Muslim Mehndi Artists Opposed on Pretext of ‘Love Jihad’ on Karva Chauth
New Age Islam News Bureau
13 October 2022
Karva Chauth is one of the
popular Hindu festivals in India.
----
• New Islamist Militant Outfit, Jama’at ul Ansar Fil
Hind al Sharqiya, Emerges in Bangladesh
• UAE’s Moon Rover to Be Sent to Regions of the Moon
Unexplored by Humans – Passes Final Tests
• Conference on Islamic Unity in Iran: Takfiri Fatwas
A Major Problem in Muslim World
• Scholars Convention in Pakistan: Muslim World League
for Promoting Tolerance, Peace, Justice in Islamic Societies
India
• 'Ganga Jamuni Tahzeeb’: Muslim Man Donates Land for
Hanuman Temple in Shahjahanpur, UP
• Gujarat: Muslims Donate For Renovation of A Hindu
Temple In Siddhpur
• Muslim Body Condemns Govt’s Decision to Allow Sale
of Beer at Departmental Stores in J&K
• Karnataka Hijab Row: Split Verdict by SC; Justice
Gupta Upholds Ban, Justice Dhulia Says 'Matter of Choice'
• Mom's Triple Talaq Certificate Not Recognised, Kid
Denied Passport
• Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind Demands Action against BJP’s
Parvesh Verma, Nandkishore Gurjar and Others over Hate Speeches
• Aligarh Muslim University’s leading academic wins
top UAE award for alternative medicine
• ‘A Lab Experiment’: Kapil Sibal Ahead Of Supreme
Court Verdict on Hijab Ban
• Gujarat: ‘Only Hindu delivery person’, writes Swiggy
customer
--------
South
Asia
• Taliban Demands Increased Engagement and Cooperation
Rather Than Criticism
• Taliban Says Human Rights Violations in Afghanistan
are ‘Rumours’
• Imposing Sanctions Does Not Benefit Kabul,
Washington: Islamic Emirate
• UN Rapporteur for Afghan Human Rights Meets Islamic
Emirate Officials
• US Visa Restrictions To Negatively Impact Ties:
Taliban
• Taliban claims Afghanistan is secure enough for
large-scale projects
--------
Arab
World
• As Biden‘Re-Evaluates’ Ties With Riyadh, Saudis
Working To Get Trump Re-Elected
• Qatar strongly condemns settlers' storming of
Al-Aqsa Mosque
• Islamic State terrorizes business owners in northeast
Syria
• Al-Azhar rejects fatwas against polio vaccination in
Pakistan
• Coalition says it exchanged POW visits with Yemen’s
Houthis
• Saudi defence minister holds discussions with
British, Yemeni counterparts
--------
Mideast
• Hezbollah Chief: Resistance Sole Way to Free
Palestine, Defeat Enemies Of Muslims
• At Least 108 Dead in Iran Crackdown on Mahsa Amini
Protests: IHR
• Iran protests: At least 28 children killed, many
arrested in Iran, rights groups say
• Raisi Accuses US Of Resorting To ‘Policy Of
Destabilization’ Against Iran
• Iran Warns EU of Reciprocal Move against Restrictive
Measures
• Interior Minister: Foreign-Backed Terrorist Groups
Lead Riots in Iran, Seek Sedition
• Living costs top worry for Israeli voters stuck in
election treadmill
• Iran’s Khamenei slams protests as ‘scattered riots’
designed by the enemy
--------
Pakistan
• Shehbaz Says ‘Absolutely Willing’ To Talk to India
but Onus on New Delhi to Take Steps for ‘Meaningful Engagement’
• Orders Came From ‘Elsewhere’ While I Was PM, Says
Imran
• Hazaras rally in Balochistan against persecution in
Afghanistan
• PTI Senator Azam Swati arrested for tweeting against
army chief
• Opposition in uproar after Ghani’s remarks against
Karachiites
• IHC seeks report from ministry over issuance of ID
card to MQM founder Altaf Hussain
• Pakistan, Afghanistan bilateral trade increases 66
percent since Taliban rule
--------
Southeast
Asia
• 20 Years after Bali Bombings, Indonesia Confronts
Extremism Online
• Indonesia seeks to corner share of Africa's Muslim
fashion market
• Man suspected of killing baby has 8 past criminal
offences
• Pahang to pass state budget first before decision on
dissolution
--------
Africa
• Attack on Military Base Foiled, 20 Al-Shabaab Terrorists
Killed: Somali Army
• UN health chief says clinical trials for Ebola's
Sudan strain to start within weeks
• Tunisian protesters clash with police over missing
migrants
--------
Europe
• Arab Parliament Blasts Britain's Plan To Relocate
Embassy To Occupied Al-Quds
• Muslims in Bulgaria: Dispersed after persecution and
rely on youth
• EU states agree to sanction Iran over protest
crackdowns
• UN raps Finland for violating rights of children
abandoned in Syria camps
--------
North
America
• Biggest Threat To Gulf Maritime Waters Is From Iran:
Top US Admiral
• US says Iran nuclear deal is ‘not our focus right
now’
• US Senate removing conditions on F-16 deal 'in line
with spirit of alliance,' says Turkish lawmaker
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/muslim-mehndi-artists-karva-chauth/d/128170
--------
Muslim Mehndi Artists Opposed on Pretext of ‘Love
Jihad’ on Karva Chauth
Karva Chauth is one of the popular Hindu festivals in
India.
----
Oct 13, 2022
By India Today Web Desk: Ahead of the Karva Chauth
festival, members of the Hindu Mahasabha have warned of consequences if any
Mehndi artist belonging to the "other community" applies henna on the
hands of Hindu women in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar.
Vikram Saini, a BJP MLA from Khatauli, on Wednesday
said the intensions of Muslim youth who have opened Mehndi shops are
"different" and they have "love jihad" on their minds.
"They conduct love jihad under the guise of this
[Mehndi work]. There have been many such cases. My request [to Hindu women] is
to apply Mehndi at home or from shops and beauty parlours opened by our
community members," Saini said.
Meanwhile, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) opened 13
mehndi stalls and tasked its members with ensuring that Muslim male make-up
artists do not apply mehndi or henna to Hindu women. They are verifying the
details of the mehndi artists by checking their Aadhar cards.
Karva Chauth is a popular Hindu festival where married
women fast from sunrise to sunset for the safety and longevity of their
husbands. Married women apply mehndi in colourful designs as part of the Karva
Chauth rituals.
Lokesh Saini, a Hindu Mahasabha member, said the move
is to protect "our brothers and sisters" from falling prey to 'love
jihad'. Hindu women should go to those stall owners who understand the
significance of Karva Chauth, he said.
In 2021, a similar incident was reported in
Muzaffarnagar and an FIR was registered against a group for taking out a march
to ensure no Muslim applies henna to a Hindu customer.
Source: India Today
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
New Islamist Militant Outfit, Jama’at ul Ansar Fil
Hind al Sharqiya, Emerges in Bangladesh
Jamatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya’
-----
By Shafi Md Mostofa
October 12, 2022
On October 6, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), an
elite anti-terrorism unit of the Bangladesh Police, arrested seven members of a
new militant organization, Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hind al Sharqiya.
While members of the group have been active since
2017, it was only in 2019 that they took on the name Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hindal
Sharqiya after bringing together leaders and workers of several Islamist
militant groups including the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Ansar
al-Islam (AAI), and Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami Bangladesh (HUJI-B).
Bangladesh has three streams of Islamic militant
organizations. While the AAI, which came to the fore in 2013 with the killing
of atheist blogger Rajib Haider, is an al-Qaida affiliated group, Neo-JMB,
which was responsible for the 2016 Holey Artisan Café attack is an affiliate of
the Islamic State (IS). The third stream is the JMB, which was founded in 1998
by Afghan war veterans.
Until 2017, all these organizations were functioning
side-by-side, although some JMB and AAI members left to join the Neo-JMB, which
gained momentum in the aftermath of IS declaring a “Global Caliphate” in June
2014.
In an article published in The Diplomat in 2020, I
said that the AAI might take advantage of the leadership crisis within the JMB
and the ideological frustration of IS to press forward on its agenda of creating
an Islamic India.
Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for
full access. Just $5 a month.
My anticipation of the rise of AAI was based on the
weakening of the other two organizations. Several JMB leaders were arrested and
executed and the JMB network was dismantled by security forces. Since June
2016, Neo-JMB was subjected to a severe military crackdown, in which over 100
militants were killed, and 500 others were arrested in over 30 police-led
countrywide operations. Most importantly, IS lost its ideological basis of
setting up a ‘Global Caliphate’ with the killing of its emir Abu Bakr
al-Baghdadi in 2017.
It was only the AAI, which did not lose leaders and
fighters. Its ideological basis too became stronger with the Rohingya crisis in
Myanmar and Muslim persecution in India, as AAI/al-Qaida aim for “Gazwatul
Hind” or the conquest of India.
There are several pointers to the fact that the
Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya has al-Qaeda links. Its name translates to
“Jama’atul Ansar in East India,” reflecting al-Qaida’s Indian subcontinental
agenda. Besides, one of the seven militants arrested recently told the media
that he was sent videos of Jashimuddin Rahmani, an al-Qaida ideologue, who has
been in jail since 2016.
In an article published in The Diplomat in May 2022, I
pointed out that Muslim militancy in Bangladesh has been going through a silent
phase, a phase of recruitment and fundraising. The recent arrests of over 500
militants and the formation of a new militant organization indicate that
militants have been recruiting robustly in Bangladesh.
The arrested militant, who spoke to the media said he
was invited to join the new organization by his cousin. When he was not
convinced to join it, he was sent a lot of videos of Muslim persecution across
the globe, especially that of Muslims in Myanmar. It was the satiric cartoon of
Prophet Muhammad by a French cartoonist that ultimately prompted him to join
the militancy.
In my book, Islamist Militancy in Bangladesh: A
Pyramid Root Cause Model, (Palgrave Macmillan, 2021), I pointed out that online
radicalization involves both online and offline elements. While the content
could be online, it could be channeled through close relatives, teachers and
friends.
The aforementioned arrested militant said that he was
first approached by his cousin who then sent him links to videos and other
online material. His statement affirms that Muslim victimization discourses
have become a strong recruitment tool for militant organizations. Criticism of
Prophet Muhammad also acts as a triggering factor for vulnerable Muslim youth.
So how serious is the situation in Bangladesh? I would
say it is not alarming yet. But it is a concerning situation.
Youth unemployment and poor governance are of concern
to many Bangladeshis. Meanwhile, the presence of global jihadist groups is
growing. Bangladeshis are still resilient to the call of militant ideology.
While it would be an exaggeration to claim that Bangladesh will soon become
like Talibanized Afghanistan, Bangladeshi militants have the capability to pose
a security threat if they come together on a single platform.
Some analysts see militancy as a creation of the
government. Of the 50 elites I interviewed between 2018 and 2019, several did
not believe the narrative of the government and the security forces on
militancy issues. Since the current government lacks legitimacy, they said, it
uses action against ‘militancy’ to gain credibility. Political analyst Dr.
Zahed Ur Rahman recently said that the Awami League government will bring
forward militant cases before elections due to be held in December 2023 and
stage some ‘jangi natok’ (militancy drama) before elections. Clearly, there is
distrust between a section of the population and the security forces.
Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for
full access. Just $5 a month.
This distrust is a serious barrier in the path of the
government’s efforts to combat militancy. Whatever the perception of the
people, the militant challenge is real and it deserves a comprehensive strategy
to overcome it.
Therefore, the Bangladesh government needs to reach a
national consensus on the problem of religious extremism and adopt
comprehensive Preventing Violent Extremism initiatives. Ad hoc PVE initiatives
will meet with little success. Security forces have a major role to play to
combat both online and offline radicalization.
Source: The Diplomat
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://thediplomat.com/2022/10/new-islamist-militant-outfit-emerges-in-bangladesh/
--------
UAE’s Moon Rover to Be Sent to Regions of the Moon
Unexplored by Humans – Passes Final Tests
As part of the Emirates
Lunar Mission, the 10-kilogram robotic explorer – which has been built in the
UAE by Emirati engineers working with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre
(MBRSC) - will send back images and collect data on lunar soil and dust once it
reaches the Red Planet. (Supplied)
-----
13 October, 2022
The United Arab Emirates Rashid rover – which is to be
sent to regions of the Moon unexplored by humans – has cleared all tests,
pushing the mission one step closer to its launch into outer space.
As part of the Emirates Lunar Mission, the 10-kilogram
robotic explorer – which has been built in the UAE by Emirati engineers working
with the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) - will send back images and
collect data on lunar soil and dust once it reaches the Red Planet.
The mission is expected to launch from a spaceport in
Cape Canaveral, Florida, next month on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
“Congratulations to the ELM team that worked tirelessly
to get Rashid Rover ready for the launch,” said Salem AlMarri, Director General
of MBRSC. “The lunar mission will engineer a new scientific reality for
Emiratis and pave the way for more space exploration missions by MBRSC.”
“This mission also exemplifies the nation's spirit of
innovation and scientific progress, while also contributing to global space
science research and explorations.”
Over the last four months, the rover was exposed to a
series of rigorous internal and external reviews, state news agency WAM
reported Thursday.
The reviews were designed to test out every one of the
multitudes of systems and subsystems of the rover during the launch stage,
cruise stage, and descent stage.
At the beginning of the year, the ELM rover completed
the assembly and first set of full functional tests of the flight model in the
laboratories of MBRSC. This phase of testing included assessments of all the
functionality of the hardware and software within all the possible on-surface
(lunar) scenarios.
This phase also included a heavy vibration test of the
model at the EDGE’s Electro-Optics Centre of Excellence (EOCE) laboratories
based in Abu Dhabi.
In the second phase, the Rashid rover completed a
series of environmental tests in Toulouse, France.
This included two sections of the evaluation: The
first was the final thermal and vacuum tests within the Airbus facility, in
which the Rover was heated and cooled to simulate the pressures and
temperatures of its journey through space and on the Moon's surface.
The second and last section of the environmental tests
included rigorous vibration and shock checks of the flight model at the CNES
Labs.
For this, the rover was shaken on a vibration table
simulating the environment the rover will encounter during the launch atop a SpaceX
Falcon 9 rocket as well as be subjected to the same shocks it will experience
decelerating in the lunar atmosphere, the intense impact of deployment and
touchdown.
The tests campaign concluded in Germany with the final
phase of checks on the interfaces with the ispace lander that will safely
deliver the rover to the Moon's surface. This phase also included instrument
alignment checks, such as imaging systems, and a final functional test of the
integrated system following the environmental campaign.
Dr. Hamad AlMarzooqi, Project Manager of the Emirates
Lunar Mission added: “MBRSC can’t wait to see Rashid rover begin its
long-awaited flight to the moon. We are now all cleared and ready for the next
step, which is the launch vehicle integration process, which is the final stage
of our lunar mission before launch.”
“The science and technology of this mission are going
to help us address major questions about the geologic and surface science of
the moon that we’ve been working on for years, and we’re excited to share our
journey with the world.”
Rashid Rover is now ready for the final integration
process with the launch vehicle before its launch window of November 9 – 15,
2022.
The primary goal of the mission is to study the moon’s
plasma and to provide answers about moon dust, the lunar surface, mobility on
the moon’s surface, and how different surfaces interact with lunar particles.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
Conference on Islamic Unity in Iran: Takfiri Fatwas A
Major Problem in Muslim World
Iranian President Ebrahim
Raisi delivered a speech on Wednesday at the 36th Islamic Unity Conference
-----
October 12, 2022
Takfiri Fatwas have created many problems for Muslims,
Abdul Shakour Sardarkhan said, addressing the 36th International Conference on
Islamic Unity, which kicked off here in the Iranian capital on Wednesday.
He further said Muslims worship one God, have one
sacred book, pray toward one direction and have the Hajj, prayer and other
rituals in common.
All of these show the necessity of unity among
followers of Islam and avoiding discord and conflicts, he stated.
Sardarkhan added that all problems in the Islamic
world originate in differences and discord and this is while God has ordered
Muslims to unite around Hablullah (rope of God).
The differences seen in the Muslim Ummah are the
result of distancing from the teachings of Islam and the Holy Quran, according
to the Pakistani official.
Elsewhere in his remarks, he said the issue of
Palestine is the main issue in the Islamic world, noting that Pakistan has always
supported the Palestinian cause.
Muslims must unite against Zionist and rush to help
the first Qibla of Islam and also strive to foil the plots hatched by Takiri
elements, he stated.
Sardarkhan went on to say that the issue of Kashmir is
also important for Pakistan because the Muslims of Kashmir have been facing
oppression for years.
Some 200 foreign guests from 60 countries and 100
Iranian guests will address the conference in person and virtually.
The guests will visit the mausoleum of Imam Khomeini on
Wednesday afternoon before attending the general assembly of the conference on
Thursday.
Participants will meet with Leader of the Islamic
Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei on Friday before concluding the event
by issuing a statement.
The International Islamic Unity Conference is annually
held in Iran by the World Forum for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought
(WFPIST) on the occasion of the Islamic Unity Week.
The 17th day of Rabi al-Awwal, which falls on October
13 this year, is believed by Shia Muslims to mark the birth anniversary of
Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), while Sunni Muslims regard the 12th day of the month
(Sunday, October 9) as the birthday of the last prophet.
The interval between the two dates is celebrated every
year as the Islamic Unity Week.
Late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran Imam
Khomeini (RA) declared the occasion as the Islamic Unity Week back in the
1980s.
Source: IQNA
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://iqna.ir/en/news/3480827/takfir-a-major-problem-in-muslim-world-pakistani-official
--------
Scholars Convention in Pakistan: Muslim World League
for Promoting Tolerance, Peace, Justice in Islamic Societies
Muslim World League (MWL)
Secretary General Sheikh Dr. Muhammad Bin Abdulkareem Al-Issa
-----
Fahad Shabbir
October 12, 2022
LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Oct,
2022): Muslim World League (MWL) Secretary General Sheikh Dr. Muhammad Bin
Abdulkareem Al-Issa has stressed for promotion of tolerance, peace and socio
economic justice in the Muslim societies.
Addressing a Scholars Convention at the headquarter of
Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadith, Ravi Road here on Wednesday, he said that Islam
gives the message of interfaith harmony, love, peace and brotherhood and it is
responsibility of Muslims to spread this message in the world. "Our motto
is to present true face of Islam before the nations," he added.
He said that the Muslim World League (MWL) is a
representative forum of Muslims of the world. He said that the issue of
Islamophobia is worsening due to lack of true knowledge about Islam, adding
that dialogue eliminates distances which can remove misunderstandings.
He said that some elements connected such information
with Islam, which were baseless. The MWL Secretary General said that disputes
always gave destruction to the world whereas unanimity always gives peace.
"It is responsibility of scholars to remove
ignorance with wisdom," he said.
He said that Saudi Arabia has special cordial
relations with Ulema and scholars besides the Pakistani nation.
He expressed his respect for efforts of Pakistan to
bring the Muslim Ummah closer and said that special effective representation
has been given to the Pakistani scholars at the MWL forum.
Earlier, Ambassador of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)
Nawaf bin Saeed bin Ahmad Almalki in his address said that Pakistan is an
important Islamic country which has strong historic relations with the KSA and
its people. He said that the people and the government of Saudi Arabia love the
people and the government of their brethren Islamic country (Pakistan) like
Pakistan government and people do.
He said that Pakistani brothers played a vital role in
the progress, development and prosperity of the KSA. He said that Saudi Arabia
and Pakistan have deep bilateral relations. He appreciated the elders of
Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadith.
Later, Saudi guests were presented with sword and
other souvenirs.
Earlier, Senator Allama Sajid Mir and Senator Hafiz Dr
Abdulkarim with other prominents warmly welcomed the MWL delegation at the
Markaz Ahle Hadith. Jamiat Ulema Pakistan leader Shah Awais Norani was also
present.
A large number of Ulema attended the convention.
It is pertinent to mention here that Doctor Muhammad
Bin Abdulkareem Al-Issa delivered the sermon of Hajj this year.
Source: Urdu Point
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.urdupoint.com/en/pakistan/mwl-secretary-general-for-promoting-tolerance-1577409.html
--------
India
'Ganga Jamuni Tahzeeb’: Muslim Man Donates Land For
Hanuman Temple In Shahjahanpur, UP
Oct 12, 2022
By Kanishka Singharia
A Muslim man in Uttar Pradesh's Shahjahanpur has
offered a section of his property to the district government, so that a temple
that falls on the Delhi-Lucknow national highway widening project can be
relocated there.
The man, Babu Ali, donated one 'bigha' (0.65 hectares)
of land near NH-24 to the administration, so that the temple could be shifted,
additional district magistrate (administration) Ramsevak Dwivedi was quoted as
saying by news agency PTI.
Tilhar deputy district magistrate Rashi Krishna said
legal formalities for transferring the land to the government have been
completed. Krishna who was all praises for Ali, said the man upheld the “Ganga
Jamuni tehzeeb”, a term used to refer to the fusion of Hindu and Muslim
cultures in the country.
In a similar incident, a Chennai-based Muslim couple
had donated ₹1 crore to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), earlier in
the month of September.
Source: Hindustan Times
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Gujarat: Muslims donate for renovation of a Hindu
temple in Siddhpur
Oct 13, 2022
AHMEDABAD: Recently an old temple of Goddess Chamunda
Mata located in Dethly village near Sidhpur taluka in Patan district was
renovated at a cost of about Rs 1 crore. It has become a beacon of communal
harmony locally as members of Muslim community of this village donated Rs 11
lakh towards the revamping. Not only that but the members of Muslim community
are also volunteering at the temple by running a tea counter serving free tea
to devotees who are coming to attend a three-day yagna organised by the temple
management.
Akbar Momin, local leader of Agakhan Momin community
of the village, said that a year ago when the temple management decided to
renovate the old temple and were collecting funds for that, members of the
Muslim community got together and collectively donated Rs 11,11,111 to the
temple trust. "The village population is around 6,000 and 30% of them are
Muslims. We live in harmony and have never seen any communal violence or
disharmony in the village," Momin said.
Momin said the temple management has organised a
three-day yagna starting from October 12 and Muslims are participating in the
event by offering their services. "Members from the Muslim community have
set up a tea and coffee counter at the temple and we are offering free
beverages to the devotees," Momin told TOI.
Momin added that around 50,000 cups of tea are
distributed for free at the counter daily.
Ibrahim Shaikh, trustee of Sunni Muslim Samaj in
Dethly, said the community contributed Rs 51,000 to the temple trust. "We
are offering services in the yagna organised by the temple. We offer beverages,
help the trust in various tasks to manage this event. You can see many members
wearing skull caps volunteering at the event," Shaikh said, adding there
is no discrimination by Hindu devotees.
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Muslim Body Condemns Govt’s Decision to Allow Sale of
Beer at Departmental Stores in J&K
12 OCT 2022
Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU) -- an amalgam of
various religious, social and educational organisations in the Valley -- on
Thursday condemned the Jammu and Kashmir administration's approval to the sale
of beer and other ready to drink beverages in departmental stores, saying it
deeply hurts the sentiments of Muslims.
It said as Kashmir is a Muslim-majority place, such
directives show "utter disregard for the tenants of Islam".
"Open sale of alcohol in departmental stores will
further promote addiction which is a major issue in Kashmir especially among
our youth, something that the authorities also claim to be concerned about. It
will also encourage immoral behaviour," the MMU said in a statement.
While the consumption of alcohol is banned in many
states of India, why is it being “encouraged” in J-K, it asked.
The MMU said authorities should immediately withdraw
the decision.
The body also expressed strong resentment against the
NIA raid at the house of its Deputy Ameer Moulana Rehmatullah Mir, who is also
the chief administrator of Darul Uloom Raheemiya in Bandipora district.
"Such behaviour and harassment by investigative
agencies, first towards the founder and patron of the MMU, Mirwaiz Mohammad
Umar Farooq, and then with other ‘Ulemas’ and Muslim religious personalities,
is aimed at scaring them so that they are stopped from safeguarding the
interests of the Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir," the statement added.
Source: Outlook India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Karnataka hijab row: Split verdict by SC; Justice
Gupta upholds ban, Justice Dhulia says 'matter of choice'
TOct 13, 2022
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday passed a split
judgment on a bunch of appeals challenging restriction on Muslim girl students
wearing hijab in educational institutes in Karnataka.
Justice Hemant Gupta upheld the Karnataka government
circular enforcing uniform and banning all religious dresses, including hijab.
He dismissed the 26 appeals filed against the judgment of the Karnataka high
court which held that hijab was not an essential practice in Islam.
In a diverging opinion, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia
allowed the appeals and said that it was a matter of choice of Muslim women,
"nothing less than nothing more".
"The main thrust of my judgment is that this
entire concept of essential religious practices, in my opinion, was not
essential for disposal of the dispute," he said.
Stressing that his focus was on education of the girl
child, especially in rural areas, Justice Dhulia observed, "Are we making
her life any better."
While allowing the appeals against the high court
verdict, Justice Dhulia said he has quashed the state government's February 5,
2022 order banning clothes that disturb equality, integrity, and public order
in schools and colleges.
The bench ordered that the matter be placed before the
CJI for assigning the controversy, arising from the Karnataka government's
February 5 circular, to a three-judge bench.
What about hijab ban by Karnataka HC?
The Karnataka high court's order upholding ban on
hijab in educational institutions will continue as there is no stay by the SC
bench on the verdict.
What happens next?
*Now, the Chief Justice, who is the master of the
roster, would constitute a new bench with at least 3 SC judges.
*The new bench will start the hearing afresh.
*The competing parties may rely on arguments of
Justice Gupta and Justice Dhulia to support their arguments.
Here's how the hijab row, starting from a college in a
Karnataka town, snowballed into a major issue attracting focus from across the
country.
In December 2021, some students in hijab were denied
entry to classroom in a college in Udupi on grounds of violating prescribed
uniform code. In the following days, a group approached college authorities for
a settlement, but talks failed.
The matter soon attained a political colour. In
January 2022, some Hindu students in Chikmagalur demanded that they be allowed
to attend classes in saffron shawls. Several institutions across the state
witnessed protests by students over dress code.
Some Muslim students moved Karnataka High court,
contending that wearing of hijab is a necessary religious practice and barring
it amounted to hostile discrimination based on religion. They also argued that
no law barred attending classes in hijab, and doing so amounted to infringement
of fundamental rights.
The state government on February 5 issued an order
banning clothes that disturb equality, integrity and public order in schools
and colleges. All educational institutions in the state were closed for three
days on February 8, 2022 as a precautionary measure before a ruling by the HC.
The petitioners alleged discrimination, citing cross
worn by Christians and bangles by Hindus in classes; they also sought being
allowed hijabs on Fridays and during Ramzan.
The Karnataka government maintained that wearing of a
hijab was not an essential religious practice. It said that the practice must
pass the test of constitutional morality and individual dignity as expounded by
the Supreme court in the Sabarimala case.
In an interim order on February 10, the HC restrained
all students regardless of their religion or faith are restrained from wearing
saffron shawls, scarf, hijab, religious flags or the likes within the
classroom, until further orders.
On March 15, the high court dismissed the petitions
and ruled that hijab it is not a part of the essential religious practice in
Islamic faith.
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Mom's Triple Talaq Certificate Not Recognised, Kid
Denied Passport
Oct 13, 2022
AHMEDABAD: A 12-year-old girl cannot fly abroad after
passport authorities refused to recognise the customary divorce certificate
submitted by her mother, whose marriage was dissolved through triple Talaq.
Authorities refused to accept the certificate issued by a kazi (Muslim cleric)
and insisted on a court decree to issue the child's passport.
After the divorce, the girl's mother married a Hindu
man. She applied to replace the girl's biological father's name with that of
the adoptive father on her daughter's passport. However, the change wasn't
made, and the child's passport was put on hold. The woman then moved Gujarat
HC. She pleaded with the court to direct the regional passport office to make
changes in her daughter's passport and re-issue it so that the girl could
travel abroad.
The RPO's counsel submitted that the woman had not
procured any valid documents of her divorce.
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind Demands Action against BJP’s
Parvesh Verma, Nandkishore Gurjar and Others over Hate Speeches
October 13, 2022
The Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, one of India’s largest Muslim
organisations, Wednesday submitted a letter to the Delhi Police demanding
action against BJP MP Parvesh Verma, BJP MLA Nandkishore Gurjar, and others who
allegedly gave inflammatory speeches at the Virat Hindu Sabha earlier this
month.
The Delhi Police are yet to take any action in the
matter and have not registered an FIR.
Verma, Gurjar and several other Vishwa Hindu Parishad
(VHP) and religious leaders gave hate speeches against the Muslim community at
the event on October 9. While Verma asked for a “total boycott” of “these
people”, Gurjar hinted at his involvement in the Northeast Delhi riots and
said, “we will kill jihadis”.
A delegation from the organisation met the Special
Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Dependra Pathak and demanded action against
the speakers as well as the organisers of the event that was held at Dilshad
Garden.
“As responsible and peace-loving citizens, therefore,
we request you to kindly take serious note of the event and also direct the
concerned officials to take stringent action not only against the event
organiser but also against all the persons who gave inflammatory remarks
against Muslims so that such hate mongers could taste exemplary punishment,”
read a press note issued by the organisation.
“The delegation while noting that Delhi police is yet
to lodge FIR against the hate speakers urged the Special CP to make sure that
FIR is registered in their names. Whatever action has been taken so far is not
satisfactory,” it added.
Officials in their letter to the police said: “These
recurring threats reminded us of the horrendous communal riots that took place
two years back in Northeast Delhi. The local Muslim community is under a sense
of fear and feeling threatened aftermath of such an open call.”
The Delhi Police have only registered a case under
Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the organisers of the event
for not taking permission for the event.
Source: Indian Express
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Aligarh Muslim University’s leading academic wins top
UAE award for alternative medicine
October 11, 2022
Prof Wazahat Husain, a leading academic from the
Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) has won an international award for Traditional,
Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Husain, a retired chairman of the Department of Botany
at the AMU, received the Second Sheikh Zayed International Award on Monday in
an event organised by the Zayed Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation.
The Foundation is a UAE-based non-governmental,
non-profit organisation that invests in developing human capital to improve the
quality of life, according to the Foundation’s website.
The award aims to give recognition to eminent
academics and scientists of Traditional Complementary and Alternative Medicine
(TCAM ) globally, and TCAM physicians from the UAE, for enhancing TCAM
knowledge and practices, and contributing to improving the quality of life for
humanity, it said.
A plant taxonomy expert, Husain has been conferred
Lifetime Achievement Awards twice, once jointly by the University Grants
Commission (UGC) and the AYUSH ministry and then by the Wildlife Institute of
India and Department of Wildlife Sciences, AMU.
Speaking to PTI, Prof. Husain said he was honoured to
be representing AMU and India at the pinnacle of his academic career.
“Academics do not work for recognition, but when they
come, they must be accepted with humility. I dedicate this award to my
university and my country,” Prof Husain said.
Source: Indian Express
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
‘A lab experiment’: Kapil Sibal ahead of Supreme Court
verdict on hijab ban
Oct 13, 2022
Ahead of the Supreme Court's verdict on the
controversial hijab ban in Karnataka's educational institutions, senior
advocate and Rajya Sabha member Kapil Sibal on Thursday said that the ban is a
“lab experiment” which , if succeeds, will be repeated in all BJP-ruled states
for political mileage. Sibal suggested that the government should rather
experiment with reducing inflation, increasing factory output, poverty
alleviation, and delivering justice to poor.
The two judge-bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and
Sudhanshu Dhulia is scheduled to pronounce their verdict on a clutch of
petitions challenging the Karnataka high court judgement that upheld the ban on
hijab in educational institutions of the state. The bench reserved its verdict
on September 22 following a marathon hearing of 10 days. If the two judges
differ with each other in their final opinions, the case will be sent to a
larger bench.
Sibal was one of the senior advocates who argued for
the batch of girl students, women’s rights groups, lawyers, activists and
Islamic bodies. Senior advocates Rajeev Dhavan, Dushyant Dave, Salman Khurshid,
Huzefa Ahmedi, Colin Gonsalves, Meenakshi Arora, Sanjay Hegde, AM Dar, Devadatt
Kamat and Jayna Kothari also argued against the ban on scarf worn by Muslim
girl students.
The Karnataka high court had dismissed the pleas filed
by a section of Muslim students seeking permission to wear the hijab inside
classrooms, ruling that wearing a scarf is not a part of the essential
religious practice in Islam.
Source: Hindustan Times
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Gujarat: ‘Only Hindu delivery person’, writes Swiggy
customer
Sameer Khan
13th October 2022
Ahmedabad: Does food have a religion? This question become
relevant after another Swiggy customer mentioned that his food must be
delivered by a Hindu delivery person.
In an instruction option provided on the food
aggregator’s app, the customer mentioned, ‘Please only allow Hindu delivery
person’.
After the instruction came to the limelight, Shaik
Salauddin, chairman of Telangana State Taxi and Drivers JAC shared the
screengrab of the instruction and requested Swiggy to take a stand against such
requests.
He also wrote, ‘You built your business on the backs of
workers and it’s your minimum duty to ensure their safety and dignity at work’.
The food aggregator is yet to respond to the incident.
Similar situations were faced by delivery boys in
Hyderabad
It is not the first incident, earlier too a Swiggy
delivery boy in Hyderabad faced similar situation.
In August, a Swiggy customer in Hyderabad wrote,
‘Don’t want a Muslim delivery person’. Earlier, another Swiggy customer in
Hyderabad had written, ‘Very less spicy. And, please select Hindu delivery
person. All ratings will be based on this.’
Not only Swiggy, but another food delivery company
Zomato had also faced a similar customer.
Source: Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/gujarat-only-hindu-delivery-person-writes-swiggy-customer-2432705/
--------
South
Asia
Taliban Demands Increased Engagement and Cooperation
Rather Than Criticism
By Saqalain Eqbal
12 Oct 2022
The Taliban’s Minister of Foreign Affairs said during
a meeting with the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in
Afghanistan that the group seeks increased cooperation rather than criticism.
The Taliban’s foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi,
told Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur for Afghanistan, that country’s
human rights situation has improved, during their meeting on Tuesday, October
10.
No one in the country will violate human rights,
according to the Taliban minister, who also claimed that the era of warlords,
abductors, and land usurpers who violated people’s rights is over.
Foreign Minister Muttaqi assured Richard Bennett of
the group’s commitment and efforts to improve the situation of human rights in
Afghanistan.
According to a statement by the Taliban Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, the leadership of the ministry told the UN official that
“instead of criticizing one another, we should work together, publish facts
& build on the progress made.”
The United Nations Human Rights Council has once more
extended Richard Bennett’s mandate in Afghanistan with the support of the Human
Rights Watch. After the Taliban seized power, he has now visited Afghanistan
for a second time.
Human rights organizations welcomed Bennett’s earlier
report on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan under Taliban rule. In his report, he described Afghanistan’s
human rights situation as extremely precarious and dire.
Source: Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Taliban Says Human Rights Violations in Afghanistan
are ‘Rumours’
By Saqalain Eqbal
12 Oct 2022
Abdul Salam Hanafi, the deputy prime minister of the
Taliban, stated during a meeting with Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur
on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, that human rights violations
in Afghanistan are mere “Facebook rumors.”
The UN special rapporteur on the situation of
Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, whose mandate was extended for another 12 months,
visited the Taliban Deputy Prime Minister on Tuesday, October 11.
According to a statement from the Taliban’s Office of
the Prime Minister, Abdul Salam Hanafi, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister,
told Bennett that reports of human rights violations in Afghanistan are
“Facebook rumors” and urged the UN official to personally visit various regions
of the country.
“The news these days is mostly is Facebook rumors. You
can personally observe and evaluate the situation when you travel to any region
of Afghanistan,” Hanafi told Bennett.
The Taliban top official also stated that it is their
duty to protect minorities in Afghanistan. He stated to the UN’s special
rapporteur for Afghanistan that it is the Taliban’s responsibility to ensure
the safety and security of the ceremonies for the minorities.
“Fortunately, Afghanistan is completely secure, and
the Islamic Emirate is committed to protecting the lives, property, and dignity
of all citizens without discrimination,” Abdul Salam Hanafi said.
The Taliban, according to Hanafi, is committed to all
international covenants provided that they do not infringe upon the Islamic
principles and the interests of Afghanistan.
Source: Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/taliban-says-human-rights-violations-in-afghanistan-are-rumors-56643/
--------
Imposing Sanctions Does Not Benefit Kabul, Washington:
Islamic Emirate
Oct 13, 2022
The Islamic Emirate reacted to the new sanctions
imposed by the US on the members of the Islamic Emirate, saying that such
sanctions do not benefit Kabul and Washington.
The US Department of State announced on Tuesday new
restrictions on the “issuance of visas for the current or former Taliban
members, members of non-state security groups, and other individuals believed
to be responsible for, or complicit in, repressing women and girls in
Afghanistan through restrictive policies and violence.”
The Islamic Emirate’s spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid,
said that the imposition of these sanctions is a violation of the Doha
agreement.
“We say to the US that the continuation of such
sanctions neither benefits the US nor Afghanistan. It is also in contrast with
the Doha agreement. We want these sanctions to be lifted and efforts should be
made to normalize the relations between the two countries,” he said.
The US Department of State said that despite public
assurances that the Islamic Emirate would respect the human rights of all
Afghans, the “Taliban has issued and enforced a series of policies or edicts
that effectively bar women and girls in Afghanistan from full participation in
public life, including access to secondary education and work in most
industries.”
Rahmatullah Bizhanpor, a political analyst, said that
the new sanctions by the US indicate "that either the US will engage in
the diplomatic arena with the Taliban or it will cause an opportunity or
opposition of the US vis-a-vis the Taliban."
“The problems which are imposed on the Islamic
Emirate--they will finally have a direct impact on the nation. I hope the US
stops this stubbornness and follows negotiations and diplomacy, and the Islamic
Emirate should also show flexibility,” said Janat Fahim Chakari, a political
analyst.
Human Rights Watch called the imposition of these
sanctions on the immediate family members of the Islamic Emirate unjust.
“The US policy says that it may also apply to family
members of the Taliban members. This provision should be removed or at least
should be used very, very sparingly because we know that it would be unfair to
punish family members who may not be responsible at all for the actions of
their relatives,” said Heather Barr, the Associate Director of the Women's
Rights Division at Human Rights Watch.
Source: Tolo News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-180270
--------
UN Rapporteur for Afghan Human Rights Meets Islamic
Emirate Officials
Oct 13, 2022
The UN Special Rapporteur for Afghanistan’s Human
Rights, Richard Bennett, met with senior officials of the Islamic Emirate in
Kabul.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MoFA), Abdul Qahar Balkhi, said that Bennett met with acting Foreign Minister
Amir Khan Muttaqi.
Balkhi on Twitter quoted Bennett as saying that in
order to express and report the situation factually, he (Bennett) must see everything
with his own eyes and so he traveled to Afghanistan.
“Regarding the human rights situation, Muttaqi said
that the warlords, kidnappers and land grabbers cannot suppress the rights of
anyone,” said Billa Karimi, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.
The office of the 2nd Deputy Prime Minister said on
Twitter that Mullah Abdul Salam discussed with Bennett issues including
providing security to ethnic minorities, education, and the rights of women and
the media.
Political analysts gave various opinions regarding
Bennett’s meetings with Islamic Emirate officials.
“The visit of the UN special rapporteur to Kabul shows
that the UN and the international community are concerned by the human rights
situation in Afghanistan and concerns are rising in this regard,” said Wahid
Faqiri, an international relations analyst.
“The rights of humans, which is a general issue, is
important to discussed and it is also effective,” said Mohammad Khalid Musaleh,
a political analyst.
Source: Tolo News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-180269
--------
US visa restrictions to negatively impact ties:
Taliban
12 October, 2022
The United States’ new visa rules against some Taliban
members could have a “negative” impact on ties with Afghanistan’s government,
which held talks with Washington this week, the foreign ministry said
Wednesday.
Since returning to power in August 2021 after the
withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, the Taliban have issued a slew of
restrictions controlling women’s lives, based on their strict interpretation of
Islamic sharia law.
For the latest headlines, follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
They have also blocked girls from returning to
secondary schools and barred women from many government jobs.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday
unveiled visa restrictions for some current and former members of the Taliban
involved in curtailing women’s rights in Afghanistan.
The policy is an “obstacle” to the development of ties
between the two countries, the Afghan foreign ministry said in a statement
Wednesday.
“Such decisions can have a negative impact on
bilateral relations,” it said, adding that Washington’s announcement came soon
after high-ranking officials of both countries held talks in Doha this week.
During the talks, both sides discussed “almost all
important issues”, the ministry said, without elaborating.
The talks were the first since Washington announced
the killing of al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri in a US drone strike in the
Afghan capital Kabul in July.
Among other rollbacks of women’s rights, the Taliban
have ordered them to cover fully in public, preferably with an all-encompassing
burqa.
Sporadic protests held by women protesters have been
forcefully dispersed by Taliban forces in Kabul and some other cities.
The United States and much of the international
community have made the reopening of secondary schools for girls a key
condition for formally recognizing the Taliban government.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Taliban
claims Afghanistan is secure enough for large-scale projects
October
12, 2022
The
Taliban said Wednesday there is enough security across Afghanistan to restart
major economic projects that stopped due to decades of war, despite a slew of
attacks rocking the country since the group seized power more than a year ago.
The
Taliban have struggled in their transition from insurgency and warfare to
governing amid an economic downturn and the international community withholding
official recognition.
Foreign
aid stopped when the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021. World
governments piled on sanctions, halted bank transfers and froze billions more
in Afghanistan’s currency reserves.
Taliban-appointed
government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Afghanistan has the opportunity to
connect with the rest of the countries in the region, highlighting China as a
key part of the nation's economic development.
"In
the last Cabinet meeting, it was decided that the Silk Road, which will connect
Afghanistan with China, must be built. This historic road can play a great role
in the economy of the country," he said at a seminar about regional connectivity.
"It is a great opportunity, we have good security and it is the time to
start major economic projects."
In
March this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping gave his strong backing to
Afghanistan, spotlighting Beijing’s aspirations to play a leading role in
Afghanistan following the withdrawal of U.S. forces.
Foreign
Minister Wang Yi, at the same regional conference, led calls for the U.S. to
unfreeze Afghan assets held abroad and end sanctions on the government.
The
Taliban's deputy prime minister, Abdul Salam Hanafi, said Afghanistan’s role
for the connectivity of countries in the region was very important.
"Afghanistan can play a great role in creating important corridors. We
want to be connected to China through our Badakhshan province."
The
geopolitics and geostrategic position of Afghanistan could lead the country to
play a positive role in linking neighboring countries in the region and beyond,
he added.
He
repeated the Taliban's assurances that the group would not allow anyone to use
Afghan soil to stage attacks on other countries.
Source:
Fox News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.foxnews.com/world/taliban-claims-afghanistan-secure-enough-large-scale-projects
--------
Arab
World
As
Biden‘Re-Evaluates’ Ties With Riyadh, Saudis Working To Get Trump Re-Elected
12
October 2022
After
slashing oil production, Saudi royals are working to get Donald Trump
re-elected as the US president and are also making efforts for the Republicans
to win the upcoming midterms in the US, according to a report citing experts.
“The
Saudis are working to get Trump re-elected and for the MAGA Republicans to win
the midterms,” Bruce Riedel, a senior fellow of the Brookings Institution, was
quoted as saying by The Intercept on Tuesday. “Higher oil prices will undermine
the Democrats.”
The
decision by OPEC+ recently has put US President Joe Biden and the Democratic
Party in a bind by potentially kickstarting fuel price hikes, just a few weeks
ahead of midterm elections, where the Republicans hope to take control of
Congress.
The
decision has left the Biden administration sulking and Congressional Democrats
seeking reelection amid soaring gas prices are also incensed.
Representative
Ro Khanna, California Democrat, said oil prices affect not only the price at
the pump but also the cost of virtually everything and are a major driver of
inflation.
“There’s
no doubt that the Saudi-led OPEC oil production cuts are a strategic effort to
hurt Americans at the pump and undermine our work to tackle rising costs,"
he was quoted in the report as saying.
Experts
now say the price hikes are a move by Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman, aka MBS, into the US electoral politics - a move
against Biden and in favor of Trump, they say.
White
House officials called the recent oil production cut a “hostile act” and said
the administration was “re-evaluating” the Saudi relationship.
Capitol
Hill normally resorts to expressing ‘deep concern’ in response to the Saudi
kingdom’s myriad human rights abuses.
This
time around, Congressional Democrats have struck back, vowing to block weapons
sales and even taking the unprecedented step of introducing legislation to
withdraw US troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Bin
Salman’s affinity for Trump is hardly a secret. Trump broke with presidential
tradition by paying his first foreign visit to Riyadh, where he inked a record
$350 billion weapons sale to the autocracy.
He
also repeatedly defended MBS amid reporting, including by his own CIA, that the
crown prince had ordered the brutal murder of the Washington Post journalist
Jamal Khashoggi.
“I
saved his a**,” Trump reportedly said. “I was able to get Congress to leave him
alone” — referring to three times he vetoed Congressional resolutions blocking
billions in weapons sales to the Saudis.
The
cozy relationship between Trump’s circles and the Saudis persisted after the
president left office.
Just
six months after leaving the White House, Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and
former top White House adviser, won a $2-billion investment from the Saudi
sovereign wealth fund with the blessings of MBS.
And
Trump’s Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s firm, Liberty Strategic Capital,
raised $1 billion from the Saudi sovereign wealth fund.
Biden
had promised when he ran for office that he would hold Saudi Arabia accountable
for its human rights abuses, including the murder of Khashoggi.
Source:
Press TV
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/10/12/690829/Saudis-Trump-oil-prices-bin-salman
--------
Qatar
strongly condemns settlers' storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque
12
Oct 2022
DOHA:
The State of Qatar strongly condemned the storming by hundreds of settlers of
the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, and performing Talmudic rituals under the
protection of the Israeli occupation police, considering it a flagrant
violation of international law and a provocation to the feelings of Muslims
around the world, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs today.
The
statement warned that the continuation of serious violations and provocative
practices in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque clearly reveals the desire of the
occupation to direct the conflict into a religious war, and stressed the need
for the international community to shoulder its moral and legal
responsibilities towards Jerusalem and its holy sites.
Source:
The Peninsula Qatar
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Islamic
State terrorizes business owners in northeast Syria
Khaled
al-Khateb
October
12, 2022
ALEPPO,
Syria — The areas controlled by the Kurdish forces in the countryside of Deir
ez-Zor province in northeastern Syria have recently witnessed growing
activities by Islamic State (IS) cells, which are terrorizing business owners
and forcing them to pay "zakat" (obligatory charitable payment).
On
Oct. 3, IS militants blew up a money exchange and money transfer shop called
Al-Iman Office in the town of al-Azbah, in the northern countryside of Deir
ez-Zor, after its owner refused to pay zakat. No casualties were reported, but
the shop was severely damaged.
One
of the shop owner’s relatives told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, “IS
members detonated an explosive device they had planted in front of the office
located in the popular market in al-Azbah, after the owner refused to pay zakat
as demanded by IS.”
He
said, “In early September, IS members reached out to the shop owner via
WhatsApp, requesting him to pay a specific amount as zakat. He did not respond
to their request so they planted an explosive device [near his shop] on Sept.
25, which failed to detonate. Hours before their second attempt on the evening
of Oct. 3, they had sent him a message threatening to kill him and destroy his
office because he had not paid zakat.”
The
source noted, “Fortunately, the explosive device went off while the office was
closed, and no one was injured in the explosion.”
Speaking
about the first attempt targeting the shop owner, the source said, “A patrol
affiliated with the Syrian Democratic Forces [SDF] dismantled the explosive
device that was intended to detonate next to the shop after the SDF was
informed by the townspeople that there was a strange object in front of a money
exchange shop in the center of the market.”
The
residents of the countryside of Deir ez-Zor, which is under the control of the
Kurdis-led SDF, are living under the constant threats of IS cells. As the group
has been terrorizing business owners to pay zakat, threatening to kill them if
they don’t, IS cells have escalated their activities against SDF members and
anyone who works with the SDF.
A
livestock dealer in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor told Al-Monitor on
condition of anonymity, “IS forced me to pay $500 as zakat because I work in
the livestock trade.”
He
said, “An IS member contacted me via WhatsApp asking me to pay zakat and
threatening to kill me if I refused. He also warned me against reporting the
incident to the SDF’s security authorities, otherwise he would go after me and
my family.”
The
dealer added, “I agreed to pay $500 out of fear for my family’s well-being. The
person who contacted me told me that a woman affiliated with IS would come to
my house to collect the money and hand me a paper bearing the group's stamp,
and that is what happened.”
Source:
Al Monitor
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Al-Azhar
rejects fatwas against polio vaccination in Pakistan
October
13, 2022
KARACHI:
Egypt’s Al-Azhar University, one of the world’s most eminent seats of Islamic
learning, has warned against fatwas banning the polio vaccine in Pakistan,
describing the vaccine as a “religious, medical and humanitarian duty”.
The
spread of decrees prohibiting the vaccination is a “violation of the rights of
Pakistani children and their families”, the university said in a tweet on
Wednesday, stressing that preventing a vaccine that is beneficial for the
child, such as the polio’s, is “prohibited by Sharia”.
Violence,
fear and misinformation offer challenges to authorities trying to reach every
child who needs the polio vaccine in Pakistan, which has reported 19 cases this
year.
The
university’s statement came after Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel met Grand
Imam of Al-Azhar University Prof Ahmed At-Tayyeb in Cairo, where he briefed his
host on the flood crisis in Pakistan.
Al-Azhar
called on countries, peoples and relief and charitable institutions around the
world to stand in solidarity with Pakistan in this catastrophe that has claimed
thousands of lives, displaced families, demolished homes and caused epidemic
diseases.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714765/al-azhar-rejects-fatwas-against-polio-vaccination-in-pakistan
--------
Coalition
says it exchanged POW visits with Yemen’s Houthis
October
12, 2022
Two
delegations from the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen and the
Iran-aligned Houthis exchanged visits to prisoners of war on Wednesday as a
gesture of goodwill and a confidence-building measure to extend the truce in
Yemen, the coalition said in a statement carried by the Saudi state news agency
SPA.
The
statement quoted spokesman Colonel Turki Al-Malki as saying “this visit is
humanitarian in nature ... and comes as one of the gains of the truce as we
seek to extend it.”
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2180131/saudi-arabia
--------
Saudi
defense minister holds discussions with British, Yemeni counterparts
October
13, 2022
RIYADH:
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman discussed defense cooperation
with his British and Yemeni counterparts on Wednesday.
Prince
Khalid met Yemen’s Minister of Defense Lieutenant General Mohsen Al Daari and
reaffirms the Saudi-led Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen’s commitment
to the country and efforts to ending the crisis, ensuring peace and prosperity
for Yemenis.
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2180156/saudi-arabia
--------
Mideast
Hezbollah
chief: Resistance sole way to free Palestine, defeat enemies of Muslims
13
October 2022
Secretary
General of Lebanon’s Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah says resistance is the sole way to
liberate Palestine and defeat the enemies of the Islamic world, calling on
Muslim nations to unite around the Palestinian cause against occupation in the
face of the enemies.
The
Hezbollah chief made the remarks in a message to the 36th International
Conference on Islamic Unity in Iran on Wednesday, delivered by Sheikh Nabil
Qaouk, the deputy chief of the Lebanese resistance movement’s executive
council.
Nasrallah
emphasized the need for unity in the Islamic Ummah (nation) in line with the
ideology of resistance and said the only way to liberate Palestine and al-Quds
from the Israeli regime, defeat the enemies, and restore grandeur to the divine
mission of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
“If
there is any weakness (in the Muslim world), it stems from divisions,” said the
Lebanese resistance leader. “If the enemy’s power lies in rifts among us, we
should therefore unite, since our unity will serve as a firm fortress for us
and will guarantee our progress toward prosperity.”
He
urged the Islamic countries’ legislative bodies and Muslim scholars to boycott
and criminalize any normalization with the Israeli regime, which he said would
lead to the Judaization of the occupied city of al-Qud and would deal a blow to
the Palestinian cause.
“We
press the hands of the oppressed Bahraini people who are supporting the
resistance and are objecting to the normalization projects with the Zionist
regime,” he said.
Nasrallah
likewise voiced support for the Iraqi people, who have been dealing with US and
Takfiri terrorism, and for the Yemeni nation’s demands for an end to the siege
and war by the US-backed Saudi regime and the coalition of its allies.
He
added that the axis of resistance is stretching over 2.5 million kilometers,
with its member nations enjoying rich oil resources and scientific and economic
capabilities.
“We
are facing the same enemy and moving toward the same fate,” he noted.
Commenting
on relations with Iran, Nasrallah stressed that Hezbollah would always defend
the Islamic Republic in its confrontation with the enemies.
“The
US is attempting to create division, ignite flames of war, and exploit Takfiri
terrorist groups to weaken the Islamic nations, plunder their resources and
ruin our countries,” he said.
Treacherous
governments in the region have turned into tools in the hands of enemies and
aggressors to press ahead with their agendas, he said.
He
pointed to Washington’s defeats in its policies for the region, namely in Iraq
and Afghanistan, and the world, saying that it is now “drowning in the quagmire
of the Ukraine war.”
The
US ploys, he said, have backfired today and they are in the worst economic
situation.
Speaking
at the same conference, Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi similarly described
resistance as the only viable path to confronting the Israeli regime, saying
those who assumed that negotiations with illogical parties would save Palestine
have been proven wrong.
Source:
Press TV
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
At
least 108 dead in Iran crackdown on Mahsa Amini protests: IHR
October
12, 2022
At
least 108 people have been killed in Iran’s crackdown on more than three weeks
of nationwide protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, said Oslo-based
group Iran Human Rights (IHR).
The
Iranian security forces also killed at least another 93 people during separate
clashes in the city of Zahedan, in the southeastern province of
Sistan-Baluchistan, IHR said in a statement.
Protests
erupted across Iran on September 16, when Amini died three days after falling
into a coma following her arrest in Tehran by the morality police for an
alleged breach of the Islamic republic’s strict dress code for women.
The
violence in Zahedan erupted on September 30 during protests that were triggered
by anger over the reported rape of a teenage girl by a police commander in the
region.
Human
rights groups also voiced alarm on Tuesday over the extent of the crackdown in
Sanandaj, the capital of Amini’s home province of Kurdistan in Iran’s west.
“The
international community must prevent further killings in Kurdistan by issuing
an immediate response,” IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said in
Wednesday’s statement.
IHR
indicated its investigation into the extent of the “repression” in Kurdistan
had been hampered by internet restrictions and warned of an “impending bloody
crackdown” on demonstrators in the western province.
“The
city of Sanandaj in Kurdistan province has witnessed widespread protests and
bloody crackdowns in the past three days,” IHR said, adding that its current
death toll for the province excluded those killed in that period.
The
Oslo-based group said it had so far recorded 28 deaths in Mazandaran province,
14 in Kurdistan, 12 in both Gilan and West Azerbaijan, and 11 in Tehran
province.
It
said the Iranian security forces had also arrested many children protesting on
the streets and at schools in the past week.
“Children
have a legal right to protest, the United Nations has an obligation to defend
children’s rights in Iran by applying pressure on the Islamic republic,” said
Amiry-Moghaddam.
IHR
said its toll also excluded six deaths that reportedly occurred during protests
inside Rasht central prison in northern Iran on Sunday as it was still
investigating the case.
It
said workers had also joined in nationwide strikes and protests at Asalouyeh
petrochemical plant in Iran’s southwest, Abadan in western Iran and Bushehr to
the south.
More
than 100 ‘rioters’ charged: judiciary
Meanwhile,
Iran has charged more than 100 people in two provinces over the wave of
protests triggered by the death in custody last month of Mahsa Amini, the
judiciary said today.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714659/at-least-108-dead-in-iran-crackdown-on-mahsa-amini-protests-ihr
--------
Iran
protests: At least 28 children killed, many arrested in Iran, rights groups say
12 October,
2022
At
least 28 children have been killed in protests that have swept Iran since the
death of Mahsa Amini, with hundreds more mostly detained in adult prisons,
rights groups inside and outside the country said.
Amini,
22, was pronounced dead days after the notorious morality police detained the
Iranian Kurd last month for allegedly breaching the Islamic Republic’s strict
dress code for women.
Anger
flared at her funeral and spread to become the biggest wave of protests to rock
Iran in almost three years, despite a crackdown that has killed scores and seen
hundreds arrested.
Iran’s
Children’s Rights Protection Society condemned security forces for resorting to
violence against children who have protested in schools and in the street.
“According
to statistics, 28 children have been killed in these confrontations, most of
which happened in the underprivileged province of Sistan-Baluchistan,” the
Tehran-based group said in a statement posted on its website Monday.
It
criticized “families being kept in the dark on their children’s whereabouts,
cases proceeding without lawyers and lack of children’s judges and police.”
The
group said the government “must be held accountable” and bring forward and punish
“anyone, of any rank, who has been the cause of violence or harassment against
children or their deaths.”
Revolutionary
Guards deputy commander Ali Fadavi told Iranian media on October 5 that the
“average age of the detainees from many of the recent protests was 15.”
“Some
of the teenagers and young adults arrested used similar key phrases in their
confessions, such as likening street riots to video games,” the Mehr news
agency quoted Fadavi as saying.
Human
rights lawyer Hassan Raisi said some of the children arrested were being held
in detention centers for adult drug offenders.
“This
is very concerning,” he said in a report posted on the London-based Iran Wire
news website on Wednesday. Those “under the age of 18 must never be held with
any criminal over 18... This is a legal requirement, not a recommendation.”
He
added that “around 300 people between the ages of 12-13 and 18-19 are in police
custody.”
Schoolchildren
joined the protests soon after they began in mid-September, with girls removing
their hijabs, shouting anti-government slogans and defacing images of the
country’s leadership.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Raisi
accuses US of resorting to ‘policy of destabilization’ against Iran
13
October, 2022
Iranian
President Ebrahim Raisi on Thursday accused the United States of resorting to
“policy of destabilization’ against the Islamic Republic which is gripped by
protests over Mahsa Amini’s death.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Iran
Warns EU of Reciprocal Move against Restrictive Measures
2022-October-12
Amir
Abdollahian said that he has conveyed the warning during a phone conversation
with his French counterpart Catherine Colonna.
The
top Iranian diplomat said that both sides
agreed that "mutual respect and benefit override relations",
and that "violence and terror should be confronted".
"I
objected to Europe's interference in our internal affairs," he said,
adding that "I stressed that Iran will reciprocate if EU restrictive
measures applied".
Protests
erupted over the death of the 22-year-old Iranian woman, who fainted at a
police station and was pronounced dead at a Tehran hospital on September 16,
first in her native province of Kordestan and later in several cities,
including the capital Tehran.
Immediately
after Amini’s death, Iran’s President Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi ordered a thorough
investigation into the case and an official report published on Friday said her
death had been caused by an illness rather than alleged blows to the head or
other vital body organs.
What
started as peaceful protests took a violent turn after unruly protesters
fatally attacked policemen and indulged in vandalism against public property in
several cities.
On
Thursday, the European Parliament adopted a resolution with regard to recent
riots in Iran, calling on the EU officials to impose sanctions against Iranian
officials who have been involved in an alleged crackdown on protests.
Iran’s
foreign ministry condemned the resolution as "meddlesome and
baseless", vowing to give an "appropriate response" to the
imposition of any restrictive measures against Iranian people.
The
Iranian foreign ministry has already summoned Frances’s chargé d'affaires to
Tehran to protest meddlesome measures by the French government in Iran’s
domestic affairs and its stance about riots instigated by counterrevolutionary
elements across the country.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Interior
Minister: Foreign-Backed Terrorist Groups Lead Riots in Iran, Seek Sedition
2022-October-12
"The
riots are planned, supported, and led by separatist terror groups, including
the so-called Komala Party, Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), and Party of Free
Life of Kurdistan, also known as PJAK, which have a history of cooperation with
the Zionist regime and were once hired by the Western countries and Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein as mercenaries," Vahidi said.
He
added that they also committed crimes and conducted terrorist operations in
Iran.
"Over
the past few days violent riots have erupted across the country as well as in
Sanandaj, the capital city of Kordestan province," Vahidi said, adding
that however, Iran’s Kords who are seeking peace, security and development
separated themselves from the rioters.
He
warned that Iran’s army and law enforcement forces have firmly dealt with the
rioters and their leaders and will continue to do so to neutralize their
fruitless efforts.
In
relevant remarks on Tuesday, Iranian Government Spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi
said that the government consents to legal protests and the interior minister
is tasked with suggesting guidelines for organizing such gatherings.
He
also blasted the foreign-backed Persian-language media based abroad for
training people to commit terrorist actions, and said that they must be held
accountable to authorities for the harm they are inflicting upon the country.
Elsewhere
in his remarks, Bahadori Jahromi slammed Western countries’ double standards,
saying that the medications late Mahsa Amini needed for her underlying
condition were subjected to sanctions imposed by the US.
Protests
erupted over the death of the 22-year-old Iranian woman, who fainted at a
police station and was pronounced dead at a Tehran hospital on September 16,
first in her native province of Kurdistan and later in several cities,
including the capital Tehran.
Immediately
after Amini’s death, Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi ordered a thorough
investigation into the case and an official report published on Friday said her
death had been caused by an illness rather than alleged blows to the head or
other vital body organs.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Living
costs top worry for Israeli voters stuck in election treadmill
13 October,
2022
Israelis
are as fed-up with soaring prices as they are with the country’s seemingly
never ending elections. In the Nov. 1 ballot - a fifth in less than four years
- steep living costs, exacerbated by record inflation, are top priority for
voters.
Living
costs even outweigh issues like the conflict with the Palestinians, voter
surveys show. Yet in a turbulent political system, it is ultimately attitudes
toward the polarizing former premier Benjamin Netanyahu that sway voting
patterns. Plus a seemingly eternal election cycle means sweeping economic
reforms are near impossible.
The
country’s repeated ballots have seen only one state budget passed since 2019,
hampering the kind of long-term planning needed to pass reforms to cut costs.
This has increased voters’ fears that a fresh election will do little to
improve matters even though Netanyahu’s rightist religious bloc and his rival,
centrist Prime Minister Yair Lapid, both promise change.
In
the suburban city Modiin, midway between affluent hi-tech hub Tel Aviv and far
poorer Jerusalem, Matthew and Ilana Lipman are a picture of middle-class
Israel, with a sizeable mortgage, four children and a dog.
Both
teachers in their early 40s, they say they are struggling to make ends meet.
And a 14-year record inflation is not helping. “Every time I go to the grocery
store, prices are going up,” said Ilana.
“(Our)
spending is higher than earnings; every month we see that more and more,” Ilana
said. “It’s not working.”
While
thankful for basics for their children, a roof over their head and food on the
table, they say extras, like after-school classes or going to the pool, are
becoming an unaffordable luxury.
With
low unemployment and robust growth rates that outpace most of the West,
Israel’s economy is doing well overall, said economist Manuel Trajtenberg, who
heads Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies.
But
he added: “We have not been able to translate macroeconomic success into
improving living costs and quality of life for the average Israeli citizen.”
Deadlock
Methods
for determining the scale of living costs vary, but economists largely agree
that basic items like dairy products, eggs, bread, oil and meat are more
expensive than they should be, compared with other countries in the
organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
The
OECD has 38 member countries across Europe, North and South America and
Asia-Pacific.
“Aside
from communications, in every other category, food, housing and so on, the
median Israeli salary buys a lot less than the average OECD salary,” said
economist Dan Ben David of the Shoresh Institute for Socioeconomic Research.
Israeli
prices are 40 percent higher than in the eurozone and 17 percent higher than in
the US, according to research co-authored by former Bank of Israel Governor
Karnit Flug at the Israel Democracy Institute (IDI).
Among
the reasons are monopolies on imports and red tape and protectionist policies
for local suppliers.
A
separate IDI survey found living costs were top priority for 44 percent of
Israeli voters, far more than those who listed diplomacy and security, which
would include the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or Iran.
Nonetheless,
economic issues won’t break the present deadlock between Netanyahu’s bloc and
Lapid, said IDI President Yochanan Plesner. “We’re deeply immersed in identity
politics and movement between blocs is virtually nonexistent,” he said.
Reforms
are vital to keep long-term growth, said Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron, so
the lack of continuity in government is detrimental. “That’s the primary
difficulty that comes from these repeated election cycles,” Yaron told Reuters.
Attuned
to voters’ pocket pains, both political camps are promising sweeping measures.
Netanyahu
is brandishing his economic credentials; a free market champion credited with
reforms he led as finance minister two decades ago, which allowed Israel to
weather the 2008 global financial crisis.
But
his five consecutive terms as premier in 2009-2021, saw housing prices more
than double and despite promises to boost competition and lower taxes, his
record on living costs has been mixed.
Lapid’s
camp is highlighting moves his government has pushed over the past year to
bring food prices down, like agricultural reforms and cutting red tape on food
imports.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Iran’s
Khamenei slams protests as ‘scattered riots’ designed by the enemy
12
October, 2022
Iran’s
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called anti-government protests "scattered
riots" designed by the enemy, the semi-official Tasnim news agency
reported on Wednesday.
“These
scattered riots are the passive and clumsy design of the enemy against the
great and innovative developments and movements of the Iranian nation,”
Khamenei said.
“The
cure against enemies is to stand up to them,” he added.
Protests
over the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman who died in
the custody of the morality police, have spread across Iran for the last four
weeks.
According
to Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights, more than 108 people have been killed in
Iran’s crackdown on protests.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
Shehbaz
says ‘absolutely willing’ to talk to India but onus on New Delhi to take steps
for ‘meaningful engagement’
October
13, 2022
Prime
Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday he was “absolutely willing and ready”
to engage with India for the sake of regional peace and prosperity, but the
onus was on New Delhi to take the necessary measures “ for meaningful and
result-oriented engagement“.
“I
am absolutely ready and willing to have a serious dialogue and discussion with
our counterparts, Indians, provided that they show sincerity of purpose and they
show that they are ready to discuss issues that have really kept us at a
distance over decades,” he said while addressing the 6th summit of the
Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia in
Kazakhstan.
The
premier regretted issues that have kept the two countries apart had hampered
the promotion of bilateral trade and investment.
“This
has to come to a stop,” he stressed, adding, “but the onus remains on India to
take the necessary steps for meaningful and result oriented-engagement.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Orders
came from ‘elsewhere’ while I was PM, says Imran
Mansoor
Malik | Syed Irfan Raza
October
13, 2022
LAHORE
/ ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said that during his
three-and-half-year tenure, decision-making powers did not lie with him, even
though he was in charge of running the affairs of the country.
The
statement by the PTI chief, acknowledging his helplessness despite being at the
helm of the affairs, came during a conversation with media persons in Lahore.
Mr Khan also blamed the bad governance during his tenure on the ‘de-facto’
rulers who, apparently, did not let him turn his dream of ‘Naya Pakistan’ into
reality.
During
my tenure, running the affairs of the country was supposed to be my
responsibility, but the “orders were coming from somewhere else”, Mr Khan said,
while referring to his tenure. He added that if he had enjoyed complete
authority, his administration could have competed with the reign of Sher Shah
Suri – founder of the Sur empire that ruled north India in the 16th century.
Mr
Khan did not name the people he had to ‘share the power’ with, but he has made
similar claims in the past. In an interview in June, the former prime minister
had admitted he did not enjoy absolute power, indicating that the actual
centres of power in the country lay elsewhere and “everyone knows where that
is”, reported Dawn.com.
‘Hands
were tied’
The
former premier also talked about pressures during his time at the helm. “Our
hands were tied. We were blackmailed from everywhere. Power wasn’t with us.
Everyone knows where the power lies in Pakistan so we had to rely on them,” Mr
Khan said.
“We
relied on them all the time. They did a lot of good things too but they didn’t
do many things that should’ve been done. They have the power because they
control institutions such as NAB, which wasn’t in our control,” Dawn.com quoted
him as saying.
Mr
Khan also talked about a need to strike a balance between a ‘strong army’ and a
‘strong government’ since, in order for the system to work efficiently, the
responsibility and the authority needed to be vested in one office.
He
also took swipe at the ‘handlers’ who, according to him, had “damaged the
country more than its enemies” by allowing the ‘looters’ to get clean chits.
There was an open and shut case of Rs16 billion corruption against Prime
Minister Shehbaz Sharif, but he had the “protection of handlers”, Mr Khan
claimed while commenting on the acquittal of the premier and his sons in the
money laundering case.
Several
engagements
The
PTI chairman spent a busy day in Lahore. He addressed a ceremony of the trade
unionists and Insaf Student Federation (ISF) as well. Speaking at the
oath-taking ceremony of the ISF, the former premier asked his party workers to
be ready for the long march. “It won’t be long now,” he told the ISF activists.
The final call can be given any time, Mr Khan reiterated followed by the
administration of oath to the ISF workers by PTI leader Faisal Javed.
At
a public meeting in Sharaqpur, Imran Khan said he did not need to install his
“own army chief, judges, police chiefs, or the NAB chief” because he would
never break the law or indulge in corrupt practices. “I want that all top
institutions’ heads should be appointed on merit to strengthen the
institutions,” he said while referring to the appointments made by the
incumbent government. He alleged that the current rulers wanted to bring their
own people into these offices to hide their corruption.
Separately,
the PTI chairman addressed a workers’ convention in Islamabad before his
departure to Lahore after he was granted bail in a case registered by the
Federal Investigation Agency over the submission of a ‘fake affidavit’ to the
Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
Imran
Khan recalled his government’s achievements and said that foreign remittances
and investments in addition to tax collection were increasing before his ouster
in April.
Bail
in FIA case
Earlier
in the day, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) granted Imran Khan pre-arrest bail
till Oct 18 in the FIA case against him. The registrar initially raised
objections to the petition, but it was subsequently taken up by the IHC chief
justice, Athar Minallah.
At
the outset of the hearing, Barrister Salman Safdar explained the reason for
invoking the jurisdiction of the high court.
Justice
Minallah recalled that in the past, the court entertained such a petition of
former senator Faisal Raza Abidi and granted him protective bail. He, however,
pointed out that the presence of the accused was a mandatory requirement to
seek relief. Barrister Safdar promptly offered that Mr Khan could appear in the
courtroom within 30 minutes and Justice Minallah granted protective bail after
the PTI chairman appeared before the court.
The
IHC CJ did not dispose of the petition, though, and kept it pending since the
counsel of Mr Khan said that there was still confusion regarding the
jurisdiction of the trial court. Justice Minallah observed that since the
offences fell within the ambit of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA);
therefore, the special judge central was competent to take up the matter.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714785/orders-came-from-elsewhere-while-i-was-pm-says-imran
--------
Hazaras
rally in Balochistan against persecution in Afghanistan
Saleem
Shahid
October
13, 2022
QUETTA:
Hundreds of people belonging to the Hazara community, including women and
children, held a protest rally here on Wednesday against last month’s suicide
bombing at an educational centre in Kabul which left 52 people, most of them
students, dead.
Members
of the Hazara community, including elders, ulema and members of civil society,
gathered in the Hazara Town area and took out the protest rally, carrying
placards and banners inscribed with slogans seeking end to what they called
genocide of the members of their community and stopping acts of terrorism
against them.
Participants
of the rally marched through different roads of the provincial capital chanting
slogans against the terrorists involved in these attacks against mosques and
educational institutions belonging to the Hazara community.
The
protest rally later turned into a public meeting which was addressed by Allama
Muhammad Asif Hussaini, Seema Sadat, Kashif Haideri and Mehdi Afzali.
The
speakers condemned the suicide bombings in mosques, educational institutions
and other places and termed these acts genocide of the Hazara community in
Afghanistan.
“The
international human rights organisations should recognise and declare these
acts of terrorism as genocide of the Hazara community,” they demanded, adding
that steps should be taken to stop these inhuman and barbaric acts against the
Hazara community.
They
expressed serious concern over the silence of United Nations and other international
organisations over these attacks and said that the Hazara people and human
rights activists had staged protests against these tragic incidents against
their community across the world this week to draw the attention of the world
towards the issue and to express solidarity with the victims of these terrorist
attacks.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714773/hazaras-rally-in-balochistan-against-persecution-in-afghanistan
--------
PTI
Senator Azam Swati arrested for tweeting against army chief
Shakeel
Qarar | Tahir Naseer
October
13, 2022
PTI
Senator Azam Swati was arrested on Thursday for allegedly tweeting a “highly
obnoxious and intimidating message” against state institutions, including the
army chief, according to a criminal complaint filed by the FIA.
Swati’s
tweet named the army chief, and came after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and
Hamza Shehbaz were acquitted in a high-profile money laundering case yesterday.
“Mr
Bajwa congratulations to you and few with you. Your plan is really working and
all criminals are getting free at cost of this country. With these thugs
getting free, you have legitimised corruption. How you predict now the future
of this country (sic),” he said.
Speaking
to reporters outside a sessions court in the capital today, the PTI leader said
he was not arrested for breaking the law, violating the Constitution or
fundamental rights. He said he was arrested for “taking one name — of Bajwa —
and that is the violation”.
When
asked who arrested him, he said it was the FIA. When pressed about what case,
he alleged he was tortured by “agencies”. “A parliamentarian has been
unclothed,” he said. “I am telling the nation.”
FIR
The
first information report registered at the FIA’s Cyber Crime Reporting Centre
in Islamabad, a copy of which Dawn.com has seen, mentions that Swati tweeted
with “malafide intentions & ulterior motives” against “State Institutes of
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan and its Senior Government Functionaries
including Chief of The Army Staff of Pakistan Army”.
The
FIR adds that such “intimidating tweet/s of blaming and naming through Twitter
account i.e., @AzamKhanSwatiPK, is a mischievous act of subversion to create a
rift between personnel/s of The Armed Forces and an attempt to harm the State
of Pakistan”.
Through
the aforementioned tweet, the criminal complaint says, the accused “undermined
the Judicial System of the country and also attempted to seduce Army
Personnel/s from their allegiance to their duties as subordinates.
“This
is calculated attempt to create hatred in the mind of people and Army
Personnel/s against COAS and Pakistan Army and also created distrust towards
Judicial System. In such intimidating Tweet/s, the accused Muhammad Azam Khan
Swati has attempted to provoke general public and Personnel/s of Armed Forces
by trying to create a feeling of ill-will among pillars of the State.”
It
alleges Swati violated the privacy and intimidated the state institutions, by
using false information, “which is likely to incite, any officer, soldier,
sailor, or Airman in the Army, Navy or Air Force of Pakistan to mutiny or otherwise
disregard or fail in his duty as such and is also likely to cause fear or alarm
in the public and may induce / incite anyone to commit an offence against the
State or the State Institution/s or public tranquillity”.
The
case was made out against the PTI leader under section 20 of the Prevention of
Electronic Crimes Act-2016 read with 131 (abetting mutiny or attempting to
seduce a soldier from his duty), 500 (punishment for defamation), 501 (printing
or engraving matter known to be defamatory), 505 (statements conducing to
public mischief) and 109 (punishment of abetment) of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Court
proceedings
PTI’s
Babar Awan, Sardar Masroof Khan and Qaiser Jadoon appeared on Swati’s behalf in
the Islamabad sessions court of senior Civil Judge Shabbir Bhatti.
The
FIA requested eight-day physical remand. The lawyers, however, argued that he
was arrested on political grounds. They, too, alleged he was tortured during
the late-night detention.
The
court sent Swati on two-day physical remand and ordered that the PTI leader be
taken for a medical checkup before and after the remand period. It directed the
authorities to present Swati before the court on October 15.
The
court said in its written order that Swati had complained of being subjected to
torture after being arrested at 3am on Thursday.
Moreover,
it added, the FIA had informed the court that a “technical comparison” of
Swati’s Twitter account had to be conducted.
The
court said Swati was being sent on physical remand for two days for further investigation
and the recovery of his other social media accounts.
Recriminations
against arrest and ‘torture’
Later,
PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry tweeted that reports of Swati’s torture were
“disturbing”. “Torturing political prisoners has become a new normal in
Pakistan,” he added.
PTI-era
human rights minister Shireen Mazari tweeted a video of Azam Swati alleging
torture in custody.
“Brave
man Senator Azam Swati as he tells of why he was arrested but also how he was
subjected to torture while in custody,” she wrote. “Shameful.”
Earlier,
Swati’s lawyer Babar Awan said “midnight jackals” came to the senator’s house
and identified themselves as “FIA personnel,” he said while speaking to the
media.
Awan
said he was condemning the “arrest” on his, the nation’s and the PTI’s behalf.
Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa Finance Minister and PTI leader Taimur Jhagra called for Swati’s
release. “Our citizens see a political mess; an economic mess; & the
ridiculing of accountability. Time to bear the political criticism that comes
in today’s polarised Pakistan.
“The
answer is elections; not fear through arrests. It is not working. Don’t dig
deeper,” he added.
PTI
leader Malik Amin Aslam also voiced alarm over Swati’s torture claims and
called it a “pathetic state of affairs”.
Other
arrests
Last
week, the PTI had said that a number of its leaders — including Senator
Saifullah Khan Nyazee, Hamid Zaman and Tariq Shafi — had been picked up by the
Federal Investigation Agency (FIA); a claim that the agency had initially
denied.
Later,
during a press conference, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah had said that
Saifullah Nyazee and Amir Zaman had been taken into “protective custody” for
interrogation, adding they might be arrested after due diligence, if necessary.
He
said that the two men had not been appearing in the prohibited funding case.
Meanwhile,
PTI founding member Hamid Zaman’s arrest by the FIA in a connection with a
prohibited funding case in Lahore was also confirmed.
According
to the FIR lodged against him, both Hamid and Shafi are accused of being
accomplices of Abraaj founder Arif Masood Naqvi.
The
FIR alleged that Naqvi had “siphoned off Rs9.1bn from funds of Abraaj Group and
its subsidiary companies abroad and funnelled to the Aman Foundation’s accounts
through Foreign Telegraphic Transfers (FTTs) with unexplained money trail.”
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714819/pti-senator-azam-swati-arrested-for-tweeting-against-army-chief
--------
Opposition
in uproar after Ghani’s remarks against Karachiites
Imran
Ayub
October
13, 2022
KARACHI:
The ‘anti-Karachiites’ remarks made by Sindh Minister Saeed Ghani attracted a
strong reaction from opposition parties and civil society on Wednesday, who
described his comment as a reflection of the ‘feudal mindset’ of the ruling
Pakistan Peoples Party, compelling the senior member to tender an apology for
his uncalled-for comment.
While
apologising for his comments, Minister Ghani again insisted that the people of
Karachi did not fulfil their own responsibilities but only blamed the
government for different problems in the metropolis.
It
was on Tuesday when Mr Ghani while addressing members of the Korangi
Association of Trade and Industry held the people of Karachi responsible for
the fast deteriorating city infrastructure, non-existence of civic services and
growing crimes in the metropolis.
Mr
Ghani claimed that the people of Karachi usually dented the city infrastructure
by themselves, attacked civic services and failed to follow the set rules while
making ‘hue and cry’ and exaggerating the issues only to create an impression
about a worst situation in the city.
Widespread
condemnation compels minister to tender apology
The
first stern reaction to the comment came from Jamaat-i-Islami Karachi chief
Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman, who condemned the minister’s views and came up with set
of questions for Mr Ghani, who’s also Karachi president of the PPP.
Addressing
a press conference at Idara Noor-i-Haq, the JI leader called his remarks
“anti-Karachiites” and said “he [Mr. Ghani] didn’t utter a single word that’s
against the PPP policy”.
He
said: “The PPP is an anti-Karachi party and its leaders are truly toeing its
policy when they hold people of Karachi responsible for the stressful lives
they are living. But I challenge that Mr Saeed Ghani won’t be able to face a
single Karachiite if he asks him about the reasons behind delay in K-IV water
supply project? Who’s ruling this city and province for last 14 years? And
who’s managing funds of trillions of rupees for the city development for the
last more than a decade?”
Ghani’s
own constituency termed centre of drugs and gambling
Former
federal minister and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Sindh chapter president Ali Zaidi
also expressed his wonder over the Sindh minister’s remarks and accused the PPP
government of deliberately creating an environment which divided the people and
trigger hatred.
Taking
a step forward, the PTI leader claimed that Mr Ghani’s constituency was a
centre of drugs and gambling dens which were thriving since the PPP came to
power.
“So
please also tell the people who’s responsible for these crimes [drugs and gambling
dens] and businesses in your constituency,” he told a press conference along
with former Sindh government Imran Ismail.
“These
are insulting remarks about the people of Karachi. Instead of blaming the
people for Karachi’s devastation, Mr Ghani should be blaming himself and the
Sindh government for doing nothing to improve Karachi’s condition.”
MQM-P
reaction
The
Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), which is a PPP ally at the Centre
but still sits on the opposition benches in the Sindh Assembly, also criticised
the Sindh minister’s remarks.
In
a joint statement, lawmakers belonging to the MQM-P termed Mr Ghani’s remarks
“biased” and based on anti-Karachi sentiments.
“It’s
so surprising that a minister is blaming the people of Karachi for their deprivation,”
the statement said. “The people of Karachi are deprived of their basic rights
of living. From law and order to civic infrastructure, everything is
deteriorating for years. And amid all this, the people are blamed for all this
ills of the system and failure of the administration.”
Also,
former Karachi deputy mayor and Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) leader Arshad Vohra
condemned Mr Ghani’s statement and termed it part of PPP’s anti-Karachi and
anti-Pakistan policy.
Ghani
clarifies position
Following
strong criticism, Mr Ghani tried to explain his position when he said that his
views were presented ‘out of context’ and that he didn’t mean to hurt
sentiments of a common Karachiite.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1714690/opposition-in-uproar-after-ghanis-remarks-against-karachiites
--------
IHC
seeks report from ministry over issuance of ID card to MQM founder Altaf
Hussain
Malik
Asad
October
13, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
The Islamabad High Court directed the interior secretary on Wednesday to file a
report after consulting the foreign affairs secretary about the issuance of an
identity card to Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain.
Justice
Mohsin Akhtar Kayani gave the order after the court resumed hearing on a
petition filed by the MQM through Momin Khan, its former deputy convener,
seeking issuance of National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) to
Altaf Hussain.
The
National Database and Registration Authority’s (Nadra) legal adviser told the
court that Mr Hussain’s profile was not available in its records.
He
said it was probable that his last card was issued before the establishment of
Nadra.
The
court said it was regrettable that the interior ministry had kept Altaf
Hussain’s application pending since 2014.
The
ministry told the IHC that it had blocked Hussain’s identity card and passport
on the orders of the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC).
The
court sought a report from the interior ministry and adjourned further hearing
to Oct 26.
‘Unrepresented’
The
MQM founder was represented in the case by the late Asma Jahangir in the Lahore
High Court and since her death, he remained unrepresented.
The
petition stated that in order to appoint another counsel, Mr Hussain contacted
the London High Commission for attestation of the power of attorney.
But
the commission refused to attest the documents, citing the absence of a Nadra
certificate. There is, however, no requirement of attestation on the high
commission’s website, the lawyer argued.
The
application recalled that the MQM founder had applied for NICOP and renewal of
his Pakistan passport in 2014.
Source:
Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pakistan,
Afghanistan bilateral trade increases 66 percent since Taliban rule
By
Shahzad Paracha
October
12, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
The bilateral trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan increased to $213 million
from $128 million since the Taliban reigned the government in August 2021, thus
increasing 66.60% in trade between two countries.
According
to details, Pakistan Exports recorded $88.30 million in September 2022 which was
$49 million in September 2021.
Similarly,
an increase of (58%) from $79.11 million to $125.40 million also witnessed in
imports during the last one year. Overall bilateral trade with Afghanistan in
September 2022 was $213.70 million and it increased by 22% in comparison to
August 2022.
Meanwhile,
an increase of (66%) from $75.46 million in August to $125 million was observed
in imports in September 2022 whereas the exports decreased (11%) in September
compared to August 2022.
Export
of goods like, Rice, fresh vegetables, medicines, fresh fruits, confectionery
items and dairy products increased in September 2022. Whereas exports of items
like slag, tableware, household articles, plastics, decreased in the reporting
month.
Sources
said that Agro exports to Afghanistan have increased by 67% from $76.69 million
to $127.95 million in 1st Quarter of FY 23 as compared to previous FY same
period.
Similarly,
non-agro exports have increased by 84% in September 2022 as compared to
previous year September whereas in 1st Quarter Non-Agro exports have increased
by 60% as compared to previous fiscal year 1st quarter.
Pakistan’s
major agro export items are vegetables, fats, food preparation products, rice,
potatoes and bananas whereas Pakistan’s major non-agro export items are
pharmaceutical products, cement.
On
the other hand, imports of goods like fresh fruit, cotton, tomatoes, onions,
steatite, Coal, chromium, Iron scrap increased in September 2022.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Southeast
Asia
20
years after Bali bombings, Indonesia confronts extremism online
Nikke
October
13, 2022
BALI:
Indonesia’s government has made progress in stopping Islamic terrorism in the
two decades since bombings killed more than 200 people here in 2002. But its
fight has moved onto social media platforms where extremist thought remains
only a screen scroll away.
A
memorial service was held in the tourist district of Kuta on Wednesday to mark
the 20th anniversary of the deadly attacks. The survivors and their families
stood before a plaque that listed the names of those killed in the bombings.
Bali
is welcoming back tourists lost during the pandemic. But the survivors of the
bombings still carry the physical and psychological scars from that that
October night 20 years ago.
One
of them is Thiolina Marpaung, who heads the Isana Dewata Foundation which
assists survivors and their families with their day-to-day lives.
Thiolina,
49 years old, was in a car that night with work colleague Dewa Rudita, now 55,
heading to an event in Kuta. They were caught in traffic along Legian Road when
a car exploded five vehicles in front of them. The blast set fire to their own
car, but the two co-workers managed to escape with their lives.
Thiolina
now has trouble seeing after shards of glass struck her eyes and still visits a
doctor once every two months.
Dewa
was burned badly on his left arm and elsewhere, leaving prominent surgical
scars. He is so traumatised by the terror attack that he cannot approach the
site.
“It’s
a miracle that I’m alive,” said Dewa.
The
terror attack targeted two nightclubs popular with foreign tourists, taking the
lives of 202 people. It was the deadliest act of terrorism in Indonesia’s
history, with most of those killed foreign nationals.
Indonesian
authorities later arrested senior members of the Islamic extremist group Jemaah
Islamiyah. Another terror attack occurred in Bali in 2005, killing around 20
people.
The
Indonesian government responded to the 2002 Bali attack by adopting a harder
line against terrorism. In 2004, the National Police formed an anti-terror unit
known as Densus 88. Indonesia established a national counterterrorism agency
six years later, and the military formed a special forces unit to combat
terrorism in 2019.
The
country tightened scrutiny on potential sources of terror funding. This series
of measures is starting to bear fruit: There have been no large-scale terror
attacks in Indonesia since suicide bombers targeted churches in Java in 2018,
leaving over 50 dead or wounded.
But
in the two decades since 2002, social media platforms have come into their own
as a means of reaching vast numbers of people in an instant. There is now a
higher risk of extremism spreading online, experts say.
There
were 370 arrests made last year in connection to terrorism, according to the
National Police, more than double the 2017 figure.
Little
effort is needed to find social media posts calling for the establishment of an
Islamist state or even showing how to make weapons. Authorities are engaged in
a game of whack-a-mole as they delete one post, only to find more.
Last
year, a woman entered National Police headquarters in Jakarta and fired a gun
at officers, shocking the nation. Authorities later said that she had made
posts on social media swearing allegiance to the Islamic State. Authorities are
keeping a close watch for terror plots launched by organisations as well as
lone-wolf attacks.
President
Joko Widodo is pushing education as a means to combat extremism. Under his
administration, the Indonesian International Islamic University opened last
year with a mission of promoting moderate Islam. In September, the national
counterterrorism agency and the ministry of religious affairs agreed to fight religious
extremism through the assistance of Islamic leaders.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Indonesia
seeks to corner share of Africa's Muslim fashion market
October
12, 2022
Jakarta
(ANTARA) - Minister of Trade, Zulkifli Hasan, is targeting several countries on
the African continent as markets for Indonesian Muslim clothing as their
product quality standards are easier to meet compared to those of Western countries.
Apart
from Africa, the Ministry of Trade is also aiming to corner a share of the
Muslim fashion market in Central Asia, South Asia, Eastern Europe, and the
Middle East.
"The
countries that I mentioned earlier, of course, the money is there," Hasan
said during a press conference for the “Jakarta Muslim Fashion Week 2022” at
the Ministry of Trade’s building in Jakarta on Wednesday.
"For
Africa, we can send shoes for US$10, we can send a scarf, which costs US$2, and
the people there buy it. Therefore, we will try to penetrate this new
market," he explained.
To
seize the markets of Central Asia, South Asia, Eastern Europe, and the Middle
East, Indonesian products will need to be consistently promoted via exhibitions
in the countries in these regions.
According
to Minister Hasan, Indonesia must continue to build relationships so that the
Indonesian Muslim fashion industry can continue to penetrate markets abroad.
"If
you want to penetrate the market, you cannot come once, you have to do it many
times. We have to build direct relationships, otherwise, it will not be easy.
If we can build sustainable relationships, we can dominate the market," he
added.
The
minister further said that the Indonesian fashion industry has great potential
in the international market. The works of local designers are also deemed
capable of competing globally.
"This
is indeed a big potential; we have people who have talent, great designers. I
am confident that we can penetrate the international market," he added.
Furthermore,
he said that the Ministry of Trade will continue to encourage the Indonesian
Muslim fashion industry as part of efforts to make it the world's fashion
center in the next few years.
Hasan
had earlier called for the holding of the 4th Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting
between Indonesia and South Africa, which has been delayed for two years due to
the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The
fourth JTC meeting was supposed to be held in Indonesia in 2020, however, it
was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, we push the technical teams of
both countries to immediately coordinate and continue the implementation of the
JTC meeting," he said.
He
made the statement during a bilateral meeting with South African Trade and
Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel on the sidelines of the G20 Trade, Investment,
and Industry Ministerial Meeting (TIIMM), which was held in Nusa Dua, Badung
district, Bali province, from September 21–23, 2022.
The
TIIMM was organized under the Sherpa Track as a follow-up to the G20 TIIWG,
which sought to address trade and investment issues as well as encourage G20
countries to bolster global trade and investments.
The
JTC is a bilateral forum for discussing efforts to increase cooperation in the
economic and trade sectors between Indonesia and South Africa. Three JTC
meetings have been held between the two countries so far, and the last one took
place on July 21, 2017, in Pretoria, South Africa.
Indonesian
investors are interested in developing their businesses in South Africa, Hasan
noted.
Source:
Antara News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Man
suspected of killing baby has 8 past criminal offences
October
12, 2022
ALOR
SETAR: A man who allegedly murdered his three-month-old baby boy at Kampung
Teluk Jawa in Padang Hang on Monday had eight past criminal offences, including
for drug-related offences.
Kedah
police chief Wan Hassan Wan Ahmad said the 28-year-old suspect, who was
arrested on the same day, has been remanded until Oct 17.
He
said the suspect was believed to have been involved in drug abuse for the past
two to three years.
Wan
Hassan also said the man’s two other children, aged five and one, who were
being cared for by other family members, had been sent to the Sultanah Bahiyah
Hospital for a medical examination.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pahang
to pass state budget first before decision on dissolution
October
13, 2022
KUANTAN:
Menteri besar Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail said the position of the Pahang legislative
assembly will be known soon after passing the state budget for 2023.
He
said the priority now is to pass the budget which was tabled last Friday so
that the state government’s plans for the people could be implemented.
Asked
whether the budget would be valid if a state election was held soon, Wan Rosdy
said: “Yes, it is valid. We need to pass it first as it is important. If it is
not passed, then it has to be tabled again.”
The
budget debate began on Tuesday and Wan Rosdy is expected to wind it up today
before putting it to the vote.
On
Tuesday, Wan Rosdy had told reporters he was still waiting for a date for an
audience with the regent, Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Abdullah, to seek his consent
for the dissolution of the state assembly.
Earlier,
Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the state assemblies
under BN, except those in Melaka, Johor and Sabah, would be dissolved
simultaneously with the dissolution of Parliament to make way for the 15th
general election (GE15).
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Africa
Attack
on military base foiled, 20 al-Shabaab terrorists killed: Somali army
Andrew
Wasike
12.10.2022
NAIROBI,
Kenya
Somalia’s
military said it repulsed an al-Shabaab attack on a military base on Wednesday
morning, killing at least 20 terrorists and injuring dozens more.
The
terror group tried to storm a base in Yasooman, an area in the central Hiran
region, at around dawn, the military said in a statement.
The
attack was foiled with the help of locals who provided vital information to
Somali forces, it added.
The
army said at least three Somali soldiers were killed in the fighting.
Somalia
has been grappling with increasing insecurity for years, with al-Shabaab being
one of the main threats in the Horn of Africa country.
Since
2007, the terrorist group has waged a deadly campaign against the Somali
government and international forces.
The
UN has also warned of growing instability in the country, with its periodic
reports on Somalia this year detailing attacks by al-Shabaab and pro-Daesh/ISIS
groups.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
UN health
chief says clinical trials for Ebola's Sudan strain to start within weeks
Hamza
Kyeyune
12.10.2022
KAMPALA,
Uganda
World
Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on
Wednesday reiterated that clinical trials for vaccines to combat the Sudan
strain of Ebola could start within weeks in Uganda.
In
a virtual address to a high-level emergency meeting of African regional health
officials in Kampala, Tedros said several vaccines were currently being
developed that could deal with the Sudan strain.
The
meeting was organized by the government of Uganda in collaboration with the
Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and WHO to discuss
cross-border collaboration to respond to the Sudan strain of Ebola which has no
proven vaccine.
Health
ministers from 11 African countries attended the event.
Uganda’s
Health Minister Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng said Uganda will in the coming week receive
Ebola vaccines for the Sudan strain.
Aceng
said the country will receive two vaccine types: 171 Oxford doses manufactured
in the UK and 300 Sabin doses manufactured in the US, adding that more than
40,000 doses are expected next month.
Uganda’s
Health Ministry has confirmed a total of 54 Ebola cases and 19 deaths.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Tunisian
protesters clash with police over missing migrants
12 October,
2022
Hundreds
of Tunisians clashed with police on Wednesday during a protest to demand a
rescue mission for relatives lost at sea during a failed migration attempt.
Also
angered over the burial of three suspected Tunisians in a nearby cemetery for
foreign migrants, some burnt tires and threw rocks at police.
Protesters
blocked the main street in the coastal town of Zarzis, shouting “the people
want our lost children!”
The
incident came more than two weeks after a boat carrying Tunisian migrants went
missing off the coast during an attempt to reach Italy.
On
Monday, seamen found eight bodies which are now awaiting DNA analysis to
determine whether they are of missing Tunisians, the Tunisian Red Crescent
said.
Families
of the missing have been calling on authorities to step up search efforts.
They
have also been angered by reports that three Tunisians were buried in the
cemetery for foreign migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan Africa, whose bodies
regularly wash up along the coast after tragedies at sea.
“The
authorities wouldn’t let sailors go out looking for the missing,” said rights
activist Mabrouka Dhaoui.
“They
buried out sons in a cemetery for foreigners, they should be ashamed of
themselves.”
Said
Ben Zaid, governor of the surrounding Medenine province, told local radio that
four bodies had been exhumed from the migrant cemetery to undergo DNA analysis.
The
Tunisian Human Rights League said authorities had “not devoted the necessary
resources to search and rescue operations in a timely way” and called for an
inquiry into the burials.
The
North African country has a long Mediterranean coast, in places just 130
kilometers (80 miles) from the Italian island of Lampedusa.
A
long-running economic crisis has pushed many Tunisians to attempt the journey.
Despite
generally favorable weather from spring to autumn, the journeys on barely
seaworthy boats often end in tragedy.
Early
this month, AFP journalists saw the coast guard intercepting migrants aboard
overcrowded, homemade boats.
Tunisian
authorities intercepted nearly 200 migrants attempting to reach Europe
northwards across the Mediterranean Sea over the weekend, the defense ministry
said Tuesday.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Europe
Arab
Parliament blasts Britain's plan to relocate embassy to occupied al-Quds
12
October 2022
The
Arab Parliament has denounced the British government's plan to relocate its
embassy from Tel Aviv to the occupied holy city of al-Quds, saying the move
would constitute a flagrant violation of international law.
The
legislative body of the Arab League in a statement on Wednesday reacted
strongly to reports about the potential relocation of the British embassy, in
what could jettison a longstanding policy of British governments.
“The
legal, historical and religious status of al-Quds is not subject to review, and
any step in this direction amounts to a flagrant violation of international law
and of the historical responsibilities of Britain as the architect of the
illegal Balfour Declaration, whose tragedy has long haunted the Palestinian
nation,” said the statement.
Separately,
a member of the Jordanian House of Representatives and Deputy Speaker of the
Arab Parliament, Khalil Attia, warned Britain against the move.
Attia
stressed that “moving the embassy to occupied al-Quds undermines the
possibility of creation of a Palestinian state, and is an attack on
international law and international legitimacy.”
Meanwhile,
the Jordanian al-Islah (Reform) political party also censured British Prime
Minister Liz Truss over her intention to move the UK embassy to al-Quds,
rejecting the potential move as “racist and immature.”
“Her
statements are rejected and condemned in the strongest terms. The remarks come
from an official of a colonial state, which assisted Jews to occupy Palestine,
commit crimes against the glorious Palestinian nation, and sow the seeds of
discord and division among them,” it said in a statement.
“The
comments regarding potential transfer of the British embassy to the occupied
al-Quds indicate an unsuccessful start for the incumbent prime minister, and
confirm constant insistence on the crimes that Britain has committed in the
Arab region in general, and in Palestine in particular, the ugliest of which
was the Balfour Declaration,” the party said.
The
Balfour Declaration came in the form of a letter from Britain’s then-foreign
secretary, Arthur Balfour, addressed to Lionel Walter Rothschild, a figurehead
of the British Jewish community. It was published on November 2, 1917.
The
declaration was made during World War I (1914-1918) and was included in the
terms of the British Mandate for Palestine after the dissolution of the Ottoman
Empire.
It
is widely seen as the precursor to the 1948 Palestinian Nakba, when Zionist
armed paramilitary groups, who were trained and created to fight side by side
with the British in World War II, forcibly expelled more than 750,000
Palestinians from their homeland.
Last
month, Truss told the Israeli prime minister, Yair Lapid, that she was
considering transferring the UK embassy in Tel Aviv to al-Quds. If it happens,
the contentious policy shift would be similar to that of the US under
ex-President Donald Trump in May 2018.
Angered
by the UK premier’s announcement, the Palestinians described the statements as
“a new Balfour Declaration” and said it proves Britain’s bias in favor of the
Israeli regime.
The
Gaza-based Hamas and Islamic Jihad resistance movements have also taken strong
umbrage to reports about the relocation of the British embassy.
“The
announcement by British Prime Minister Liz Truss about her intention to move
her country’s embassy to al-Quds is a flagrant bias toward the occupying
regime,” Hamas spokesperson Abdel Latif Qanou said on September 21.
He
warned that the move would not give Israel any legitimacy “over one inch of our
land.”
Islamic
Jihad senior official Mohammed Shalah accused Britain of displaying “arrogance”
against Palestinians.
“We
are not surprised by what Britain is doing in light of the ongoing Arab and
Islamic silence,” Shalah said. “We blame the Arab and Islamic countries that
are supposed to support al-Quds.”
Another
Islamic Jihad official, Tareq Salmi, warned that the controversial British plan
would anger Arabs and Muslims.
He
denounced the move as a “hideous colonial aggression” against Palestinians,
adding, “Britain is directly responsible for the tragedy of Palestinian
people.”
Envoys
of some Arab countries stationed in London also called on the Truss government
in late September not to move the country's embassy from Tel Aviv to al-Quds.
The
ambassadors in a letter said the plan could jeopardize talks on a free trade
deal between the UK and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council slated to be
completed this year, the Guardian reported at the time.
Source:
Press TV
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Muslims
in Bulgaria: Dispersed after persecution and rely on youth
BY
MOHAMAD ALHOUSSAIN
OCT
13, 2022
Bulgaria
is the gateway to Europe on the eastern side of the world and the political
center of the Balkans. It is a bridge linking the East and West, through which
successive civilizations crossed, leaving behind a history whose evidence is
still present, especially the Islamic civilizations.
The
number of Muslims in Bulgaria is currently estimated at 1.5 million, but they
were much more before the Ottomans left it in A.D. 1877.
Muslims
in Bulgaria have faced varying conditions, reaching the point of persecution
during the days of communist rule, then dispersal, according to former Yemeni
Ambassador to Bulgaria Abdul Razzaq al-Amrani.
Al-Amrani,
in a lecture on the sidelines of the Istanbul International Arab Book Fair in
early October, said: "The worst stage Muslims lived in Bulgaria was during
the communist rule, in the period between 1944-1989, when they robbed them of
their identity and stripped them of their religion by force. In just two
months, they expelled more than 300,000 Bulgarian Muslims of Turkish
descent."
Al-Amrani,
who was also attending a book signing for his book “Bulgaria from the Eastern
Corner,” added: "In 1985, the Bulgarian authorities forced Muslims at the
time to change their names and religion, depriving them of their money and
property, not to mention looting and confiscating mosques and turning them into
discos and stores, at best. The situation turned to museums, and he closed a
large number of them, and so far no one can reopen them."
Bulgaria
from the east corner
Al-Amrani
pointed out in an interview with Daily Sabah that the minarets were raised in
Bulgaria before they were raised in Istanbul, as Islam entered Bulgaria before
the conquest of Constantinople by Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in 1453.
The
writer also mentioned in his book that “there are those who say that Islamic
and Arab antiquities and inscriptions were found in Bulgaria, indicating the
entry of Islam to it before the Ottoman conquest.
“Some
historians confirm, based on historical facts, that the inhabitants of the
Rudbe region in southern Bulgaria, the Pomak, are considered the descendants of
the Umayyads who besieged Constantinople at the time, and were unable to enter
it, so some of them continued toward Bulgaria and settled there and spread
Islam."
And
he added: "Therefore, it is necessary to recall the intimate relationship
between Islam, the Ottomans, the Bulgarians and the Arabs, and this is one of
the main reasons that prompted me to prepare my book."
"This
is the only Arabic book that discusses and deals with the situation of Islam
and Muslims in Bulgaria, and what prompted me to write it is that after I was
appointed as an ambassador of Yemen in Bulgaria in 2013, I did not find any
Arab reference that raises this issue. The references were Turkish or
Bulgarian, so they were biased.
"On
the side of the Bulgarians or on the side of the Muslims, I have not found any
neutral references that give accurate information.”
In
his book "Bulgaria from the Eastern Corner," al-Amrani explains the
Muslims in Bulgaria came from the eastern side, as well as details their
origins, numbers, distribution, the conditions they went through, and the
difficulties and problems that Muslims suffer from in Bulgaria, since the exit
of the Ottomans from it until now.
Origins
of Muslims in Bulgaria
The
origins of the Muslims of Bulgaria date back to several nationalities and
peoples. The majority of them are of Turkish descent, as Turkish Muslims
constitute 60%, followed by the Pomak Muslims at 25%, then the Romani Muslims
at 15% and the Tatars who constitute a small percentage of Muslims, according
to Amrani's book.
The
author pointed out that the largest Muslim population centers are concentrated
around two regions, the first is located in the northeast of Bulgaria, where
the squares of "Ruse, Silistra, Varna, Shumen" are located, while the
second region is located in southern Bulgaria on the Rhodope Mountains.
About
80% of Bulgarian Turks live in these two regions, while 90% of the Pomak
Muslims reside in the Western Rhodope region. Muslims are also spread across
areas close to the western, Serbian, Macedonian, Greek and Turkish borders.
The
Muslims of Bulgaria are generally characterized by their rural nature, as most
of them work in agriculture, according to al-Amrani.
1.5
million Muslims
The
writer stated that "the number of Muslims in Bulgaria, the closest to the
accuracy, is one and a half million, based on what was reported by the Mufti of
Bulgaria."
"Some
exaggerated estimates indicate that the number of Muslims in Bulgaria is more
than 3 million and that Muslims constitute 25% of the population, that could
have been true if we were talking about the number of Muslims when the Ottomans
left Bulgaria in 1878, before the displacements," he added.
The
number of mosques in Bulgaria is 1,283 and they are divided into two parts. The
first is “mosques in which the five daily prayers are held and the Friday
prayers are not held, and those number 126,” and the second is “the mosques in
which the five daily prayers are held in addition to the Friday and Eid
prayers, and the number of those is 1,157.”
Al-Amrani
pointed out that there are large numbers of mosques that have been closed since
the communist rule, and some of them have been converted into stores and
museums, and no one can reopen them, because successive Bulgarian governments
say that "the current number of mosques is enough for Muslims."
He
points out that most of these mosques are located in villages and suburbs, but
in cities, for example, in the capital, Sofia, there was only one mosque in
2010, due to the difficulty of obtaining licenses to build mosques. In 2012 the
Arabs opened two other mosques in the suburbs far from the city, while there
were 85 mosques in it when the Ottomans left.
Situation
of Muslims in Bulgaria
Regarding
the current situation of Muslims in Bulgaria, former Yemeni Ambassador Abdul
Razzaq Al-Amrani said: “At least from the official side, there is no harassment
but rather a hostile individual or partisan behavior, such as the right-wing
party 'Ataka,' which from time to time harasses Muslims, as it had previously
protested the sound of loudspeakers and prayers outside the mosque.
Also,
in 2014, hundreds of people gathered in front of the Bulgarian city court of
Plovdiv to protest the conversion of the "Korshom" mosque under the
Bulgarian Islamic authorities.
Al-Amrani
pointed out in his book that the most prominent obstacles faced by Muslims in
Bulgaria are that most mosques suffer from a lack of imams, according to what
was reported by the mufti of Bulgaria. And its inability to pay the salaries of
imams.
Rely
on the youth
However,
al-Amrani stressed that the situation of Muslims today in Bulgaria is much
better than it was in the past, as they have a house for fatwas and
institutions, and have regained a small part of their material and moral
rights.
He
stressed that they are still looking forward to a better future, especially
today's youth who want to learn to read the Quran in mosques, and have become
more knowledgeable and committed to matters of religion, compared to the
elderly who grew up at the time of the ban in the days of communism. He said
especially those who leave Bulgaria to study or work in Western Europe and
return more committed to religion because, in the West, they have more
religious freedom there than in Bulgaria.
Al-Amrani
concluded his comments to Daily Sabah by saying: "Today we look to these
young people to carry the torch toward a better future for Muslims in Bulgaria,
to work to unite their ranks, overcome challenges, and benefit from the state
of sympathy with Islam in some aspects of Bulgarian society.
Source:
Daily Sabah
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
EU
states agree to sanction Iran over protest crackdowns
12
October, 2022
EU
countries have agreed sanctions on Iran following its brutal crackdown on
protests over Mahsa Amini’s death and foreign ministers are to adopt them next
Monday, diplomats said.
Earlier
on Wednesday European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said “now is the
time to sanction those responsible” in Iran “for the repression of women.”
“This
shocking violence cannot stay unanswered,” she said.
Four
EU diplomats told AFP that political agreement was reached Wednesday on the
sanctions and that the foreign ministers’ meeting to be held in Luxembourg next
Monday was to officialize them.
There
were no details on the impending sanctions, but the United States, Britain and
Canada have already separately targeted security branches of the Iranian
regime.
The
United States and Britain have imposed sanctions on Iran's so-called morality
police, who arrested 22-year-old Amini last month.
She
was taken unconscious from a police station to hospital where she died.
Her
family, the protesters in Iran, Western officials and rights groups have all
called her death a “killing.”
Iran
denies that and says she died of natural causes related to childhood surgery.
Canada
last week said it will permanently deny entry to more than 10,000 members of
the Iranian regime, including those belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps which is leading the repression.
EU
lawmakers have been calling for the bloc to put Iranian officials, including
those linked to the morality police, on a blacklist prohibiting travel into
Europe and freezing any assets in the EU.
The
European Union in April 2011 already imposed sanctions on Iran for human rights
violations, with more measures added in March 2012 to halt the sale of any
equipment the regime might use to repress or electronically spy on the Iranian
population.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
UN
raps Finland for violating rights of children abandoned in Syria camps
12
October 2022
A
United Nations rights watchdog has rebuked Finland for violating the rights of
Finnish children who were abandoned in Syrian prison camps.
On
Wednesday, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)
denounced Finland for violating the rights of Finnish children by leaving them
in life-threatening conditions in Syrian camps, which are housing suspected
Daesh Takfiri terrorists and their families.
Composed
of 18 independent experts, the committee issued its findings in a 14-page
document after considering a case on behalf of six Finnish children held at
al-Hol camp, which is located close to the Syria-Iraq border.
“Finland
has the responsibility and power to protect the Finnish children in the Syrian
camps against an imminent risk to their lives by taking action to repatriate
them,” the CRC said in a statement.
Back
in 2019, the case was brought to the CRC. Later, three of the children were
able to leave the camp along with their mother, and finally reached Finland.
“The
remaining three child victims, currently between five and six years old, are
still detained in closed camps in a war-like zone,” the statement said.
Located
on the southern outskirts of the town of al-Hol in Syria’s Hasakah province,
the infamous camp is under the control of the US-backed Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF), a coalition of anti-Damascus militants. Besides the internally
displaced, families of Daesh terrorists also reside there.
US
occupation forces and its allied militants are actively present in the
province.
“The
situation of children in the camps has been widely reported as inhuman, lacking
basic necessities including water, food and healthcare, and facing an imminent
risk of death,” said CRC member Ann Skelton.
The
CRC, whose opinions and recommendations are non-binding, further said Finland
had not given due consideration to the children’s best interests when assessing
their relatives’ requests for repatriation.
Furthermore,
the petition from Finnish children’s relatives also said 33 other Finnish
children were held at the al-Hol camp without access to legal assistance.
“We
call on Finland to take immediate and decisive action to preserve the lives of
these children, and to bring them home to their families,” Skelton said.
This
is the second time the CRC has reviewed the situation of children in refugee
camps in northern Syria.
Source:
Press TV
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/10/12/690846/Finland-UN-CRC-children-Syria-al-Hol-Daesh
--------
North
America
Biggest
threat to Gulf maritime waters is from Iran: Top US admiral
12 October,
2022
The
top admiral overseeing US Naval forces in the Middle East, Vice Adm. Brad
Cooper, warned Wednesday that the biggest threat to the security of navigation
in the Gulf is from Iran.
“The
most serious threats that we see do come from Iran. They come in two forms: the
growth and capability and numbers of cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and
UAVs, as well as their use of proxies in those particular weapons,” said the
commander of the US Naval Forces Central Command, US 5th Fleet and Combined
Maritime Force (CMF).
Speaking
to Al Arabiya in Washington, Cooper pointed to the risks emanating from Iran’s
drone program and the technology it provides its regional proxies.
The
5th Fleet commander is also in charge of the CMF, a naval force of 34 member
nations operating in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Northern Arabian Sea, Gulf of
Oman, Arabian Gulf and Indian Ocean.
In
recent years, the force has played a vital role in foiling drug and weapons
smuggling.
Last
month alone, the US Navy said it seized $85 million worth of heroin from a
fishing vessel, making it the biggest illegal drug interdiction in the Middle
East by international naval forces this year.
Two
days later, the Navy said it seized $10 million (7,200 kg) worth of hashish
from another fishing vessel in the Gulf of Oman.
But
the US and its allies in the region are also constantly looking out for illicit
weapons transfers.
In
December, Navy patrol ships said they interdicted a fishing vessel with 1,400
Russian rifles and 226,600 rounds of ammunition. They said the vessel was
believed to have been heading to Yemen from Iran.
The
Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen continues to receive logistical, financial,
and military support from Tehran.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
US
says Iran nuclear deal is ‘not our focus right now’
13
October, 2022
The
United States on Wednesday said that reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal is
“not our focus right now,” saying Tehran had showed little interest in reviving
the pact and that Washington was concentrating on how to support Iranian
protesters.
Asked
if the United States was interested in pursuing talks to revive the pact under
which Iran curbed its nuclear program in return for economic sanctions relief,
US State Department spokesman Ned Price replied “that’s not our focus right
now.
“It
is very clear and the Iranians have made very clear that this is not a deal
that they have been prepared to make. The deal certainly does not appear
imminent,” Price told a briefing.
“Nothing
we’ve heard in recent weeks suggests they have changed their position. And so
right now our focus ... is on the remarkable bravery and courage that the
Iranian people are exhibiting through their peaceful demonstrations,” he said.
“Our
focus right now is on shining a spotlight on what they’re doing and supporting
them in the ways we can,” he said, referring to anti-government protests
ignited by the September 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while in the
custody of Iran’s morality police.
Then-US
President Donald Trump abandoned the nuclear deal between Iran and six major
powers in 2018 and unilaterally reimposed economic sanctions that have hobbled
Iran’s economy by curbing its oil exports.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
US
Senate removing conditions on F-16 deal 'in line with spirit of alliance,' says
Turkish lawmaker
Merve
Aydogan
12.10.2022
Saying
that Turkish-US diplomatic traffic has picked up since the ending of COVID-19
restrictions, a top Turkish lawmaker on Wednesday said the US dropping
conditions on selling F-16 fighter jets to Türkiye is "in line with the spirit
of the alliance."
Speaking
to diplomatic correspondents in Ankara, Akif Cagatay Kilic, the head of
parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission, commented on his recent visits to the
US, saying that Ankara’s role as mediator in the Russia-Ukraine war has shaped
the US' understanding of Türkiye.
Saying
that the officials he met with in the US hailed Türkiye's "strong
stance" and "ability to negotiate" with both Russia and Ukraine
amid the war, Kilic said the US Senate dropping the conditions on the F-16 fighter
jets is a "very positive attitude."
"It
is an attitude that is in line with the spirit of the alliance, as we expected.
It is a positive attitude. In this respect, we hope that we reach a result that
is in line with realities," he added.
On
Tuesday, two amendments making potential F-16 sales to Türkiye contingent on a
series of conditions were reportedly removed from the Senate version of the
annual US defense spending bill.
The
conditions included requiring the president to inform Congress of “concrete
steps” he has taken to ensure the warplanes “are not used by Turkey for
repeated unauthorized territorial overflights of Greece or military operations
against United States allies."
After
the Senate passes the bill, it will be reconciled with the version already
passed by the House of Representatives before it is sent to US President Joe
Biden to be signed into law.
"Two
amendments, which we did not approve, were passed in the House of
Representatives. But the (amendments) weren’t passed by the Senate, and were
removed from the bill," said Kilic, adding that there will be
harmonization between the two versions of the bill “likely around mid-November”
after the US midterm elections.
Kilic
and a delegation headed by Justice and Development (AK) Party Deputy Chair in
charge of Foreign Affairs Efkan Ala paid two visits to the US, this May and
September, according to the Turkish lawmaker.
Commenting
on the visits, Kilic said they had nearly 40 meetings that included officials
from the US Senate, House of Representatives, Biden administration, and the
media.
"My
personal observation since our visits from last year as well as the latest two
visits is that the atmosphere (against Türkiye) was not as negative as the
media painted it to be," Kilic said.
Noting
that Türkiye's positive role amid Russia's war on Ukraine as well as the grain
deal and prisoner exchange has been important, Kilic said that for the first
time US officials were well aware of the situations in the region around
Türkiye.
"We
have seen their appreciation for Türkiye's solid stance, its ability to
negotiate with both sides of the war, and its ability to lend confidence,"
Kilic stated.
'Finland’s
NATO bid is in a better place'
On
the deal on the sale of F-16s and modernization kits, Kilic said Türkiye
already having participated in making F-16 fighter jets and an earlier
generation of the planes already being in the Turkish Armed Forces inventory
had an impact on the US.
"They
(US officials) are aware that Türkiye's first resort on defense industry needs
is NATO. But if our NATO allies do not act in the spirit of alliance, they now
see Türkiye's capacity to develop its own defense industry, and also know that
Türkiye is able to act (to meet its needs) in case of an emergency," he
said.
He
further stressed the importance of Türkiye's demands and needs for the NATO
alliance and its deterrence.
Ankara
requested F-16s and modernization kits last October. The $6 billion deal would
include the sale of 40 jets and modernization kits for 79 warplanes that the Turkish
Air Force has in its inventory.
Kilic
acknowledged that there are other matters outstanding in Turkish-US relations
but said it is more "beneficial" to move from positive topics to
issues that are more complicated.
On
Sweden and Finland's NATO accession bids, Kilic said the two Nordic countries
are not being lumped together by Ankara.
"Let's
say Finland is in a better place at this point and Sweden is not," he
said.
On
Sweden’s recent elections, the Turkish lawmaker expressed hopes for the new
Swedish government to be less "lenient" towards terror groups and
less anti-Turkish.
He
also said Sweden has been taking some positive steps but that it is not at the
level Ankara wants.
"The
ball is no longer in our court. We have openly stated what we want and what we
expect them to do," he said.
Sweden
and Finland formally applied to join NATO in June, a decision spurred by
Russia's war on Ukraine.
But
Türkiye voiced objections to the membership bids, criticizing the two countries
for tolerating and even supporting terror groups.
A
memorandum of understanding signed by Türkiye, Finland, and Sweden at NATO's
June summit in Madrid, Spain stipulates that the two countries will not provide
support to the PKK/YPG, or the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) – the group
behind the 2016 defeated coup in Türkiye that left 251 killed and 2,734
wounded.
Ankara
accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state
through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military,
police, and judiciary.
In
its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK – listed as a
terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and the EU – has been responsible
for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants.
The YPG is the terror group’s Syrian offshoot.
Visa
woes issue
On
the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE) approving Türkiye's
proposal for the Schengen visa process to be more transparent, fair, and
inclusive, Kilic called this a highly important development.
Although
the report is nonbinding, Kilic said it is an important reference point for
Türkiye when it is laying out its arguments at the EU.
"It
is important for us that the deficiencies are identified and addressed in the
report," he added.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/muslim-mehndi-artists-karva-chauth/d/128170
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism