Press Council Of India Censures English Daily Star Of Mysore For Targeting Muslims
New Age Islam News Bureau
29 December 2022
Representational photo
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• Global Imams Council Lobbied Google, Fought Anti-Semitism
• Hate Crime Probe Sought After Multiple Vandalism
Incidents On Houston Mosque
• ‘Cries Of Children Were Unbearable’: Rescued
Rohingya Refugees Recall Ordeal At Sea
• Army's Top Brass Vows To ‘Act Against Terrorists
Without Distinction’
India
• Graves, Tombstones In Muslim Cemetery Damaged By
Unidentified Persons In An Attempt To Disturb Peace And Communal Harmony in
Karnataka
• Gulf Cooperation Council Emerges As India’s Largest
Trading Partner Bloc: Indian Commerce Ministry
• Hindutva Can’t Be Tackled By Soft Hindutva Or
Extremist Islam: Kerala Minister at Indian National League Conference
• Indian syrup tied to kid deaths in Uzbekistan
• Supreme Court To Hear Pleas Challenging Love Jihad
Laws On January 2
• Muslim Ulema Order To Not Perform Nikah Where Loud
Music Is Played
• 4 LeT men killed in Jammu on way to Kashmir in truck
--------
Mideast
• West Bank settlements top priority: Netanyahu
government
• Iranian FM calls for lifting of Saudi-led
coalition’s blockade of Yemen
• Nearly 3,000 civilians killed or injured in Saudi
strikes on Yemen’s Sa’ada in 2022: Official
--------
North America
• US, UK, EU Among Countries Calling For Taliban To
Reverse Ban On Women Aid Workers
• Canada-led group seeks arbitrator over jet downing
by Iran
• US lawmakers press government for answers over use
of Israeli spyware
--------
Southeast Asia
• Man who disguises as a woman in “telekung” pleads
guilty to stealing in mosque
• Former Uyghur Muslim preacher confirmed dead in
prison in China’s Xinjiang
--------
Africa
• Tunisian Prosecutors Move To Try 13 Judges On
‘Terror’ Charges
• Islamic cleric charges Tinubu on national unity
• Islamic militant violence hits Benin, shows spread
across West Africa
• Focus of 2023 election should be about North-South
issues, not Muslim-Muslim ticket – APC chieftain
--------
Pakistan
• PTI blames terror resurgence on reversal of its
Afghan policy
• ‘Resigned’ PTI lawmakers set to meet NA speaker
today
• 2 soldiers wounded in Waziristan suicide attack
• Maulana Tariq Jameel recovering in Canadian hospital
after cardiac arrest
• Two most-wanted terrorist held with weapons
• JUI-F governor sends back helicopter legislation to
KP government
• Chinese firms face headwinds in Pakistan, adopt 'go
slow' policy
• 'No other option' but to implement IMF deal: Pak PM
Shehbaz Sharif
• Dar rubbishes ‘default mantra’ but admits economic
situation is dire
--------
South Asia
• Afghan Taliban Once Hailed As An Asset To Pakistan,
Turns Into Foe: Report
• Karzai: Intra-Afghan Dialogue Important for Islamic
Emirate, Afghanistan
• Terror attacks in Pakistan up since Taliban took
over in Afghanistan: Report
• Blast injures four civilians in Afghanistan's Takhar
province
• Taliban Arrests an Official on Corruption Charges in
Kandahar
• Humanitarian Aid for Afghanistan to be Suspended:
Germany
--------
Arab World
• Lack Of Meaningful Dialogue, Reforms To Blame For
Crisis, Says Bahrain's Shia Jailed Cleric, Sheikh Ali Salman
• Manafa: Tripartite Partnership Of Three Chambers Of
Commerce To Turn Makkah, Madinah Into Islamic World's Financial Hubs
• Jobs For Emiratis — UAE Pushes Work For Own Citizens
• Turkish, Syrian officials meet in Russia after
years-long chill
• Rare hailstorm hits Kuwait, one of the hottest
countries on Earth
• Nursing Home For Struggling Elderly Egyptian Actors
Opened By Actors’ Syndicate
• Purge in Riyadh: Ex-Saudi public security chief
jailed for 25 years over ‘corruption’
--------
Europe
• Italy urges Iran to stop executions and open
dialogue with protesters
• 'Türkiye Foiled Greek Bid To Wipe Out Ottoman-Era
Muslim Cemetery In Western Thrace'
• UN temporarily halts some ‘time-critical’ programs
in Afghanistan after ban on women
• Probe launched against PKK sympathizers in Germany
• Germany says it sees no reason to resume Iran
nuclear talks
• Britain urges Iran to stop ‘unfairly detaining’ dual
nationals
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
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Press Council Of India Censures English Daily Star Of Mysore For Targeting Muslims
Representational photo
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Sameer Khan
28th December 2022
The Press Council of India (PCI) has taken an action
against Star of Mysore over an editorial published in the English daily on
April 6, 2020. The organization censured the English daily.
The ‘Star of Mysore’ (SOM) received a censure from the
Press Council of India (PCI) in a letter dated December 16 for its editorial
“Bad Apples in the Basket” from April 2020. The Mysore-based news outlet
allegedly referred to the Muslim population in India as having “bad apples” in
the article. Following a PCI censure, the state government in question is
required to refrain from publishing any advertisements for three consecutive
months.
The Campaign Against Hate Speech, a group that
advocates for media responsibility, filed a complaint with the PCI against SOM
editor M Govinda Gowda and the then-editor-in-chief KB Ganapathy after the
story was published.
According to the complaint, “the news agency is
promoting and inciting hatred toward the community (Muslims) on the grounds of
religion… thereby violating a basic principle of journalism of not to attribute
individual actions to a whole community to spread hatred and violence against
it.”
The PCI then established an inquiry committee, which,
after hearing from all parties concerned, made a recommendation for censure.
As per the inquiry committee that came to a conclusion
after listening to the counsel of the complainant Moksha Sharma and the counsel
of the respondents Raghav Awasthi mentioned, “the editorial may have been
written in the context of corona pandemic but the conclusion is inevitable that
it is targeting one community i.e., the Muslims.”
“Though the community is not being specifically named,
the indications are found in certain sentences of the article”, it added.
The committee also refused to accept the newspaper’s
apologies, which it had offered on April 10, 2020, not long after the editorial
had been published. They claimed that the apology was “not genuine” and had
only been made as a result of a mob surrounding the newspaper’s offices.
PCI is a statutory and adjudicating organization in
India. It was formed in 1966 and operates under the Press Council Act of 1978.
On the other hand, Star of Mysore is an English daily
newspaper. It was launched in 1978.
Source: Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
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Global Imams Council Lobbied Google, Fought Anti-Semitism
Republican National
Committee sues Google over email spam filters SOURCE: (Photo credit: REUTERS)
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By ZVIKA KLEIN
DECEMBER 29, 2022
A large international Muslim organization has
approached Google after the word "Jew" was listed on Google as a verb
marked offensive, defined as "to bargain with someone in a miserly or
petty way" for most of the day on Tuesday.
The Global Imams Council (GIC), the world’s first and
largest transnational nongovernmental body of Muslim religious leaders from all
Islamic denominations, sent a letter to Google headquarters in response to the
anti-Semitic character describing Jews.
“We write to you to share a serious concern that
demands swift action,” the GIC wrote in the letter. “We were appalled to learn
that if one searches the word ‘Jew’ on Google, the first definition displayed
is an anti-Semitic trope. The top result is an 'Offensive' verb that defines
‘Jew’ as ‘bargain with someone in a miserly or petty way.’ This presentation of
this definition is entirely unacceptable.”
They added that the second definition of “Jew”
displayed – that of a noun, “is perfectly acceptable.” This definition stated
that “a member of the people and cultural community whose traditional religion is
Judaism and who trace their origins through the ancient Hebrew people of Israel
to Abraham.”
The GIC added that “this should not be buried within
the 'more definitions' section, and should be the first definition displayed by
Google.” They further urged Google to “amend the verb definition to one that is
accurate and reflective of the remarkable history, culture, and faith of the
Jewish people.”
"An insult to the Abrahamic family"
According to the Imams, “many prophets and Messengers
revered in Islam were Jews.” They added that “intentionally presenting them
[Jews] in this manner is blasphemous and an insult to the Abrahamic family and
to two billion Muslims around the world.”
“As the world’s leading search platform, we expect
swift action to be taken on the matter,” The GIC said and stressed that “if
this is not adequately addressed by the end of this week, our Council will
demand the change of the definition by initiating legal proceedings against key
officers and employees of Google in courts within countries of the Gulf
Cooperation Council (GCC); where statements insulting to a Prophet or Messenger
of God Amighty are unlawful.” The concluded by stating that “we trust that this
will be a learning opportunity for Google LLC.”
The letter was singed by Imam a. Jammali, deputy
chairman of The Senior Imams Committee and Imam Mohammad Tawhidi, Vice
President of the GIC. According to the GIC website, the council has a rapidly
growing number of over 1,350 members worldwide. “Our diverse council of Imams
advocates for peaceful coexistence, tolerance, mutual respect, and the building
of bridges with all religious communities, along with tackling extremist
ideologies and militant Islam (Islamism),” the GIC website mentioned. The
council's offices are based in Iraq, Canada and Georgia. The GIC also has
deputies in almost every country, including Israel, and is currently in the
process of opening two more offices in the UAE and Toronto, Canada.
The word "Jew," according to this Google
result with data derived from Oxford Languages, does not list someone as being
a member of the Jewish people. Rather, it is listed as a verb marked offensive,
defined as "to bargain with someone in a miserly or petty way." By
Tuesday evening, the Google definition had been reverted back to its original
definition, leading with the noun, rather than the verb.
In 2020, the GIC adopted the International Holocaust
Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism, becoming the
first Imams Council in the world to do so. This was just a few days after
Albania became the first Muslim-majority country to adopt the definition.
Source: J Post
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-726069
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Hate Crime Probe Sought After Multiple Vandalism Incidents On Houston Mosque
A mosque in Houston has
experienced multiple acts of vandalism, with the most recent and severe taking
place last week. [Getty]
----
Brooke Anderson
28 December, 2022
A hate crime probe is being sought following a recent
act of vandalism on a mosque in Houston, which was the third such incident in
eight years.
The attack was also the second this year on the Quba
Institute in southeast Houston. The most recent was last week, which was the
most severe case, causing an estimated $30,000 in damages. The one before that
took place in July.
There are currently no suspects, known threats or
clear motives. However, the Council on American Islamic Relations-Houston are
urging the authorities to investigate these incidents as hate crimes.
The recent mosque vandalisms in this diverse Texas
city come at a time when there is an uptick in reported mosque attacks
throughout the US, including areas with significant Muslim communities, such as
Minnesota.
It is unclear if the increase in reporting is a result
of increased attacks on mosques or an increase in people feeling comfortable
coming forward and reporting these incidents to authorities.
"CAIR is looking forward to educating the
community about their rights," William White, director of CAIR-Houston,
told The New Arab. "We're compiling data to see if there's an uptick.
There's definitely more reporting."
Source: The New Arab
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.newarab.com/news/hate-crime-probe-sought-after-vandalism-houston-mosque
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‘Cries Of Children Were Unbearable’: Rescued Rohingya Refugees Recall Ordeal At Sea
Umme Salima, Hatemon Nesa,
and Rahena pose for a photo. (AN photo)
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December 28, 2022
JAKARTA/DHAKA: When Hatemon Nesa boarded a wooden ship
in Cox’s Bazar in late November, she left a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh
in the hope of finding a better life for her young daughters.
She set out on her journey with her five-year-old,
leaving the older daughter with family members at the camp. She believed that
the voyage would be successful and that they would soon be reunited in another
country.
But the boat engines broke down about a week later and
she, her daughter and another 172 refugees, mostly women and children, were
left drifting in the Andaman Sea for weeks, with no food or water.
No regional country intervened despite UN calls for
rescue last week. They were finally brought to safety by fishermen when their
boat entered Indonesian waters.
On Wednesday, efforts of an Arab News team helped
reconnect Nesa with her family, who had not been able to reach her for weeks
and feared the worst.
“Allah almighty saved our lives,” Nesa said in a video
call from a shelter in Indonesia’s northern Aceh province, as she spoke to her
brother and mother who remained in Cox’s Bazar.
“We were starving while floating on the boat ... I
couldn't eat anything. If I held a water bottle in hand, it would have been
stolen. I could drink water only when there was rain.”
Nesa and her daughter, Umme Salima, were among the
refugees who reached the coastal village of Muara Tiga in Aceh’s Pidie district
on Monday.
The International Organization for Migration said they
were in “very poor health condition” and many were suffering severe dehydration
and malnutrition.
“The rice and lentil you fed me, with that energy I
traveled up to Indonesia,” Nesa told her mother as both burst into tears during
the call.
Whenever there was another ship in sight, she and
other refugees on the boat would scream for help. But for weeks their cries
fell on deaf ears.
“We shouted so much and waved our hands like anything.
At one point it felt like our hands would fall off our bodies,” Nesa said.
Her relative, Rahena, 19, who was also on the boat,
recalled how they were floating for days. “The cries of children due to hunger
were unbearable,” she said, adding that at least 20 people onboard had died.
No help came when their boat entered Malaysian waters
earlier this month. Neither did any come when it crossed into Indian waters,
despite Nesa’s brother Mohammed Rezuwan Khan, a Rohingya activist in Cox’s
Bazar, appealing for rescue.
As the drifting Rohingya entered Indonesian territory,
authorities repeatedly said they could not locate their boat. Local villagers
then caught sight of them and organized help.
“From what I’ve seen, the eagerness of the public (to
help) is extraordinary,” Nasruddin, coordinator from Geutanyoe Foundation, an
Aceh-based humanitarian organization, told Arab News. “This is something that
we need to appreciate and commend.”
It was not the first time that Indonesian fishermen
would join to help the refugees, taking them to safety and providing necessary
assistance.
Nasruddin said around 600 Rohingya have reached Aceh
since March this year.
Nesa and her little daughter’s journey is not over as
Indonesia is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, meaning they cannot
claim asylum. For the time being, however, they are safe and again in touch
with their family.
“With the help of Arab News I got hold of my sister
again and established communications with her after landing in Indonesia,” her
brother said. “I want to convey my heartfelt thanks.”
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223386/world
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Army's Top Brass Vows To ‘Act Against Terrorists Without Distinction’
Photo: The Economic Times
News
-----
Baqir Sajjad Syed
December 29, 2022
ISLAMABAD: The army on Wednesday signalled a strong
response to the country’s escalating terrorism problem.
The corps commanders at their monthly conference at
the General Headquarters — the first after the change of command last month,
according to ISPR, “resolved to fight against terrorists without any
distinction and eliminate this menace as per the aspirations of the people of
Pakistan”.
The two-day conference, which began on Tuesday, was
chaired by Chief of Army Staff Gen Syed Asim Munir.
The media statement indicated that the focus of the
discussion remained largely on the resurgence of terrorism in the country, even
though the commanders also undertook a “review of professional and
organisational matters of the Army”.
The surge in terrorism incidents in
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces and more importantly the botched
suicide bombing attempt in Islamabad in which a policeman lost his life last
Friday underscore the growing problem of militant violence, which has further
complicated the challenges of political instability and economic meltdown.
In the past few months, over a hundred attacks have
been claimed by the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), whose leadership
has been operating from Afghanistan. These attacks have mostly targeted the
law enforcement agencies.
While the most significant threat is coming from TTP,
at the same time insurgents in Balochistan have also stepped up their attacks.
They have, moreover, formed a nexus with TTP, making the problem even more
complex.
This nexus is being seen as one of the reasons why TTP
has been able to stage so many attacks in Balochistan.
Amid indicators that the terrorist threat may increase
next year, analysts have been criticising the military for not coming up with a
comprehensive strategy to counter it.
The brief ISPR statement did not specifically mention
if some new kinetic operation had been okayed, but its tone and almost single
focus on the terrorism threat put across the message that counter-terrorism
would be the new leadership’s top priority.
Gen Munir had soon after taking over the command
visited the western border and had reiterated the pledge to end the menace of
terrorism at all costs, while emphasising that no one will be allowed to spoil
the hard earned peace.
The new army chief’s messaging has been less through
words and more through optics. His resolve to fight back the terrorists was
clear from a recent picture of sombre, but firm-looking Gen Munir carrying the
coffin of Capt Fahd Khan along with Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee
Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza. Capt Fahd was martyred over the weekend in an IED blast
in Kahan, Balochistan.
The reference to “review of professional and
organisational matters” suggested that the top brass could have considered
restructuring and redeployments especially in midst of reports that certain
austerity measures were being planned.
Besides, there were some crucial issues about which
the statement was completely silent.
The corps commanders conference happened in the
backdrop of intensifying economic crisis, but there was no mention of the
economic security that remained a major concern during Gen Munir’s
predecessor’s tenure.
As the Army says it has decided to remain out of
governance and political matters, it is plausible that the generals did not
discuss economy in deference of that policy decision. Interestingly, the
conference happened as rumours about a meeting for discussing the possibility
of installation of a technocrats’ government for fixing the economy made
rounds.
Similarly, there was nothing on the review of external
and regional security in the media statement especially relating to India and
Afghanistan.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1728803/terrorism-tops-agenda-as-new-brass-takes-stock
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India
Graves, Tombstones In Muslim Cemetery Damaged By
Unidentified Persons In An Attempt To Disturb Peace And Communal Harmony in
Karnataka
December 27, 2022
At least 100 grave and tombstones in a Muslim
graveyard were damaged by a group of unidentified persons in Kondanayakanahalli
in Hosapete taluk of Vijayanagara district.
In a complaint filed by Mohammad Ghouse, president of
the Muslim Graveyard (Sunni) Additional Property of Masjid-e-Firdous, at rural
police station, stated that members of Muslim community had been burying the
dead on the said land since 1974. In 1980, the State government purchased the
land from T. Appanna and further in 2007, the cemetery land was registered to
the Muslim Graveyard (Sunni) Additional Property of Masjid-e-Firdous, which
comes under the Karnataka State Waqf Board.
Mr. Ghouse, speaking to The Hindu, on the phone
alleged that some miscreants entered the graveyard with a JCB machine on Sunday
night (December 25) and demolished and desecrated over 100 graves. He called it
an attempt to disturb peace and communal harmony. This was the first time such
an incident had occurred, he added.
Source: The Hindu
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Gulf Cooperation Council Emerges As India’s Largest
Trading Partner Bloc: Indian Commerce Ministry
28 December ,2022
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has emerged as
India’s largest trading partner bloc in the financial year 2021-22 with
bilateral trade valued at over $154 billion, according to India’s Ministry of
Commerce and Industry.
India’s exports to GCC countries were valued at
approximately $44 billion and imports at around $110 billion during the year.
At the same time, bilateral trade in services between India and the GCC
countries was valued at around $14 billion. India’s exports in this category,
amounted to $5.5 billion, and imports were worth $8.3 billion, the ministry
said, according to Emirates News Agency (WAM).
GCC countries accounted for almost 35 percent of
India’s oil imports during fiscal year 2021-22 and made up 70 percent of its
gas imports.
India’s overall crude oil imports from GCC countries
during this period were worth about $48 billion, while liquefied natural gas
and liquefied petroleum gas imports in fiscal year 2021-22 amounted to $21
billion.
Cumulative investments from the GCC in India are
currently valued at over $18 billion, according to the ministry.
With such a high level of content to the economic
relations between the GCC and India, Piyush Goyal, India’s Minister of Commerce
and Industry, and Dr. Nayef Falah M. Al-Hajraf, Secretary-General of the GCC,
have decided to pursue negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between
India and the GCC countries, the Indian government’s Press Information Bureau
said.
“Both sides agreed to expedite conclusion of the
requisite legal and technical requirements for formal FTA negotiations. The FTA
is envisaged to be a modern, comprehensive agreement with substantial coverage
of goods and services,” the bureau said.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Hindutva Can’t Be Tackled By Soft Hindutva Or
Extremist Islam: Kerala Minister at Indian National League Conference
December 28, 2022
Hindutva aggression cannot be tackled either by soft
Hindutva nor extremist Islam, Minister for Public Works P.A. Mohamed Riyas has
said.
He was speaking at a youth leaders’ meet organised
here in connection with the State conference of the Indian National League
(INL) on Wednesday. Mr. Riyas pointed out that certain extreme sections among
Muslims were trying to present themselves as an alternative to hegemonic
Hindutva. Some other political parties are leaning towards soft Hindutva to
counter the ruling party at the Centre. Both these approaches, however, are
wrong, Mr. Riyas said.
He added that Hindutva could be opposed only by a
secularist approach. All secular-minded people should join hands in this
attempt, Mr. Riyas said.
Democratic Youth Federation of India State secretary
V.K. Sanoj and Youth Congress leader Rijil Makkutty, among others, were
present.
Later, P. Sathidevi, Chairperson, Kerala Women’s Commission,
opened a seminar on ‘Women, challenges, and media’.
Source: The Hindu
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Indian syrup tied to kid deaths in Uzbekistan
G.S. Mudur | New
Delhi
29.12.22
Eighteen children have died in Uzbekistan after
receiving excess amounts of an Indian-made medicine contaminated with a toxic
chemical, the Uzbek health ministry has claimed, two months after Gambian
authorities had linked 66 child deaths to another similarly contaminated syrup
from India.
Uzbekistan’s health ministry said 18 of 21 children
with acute respiratory disease had died after they received the paediatric
syrup — Doc-1 Max, manufactured by the Indian firm Marion Biotech — in amounts
which exceeded the standard doses for children.
The health ministry, in a December 27 media release on
its website, also said “preliminary laboratory studies” had shown that this
series (batch) of the syrup contained ethylene glycol, a toxic substance known
to cause acute kidney injury. The syrup has been withdrawn from Uzbekistan, the
ministry said.
Marion Biotech officials were not immediately
available on Wednesday to respond to the Uzbek ministry’s claims. Phone calls
to Marion Biotech’s offices in Noida remained unanswered. The Union health
ministry also did not respond to queries from this newspaper seeking a response
to the release and asking whether the medicine is sold in India.
The World Health Organisation had issued a global
alert in early October, cautioning that paediatric syrups made by the
Haryana-based firm Maiden Pharmaceuticals were found contaminated with
diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol. Both are dangerous substances that
“should not be in any medicine ever”, the WHO said.
The WHO alert followed an investigation by Gambian
health authorities who had linked the deaths of at least 66 children to syrups
from Maiden found contaminated with the toxic substances.
The Uzbek health ministry has said all the children
were given the drug without doctors’ prescriptions. “Since the main component
of the drug is paracetamol, Doc-1 Max was incorrectly used by parents as an
anti-cold remedy on their own or on the recommendation of pharmacy sellers. And
this was the reason for the deterioration of the condition of patients,” the
ministry said.
The ministry said an investigation found that before
they were brought to hospital, the children had taken the drug at home for two
to seven days, three to four times a day, in 2.5 to 5ml amounts, exceeding the
standard dose for children.
Doc-1 Max is a cocktail of three drugs — paracetamol,
guaifenesin and phenylephrine hydrochloride — and the company Marion Biotech
has described it as a product intended for treatment of blocked nose, sore
throat, productive cough, headache and fever associated with cold and flu.
Source: Telegraph India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/indian-syrup-tied-to-kid-deaths-in-uzbekistan/cid/1906502
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Supreme Court to hear pleas challenging love jihad
laws on January 2
28th December 2022
By Shruti Kakkar
NEW DELHI: A bench headed by CJI DY Chandrachud is
scheduled to hear pleas challenging controversial state laws passed by Uttar
Pradesh and Freedom of Religion Act, 2018 in Uttarakhand that regulates
religious conversions due to interfaith marriage on January 2.
The laws were enacted by the state governments of UP
and Uttarakhand for punishing marriages solemnised pursuant to religious
conversion. The UP ordinance which was promulgated in November 2020 prescribes
jail terms ranging from one to five years for the ones convicted under the same
and also imposes a fine of Rs 15,000/-.
Additionally, conversion of women belonging to SC, ST
and minors attracts imprisonment up to 10 years and a fine of Rs 25,000. On the
other hand, the law passed by the Uttarakhand government attracts imprisonment
of two years for persons who are guilty of religious conversion through force
or 'allurement'.
The bench also comprising Justice PS Narasimha will
hear pleas that have been filed by Vishal Thakre and Teesta Setalvad’s led NGO
Citizens for Justice and Peace. It was argued in the plea that the ordinance
can become a potent tool in the hands of bad elements of society to falsely
implicate anyone. The plea also stated that it was obnoxious to put the burden
of proof on married couples to show that it was not conversion by marriage.
“There are probabilities to falsely implicate persons
who are not involved in any such acts and it will be a grave injustice if this
ordinance is passed,” the plea said while seeking to declare the state laws as
null and void.
Source: New Indian Express
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Muslim Ulema Order To Not Perform Nikah Where Loud
Music Is Played
Dec 28, 2022
In Shahi Jama Masjid of Bulandshahr, the Maulanas'
while prohibiting the DJ culture has urged clerics to not perform the Nikah if
DJ music or bands are played at the wedding ceremony. The decision was taken in
a meeting of Ulema and the in-charges of the city's Muslim organizations,
institutions, mosques, and madrassas at Shahi Jama Masjid under the banner of a
local branch of Jamiat Ulema Hind. In Shahi Jama Masjid, the ulemas have
unanimously decided to ban un-Islamic practices such as dancing, playing loud
music, horse-riding, and display of fireworks during weddings. The decision is
being praised everywhere.
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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4 LeT men killed in Jammu on way to Kashmir in truck
Dec 29, 2022
JAMMU: Four suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists from
Pakistan were killed in an hour-long shootout after security forces stopped a
Kashmir-bound truck with a fake registration number in which they were
travelling near Sidhra on the outskirts of Jammu early Wednesday.
Seven AK-47 semi-automatics, one M4 carbine, three
pistols, bullets and a few grenades were seized from the slain men. The truck
caught fire in the heavy exchange, but was doused quickly.
Police said pages carrying the Pakistan-backed
outfit’s letterhead were found on the men, indicating they were from the
neighbouring country and had crossed over through the Samba frontier, hardly a
few km from the international border.
The men were yet to be identified.
On cam: Encounter breaks out between security forces
and terrorists in Jammu’s Sidhra area
This was the second busted case of terrorists hitching
a truck ride to the Valley through Jammu, after CRPF troopers at a highway
check post intercepted and killed three Pakistani operatives of the
Jaish-e-Mohammed group on November 19, 2020. The truck was stopped at Ban Toll
Plaza of Nagrota in Jammu around 5am that day.
Terrorist incursions are known to shoot up during
elections in J&K. Local body elections were held in November-December 2020,
while the Election Commission has announced polls to panchayat, DDC and
municipal corporations in March 2023.
Jammu range ADG Mukesh Singh said Wednesday’s shootout
happened under a thick blanket of fog on a bridge across the Tawi river along
the Jammu-Srinagar national highway.
“There was an input about a truck and a security team
at Sidhra post stopped the vehicle. The driver got down and ran away, while the
hiding terrorists opened fire and hurled grenades.”
They were killed in counter-fire by a combined team of
Army, CRPF and J&K police personnel.
Source: Times Of India
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Mideast
West Bank settlements top priority: Netanyahu
government
28 December ,2022
Benjamin Netanyahu’s incoming hard-line government has
put West Bank settlement expansion at the top of its list of priorities a day
before it’s set to be sworn into office.
Netanyahu’s Likud party released the new government’s
policy guidelines on Wednesday, the first of which is that it will “advance and
develop settlement in all parts of the land of Israel — in the Galilee, Negev,
Golan Heights, and Judea and Samaria” — the Biblical names for the West Bank.
Most of the international community considers Israel’s
West Bank settlements illegal and an obstacle to peace with the Palestinians.
Netanyahu’s new government — the most religious and
hard-line in Israel’s history — is made up of ultra-Orthodox parties, an
ultranationalist religious faction and his Likud party. It is to be sworn in on
Thursday.
Netanyahu is returning to power after he was ousted
from office last year after serving as prime minister from 2009 to 2021. He
will take office while on trial for allegedly accepting bribes, breach of trust
and fraud, charges he denies.
Netanyahu’s partners are seeking widespread policy
reforms that could alienate large swaths of the Israeli public, raise tensions
with the Palestinians, and put the country on a collision course with the
United States and American Jewry.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Iranian FM calls for lifting of Saudi-led coalition’s
blockade of Yemen
28 December 2022
Iran’s foreign minister, during his meeting with the
chief negotiator of Yemen’s National Salvation Government in the Omani capital
on Wednesday, called for the lifting of the Saudi-led coalition’s blockade of
the country.
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who is currently visiting
Oman, held the meeting with Mohammed Abdul-Salam, who is also the spokesperson
of the Ansarullah resistance movement, at the Iranian embassy in Muscat,
according to a statement issued by the foreign ministry.
During the meeting, Iran’s top diplomat “appreciated
the steadfastness of the Yemeni people in asserting their rights” and
reaffirmed the Islamic Republic of Iran’s support to them.
Referring to it as a “humanitarian matter”,
Amir-Abdollahian said the blockade of Yemen should be lifted and the people of
the country should be able to lead normal lives.
Iran’s foreign minister further emphasized the need
for a peaceful solution to the crisis engulfing Yemen and described the
political dialogue between Yemeni groups as an “internal matter” of the
country.
He also paid tribute to Hassan Irloo, the former
ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Yemen. His first death
anniversary was observed last week.
Amir-Abdollahian hailed him as “a martyr of Yemen” and
reaffirmed the determination of the Islamic Republic of Iran in supporting the
people of Yemen.
Yemen has been reeling under the Saudi-led coalition’s
devastating war since March 2015, which has spawned the world’s worst
humanitarian disaster in the Persian Gulf country.
In October, the United Nations announced the end of a
truce in the country between the Ansarullah resistance movement and the
Saudi-led coalition, paving way for no-holds-barred aggression from the
occupying coalition supported by the Western powers.
The Yemeni Army blames Riyadh and its Arab and Western
allies for breaching the terms of the UN-brokered ceasefire.
Yemeni government officials insist that the Saudi
coalition must end its blockade and allow the resumption of salary payments to
all civil servants in order to commence political negotiations.
Abdul-Salam told Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah
television network on Monday that the ceasefire will be restored once the
brutal siege on the country is lifted and the occupying forces are expelled.
He also informed that an Omani delegation held constructive
negotiations with Ansarullah chief Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, head of Yemen’s
Supreme Political Council Mahdi al-Mashat, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff Mohammad Abdulkarim al-Ghamari.
The delegation visited Yemen to hold talks with high-ranking
members of the Ansarullah resistance movement on extending the UN-brokered
nationwide ceasefire and halting the Saudi aggression.
Source: Press TV
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/12/28/695317/Iran-FM-Calls-Lifting-Blockade-Yemen-Saudi
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Nearly 3,000 civilians killed or injured in Saudi
strikes on Yemen’s Sa’ada in 2022: Official
28 December 2022
A Yemeni health official says nearly 3,000 civilians,
including African refugees, lost their lives or sustained injuries this year as
a result of artillery and missile strikes by Saudi military forces in Yemen’s
northwestern province of Sa’ada.
Director of Razih Rural Hospital, Abdullah Musreeh,
told Yemen’s official Saba news agency on Wednesday that the number of civilian
casualties in the Yemeni regions stands at 2,909, and that the figure covers
the period between early January and late December this year.
He added that at least 907 people were killed or
wounded during the UN-brokered truce that lasted six months and expired on
October 2, when gunshots, artillery rounds and missiles by Saudi border guards
targeted the Shada'a district.
Musreeh said his hospital received 111 dead bodies and
796 injured people, including African asylum seekers, throughout the mentioned
period, stressing that Saudi Arabia never committed itself to the truce and its
criminal acts continue unabated.
The Yemeni health official noted that most of those
critically wounded were transferred to medical centers in the capital Sana’a,
as Razih hospital was short of medical equipment to provide necessary services.
Separately, the Director of Monabbih Rural Hospital
Ali al-Ayashi stated that the hospital has received 169 bodies and 1,833
injured people since January.
He pointed out that the Riyadh regime presses ahead
with its horrendous crimes against the Yemeni nation and African asylum
seekers.
Ayashi also made a reference to the brutal methods of
torture by Saudi border authorities against Yemenis citizens and African
refugees, arguing that such practices repudiate the kingdom’s claims of respect
for international humanitarian principles and conventions.
Saudi Arabia launched the devastating war on Yemen in
March 2015 in collaboration with its Arab allies and with arms and logistics
support from the US and other Western states.
The objective was to reinstall the Riyadh-friendly
regime of Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and crush the popular Ansarullah resistance
movement, which has been running state affairs in the absence of a functional
government in Yemen.
Source: Press TV
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North America
US, UK, EU among countries calling for Taliban to
reverse ban on women aid workers
Dec 29, 2022
WASHINGTON: Foreign ministers of 12 countries and the
EU, including the United States and Britain, urged Afghanistan's Taliban-led
government on Wednesday to reverse its decision barring female employees of aid
groups.
"The Taliban's reckless and dangerous order
barring female employees of national and international non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) from the workplace puts at risk millions of Afghans who
depend on humanitarian assistance for their survival," said the statement
by the foreign ministers of the United States, Australia, Canada, Denmark, France,
Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the
Netherlands, and the EU.
Source: Times Of India
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Canada-led group seeks arbitrator over jet downing by
Iran
28 December ,2022
A group of countries led by Canada on Wednesday called
for an arbitrator to settle claims against Iran over its shooting down of a
Ukrainian jetliner in January 2020.
“Those who lost loved ones in the downing of PS752
deserve justice,” Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly tweeted Wednesday.
“We have taken an important step to advance our
pursuit of that justice at the international level this week and will continue
to work together to hold Iran accountable for this tragedy.”
For the latest headlines, follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
Iranian forces shot down Ukraine International
Airlines flight PS752 shortly after its take-off from Tehran on January 8,
2020, killing all 176 people aboard -- including 85 Canadian citizens and
permanent residents.
Three days later, Iran admitted that its military had
mistakenly targeted the Kiev-bound Boeing 737-800 plane.
Canada, Britain, Sweden and Ukraine have been seeking
reparations on behalf of the victims’ families.
They said in a joint statement Wednesday that they
“have requested that Iran submits to binding arbitration of the dispute related
to the downing of Flight PS752,” under a 1971 multilateral treaty on threats to
civil aviation.
And if the parties cannot agree within six months on
the terms for organizing an independent arbitration tribunal, the dispute may
be referred to the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
The group accuses Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps of having “launched unlawfully and intentionally” two surface-to-air
missiles at the jetliner.
The Iranian Civil Aviation Organization has pointed in
a report to the “alertness” of its troops on the ground, who shot the missiles
amid heightened tensions between Iran and the United States at the time.
Source: Al Arabiya
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US lawmakers press government for answers over use of
Israeli spyware
29 December 2022
Two senior US lawmakers have called for an
investigation over Washington’s purchase and use of powerful spyware made by
two Israeli hacking firms, amid efforts to rein in the spread of hacking tools
in the country.
Congressman Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House
Intelligence Committee sent a letter to the head of the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) last week, asking for details about the agency’s use of a
spyware tool called Graphite, developed by the Israeli Paragon company, which
is able to penetrate mobile devices and extract messages, videos, photos and
other files.
"Such use could have potential implications for
US national security, as well as run contrary to efforts to deter the broad
proliferation of powerful surveillance capabilities to autocratic regimes and
others who may misuse them," Schiff wrote in the letter.
He further called on Anne Milgram, the DEA’s
administrator, to respond by January 15 to questions submitted in a classified
addendum to the drug agency.
This came after the New York Times revealed earlier
this month that the DEA was using Graphite in its foreign operations. The
agency responded by saying that it used the tool legally, and only outside the
US. However, it has not answered questions about whether American citizens can
be targeted with the hacking tool.
Separately, Democratic US Senator Ron Wyden sent a
letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to provide information
about the bureau's purchase and testing of Pegasus spyware developed by the
infamous Israeli cyber firm NSO Group.
Wyden urged the FBI to explain why it decided not to
deploy Pegasus, saying that it "remains unclear what triggered the
decision by FBI leadership to forgo operational use of the tool".
"The FBI cannot continue to shroud in secrecy the
rules that govern its hacking operations against Americans’ phones and
computers," he said in the letter.
"The American people have a right to know the
scale of the FBI's hacking activities and the rules that govern the use of this
controversial surveillance technique."
Back in January, an investigation sponsored by the New
York Times revealed that the FBI has secretly bought Israel’s Pegasus spyware,
widely regarded as the world’s most potent spyware, in 2019 to use it for
domestic surveillance.
The newspaper also reported that NSO has offered the
FBI a version of Pegasus that would be able to hack any phone number in the US.
According to the investigation, Washington spent the
past two years to explore whether to use NSO’s new spyware, dubbed Phantom,
against Americans.
The FBI later confirmed that it had obtained the
spyware, but only with a "limited license". NSO has categorically
denied that its Pegasus spyware could be used against US mobile phones.
Fast year, the US put NSO on its blacklist following
confirmation that the firm’s phone-hacking tools, like Pegasus, had been used
by foreign governments to “maliciously target” journalists and officials.
The two letters were sent as Congress passed its
omnibus spending bill last week, which includes provisions that give the
director of national intelligence power to prohibit the intelligence community
from purchasing foreign spyware.
Source: Press TV
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Southeast Asia
Man who disguises as a woman in “telekung” pleads
guilty to stealing in mosque
29-12- 2022
SHAH ALAM: A man, who disguised himself as a woman by
wearing the “telekung” (women’s prayer clothing) to steal in a mosque was
charged in the Magistrate’s Court here today with two counts of theft.
Mohamad Amirul Shafiq Abdullah, 20, pleaded guilty to
both charges before Magistrate Mohamad Redza Azhar Rezali, who postponed
sentencing pending a probation report on him.
The magistrate set Jan 17 for mention to hear the
probation report.
Mohamad Amirul Shafiq, who was allowed bail of RM3,000
on each count, was charged with stealing an iPhone X belonging to one Maznah
Selamat at 6.25 am last Dec 22 at the Al-Azhariah Mosque in Section 18 here.
He was also charged with stealing a Samsung Z Flip 3
handphone belonging to one Kasmunah Abd Rahman at 8.50 pm last Dec 20 at the
Al-Hidayah Mosque, also in Section 18 here.
Both the charges were framed under Section 380 of the
Penal Code which provides imprisonment for up to 10 years and a fine if found
guilty.
Source: The Sun Daily
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Former Uyghur Muslim preacher confirmed dead in prison
in China’s Xinjiang
2022.12.28
A Uyghur Muslim preacher serving a five-year sentence
in China’s far-western Xinjiang region for making a religious pilgrimage abroad
died of liver cancer in prison in February, according to a police officer who
works in the district where the preacher resided.
Omar Huseyin, 55, was the former hatip, or preacher,
at the Qarayulghun Mosque in Korla, known as Ku’erle in Chinese and the
second-largest city in Xinjiang. Authorities apprehended him in September 2017
amid a widespread crackdown on Islamic clergy and other prominent Uyghurs, for
traveling to the holy city Mecca in 2015.
Authorities also detained Huseyin’s three brothers in
2017, one of whom was serving a 12-year sentence for participating in religious
activities and died in prison.
Huseyin was healthy before authorities took him away
for “re-education” in one of hundreds of facilities across Xinjiang where
authorities detained an estimated 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslims
purportedly to prevent religious extremism and terrorism.
Mahmut Moydun, a Uyghur inmate who escaped from
another prison in Korla and was in hiding, told RFA that conditions at
detention centers had been deteriorating because more inmates, including the
preacher, had died in the last two years.
A Korla resident, who declined to be named for safety
reasons, told RFA that the health of inmates incarcerated in city prisons had
deteriorated due to low quality food, the intensity of prison labor, long
political study sessions, and endless interrogations.
Huseyin was taken away for “re-education” in 2017 at a
time when authorities were transforming internment camp centers in Korla into
prisons, he said.
RFA contacted the Qarayulghun police station in Korla
for a list of inmates who died in 2021 and 2022, but the political commissar
refused to provide it. When asked for information about Huseyin, he said the
police station in the district where the preacher used to reside could provide
it.
“I cannot send you that information,” he said. “There
is no such thing.”
A district policeman later confirmed that Huseyin was
serving a sentence in the district prison and that he died on Feb. 2.
“He was healthy and was not sick at all before,” the
officer said. “We learned that he died of late-stage liver cancer in the
[prison] hospital. He died while being treated without being released.”
“At the time, the [Chinese Communist] Party and the
government organized delegations to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, and he went
there as a delegation member,” said the police officer, referring to a time
before the 2017 crackdown when authorities encouraged Uyghurs to apply for
passports and travel abroad.
After authorities arrested Huseyin for making a
pilgrimage to Mecca, he was put on trial and sentenced to five years in jail,
he said.
Authorities went to Huseyin’s home in 2020 and gave
his family a secret trial document about him, said the policeman, but did not
elaborate. After he died this February, authorities returned his body to his
family.
Four brothers
Omar Huseyin was one of four brothers, ages 50 to 62,
from the same family hauled in by authorities for “re-education” because they
were considered a security threat for participating in religious activities,
according to a Uyghur emigre from Korla who now lives in Turkey.
Besides the preacher, his elder brother, Samat
Huseyin, also died in prison in 2021, said the émigré.
Samat Huseyin, a farmer who lived in Qarayulghun’s
Baghjigde village in Qarayulghun town, was arrested with his three brothers
amid the mass detentions of Uyghurs that began in 2017, said the émigré who
declined to be identified for safety reasons.
Two of the brothers, Rahman and Ablet, “graduated”
after spending two years in a re-education center because their attitudes had
“improved,” while the other two were considered “problematic” and accused of
disturbing public order by assembling with others, he told RFA.
Chinese authorities sentenced Omar to five years in
prison and Samat to 12 years in jail, he added.
A security staff member of the neighborhood committee
in Qarayulghun confirmed that the four men from a family of nine had been
detained for “re-education,” with two of them later dying while imprisoned.
“One died in early 2021, and the other probably died
in February 2022,” she said, adding that Samat died of stomach cancer.
The staffer also said Samat, 60, had been healthy
before being taken away for “re-education,” and that he developed the disease
while incarcerated and died in a prison hospital.
An employee at the local justice station confirmed that
authorities arrested Samat in September 2017 for “violating public security” by
participating in religious activities with other people.
“There was a rule in the re-education center that they
could meet with their direct relatives, and arranged for them to meet each
other once,” the staffer said.
Source: RFA
Please click the following URL to read the full text
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https://www.rfa.org/english/news/uyghur/omar-huseyin-12282022174838.html
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Africa
Tunisian Prosecutors Move To Try 13 Judges On ‘Terror’
Charges
December 28, 2022
TUNIS: Tunisian prosecutors asked the top judicial
body to strip 13 judges of immunity so they can be tried on terror charges,
their lawyer said Wednesday, describing the case as “purely political.”
The move comes nearly seven months after President
Kais Saied sacked 57 judges, accusing them of corruption and blocking enquiries
into two left-wing political figures in 2013, among other purported
transgressions.
Defence lawyer Ayachi Hammami said the 13 were among
49 judges reinstated in August.
But the Justice Ministry has been investigating his 13
clients for “terrorist crimes mentioned in security reports,” he added.
“This case is purely political,” Hammami said.
The accused judges are to appear before the Supreme
Judicial Council on January 24, he said.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223526/middle-east
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Islamic cleric charges Tinubu on national unity
29 December 2022
Abuja-based Islamic cleric, Sheikh Mohammed Idris, has
urged presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed
Tinubu, to unite the country if elected.
“Tinubu must not repeat the mistake of President
Muhammadu Buhari if he is elected in 2023. Nigeria is currently divided along
religious and ethnic lines. His administration should reflect national unity
through his appointments and body language,” he advised.
The cleric gave the counsel in the Federal Capital
Territory (FCT) while reacting to the ruling party’s same faith ticket.
He charged Tinubu to do everything humanly possible to
calm perceived frayed nerves across the federation.
Idris regretted that Nigerians were witnessing untold
hardship and becoming despair.
Source: Guardian Nigeria
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https://guardian.ng/news/islamic-cleric-charges-tinubu-on-national-unity/
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Islamic militant violence hits Benin, shows spread
across West Africa
By SAM MEDNICK AND VIRGILE AHISSOU
December 28, 2022
COTONOU, Benin — It's been more than a year since
jihadis first stormed Igor Kassah's town in northern Benin but the priest still
lives in fear. His once peaceful life is now marked by threatening phone calls
and Islamic extremist diatribes tacked on church doors demanding that people
leave. He is haunted by the bodies he has seen of those killed in the attacks.
"We no longer have a normal life," the
41-year-old said through text messages to The Associated Press. "It's hard
to talk and act confidently because you don't know who's in front of you
anymore."
Violence by extremists linked to al-Qaida and the
Islamic State group has wracked much of West Africa's inland Sahel region for
more than seven years. Now it is spreading into the coastal states with Benin
the hardest hit, say experts.
Jihadi attacks in Benin have spiked more than tenfold
between July and December compared to the same period last year — from 2 to 25
— according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project. This is
more than any other coastal state in West Africa. If the extremist violence
continues to spread it could have far-reaching consequences, say analysts.
"When you talk about the Sahel, geopolitical
interests are limited," said Kars de Bruijne, senior research fellow with
Clingendael, a Dutch-based research organization.
"But it's different for coastal states, which are
economically much stronger and more important to the African Union and Western
countries such as England and the United States," he said. These Western
powers might see their interests at stake, which is a key reason why they
should be really concerned about the spillover of extremist violence into
Benin, he said. The more fronts the jihadis open, the more difficult it will be
to effectively respond, he said.
The violence in Benin, a country of 12 million people,
is largely a result of what's happening in neighboring Burkina Faso, where
jihadi attacks have killed hundreds and displaced nearly 2 million people.
Attacks were initially confined to the border between eastern Burkina Faso and
Benin in the W and Pendjari National Parks in the Alibori and Atacora regions,
but are now expanding. Incidents have increased since June in populated areas
around the parks with jihadis connected to the al-Qaida-linked group known as
JNIM, pushing Benin's military from the border creating a security vacuum and
taking control of part of the country, said a recent report by Clingendael.
The jihadi rebels appear to be creating a large area
of influence from Niger to Togo in order to keep supply lines open, recruit
people and procure material, say analysts. Another aim could be to withstand
pressure from the Accra Initiative, a military platform involving Burkina Faso
and coastal countries to prevent the further spread of extremism from the
Sahel.
Benin's government has ramped up its response
investing nearly $130 million to create new operating bases, fortify existing
ones and recruit nearly 4,000 security forces since last year, Benin's
President Patrice Talon said in a speech earlier this month.
But the government's increased security is bringing
human rights abuses such as arbitrary arrests of those suspected of working
with jihadis, particularly the ethnic Fulani who are suspected to be affiliated
to Islamic extremists, say locals and rights groups.
"There is a risk that human rights violations
will become systematic and worsen, as is the case in neighboring countries that
have been fighting the same armed groups for several years," said Samira
Daoud, regional director for West Africa for Amnesty International.
West Africa's coastal states and the international
community haven't learned enough from the crisis in the Sahel about how to
address the insecurity, say regional experts.
"We're watching the same dynamic play out in
Benin and I'm afraid that we are trying the same strategies that failed in the
Sahel," said Laura Sanders, founder of Cetus Global a consulting company
based in Benin and focused on conflict prevention in West Africa.
"There's an opportunity to choose a different
route for littoral countries in addressing the crisis, focusing on the drivers
of violence and what pushes people into these armed groups, such as unresolved
grievances, social marginalization, and poor governance of natural resources,"
she said.
To reduce humanitarian suffering as violence
increases, it's urgent to scale up investments now in education, nutrition and
health in regions bordering central Sahel countries, say aid groups.
Meanwhile, communities in Benin say they are being
forced to accept a life they never thought they'd have to endure.
"We thought for a moment, perhaps because of a
certain naivety ... that (we) could escape the situation of threats, of
near-daily attacks that (Benin) is undergoing," said Arnaud Houenou an
expert in national security and a professor at Benin's University of Abomey
Calavi.
Source: Stripes
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Focus of 2023 election should be about North-South
issues, not Muslim-Muslim ticket – APC chieftain
December 28, 2022
By Francis Ezediuno
Adeboye Adebayo, the National Director, Media and
Publicity, Asiwaju Project Beyond 2023 has described the Muslim-Muslim ticket
as a ruse and non-issue.
Adebayo also held that the campaign should have been
based on a North and South ticket since Nigeria was amalgamated along that line
in 1914.
Adebayo who is a member of the All Progressives
Congress, APC, and Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council made this
known in a press conference in Osogbo on Wednesday.
Stressing the fact that Bola Tinubu, the presidential
candidate of the APC is medically and mentally fit to rule the country, Adebayo
also revealed that the health issue is being used as a distraction to deviate
from the real issues.
He also assured that Tinubu’s presidency, when he is
elected in 2023, will not be a burden on Nigeria.
“[The] Muslim-Muslim ticket is a non-issue; it is a
North and South ticket because when Nigeria was amalgamated in 1914, it was
along that line.
“Bola Ahmed Tinubu is medically fit. He wakes up early
and sleeps late into the night. There is nobody without health issues.
“Tinubu is over 70 and at that age, it is a privilege
to still be up and doing at that age. He had knee surgery and he has fully recovered
from it.
“The whole matter about his health is a distraction.
He is mentally fit and intellectually capable to lead Nigeria. His presidency
won’t be a burden on Nigeria.”
While outlining the differences between the APC
presidential candidate and other candidates in the presidential race, Adebayo
explained that Tinubu is always ready to listen to people adding that it is his
winning formula.
“We believe that a Bola Ahmed Tinubu Presidency is
what Nigeria needs at this time. Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the answer to many
questions at hand now. He is in the race to deliver good governance to
everybody, irrespective of age, tribe and religion. Our people are just
whipping up sentiments.
“Bola Ahmed Tinbu is a detribalised Nigerian who
played a vital role to restore democracy in Nigeria, especially during the June
12 struggle.
“Patriotism is what is driving Tinubu to contest the
presidency. Because people like him stood up for democracy, that is why we can
boast of the Fourth Republic.”
While acknowledging that the APC presidential
candidate reengineered the finances of Lagos, he added that being a leader with
foresight, Tinubu is ready to replicate it because he has the capacity and
experience.
“His manifesto is presentable and when put together
can proffer a solution to Nigeria’s problem.
Source: Daily Post Nigeria
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Pakistan
PTI blames terror resurgence on reversal of its Afghan
policy
Ikram Junaidi
December 29, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Amid a rise in terror attacks across the
country, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Fawad Chaudhry on Wednesday
linked the resurgence of terrorism with what he called the “reversal of PTI
government’s policy on Afghanistan”.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, the former
information minister said Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari did not
understand the situation in Afghanistan. He added if the situation in Kabul
deteriorated it would have negative implications for Islamabad as well.
Mr Chaudhry claimed that former prime minister Imran
Khan was the “only respected Pakistani leader” in Afghanistan because his
“hands were not tainted with the blood” of Afghans.
He added that bombs and missiles were not a solution
and that matters should be resolved through dialogue.
The PTI leader also highlighted the situation in the
former Fata region and said since its merger with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the
government did not spend any money on the development of the tribal districts.
He went on to claim that the cabinet never got a
briefing on the Afghanistan situation and on the merger of the erstwhile Fata
region. He said the interior minister did not even visit Wana to make himself
aware of the problems faced by the locals.
Fawad terms idea of setting up technocrat government a
‘joke’
‘Technocrat government’
The PTI leader also talked about rumours of a
‘technocrat setup’ being proposed to replace the PDM government. He said the
idea of sending the PDM government packing and installing a long-term
technocrat government was under consideration to stop Imran Khan from coming
back to power.
He warned that a system in contrast to the
Constitution was not acceptable and PTI would resist such attempts.
Terming the alleged idea of installing a technocrat
setup and importing a technocrat from the US a ‘joke’, he said a technocrat
government could not solve the country’s current issues, as it would plunge the
country into a host of problems and then these technocrats would flee.
He said that the National Assembly speaker and the
Senate chairman were prestigious posts throughout the globe, but in Pakistan,
the incumbent speaker and the chairman were oblivious to the dignity associated
with their offices.
The PTI leader alleged Rs1.7 billion was spent on
foreign tours undertaken by FM Bhutto-Zardari since the change of government in
April.
He also claimed that the PTI lawmakers did not draw
salaries after their resignations from the assembly and alleged PTI leaders’
salaries might have been received by the PDM members.
Source: Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1728802/pti-blames-terror-resurgence-on-reversal-of-its-afghan-policy
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‘Resigned’ PTI lawmakers set to meet NA speaker today
Syed Irfan Raza
December 29, 2022
ISLAMABAD: After multiple delays, the much-awaited
meeting between National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and PTI leaders
will take place in Parliament House on Thursday (today) at 11:30am for the
personal verification of party MNAs’ pending resignations, the assembly
spokesperson said on Wednesday.
A four-member committee led by PTI Vice Chairman Shah
Mahmood Qureshi will meet the speaker, a source in the National Assembly
Secretariat (NAS) told Dawn. The other three members will include Asad Umar,
Amir Dogar and Pervez Khattak.
The PTI announced mass resignations from the National
Assembly on April 11, a day after the ouster of then prime minister Imran Khan
through a vote of confidence in parliament.
However, while the PTI wants the speaker to accept the
resignations collectively, Mr Ashraf insists he will accept them one by one
after the personnel appearance of each member of National Assembly.
Qureshi says party ready for parliamentary role, but
govt not serious
A source in the PTI said the party was seeking a way
to return to the assembly.
On the other hand, the speaker was said to be under government’s
pressure not to “accept the resignations”. Mr Ashraf hinted that some PTI
lawmakers had contacted him and requested “they do not want to get their
resignations accepted”.
As for today’s meeting, he said: “They are most
welcome. I will brief them in the light of the Constitution and I hope that
[the PTI lawmakers] are sane enough to understand.”
He said the PTI team wanted to meet him on Tuesday,
but he was in Naudero to attend the 15th death anniversary of former prime
minister Benazir Bhutto.
On Wednesday, the speaker contacted Amir Dogar, former
chief whip of PTI in the National Assembly, and invited him to a meeting on
Thursday.
Asked if any PTI MNA contacted him and expressed
willingness to rejoin the assembly, Mr Ashraf said: “There are many, but being
a custodian of the house and its members, I cannot tell their names.”
Earlier on July 28, Mr Ashraf accepted the
resignations of only 11 PTI lawmakers.
The PTI challenged the move in the Islamabad High
Court (IHC) in August, but the court dismissed the petition the next month.
The party then approached the Supreme Court,
requesting it to set aside the IHC order. A decision is still pending.
Meanwhile, PTI’s Mr Qureshi said his party was willing
to play a role in parliament, but the government was not ready to make a
serious commitment in this regard.
Australia tour
PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that although the
speaker had called the PTI team for a meeting on Thursday, Mr Ashraf was
leaving for Australia on the same day.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1728783/resigned-pti-lawmakers-set-to-meet-na-speaker-today
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2 soldiers wounded in Waziristan suicide attack
December 29, 2022
PESHAWAR: Two soldiers were wounded when a suicide
bomber rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into a security checkpost in Mirali
area of North Waziristan tribal district on Thursday.
“It was a vehicle-borne attack. The suicide bomber
rammed the explosive-laden vehicle into the wall of the checkpost in Mirali,”
local official said. He added that two soldiers sustained injuries in the
attack.
Local police said that the area was immediately
cordoned off after the incident and a search operation was launched.
Officials stated that a checkpost of the security
forces established on Bypass road came under attack.
They said that the wounded soldiers were immediately
shifted to Mirali hospital. No official statement was received from
Inter-Services Public Relation (ISPR), the military’s media wing, till filing
of this report.
Source: Dawn
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of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1728762/2-soldiers-wounded-in-waziristan-suicide-attack
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Maulana Tariq Jameel recovering in Canadian hospital
after cardiac arrest
December 28, 2022
Maulana Tariq Jamil, renowned religious scholar and
preacher who suffered a cardiac arresta day earlier in Canada, is “recovering”
and will be “discharged from the hospital soon”.
The scholar is under treatment for his heart problem
and shared an update about his improving
Maulana Tariq Jamil, renowned religious scholar and
preacher who suffered a cardiac arresta day earlier in Canada, is “recovering”
and will be “discharged from the hospital soon”.
The scholar is under treatment for his heart problem
and shared an update about his improving health status.
A tweet from the preacher’s official Twitter handle,
along with his smiling photograph, was shared in which he could be seen sitting
on a hospital bed covering himself with a shawl and a woolen cap on his head.
“By the grace of Allah and prayers of you friends,
[my] health is a little better now. Will be discharged after staying under the
care of doctors in the hospital for three more days,” the tweet read,
requesting for more prayers.
It was also learnt that Maulana received an
angioplasty on Tuesday after suffering a heart attack during his stay in
Canada, according to his family sources.
A day earlier, the scholar’s son Yousaf Jamil informed
his followers on the microblogging networking site about his father’s condition
and that he had been shifted to the hospital.
“He is feeling better now, Alhamdulillah!” Yousaf
said, asking the followers to pray for his father’s health. “May Allah grant my
father complete health.”
Maulana Tariq Jameel was in Canada to attend an event
organised by IslamicRelief Canada which is an international charity.
Taking to Twitter, IslamicRelief Canada announced:
“Unfortunately, today’s event with Molana Tariq Jamil has been postponed to
December 28th due to Maulana’s health.”
It further said that all the will be valid for
Wednesday. “You may request a refund directly through Eventbrite if you are
unable to attend,” the statement added.
A tweet from the preacher’s official Twitter handle,
along with his smiling photograph, was shared in which he could be seen sitting
on a hospital bed covering himself with a shawl and a woolen cap on his head.
“By the grace of Allah and prayers of you friends,
[my] health is a little better now. Will be discharged after staying under the
care of doctors in the hospital for three more days,” the tweet read,
requesting for more prayers.
It was also learnt that Maulana received an
angioplasty on Tuesday after suffering a heart attack during his stay in
Canada, according to his family sources.
A day earlier, the scholar’s son Yousaf Jamil informed
his followers on the microblogging networking site about his father’s condition
and that he had been shifted to the hospital.
“He is feeling better now, Alhamdulillah!” Yousaf
said, asking the followers to pray for his father’s health. “May Allah grant my
father complete health.”
Maulana Tariq Jameel was in Canada to attend an event
organised by IslamicRelief Canada which is an international charity.
Taking to Twitter, IslamicRelief Canada announced:
“Unfortunately, today’s event with Maulana Tariq Jamil has been postponed to
December 28th due to Maulana’s health.”
Source: Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Two most-wanted terrorist held with weapons
December 28, 2022
KARACHI: The security personnel arrested two
most-wanted terrorists of Lyari gang war besides recovering arms and ammunition
from their possession here on Wednesday.
The police and Rangers on a tip-off regarding presence
of wanted terrorists conducted joint raid in Lyari, Karachi.
During raid, two most-wanted terrorists of Lyari Gang
War aka Shakeel commando and Nadeem commando were arrested.
Nadeem commando, one of the two arrested terrorists
had a head bounty of Rs 10 lac.
The accused terrorists were involved in murder and
ransom crimes in the metropolis. Arms and ammunition were recovered from their
possession.
The Ranger’s spokesperson said that these terrorists
had fled to Iran fearing arrest.
Source: Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2022/12/28/two-most-wanted-terrorist-held-with-weapons/
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JUI-F governor sends back helicopter legislation to KP
government
December 28, 2022
PESHAWAR: The governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Haji
Ghulam Ali, a leader of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), returned legislation
authorising the use of the helicopter of the chief minister, Mahmood Khan, for
political purposes to the provincial government for reconsideration.
Ali also urged the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI)
government for new legislation on the matter.
“According to the bill, the chopper can be used by
ministers, advisers and special assistants,” the governor said. “I have advised
them to review the contents of the bill.”
Source: Pakistan Today
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Chinese firms face headwinds in Pakistan, adopt 'go slow'
policy
Dec 28, 2022
NEW DELHI: What's going wrong with Chinese projects
and investments in Pakistan? Almost everything, it seems.
Despite the top leadership from both countries getting
involved to keep things on track, it all appears to be going in a downward
spiral. Questions are also being raised about the future of the multi-billion
dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), touted as a "game
changer" for the country's economy. And China is not happy about it.
Beijing's ambassador to Islamabad, in a recent meeting
with a top aide of the Pakistan prime minister, has admitted to Chinese
companies in Pakistan adopting a "go-slow" policy.
China's frustrations growing?
The ambassador cited “unhelpful behaviour" of the
country's power regulator towards Chinese companies, delay in payments to the
independent power plants and rising exchange rate for the slowing down,
reported Karachi-based Business Recorder (BR).
Ambassador Nong Rong also appeared miffed about the
Pakistani response to various Chinese initiatives.
Recalling that President Xi has offered to deploy
Chinese experts in Pakistan to help establish SEZs, he underlined that it was
high time that Pakistan follow up on the outcome of that decision. He also
suggested the establishment of a dedicated SEZ Authority for devising
appropriate laws, policies and issue licenses to investors in a timely fashion.
China facing popular backlash in Pakistan?
Chinese influence in Pakistan- specially in governance
and polity- is beyond question. Successive regimes in Islamabad have bent over
backwards to accommodate China, often allowing core policies to be tweaked to
favour Beijing's interests, it has been alleged.
Despite Islamabad and Beijing tom-tomming about being
"all-weather allies," the sentiment hardly has a reflection on the
ground in Pakistan. Chinese projects have met with popular resentment,
specially in the Balochistan province. Chinese personnel engaged in these
projects have also been targets of covert attacks.
No wonder then, Syed Tariq Fatemi, the PM's aide, and
ambassador Nong also discussed security of Chinese nationals engaged in various
projects in Pakistan, during their meeting. He assured of foolproof security
arrangements for the Chinese nationals in the country.
Source: Times Of India
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'No other option' but to implement IMF deal: Pak PM
Shehbaz Sharif
Dec 28, 2022
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has
said that his government has “no other option” but to implement the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme to revive the cash-starved economy.
He regretted that if the government wanted to give any
subsidy in any sector, it had to go to the IMF "which is a factor and a
painful reality", the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan quoted Sharif
as saying during a meeting on Tuesday.
He said the coalition government never wanted to
transfer the burden of price hikes to the people but added that the country would
have to implement the IMF programme as “they had no other option”.
The prime minister also said that the agreement with
the IMF was blatantly breached by the Imran Khan-led PTI government in the
past.
Cash-strapped Pakistan revived a stalled USD 6 billion
IMF programme this year which was initially agreed upon in 2019 but is finding
it hard to meet the tough conditions of the Washington-based global lender.
There are reports that the IMF may not release more funds under the programme
until the pledges made by the government are met.
Pakistan and the IMF had a round of engagement on
November 18 but could not finalise a schedule for formal talks on the overdue
ninth review.
The IMF board in August approved the seventh and
eighth reviews of Pakistan's bailout programme, allowing for a release of over
USD 1.1 billion.
The much-needed bailout package from the IMF helped
Pakistan avert an imminent default, amidst the persisting political uncertainty
and the devastating floods that have displaced more than 33 million people.
Shehbaz also said that they had devised a plan to
immediately convert all the federal government entities' buildings to solar
power by April next year to slash the country's fuel import bill of around USD
27 billion.
Unveiling further details, the prime minister said
that the procedures for conversion of solar power should be fast-tracked as
they had set April 2023 as the timeline for the implementation of this plan.
He also urged all the relevant authorities and
stakeholders to complete the required process by the end of April next year and
meet the timeline which had been set.
“Consider it as our political, social, national and
religious duty to implement it as soon as possible,” he opined.
“It is the only option for our survival as a nation,”
he added.
The prime minister said with these urgent measures,
they would be able to generate 300 MW to 500 MW of cheap power, thus reducing
the import bill worth billions of dollars each year.
The prime minister said that the process for the
generation of 10,000 MW solar power in the country had already commenced and
such a conversation by the federal government buildings would be the first
phase.
Enumerating the economic challenges faced by the
country due to skyrocketing fuel and gas prices after the Russia-Ukraine
conflict, he said that developing countries like Pakistan had to bear the
brunt.
He said under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
(CPEC), coal and gas-fired projects were completed by the Pakistan Muslim
League-Nawaz (PML-N) government in 2015 to overcome 20 hours of crippling power
outages in the country.
Pakistan is in need of funds to bolster its struggling
economy, amplified by devastating floods that affected the country's
agriculture and infrastructure in recent months.
On December 23, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar held a
virtual meeting with the IMF mission chief, Nathan Porter, aimed at finding a
common ground to address the power sector issues, the Express Tribune newspaper
reported.
The power sector has become the biggest stumbling
block in the way of the 9th IMF review mission, which is the prerequisite for
the approval of the next loan tranche of over USD 1.1 billion.
As per the revised schedule, the IMF board was
supposed to approve the 9th review and release of the tranche by November 3.
However, due to Pakistani authorities' failure to meet
the programme conditions for the 9th review, the global lender has not yet
dispatched a mission to Pakistan.
Source: Times Of India
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Dar rubbishes ‘default mantra’ but admits economic
situation is dire
Kazim Alam
December 29, 2022
KARACHI: Finance Minister Ishaq Dar assured investors
on Wednesday that “there’s no way Pakistan is going to default”, though he
agreed that all was not well with the economy.
“We’re in a tight position. We don’t have $24bn in
foreign exchange reserves that our (last) government left in 2016. But that’s
not my fault. It’s the system’s fault,” he told investors at a ceremony to mark
the listing of Pakistan’s first developmental real estate investment trust
scheme on the stock exchange.
Mr Dar also assailed “pseudo-intellectuals” for
raising the spectre of sovereign default even though the country repaid its $1
billion Islamic bond before maturity early this month.
“There’s no way Pakistan is going to default,” he
repeatedly declared in his largely backward-looking speech via video link.
‘Pseudo-intellectuals’ assailed for raising spectre of
sovereign default
Mr Dar’s reference to pseudo-intellectuals appears to
be a dig at his predecessor Dr Miftah Ismail, a PhD in economics, who has been
vocal about the possibility of default in his newspaper columns and TV
appearances since leaving office in September.
“We’re hurting the country over petty politics… we’re
our own worst enemy,” he said.
Building on the generous praise by earlier speakers
for his supposed financial wizardry, Mr Dar patted himself on the back for
lifting Pakistan out of economic quagmires in 1998, 2008 and 2013.
Citing statistics on inflation, key interest rate,
foreign direct investment and share market benchmark, he said the economy was
in sound shape the last time he left office in 2017. He asked the business
community to hold accountable the set of politicians that followed the last
PML-N government in power.
The only time Pakistan completed an International
Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programme was under the PML-N government, he said,
while vowing to fulfil all IMF conditions this time as well.
Striking a populist tone, however, Mr Dar said
Pakistan couldn’t be held “hostage” to the dictates of others. “We shouldn’t
put more burden on people either if we can’t give them relief. We have
delivered on our commitment on the petroleum development levy while reducing
petroleum prices three times,” he said.
The external account is the biggest challenge and the
government is trying to improve the situation, he said. “We’ve identified more
external resources and inflows. We’ll be in a much better position with respect
to the external account and reserves by the end of the fiscal year,” he said.
Referring to a notification issued by the central bank
a day ago, the finance minister also took credit for lifting some of the import
curbs on essential items.
“Our ultimate goal should be to avoid going to the
multilaterals,” he said, adding that Pakistan should ideally be able to access
funds through the international debt market.
In an ominous note, he said the key interest rate in
Turkiye is just 9pc even though inflation is hovering around 60pc. Mr Dar is
known to be a staunch supporter of keeping the interest rate low even in the
midst of high inflation — an approach that runs counter to conventional
economic wisdom.
Source: Dawn
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of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1728798/dar-rubbishes-default-mantra-but-admits-economic-situation-is-dire
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South Asia
Afghan Taliban Once Hailed As An Asset To Pakistan,
Turns Into Foe: Report
28 December, 2022
Islamabad [Pakistan], December 28 (ANI): Pakistan once
believed that the Afghan Taliban is a “strategic asset” but today it has turned
into a foe, according to a report in The Khaama Press.
The conflict between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban
was initiated after the “Taliban took over Kabul on August 15, 2021. The deep
state in Pakistan, once believed the Taliban would help them build “strategic
depth” in Afghanistan. Yet the same Afghan Taliban, once hailed as a “strategic
asset” has today turned into a foe. Imran Khan, then PM of Pakistan, declared
that the Taliban had through its takeover, broken “the shackles of slavery.
Many other Pakistanis also celebrated. Today, they are rueing their
statements!”, according to the Khaama Press report.
The report also said that: “Within a few days of their
victory, the new rulers of Kabul released members of the Pakistani Taliban
(known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP) who had been imprisoned in
Afghan jails, the same people who have spent years waging war on the Islamabad
government.”
Taliban refused to accept the Durand Line, the
Pakistan-Afghanistan border drawn by the British over a century ago.
After the fall of Kabul, Pakistan wanted to keep the
US happy while also maintaining its support for the Afghan-Taliban. The policy,
an ambiguous one, kept no one happy.
Pakistan’s Lt. General Faiz Hameed, earlier the
Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), flew to Kabul in
mid-2021 to support the Taliban’s efforts against the Panjshir fighters in
Northern Afghanistan.
Hameed again visited Kabul in 2022 to persuade the
Afghan Taliban to work out a peace deal with the TTP. He, however, failed the
mission. The TTP, as a result, came back back to Pakistan. The terrorist
attacks in Pakistan have since increased by 51 per cent.
According to The Khaama Press report, “The current
situation on the border arose subsequent to General Asim Munir taking over as
the new Chief of the Pakistani army. The next day, four civilians were killed
in a suicide bombing in Pakistan; the TTP claimed responsibility.”
“General Asim Munir presided over a meeting of senior
generals at General Headquarters (GHQs) in Rawalpindi soon after taking over.
It was decided to launch military operations against the TTP in KPK and
northern Balochistan. The decision to launch the military operation followed
the attack on the Pakistani embassy in Kabul earlier in December 2022 and the
Afghan Border Forces’ attack on the Chaman Border that resulted in the deaths
of six Pakistani civilians,” according to the Khaama Press report.
Source: The Print
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Karzai: Intra-Afghan Dialogue Important for Islamic
Emirate, Afghanistan
Dec 28, 2022
Former President Hamid Karzai urged the Islamic
Emirate to begin a process of inclusivity by launching a grand Afghan dialogue,
saying that it is for the good of the “Taliban themselves and for the good of
the country.”
The former president, who remained in power from 2001
to 2014, made the remarks in an interview with The Washington Post.
When asked about the Islamic Emirate’s stance
regarding the intra-Afghan dialogue, Karzai said: “On the principle of things,
there is an agreement. They say yes. On a national dialogue being imperative to
a better Afghanistan, there is an agreement. On getting it launched and done,
we haven’t yet gotten where we should be.”
He blamed former president Ashraf Ghani’s fleeing as
the reason for the collapse of the republican government.
“If Ashraf Ghani didn’t escape from the country and
believed in peace and intra-Afghan negotiations, the government would still
remain in place,” said Shahzada Masoud, a close figure to Karzai.
Analysts also said that intra-Afghan dialogue can
address the country’s challenges.
“We should conduct a national dialogue, either a Loga
Jirga (grand assembly) or a grand council. People from across Afghanistan, from
each village and district, should be invited to the capital to make a decision
in this regard,” said Kamran Aman, a political analyst.
“Negotiations and dialogues in a nation like
Afghanistan that has witnessed long wars are necessary for its stability,” said
Najibullah Jami, a political analyst.
Head of the Islamic Emirate’s Qatar based political
office, Suhail Shaheen, said the caretaker government has established a
commission to facilitate the return of Afghan political leaders.
“Afghans abroad are in contact with the commission.
They share their opinions and questions with them. Second, Afghans abroad can
contact the commission,” Shaheen said.
“The war in Afghanistan was not our war,” Karzai said.
“I was against that war. I was not a partner of the United States in that war
against Afghan villages and homes,” Karzai said. “I stood against it, and I
worked against it. I changed from the moment I recognized that this war that is
fought in the name of defeating terrorism is actually a war against the Afghan
people.”
The former president also expressed disagreement with
the US decision to split Afghan assets of $7 billion.
Source: Tolo News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-181376
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Terror attacks in Pakistan up since Taliban took over
in Afghanistan: Report
Dec 28, 2022
KABUL: Terror attacks in Pakistan have increased 51
per cent since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August last year, the
Khaama Press of Afghanistan said in a report.
It added that rise in terrorist incidents shows that
Pakistan's decades-old Afghan policy, to which the erstwhile Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had lent support when in power, had failed.
According to a Khaama Press report, the Afghan Taliban
is challenging Pakistan by letting loose the Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on
Pakistan. The PTI chief and then Prime Minister of the country had announced
that the Taliban had broken "the shackles of slavery". Many other
Pakistanis also celebrated at the time, but they regret their statements today,
the report said, adding that strengthening of the Taliban in Afghanistan has
resulted in terror attacks in neighbouring Pakistan.
According to the Khaama Press Report, General Faiz
Hameed, the then director general of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), went
above his then Army Chief General Qamar Bajwa and flew to Kabul in mid-2021 to
support Taliban's efforts against the Panjshir fighters in Northern Afghanistan.
This was also the time when many TTP leaders were
released by Pakistan, the report ran, adding that Lt. Gen. Hameed visited Kabul
again this year to persuade the Afghan Taliban to broker a peace deal with the
TTP.
However, the peace treaty reached then stands revoked
since November 28, this year.
As soon as the new chief of Army Staff, General Asim
Munir, assumed charge, he met senior generals at the army general headquarters
in Rawalpindi, the report noted, adding that the launch of a military operation
over TTP in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and northern Balochistan was decided there.
This was followed by an attack on the Pakistan embassy
in Kabul earlier in December.
On December 11, the Taliban shelled Pakistan's border
areas, killing seven civilians. Pakistan in retaliation killed one Taliban
fighter while injuring ten Afghan locals.
Further, on December 15, the two sides exchanged
artillery fire which left at least one Pakistani civilian dead and wounded 15
others.
In the current regime, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto
Zardari, while visiting many countries, has not visited the Afghan capital. He,
instead, sent Deputy Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar to Kabul. She was the
first female minister who tried to hold talks with Taliban Defense minister
Mullah Yaqoob, the Khaama Press claimed, adding, however, that Yaqoob refused
to meet her.
Source: Times Of India
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Blast injures four civilians in Afghanistan's Takhar
province
Dec 28, 2022
KABUL: Four people were injured as a blast rocked
Taluqan city, the capital of northern Takhar province on Wednesday, The Khaama
Press reported on Wednesday.
Taliban security commander Abdul Mubin Safi in Takhar
confirmed the explosion and stated that a bomb was placed under a local
administrative staff's desk. He said that four people have been severely
injured.
However, unconfirmed sources reported high causalities
left behind from today's bombing, the Khaama news agency reported.
"It was a mine blast and injured four
civilians," provincial police spokesman Abdul Mubin Safi told Xinhua.
Without providing more details, the official added
that an investigation had been initiated into the incident. The Tolonews
reported that the blast occurred next to a private health center named Qataghan
hospital.
In the past few months, the war-torn county has
witnessed increasing security incidents including explosions.
Source: Times Of India
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Taliban Arrests an Official on Corruption Charges in
Kandahar
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
December 29, 2022
The Taliban’s head of the national environment
protection agency in Kandahar, Noorullah Adil, was arrested on charges of
bribery, sources said on Wednesday.
Noorullha Adil was arrested by the members of the
intelligence department and is being held in custody. The sources said that
Mohammad Yusuf Wafa, the governor of Kandahar tried to release Adil but failed
to do so.
According to unconfirmed sources, Mr. Adil is also
accused of moral corruption, which is being seriously punished by the
authorities of Afghanistan’s de facto regime. As of now, he has been removed
from his position and is in prison.
Like every other corruption case, he too will appear
in a Sharia court, where a decision will be taken on his fate and punished
accordingly.
Over the past couple of weeks, the authorities of the
ruling regime have put in place really harsh practices while punishing alleged
convicts in different parts of the country. These punishments include public
execution, flogging, and stoning.
Source: Khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/taliban-arrests-an-official-on-corruption-charges-in-kandahar/
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Humanitarian Aid for Afghanistan to be Suspended:
Germany
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
December 28, 2022
Following the ban on women working with NGOs, German
non-profit organizations have joined the list of many other humanitarian
organizations in suspending their operations in Afghanistan.
The German government is planning to suspend financial
aid for Afghanistan after the Taliban banned women from working for NGOs in the
country on December 24.
This is a big blow for Afghanistan’s de facto
authorities as more and more aid organizations started suspending their work in
response to the latest decree of the ruling regime baring women from working
with private or international organizations.
“By banning the employment of female staff of
non-governmental organizations, the Taliban in Afghanistan have struck an
irresponsible blow against aid to the Afghan people,” Development Minister
Svenja Schulze said in a statement. “Without female employees, organizations
cannot continue their work in many areas for half the population.”
As a friendly partner of Afghanistan, Germany has long
been helping the Afghan people across different areas be it education,
life-saving support, humanitarian aid, relief work, training, and more under
different regimes for decades. Millions of vulnerable people in different parts
of the country benefit from the German-run aid programs.
According to the German Ministry for Economic
Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Germany has long been the second largest
donor, after the United States, contributing up to €430 million to Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the economic and humanitarian in
Afghanistan remains disastrous. According to the WHH, a German Aid Group, 28.3
million people in the country, over two-thirds of the population, are dependent
on humanitarian aid. At least 20 million are threatened with starvation.
Source: Khaama Press
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Arab World
Lack Of Meaningful Dialogue, Reforms To Blame For
Crisis, Says Bahrain's Shia Jailed Cleric, Sheikh Ali Salman
28 December 2022
A prominent Bahraini Shia cleric and opposition leader
Sheikh Ali Salman has blamed the lack of genuine dialogue and meaningful
reforms for the ongoing political crisis and cruel clampdown in the Persian
Gulf kingdom.
The 57-year-old secretary general of Bahrain's
dissolved opposition group, the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, in a message
on Wednesday denounced harsh punishments for pro-democracy advocates,
dissolution of their associations, and killing of activists and their
supporters.
He pointed to the efforts undertaken by his group and
other prominent opposition parties and figures to resolve the political crisis
in the country and underlined the need for the implementation of meaningful
reforms.
“The endeavors put in by political leaders and
currents to save and uplift the country resulted in harsh punishments for
pro-democracy advocates, dissolution of their associations, killing of
activists and their supporters, as well as imprisonment, deportation and
political isolation of dissident figures,” Sheikh Salman said.
He added, “Absence of real dialogue and genuine
reforms chiefly account for grave crises worldwide, and Bahrain is no
exception.”
The renowned Bahraini cleric also lamented the Al
Khalifah regime’s refusal to hold reconciliation talks with the opposition.
“If the negotiations had taken place and human rights,
as well as economic progress, had been taken into account, the budget deficit
would not have deepened and there would be no need to levy taxes on the
public," he remarked in his address.
“No one should be under the illusion that suppression
of idealism and democracy, freedom and respect for human rights would notch up
a victory. It would actually result in self-inflicted harm and its losses would
be enormous."
On November 4, 2018, an appellate court in Bahrain
overturned the acquittal of Sheikh Salman and two of his colleagues, Hassan
Sultan and Ali al-Aswad, and levied charges of collaborating with Qatar “with
the purpose of overthrowing the regime” against them.
The court went on to say that the trio had transferred
confidential information to Qatar and received financial support in return.
Sultan and Aswad were tried in absentia.
The high criminal court in Bahrain acquitted Sheikh
Salman and his two aides of the spying charges on June 21, 2017.
Demonstrations have been held in Bahrain on a regular
basis since a popular uprising began in the Arab country in mid-February 2011.
People demand that the Al Khalifah regime relinquish
power and allow a just system representing all Bahrainis to be established.
Source: Press TV
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Manafa: Tripartite Partnership Of Three Chambers Of
Commerce To Turn Makkah, Madinah Into Islamic World's Financial Hubs
December 28, 2022
MAKKAH — Three chambers of commerce signed on
Wednesday a partnership to transform Makkah and Madinah into financial and
business hubs of the Islamic world.
Under the patronage of Minister of Commerce and acting
Minister of Media Majid Al-Qasabi and in the presence of representatives from
all relevant organizations, the three chambers announced the start of the
“Manafa" Partnership at a launch ceremony.
The tripartite partnership agreement is part of the
Islamic Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture’s endeavors to drive the
economic and social development of its members.
It will organize a series of joint events among the
three parties, contributing to promoting Islamic art and creativity, and
benefiting from the holy status of Makkah and Madinah to make them hubs for
business events, and effective platforms for Islamic knowledge and creativity.
Al-Qasabi highlighted the desired role of the Manafa
Partnership in enhancing economic cooperation among Islamic countries.
He said: “I hope that the partnership tracks would be
an incentive for determination to implement diversified initiatives in order to
improve the performance of chambers of commerce and strengthen our commercial
cooperation and constructive economic relations”.
Chairman of the board of directors for the Makkah
Chamber of Commerce Abdullah Saleh Kamel praised the strenuous efforts of the
three partners.
“The title of the Saudi Vision 2030 is: 'Saudi Arabia:
The Heart the Arab and Islamic Worlds, the Investment Powerhouse, and the Hub
Connecting Three Continents', and we are inspired by this vision in Manafa
Partnership”, Abdullah Kamel said.
In his speech at the ceremony, he highlighted the role
of the tripartite partnership "Manafa" in achieving the Saudi Vision
2030.
Source: Saudi Gazette
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Jobs for Emiratis — UAE pushes work for own citizens
December 29, 2022
DUBAI: With foreign workers making up the vast bulk of
private sector jobs in the United Arab Emirates, the Gulf’s second-largest
economy wants to boost opportunities for its own citizens.
The UAE — like other oil-rich Arab Gulf states — has
often used the public sector as an employment vehicle for its nationals.
But times are changing, said 34-year-old Emirati
researcher Khalifa al-Suwaidi, who has himself been looking for a private
sector job since quitting a government post in June.
“We’ve reached a point where we have a diversity among
Emiratis in terms of skill sets and expertise,” said Suwaidi. “The public
sector can no longer accommodate many of those talents”.
Just 12 per cent of the country’s more than nine
million residents are UAE nationals, with over 90pc of private sector jobs
taken by foreigners, according to International Labour Organisation figures.
Suwaidi, author of a forthcoming book titled “UAE
after the Arab Spring”, said he believed some employers overlooked his
application because they presumed an Emirati would demand the high wages often
paid in lucrative government posts.
“The private sector needs to be more accommodating,”
he said. “I’ve been applying for jobs for a while to no avail.”
The government is now strong-arming private firms into
hiring local talent, with the aim of ensuring Emiratis make up 10pc of the
private sector workforce by 2026.
Next month, firms with more than 50 employees that
fail to fill two per cent of their skilled jobs with Emiratis face being fined.
That has sparked a hiring drive, with recruiters
noting a “flood of vacancies” from companies — many of which won’t be able to
meet their targets.
“It’s going to be a tough run,” said Hamza Zaouali,
the founder of recruitment agency Iris Executives, but noting it was “not
possible” for the UAE government to keep growing and hiring.
“The more sustainable way is to make sure the economy
continuously absorbs, trains and works with Emiratis,” Zaouali said. It is part
of a wider trend, said Eman Alhussein, a non-resident fellow with the Arab Gulf
States Institute in Washington.
The UAE is joining “a larger push in the Gulf to
change the dynamics of state-society relations” and wean citizens away from
government jobs, she said.
“Gulf states want citizens to alter their
expectations, give back to the state and accept jobs with longer hours and
perhaps reduced income,” Alhussein said. In November, the UAE’s Minister of
Human Resources and Emiratisation, Abdulrahman Al Awar, said that more than
14,000 Emiratis had entered the job market in 2022, with an average of 100
finding jobs each day.
The government also announced a salary support scheme
that provides Emiratis in the private sector with up to AED 7,000 ($1,900)
extra if monthly wages are less than AED 30,000.
Source: Dawn
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Turkish, Syrian officials meet in Russia after
years-long chill
28 December ,2022
Turkey’s defense minister and intelligence chief met
their Syrian counterparts in Moscow on Wednesday in a clear sign of
normalization between Ankara and Damascus in the decade-long Syrian war.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and the head of
its National Intelligence Organization (MIT), Hakan Fidan, met with Syrian
Defense Minister Ali Mahmoud Abbas and Syrian intelligence chief Ali Mamlouk in
Moscow along with Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the Turkish defense
ministry said.
“Syrian crisis, refugee issue and efforts of joint
fight against all terror organizations on Syrian soil were discussed in the
constructive meeting,” the ministry statement said.
The Turkish, Russian and Syrian sides agreed to
continue trilateral meetings, the statement added.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan this month
announced that he proposed to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin forming a
trilateral mechanism with Russia and Syria to accelerate diplomacy between
Ankara and Damascus. He also said he wanted to meet Syria’s President Bashar
al-Assad.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Rare hailstorm hits Kuwait, one of the hottest
countries on Earth
28 December ,2022
Kuwait, one of the hottest countries on Earth, has
been hit by a rare hailstorm that delighted children and their parents, with
images of the winter white shared widely on social media Wednesday.
“We have not seen so much hail during the winter season
in 15 years,” Muhammad Karam, a former director of Kuwait’s meteorological
department, told AFP.
Pictures and videos of southern roads partially
blanketed in hail and ice spread online to celebrate the rare weather event.
Children donned scarves and raincoats as they scooped
up hail in the Umm al-Haiman district, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) south of
Kuwait City.
Kuwait’s meteorological department said precipitation
since Tuesday had reached up to 63 millimeters but that the weather was
clearing up.
Karam said he expects the phenomenon to reoccur as
climate change disrupts weather patterns.
The oil-rich Gulf nation endures blistering summer
heat, and scientists predict it could become unlivable in future because of
climate change.
In 2016, summer temperatures peaked at 54 degrees
Celsius (129 degrees Fahrenheit).
Source: Al Arabiya
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Nursing home for struggling elderly Egyptian actors
opened by Actors’ Syndicate
December 28, 2022
CAIRO: The Actors’ Syndicate in Egypt has opened a
special nursing home for the nation’s elderly actors who have fallen on hard
times.
Soft Power Home was recently opened in the Sixth of
October region, close to the pyramids of Giza. Some of the former stars had
lost their sight, were homeless and had no pension or source of income.
Ashraf Zaki, head of the Actor’s Syndicate, said in
exclusive statement to Arab News: “First of all, I want to thank Egyptian
President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi for agreeing to transfer the land on which the
house was built from usufruct to ownership, which gives the house more security
and greater support.
“For the project, I also extend special thanks to the
Ruler of Sharjah, His Highness Sheikh Sultan Al-Qasimi, for funding the project,
especially since he considers Egypt his second country.”
Zaki added: “The project was a dream 11 years ago,
specifically with the rise of artists who had fallen out of the limelight
needing shelter … there were tragic images of some actors on the streets.”
“Over the past years, we have been surprised by this
recurring scene, and we have been moving individually, asking for donations to
save artist after artist, but we thought that the matter should be
institutional, so we contacted the Egyptian Ministry of Solidarity to provide a
place for us to build a home for the elderly, and financing.
“And we were surprised by (the) quick response from
Sheikh Sultan Al-Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, and he
donated the full amount required to build the house,” Zaki said.
“The house is located in the 6th of October City in a
very healthy area, and it consists of three floors … about 60 beds, and it also
includes a swimming pool and a gymnasium,” Zaki said.
“The name was suggested by the scriptwriter Amr
Mahmoud Yassin, the son of the late great artist Mahmoud Yassin. We also named
one of the halls of the house after the late artist Hisham Selim, for his
efforts in the project, but he died before it was completed and (could
celebrate) with us,” he added.
The opening of the home saw artists Ashraf Abdel
Ghafour and Muhammad Abu Dawoud honored. Among the actors present were Ghafour,
Sabreen, Bushra, Abeer Sabry, Anoushka, Rania Farid Shawqi, Sami Maghawry, Amr
Mahmoud Yassin, Ehab Fahmy, Hanan Shawky, Afaf Donia Abdel Aziz, Safaa
Al-Toukhi, Sabri Fawaz, Salwa Muhammad Ali, Ashraf Fahmy and Ahmed Salama.
Soft Power Home has been adorned with the photographs
of several stars including Abdel Halim Hafez, Nadia Lotfy, Yahya Shaheen, Ali
Al-Kassar, Mary Mounib, Omar Sharif, Sana Jamil, Abdel Moneim Madbouly, Saeed
Abdel Al-Ghani and Mahmoud Al-Meligy.
The artist Ashraf Abdel Ghafour said during the
opening: “My tongue is unable to express its joy at the completion of this
(home) … I and the artist Samiha Ayoub went to present the project to Sheikh
Sultan Al-Qasimi and he agreed without hesitation to finance the project, and
for that I thank him very much.”
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223406/middle-east
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Purge in Riyadh: Ex-Saudi public security chief jailed
for 25 years over ‘corruption’
28 December 2022
Saudi Arabia’s former public security chief has been
sentenced to 25 years in prison over alleged "corruption charges"
amid Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's ongoing witch-hunt against dissidents,
opponents, and potential rivals to the throne.
The Prisoners of Conscience, an independent non-governmental
organization advocating human rights in Saudi Arabia, announced in a post on
its official Twitter page on Wednesday that Lieutenant General Khaled bin Qarar
al-Harbi was handed the jail term over charges of bribery and abuse of power.
Harbi had served as the head of Saudi Arabia's General
Directorate of Public Security since December 2018.
He was dismissed from his position and arrested in
September last year after King Salman bin Abdulaziz issued a royal decree and
referred him for investigation on corruption charges, the official Saudi Press
Agency (SPA) reported.
The accusations, according to SPA, include “seizing
public money for personal benefit... forgery, bribery and abuse of power.”
The decree had stipulated that “the Oversight and Anti-Corruption
Authority [Nazaha] shall complete the investigation procedures with everyone
involved in this [case], and take the necessary legal measures against them.”
Ever since bin Salman rose to become Saudi Arabia’s de
facto leader in 2017, the kingdom has arrested a number of activists, bloggers,
intellectuals, and others seen as political opponents despite international
outcry and condemnation of the crackdown.
In what is viewed as the biggest purge in the
kingdom's history, Saudi royals, billionaires and senior government officials
were tortured and blackmailed in November 2017, when they were rounded up and
detained at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in an extraordinary power play by bin
Salman.
As many as 500 people were rounded up in the purge,
which continued until 2019. According to The Wall Street Journal, the Saudi
government targeted cash and assets worth up to $800 billion.
The purge was believed to be meant to consolidate the
then-nascent rule of bin Salman.
Former detainees and associates of several people
caught up in the crackdown have said the detentions were arbitrary, lacking in
any judicial process and frequently targeted foes of the prince.
British daily newspaper the Guardian, citing a source,
said the November 2017 round-up at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh “was about
consolidating his (bin Salman) rule, plain and simple” and came before the
cruel murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in
Istanbul on October 2, 2018.
“The fact that he got away with it allowed him to do
the latter. The same guards involved in the Ritz were involved in the killing,”
the source said.
Source: Press TV
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Europe
Italy urges Iran to stop executions and open dialogue
with protesters
28 December ,2022
Iran must stop executing and persecuting protesters
and should open a dialogue with them, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani
said on Wednesday after summoning the Iranian ambassador.
Tajani said death sentences against people who take
part in demonstrations or women who refuse to wear headscarves were a grossly
disproportionate and unacceptable form of punishment.
“Taking off a veil or participating in a protest is
not a crime that can lead to the death penalty anywhere in the world,” he said.
Nationwide unrest erupted in Iran three months ago
after the death in detention of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini,
who was arrested by morality police enforcing the Islamic Republic’s mandatory
dress code laws.
The protests mark one of the boldest challenges to
Iran’s leadership since its 1979 revolution and have drawn in Iranians from all
walks of life.
Iranian authorities have cracked down hard on the
protests, which they say are riots fomented by foreign adversaries.
Iran hanged two protesters earlier this month: Mohsen
Shekari, 23, who was accused of blocking a main road in September and wounding
a member of the paramilitary Basij force with a knife, and Majid Reza Rahnavard,
23, who was accused of stabbing to death two Basij members, and publicly hanged
from a construction crane.
Rights group HRANA says about 18,500 people have been
arrested during the unrest. Government officials say most have been released.
HRANA also says that as of December 25, 507 protesters
had been killed, including 69 minors, as well as 66 members of the security
forces.
Source: Al Arabiya
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'Türkiye foiled Greek bid to wipe out Ottoman-era
Muslim cemetery in Western Thrace'
Ayhan Mehmet
28.12.2022
GUMULCINE, Greece
Türkiye’s intervention thwarted Greece’s plan to build
a football field over an Ottoman-era Muslim cemetery in Western Thrace that was
demolished earlier this year, according to an official.
A cemetery belonging to the Turkish minority in
Horozlu (Petinos), a village in Western Thrace’s Xanthi region, was destroyed
by Greek authorities on March 16.
Municipal authorities of Bulustra (Avdira) “were
planning to turn a part of the cemetery into a sports field,” Mustafa Trampa,
the mufti (Muslim cleric) of the Turkish minority in the Western Thrace city of
Iskece, told Anadolu Agency.
Their plans were foiled when the Turkish Foreign
Ministry took up the issue, he said.
Ankara had strongly condemned the move, with the
ministry issuing a statement on March 18 condemning the cemetery’s destruction
and calling for it to be brought back “to its former state.”
“After Türkiye’s statement, the issue gained
international prominence,” said Trampa, adding that officials in Bulustra were
forced to “withdraw the decision immediately.”
He criticized Greek authorities for undermining the
Turkish minority’s efforts to protect the historical site.
“Greece is doing everything it can to remove all
traces of Ottoman history, be it baths, mosques, madrasas, or cemeteries,
throughout the country and in Western Thrace,” said Trampa, who became the
mufti of Iskece this September.
In its March statement about the Horozlu cemetery, the
Turkish Foreign Ministry termed its destruction an “inhuman act.”
“Necessary demarches were realized before Greece
regarding this inhuman act, as it turns out to be carried out with the
directives of the Mayor of Bulustra (Avdira),” read the statement.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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UN temporarily halts some ‘time-critical’ programs in
Afghanistan after ban on women
29 December ,2022
The United Nations said on Wednesday that some
“time-critical” programs in Afghanistan have temporarily stopped and warned
many other activities will also likely need to be paused because of a ban by
the Taliban-led administration on women aid workers.
UN aid chief Martin Griffiths, the heads of UN
agencies and several aid groups said in a joint statement that women’s
participation in aid delivery is not negotiable and must continue, calling on
the authorities to reverse the decision.
“Banning women from humanitarian work has immediate
life-threatening consequences for all Afghans. Already, some time-critical
program have had to stop temporarily due to lack of female staff,” read the
statement.
“We cannot ignore the operational constraints now
facing us as a humanitarian community,” it said. “We will endeavor to continue
lifesaving, time-critical activities ... But we foresee that many activities
will need to be paused as we cannot deliver principled humanitarian assistance
without female aid workers.”
The ban on female aid workers was announced by the
Taliban-led administration on Saturday. It follows a ban imposed last week on
women attending universities. Girls were stopped from attending high school in
March.
“No country can afford to exclude half of its
population from contributing to society,” said the statement, which was also
signed by the heads of UNICEF, the World Food Program, the World Health
Organization, the UN Development Program, and the UN high commissioners for
refugees and human rights.
Separately, 12 countries and the EU jointly called on
the Taliban to reverse the ban on female aid workers and allow women and girls
to return to school.
The statement was issued by the foreign ministers of
Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Switzerland,
the Netherlands, Britain, the United States and the EU.
The ban on female aid workers “puts at risk millions
of Afghans who depend on humanitarian assistance for their survival,” the
statement said.
Four major global groups, whose humanitarian aid has
reached millions of Afghans, said on Sunday that they were suspending
operations because they were unable to run their programs without female staff.
The UN statement said the ban on female aid workers
“comes at a time when more than 28 million people in Afghanistan ... require
assistance to survive as the country grapples with the risk of famine
conditions, economic decline, entrenched poverty and a brutal winter.”
The UN agencies and aid groups - which included World
Vision International, CARE International, Save the Children US, Mercy Corps and
InterAction - pledged to “remain resolute in our commitment to deliver
independent, principled, lifesaving assistance to all the women, men and
children who need it.”
Source: Al Arabiya
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Probe launched against PKK sympathizers in Germany
Mesut Zeyrek
29.12.2022
COLOGNE, Germany
A probe was launched against sympathizers of the PKK
terror group in Dortmund, police said Wednesday after the group staged
protests.
Police said after demonstrations that were attended by
320 PKK supporters, as many as 25 people from the group had verbal arguments
with the others but the incidents settled before they escalated because of the
intervention of police.
Authorities said images on social media were known by
the state security service and were used in the investigation. The Dortmund
police demanded an investigation be launched into disturbing the peace and
physical violence.
Police urged witnesses to contact authorities.
There are images on social media of a group of PKK
supporters attacking one or more people with flagpoles and destroying property.
The PKK is classified as an
"ethno-nationalist" and "separatist" terror organization by
the EU's law enforcement agency, EUROPOL, and has been banned in Germany since
1993.
But it remains active in the country with nearly
14,500 followers among the Kurdish immigrant population.
Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, BfV, warned in
its annual report that the PKK remains the largest foreign extremist group in
the country and its followers can carry out violent attacks if they receive
instructions from group leaders abroad.
Türkiye has long called on its NATO ally Germany to
take stronger action against the PKK and its Syrian affiliate, YPG, stressing
that the terror groups use Germany as a platform for fund-raising, propaganda
and recruitment activities.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/probe-launched-against-pkk-sympathizers-in-germany/2774979
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Germany says it sees no reason to resume Iran nuclear
talks
Oliver Towfigh Nia
28.12.2022
BERLIN
Germany said on Wednesday that it sees no reason to
revive the stalled talks on the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.
“From our point of view, there are currently no
indications or reasons for a resumption of the Iran nuclear negotiations,”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told media representatives in
Berlin.
Germany has repeatedly made it clear that "these
negotiations are not taking place at the moment,” he added.
Burger stressed that Berlin’s main concentration was
on supporting the Iranian protest movement rather than jump-starting the Iran
nuclear talks.
“Our focus is not on the negotiations at the moment,
but to be on the side of the people who are on the streets in Iran standing up
to be able to live in freedom and dignity and to increase the pressure on
Tehran to stop the oppression of the population through (new) likely round of
sanctions,” he added.
Last week, Germany called on Iran to show a “political
will” aimed at resolving the standoff over a nuclear probe following the
arrival of UN nuclear watchdog delegation in Tehran as part of its inquiry into
undeclared uranium particles found in Iran.
The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) has for years been calling on Iran to explain the presence of undeclared
human-made uranium found at three sites, requesting “access to locations and
material” as well as the collection of samples.
In the absence of progress, the IAEA said it could not
guarantee the authenticity and integrity of Iran’s nuclear program.
Tehran has repeatedly claimed traces of enriched
uranium found in Iran were brought into the country from abroad.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/germany-says-it-sees-no-reason-to-resume-iran-nuclear-talks/2774743
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Britain urges Iran to stop ‘unfairly detaining’ dual
nationals
December 28, 2022
LONDON:Britain urged Iran on Wednesday to stop
detaining dual nationals following the arrest of seven people with links to the
United Kingdom, saying the practice should not be used to obtain “diplomatic leverage.”
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards arrested the seven people
over anti-government protests as they tried to leave the country on Sunday,
according to a statement published by state media. Some of the seven hold dual
nationality.
“We are urgently seeking further information from the
Iranian authorities on the reports of those British-Iranian dual nationals,”
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s spokesperson told reporters.
“We’ve always said that we will never accept our
nationals... being used for diplomatic leverage and we urge the government of
Iran to stop its practice of unfairly detaining British and other foreign
nationals.”
The reported arrests follow unrest triggered by the
Sept. 16 death in detention of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian who
was arrested for wearing “inappropriate attire” under Iran’s strict Islamic
dress code for women.
The protests have posed one of the biggest challenges
to the Shiite Muslim-ruled Islamic Republic since the 1979 revolution.
Britain’s main opposition Labour Party has asked for
new sanctions on organizations and individuals who have been involved in Iran’s
crackdown on the protests.
“The killings and repression being carried out by the
Iranian regime against courageous Iranian protesters seeking a better future is
appalling,” Labour’s foreign affairs spokesman David Lammy said in a statement.
“There must be an end to impunity.”
Asked about the potential for future sanctions on
Iran, a British foreign ministry spokesperson said it had already imposed human
rights sanctions on more than 40 Iranian officials and the entirety of the
so-called “Morality Police.”
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2223366/middle-east
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