict Islamic rule.
The
ISI chief could not pull off a Taliban-brokered peace deal with the TTP during
his trip to Kabul.
There
have been friction over the border issue as well.
The
Taliban do not accept the Durand Line, drawn by the British over a century ago,
as a settled border with Pakistan. The recent flare ups in Chaman and elsewhere
were triggered by Pakistan constructing a border fence.
However
the Taliban's confrontational attitude is something quite new.
"The
Afghan Taliban think they defeated the US and therefore they can also defeat
Pakistan. This may be a misplaced notion, but it certainly creates heightened
tensions between the two nations," says an opinion piece published in
Afghanistan's Khaama Press news agency.
The
killing of al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Afghanistan in a US drone
strike dealt another blow to the Pakistan-Taliban relation, as Pakistan is
believed to have allowed use of its airspace for the operation.
Uptick
in terrorism incidents in Pakistan
The
graph of terrorist incidents and related casualties in Pakistan has shot north
since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.
Unsurprisingly,
the TTP has claimed or been blamed for most of these incidents.
Pakistan's
interior minister Rana Sanaullah has said TTP has between 7,000 to 10,000
fighters in the Afghan border area, and the group has been further bolstered by
the success of the Afghan Taliban.
There
are talks now within the Pakistani establishment of launching another major
military operation against the TTP. Pakistan has carried out several operations
against the group in the past two decades, but haven't quite managed to
eliminate it completely.
The
Afghan imbroglio speaks poorly of Pakistan's reading of the situation, its
unrealistic assumptions and flaws in policy making.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
PM
Shehbaz chairs NSC meeting amid rising terror incidents
Sanaullah
Khan
December
30, 2022
A
meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) — the principal
decision-making forum on foreign policy and national security — began on Friday
afternoon in Islamabad with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the chair as the
country has seen a spate of terrorist attacks.
Senior
civilian and military leaders were part of the meeting.
The
decision to convene the meeting of the NSC was taken in a meeting between PM
Shehbaz and Chief of Army Staff Gen Asim Munir on Thursday, according to a Dawn
report.
The
meeting between the two took place a day after the corps commanders’ conference
at the General Headquarters where the surge in terrorism incidents dominated
the agenda.
The
military officials will brief the committee on the overall security situation
in the country.
Over
the past few months, the law and order situation in the country has worsened,
with terrorist groups like the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the
Islamic State group, and Gul Bahadur Group executing attacks with near impunity
across the country.
Insurgents
in Balochistan have also stepped up their violent activities and formalised a
nexus with the TTP.
The
incident at the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa police’s Counter-Terrorism Department
interrogation centre in Bannu and the botched suicide bombing attempt in
Islamabad not only set off alarm bells in the power corridors but also left
several countries worried about the security of their nationals.
The
US, UK, Australia and Saudi Arabia have issued advisories, asking their
nationals to restrict movements in Pakistan and avoid non-essential trips.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1729017/pm-shehbaz-chairs-nsc-meeting-amid-rising-terror-incidents
--------
Pakistan,
Turkish FMs resolve to work together for regional peace, prosperity
December
30, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Thursday had a telephonic
conversation with his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavusoglu and discussed the
current situation in Afghanistan as well as bilateral and regional matters.
Both
the leaders reiterated their commitment to work together for peaceful and
stable Afghanistan and for regional peace and prosperity.
Foreign
minister Bilawal appreciated the Turkish solidarity for the flood affected
people of Pakistan and continued support for rehabilitation of the flood-hit
people and building a climate resistant Pakistan.
Source:
Pakistan Today
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Three
soldiers martyred in exchange of fire with terrorists in Kurram
December
29, 2022
RAWALPINDI:
At least three soldiers of the Pakistan Army embraced martyrdom on Thursday
during an exchange of fire with terrorists in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Kurram
district, the military said in a statement.
According
to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Pakistani troops fought bravely and
effectively engaged the terrorists’ location in the Arawali area of the
district.
During
an intense exchange of fire, it said two terrorists were killed and their
weapons and ammunition were also recovered. The killed terrorists remained
actively involved in terrorist activities against security forces, the ISPR
added.
The
military’s media wing stated that 43-year-old resident of Khairpur Subedar
Shuja Muhammad, 32-year-old resident of Khuzdar Naik Muhammad Ramzan and
30-year-old resident of Sukkur Sepoy Abdul Rehman embraced martyrdom during the
exchange of fire.
It
said that a sanitisation of the area is being carried out to eliminate any
terrorists found in the area. “Pakistan Army is determined to eliminate the
menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further
strengthen our resolve,” ISPR further said.
The
incident came amid a spike in terrorist attacks across the country claimed
mostly by the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) which unilaterally
scrapped a ceasefire in November effectively ending a start-stop negotiation
process brokered by the Afghan Taliban.
The
TTP, which was comprehensively defeated in a decisive kinetic operation by the
military, has found safe havens across the border in Afghanistan from where the
group has been directing its terrorist operations in Pakistan.
Islamabad
has called these TTP sanctuaries “red-line” and pressed Kabul’s new rulers to
take action against them. Experts believe Pakistan’s patience is running thin
due to Kabul’s reluctance to crack down on the TTP bases as Foreign Minister
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said during his recent US visit that “all options are on
the table” to deal with a resurgent TTP.
Unofficial
data show a 51% increase in terrorist violence between August 15, 2021, and
August 14, 2022 – almost a year since the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul. At least
433 people were killed and 719 injured in 250 attacks across Pakistan during
this period.
A
day earlier, the country’s top military commanders vowed to “fight against
terrorists without any distinction”. The reiteration of the resolve was made in
a huddle of the corps commanders at the GHQ which was presided over by army
chief General Syed Asim Munir.
“A
comprehensive review of professional and organisational matters of the army was
undertaken. It was resolved to fight against terrorists without any distinction
and eliminate this menace as per the aspirations of people of the Pakistan,” an
ISPR statement had said.
President,
PM laud Pakistan Army’s valor for anti-terror action in Kurram District
President
Dr Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday lauded the Pakistan
Army for action against terrorists in the Kurram District of Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa.
They
paid tribute to the sacrifices of martyred soldiers, including Subedar Shuja
Muhammad, Naik Muhammad Ramzan and Sepoy Abdul Rehman.
“We
will continue to move forward against terrorism with a firm resolve and
steadfastness. Those challenging the security of Pakistan would nowhere find
any haven,” the prime minister remarked.
The
president resolved that the efforts of the security forces as well as the whole
nation would continue till elimination of the scourge from the homeland.
He
said the prayers of the whole nation went to their brave security forces.
Source:
Pakistan Today
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Muslim
rulers do not care about public opinion, says Imran Khan
December
29, 2022
Islamabad:
Seeking unity among Muslim leaders for the sake of Muslim Ummah, former
Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan urged Organisation of Islamic Countries
(OIC) to speak on injustice against Muslim countries.
Imran
Khan made the remarks while talking to scholars, academicians, policymakers and
students from Turkiye, ARY News reported.
Rulers
of Muslim countries must be united for the sake of the Muslim Ummah, the former
Pakistani prime minister said. “The problem lies with personal interests as
Muslim rulers do not care about public opinion,” he added.
Source:
Firstpost
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
South Asia
Fleeing
Afghan Journalists Live in Limbo in Pakistan, Iran
By
Nizamuddin Rezahi
December
30, 2022
Following
the overthrow of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in August 2021, things
have drastically changed for the worst for Afghan Journalists and media
workers.
Fleeing
the Taliban rule, many journalists migrated to the neighboring countries namely
Iran and Pakistan in search of safety and peaceful life for their families.
However, things did not go as expected.
The
many issues these journalists are currently faced with include unemployment,
visa extension, legal status issues and more. Many who arrived on short-term
visas in the host countries now face serious problems including deportation and
imprisonment.
Besides
hosting thousands of Afghan refugees over the past four decades, the government
of Pakistan in November announced that Afghan citizens without legal
documentation will face serious consequences beyond December 2022. The
punishment includes imprisonment for up to three years and blacklisting to
avoid future travels to Pakistan.
Meanwhile,
in Iran, Afghan journalists are facing similar problems as the Islamic Regime
keeps deporting Afghan refugees in a regular manner. As refugees, neither they
have the affordability to extend their stay visas nor they can return to
Afghanistan.
Many
Afghan journalists stranded in Pakistan and Iran say the Western countries have
abandoned them as they have not heard back from their visa applications over
the past year.
“We
don’t know what is going to happen to us,” a journalist in Iran said,
explaining that the family’s visas expired three months ago. They have applied
for refuge in France but have not heard if they will be successful.
“Every
minute, it is possible that (Iran will) deport us to Afghanistan. Now, we can’t
pay the fine for overstaying. It is 2,000,000 rial ($50) per person per day,
and I do not have the money,” he said.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/fleeing-afghan-journalists-live-in-limbo-in-pakistan-iran/
--------
Norwegian
Refugee Council Chief Urges West to Engage with Islamic Emirate
Jan
Egeland, head of Norwegian Refugee Council, NRC, urged the West to engage with
the Islamic Emirate.
Egeland
made the remarks in a special interview with TOLOnews.
He
pointed out to the recent decision of the Islamic Emirate regarding the ban on
women from going to schools, universities and work, saying that such decision
would affect Kabul relations with the international community.
"I
am sure we will find a solution. We found the solution in the past. We never
left Afghanistan. The western forces did, the western diplomats did. I am also
asking the western diplomats to engage more with the Taliban but again I don't
think it is gonna be in Doha then because what is said in Doha, is not what
decided in Kabul and Kandahar," Egeland said.
But
the Islamic Emirate Spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said that the international
community should first recognize the caretaker government of Afghanistan.
"As
the international organizations conduct their operations for humanitarian
purposes, they should continue their assistance and link it to rules and laws
because the people of Afghanistan need assistance," Mujahid said.
Political
analysts said that ban on women will affect the Islamic Emirate's relations
with the world.
"The
people of Afghanistan even those who are working in government and
non-government organizations are facing restrictions, which has concerned aid
organizations," said Jannat Fahim Chakari, a political analyst.
"Both
sides should seek political engagement considering the deteriorated economic,
political and social conditions of our people," said Ahmad Khan Andar, a
political analyst.
Source:
Tolo News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/index.php/afghanistan-181389
--------
Delivering
Humanitarian Aid in Afghanistan to Continue: UN
By
Nizamuddin Rezahi
December
30, 2022
The
United Nations and its humanitarian partners are committed to the delivery of
life-saving services to the people of Afghanistan during these difficult times,
a UN envoy for Afghanistan said on Thursday.
In
a media briefing, in New York, on Thursday, Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN resident
and humanitarian coordinator for Afghanistan said, despite the Taliban-run
administration’s decision to ban women from working in non-governmental
organizations, the UN and its partners will deliver the much-needed
humanitarian aid to the people of Afghanistan during these tough times.
“Humanitarian
needs of the (Afghan) people are absolutely enormous, and it’s important that
we continue to stay and deliver,” Ramiz Alakbarov, UN resident and humanitarian
coordinator for Afghanistan, told a press briefing at the UN headquarters in
New York.
“We
do not believe that it is possible to deliver a comprehensive humanitarian
action without the participation of women,” he said.
This
comes as Afghanistan’s interim government announced a complete ban on women
employees working for private and international non-government organizations
effective from December 24. The move prompted massive condemnations on national
and international levels, calling on the ruling regime to reverse the decision
and allow women to return to work with humanitarian aid agencies.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/delivering-humanitarian-aid-in-afghanistan-to-continue-un/
--------
Afghanistan
Remains an Important Focus of Pakistan’s Foreign Policy
By
Nizamuddin Rezahi
December
29, 2022
Mumtaz
Zahra Baloch, the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan
conducted a media briefing earlier today highlighting the country’s diplomatic
efforts in 2022.
During
the “Year End Briefing,” the Spokesperson thoroughly explained Pakistan’s
diplomatic efforts and achievements in 2022, aimed at enhancing Pakistan’s
international profile and revitalizing its external relations in protecting
Pakistan’s interests.
Engaging
with Afghanistan was one of the core topics of the briefing as Pakistan
cautiously seeks its national interests in this country, and continues to
represent Afghanistan in the international stages.
“Pakistan
has consistently expressed its desire to see a peaceful, prosperous, stable, and
connected Afghanistan. We wish that Afghanistan emerges as a trade and
energy-connectivity conduit to our region,” Mrs. Baloch said.
Since
the takeover of the Taliban in August 2021, Pakistan has pursued continuous and
practical engagements with the interim government of Afghanistan. This included
a number of high-level visits to Kabul and meetings with the Taliban
authorities.
National
Security Adviser visited Kabul in January
FM
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met Acting Afghan FM, Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, on the
sidelines of the SCO-CFM held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in July
Minister
of State for Foreign Affairs, Ms. Hina Rabbani Khar, visited Kabul on November
29, and meet with high-ranking Afghan authorities
Pakistan
participated in the Moscow Format talks held in Moscow in November
Pakistan
participated in Troika Plus Conference in China in March
Besides
all the formal meetings, Pakistan had two cross-border incidents with Afghan
security forces in December, causing the death and injuries of many people.
Additionally, the Head of Pakistan’s Diplomatic Mission in Kabul was attacked
on 2nd December. Following the terror attack and the cross-border arm clashes,
the relations between the two neighboring countries have soured in the recent
past, each side having its own justifications for the cause.
Meanwhile,
the Pakistani government expressed its dismay over the recent decisions taken
by the Afghan interim government barring women from attending universities and
participating in public life. In a separate statement, Pakistan called on the
Afghan de facto authorities to reverse the decision and ensure equal access to
education for all segments of society.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/afghanistan-remains-an-important-focus-of-pakistans-foreign-policy/
--------
Mideast
Jordanian
monarch warns of 'new intifada’ amid Israel's intensified crimes against
Palestinians
29
December 2022
Jordanian
King Abdullah II says his country, which serves as the custodian of the al-Aqsa
Mosque compound – Islam’s third holiest site, is prepared for conflict if its
“red lines” over the sacred site in the Old City of al-Quds are crossed.
He
also expressed concern that a third Palestinian intifada, or uprising, might
break out amid rising Israeli brutality in the occupied territories.
“We
have to be concerned about a next intifada,” the Jordanian monarch said in an
interview with CNN television news network that was broadcast on Wednesday.
“If
that happens, that's a complete breakdown of law and order and one that neither
the Israelis nor Palestinians will benefit from,” he pointed out.
His
remarks came as Benjamin Netanyahu is set to be sworn in as Israeli prime
minister, marking a personal return to power for the man who is already the Tel
Aviv regime’s longest-serving premier, and the arrival of a new far-right
cabinet that has sparked fears among Palestinians as well as left-wing
Israelis.
The
73-year-old Netanyahu, who was prime minister between 1996 and 1999, and then
between 2009 and 2021, addressed a session of the Israeli parliament, or
Knesset, on Thursday, before a vote of confidence in the new administration is
held.
Under
a 2013 agreement signed between Jordan and the Palestinian Authority, King
Abdullah II is the custodian of the Muslim and Christian holy sites in al-Quds.
The
Royal Hashemite Court pays the salaries of workers at the Muslim holy places.
“If
people want to get into a conflict with us, we are quite prepared,” the
Jordanian leader said when asked if he felt the incoming Israeli cabinet
threatened the status quo in al-Quds and the Hashemite custodianship.
“We
have set red lines and if people want to push those red lines then we will deal
with that,” he noted.
Intifada
refers to uprisings against the Israeli regime, the first which took place
between 1987 and 1993, where more than 1,300 Palestinians were killed.
The
second intifada took place between 2000 and 2005, where Israel killed at least
4,973 Palestinians. This was also the time when the whole world watched the
cold-blooded killing of 12-year-old Palestinian Muhammad al-Durrah by the
apartheid regime.
The
Jordanian king warned about the region's ability to keep a lid on any third
outbreak.
“That's
a tinderbox that if it flashes, it's something that I don't think we’ll be able
to walk away from in the near future,” he said.
Abdullah
also pointed to an outpouring of support for Palestine among citizens of the
Arab world during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, as evidence that a resolution to
the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict was the only way for the Israeli
regime to integrate fully into the region.
“Integration
of Israel into the region is not going to happen unless there is a future for
the Palestinians,” he said.
“If
we (country leaders) can't solve this problem, the street is naturally going to
be sympathetic to the Palestinian cause,” the Jordanian king said.
Israeli
occupation forces and settlers have been escalating their attacks against
Palestinian civilians in the West Bank and other occupied areas, in an attempt
to forcibly expel Palestinians from their lands and make way for expanding
illegal Israeli settlements.
Since
the start of 2022, Israeli troops have killed more than 220 Palestinians,
including more than 50 children, in the occupied West Bank and East al-Quds as
well as in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Palestinians
to intensify resistance against Israel’s settlement expansion: Hamas
29
December 2022
The
head of the political bureau of Palestine’s resistance movement Hamas has
warned Israel against its land grab policies, stressing that the illegal
construction activities will be confronted with intensified resistance.
Ismail
Haniyeh made the remarks on Thursday, in response to incoming Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's comments a day earlier, who called expansion of
the regime's illegal settlements across the occupied Palestinian territories
and elsewhere a top priority of his cabinet.
The
Hamas chief further warned that the political approaches of the upcoming
Israeli cabinet headed by Netanyahu will aggravate the situation, emphasizing
that the priority of the Palestinian people is to counter the policies of the
new Israeli regime through resistance and unity.
“The
settlements will be confronted by escalating the resistance, expanding its
area, and applying pressure by all means available to uproot the settlers and
the occupying entity from all the land of Palestine,” he said.
On
Wednesday, Netanyahu announced that his cabinet "will advance and develop"
the regime's illegal settlements throughout the occupied territories, including
"in the Galilee, the Negev Desert, the Golan Heights, and Judea and
Samaria (the West Bank)."
The
Palestinian Authority (PA) denounced as “dangerous” Netanyahu's comments, saying
the new cabinet’s settlement expansion policy is against international
resolutions.
The
Israeli regime has stepped up its illegal settlement construction activities in
defiance of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, which pronounces
settlements in the occupied West Bank and East al-Quds “a flagrant violation
under international law.
More
than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 Israeli
occupation of the West Bank and East al-Quds.
Source:
Press TV
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran,
Hezbollah, Syria sole supporters of Palestinians: Islamic Jihad chief
30
December 2022
Secretary
General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad resistance movement Ziyad al-Nakhalah
has called Iran, Syria, and Lebanon’s Hezbollah the sole supporters of
Palestinians in the face of Israeli occupation, calling on the Arab world to
“fulfill their duties.”
In
an interview with Lebanon’s Al-Mayadeen on Thursday, al-Nakhalah touched upon
the continued Israeli aggression on the occupied territories, noting that a
“true armed intifada is taking place in the West Bank.”
“We
are fighting the United States in Israel, for it is its main backer. Meanwhile,
we do not see any backers of Palestine aside from Iran, Hezbollah, and Syria,”
he said.
He
said the resistance group is ready to receive support from any other Islamic
country, calling on the Arab world to “fulfill their duties” toward Palestine.
This
comes as some regional countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and
Sudan, started normalization of ties with Israel in 2020 under the so-called
Abraham Accords. Palestinians have described the measure as a stab in their
back.
Nakhalah
said the enemy seeks to “delude” the world by claiming that Iran is using
Palestinians as “cannon fodders” in its war against Israel, highlighting, “this
is a false narrative.”
Israel’s
probable aggression on Gaza in 2023
Elsewhere,
the PIJ chief said he expects a new round of Israeli aggression on the besieged
Gaza Strip in 2023.
“Gaza
is not isolated from the developments in the West Bank, and it is preparing
itself for battle. It is not completely off the table for Gaza to maintain a
presence on the battlefield,” he said.
Resistance
forces in Gaza will support the West Bank “through thick and thin”, he said,
adding that they are ready to participate in any battle if the situation calls
for an intervention.
The
remarks come amid the increasing Israeli violence in the occupied territories
which has made 2022 the deadliest year for Palestinians.
Meanwhile,
Benjamin Netanyahu has been sworn in as Israeli prime minister, marking a
personal return to power for someone who is already the Tel Aviv regime’s
longest-serving premier.
“The
new cabinet seeks to expand settlements in the West Bank and we will confront
it,” Nakhalah said, expressing hopes for increased support from Arab countries.
Israeli
occupation forces and settlers have been escalating their attacks against
Palestinian civilians in the West Bank and other occupied areas, in an attempt
to forcibly expel Palestinians from their lands and make way for expanding
illegal Israeli settlements.
Since
the start of 2022, Israeli troops have killed more than 220 Palestinians,
including more than 50 children in the occupied West Bank and East al-Quds as
well as in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
Israeli
envoy to France resigns in protest of new Netanyahu gov't
Burak
Dag
29.12.2022
The
Israeli ambassador in France resigned from her post in protest against the new
coalition government in Tel Aviv, local media reported.
In
a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Yael German declared
that her conscience would not allow her to represent the six-time premier's new
administration.
She
said she would not be able to "represent policies that are so radically
different from what I believe in," The Times of Israel newspaper reported.
"Sadly,
the government you established and lead, including representatives of parties
whose extreme positions are expressed in the fundamental positions of the
government, its policies and its statements on legislation -- are invalid in my
eyes," she said.
German,
who served as mayor of the coastal city Herzliya for 25 years until 2013,
joined now-opposition leader Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid party in 2013. She also
served as Health Minister in 2013-2014.
After
becoming foreign minister in 2021, Yair Lapid appointed her as the country's
ambassador to France.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Palestinian
forces urged to unite against Netanyahu regime
December
29, 2022
RAMALLAH:
A senior Palestinian political leader has called for a united struggle against
the incoming government in Israel, labelling it racist and extremist, and
warning that its declared goal is to “deepen and consolidate an apartheid
regime.”
Mustafa
Barghouti, secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative Movement,
urged all Palestinian forces to join together in an immediate bid to boycott
and isolate the new Israeli leadership.
His
comments came after Israel’s hawkish veteran Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in as
prime minister on Thursday, returning for a sixth term 18 months after having
been ousted from power.
The
Israeli parliament voted to approve his government and elected former minister
Amir Ohana as the Knesset’s speaker.
Barghouti
pointed to Netanyahu’s earlier statements that all the land of Palestine
belongs to the Jews only and that the right to self-determination is reserved
for them.
The
new government will deepen and consolidate the apartheid regime against
Palestinians living in Israel and the occupied territories by insisting on
implementing the law of the Jewish state, he said.
Palestinians
in the West Bank and Gaza Strip are growing increasingly fearful over policies
that the Israeli leadership may adopt in the coming weeks.
Annexing
lands in the West Bank, changing the status quo at Al-Aqsa Mosque, and
weakening the Palestinian Authority through military or financial measures are
areas of particular concern.
While
the PA is preparing to deal with the changing political landscape, many
Palestinians fear its tactics and methods will fail to thwart the Netanyahu’s
government.
Concerns
are growing that the Fatah movement, the largest Palestinian party, is
preoccupied with internal disputes over who will succeed 87-year-old President
Mahmoud Abbas.
At
the same time, the PA has no ability to pressure Israel other than by
threatening to end security coordination.
Israel
no longer takes the Palestinian president’s threats seriously, some say.
On
Dec. 27, Abbas announced that he will lead a national committee including
Palestinian diplomatic and legal experts in an international campaign against
the new Israeli government.
Shawan
Jabarin, director of Al-Haq Foundation for Human Rights, told Arab News that
the Israeli leadership’s “extremist religious and ideological dimension” is
likely to transform the conflict with Palestinians from a political dispute
into a bloody religious rivalry.
“This
is a very dangerous transformation,” he said.
However,
Jabarin believes that Palestinians now have an opportunity to “expose the true
face of the Israeli occupation to the world and embarrass Israel.”
He
said that the composition of the Israeli leadership “will constitute an
embarrassment to both the EU and the US, as it will harm them to take practical
steps against the policy and approach of this government.”
A
Hamas source in Gaza, who declined to be named, told Arab News that the
movement considers all Israeli governments harmful. But the new government is
worse than its predecessors.
The
existence of such a government would justify military action by Hamas against
Israel, which would be popularly accepted and understood by regional countries,
the source said.
Mukhaimer
Abu Saada, a professor of political science at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, said
that Palestinians have an understandable fear of the Netanyahu government
annexing the West Bank and confiscating the lands of Palestinian citizens in
Israel.
He
voiced fears that the government will try to perpetuate the separation of the
West Bank from the Gaza Strip.
“I
do not think Israel will succeed in separating Gaza from the escalation in
Al-Aqsa Mosque and the West Bank,” Abu Saada told Arab News.
Speaking
after he was sworn in as Israel’s leader, Netanyahu presented the primary lines
of the government’s policy and said: “The new government is starting today amid
the 75th year of Israel’s independence.
“In
the next four years, we will work so that Israel will be a world power in the
centennial year of our independence. To
do this, we must perform three major tasks. The first is to thwart Iran’s
efforts to obtain nuclear weapons.”
He
added: “The second task is to develop the country’s infrastructure, including
developing a bullet train. The third task is to continue to expand the circle
of peace with Arab countries to end the Israeli-Arab conflict.”
Outgoing
prime minister Yair Lapid left the Knesset without shaking hands with
Netanyahu, who updated the profile on his official Twitter account to “prime
minister.”
In
a signed letter to Netanyahu, more than 100 retired Israeli ambassadors and
foreign ministry officials voiced concerns about the incoming government.
The
former diplomats, including former ambassadors to France, India and Turkiye,
expressed “profound concern at the serious damage to Israel’s foreign
relations, its international standing and its core interests abroad emanating
from the policy of the incoming government.”
The
letter also pointed to “statements made by potential senior office-holders in
the government and the Knesset,” reports of policy changes in the West Bank,
and “some possible extreme and discriminatory laws” as points of concern.
Netanyahu
returns as prime minister with the support of several far-right figures once
consigned to the fringes of Israeli politics.
Itamar
Ben Gvir, once convicted of incitement to racism and terrorism, will take on a
newly expanded role as national security minister, overseeing police operations
in Israel, as well as some police activity in the occupied West Bank.
Bezalel
Smotrich, leader of the Religious Zionism party, has been named minister of
finance and also given the power to appoint the head of an Israeli military
unit that handles border crossings and permits for Palestinians.
During
his campaign, Smotrich proposed drastic legal reforms that were seen by many
critics as an attempt to undermine judicial independence.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223906/middle-east
--------
Record
number of Israeli settlers stormed al-Aqsa Mosque compound in 2022: Official
30
December 2022
The
Islamic organization running the al-Aqsa Mosque compound's affairs says a
record number of Israeli settlers stormed the Muslim holy site in 2022.
So
far this year, as many as 48,238 settlers have violated the compound, which is
Islam's third-holiest site, Azzam Khatib, director of the Islamic Waqf
Department was quoted by the official Palestinian Wafa news agency as saying on
Thursday.
The
official described the number of violations as unprecedented.
Ever
since occupying the Palestinian territory of the West Bank, including East
al-Quds which houses the compound, in 1967, the Israeli regime has been enforcing
restrictions on the Palestinians' right to worship at the site.
The
regime's military, however, regularly provides protection for the illegal
settlers' tours of the holy site as means of hurting the religious sentiments
of the Palestinians and their fellow Muslims around the world.
According
to the official, the Israeli extremists have been resorting to provocative
conduct while storming the compound, including performing Jewish rituals at the
site and raising the occupying regime's flag there.
Khatib
stressed that "al-Aqsa Mosque is an Islamic holy place with...all its
features and facilities [both] above and below the ground."
He
described the site as "a pure mosque for Muslims alone all over the world
that does not accept division or partnership," despite the Israeli
regime's attempts at manipulating its long religious, historical, and legal
status quo.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Southeast Asia
Muslim
radicals halt Christmas celebrations in Indonesia; president visits churches
DECEMBER
29, 2022
SURABAYA,
Indonesia – Muslim villagers in West Java, Indonesia, on Christmas Day stopped
a congregation from celebrating Christmas in a home, according to various
sources.
The
interference came within hours of Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s historic
visits to two churches in nearby Bogor, where he urged congregations to
continue harmonious relations with people of other faiths.
In
Cilebut Barat, Sukaraja District, about 64 kilometers (39 miles) south of
Jakarta, the group of Muslims lined up outside a home where Batak Christian
Church’s Christmas Day worship was planned and kept worshippers from entering
the home, according to video footage appearing on social media.
A
woman from the church is heard in the video pleading with the group to leave
them alone.
“Come
on, many of you insult us, are tyrannizing us,” she says. “Please, the worship
service is only a few minutes, so it’s up to you to talk about [relenting].
Please, come on.”
After
a passerby apparently urges the Muslims to give no response, the woman
repeatedly asks what loss would they incur from the service that would cause
them to forbid worship on Christmas. She is repeatedly told only that the home
is not a church building.
Onlookers,
police officers and soldiers present make no response to the Christian woman in
the video.
In
North Sulawesi Province on the island of Sulawesi, nearly 20 Muslims in Buyat
Selatan village, Kotabunan District stopped members of Rototok Advent Church
from holding Christmas Day worship at a home, also saying a house is not a
church building, according to online news outlet detik.com.
The
Rev. Henrek Lokra, executive secretary of justice and peace of the Communion of
Christian Churches (PGI), said the ban on home worship in Cilebut Barat arose
from misunderstanding among local residents.
“Residents’
rejection of the Christmas service is an expression of misunderstanding of
Christian worship and Christmas celebration,” Lokra said. “Christian worship is
a fellowship of people who worship God. So as long as the requirements for
building a house of worship have not [yet] been met, worship which is an
existence of Christians or members of any religion may not be prohibited or
inhibited.”
Local
residents, religious leaders and government officials alike lack understanding
of Christian fellowship, and contributing to conflict is “the weakness of
religious leaders and local government officials in educating and mediating the
community regarding prerequisites for establishing a house of worship,” Lokra
said.
Requirements
for obtaining permission to build houses of worship in Indonesia are onerous
and hamper the establishment of such buildings for Christians and other faiths,
rights advocates say. Indonesia’s Joint Ministerial Decree of 2006 makes
requirements for obtaining permits nearly impossible for most new churches.
Even
when small, new churches are able to meet the requirement of obtaining 90
signatures of approval from congregation members and 60 from area households of
different religions, they are often met with delays or lack of response from
officials. Well-organized radical Muslims secretly mobilize outside people to
intimidate and pressure members of minority faiths.
Conflicts
over religious minorities’ houses of worship have increased since the
reformation era that followed the end of President Suharto’s regime in 1998.
Since 2018, there have been 398 incidents of religious conflict targeting
houses of worship, according to the Setara Institute.
Indonesia
is ranked 28th in Open Doors 2022 World Watch List of the 50 countries where it
is most difficult to be a Christian.
The
halts to Christmas worship notwithstanding, 2022 was memorable for many
Christians in Indonesia as their president, popularly known as Jokowi, paid
visits to two major churches on Christmas, a first in the country’s 77-year
history.
Jokowi,
a Muslim who has said politics and religion should be separate, visited and
greeted Christians at Zebaoth Indonesian Protestant Church and at the Catholic
Cathedral, seat of the Bogor Diocese Bishop in West Java. At Zebaoth Christian
Church, according to local media, Jokowi stated that he expected all Christians
to be able to celebrate this Christmas peacefully and happily.
“We
should continue to maintain the relationship with each other, strengthen
brotherhood and bolster harmony between us,” he said to the congregation’s
applause.
Speaking
before the final Mass blessing at Bogor Cathedral, Jokowi appealed for efforts
to maintain a unified Indonesia.
“Let’s
keep maintaining our brotherhood together and strengthening our harmony for the
advancement of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia,” he reportedly
said from the pulpit. “Merry Christmas, may God bless us all.”
The
parish priest, the Rev. Paulus Haruno, said the visit was a special gift as
there was no prior notice.
Source:
Christian Post
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.christianpost.com/news/muslim-radicals-halt-christmas-celebrations-in-indonesia.html
--------
Risking
death at sea, Rohingya Muslims seek safety in Indonesia
December
29, 2022
By
Hidayatullah Tahjuddin
PIDIE,
Indonesia, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Crying with relief after a traumatic 40-day
voyage to Indonesia in a leaky boat, Rohingya Muslim Fatimah bin Ismail held a
mobile phone with shaky hands as she made a video call to relatives.
The
19-year-old was among 174 surviving Rohingya in the overloaded wooden fishing
boat when it washed up on the shores of Indonesia's Aceh province this week.
Around 200 had been on board, fleeing poverty and persecution, when it set off
across the Indian Ocean from Bangladesh on Nov. 21.
Of
the 20 or more who died along the way, some leapt into the water in desperation
after the boat broke down and started to drift, fearing it would sink.
"Three
men jumped because they couldn't handle the hunger. Then after 12 days water
started coming into the boat," Fatimah told Reuters.
"There
were bodies floating in the water, here and there. We couldn't do
anything."
The
Rohingya are a Muslim people from mainly Buddhist Myanmar, where they have long
suffered repression.
Since
a crackdown by Myanmar's military in 2017, around 800,000 have been forced into
Bangladesh, UN authorities estimate, but thousands have fled increasingly
desperate conditions in refugee camps there.
Many
try to get to Muslim-majority Indonesia, where the UN refugee agency says
nearly 500 Rohingya have reached land in the past six weeks, or to Malaysia.
Indonesian
authorities have been providing them with medical assistance, food and
temporary shelter, while working with global refugee agencies to ascertain
their legal status.
Source:
Reuters
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Al
Jabbar Mosque as new landmark to promote West Java
Bandung,
West Java (ANTARA) - The West Java Government stated that the Grand Al Jabbar
Mosque, Gedebage, Bandung City, was not merely a new center of worship
activities for the community but also become a new attractive site to promote
the region on a global scale.
Acting
Head of the Government Bureau and Regional Autonomy at the West Java Government
Dodit Ardian Pancapana stated in Bandung on Thursday that the mosque has
expanded the number of landmarks for West Java's promotion.
He
noted that the Al Jabbar Mosque, which can accommodate some 50 thousand
worshipers, will become part of overseas promotional materials.
"In
the past, West Java's only landmark was Gedung Sate. Now there is a new one. Of
course, it will appear in our promotional materials overseas or in
international relations. Moreover, architecture-wise, this is great,"
Pancapana affirmed.
Moreover,
the mosque could be used as a new location to hold activities pertaining to
foreign cooperation, he remarked.
"So,
Al Jabbar functions as a center of worship, which will later be developed to
better introduce West Java on a global scale. Hence, it is not only a place of
(dawah) but can also be part of an effort to reach Muslims globally," he
said.
Al
Jabbar Mosque has a magnificent and special building. Apart from being a place
of worship, the Al Jabbar Mosque has educational, tourist, and social
functions.
Production
Manager of the Al Jabbar Mosque Construction Project Affy Primadhian said many
of the mosque's features were designed by Governor of West Java Ridwan Kamil
when he was mayor of Bandung, one of them being the main building without a
center pillar.
"The
Al Jabbar Mosque construction has many special things, particularly in terms of
the design that Mr. Ridwan Kamil himself made. It is a challenge for us to
finish this work in accordance with the expected design," he remarked.
Source:
Antara News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://en.antaranews.com/news/267831/al-jabbar-mosque-as-new-landmark-to-promote-west-java
--------
Arab World
Egypt’s
president backs bigger private role in line with IMF demands
December
29, 2022
CAIRO:
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Thursday approved a document
outlining 62 economic activities the state will withdraw from and turn over the
private sector, a cabinet statement said.
The
document’s approval was required by the International Monetary Fund, which this
month approved a 46-month, $3 billion financial support package for Egypt.
The
policy aims to give the private sector a greater role in helping to grow the
economy, create jobs and increase investment and exports, the statement said.
It
did not specify which economic activities would be made private, but in May the
country outlined an array of state assets that would be offered to private
investors.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223851/middle-east
--------
Saudi
Arabia: 100 new Muslim converts perform Umrah
Sakina
Fatima
30th
December 2022
Riyadh:
100 new Muslim converts visited the Grand Mosque, Makkah in Saudi Arabia on
Wednesday to perform the Umrah for the first time, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA)
reported.
The
General Presidency for the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque
has received 100 new Muslims from all over the world to visit the Grand Mosque
and Prophet’s Mosque and the facilities of the Presidency.
The
Presidency received the new Muslims while represented by the Public Relations
and Institutional Communication Agency, based on the community partnership
between the Presidency and the Abdul Qadir Al-Muhaidib Foundation for Community
Service, which conducts the (World Pilgrimage Program) for new Muslims for 2022
from 30 country.
The
special program for them includes introducing them to the principles of true
Islam, and teaching them the rituals of Umrah, by holding a number of lessons
in jurisprudential matters (Fiqh).
The
Field Awareness Affairs Agency has also offered members of mutawwifs (pilgrim
guides) to accompany the new Muslims inside the Grand Mosque. They have also
visited the King Abdulaziz Complex for Holy Kaaba Kiswa.
It
is noteworthy that the new Muslims were received in Madinah. They then paid a
visit to the Prophet’s Mosque library, as the Umrah rituals were introduced to
them, in addition to answering their Fiqh questions.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/saudi-arabia-100-new-muslim-converts-perform-umrah-2490903/
--------
At
least 10 workers killed in attack near oil field in Syria’s Deir Ezzor
30
December ,2022
An
attack in eastern Syria killed 10 oil field workers, state news agency SANA
reported on Friday.
In
addition to the dead, “two others have been wounded in a terrorist attack that
targeted three buses transporting workers from al-Taim oil field in Deir Ezzor”
province, the report said.
SANA
did not provide any information on the nature of the attack or who may be
behind it, but a British-based war monitor accused “cells of ISIS” of carrying
out the assault near the oil field.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Syria’s
Kurds launch offensive against ISIS after deadly prison attack
29
December ,2022
Syrian
Kurdish-led forces said Thursday they had launched an offensive against ISIS
fighters, days after extremist gunmen launched a deadly prison attack.
Six
Kurdish fighters were killed Monday when ISIS militants attacked a complex in
Raqqa, the extremist group’s former de facto capital in Syria, in a bid to free
fellow militants imprisoned there.
The
Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said the offensive, dubbed “Operation
al-Jazeera Thunderbolt,” aimed to “eliminate” ISIS gunmen from areas that had
been “the source of the recent terrorist attacks.”
The
SDF said the operation was being carried out alongside the US-backed coalition,
although there was no immediate confirmation from the international force that
they were taking part.
The
SDF statement said that in addition to the thwarted Raqqa attack, ISIS fighters
had recently carried out eight assaults in the northern Syrian areas of Deir
Ezzor, Hasakeh and the al-Hol camp for displaced people, which houses family
members of ISIS militants.
Referencing
recent Turkish airstrikes on Kurdish forces in northeast Syria, the SDF said
ISIS was trying to “take advantage” of the situation by “carrying out more
terrorist attacks.”
After
a meteoric rise in Iraq and Syria in 2014, ISIS saw its so-called caliphate
collapse, but fighters remain.
Supported
by an international anti-extremist coalition led by the United States, the SDF
spearheaded the fight against ISIS in Syria and drove the group from its last
stronghold in the country in 2019.
ISIS
continues to claim attacks in Iraq and Syria, and the SDF regularly launches
operations against the extremists in Syria.
The
group said Monday’s attack on Raqqa aimed to avenge “Muslim prisoners” and
female relatives of extremists living in al-Hol camp.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Dubai
court authorizes jailed Brit’s fraud extradition: Lawyers
29
December ,2022
A
Dubai court Thursday authorized the extradition of a British national wanted
over an alleged 1.7 billion euro tax fraud in Denmark, the suspect’s defense
team said, ahead of a further ruling by a higher court.
Hedge
fund trader Sanjay Shah was arrested in Dubai in June, but the emirate’s Court
of Appeal in September rejected an extradition request by Denmark, before it
overturned that decision on Thursday, according to Horizons & Co, a firm
which is representing Shah.
“Today’s
decision confirms that Mr Shah can be extradited from the UAE,” it said in a
statement.
Shah
will not be extradited immediately.
“We
now have 30 days in which to appeal today’s judgement in the Court of
Cassation, the highest Court in the UAE,” said Horizons & Co’s Managing
Partner Ali Al Zarooni.
“The
decision of the Court of Cassation, which we anticipate in the next two months,
will be final,” the statement quoted him as saying.
Shah
is accused of running a scheme for three years from 2012 in which foreign firms
pretended to own shares in Danish companies and claimed tax refunds.
Shah
has said he is not guilty and claims he did not violate Danish law, according
to domestic media in the United Arab Emirates. He was arrested under a
bilateral extradition treaty signed in March.
“It
has required a sustained effort from Danish diplomacy to reach this point and a
constructive cooperation with the Emirati authorities,” Danish foreign minister
Lars Lokke Rasmussen told Danish news agency Ritzau.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Edutainment
for kids, adults at Riyadh Toy Festival
GHADI
JOUDAH
December
29, 2022
RIYADH:
The Riyadh Toy Festival kicked off this week offering a wide range of
entertainment and educational programs for children of all ages, including on
science, health and medicine.
Located
near Boulevard Riyadh City, the 10-day event features live entertainment with
popular characters from “Transformers,” “My Little Pony,” “Sonic” and “Barbie.”
There are 35 areas showcasing famous international toy brands.
The
festival includes several sub-zones such as “Downtown” for girls, “Countryside”
for preschool kids, “Adrenaline Valley” with virtual reality activities, and
the “Hasbro Gaming” area, which features life-sized games for families.
In
the “Barbie” areas, children can have fun learning about different professions
in an engaging environment.
Sara
Nasser, mother of 5-year-old Mohammed, told Arab News it was important for
children to acquire knowledge in a relaxed environment.
“I
am a nurse and my husband is a radiologist, and we encourage our son to
constantly ask questions about science and the human body,” said Nasser. She
said Mohammed immediately gravitated toward the doctors’ station in the
“Barbie” area.
Dr.
Aya (who asked for only her first name to be used), an infectious diseases
medical practitioner responsible for the doctors’ station, takes the children
on a detailed journey through the human body.
“There
are five stations that I have prepared to enlighten kids on the different types
of doctors and have them engage with through physical application and virtual
reality to keep up with the digital age,” she said.
The
first station is about the digestive system, where kids are allowed to see
step-by-step how food is processed in the body.
“One
of the aspects I focused on engaging these kids with is where and how fat is
digested in the system. And I was surprised by one (question) a kid asked
because it showed me that he was making associations between what he was learning
here and the real world.”
She
said the child immediately told her that junk food was bad because it was
digested much later in the intestines than healthier food.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223946/saudi-arabia
--------
Ten
oil field workers killed in Syria attack: State media
December
30, 2022
DAMASCUS:
An attack in eastern Syria killed 10 oil field workers, state news agency SANA
reported on Friday.
In
addition to the dead, “two others have been wounded in a terrorist attack that
targeted three buses transporting workers from Al-Taim oil field in Deir Ezzor”
province, the report said.
SANA
did not provide any information on the nature of the attack or who may be
behind it, but a British-based war monitor accused “cells of the Daesh group”
of carrying out the assault near the oil field.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2224141/middle-east
--------
Africa
Former
President of Niger, Grand Mufti of the Caucasus join Muslim Council of Elders
in 2022
29-12-2022
ABU
DHABI, 29th December, 2022 (WAM) -- The Muslim Council of Elders added this
year two new members to an existing array of Islamic scholars, experts and
specialists who are known for their wisdom, independence and moderateness.
In
July 2022, Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Chairman of the Muslim Council of Elders, issued
a decree selecting Allahshukur Pashazadeh, Grand Mufti of the Caucasus, as the
newest member of the Council.
Pashazadeh
is the spiritual leader of Muslims in Azerbaijan, the Republic of Georgia, and
Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, Ingushetia, Chechnya, Karachay–Cherkessia, and
Adygea in the Russian Federation.
He
is also the Chairman of the Baku International Centre for Interfaith and
Intercivilisational Cooperation (BCIC), the Co-chair of CIS Interreligious
Council, the Chairman of the Advisory Council of Muslim Leaders of CIS and the
current Chairman of the Supreme Religious Board of Caucasian peoples.
As
the leader of Azeri Muslims, he has made concerted efforts to promote interreligious
dialogue, tolerance and multiculturalism on a local and international level.
In
August 2022, the Grand Imam issued another decree selecting Mahamadou Issoufou,
former President of Niger as the newest member of the Council.
Issoufou
served as the President of Niger from April 2011 to April 2021. Issoufou was
also the prime minister of Niger from 1993 to 1994 and President of the African
nation's National Assembly from 1995 to 1996.
The
former Nigerien politician is a recipient of the 2020 Ibrahim Prize for
Achievement in African Leadership for his efforts in the economic development
of his country while working for regional stability, as well as his engagement
to limit himself to two terms, leading to the first ever democratic transition
of power in Niger. He is also a member of the Judging Committee of the 2022
edition of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity.
The
Muslim Council of Elders is an independent international organisation that
promotes peace in Muslim communities by discouraging conflict and other issues
that lead to divisiveness.
Source:
WAM
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.wam.ae/en/details/1395303115073
--------
UN
denies support for forming new gov’t in Libya
Mohamed
Artemah
29.12.2022
TRIPOLI,
Libya
The
UN mission in Libya on Thursday denied reports about supporting the formation
of a new government in the war-torn country.
In
a statement, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) called on Libyan rivals
to refrain from any actions that could threaten the “fragile stability” in the
country.
Local
media reports emerged on Wednesday about UN envoy Abdoulaye Bathily’s desire to
form a new government in Libya, in an effort to resolve the conflict in the
country.
“UNSMIL
notes false online reports that SRSG Bathily plans to announce a new roadmap,
including a new government,” the mission said in a statement.
“This
sort of fake news is aimed at generating confusion about the current political
process and in particular the role of UNSMIL which is not to impose but to
support a Libyan-Libyan solution,” it added.
The
UN mission called on all parties “to refrain from any actions that could
threaten Libya’s fragile stability, including spreading misleading and
unfounded information.”
Bathily
“stresses that any roadmap should be designed through inclusive dialogue among
Libyan stakeholders acting in full respect of the rights, interests and
aspirations of all Libyan people to be governed by legitimate leadership and
institutions,” the statement said.
Oil-rich
Libya has remained in turmoil since 2011 when longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi
was ousted after four decades in power.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/un-denies-support-for-forming-new-gov-t-in-libya/2775258
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More
children suffering from malnutrition in Somalia amid looming famine
Mohammed
Dhaysane
30.12.2022
BAIDOA,
Somalia
The
South West state in Somalia is the most drought-affected region in the country
and Baidoa, the state’s administrative capital, has seen an increase in the
number of children affected by the prolonged drought that is the worst in a
generation.
Hospitals
and medical facilities in the city are overcrowded with children with severe
acute malnutrition. Most are from low-income families and residents of internally
displaced persons (IDP) camps in and on the outskirts of the city.
Garan
Ibrahim Yerow, 20, is a mother of two children, who was sitting on a hospital
bed with 2-year-old Maido Isack Mohamed who has been experiencing
drought-related illnesses for two months.
She
told Anadolu Agency at the SOS Children's Villages Baidoa District Hospital
that Maido is malnourished and she had to walk 6 kilometers (4 miles) to reach
the hospital to get free treatment and health care services it provides.
“I
started walking before sunrise to become the first parent to reach here. The
doctors told me that my child is severely malnourished and too weak to carry
and recommended to keep my child at the hospital for a week,” Yarow told
Anadolu Agency emotionally.
Yarow
and her husband had a small farm and livestock in a settlement 30 kilometers
(18 miles) west of Baidoa. She fled because of the drought and built a small
makeshift house at an IDP camp in Baidoa. She said that while she is at the
hospital, her unemployed husband goes to town to find a job to try to feed her
family.
She
is not alone. Abdiyo Borow Osman, 24, a mother of four, has been visiting the
hospital to get treatment for her child who was admitted because of
malnutrition and health complications.
Her
husband Abdirahman Mohamed said he cannot afford to go to a private hospital.
'Situation
is very bad'
“I
don’t have any money and haven’t received assistance from the humanitarians
since we arrived a few weeks ago,” Mohamed said. “I am trying to work hard but I
cannot afford to feed my family every day. The worst situation I am having now
is that my son is malnourished and he has also got swelling but I have a
feeling that he will recover by the Grace of Allah.”
Hospital
director Mohamed Daud Mohamed told Anadolu Agency that the number of children
admitted in the last four months has increased.
He
said his facility has admitted as many as 180 children with severe
malnutrition, associated with medical complications.
“The
situation is very bad as we have seen the number of malnutrition cases
increase. Over six children who were severely malnourished died in this
stabilization center because the people of rural areas always come when the
situation of the children are on the verge of death,” said Mohamed.
Habibo
Adan Ali, 17, has a baby girl named Ikhlas Abdullahi Adan who was admitted
after her parents walked more than 30 kilometers. She is now stable but the
latest illness with malnutrition took her to the limit.
Ali
said she traveled to Baidoa and plans to permanently settle here after her
child recovers. She said there is no reason to return because there is no
medical facility in her village, Misgaale.
“A
lot of people I know are in a bad situation and humanitarians can’t reach there
because of the security so we made a decision that we will not go back to our
village because I need medical help, humanitarian assistance and I believe we
can get all that in this big town,” she said.
Drought-related
illness have skyrocketed
Hassan
Mohamed Ibrahim Gadudow, health and nutrition project coordinator for the SOS
Children’s Villages, told Anadolu Agency that SOS and humanitarian partners
have attended to more than 11,570 children with acute severe malnutrition and
15,494 acute moderate malnourished children – 48% of children in Baidoa.
He
said drought-related illnesses have skyrocketed in the last few months.
“These
illnesses include waterborne diseases such as cholera and also measles and
other diseases. Children under 5, who are the most affected by malnutrition,
are very vulnerable to falling ill since they are weak to resist due to the
malnutrition,” he said.
More
than 700 children have died in Somalia stabilization centers and medical
centers due to drought-related illnesses and severe malnutrition, according to
UNICEF.
The
UN Food Security Integrated assessment indicated that an estimated 8.3 million
people, more than half of the country, will face the crisis or worse food
insecurity between April and June 2023.
A
total of 1.8 million children, more than half of those in Somalia under the age
of 5, are estimated to suffer acute malnutrition through July 2023.
More
than 514,000 children are likely to face life-threatening severe malnutrition,
according to the UN.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Turkish
government support to South Sudan since independence totals $10 million
Benjamin
Takpiny
30.12.2022
JUBA,
South Sudan
Humanitarian
and disaster assistance and capacity-building support by Turkish agencies to South
Sudan from 2011 to 2022 is worth approximately $10 million, Turkish envoy Erdem
Mutaf told reporters Thursday.
“Our
bilateral ties have multifaceted aspects of political, economic, consular,
education, cultural nature -- our development agencies are very active across
the country,” Mutaf said at an event organized by the Embassy in Juba for
journalists to mark the end of 2022. “The Turkish Embassy, the full-fledged
embassy in Juba, having a trade office and consular section, is the only
embassy that issues visas to public,” he said.
He
said Türkiye and South Sudan enjoy fraternal relations based on close
historical and cultural ties.
“The
Turkish Embassy has been serving Juba for 11 years without interruption even
during the civil wars. Türkiye is one of the first countries that recognized
the Republic of South Sudan following the proclamation of independence. From
the very beginning, Türkiye has been supporting to establish bilateral
relations with South Sudan as equal partners,” he said.
Mutaf
said Türkiye has three development agencies operating in South Sudan that
includes the KIZILAY, or the Turkish Red Crescent, Turkish Cooperation and
Coordination Agency (TIKA) and the Turkish Maarif Foundation.
The
Red Crescent and TIKA have been serving South Sudan for years. The Maarif
Foundation is new, working to set up their first international school in Juba.
“Our
assistance dates back to the pre-independence period. Türkiye is the first
country to give capacity support to the Juba Teaching Hospital in 2007,” said
Mutaf.
TIKA
has carried out a range of humanitarian activities in South Sudan, including
renovating and upgrading equipment at schools and orphanages, empowering women
through training, medical equipment and food distribution drives that covered
thousands of people.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Over
42,000 people displaced in South Sudan communal violence: Official
Benjamin
Takpiny
29.12.2022
JUBA,
South Sudan
Fresh
communal violence has displaced over 42,000 civilians in South Sudan, an
official said on Thursday.
More
than 50 people have been killed and dozens injured in clashes this week in
Gumuruk and Kongor, towns in the Greater Pibor administrative area, according
to officials.
Groups
of armed youth from Greater Pibor and the neighboring Jonglei state have been
involved in the fighting.
“At
least 42,440 people have been displaced in the fighting,” Abraham Kelang Jiji,
the information minister for Greater Pibor, told Anadolu Agency.
The
situation is returning to normalcy, he said, although groups from Jonglei are
still around the Greater Pibor region.
A
separate UN statement placed the number of displaced people at around 30,000.
“People
have suffered enough. Civilians – especially those most vulnerable – women,
children, the elderly and the disabled – bear the brunt of this prolonged
crisis,” Sara Beysolow Nyanti, UN humanitarian coordinator for South Sudan,
said in a statement on Thursday.
She
said the latest violence follows massive displacement of civilians due to
fighting in mid-November in Fashoda County, Upper Nile State.
“The
violence must stop. The whole humanitarian community calls upon all armed
elements to immediately cease hostilities, respect international humanitarian
law and protect civilians and humanitarian workers,” said Nyanti.
“Impunity
is a perpetuating factor and root cause for conflict and insecurity. There must
be accountability,” she added.
Protracted
violence in South Sudan has affected over 2.2 million people who are unable to
return to their homes, she said.
“I
am deeply concerned about the continuous deterioration of people’s physical and
mental well-being, living standards and coping mechanisms,” said Nyanti.
“Peace
is the prerequisite for people to rebuild their lives,” she added.
Hamida
Lasseko, UNICEF representative in South Sudan, said the “ongoing fighting has
had an adverse impact on overstretched humanitarian operations in South Sudan.”
“This
puts additional strain on the humanitarian response and resources. We are
forced to prioritize immediate lifesaving needs of the newly displaced
population,” she said.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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UN:
30,000 flee ethnic violence in South Sudan
December
29, 2022
JUBA:
Armed raids in a region of South Sudan plagued by ethnic clashes have forced
around 30,000 civilians to flee their homes, the UN’s emergency response agency
said Thursday as international partners demanded an end to the violence.
On
December 24, armed men from Jonglei state, an eastern region beset by gun
violence, attacked communities in nearby Greater Pibor Administrative Area, the
UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a
statement.
The
violence followed clashes last month in South Sudan’s far north that uprooted
thousands in Upper Nile state.
“People
have suffered enough. Civilians, especially those most vulnerable — women,
children, the elderly and the disabled — bear the brunt of this prolonged
crisis,” said Sara Beysolow Nyanti, the UN humanitarian coordinator in South
Sudan.
Some
5,000 people have sought shelter in Pibor town, OCHA said, adding that the
humanitarian response was severely stretched.
The
clashes in Upper Nile state have also seen villagers seek shelter in swamps to
escape the bloodshed, amid reports of civilians being raped, kidnapped or
murdered.
International
partners including the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the
regional IGAD bloc, said in a joint statement Thursday that they were “gravely
concerned” by the escalating violence.
They
called on South Sudan’s leaders to step in, stressing “the need to investigate
and hold accountable all perpetrators of the conflict, including those who are
instigating and inciting violence.”
One
of the poorest countries on the planet despite large oil reserves, South
Sudan’s leadership has faced fierce criticism for failing its people and
stoking violence.
Western
powers including the United States and European Union said this month that
South Sudan’s leaders bore responsibility for the deadly clashes.
Since
achieving independence from Sudan in 2011, the world’s newest nation has
lurched from one crisis to another, including a brutal five-year civil war
between forces loyal to President Salva Kiir and his deputy Riek Machar that
left nearly 400,000 people dead.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223761/world
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North America
US
Killed Almost 700 ISIS Operatives In Iraq, Syria In 2022: Central Command
30
December ,2022
US
military forces and their allies in Iraq and Syria killed almost 700 ISIS
operatives, including several of the organization’s leaders, in 2022, according
to the US Central Command.
“The
emerging, reliable, and steady ability of our Iraqi and Syrian partner forces
to conduct unilateral operations to capture and kill ISIS leaders allows us to
maintain steady pressure on the ISIS network,” Major General Matt McFarlane,
commander of a combined task force in Syria and Iraq, said in a Centcom
statement released Thursday.
According
to the statement, 466 ISIS operatives were killed in Syria, and another 220 in
Iraq. A total of 374 militants were captured in both countries.
“No
US forces were injured or killed in these operations,” Centcom said.
Last
February, ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi was killed in
northwestern Syria when he detonated a bomb in his apartment as US forces
closed in, eliminating what President Joe Biden called a “major terrorist
threat.”
Al-Qurayshi
had taken over as leader of the terrorist group after his predecessor, Abu Bakr
al-Baghdadi, was killed in a US raid in 2019, also in Syria.
In
July, the US military said it had killed a top ISIS leader and seriously
wounded another in a drone strike in Syria.
Centcom,
which covers the Middle East as well as Central and South Asia, said in the
Thursday statement that more than 20,000 ISIS fighters have been detained in
Iraq, and another 10,000 in Syria.
In
January, a prison break in Al-Hasakah, Syria, touched off a battle in which
hundreds died.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Biden
warns Netanyahu US will oppose Israeli policies that endanger the two-state
solution
29
December 2022
US
President Joe Biden says his administration will continue to support the
two-state solution in the Middle East, warning that he will oppose Israeli
policies that endanger it.
Biden
made the remarks on Thursday after Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in as Israel's
new prime minister, with his cabinet promising to expand illegal settlements in
the occupied West Bank and pursue other anti-Palestinian policies.
Netanyahu
teamed up with far-right parties to form a conservative coalition and won the
election in November.
“As
we have throughout my Administration, the United States will continue to
support the two-state solution and to oppose policies that endanger its
viability or contradict our mutual interests and values,” Biden said in a
statement.
The
US president said he looks forward to working with Netanyahu.
Biden
has consistently promoted two states as the best path forward for the
Palestinians and Israelis.
“From
the start of my Administration, we have worked with partners to promote this
more hopeful vision of a region at peace, including between Israelis and
Palestinians. We aim to continue this important work with Israel’s new
government under Prime Minister Netanyahu’s leadership,” Biden said on
Thursday.
In
a meeting in July with President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority,
Biden reiterated his support for a two-state solution.
“Even if the ground is not ripe at this moment
to restart negotiations, the United States and my administration will not give
up on trying to bring the Palestinians and Israelis and both sides closer
together,” he said at the time.
Netanyahu's
conservative Likud party said in its guidelines for the new Israeli
administration that it would “promote and develop settlements.”
“These
guidelines constitute a dangerous escalation and will have repercussions for
the region,” Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesman for Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas, said.
Abbas
has criticized Netayahu’s cabinet, saying its “motto is extremism and
apartheid.”
According
to late Iranian journalist and political analyst Hamid Golpira, Israeli
officials want neither a one-state solution nor a two-state solution for
Palestine, rather they want a no-state solution.
In
an interview with Press TV in August 2013, Golpira said, “The two-state
solution, if it could happen in a proper way, could even be an acceptable thing
for the people who want a one-state solution in the future. They could see it…
as one step toward a one-state solution.”
He
added that what “some of the Israelis, especially people like Mr. Netanyahu,
are presenting… neither is the one-state solution nor is the two-state
solution. It is more of a no-state solution, meaning, they want no state for
Palestine, or no viable state.”
US
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that the United States would oppose
illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which the Tel Aviv
regime is constructing irrespective of the international outcry against it.
More
than 600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 Israeli
occupation of the West Bank and East al-Quds.
All
Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. The UN Security
Council has condemned Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied
territories in several resolutions.
Palestinians
want the West Bank as part of a future independent state with East al-Quds as
its capital.
Source:
Press TV
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Biden says looks forward to working with Netanyahu, supports two-state solution
29
December ,2022
US
President Joe Biden said on Thursday he looked forward to working with Israel’s
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and promoting regional peace, including
between Israelis and Palestinians, with the new Israeli government.
“I
look forward to working with Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has been my friend
for decades, to jointly address the many challenges and opportunities facing
Israel and the Middle East region, including threats from Iran,” Biden said in
a statement.
“As
we have throughout my administration, the United States will continue to
support the two state solution and to oppose policies that endanger its
viability or contradict our mutual interests and values.”
Netanyahu
-- who had a tense relationship with the last US president of Biden’s
Democratic Party, Barack Obama -- was sworn in Thursday, leading the most
right-wing government in Israel’s history.
The
government, Netanyahu’s sixth, includes extreme-right figures such as Itamar
Ben-Gvir, who once hung a portrait in his home of a gunman who massacred
Palestinian worshippers and now will serve as national security minister.
As
Netanyahu formed a coalition, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Biden
administration would judge the cabinet by “the policies they pursue, not the
personalities that happen to form a government.”
US
officials say they hope to encourage moderation on Netanyahu’s part by quickly
convening a meeting between foreign ministers of Israel and Arab countries that
recognize the Jewish state.
Three
Arab nations -- the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco -- normalized
ties with Israel in 2020 under Netanyahu, who considered the so-called Abraham
Accords a crowning achievement, as did then-president Donald Trump.
Biden
said the United States “is working to promote a region that’s increasingly
integrated, prosperous and secure, with benefits for all of its people.”
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Türkiye's
foreign minister to attend Sunday inauguration of Brazil's president-elect
Merve
Aydogan
30.12.2022
Türkiye’s
foreign minister this weekend will visit Brazil to attend the inauguration
ceremony of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the nation’s president-elect.
According
to a Foreign Ministry statement on Friday, Mevlut Cavusoglu will attend the
ceremony set for Sunday, Jan. 1.
"On
the occasion of the visit, H.E. Minister Cavusoglu is expected to hold meetings
with the Brazilian authorities and Foreign Ministers of other countries who
will attend the inauguration ceremony," the statement added.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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