Prince Saud Al-Shaalan Cousin of Mohammed Bin Salman Threatens West with 'Jihad and Martyrdom'
New Age Islam News Bureau
17 October 2022
Saud al-Shaalan is a
tribal leader and grandson of King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia
(Screenshot)
-----
• Muslim Student’s Holy Book Torn, Headscarf Thrown in
Trash in France
• Supreme Court Notice On Plea Against HC Order
Allowing A 16-Year-Old Muslim Girl To Enter Into Marriage Under The Muslim
Personal Law
• Iran Calls On EU to Adopt ‘Realistic Approach’ To
Mahsa Amini Protests
• Pakistan Launches World Conference on the Biography
Of Prophet Mohamed
Arab
World
• For Indians, UAE’s new temples bring feeling of home
away from home
• Syria, Russia forces kill 20 Daesh terrorists in
'special operation': Tass
• Some 100 terrorists killed as Russian warplanes hit
their positions in NW Syria
• Iraq’s Sadrist Movement Says Will Not Take Part in
the Next Government: Report
• Islamic State claims over 125 people killed in
Syrian operations
• IMF and Egypt agree to finalize work to reach staff-level
agreement ‘very soon’
• Saudi Arabia seeks to support stability, balance of
global oil markets: King Salman
• OPEC+ decision taken unanimously for ‘economic
reasons’: Saudi defence minister
• Iraqi president meets Iran’s envoy to discuss bilateral
ties
--------
Europe
• Tributes paid to British MP on anniversary of murder
by Daesh sympathizer
• Terrorist attack at Russian army base leaves 11
dead, 15 injured
• EU foreign policy chief Borrell expects no progress
in Iran nuclear talks for now
--------
India
• Bihar: Muslim Students Appearing For Exams Asked To
Take Off Hijab
• AIMIM UP Chief Stokes Row, Says Those Who Threaten
Muslims 'Marry One, Keep Three Mistresses'
• BJP True Well-Wisher of Muslims, So-Called Secular
Parties Used Them as Vote Bank: UP Deputy CM
• Mahanga Muslims Community Celebrate Naveen’s Birthday
with Gift of Life in Odisha
--------
Mideast
• Hamas: Israeli Plans to Judaize, Divide Al-Aqsa
Mosque Will Be Foiled
• Tehran Denounces Washington Opportunistic Attitude
towards Iran's Unrest
• Iran’s Evin prison fire death toll rises to eight:
Judiciary
• Iran Carries Out Initial Tests of Bavar 373 Missile
System at Range of 300km
• Iran Calls on Iraq's Kurdistan to Counter Terror
Groups
• Family of Palestinian who died in Israeli detention
rejects compensation
--------
Pakistan
• Pakistan Likely To Exit FATF ‘Grey List’ This Week
• TLP chief, stick-wielding supporters enter Haripur
despite ban on rallies
• Five ‘terrorists’ killed in Splinji operation
• 6 Out Of 8: Imran Khan Wins Majority of Seats in Pakistan’s
By-Elections
• Pakistan summons US envoy for demarche over Joe
Biden’s nukes remarks
--------
South
Asia
• Ex-Leaders in Virtual Meeting Not Acceptable to
Afghans: Islamic Emirate
• New UNAMA Chief Meets with Senior Islamic Emirate
Officials, Discusses Importance Of Girls’ Education
• Two Rohingya community leaders killed in Bangladesh
• Taliban Prevents Bulk Cash Smuggling from
Afghanistan to Iran
• Afghan Passport Labelled ‘Least Powerful’ in Henley
Index
• Taliban Establishes Commission to Investigate
Detainees in Northern Afghanistan
--------
Southeast
Asia
• Call To Fund Non-Islamic Places of Worship Lauded By
Penang Hindu Association
• Tun M: Indian Muslim alliance will give GTA a big
win in GE15
• I have never been aligned to any party, says Azhar
• Time to give 2 days off for Deepavali, says Syed
Saddiq
--------
Africa
• Stop Victimising Muslim Judges, Muslim Rights
Concern Tells Osun Chief Judge
• Tunisia police clash with protesters in second night
of protests
• Army chief says Sudan close to national consensus
• Thousands protest in Tunisia to call for ending
‘coup’
--------
North
America
• Brazilian Muslims Demand Harvard Return Skull of
Slave Who Fought In Uprising
• No president has done more for Israel than I have:
Trump
• Biden has no plans to meet Saudi crown prince at G20
summit: Official
• Richard Falk: Washington fears Saudi realignment to
Russia and China
• Iran slams Biden's support for riots as intervention
in state matters
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/prince-saud-shaalan-jihad-martyrdom/d/128201
--------
Prince Saud Al-Shaalan Cousin of Mohammed Bin Salman
Threatens West with 'Jihad and Martyrdom'
Saud al-Shaalan is a
tribal leader and grandson of King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia
(Screenshot)
-----
16 October 2022
A cousin of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has
issued a violent threat against the West amid souring relations over a decision
by Opec+ to cut oil production.
In a message "to the West", Prince Saud
al-Shaalan is seen in a video circulating on social media saying "anybody
who challenges the existence of this kingdom, we are all projects of jihad and
martyrdom". The prince is heard issuing his warning in English and French.
Saud al-Shaalan is a tribal leader and grandson of
King Abdulaziz, the founder of Saudi Arabia, according to Saudi human rights
advocate Abdullah Alaoudh.
His intervention comes as relations between the United
States and Saudi Arabia have hit a nadir. With energy prices rising following
Russia's February invasion of Ukraine, Washington has lobbied members of the
Opec+ oil cartel, particularly Saudi Arabia, to increase production.
US President Joe Biden travelled to the kingdom in
July, despite previously promising to turn Saudi Arabia into a pariah following
the 2018 murder of Jamal Khashoggi, and his administration briefed media that
they believed the Saudis would ramp up production.
Instead, a small increase was followed by a decision
last week to cut oil output from Opec+ by two million barrels a day, which
could raise prices globally.
Washington has reacted furiously, accusing Saudi
Arabia of helping Russia to relieve the pressure of sanctions placed on it over
the Ukraine war.
The White House said on Wednesday that it was looking
to work with Congress on assessing Washington's ties with Riyadh. Lawmakers
have offered up a number of measures, including halting weapons sales to Saudi
Arabia and opening up Opec to litigation in the US.
"In recent weeks, the Saudis conveyed to us -
privately and publicly - their intention to reduce oil production, which they
knew would increase Russian revenues and blunt the effectiveness of
sanctions," White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby
said on Thursday.
He added that other Opec members told the US privately
they disagreed with Riyadh's decision, "but felt coerced to support
Saudi's direction".
Kirby's statement came after a defiant Saudi press
release that expressed its "total rejection" of the outpouring of
condemnation from the US and accused the Biden administration of asking the
Saudis to delay the production cut until after the midterm elections in the
United States.
Alaoudh, who belongs to the Democracy in the Arab
World Now group set up by Khashoggi, said on Twitter that Saud al-Shaalan's
video showed "a direct cousin" of Mohammed bin Salman threatening the
West with "jihad and martyrdom".
However, Saudi lobbyist Ali Shihabi said the prince
was a minor royal with no official role.
"This is a private individual who made a personal
statement that has nothing to do with the state," he tweeted.
Source: Middle East Eye
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/saudi-mohammed-bin-salman-cousin-threatens-west-jihad-martyrdom
--------
Muslim Student’s Holy Book Torn, Headscarf Thrown in
Trash in France
Mollet News Photo
-----
Alaattin Doğru, Esra Taşkın
16.10.2022
The Holy Quran was torn and a student’s headscarf was
thrown in the trash at a French high school dormitory, media reports said
Saturday.
French public broadcasting service, FranceInfo,
reported that an unnamed Muslim student at the Jean Rostand High School in the
port city of Caen found her Quran and veil in the trash when she returned to
her dormitory Thursday.
The student reported the incident to the school
management, it reported.
Sebastien Duval-Rocher, headmaster of the school, said
in a statement that he and his colleagues were shocked about the incident.
He noted the school is open-minded “and tolerant and
accept all confessions,” and said he denounced the “unworthy, intolerable,
legally reprehensible act.”
FranceInfo said neither the student nor her family
want to file a complaint against the perpetrator but the prosecutor's office
acted through the school’s management.
Source: Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/muslim-student-s-holy-book-torn-veil-thrown-in-trash-in-france/2712790
--------
Supreme Court Notice on Plea against HC Order Allowing A 16-Year-Old Muslim
Girl To Enter Into Marriage Under The Muslim Personal Law
Citing
the Muslim Sharia law, a single-judge bench of the Punjab and Haryana High
Court upheld minor marriage. (Getty image used for representation)
-------
17th
October 2022
New
Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice on a plea by National Commission
for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) challenging a verdict by the Punjab
and Haryana High Court, in which the court allowed a 16-year-old Muslim girl to
enter into a valid marriage under the Muslim Personal Law.
Solicitor
General Tushar Mehta, on his part, submitted before a bench headed by Justice
Sanjay Kishan Kaul this is an important issue, and he is not against the
protection granted. Mehta said, but can the court pass an order against the
penal provisions?
The
bench said this matter will have to be considered. The top court appointed
senior advocate Rajshekar Rao as amicus curiae in the matter.
The
top court was informed that the high court judgment would impact on the ban of
child marriages and also the POCSO Act. The bench said will any court follow
the judgment when the Supreme Court is considering the issue. “How will anybody
follow this? We are saying we will examine the issue. Let us hear the amicus…,”
said the bench, also comprising Justice Abhay S. Oka. The high court had
granted protection to a Muslim couple.
Mehta
urged the court to stay the two paragraphs of the impugned order. Justice Kaul
said the matter will be heard and it is keeping it open for now. The top court
scheduled the matter for further hearing on November 7.
The
NCPCR moved the apex court challenging the June 13 order delivered by the bench
of Jasjit Singh Bedi. The plea argued that the order is essentially allowing a
child marriage and this violative of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act,
2006.
The
High Court, in its order, said, the marriage of a Muslim girl is governed by
the personal law of the Muslims.
“As
per Article 195 from the book ‘Principles of Mohammedan Law by Sir Dinshah
Fardunji Mulla’, every Mahomedan of sound mind, who has attained puberty, may
enter into a contract of marriage, and puberty is presumed, in the absence of
evidence, on completion of the age of fifteen years,” the high court held.
“The
Court cannot shut its eyes to the fact that the apprehension of the petitioners
needs to be addressed. Merely because the petitioners have got married against
the wishes of their family members, they cannot possibly be deprived of the
fundamental rights as envisaged in the Constitution of India,” it said.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/sc-notice-on-plea-against-hc-order-on-16-yr-old-muslim-girl-marriage-2435961/
--------
Iran
Calls On EU To Adopt ‘Realistic Approach’ To Mahsa Amini Protests
IMAGE:
AP
-----
15 October,
2022
Iran
has called on the European Union to adopt a “realistic approach” regarding the
protests over Mahsa Amini’s death as the bloc prepares to impose new sanctions
on the Islamic Republic.
EU
countries on Wednesday agreed to level new sanctions on the Islamic Republic
over the “crackdown” during a month of demonstrations over Amini’s death. The
move is due to be endorsed at the bloc’s foreign ministers’ meeting in
Luxembourg on Monday.
“We
recommend that Europeans look at the issue with a realistic approach,” Iranian
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told EU foreign policy chief Josep
Borrell in a phone call Friday.
In
a separate statement on Friday, Amir-Abdollahian said: “Who would believe that
the death of one girl is so important to Westerners?”
“If
it is so, what did they do regarding the hundreds of thousands of martyrs and
deaths in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and Lebanon?” he added.
Iran
has been rocked by protests since Amini’s death on September 16, three days
after she was arrested by morality police in Tehran for allegedly violating the
country’s strict dress code for women.
The
street violence has led to dozens of deaths, mostly among protesters but also
members of the security forces, while hundreds have been arrested.
“Iran
is not the land of velvet or color coups,” he continued in his call with
Borrell, in reference to Western-backed protest movements in Europe and
elsewhere.
“Iran
is the anchor of lasting stability and security in the region,” he added,
according to a ministry statement early Saturday.
Borrell
meanwhile stressed that “people in Iran have the right to peaceful protest and
to defend fundamental rights.”
“Violent
repression must stop immediately. Protesters must be released,” he wrote on
Twitter Friday, adding that “internet access and accountability are needed.”
Iranian
officials have previously criticized Western “hypocrisy” over the issue of
human rights.
“It
is not right that in Europe, the most violent confrontation with riots is a
good and acceptable act, but the same act within the legal framework in Iran is
considered repression,” Amir-Abdollahian told Borrell.
The
United States, Canada and Britain have already imposed sanctions on Iranian
officials and entities over the protests.
Tehran
has warned of tit-for-tat measures if the EU makes a similar move.
“In
their meddlesome statements, some countries... put the subject of issuing a
resolution or imposing sanctions (on Iran) on the agenda” of the EU foreign
ministers’ meeting, Amir-Abdollahian said in a separate conversation with his
Portuguese counterpart Joao Gomes Cravinho Friday.
In
the event that such a measure is taken, “the Islamic Republic of Iran will take
reciprocal action,” he was quoted as saying by the ministry.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
launches World Conference on the Biography of Prophet Mohamed
Calligraphy
of Muhammad - Wikimedia Commons
------
16
Oct 2022
With
the participation of a group of senior scholars, members of the government, two
houses of parliament and the Senate and the diplomatic corps,
in
the presence of the Pakistani President, Islamabad launches its conference on
the biography of Prophet Mohamed (peace be upon him) and chooses Dr. Al-Issa as
chief guest,
the
Pakistani President awards Dr. Al-Issa with the Presidential Shield of
Pakistan’s World Biography Conference.
Arif
Alvi and Dr. Al-Issa hand prizes to winners of this year's Prophetic Biography
competition.
President
Arif Alvi: Prophet Mohamed’s life is an integrated approach to humanity that
aims basically to promote human values and honor human beings.
Dr.
Al-Issa: The Muslim World League was honored with launching museums of the
Prophet’s life around the world, based on its main museum in Medina.
Our
duty in the (MWL) is to make our Prophet’s life a road map for the Islamic
nation.
The
Secretary General of the MWL meets Pakistan Senate speaker, the Governor of
Punjab Province and the Prime Minister.
Pakistan
Army Commander addressing Dr. Al-Issa: What you have done in the face of
Islamophobia is highly appreciated.
Pakistan’s
Senate Speaker to Al-Issa: Your key role in correcting concepts about Islam is
strong and effective in alleviating “Islamophobia”
Islamabad:
The
Pakistani capital, Islamabad, hosted the activities of the World Conference on
the Biography of Prophet Mohamed under the auspices and in the presence of His
Excellency Pakistan’s President, Dr. ArifAlvi, a group of senior scholars of
the Islamic world, members of the parliament and the Senate along with the
diplomatic corps. Pakistan chose His Excellency Secretary-General of the Muslim
World League and head of the Association of Muslim Scholars, Sheikh Dr.
Muhammad bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, to be a chief guest at its World Conference
to Celebrate Prophet Mohamed’s life. Dr. Al-Issa was awarded by Pakistani
President with the conference’s presidential shield.
In
his speech, Pakistani President, ArifAlvi, welcomed His Excellency Sheikh Dr.
Muhammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa for his participation in this conference,
praising the contents of Al-Issa’s speech in which he shed light on the
meaningful life of the Prophet (peace be upon him). President Arif Alawi urged
all Muslims worldwide to follow Prophet Mohamed’s Sunnah the Seal the last of
the Prophets (peace be upon him) which mainly aims to promote human values. He
said: “The biography of Prophet Mohamed (peace be upon him) is a symbol and an
integrated approach for humanity and a role model to follow for everyone in the
world.
Pakistani
President, Arif Alvi, said that social harms, including polarization and hatred
cannot be dealt with effectively unless we follow the life of our Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him). Arifcalled for promoting harmony and tolerance
among followers of religions, considering this vital for peaceful coexistence
in the Muslim Community.
His
Excellency the Secretary General of the MWL, Sheikh Dr. Muhammad bin Abdulkarim
Al-Issa, delivered a speech in which he expressed his happiness with this great
meeting filled with the beauty and majesty of the biography of Prophet Mohamed
the Seal the last of the Prophets (peace be upon him).
Dr.
Al-Issa stressed that reviewing the noble meanings mentioned in the honorable
biography of the Prophet is a reminder of the guidance of Islam in the greatest
biography ever. The Prophet’s biography is the most accurate and comprehensive
of what was written about a great man. He added: "Prophet Mohamed’s
biography taught us, mercy to all creation, ease in religion, and turning away
from the ignorant people. The Prophet Mohamed’s biography also taught us
tolerance and beautiful forgiveness, wisdom and reconciling hearts.
Dr.
Al-Issa highlighted some of the arduous efforts of the Muslim World League in
introducing the Prophet’s biography, stressing that the MWL was honored with
launching museums of the Prophet’s biography around the world, based upon its
main museum in Madinah. These museums included highlighting the carefully
documented biography of our Prophet through a presentation that adopted
state-of-the-art technical means, under the slogan “The Prophet’s Biography as
If You Live It.” He added:"Yes, these museums provided a comprehensive and
full description of the Prophet's biography using modern methods, which
transport you emotionally to those blessed spaces."
Dr.
Al-Issa stressed that the MWL is pleased that the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
hosts one of these sub-museums around the world, hoping that the Islamabad
version will have a distinction over the rest of the other branches in terms of
display capacity, and allocating a large space for young people, following the completion
of the necessary procedures. His Excellency concluded by praying to God
Almighty to help Pakistan recover from the damages caused by the destructive
floods.
For
his part, the Minister of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Mufti
Abdulshakur Sardar Khan, confirmed that the participation of His Excellency the
Secretary-General of the MWL along with senior scholars and sheikhs, has
increased and stressed the importance of this conference which aims to
highlight the importance of the Prophet's biography, the application of His
teachings and ethics, to be consolidated in Islamic communities, and to clarify
the true image of Islam before the whole world.
In
his speech before the participating scholars, Chairman of the Central Ahl
al-Hadith Association, a member of the Pakistani Senate, Senator Sajid Mir,
stressed the need to fight corruption and other social unrest by following the
Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH). He made clear that the Prophet's biography has
provided us with an integrated approach to solving various social problems.
Such prophetic values and teachings serve as golden principles for the entire
humanity.
Secretary
General of the Council of Shiite Scholars in Pakistan and a member of the
Pakistani National Committee for Scholars, sheikh Arif Hussain Wahedi, warmly
welcomed Secretary-General of the Muslim World League, Sheikh Dr. Muhammad
Al-Issa. He said: “The Prophet Mohamed’s message is considered a mercy to all
humanity, and the adoption of the teachings contained in the Prophet’s biography
is considered a source of unity for the Islamic nation. And he said: “Mother of
the Believers, Lady Aisha, may God be pleased with her, when she was asked
about the character of the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: His character is
the Qur’an, and God Almighty praised His Noble Prophet by saying: “And you are
of a great character.”
The
activities of conference continue including speeches and sessions. In the
conclusion, Pakistani President, Arif Alviand His Excellency Dr. Al-Issa handed
the prizes to the winners of the Prophet Biography’s competition for this year.
Senate:
His
Excellency the Secretary General of the MWL, Sheikh Dr. Muhammad Al-Issa, in
the context of his visit to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, met Speaker of
the Pakistani Senate, Muhammad SadiqSanjrani who congratulated Dr. Al-Issa on
receiving the Presidential Civilian Medal "Crescent of Excellence",
appreciating his international efforts in promoting the true image of Islam and
combating "Islamophobia". He stressed that "the global role
played by the MWL in order to correct concepts about Islam.”
Dr.
Al-Issa and his accompanying delegation also visited the province of Punjab,
where he was received by His Excellency Governor of the province, Mr. Muhammad
Baligh Rahman at the governor's residence in Lahore. They discussed a number of
issues of interest on the Islamic and international arena. They also reviewed
the current situation in Pakistan recently hit by destructive floods. Dr.
Al-Issa stressed that the MWL will spare no effort in alleviating the severity
of this disaster for the friendly Pakistani people, pointing out that the MWL
is one of the great favors and blessings of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that it
has gifted to the Islamic world.
In
the same context, Prime Minister of the province, His Excellency Mr. Pervez
Elahi, received His Excellency Secretary-General, Sheikh Dr. Muhammad Al-Issa,
at the headquarters of the Prime Ministry. They discussed a number of issues of
Islamic interest, and His Excellency the Prime Minister praised the arduous
efforts of the Secretary-General of the MWL in confronting extremism and hatred
among cultures and within communities, and strengthening relations based on
co-existence and cooperation. In addition, Dr. Al-Issa met with the Commander of
the Pakistani Army, Lieutenant-General Qamar Javed Bajwa who commended the
great efforts made today by the Muslim World League in Pakistan and around the
world.
Source:
Egypt Today
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Arab
World
For
Indians, UAE’s new temples bring feeling of home away from home
SANJAY
KUMAR
October
15, 2022
NEW
DELHI: As works are underway on the largest Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi, and
another one was just inaugurated in Dubai, India’s ambassador and expats living
in the UAE say they are a “shining example of tolerance” that makes them feel
at home.
India-UAE
ties reached new highs in May, with the signing of the Comprehensive Economic
Partnership Agreement.
About
3.5 million Indians are living and working in the UAE. The first Hindu temple
built for this community was opened in Dubai in the 1950s. Recently expanded to
15 acres of land donated by local authorities, in a style blending Indian and
Islamic architecture, it was reinaugurated earlier this month by UAE Tolerance
Minister Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak.
“The
presence of Sheikh Nahyan as chief guest and the fact that the Dubai government
has provided the land for the Hindu temple shows how proactive the government
of the UAE is in making sure that the Indian community here is comfortable,”
India’s Ambassador to the UAE Sunjay Sudhir told Arab News.
“The
temple is very symbolic of the fact that the Indian community here feels very
much at home.”
Besides
serving religious purposes, it also has a knowledge center dedicated to Hindu
heritage and is open to people of all faiths.
For
Raju Shroff, whose family was involved in managing the first temple and who now
serves as a committee member of the new one, its opening will help strengthen
cultural ties between India and the Gulf state.
“India
and the UAE have always had close ties, whether business or political. Now,
they will also be cultural,” he said.
“Ties
between the two nations have become even deeper as they are opening up
different avenues, not only commercial ones. Now there will be a greater
sharing of culture and ideas.”
More
such exchanges are likely to come when another temple, the largest in the UAE
and currently under construction, will be inaugurated in Abu Dhabi.
Developed
on 27 acres of land, its groundbreaking ceremony was held in the presence of
three UAE ministers in 2019, proclaimed by the government as the Year of
Tolerance.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2181701/world
--------
Syria,
Russia forces kill 20 Daesh terrorists in 'special operation': Tass
17
October 2022
Russian
and Syrian forces have reportedly killed at least 20 members of the Daesh
Takfiri terrorist group during a "special operation" conducted in the
south of the Arab country.
The
operation took place in the town of Jasim in Syria's Dera'a Province, Russia's
ITAR-TASS news agency reported, citing Deputy head of the Russian Reconciliation
Center for Syria, Major General Oleg Yegorov as saying on Sunday.
The
operation was performed by "Syrian forces supported by [Russian]
aircraft," the report added.
The
fatalities, it said, included four organizers of a terrorist attack that killed
at least 19 Syrian government soldiers and wounded as many as 27 others on
Thursday.
The
terror attack targeted a bus carrying the forces near the Syrian capital of
Damascus. According to the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the attack
saw the terrorists detonating an explosive device that had been attached to the
vehicle.
Daesh
invaded Syria in 2014, unleashing a campaign of bloodshed and destruction
against the country.
The
terror outfit overran huge swathes of the Syrian territory during lightning
advances.
Syria's
allies, Russia and Iran, however, rushed to the country's support, respectively
providing the Syrian military with aerial backup and military advisory
assistance.
The
combined effort helped Damascus reverse the Takfiris' gains until the outfit
was eventually defeated in late 2017.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/10/17/691069/Syria-Russia-special-operation-Daesh
--------
Some
100 terrorists killed as Russian warplanes hit their positions in NW Syria
17
October 2022
The
Russian Defense Ministry says the country’s fighter jets have carried out
airstrikes against the positions of foreign-sponsored Takfiri terrorist outfits
in the militant-held northwestern flank of Syria, killing dozens of terrorists
in the process.
Deputy
Chief of the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria Major General Oleg Yegorov
said the air attacks destroyed a training camp in addition to a command center
for terrorists, their weapons depots and nearly 15 pickup trucks with heavy
machine guns mounted on them.
Yegorov
added that the aerial raids killed some 100 terrorists as Takfiri militants are
engaged in fierce clashes in an area divided between Turkish-allied militants
and members of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) terrorist group, as well as
Levant Front and Sham Legion militants.
Separately,
Russian and Syrian military forces conducted a special operation in the Arab
country’s southern province of Daraa, killing 20 militants, including the
architects of a terrorist attack last week.
Eighteen
soldiers were killed and 27 others injured in a bomb attack on a military bus
on the outskirts of the Syrian capital of Damascus early on October 13.
Syria’s
official news agency SANA, citing a military source, reported that the blast
was caused by an explosive device that had been previously affixed under the
bus.
Russia
has been providing Syrian forces with crucial military assistance in the
ongoing battles across the conflict-plagued Arab country.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iraq’s
Sadrist movement says will not take part in the next government: Report
15 October,
2022
Iraqi
Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s movement on Saturday announced its refusal to
join a new government being formed by prime minister-designate Mohammad Shia
al-Sudani.
The
announcement came two days after lawmakers elected Abdul Latif Rashid as Iraq’s
new president, and he swiftly named Sudani as prime minister in a bid to end a
year of political gridlock since October 2021 elections.
“We
stress our firm and clear refusal for any of our affiliates to participate...
in this government formation,” Mohammed Saleh al-Iraqi, a close associate of
al-Sadr, said in a statement posted on Twitter.
The
52-year-old Shia former minister Sudani has the backing of al-Sadr’s
Iran-backed rivals, the Coordination Framework, which controls 138 out of 329
seats in the Iraqi legislature.
In
June, al-Sadr had ordered the 73 lawmakers in his bloc to resign, leaving
parliament in the hands of the Framework, which includes representatives of the
former paramilitary Hashed al-Shaabi.
In
his statement Saturday, Iraqi charged that the upcoming government has a “clear
subordination to militias” and would “not meet the (Iraqi) people’s
aspirations.”
He
said the Sadrist movement refused to take part in any government led by Sudani
“or any other candidate from among the old faces or those affiliated with the
corrupt.”
“Anyone
who joins their ministries does not represent us... rather, we disavow them,”
Iraqi said.
Snap
elections were held last year following nationwide protests that erupted in
October 2019 to decry endemic corruption, decaying infrastructure and the
absence of services and jobs for youth.
Al-Sadr,
who has the ability to mobilize tens of thousands of his supporters with a
single tweet, has repeatedly demanded early elections, while the Coordination
Framework wants a new government in place before any polls are held.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Islamic
State claims over 125 people killed in Syrian operations
Khaled
al-Khateb
October
17, 2022
ALEPPO,
Syria — In the weekly issue of the Islamic State's (IS) al-Nabaa newspaper on
Oct. 7, IS announced that its cells carried out 59 military operations in the
span of 68 days, from Aug. 1 through Oct. 5.
The
operations caused the death of 103 members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic
Forces (SDF) and 19 soldiers of the Syrian government forces, according to
al-Nabaa.
Deir
ez-Zor province in eastern Syria had the largest share of IS operations in the
past two months with 30 attacks, including shootings, explosive devices,
ambushes and two car bombs, which caused the destruction of 34 military
vehicles across the province, according to IS’ newspaper.
Zain
al-Akaidi, a journalist based in the Kurdish-controlled Deir ez-Zor
countryside, told Al-Monitor that “IS focused its attacks on Kurdish areas in
the Deir ez-Zor countryside.”
“This
is because of several reasons, mainly the weak security services of the Kurds and
the rampant corruption and violations within Deir ez-Zor’s military council of
the SDF headed by Ahmad al-Khabil,” he said.
“This
is not to mention the widespread presence of IS cells in several locations in
Deir ez-Zor, which is open to the Syrian desert. Also, IS operatives move
around easily in the area as they are supported by local tribes that provide
the group’s members with protection and support to keep targeting the
SDF," Akaidi added.
IS'
Oct. 7 announcement came in the aftermath of the killing of one of the group’s
fighters in a US drone strike in the village of Hammam al-Turkman in northeast
Syria on Oct. 10.
Earlier
on Oct. 6, the US military announced the killing of three IS officials in
separate operations in northeast Syria.
“The
recent US-led coalition’s operations that targeted prominent IS leaders were
meant to limit the group’s activities, but they didn't bring them to a halt. IS
cells, notably in the Deir ez-Zor countryside, are capable of finding new
replacements for their leaders who were considered the masterminds behind the
group’s activities,” Akaidi said.
Anas
Shawakh, a researcher at the Istanbul-based Jusoor Center for Studies, told
Al-Monitor, “The announced number of attacks and operations bears several
indications. IS is trying to convey a message that it has avenged its partisans
in the al-Hol camp, which was [recently] subject to a security campaign
launched by the SDF in cooperation with the US-led coalition.”
“IS
also wants to say that the group is still strong and its cells continue to be
active despite the killing of their leaders. It was also noted that the group
used car bombs over the past two months, which is an indication of the ease and
escalation of its activities, with its members moving easily and intensifying threats
against the Kurdish forces,” Shawakh added.
Source:
Al Monitor
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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IMF
and Egypt agree to finalize work to reach staff-level agreement ‘very soon’
16
October, 2022
Egypt
has finalized a staff-level agreement with the international monetary fund
(IMF) on the components of its program, and will issue an announcement “very
soon,” the country’s finance minister said on Sunday.
“Very
productive bilateral discussions were held with IMF staff on the sidelines of
the IMF and World Bank’s annual meetings in Washington, and significant
progress was made across all policies,” Mohamed Maait said in a statement.
Egypt
began talks with the IMF for a financial support package in March, soon after
the Ukrainian crisis threw its already unsettled finances into further disarray
and led foreign investors to pull nearly $20 billion out of Egyptian treasury
markets in a matter of weeks.
It
is hoping to stem a currency crisis that has restricted imports and sparked market
unease over foreign debt repayments.
In
its own parallel statement on Saturday, the IMF said it had agreed with
Egyptian authorities to finalize work to reach a staff-level agreement “very
soon.”
The
policies discussed, according to the IMF statement, included monetary and
exchange rate policies that “would enable Egypt to gradually and sustainably
rebuild foreign reserves,” public debt reduction, social safety net expansion,
and increasing competitiveness in the economy.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Saudi
Arabia seeks to support stability, balance of global oil markets: King Salman
17
October, 2022
Saudi
Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz said that the Kingdom seeks to support the
stability of global oil markets, in a wide-ranging speech on Monday.
“Our
country is working hard within its energy strategy to support the stability and
balance of global oil markets,” King Salman said, as reported by the Saudi
Press Agency, “as petroleum is an important element in supporting the growth of
the global economy.
OPEC+
members also issued statements early on Monday to support the King’s
declaration, after the White House accused Saudi Arabia of coercing members
into supporting the decision to cut oil production.
United
Arab Emirates energy minister Suhail al-Mazrouei said on Twitter: “I would like
to clarify that the latest OPEC+ decision, which was unanimously approved, was
a pure technical decision, with NO political intentions whatsoever.”
Iraq’s
oil marketer SOMO also published a statement saying: “There is complete
consensus among OPEC+ countries that the best approach in dealing with the oil
market conditions during the current period of uncertainty and lack of clarity
is a pre-emptive approach that supports market stability and provides the
guidance needed for the future.”
Kuwait
Petroleum Corporation Chief Executive Officer Nawaf Saud al-Sabah welcomed the
decision in a statement, state news agency KUNA reported.
Oman
and Bahrain issued separate statements confirming that OPEC had unanimously
agreed on the reduction, and Algeria’s energy minister called the decision
“historic” and expressed his full confidence in it, Algeria’s Ennahar TV
reported.
Saudi
Arabia will continue to develop newly-discovered natural gas fields throughout
the country, as well as targeting carbon neutrality and cutting emissions by
278 million tons annually by 2030, he added.
Speaking
via video link to inaugurate the meeting of the Shura Council advisory body,
King Salman also said that the Kingdom is a mediator for peace, highlighting
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s initiative to release prisoners of war from
Russia.
King
Salman urged Iran to fulfil its nuclear commitments, and to cooperate with the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The
King highlighted the rapid developments taking place in Saudi Arabia, noting
that the country is moving into the second phase of Vision 2030 reforms that
begun in 2016.
Projects
of particular importance include the NEOM, AlUla, and Diriyah developments,
which he said will improve the life of citizens while protecting Saudi
heritage.
Other
national priorities included the national investment strategy, financing for
SMEs, the national artificial intelligence strategy, tourism development of the
Asir region, and the recently-announced gaming strategy, he said.
Womens’
role in Saudi professional life has been “crystallized,” King Salman said, with
many women taking on leadership roles in private and government institutions.
The
Saudi King tackled a number of regional and international issues.
On
Yemen, King Salman reiterated the Kingdom’s support to all efforts that can
contribute to a permanent ceasefire and initiate a political process between
the Yemeni government and the Iran-backed Houthi militia.
He
also voiced the importance of ending the Houthis’ “provocative violations” in
Yemen.
Regarding
Lebanon, the King said it was important to implement comprehensive political
and economic reforms that help the country overcome its crisis.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
OPEC+
decision taken unanimously for ‘economic reasons’: Saudi defence minister
16
October, 2022
Saudi
Arabia’s Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman said on Sunday that the
decision by OPEC+ to cut oil output was taken unanimously and for “purely”
economic reasons.
In
a series of tweets, the Saudi defense minister expressed the Kingdom’s
astonishments by the accusations that it is “standing with Russia” in its war
with Ukraine, adding: “Iran is also a member of OPEC, does this mean that the
Kingdom is standing with Iran as well?”
“It
is telling that these false accusations did not come from the Ukrainian
government,” he added.
Earlier
in October, OPEC+, the producer group comprising the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) plus allies including Russia, announced
its new production target after weeks of lobbying by US officials against such
a move.
The
decision, however, provoked accusations that the Kingdom was taking sides in
international conflicts and that it was politically motivated against the US.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Iraqi
president meets Iran’s envoy to discuss bilateral ties
16.10.2022
New
Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid met Sunday with Iranian Ambassador Mohamad
Kadhim al-Sadiq in the capital Baghdad.
The
meeting dwelt on bilateral ties between Iraq and Iran and means of enhancing
them, the state news agency INA reported.
The
two sides also underlined the importance of strengthening joint cooperation and
coordination between Baghdad and Tehran, INA said.
The
Iranian envoy congratulated the Iraqi president on his election and underlined
Tehran’s support for boosting Iraq’s security and stability, the broadcaster
said.
Abdul
Rashid was elected Iraq’s new president on Thursday by Iraqi lawmakers.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Europe
Tributes
paid to British MP on anniversary of murder by Daesh sympathizer
October
15, 2022
LONDON:
Tributes have been paid to Sir David Amess, the British Conservative MP
murdered in his own constituency while meeting with members of the public, a
year after his death.
Amess,
a father of five and an MP for over four decades, was stabbed in the town of
Leigh-on-Sea in the county of Essex on Oct. 15, 2021.
Ali
Harbi Ali, a 26-year-old British supporter of Daesh, “showed no remorse or
shame” as he was convicted of the murder and a separate offense of preparing
acts of terrorism on April 13, 2022, and handed a rare whole-life sentence for
a crime the presiding judge said “struck at the heart of democracy.”
Messages
came from across the UK’s political divides, including from Prime Minister Liz
Truss, her predecessor Boris Johnson — who said Sir David’s legacy “shines
bright” — and the leader of the main opposition Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer.
Truss
tweeted: “On the anniversary of Sir David Amess’ death, we cherish his memory
and remember his enormous contribution to politics, to the people of Southend
and to the country.
“My
thoughts today are with his wife Julia, the Amess family and to all those who
knew and loved him.”
Johnson
tweeted: “On this sad anniversary of the death of Sir David Amess we remember
the many good things he stood for: Campaigns for animal welfare, city status
for Southend and independence for a sovereign parliamentary democracy.”
Sir
Keir tweeted: “Remembering our friend & colleague David Amess, on the 1st
anniversary of his senseless death.
“David’s
commitment to public service, carried out with inherent, consistent kindness,
will forever be admired. Thinking of his wife & children, hoping memories
of him bring comfort.”
Priti
Patel MP, home secretary at the time of Sir David’s murder, said: “A year ago
today, Sir David Amess, my dear friend, was murdered. David was an outstanding
public servant full of kindness, energy and integrity. He was killed serving
the public in a senseless attack on democracy.”
Brendan
Cox, husband of Labour MP Jo Cox, who was shot and killed by a far-right gunman
in 2016 while meeting constituents, paid his own tribute to Sir David.
Cox
tweeted: “A year ago David Amess was killed while trying to help his
constituents. So much has happened in our politics since but for his family it
will feel like yesterday.
“The
grief, pain and shock will still be overwhelming. They deserve all of the
support and kindness that we can give.”
Sir
David’s home town of Southend in Essex was made a city in tribute to the late
MP in October 2021, and he was posthumously named its first freeman in March
this year.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2181576/world
--------
Terrorist
attack at Russian army base leaves 11 dead, 15 injured
16
October 2022
A
terrorist attack on a training range in Russia's Belgorod Region bordering
Ukraine has left at least 11 people dead and 15 others injured.
The
Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday that the attack was a “terrorist
act”.
Two
terrorists who carried out the attack were killed on the spot in retaliatory
fire, the Defense Ministry noted.
According
to RIA Novosti, the two attackers opened fire at a group of volunteer forces
during training at a firing range. The Ministry has yet to confirm this
information.
The
news of the attack comes amid a partial mobilization ordered by Russian
President Vladimir Putin on September 21.
Earlier
this week, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that over 200,000
reservists had been called to arms as part of the process, with most of them
still undergoing training. The top military commander added that the fresh
forces that had been mobilized were being trained at "80 training grounds
and six training centers".
The
attack follows the “terrorist act” on the Crimean Bridge last week. Putin on
Sunday put the blame for the huge blast that targeted the bridge connecting
Russia to the Crimean Peninsula squarely on Ukraine.
"There
is no doubt this is a terrorist act aimed at destroying critical Russian
civilian infrastructure," Putin said at a meeting with the head of an
investigation committee which is looking into the incident, adding that,
"The authors, perpetrators, and sponsors are the Ukrainian secret
services."
After
the attack, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak tweeted that the
bombing was just “the beginning.”
Russia
launched a "special military operation" in Ukraine in late February
with the objective of liberating the eastern Ukrainian region consisting of the
pro-Russia self-proclaimed republics of Luhansk and Donetsk, as well as Kherson
and Zaporizhzhia.
In
2014, Crimea also broke away from Ukraine.
In
a referendum, 97 percent of voters favored joining the Russian state, refusing
to recognize the Western-backed Ukrainian government there that had overthrown
a democratically-elected Russia-friendly administration.
Last
year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had himself suggested holding a referendum
on the future status of eastern Ukraine as a way to resolve the conflict and
restore the stalled peace efforts to end the hostilities with neighboring
Russia.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/10/16/691032/Russia
--------
EU
foreign policy chief Borrell expects no progress in Iran nuclear talks for now
17
October, 2022
EU
foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Monday he currently did not expect
progress in negotiations over reviving a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
“I
don’t expect any move, that’s a pity because we were very, very close,” Borrell
told reporters on arriving to a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg
on Monday, noting that international talks with Tehran had been stalled for the
last weeks.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
India
Bihar:
Muslim Students Appearing For Exams Asked To Take Off Hijab
16th
October 2022
Muzaffarpur:
A college student in this north Bihar town alleged that objectionable remarks
were made against her by a male teacher who got annoyed when she refused to
take off her head-scarf (hijab) during an exam on Sunday.
The
incident took place at the Mahant Darshan Das Mahila College, better known by
its abbreviation “MDDM”, situated in the town’s Mithanpura locality where
intermediate students turned up for their sent up tests.
Students
who clear sent up tests will be eligible to appear for the final examination.
College
Principal Dr Kanu Priya said, “She was not prevented from wearing the hijab.
She was only asked to reveal her ears since there were apprehensions that she
might be carrying a Bluetooth device.
The
Station House Officer of the local Mithanpura police station, Shrikant Sinha,
said the dispute arose when the tests had just begun.
“Both
sides were counselled by us and the exams were conducted peacefully. At
present, lodging a case or deployment of additional forces in the area is not
warranted. But we will keep a watch,” the SHO said.
The
principal said, “Hijab was not an issue at all. Many students were carrying
mobile phones, which was against norms. The girl in question was among those
who were asked to leave their handsets outside the exam hall”.
The
girl was only asked to reveal her ears as the teacher, who was one of the
invigilators, needed to check if she was carrying any Bluetooth device, the
principal said.
“If
the girl had a problem with that, she could have informed the examination
controller or me. But she had other intentions. She rang up the local police
station and also some local anti-social elements she seemed to be knowing. When
they arrived, she created a ruckus,” alleged the principal.
“She
claimed that the teacher had called her an anti-national and taunted her with
the remark that she should go to Pakistan. I was not at the examination hall at
the time but other girls appearing for the tests have said it was a lie,” said
the principal.
The
college principal also claimed that it appears from records that the girl’s
attendance has been very poor.
“The
education department has issued instructions that no student with less than 75
per cent attendance be allowed to sit for the final exams. The girl might have
acted under the impression that this will browbeat the college administration
and force it to be lenient in her case,” Dr Kanu Priya said.
Wearing
hijab in educational institutions was a major issue in Karnataka and the matter
had reached the Supreme Court.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/bihar-muslim-students-appearing-for-exams-asked-to-take-off-hijab-2435542/
--------
AIMIM
UP Chief Stokes Row, Says Those Who Threaten Muslims 'Marry One, Keep Three
Mistresses'
October
17, 2022
New
Delhi: Uttar Pradesh state unit chief of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen
(AIMIM) Shaukat Ali has stoked controversy with his provocative speech made at
an event in Sambhal on Saturday, October 15, where he said “those who threaten
Muslims” marry one woman but keep several mistresses and produce illegitimate
children with them.
He
has been booked by the Uttar Pradesh Police for allegedly disturbing communal
harmony. The video of his speech has now gone viral, drawing ire from various
sections.
“When
BJP [Bhartiya Janata Party] starts losing ground, they go after Muslims…They
say Muslims have more children; sometimes they said we marry twice. Yes, it’s
true that we marry twice but give respect to both wives, but you marry one and
keep three mistresses and no one gets to know. You give respect to none of
them,” he can be heard saying in the video.
Apparently,
the “you”, he referred to in his speech, was obliquely aimed at the members of
the Hindu community. However, Ali denied that he was referring to any community
in particular, including the Hindu community.
“Even
if we marry two women, we give equal respect to them, some people marry once
but have three wives outside and hide them from society. I was only talking
about such men, I didn’t mention ‘Hindu’, my intention was not to hurt the
sentiments of any community,” news agency ANI quoted him saying, a day after
his speech stoked controversy.
In
Saturday’s speech, the AIMIM leader also referred to Mughal emperor Akbar’s
marriage to Rajput princess Jodha Bai saying “we [Muslims] uplifted your people
along with us” but now you are threatening us.
Ali
also called those who threaten Muslims “worms and insects” who used to bow
before Mughal emperors.
“You
are threatening us? We have ruled worms and insects like you for 832 years, and
you used to do ‘Ji Huzoor‘ with your hands folded at the back, and now you are
threatening us,” he can be heard saying in the video.
“Who
is more secular than us? Akbar married Jodha Bai. We are uplifting your people
too along with us. But you have a problem. One sadhu [Hindu saint] says Muslims
should be butchered. Why? Are we like carrots, radishes, onions?” he added. He
challenged the “sadhu” that if he gets to see an angry Muslim’s face alone, his
bowel movements would stop.
According
to ANI, Sambhal superintendent of police Chakresh Mishra said that a complaint
was filed against Ali “for his alleged disrespectful, derogatory statement
against Hindu Community in a viral video”. He said cases were registered under
Sections 153A (promoting enmity), 295A (outraging religious feelings), and 188
(disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal
Code and further investigations were underway.
Ali’s
controversial comments close on the heels of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)
chief Mohan Bhagwat’s remarks made during his Dusshera annual speech where he
had spoken of “religion-based population imbalance”.
“Along
with population control, population balance on a religious basis is also a
matter of importance which cannot be ignored,” he had said, indirectly
targeting the Muslim community.
His
comments were in line with the worn-out trope that RSS and its political front
BJP have long advanced to hold the largest religious minority group in the
country – the Muslims – responsible for population growth.
Source:
The Wire
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://thewire.in/communalism/aimim-up-chief-row-shaukat-ali
--------
BJP
true well-wisher of Muslims, so-called secular parties used them as vote bank:
UP deputy CM
Oct
17, 2022
Uttar
Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak on Sunday claimed that the BJP was
a true well-wisher of the Muslim community.
In
a meeting hosted by the BJP for Pasmanda Muslims, the deputy CM accused the
secularists of using Muslims as a mere vote bank and turning a blind eye to the
community’s rights.
"Muslims
were only used as a vote bank by so-called secular parties. These parties came
to power by capturing Muslim votes, but they were never granted their rights.
This is why Muslims are so backward nowadays," stressed the BJP leader.
In
the assertion made by the deputy CM, he said the BJP is a "true
well-wisher" of Muslims and was making significant efforts to bring them
into the mainstream.
"For
this, the government is running a number of schemes that benefit Muslim
society," stressed Brajesh Pathak.
"No
other party has ever been as concerned about the education, security, and
advancement of Muslims as the BJP," stated the state’s Minority Welfare
Minster, Danish Azad Ansari.
Source:
India Today
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Mahanga
Muslims community celebrate Naveen’s birthday with gift of life in Odisha
17th
October 2022
CUTTACK:
The Muslim community of Mahanga celebrated the 76th birthday of Chief Minister
and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president Naveen Patnaik by organising a mega blood
donation camp at Sukarpada on Sunday.
Over
1,000 people in the community including 34 women came forward to donate blood
at the camp.
Around
256 units of blood were collected at the camp, organised under BJD’s ‘Jeevan
Bindu’ initiative. The programme was organised under the guidance of former
Minister and Mahanga MLA Pratap Jena.
“The
camp was organised with an aim to fulfil the noble objective of Chief Minister
Naveen Patnaik to make blood accessible to all free of cost,” said Jena.
Earlier,
members of the community prayed with the recital of ‘ayat’ of the Holy Quran by
Maulana Mohammad Fayazuddin to seek Naveen’s long life. Following the prayer,
cakes were cut and the camp was held.
“We
are happy to donate blood on Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s birthday. Our
Chief Minister has always showered his love and affection on us. We pray before
Allah to grant him long life and good health,” said local Muslim community
leader Mirza Abdul Baig.
Presiding
over a meeting, Maulana Abdul Wadood Khan hailed Naveen for his unending
support to the minority community. The BJD supremo has always held secular
beliefs and sought to ensure religious equality in the State. The philanthropic
gesture was a reciprocation of the Muslim community’s love, support and
admiration towards Naveen.
The
Chief Minister, in 2020, had sanctioned funds, which are being utilised for the
creation of pilgrim amenities and community halls in various mosques across the
State. As many as 800 pilgrims go for Haj from Odisha every year under a
programme that provides Rs 10,000 as financial assistance to purchase Haj kits.
Source:
New Indian Express
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Mideast
Hamas:
Israeli plans to Judaize, divide al-Aqsa Mosque will be foiled
16
October 2022
The
Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has censured attempts by the Israeli
regime to Judaize and divide al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied Old City of
al-Quds, saying that Palestinians will continue defending their territories
until there will be no place for the occupiers.
Abdul-Latif
al-Qanou, a spokesman for the Gaza Strip-based resistance group, said in a
press statement on Sunday that the escalating Israeli raids into al-Aqsa Mosque
and the regime’s desperate attempts to tighten the grip on the holy site required
continued Palestinian presence in al-Aqsa’s courtyards.
“The
Zionist occupation continues its aggression and mobilizes its forces and police
to storm al-Aqsa Mosque and attempts to extend control,” Qanou said.
“The
Israeli plans to Judaize and divide al-Aqsa Mosque will be foiled,” he said,
adding that such violations could lead to a “religious war” in the region.
The
Hamas spokesman also said that the Israeli settlers’ intrusions into al-Aqsa
Mosque, facilitated by tight protection of Israeli forces during the Jewish
holidays while closed to Muslim worshipers, heralded bad omens that the
occupying regime would be responsible for.
Last
month, Hamas severely censured the Israeli regime and extremist Jewish settlers
for their unrelenting violations at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, saying such
acts of desecration could lead to an uncontrollable explosion of Muslim
nations’ wrath.
Israeli
right-wing groups called at the time for the storming of the site so as to
increase Jewish presence there as Jews celebrated Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New
Year.
The
extremist right-wing groups have openly called for turning al-Aqsa into a
Jewish worship area and tearing down the Islamic shrines in order to build a
Jewish temple on the location.
Hardline
Israeli legislators and settlers regularly storm the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in
the occupied city, a provocative move that infuriates Palestinians. Such mass
settler break-ins almost always take place at the behest of Tel Aviv-backed
temple groups and under the auspices of the Israeli police in al-Quds.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Tehran
Denounces Washington Opportunistic Attitude towards Iran's Unrest
2022-October-16
“Given
the fact President Joe Biden neither does enjoy trusted advisers nor a good
memory, I remind him that Iran is so strong and steadfast that it would not
give in to his cruel sanctions and idle threats," Kana'ani said in a post
on his Instagram account on Sunday.
"It
is also so proud that would be unfazed by the interventions and exclamations of
a politician tired of years of futile campaign against Iran,” the senior
diplomat added.
Biden
has said he was surprised by the courage of the people taking to the streets in
Iran. He added that the United States stands with Iranians. The American leader
had noted that the United States will impose further costs on "Iranian
officials responsible for violence against demonstrators who protested against
Iran's government after the death of Mahsa Amini".
Kana'ani
highlighted that "neither Biden’s comments nor Washington’s meddlesome
gestures will not surprise Tehran" as "intervention, aggression and
killing form the backbone of the US political system".
“Since
the 1953 coup d'état up until today, the anti-Iranian policies of the US
administration have been well recorded in our minds. And of course, the history
and every part of the world would testify the wounds that America's crimes and
violence have inflicted,” the spokesperson pointed out.
“You
(Americans) are accustomed to fishing in troubled waters,” the official noted.
Protests
erupted in several cities across Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini, a
22-year-old Iranian woman who fainted at a police station in mid-September and
days later was pronounced dead at a hospital. The demonstrations soon turned
violent. A special committee has been established to investigate different
aspects of her tragic death.
Last
week, Kana'ani slammed Biden for his meddling remarks over the recent unrest in
Iran, and advised the POTUS to ponder about human rights record of his own
country.
"For
years people of the world have been and are witnessing the true and unmasked
face of American human rights in Palestine, Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Libya,
Syria and … and even on the US soil," Kana'ani wrote on his Instagram
page.
"It
would have been better if Mr. Joe Biden, before making humanitarian gestures,
would have thought about the human rights record of his own country, though
hypocrisy needs no thinking," the diplomat said.
"It
would have been better for the US president to be concerned about the numerous–
and as acknowledged by the US government, unprecedented and paralyzing –
sanctions against the Iranian nation, as their implementation against any
nation is a clear example of crimes against humanity," the spokesperson
added.
Iranian
officials blame Western countries for orchestrating the riots to destabilize
the country.
Supreme
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei severely censured
the deadly riots, saying they were orchestrated in advance by the United States
and the Israeli regime.
“I
state it clearly that these developments were planned by America, the Zionist
regime and their acolytes. Their main problem is with a strong and independent
Iran and the country’s progress. The Iranian nation proved to be fairly strong
during recent events and will bravely come onto the scene wherever necessary in
the future,” he added.
In
recent days, Iranian officials have blamed the United States, the European
Unions (EU), and several Western states for meddling in Iran's internal affairs
over the death of Mahsa. They advised the US and its allies against
"opportunism and instrumentalization of the issue of human rights" by
misusing the incident.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran’s
Evin prison fire death toll rises to eight: Judiciary
17
October, 2022
Iran’s
judiciary authority said Monday that eight prisoners were killed in a fire that
raged amid unrest inside Tehran’s Evin prison, doubling the previously reported
death toll.
The
blaze Saturday night, which Iran said broke out amid “riots and clashes,” came
after four weeks of protests over the death of 22-year-old Masha Amini,
following her arrest for allegedly violating Iran's strict dress code for
women.
The
wave of demonstrations has turned into a major anti-government movement in the
Islamic Republic, confronting its clerical leadership with one of its biggest
challenges since the ousting of the shah in 1979.
After
four Evin prison inmates injured in the fire died in hospital, “the total
number of victims of the fire and the clash between prisoners has reached
eight,” said the judiciary’s Mizan Online website.
Gunshots
and explosions were heard during the blaze from inside the complex, illuminated
by flames and smothered by smoke, in video footage posted on social media
channels.
Prisoners’
relatives and rights groups have voiced grave fears for other inmates and said
authorities had used tear gas at the facility.
Evin,
infamous for the ill-treatment of political prisoners, also holds foreign
detainees and thousands facing criminal charges.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
Carries Out Initial Tests of Bavar 373 Missile System at Range of 300km
2022-October-16
Addressing
a military academy in the capital Tehran on Sunday, Sabahifard said Iran’s Air
Defense Force is equipped with indigenous radar systems that can monitor the
movements of enemies even in their homes within a span of thousands of
kilometers.
Iran
has upgraded Bavar 373 missile defense system, initially unveiled in August
2019 with a range of 200 kilometers, proportional to threats, the senior
commander stated.
“Today,
we have created the necessary defense cover in all levels and layers of the
air. We have tested the Bavar 373 system up to a range of 200 kilometers for
high altitudes, and we have started conducting the initial tests of the system
at a range of 300 kilometers,” he noted.
The
top commander noted the enemies do not dare attack Iran because they are aware
of the Islamic Republic’s deterrence power.
Sabahifard
added Iran’s air defense in the field of radar, aerial, forestry, intelligence,
interception and combat equipment is on a par with most state-of-the-art
equipment in the world.
Iran
unveiled the state-of-the-art surface-to-air Bavar 373 missile defense system,
designed and manufactured by the country's experts, in August 2019.
It
is a mobile missile defense system designed to intercept and destroy incoming
hostile targets. The system employs missiles that have a maximum range of 300
kilometers. The system is capable of simultaneously detecting up to 300
targets, tracking 60 targets at once and engaging six targets at a time.
Iranina
military officials say the Bavar 373 missile defense system is one of the most
important defense achievements of the country after the victory of the Islamic
Revolution.
Military
officials say the military power of Iran is strong, extraordinary and deterrent
despite enemy sanctions and pressures, and hail the country's defense sector
for its remarkable developments in the recent decades. They stress the Iranian
Armed Forces’ deterrent power dissuades the United States and Israel from
implementing its threats against the country.
The
Islamic Republic’s military doctrine holds that the country’s armed capability
solely serves defensive purposes.
Iranian
military experts and technicians have in recent years made substantial headway
in manufacturing a broad range of indigenous equipment, making the armed forces
self-sufficient in the weaponry sphere.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
Calls on Iraq's Kurdistan to Counter Terror Groups
2022-October-16
The
Secretary of the Supreme Security Council of Iraq Qasim Al-Araji, who is
visiting Tehran at the dead of a high-ranking security delegation, met
with Amir Abdollahian on Saturday
evening.
During
the meeting, the Iranian foreign minister pointed to the expanding relations
between Tehran and Baghdad in all fields, and emphasized on the cooperation of
the two countries in the field of security, including the need to deal with
armed terrorists from the Iraqi Kurdistan region.
Amir
Abdollahian stressed that the relations between the two countries are strategic
and privileged, adding, “We consider the security of Iraq as the security of
Iran.”
“Considering
the good relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of
Iraq, we do not expect the Kurdistan Region of Iraq to be a haven for terrorist
acts and a threat against Iran,” the senior diplomat noted.
The
foreign minister demanded that Baghdad and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq take
full responsibility for dealing with terrorist groups and the apartheid in the
Kurdistan Region of Iraq from its source.
“We
have always wanted a prosperous, free and independent Iraq and we want nothing
but good for the Iraqi government and nation, but we will not tolerate the
continued armed presence of terrorists in the Kurdistan region and their
actions against Iran’s security,” Iran's foreign minister stated.
For
his part, the secretary of the Iraqi security council noted that “the Iraqi
constitution does not allow the activities of people and movements that
threaten the neighbors".
Araji
assured that any anti-security measure against Iran will be met with an action
by the central government and the regional Kurdish government, and that Iraq
considers Iran’s security as its own.
The
Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has in recent days launched a series of
aerial raids on the positions of Iraqi Kurdistan-based terrorist groups.
The
operation came after the illegal entry of armed teams linked with the Kurdish
terrorist groups into the Iranian border cities in recent weeks.
The
IRGC Ground Force has announced that that the operations against terror bases
will continue until all anti-Iran separatist and terrorist outfits holed up in
the rugged mountainous area lay down their arms and surrender.
The
Iranian Armed Forces, specially the IRGC, have repeatedly warned that they will
never tolerate the presence and activity of terrorist groups along the
Northwestern border and will give strong and decisive responses in case of
anti-security activities.
The
IRGC has on countless occasions attacked and destroyed terrorist hideouts in
the Kurdistan region with artillery fire, missiles and drones.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14010724000264/Iran-Calls-n-Ira's-Krdisan-Cner-Terrr-Grps
--------
Family
of Palestinian who died in Israeli detention rejects compensation
16
October 2022
The
family of an elderly Palestinian-American man, Omar Abdalmajeed As’ad, who died
after being forcibly detained, blindfolded and handcuffed by Israeli soldiers,
has vehemently rejected a claim from Israeli authorities that the parties have
reached a compensation settlement.
Nawwaf
As’ad, Omar’s brother, strongly denounced Israeli reports that the family had
accepted financial compensation in exchange for closing the lawsuit, the
Palestinian official Wafa news agency reported.
As’ad
stressed that he had instructed the family’s lawyer to continue the legal
procedures until the perpetrators are held to account for their crime.
He
further said that the family would continue the legal procedures in courts.
“We
will not give up the case for any reason. The death of my brother Omar cannot
be compensated with money. His wife and children miss him and his grandchildren
are still calling for him and looking for him at home.”
An
autopsy carried out on the body of the Palestinian-American elderly showed that
he had died of a stress-induced heart attack caused by the circumstances of his
detention, with signs of bruises and abrasions on his body and head.
As’ad
died in January after he was stopped at a checkpoint on his way home to
Jalaliya in the occupied West Bank and “resisted a check,” according to an
Israeli statement, and was then handcuffed, gagged and blindfolded for between
20 minutes and an hour.
In
interviews, several witnesses who were detained by the unit at the same time
said As’ad had clearly lost consciousness and stopped breathing, but the
Israeli soldiers left without checking his well-being, despite the fact that a
military medic was nearby.
The
high-profile case attracted significant international attention and calls from
US legislators for a thorough investigation.
Criminal
prosecutions against Israeli soldiers who harm Palestinians are extremely rare.
Senior
Israeli authorities have been encouraging troops to kill Palestinians they
suspect of attacking Israelis even when they are no longer a threat.
Human
rights groups have documented a large number of cases of Israeli soldiers
gunning down peaceful Palestinian protesters across the occupied territories.
Palestinians
say that such cases must be taken to international courts and that Israelis
must be held accountable for their atrocities.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
Pakistan
likely to exit FATF ‘grey list’ this week
Khaleeq
Kiani
October
17, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan is expected to finally exit the ‘increased monitoring list’ — commonly
known as grey list — of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on Oct 21, after
languishing in the infamous category for almost 52 months.
“The
first FATF Plenary under the two-year Singapore Presidency of T. Raja Kumar
will take place on October 20-21, 2022,” said the Paris-based global watchdog
on dirty money. Delegates representing 206 members of the Global Network and
observer organisations, including the International Monetary Fund, the United
Nations, the World Bank, Interpol and the Egmont Group of Financial
Intelligence Units, will participate in the Working Group and Plenary meetings
in Paris, it added.
On
the conclusion of the two-day deliberations, decisions of the plenary would be
announced.
The
plenary will also focus on jurisdictions identified as presenting a risk to the
international financial system, with an update to public statements that
identify jurisdictions as high risk or being subject to increased monitoring
besides other key issues, including guidance on improving beneficial ownership
transparency to prevent shell companies and other opaque structures from being
used to launder illicit funds.
Pakistan
was included among jurisdictions under increased monitoring list in June 2018
for deficiencies in its legal, financial, regulatory, investigations,
prosecution, judicial and non-government sector to fight money laundering and
combat terror financing considered serious threat to global financial system.
Much-awaited
decision to be announced after two-day deliberations in Paris
Islamabad
made high-level political commitments to address these deficiencies under a
27-point action plan. But later the number of action points was enhanced to 34.
The country had since been vigorously working with FATF and its affiliates to
strengthen its legal and financial systems against money laundering and terror
financing to meet international standards in line with 40-recommendations of
the FATF.
A
15-member joint delegation of the FATF and its Sydney-based regional affiliate
— Asia Pacific Group — paid an onsite visit to Pakistan from Aug 29 to Sept 2
to verify the country’s compliance with the 34-point action plan committed with
the FATF.
The
authorities that had kept the countrywide visit of the delegation low profile
later termed it “a smooth and successful visit”. The delegation had detailed
discussions with relevant agencies pursuant to the authorisation of Onsite
Visit by FATF Plenary in June 2022. According to the Foreign Office, the focus
of the visit was to validate on ground Pakistan’s high-level commitment and
sustainability of reforms in AML/CFT regime and [it] looked forward to logical
conclusion to the evaluation process. The report of FATF Onsite team will be
discussed in FATF’s International Cooperation Review Group and plenary
meetings.
Pakistan
believed that as a result of strenuous and consistent efforts over the past
four years, it has not only achieved a high degree of technical compliance with
FATF standards but also ensured high level of effectiveness through
implementation of two comprehensive FATF action plans.
In
June this year, FATF had found Pakistan “compliant or largely compliant” on all
the 34 points and had decided to field an onsite mission to verify it on ground
before formally announcing the country’s exit from the grey list that finally
took place in August and September.
In
terms of technical compliance with FATF standards, Pakistan has been rated by
APG as “compliant or largely compliant” in 38 out of 40 FATF recommendations in
August this year, which placed the country among the top compliant countries in
the world.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1715433/pakistan-likely-to-exit-fatf-grey-list-this-week
--------
TLP
chief, stick-wielding supporters enter Haripur despite ban on rallies
Muhammad
Sadaqat
October
17, 2022
HARIPUR:
Despite ban on processions and gatherings in the limits of Haripur for 15 days,
a defiant Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Allama Saad Rizvi entered the
district from Jhari Kass area with thousands of his stick-wielding supporters
on Sunday, and continued journey undeterred towards Havelian, where the
firebrand leader was scheduled to address an Eid Miladun Nabi procession in the
evening.
Mr
Rizvi stopped briefly at Sidiq-i-Akbar Chowk, asking workers to chant with him
the party slogans. Instead of making a planned address in Haripur, he left for
Havelian on a container surrounded by club-wielding supporters.
The
procession was still on the way to Havelian when this report was filed though
the distance between the two cities is barely a 20-minute drive.
According
to TLP local leadership, the participants of the rally, including those coming
from other parts of the country, were beyond 30,000, but an official source put
the number at no more than 6,000 to 7,000.
Saad
Rizvi likely to address rally in Havelian
“We
allowed them to enter and cross the urban limits of Haripur peacefully as we
avoided taking action fearing loss of property as hundreds of Rizvi’s followers
were wielding clubs,” said a police officer.
Meanwhile,
the administration had blocked all entry and exit points on the Hazara Motorway
and the GT Road by placing containers on Saturday night, and deployed 1,600
riot police. Two companies of Frontier Corps sent in aid of the civil
administration remained alert for quelling any unrest.
The
passengers and motorists travelling in or out of the district using GT Road and
motorway faced problems. The mobile service remained suspended throughout the
day. However, internet service was functional but with poor signals. The
traders on both sides of GT road kept their business shut.
THREE
KILLED: Three persons, including two minor boys, were killed in different
incidents in the Haripur city, police said on Sunday.
A
young woman, 20, allegedly committed suicide by shooting herself with a pistol
in the chest inside her room in Khalabat Township on Saturday night, the police
said, quoting the victim’s father.
The
man told the police his daughter ended her life as the family was mired in
abject poverty.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Five
‘terrorists’ killed in Splinji operation
October
17, 2022
QUETTA:
Nearly half a dozen suspected terrorists were killed and three security
personnel sustained injuries in a gun battle during an intelligence-based
operation in Splinji in Mastung district, on Sunday.
“The
suspect terrorists were planning to attack pilgrims and security forces,”
claimed a spokesman for the counter-terrorism department of police, adding that
heavy consignment of arms and ammunition was seized during the search of their
hideouts.
The
exchange of fire, which continued till late night, took place in the same area
where a roadside bomb explosion had recently claimed several lives.
The
CTD spokesman explained that personnel of CTD and another law enforcement
agency conducted intelligence-based operation in the Qabu area of Splinji
Mountains and cordoned off the hideouts of terrorists. However, the armed
militants opened fire triggering an exchange of fire, which continued for
several hours. Besides gunfire, explosions were also heard during the
operation.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1715438/five-terrorists-killed-in-splinji-operation
--------
6
Out Of 8: Imran Khan Wins Majority of Seats in Pakistan’s By-Elections
Oct
17, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan won the majority of seats in
byelections on Sunday, building momentum in his campaign to pressure the
six-month-old government into calling an early national vote.
Khan
contested seven of the eight seats and has won six, according to Election
Commission of Pakistan data with all the votes counted. The Pakistan Peoples
Party, a member of the ruling coalition, took the other two seats.
While
the ex-leader will have to resign from all but one of the seats he won -- and
elections will have to happen again -- the victory suggests voters in the
nation of more than 220 million people support his political narrative. The
former cricket star, who was ousted from power through a no-confidence vote in
April, has been holding rallies across Pakistan that are attracting large crowds
to seek early elections.
“I
ask the government and the establishment to respect the will of the masses and
immediately announce fresh elections in the country,” Fawad Chaudhry, a senior
leader of Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, said in a tweet. “We are
ready to discuss the election framework with the government”.
The
political drama comes as Shehbaz Sharif’s government grapples with economic
distress. Moody’s downgraded the nation’s credit rating and Pakistan’s foreign
exchange reserves have dipped to the lowest levels in three years. Devastating
floods earlier this year have also added to the crisis.
The
vote is taking place after all 131 lawmakers from Khan’s party resigned from
parliament’s lower house in April following the change in government. Elections
for those seats are being held in phases. While a sweeping win will embolden
Khan and his supporters, his current spate of legal woes may put a brake on his
political ambitions.
The
Election Commission has said Khan’s party received illegal foreign funds from
the US, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. The PTI party has denied the
charge and is appealing the order.
Any
decision on what punishment the party faces if it loses its appeal rests with
the Supreme Court. It could face a ban on contesting elections.
Pakistan’s
top investigative agency has also filed a complaint against Khan for receiving
funds illegally in his party’s accounts from the now-defunct Dubai-based Abraaj
Group founder Arif Naqvi, the Dawn newspaper has reported. Khan has had to get
preemptive bail in two of the cases.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
summons US envoy for demarche over Joe Biden’s nukes remarks
Oct
16, 2022
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan reacted strongly on Saturday to US President Joe Biden’s remarks that
Pakistan was among the most dangerous nations in the world when it came to the
safety of its nuclear weapons and summoned US ambassador to Islamabad Donald
Blome to issue him an official demarche.
Hours
after Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari spoke in detail on the
issue, prime minister Shehbaz Sharif hit back at Biden, saying Pakistan had
proven to be a “most responsible nuclear state” over the past decades and that
its nuclear programme was managed through a “technically sound and foolproof
command and control system”. A statement from the PMO described Biden’s
comments as “factually incorrect and misleading”.
“Pakistan
has also consistently demonstrated responsible stewardship of its
nuclear-weapons capability, marked by a very strong commitment to global
standards, including those of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) on
non-proliferation, safety, and security,” Sharif said.
According
to the PM, the real threat to international peace and security was posed by
“ultra-nationalism, violation of human rights in regions that are struggling
against illegal occupation, violation of global norms by some states, repeated
nuclear security incidents, the arms race among leading nuclear weapon states,
and introduction of new security constructs that disturb the regional balance”.
Earlier,
Bilawal said at a press conference in Karachi that Pakistan’s nuclear assets “meet
each and every international standard in accordance with the IAEA as far as
security and safety of the country's nuclear programme is concerned. The
minister pointed out India’s accidental firing of a missile into Pakistan on
March 9. If there was any question as to nuclear safety and security then those
questions, the minister said, should be directed to India, who had very
recently, accidentally, fired a missile into Pakistani territory. “That is not
only irresponsible, that is not only unsafe, but raises genuine concerns about
the safety of nuclear-capable countries,” the minister said.
On
Islamabad’s position on Ukraine, Bilawal explained that the country had
abstained from voting on a UNGA resolution earlier this week, which called on
countries not to recognise the four regions of Ukraine that Russia claims
through referendums held under its occupation, because the resolution contained
language from other resolutions on which Pakistan had abstained from voting in
the past.
Bilawal
said that he was looking forward to seeing similar concern about what he
claimed was India’s action to “annex” Kashmir, which, according to him, was a
“complete violation of international law and relevant UN resolutions”.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
South
Asia
Ex-Leaders
in Virtual Meeting Not Acceptable to Afghans: Islamic Emirate
October
17, 2022
The
Islamic Emirate in reaction to a recent Zoom meeting of former Afghan
politicians said that the participants of the meeting are not legitimate.
The
deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate, Bilal Karimi, also called on Afghans
abroad to return to the country.
Some
Afghan politicians, former government officials and Afghan civil rights
activists held a virtual meeting, in which they called for a national dialogue.
“The
Islamic Emirate has established a commission to facilitate the return of the
people who are out of the country. They can live in calmness in their country,”
said Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.
The
number of participants in the meeting was more than 200.
Former
Foreign Minister Mohammad Hanif Atmar believes that three points mentioned in
the Doha agreement have not been fulfilled, one of which was the intra-Afghan
dialogues.
“There
should be an intra-Afghan dialogue and through intra-Afghan dialogue a
political consensus and a political agreement may be formed,” he said.
This
comes as some of the Kabul residents called on the participants of the meeting
to come to Afghanistan and resolve their problems with the Islamic Emirate.
Political
analysts gave various opinions in this regard.
Source:
Tolo News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/index.php/afghanistan-180332
--------
New
UNAMA Chief Meets with Senior Islamic Emirate Officials, Discusses Importance
Of Girls’ Education
October
17, 2022
The
new head of UNAMA in Afghanistan, Roza Otunbayeva, met with several Islamic
Emirate officials to discuss a range of issues including political and security
issues, opening up employment and educational opportunities for women, and establishing
a large consultative council, the officials said.
Amir
Khan Muttaqi, acting minister of Foreign Affairs, in a meeting with Ms. Roza
Otunbayeva, asked her to inform the world of the facts within the scope of her
responsibility.
The
meeting covered bilateral cooperation, economic initiatives, security issues,
and education, according to the spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry.
"The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that now is the time for Afghanistan and the
world to come closer together and understand each other's priorities,
conditions, and requests, and UNAMA can achieve this well," said Zia Ahmad
Takal, deputy spokesman for the Foreign Ministry.
The
head of UNAMA in Afghanistan has said that both sides should cooperate to
address basic issues in Afghanistan.
Political
analysts consider UNAMA's role in various sectors, especially the recognition
of the current government, to be important.
"UNAMA
can convince the world on the question of recognizing Afghanistan if the
Taliban's strategy is such that it can satisfy UNAMA in the first step,"
said Aziz Marij, a former diplomat.
“The
Islamic Emirate should provide full and direct cooperation with UNAMA
leadership about the search for the truth,” said Yosuf Amin Zazai, political
analyst.
In
September, the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres appointed Roza
Otunbayeva of Kyrgyzstan as his new Special Representative for Afghanistan and
Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
Otunbayeva
succeeds Deborah Lyons of Canada.
Ms.
Otunbayeva brings to the position over 35 years of professional experience in
leadership, diplomacy, civic engagement, and international cooperation. She
served as the president of the Kyrgyzstan, as well as in other roles.
Source:
Tolo News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-180330
--------
Two
Rohingya community leaders killed in Bangladesh
Oct
16, 2022
COX'S
BAZAR: A mob of a dozen people hacked to death two Rohingya community leaders
in Bangladesh, police said Sunday, as security worsens in camps housing almost
a million refugees.
Bangladesh
has been housing Rohingya refugees in a vast sprawl of camps since they fled a
military crackdown in Myanmar in 2017 that is now the subject of a genocide
investigation at the UN's top court.
The
squalid settlements have seen escalating violence in recent months, with gangs
trying to assert control over drug trafficking and intimidate the refugees'
civilian leadership through killings and abductions.
Police
spokesman Faruk Ahmed said two Rohingya camp leaders were killed late on
Saturday at Camp 13, calling it one of the worst attacks in recent months.
"More
than a dozen Rohingya miscreants hacked Maulvi Mohammad Yunus, 38, who is the
head majhi of Camp 13. They also killed Mohammad Anwar, 38, another majhi.
Yunus died on the spot and Amwar died at a hospital," he said.
"Majhi"
is a term for a Rohingya camp leader.
A
senior officer of an elite police unit tasked with security in the camps blamed
the killings on the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), an insurgent group
fighting the military in Myanmar.
"These
are targeted killings by ARSA. The internal clashes in Myanmar are impacting
the security situation in the camps," he said, speaking on condition of
anonymity to discuss sensitive information.
Gangs
have long fought turf wars for control of the drug trade, centred on yaba
methamphetamine pills, but the police chief of the Bangladeshi district of
Cox's Bazar said there was an escalation taking place.
"In
the last three months alone, at least 14 Rohingyas were murdered in the camps.
The number of murders in the camp has increased compared to last year,"
Mahfuzul Islam told AFP.
A
Rohingya community leader and a nephew of one of those killed on Saturday also
blamed ARSA for the murders.
"ARSA
killed my uncle last night. My uncle used to tell them not to deal in drugs. He
would supervise voluntarily patrolling in the camps. They killed my
uncle," the nephew said, asking to remain anonymous out of fears for his
safety.
ARSA
has not publicly commented on Saturday's killings.
Several
of its members earlier this year were charged over the murder of top Rohingya
leader Mohib Ullah in September last year. ARSA has denied its involvement.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Taliban
Prevents Bulk Cash Smuggling from Afghanistan to Iran
By
Saqalain Eqbal
16
Oct 2022
Taliban
Ministry of Defense announced that the Taliban forces in the Islam Qala border
crossing in the Islam Qala district of the northwestern Afghan province of
Herat have prevented a $250,000 cash smuggling attempt to Iran.
According
to a statement from the Defense Ministry of the Taliban administration,
released on Sunday, October 16, the Taliban forces have held a person in
custody along with an amount of $250,000 that he was attempting to smuggle to
Iran.
The
amount of money was deftly concealed inside the car seat in an attempt to
illegally transport the cash undeclared, according to a statement from the
Taliban government’s Ministry of Defense.
The
perpetrator, who was carrying stacks of dollar bills illegally across the
Afghan border, has been arrested by the forces and handed over to the
respective bodies for taking further prosecution.
125
cartons of opium that were intended to be smuggled to the United Arab Emirates
were previously seized by Taliban forces from the Kabul International Airport
in disguise as black raisins.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/taliban-prevents-bulk-cash-smuggling-from-afghanistan-to-iran-56734/
--------
Afghan
Passport Labeled ‘Least Powerful’ in Henley Index
By
Saqalain Eqbal
17
Oct 2022
With
its citizens only being able to visit 27 countries without a visa, the Henley
Passport Index, which is updated quarterly, has once more named an Afghan
passport as “the least powerful passport” in the world.
The
Henley passport index, which was released on October 17th, places the Japanese
passport at the top of the list, allowing its citizens to enter 193 countries
and regions without a visa or visa on arrival.
On
the list of nations where it is possible to enter 192 countries without a visa
or with one upon arrival, Singapore and South Korea are the next two countries,
ranking second.
Other
top-ranked countries include Germany, Spain, Finland, Italy, Luxembourg,
Sweden, Austria, France, Portugal, Ireland, Belgium, New Zealand, Netherlands,
Denmark, United Kingdom, Norway, and the United States of America, whose citizens
can travel to more than 186 countries.
Afghan
passports, which are at the bottom of the list as the weakest passports in the
world, allow citizens to enter 27 countries and territories without a visa or
with a visa upon arrival.
Afghanistan
comes after Iraq, Syria, and Pakistan, which their passports allow the holders
to visit 29, 30, and 32 countries respectively.
According
to a former Afghan diplomat, Ghaws Janbaz, special points are taken into
account when determining the rank.
“The
attractiveness of a country and its people is actually reflected in its
passport. Unfortunately, the passport of Afghanistan cannot have this beauty
and attractiveness due to the specific situation that prevails in that
country,” Janbaz said.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/afghan-passport-labeled-least-powerful-in-henley-index-47332/
--------
Taliban
Establishes Commission to Investigate Detainees in Northern Afghanistan
By
Saqalain Eqbal
16
Oct 2022
The
Taliban-controlled media reported that the Taliban has established a six-member
commission to investigate the cases of the people that have been detained
during the “military operations in Panjshir” province in northern Afghanistan.
According
to the Bakhtar state news agency, Mullah Hassan Akhund, the Taliban’s prime
minister, directed the establishment of this commission.
Mawlawi
Neda Mohammad Nadim the governor of the Taliban administration in Kabul has
been selected as the chairperson of the newly established Taliban commission.
Bakhtar’s
report made no mention of the number of detainees, but in recent weeks, more
than 200 people were detained in Panjshir’s Rakha and Abshar districts.
The
people who have been arrested in Panjshir province in the Taliban military
operations, according to the Taliban-run media, are held in prisons in Kabul,
the Afghan capital.
Earlier,
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban government’s spokesman, claimed that more than
100 members of the National Resistance Front (NRF), an armed group resisting
the Taliban rule, had been detained as part of the front’s suppression.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Southeast
Asia
Call
To Fund Non-Islamic Places of Worship Lauded By Penang Hindu Association
Muhammad
Yusry
17-10-
2022
PETALING
JAYA: The Penang Hindu Association (PHA) has welcomed the call by the Young
Buddhist Association of Malaysia (YBAM) for the next government to continue
allocating funds in the national budget to carry out repairs, maintenance and
emergency work on non-Islamic places of worship (POW).
Its
president P. Murugiah said the YBAM statement that was issued last Thursday was
spot on in its call, as the grants are important to carry out maintenance works
to ensure safe, comfortable and functional spaces for devotees to conduct
ceremonies and activities.
“Apart
from POW, the government should also help old folks homes and shelters that are
privately run by non-Muslims as they too need government help. There should be
less red tape to help these neglected voices.
“NGOs
and others help communities by taking care of the elderly, sending children to
school and providing medical assistance, but they are often forced to get funds
from the public. This is unsustainable. So, the new government should treat
non-Muslims fairly.”
The
YBAM had said it regretted that Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul
Tengku Abdul Aziz did not allocate grants benefiting non-Islamic organisations
when presenting Budget 2023 on Oct 7.
“In
2021 and 2022, the National Unity Ministry received an allocation of RM50
million from the federal government budget for eligible non-Islamic religious
organisations to apply for funds to carry out repairs, maintenance and
emergency work.
“Non-Islamic
religious organisations, including Buddhist societies, temples, and churches
are places where Malaysians of different religions, races, beliefs and cultures
fulfil their responsibilities as devotees, playing a key role in
self-purification and shaping a harmonious society.”
YBAM
expressed hope that the next government would continue the beneficial measures
implemented in 2021 and 2022 by including the allocation of grants to
non-Islamic religious organisations in any revised budget for 2023.
Federation
of Taoist Associations Malaysia president Daozhang Tan Hoe Chieow also
supported YBAM’s call.
He
said the government should expand the criteria for providing grants and include
the annual maintenance works of non-Muslim places of worship as well.
“Under
the current criteria, most places of worship cannot qualify to receive grants,
and because of this, there is quite a lot of unutilised money in the budget
allocation.
“We
also want the grants to be used to provide small sums of money to alleviate the
hardship caused by the closure of non-Islamic POW due to Covid-19 restrictions.
This is what the state governments of Sarawak and Penang are doing.
“When
the criteria are expanded, all POW regardless of religion can benefit from the
RM50 million allocation, and be registered with the National Unity Ministry.”
Tan
also proposed that since the ministry has been entrusted to look after the
affairs of other religions, it is only logical that either the minister or his
deputy be a non-Muslim.
Source:
The Sun Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.thesundaily.my/local/call-to-fund-non-islamic-places-of-worship-lauded-JA9992391
--------
Tun
M: Indian Muslim alliance will give GTA a big win in GE15
17-10-
2022
KUALA
LUMPUR: Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is convinced that the National Indian Muslim
Alliance Party’s (Iman) presence in Gerakan Tanah Air (GTA) would help the
coalition record a big win in the upcoming 15th General Election (GE15).
GTA’s
sponsor chairman said his confidence was based on the large number of Iman
members throughout the country, and the Indian Muslim community’s willingness
to ensure that their voice is heard at all levels of government.
“We
know non-governmental organisations (NGO) like Iman are not involved directly
in politics, their only hope is that their struggle and voice will be accepted
by any government leading the country.
“So
I’m convinced that the Indian Muslim community will play a big role in GE15 and
will determine if GTA or Parti Pejuang Tanah Air (Pejuang) is victorious,” the
former prime minister said during a dinner programme here yesterday.
Pejuang
president Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir, Iman president Datuk Mohammed Mosin
Abdul Razak, Parti Bumiputera Perkasa Malaysia (Putra) president Datuk Ibrahim
Ali and Barisan Jemaah Islamiah Se-Malaysia (Berjasa) president Zamani Ibrahim
were also present at the dinner.
GTA,
established on Aug 4 and led by Pejuang, has previously stated that it intends
to contest 120 parliamentary seats throughout the country in the upcoming
election with 30 per cent of youth candidates.
Source:
The Sun Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
I
have never been aligned to any party, says Azhar
SK
Devi
October
17, 2022
PETALING
JAYA: Dewan Rakyat Speaker Azhar Harun denies having any political allegiance,
be it to Pakatan Harapan (PH) or the ruling coalitions in the past two years.
While
he said his opinions “coincided” with PH’s aims before the 2018 general
election (GE14), he was “never” its supporter.
“It
so happens that prior to GE14, what I wrote and what I spoke about coincided
and was in synergy with what the PH people were talking about,” Azhar said in
an interview with BFM today.
“I
am not an Umno supporter, too. I don’t have any allegiances.”
He
said he was with an Umno think tank in the 1990s, but only saw it as a job and
nothing more.
Azhar,
a lawyer and former rights activist, was appointed the Election Commission (EC)
chairman in September 2018 after PH came into power.
He
served as the EC chairman until June 2020 and was appointed as speaker in July
2020 after being nominated by then prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin.
Asked
if he was the right person to fill the role, he said he took the job because he
thought he was up to it and had the “advantage of having friends from both
sides”.
“I
have friends from the government and really, really good friends from the
opposition. So I thought I could be the bridge (between the two) during the
tumultuous period,” he said.
On
the challenges of the role of a speaker, Azhar said he held the position during
a period that was filled with disappointment and, at times, even anger, from
both sides.
While
he had expected the accusations and allegations that were thrown at him, he
said he was still not prepared for how bad it could get.
“The
intensity (of the accusations) was a bit unexpected,” he said.
Asked
how one could change the perception that the role of the speaker was linked to
the government, Azhar said people’s thoughts could not be controlled.
“We
cannot control their thoughts, we can only follow the law,” he said.
He
also said that while the Federal Constitution details the separation of powers
of the judiciary, executive and legislative branches, “in reality, they are
almost connected”.
“This
is not a problem in Malaysia alone, it is in all Westminster-based
governments,” he said, adding that it would be difficult even for MPs to
separate their powers as MPs and ministers.
Asked
if he would enter politics in future, Azhar said he was not considering such a
prospect, adding that he had not been formally approached by any party.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Time
to give 2 days off for Deepavali, says Syed Saddiq
October
16, 2022
PETALING
JAYA: It is time for Deepavali to be given the same importance as other major
festivals, when it comes to public holidays and days off for schools and
universities, says Muda president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.
Citing
complaints from university students who have to be in class the day after
Deepavali, he said it was time for the government to treat the Hindu festival
like how it does Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Chinese New Year (CNY).
There
are two public holidays given for Aidilfitri and CNY, respectively, but only
one day is set for Deepavali. Additionally, a one-week school holiday also
coincides with the Aidilfitri and CNY celebrations.
This
year the festival of lights falls on Oct 24, a Monday.
“Why
is the Deepavali holiday only for a day? That’s the message I receive
frequently, mostly from students.
“Monday
is a holiday, and the next day (the students) must attend class again. I
propose it be extended, to be just like Aidilfitri and CNY. Pity them,” the
former youth and sports minister said on Twitter.
According
to Syed Saddiq, he received over 500 messages on the plight of Hindu students
this Deepavali.
He
shared a screenshot of a message he received from a public university student,
who said that most Indian students were disappointed with the holiday given for
Deepavali this year.
“It
is just for one day and we cannot even celebrate our festival as we have to
attend class the very next day. Most of us cannot even go back home to visit
and celebrate it with our family members,” the message read.
One
netizen responded to the former Muar MP’s tweet by saying that an additional
day off should be given when the festival falls on a Monday, to allow students
to travel back to their universities.
“Can’t
expect (them) to travel back on the day itself. If one needs to travel from
Penang to Johor, that would be exhausting,” they said.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Africa
Stop
Victimising Muslim Judges, Muslim Rights Concern Tells Osun Chief Judge
17
October 2022
The
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has accused the Chief Judge of Osun State,
Justice Adepele Ojo, of victimising Muslim members of the judiciary in the state.
MURIC’s
allegation was contained in a statement, yesterday, signed by Director of the
rights organisation, Prof. Ishaq Akintola.
The
statement reads in part: “The Judiciary and Legal Department of the Muslim
Rights Concern (MURIC) has for some time noticed an unpleasant trend in the
affairs of the Osun State judiciary with respect to the treatment of Muslim
judges. In particular, we noticed that the Chief Judge, Justice Adepele Ojo,
has been doing everything possible to undermine Islam and the Muslims in Osun
State judiciary.
“This
observation is verifiable and we are going to substantiate every point we make
here. MURIC does not act on impulse and neither does it level allegations out
of spite.
“Exempli
gratia, one of the past chief judges allocated two pieces of land of equal
sizes to both Christian and Muslim communities of Osun State judiciary at the
High Court, Osogbo. The Christians built a church on their land while the
Muslims also built a mosque on their own.
“But
the Muslims left a small portion of their land for future need. Recently, the
Muslim community wanted to build a small structure on the remaining part of the
land allocated to them. They had already started the foundation laying when the
Chief Judge, obviously acting on information, rushed to the site and stopped
them.
“She
allegedly swore not to allow it till she bowed out of the Bench. The Muslim
community lost some bags of cement and other materials on account of this
injustice. The unfinished foundation is still there till tomorrow for any
curious observer to see.”
“Another
example of her victimisation of Muslims was her arrangement of the 2022 foreign
trip of judges which she deliberately fixed to coincide with the period of this
year’s Id al-Adha Salah. It was so arranged that Muslim judges could not fully
enjoy the trip.
“Although
such foreign trips were meant to enable judges relax, the 2022 trip of the
judges to Thailand was a traumatic experience for the Muslim judges involved.
It must be noted here that the Chief Judge could have fixed the trip during the
yearly court vacation or at any other time. But she, in her own wisdom, decided
to fix it at a time the Muslim judges would lose appetite and feel the pain.
“The
trip was undertaken from July 4 to 15, 2022 whereas Salah was on July 9, 2022.
It was therefore seen as a sadistic ploy to put Muslim judges in a panicky
state of mind thereby defeating the primary objective of making the trip an
avenue for relaxation for judges with the attendant optimal performance on
their return.
“This
arrangement resulted in a tortuous, tumultuous and topsy-turvy foreign trip for
Muslims among the judges. A programme designed ab initio for hardworking judges
to regain their strength turned into one of extreme stress and unmitigated
psychological trauma for the Muslims among them.
“All
available evidence point to the fact that the 2022 foreign trip as scheduled by
the Chief Judge put Muslim judges at an undeserved disadvantage. When their
Christian counterparts spent the whole period of about 12 days from 4th to 15th
July, 2022, the Muslim judges were constrained to spend just 7 days from 2nd to
8th of July, 2022 because they had to rush home to celebrate Id al-Adha in
Nigeria on 8th of July, 2022 for the Salah which was held the next day (9th
July, 2022).
“Non-Muslims
may not comprehend where we are coming from. They may not assimilate the import
of this most embarrassing situation unless we create a scenario where
Christians are made to go on a trip from 21st December to 4th January! This is
most likely to create a hullabaloo, which will force Christians to return home
on December 24, a day to Christmas!
“There
is every raison d’etre to suspect that the Chief Judge has targeted Muslim
judges who went for the trip for victimization. Perhaps we can ask the
respected Chief Judge if she would like to schedule the 2023 foreign trip for
judges in the state from December 21, 2022 to January 4, 2023 (which is
Christmas period) or from April 5 to 16, 2023 (which is Easter period)! After
all, who feels it knows it.
“Again,
the Chief Judge may find it difficult to explain the cassu belli for the
consistent denial of many qualified Muslim lawyers of appointment to bench
vacancies in the state. The Chief Judge may want to explain why the last two
high court appointments saw the emergence of only two Muslims out of 10
appointments despite the existence of eminently qualified Muslims who applied.
“When
did loyalty to pastors and bishops become the standard yardstick for
qualification as judges? This is just a question. No disrespect to the bench is
intended. MURIC holds the judiciary in high esteem but we will like to see the
judiciary promoting equal right, justice and fair play in all its actions. The
judiciary is the last hope of the hoi polloi and the jamaaheer have no hope if
the judiciary cannot be fair to themselves.
Source:
Guardian Nigeria
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://guardian.ng/news/stop-victimising-muslim-judges-muric-tells-osun-chief-judge/
--------
Tunisia
police clash with protesters in second night of protests
16
October, 2022
Protestors
clashed with police in the Tunisian capital of Tunis on Saturday, for the
second night after a man died from injuries sustained during a police chase in
August.
Riot
police fired tear gas to disperse the crowds in the poor Ettadamen and Intilka
districts, with protesters chanting slogans against the police and throwing
stones at them.
The
fresh protests come as the country suffers an economic and political crisis
amid fuel and food shortages.
The
family of the young man, Malek Selimi, 24, told local media on Saturday that
their son died after suffering a neck injury from a fall during a police chase
at the end of August.
The
protests began on Friday after the funeral of the young man. The Ministry of
Interior did not comment on the death of Selimi.
The
North African nation is suffering a severe political crisis since Tunisian
President Kais Saied seized power and dissolved parliament in 2021.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Army
chief says Sudan close to national consensus
Buhram
Abdel-Men'em
15.10.2022
KHARTOUM,
Sudan
Head
of Sudan’s ruling Sovereign Council, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, said Saturday
the country’s political groups are close to reaching a national consensus.
“There
are signs of being close to reaching consensus with the participation of
political and social forces and peace partners,” al-Burhan said at a peace
forum in Ethiopia.
“This
guarantees the stability of the transitional period and the formation of a
civilian government to run the country, create the atmosphere and take the
necessary measures to hold free and fair elections at the end of the
transitional period,” he added.
The
army chief renewed his commitment of withdrawing the military from politics in
Sudan.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/army-chief-says-sudan-close-to-national-consensus/2712599
--------
Thousands
protest in Tunisia to call for ending ‘coup’
Yamena
Salemi
15.10.2022
TUNIS,
Tunisia
Thousands
of Tunisians demonstrated in the capital Tunis on Saturday to call for ending
the “coup” in the North African country.
Opponents
of Tunisian President Kais Saied accuse him of staging a “coup” by dissolving
the country’s parliament last year and assuming executive power.
Saturday’s
protest was organized by the National Salvation Front, a coalition of five
Tunisian parties opposing Saied.
“A
year and a half since the coup, Tunisians only saw poverty, unemployment, high
cost of living and a shortage of basic commodities,” Ahmed Najib Chebbi, head
of the National Salvation Front, told protesters.
“The
putschist failed and became isolated without any support at home or abroad,” he
said, referring to the Tunisian president.
Meanwhile,
hundreds of supporters of the Free Destourian Party staged a rally in the
capital to call for toppling the Tunisian leader.
Tunisia
has been in the throes of a deep political crisis that aggravated the country's
economic conditions since last year, when Saied ousted the government and
dissolved parliament.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/thousands-protest-in-tunisia-to-call-for-ending-coup-/2712671
--------
North
America
Brazilian
Muslims demand Harvard return skull of slave who fought in uprising
16
October 2022
The
Islamic community of Salvador, in Brazil’s Bahia state, has pushed Harvard
University to repatriate the skull of an enslaved man who allegedly took part
in a famous uprising of African Muslims in the city in 1835.
The
skull is part of a Harvard collection of human remains of 19 people of African
origin likely enslaved in the Americas.
The
University’s Peabody and Warren museums also hold the remains of some 6,500
Native Americans, and have for decades faced pressure in the United States to
return all of them to their communities or descendants.
Earlier
this year, Harvard established a committee to investigate the institution’s
collection of human remains and ways of returning them.
According
to student newspaper The Harvard Crimson, the university agreed in September to
repatriate the remains, though no further details on the process have been
published.
Bahia's
Muslim community, which began its campaign in September, now plans to make
direct contact with Harvard through the Islamic Centre and House of Nigeria in
Salvador.
The
victim
In
1835, 600 African Muslims - some freed people, but mostly enslaved men - took
to the streets of Salvador and fought soldiers to try to take control of the
city and the surrounding countryside.
The
night of fighting resulted in the deaths of at least 70 Males - a word used to
designate African Muslims in 19th-century Bahia, which probably comes from
imale, a Yoruba term for Muslim. Some 500 others were imprisoned, flogged and
deported. The skull supposedly belongs to a man who was wounded in the fighting
and died in hospital.
Joao
Jose Reis, a leading historian in Brazil and an expert on the Males uprising,
first heard about the Harvard skull earlier this year.
“The
skull record says that that individual took part in the uprising as a leader
and that he was taken to a hospice after being wounded,” Reis told Middle East
Eye.
According
to the university, US citizen Gideon T Snow, who lived in Brazil in the 19th
century, sent the skull to Boston, where - “prior to 1847” - it was donated to
the collection of the Boston Society for Medical Improvement. Warren Anatomical
Museum, part of Harvard Medical School, subsumed the collection in 1889.
Reis,
a professor at the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), argues that Harvard
should try to use the skull’s DNA to identify the man’s ethnic origins - both
for the sake of researcher and for the Bahia region’s Muslim community.
'Inspiring'
revolt
The
Males uprising has, over the past three decades, taken on a foundational
importance for Bahia’s Muslims.
“We
heard about the Males and knew there were documents about them in Bahia,” said
Lebanese-born Ahmad Ali Saifi, a major Muslim community organiser in Brazil,
based in the city of Sao Bernardo do Campo, in Sao Paulo State. “I travelled
there at the end of the 1980s and met with experts in their history.”
Shortly
afterwards, Saifi invited Misbah Akanni, a Nigerian exchange student living in
Salvador, to study the Males and help to organise the region’s Muslims, who did
not have an established community.
“I
have first heard about the Males at university in Nigeria, in the classes of a
visiting Brazilian professor,” Akanni told MEE.
Akanni
settled in Salvador and brought together Muslims of different nationalities,
including from African countries, the Middle East and Brazil. The new
community, around 1,000 people, organised several conferences about the Males’
history, which attracted keen interest, especially among Black people.
“The
uprising is inspiring for poor, Black Brazilians,” Akanni said. “It makes many
of them feel proud.”
Nigerian-born
Abdul Ahmad, the local sheikh, believes the region’s history is why Salvador
"has been the Brazilian city with the highest number of Black converts [to
Islam] every year. Slavery is something negative, but the history of the
rebellion is not. When people learn about the Males’ heritage in Bahia, they
begin to see Islam with different eyes,” he said.
Most
signs of the Males’ historical presence were suppressed after the rebellion,
but some remain, including Arabic inscriptions inside Catholic churches built
by Muslim slaves.
In
1835, according to Reis’s estimates, there were between 3,300-4,400 African
Muslims in the city.
The
total number of Africans in Salvador was just under 22,000, Reis has
calculated, roughly a third of the population. Most were slaves.
Reasons
to rebel
The
uprising had many causes, from the inherent injustice of slavery to the
terrible living conditions of the enslaved, to the lack of social mobility in
Bahia for freed people of African descent.
What's
more, in Brazil, which didn't abolish slavery until 1888, Catholicism was the
state religion, so the Males were regularly hindered in the practice of their
faith.
“The
Males were cultured people, as many of them were literate - and many white
people were not,” Akanni added. “Their faith also contributed to the revolt,
given that Islam does not accept that a man can be enslaved by another man.”
The
uprising was planned for months, but when word got to authorities it had to
begin earlier than expected. On 24 January 1835 the insurgents fought soldiers
across the city with only a handful of firearms, relying mostly on knives and
spears.
A
day later, the rebellion fell. Many insurgents were wounded or killed in
combat; others were imprisoned or expelled from Brazil. Four of the leaders
were publicly executed.
The
heavy repression that followed aimed to both crush any new rebellions and erase
Islam in Bahia. Meetings of Black people were criminalised. Much of Islam's
social influence disappeared in the aftermath of the revolt.
The
repatriation of the Male skull “would help to consolidate the role of the Males
in Salvador,” said Waldemar Oliveira, a PhD student at New York University who
is researching the history of the Islamic community in the city. "It would
be a way for the current Muslim community to say that the Males’ defeat in the
19th century did not represent the end of the Afro-Muslim experience in Bahia.”
The
Muslim Male rebels did not have a proper funeral in 1835, according to Hannah
Bellini, a post-doctoral researcher at UFBA who also studies Salvador’s Islamic
community.
“The
return of that skull would not only constitute an important measure of
reparation from Harvard, considering its history of involvement in scientific
racism,” she told MEE. "It would also be a way to correct a very violent
practice, for Muslims, which is the exhibition of human remains.”
Source:
Middle East Eye
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/brazil-muslims-harvard-skull-slave-demand-uprising
--------
No
president has done more for Israel than I have: Trump
Islam
Doğru
17.10.2022
NEW
YORK
Former
US President Donald Trump claimed Sunday that Jewish Americans were not
supportive enough of him and his policies toward Israel while he was in office,
warning them to “get their act together.”
“No
President has done more for Israel than I have,” Trump said in a post on his
social media platform Truth Social.
“Somewhat
surprisingly, however, our wonderful Evangelicals are far more appreciative of
this than the people of the Jewish faith, especially those living in the U.S,”
he added.
“Those
living in Israel, though, are a different story -- Highest approval rating in
the World, could easily be P.M.!” he wrote. “U.S. Jews have to get their act
together and appreciate what they have in Israel -- Before it is too late!”
In
2021, speaking to the US news website Axios, Trump criticized the fact that
around 75% of Jewish voters in the US voted for his rival Joe Biden during the
November 2020 presidential election.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/no-president-has-done-more-for-israel-than-i-have-trump/2713242
--------
Biden
has no plans to meet Saudi crown prince at G20 summit: Official
Servet
Gunerigok
16.10.2022
WASHINGTON
US
President Joe Biden will not meet Saudi Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman during
the G20 summit in Indonesia next month, according to a senior official on
Sunday.
"He
has no plans to meet with the crown prince at the G20 summit," Jake
Sullivan, Biden's national security adviser, told CNN’s Dana Bash on
"State of the Union". The summit will take place on Nov. 15-16 in
Bali.
The
president "is focused, however, on making sure that through every
engagement that he has across the board, he’s looking out for not just the US
but for our allies as well," said Sullivan.
Sullivan's
remarks come amid a row between the US and Saudi Arabia after the latter threw
its support behind a decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting
Countries (OPEC) and Russia, also known as OPEC+, to cut production by 2
million barrels a day starting in November.
The
White House charged on Thursday that not only did Saudi officials lend their
support to the measure, but worked behind the scenes as OPEC+'s chair to
pressure other member states to vote in favor of the proposal.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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Richard
Falk: Washington fears Saudi realignment to Russia and China
16
October 2022
American
academic and political analyst Richard Falk suspected that the foreign policy
establishment in Washington is inhibited by the fear that Saudi Arabia might
become tempted to shift its alignment in a direction more in line with China
and Russia.
Falk
made the remarks on Sunday in an exclusive interview with Press TV while
commenting on US warnings to Saudi Arabia after the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+), in which Riyadh is a top
producer, announced last week it would cut oil production.
Falk
is an American professor emeritus of international law at Princeton University,
and a former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights
in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.
“Biden
and the US swallowed a lot of harsh criticism for maintaining such a friendly
relationship with Saudi Arabia in the aftermath of the 2018 brazen murder in
the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul of the respected journalist, Jamal Khashoggi,
who was long a Washington resident,” said Falk.
“Also,
such a positive relationship had long been criticized as disregarding Biden’s
supposed primary commitments to democratic values and human rights. In this
sense, Saudi Arabia and Mohammed bin Salman had been shielded from official
censure, being considered a strategic partner on energy and security in the
Middle East,” he added.
‘Saudi
never possessed the policy leverage in the US enjoyed by Israel’
“Saudi
Arabia never possessed the policy leverage in the US enjoyed by Israel, lacking
its lobbying prowess and influence on American voters,” said Falk.
“In
addition, Biden’s visit in July of this year in the face of liberal criticism
was at the time rumored to be compensated by
Saudi commitments to keep future oil production and pricing in accord
with US policy anti-Russian and anti-inflation priorities,” he said.
“In
this sense, the Saudi-led OPEC+ production cuts were seen as undercutting US
foreign policy, which was seeking to reduce Europe’s dependence on imported
Russian gas. As well, with critically important and closely contested US
midterm Congressional elections taking place in early November, the timing of
the Saudi move was particularly resented by Washington, which perceived rising
gas prices for consumers as damaging to the electoral prospects of Biden’s
Democratic Party. It is widely believed that the outcome of these elections
will determine control of Congress until the 2024 presidential elections,” he
noted.
“To
consider this production/price move from a Saudi perspective makes it seem
mainly motivated by national interest in protecting the value of their
principal trading asset, as well as not wanting their compliance with
Washington wishes to be taken for granted. With a global recession widely
anticipated in coming months, principally as a consequence of the prolonged Ukraine
crisis, oil demand is predicted to fall sharply, if briefly, exerting a
downward pressure on the world prices of oil and gas. Thus, from an economistic
perspective, an OPEC adjustment by way of reduced production seemed sensible.
The Saudis undoubtedly felt that to remain a trustworthy leader of the OPEC
required that their influence not be distracted by political pressures and this
depended on setting production quotas in accord only with energy market
factors,” he observed.
Saudis
following Turkey, Israel models
“Also,
at stake was the idea that a country like Saudi Arabia should demonstrate its
political independence. To do this meant rejecting any impression of
subservience to the regional hegemony claimed by a non-Arab external actor. In
this sense, what the Saudis are doing is somewhat similar to what Turkey has
been doing in recent years, which has caused some friction within the NATO
alliance framework but gained respect for Turkey as an independent political
actor,” he said.
“This
is also what Israel has done in a more provocative manner by not hiding its
differences with the US on important questions, perhaps most notably through
its intense opposition to 5+ 1 Nuclear Agreement of 2015 with Iran and
currently by way of its opposition to its renewal in the event of a US return
as a party. Israel has obstructed this important diplomatic effort without
encountering any sort of pushback by way of adverse ‘consequences’ that the
Saudis are now being warned about. I would venture the opinion that absent
Israel’s opposition, the 2015 Agreement would be by now restored, greater
stability would be present in the Middle East, and the harsh and unjustifiable
sanctions imposed on Iran would be eased,” he noted.
Biden
is vague about the nature of the consequences
Biden
warned Saudi Arabia of the consequences, but he did not explain what those
consequences could be.
Falk
said, “Biden has been deliberately vague about the nature of such consequences,
although he spoken publicly about reevaluating the entire US/Saudi
relationship.”
“It
may indicate that such a public show of displeasure, also reflecting some
Congressional and public pressure to rethink whether closeness to Saudi Arabia
serves American interests. The more persuasive view is that this is a temporary
kafuffle between allies that will eventuate in nothing more than a warning and
a signal of disappointment, conveying an implicit threat that if such
diplomatic defiance is shown in the future by Riyadh it might then indeed have
‘consequences’ of a discernible character,” he added.
“More
concrete options are of course presently possible and have been proposed in the
US media and the Congress including an embargo on arms and legal action against
the oil cartel. I find it somewhat doubtful at this stage that such drastic
steps would be taken,” he opined.
“I
suspect that the foreign policy establishment in Washington is inhibited by the
fear that in the event of a tangible pushback, Saudi Arabia might become
tempted to shift its alignment in a direction more in line with China and
Russia, an outcome running directly counter to the regional policies of both
Israel and Egypt and quite disturbing for Europe,” the analyst noted.
‘Saudis
may not risk the loss of US security support’
“It
is probable that Saudi Arabia’s leaders are also hoping that the storm will
pass, and that it can reestablish close security ties with the US having made
its point about the autonomy of its approach to oil and OPEC,” Falk said.
“There
is little reason to think that the Saudis are ready to risk the loss of US
security support, which has always been their overriding goal, which includes
underpinning the anti-Iran policies,” he said.
“It
may take some accommodating steps by Riyadh to restore pre-crisis normalcy such
as voting with the US in the UN to condemn the Russian annexation of four areas
of Ukraine following the sham referenda that Moscow insisted exhibited a
popular preference for reintegration with Russia. The Saudis might even make a
secret pledge to reconsider OPEC oil production quotas at the next cartel
meeting in December in light of world conditions that might favor increased in
oil production,” he noted.
Source:
Press TV
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Iran
slams Biden's support for riots as intervention in state matters
16
October 2022
Iran’s
Foreign Ministry has vehemently censured the United States over meddling in the
Islamic Republic’s domestic affairs after President Joe Biden voiced support
for riots in the country, made an interventionist statement, and sought
encouragement of violence.
“On
Saturday, Biden interfered for the umpteenth time in Iran's state matters by
supporting the riots as he has done ever since the outbreak of recent
developments in Iran,” Nasser Kan’ani said in a statement on Sunday.
He
added, “Given the fact he neither does enjoy trusted advisers nor a good
memory, I remind him that Iran is so strong and steadfast that it would not
give in to his cruel sanctions and idle threats. It is also so proud that would
be unfazed by the interventions and exclamations of a politician tired of years
of the futile campaign against Iran.”
Biden
said on Saturday that “he was surprised by the courage of the people taking to
the streets in protest in Iran.”
The
senior Iranian diplomat highlighted that neither Biden’s comments nor
Washington’s meddlesome gestures will not surprise Tehran as intervention,
aggression, and killing form the backbone of the US political system.
“Since
the 1953 coup d'état up until today, the anti-Iranian policies of the US administration
have been well recorded in our minds. And of course, the history and every part
of the world would testify the wounds that America's crimes and violence have
inflicted,” Kan’ani pointed out.
“You
(Americans) are accustomed to fishing in troubled waters,” the spokesman for
the Iranian Foreign Ministry said.
Iran’s
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has underscored that Iran is the
anchor of stability and security in the region and not the land of velvet or
colorful coup, slamming foreign intervention by some Western countries in Iran.
In
a phone call with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs
and Security Policy Josep Borrell on Saturday, the Iranian foreign minister
said that “the death of the late Mahsa Amini is painful for all of us,”
however, he pointed out that this issue is just regarded as a pretext for
(intervention of) some western authorities.
The
Iranian minister reassured that peaceful protests and demands are different
from riots, pointing to the West-backed violent but limited riots that have
been taking place in some Iranian cities.
Iran
mourned the death of Mahsa Amini, a young Iranian who died at a hospital in
Tehran three days after she collapsed in police custody. Iranians have held
protests over the issue. But some extremist elements derailed the protests and
incited violence against security forces. Western-backed media outlets have
also encouraged violence. Iran says it will not allow interference in its own
internal affairs.
Parliament
probe: Amini’s death not related to assault, battery
Meanwhile,
an investigative report by the Iranian Parliament has concluded that Amini’s
death was not linked to physical assault and battery.
According
to the report, the 22‐year‐old woman was neither assaulted during her transfer
to the police center in the capital Tehran, where she fell into a coma nor hit
while being held there.
The
findings, however, question the effectiveness of the first medical response she
received.
The
report asserts that the crowd amassing outside the police station could have
delayed her transfer to a nearby medical center.
The
parliament report has called on those who jumped to conclusions about the cause
of Amini's death to rectify their position or face prosecution.
It
says the United States, the Israeli regime, and their acolytes took advantage
of such hasty judgments to stir up unrest.
Source:
Press TV
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