Supreme Court Ruling On Divorced Women Seeking Alimony Is Against Shariah Law: Muslim Personal Law Board

New Age Islam News Bureau

15 July 2024

muslim women

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·         Supreme Court Ruling On Divorced Women Seeking Alimony Is Against Shariah Law: Muslim Personal Law Board

·         11th-century Chora Istanbul Church Reopens as Mosque with Medieval Mosaics and Frescoes Intact

·         Some Nigerian Pastors, Imams Live Off Their Churches, Mosques; They’re More Corrupt Than Public Officers –Chairman Crimes Commission

·         Mass Grave of Islamic State Victims Discovered Near Mosul

·         Trump’s Ear Injury Grabs More Headlines Than Murder Of 90 Palestinians In Gaza

 

India

·         'Remains Are of Pre-existing Temple, Mosque Wall Is New': ASI On Disputed Bhojshala-Kamal Maula Complex in MP

·         Muslim Cleric Claims Personal Law Board's Decision On Challenging SC Order On Alimony Should Not Be Hurried

·         Holding Pak Responsible for Terror Not Sufficient, Need To Go For Self-Introspection: Union Minister

·         Police action against clerics in Anantnag over ‘inflammatory’ remarks

·         Karnataka doctor booked for alleged communal post against Muslims, says his account hacked

·         3 militants killed in Kupwara as Army foils infiltration attempt

·         Kashmir ‘Martyrs Day’: Marches foiled, leaders claim ‘house arrest’

·         Ensure foolproof security for Muharram: IGP Kashmir to officers

·         Jammu and Kashmir: Three terrorists killed as army foils infiltration bid along Line of Control in Keran

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Europe

·         Russian broadcasters to boycott Paris Olympics — media

·         Russian military liberates another Donbass village

·         Zelensky ‘increasingly paranoid’ – Reuters

·         Kremlin addresses Trump assassination attempt

·         European cities prime targets for Russian missiles – Moscow

·         Russian forces strike Ukrainian explosives plant

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Africa

·         Over 60 Boko Haram Insurgents and Families Surrender to MNJTF in Cameroon and Niger

·         277 Boko Haram Captives Freed, Returned to State Authorities by Nigerian Army

·         Northern Muslim Clerics Warn Sokoto Govt Against Removing Sultan

·         Rwanda prepares to vote in poll expected to be swept by Kagame

·         Shiites: Police Ban Illegal Protests in Kaduna

·         Abducted Kaduna Journalists Regain Freedom

·         DSS raids Niger community in search of Boko Haram bandits

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Mideast

·         Palestinian President Abbas Blames Hamas For Continuing War In Gaza

·         New administration’s foreign policy to pursue Islamic Revolution values’

·         UN official says worst scenes of Gaza war witnessed at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis

·         Syrians vote for their next parliament, which may consider allowing Assad to extend his rule

·         Gaza civil defense says 15 killed in Israel strike on Gaza school

·         Iranians Mourning Imam Hussein’s Martyrdom On Tasua

·         Islamic Jihad: Zionist enemy wants to twist resistance arm with massacres

·         Zionist settlers renew incursion into Al-Aqsa Mosque courtyards

·         Islamic Resistance targets enemy leadership headquarters in “Ayelet”

·         Najafis in Iran’s Qom mourn Imam Hussein’s martyrdom by torch-carrying rituals

·         As war rages, Palestinian culture stifled in Israel

·         Egypt condemns Israeli airstrikes on Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis

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North America

·         CAIR Condemns Two New Israeli Massacres of Palestinians in Gaza at UN School, Destroyed Mosque

·         Biden Ignoring Black Woman Supporter Rekindles Debate On Racism In US Politics

·         US must never be ‘a killing field’ – Biden

·         ‘One in a million’ PHOTO shows bullet passing Trump

·         Law enforcement officials say bomb-making materials found in vehicle, home of Trump shooter

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Pakistan

·         Police ‘Arrest’ Imran Over Several May 9 Cases

·         Commuters suffer as TLP continues sit-in in Rawalpindi

·         Ministry to facilitate work permits for Pakistanis in Iraq

·         Governors, CM attend Dawoodi Bohra's Muharram congregation

·         Imran, Bushra sent on 8-day physical remand in Toshakhana reference

·         Political analysts share two cents on iddat case ruling

·         Islamabad, Washington to convene joint 'Law Enforcement Dialogue' in October

·         Security forces foil cowardly terrorist attack on Bannu Cantt

·         World Youth Skills Day being observed today

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South Asia

·         Intl community yet to keep promise to lift sanctions on IEA officials, Mujahid

·         Pakistan always creating challenges during Afghanistan’s export season

·         China to provide nearly $14 million in aid to Afghanistan

·         Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi Reaffirms Support for Private Sector Growth and Investment

·         Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Kabir Chairs First Meeting of High Commission to Combat Narcotics

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Southeast Asia

·         Jokowi’s Religious Mining Rule Divides Indonesian’s Largest Islamic Organization

·         Govt to expedite Syariah Judges’ Remuneration Act - PM Anwar

·         Conference of Rulers wants careful drafting of RUU355 on Shariah punishments to avoid perception of haste or weakness, says PM Anwar

·         'Anti-Islam' jibe against Rayer earns Pendang MP three-day suspension

·         Johari, Brownlee discuss efforts to strengthen Malaysia-New Zealand ties

·         Pendang MP ejected from Dewan Rakyat for anti-Islam remark

·         Home Ministry monitors digital, braille Quran publications - Saifuddin

·         World Hokkien music festival platform for Malaysia-China cultural exchange

·         Pendang MP suspended for three days from Dewan Rakyat for calling Jelutong rep Rayer ‘anti-Islam’

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Arab World

·         Prince Faisal meets President Erdogan, Hakan Fidan during visit to Istanbul to discuss Saudi-Turkish ties

·         Zest for Life: Disabled Saudi Artist Finds Expression In His Work

·         Masam 7 continues Saudi Arabia’s support of Yemeni people

·         Saudi Justice Ministry issues over 330,000 electronic reconciliation documents

·         Weqaa identifies the most invasive plants found in the Kingdom

·         Saudi crown prince receives message from Emir of Qatar

Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau

URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/supreme-court-personal-law-shariah-law-muslim/d/132711

 

Supreme Court Ruling On Divorced Women Seeking Alimony Is Against Shariah Law: Muslim Personal Law Board

15 July 2024

muslim women

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The All India Muslim Personal Law Board on Sunday stated that they were against the recent Supreme Court verdict on maintenance to Muslim women as it is 'against the Islamic law(Shariah)' and added that their president will explore measures to overturn the ruling.

The board also decided to challenge in the Uttarakhand High Court the Uniform Civil Code brought in the state.

The AIMPLB Working Committee organised a meeting in Delhi to discuss the recent Supreme Court ruling - that a Muslim woman can seek maintenance from her husband under Section 125 of the CrPC and said the "religion-neutral" provision is applicable to all married women irrespective of their religion.

In a statement, issued after the meeting, the AIMPLB said, "The Board emphasised that the Holy Prophet had mentioned that amongst all permissible deeds the most abhorred is divorce in the sight of Allah, hence it is desirable to continue the marriage by applying all permissible measures to safeguard it and follow several guidelines mentioned in Holy Quran about it."

"However, if married life becomes difficult to maintain, then divorce was prescribed as a solution to mankind," it said.

The board observed that this judgment will create further problems to women who have successfully come out of their painful relationship, the statement said.

The AIMPLB authorised its president, Khalid Saifullah Rahmani, to initiate all possible measures "legal, constitutional and democratic"? to ensure that this decision by the Supreme Court is "rolled back", AIMPLB spokesperson SQR Ilyas said at a press conference here.

Five other resolutions, including one against the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), were also passed during the meeting of the working committee of the AIMPLB.

Source: outlookindia.com

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https://www.outlookindia.com/national/sc-ruling-on-divorced-women-seeking-alimony-is-against-shariah-law-muslim-personal-law-board

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11th-century Chora Istanbul Church Reopens as Mosque With Medieval Mosaics and Frescoes Intact

Jennifer Hattam

The Chora Church was reopened as a mosque in May 2024 with nearly all of its Byzantine frescoes and mosaics visible. (all photos Jennifer Hattam/Hyperallergi

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ISTANBUL — When the 11th-century Chora Church was ordered to be reconverted into a mosque in 2020, many feared for the fate of its richly decorated interior, which features some of the world’s finest Late Byzantine-era mosaics and frescoes. After a tense four-year wait while the building was closed for restoration, it reopened on May 6 as the Kariye Mosque with its treasured works of Christian art — except for a handful of pieces in the small central nave that has been set aside for the men’s prayer hall, off-limits to non-Muslims and women — again open to public view.

The reopening of both Chora and the world-famous Hagia Sophia to Islamic prayers after decades as museums was driven by Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who hailed his latter move as a victory for Muslims worldwide and has used references to the Byzantine Empire to disparage his political opponents. A continuation of the Roman Empire, the Byzantines ruled over an expansive realm from 330 to 1453, when their capital Constantinople (previously Byzantium, now Istanbul) fell to the Ottomans.

“There’s a Byzantine layer under everything in Istanbul — you can’t understand the city without it — but Byzantium is not always seen as part of Istanbul’s story,” art historian Sedat Bornovalı, an associate professor in Architecture at Istanbul Nişantaşı University who is also the former head of the Istanbul Chamber of Tourist Guides, told Hyperallergic.

Visible traces of the once-dominant Byzantine presence in Istanbul have been largely lost to time and urban development over the centuries; others have been repurposed, forgotten, or worse. The historically formidable city walls were subjected to a botched restoration in the 1980s. A luxury hotel was built over the remains of the Great Palace of Constantinople. Until a few years ago, the ruins of the Church of St. Polyeuctus, which once rivaled Hagia Sophia in grandeur, were almost swallowed up by trash-strewn weeds.

Today, St. Polyeuctus, the city walls, the Valens Aqueduct, and other Byzantine sites are being restored, part of a flurry of culture heritage projects led by the opposition-run Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality since it took office in 2019, promising a more all-embracing approach to the city’s past. But the municipality has no authority over Istanbul’s many Byzantine-churches-turned-Ottoman-mosques like Chora and Hagia Sophia, which are overseen by either the Directorate of Religious Affairs if they are active mosques or the Directorate General of Foundations if they are not.

The church of the fifth-century Stoudios Monastery, by some accounts the most important monastic foundation of the Byzantine era, is among the properties rousing the most concern among heritage experts.

“The plan of the Foundations Directorate is to ‘restore’ the building as a mosque, which means a very heavy restoration which will result in the loss of its original character,” Professor Engin Akyürek, the director of the Sevgi Gönül Center for Byzantine Studies at Istanbul’s Koç University, told Hyperallergic.

Informational signs on the hoarding around the site refer to the project almost exclusively as the İmrahor İlyas Bey Mosque, as it became known after the Ottoman conquest, with the monastery getting only a brief mention.

A similar flattening of multilayered history has already happened at many churches-turned-mosques, as well as at the Palace of the Porphyrogenitus (now known as Tekfur Palace), which was built into Istanbul’s land walls in the late 13th century. Its restoration under the previous Istanbul municipality administration resulted in “quite an ideological repurposing, as if it did not exist before the Ottomans,” said Bornovalı. “Turning it into a museum of [Ottoman] tiles, that are not even from there, was not a good choice.”

Ideological considerations have long played a role in what gets excavated, researched, preserved, exhibited, and restored in Turkey. When the Turkish Republic was established in 1923, its founding President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and other leading figures “had this Turkish history thesis which skipped all of the history of Byzantium,” Barış Altan, an architect from Turkey specializing in cultural heritage, told Hyperallergic.

“They were trying to find their roots in the Sumerians and the Hittites, and establish this idea that Turks had lived in Anatolia since ancient times,” said Altan, who is currently on the academic staff of the architectural conservation department at the Brandenburg University of Technology in Germany.

Research into Byzantium was mostly left to Western scholars in that early 20th century period, while the focus in the Erdoğan era has been on reclaiming the glories of the Ottoman past. Still, Altan thinks that the idea of a systematic neglect of Byzantine heritage is overblown, noting the number of Byzantine excavations happening around Turkey and the increase in young Turkish scholars working in the field.

Outside highly politicized symbols like Hagia Sophia, he says issues related to Byzantine sites are more likely due to problems besetting all of cultural heritage in Turkey: limited funding, a lack of strategic planning between multilayered and sometimes opposing stakeholders, and a “touristic understanding of culture” that has often led to destructive interventions aimed at making historic sites more attractive to income-generating visitors.

National or local government authorities that are financing restoration projects also sometimes exert pressure to speed up “work that actually requires time and patience,” added Akyürek. “They are always in a hurry to make their deeds visible to the public.”

Source: hyperallergic.com

Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story

https://hyperallergic.com/933289/istanbul-chora-church-reopens-as-mosque-with-medieval-mosaics-and-frescoes-intact/

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Some Nigerian Pastors, Imams Live Off Their Churches, Mosques; They’re More Corrupt Than Public Officers –Chairman Crimes Commission

July 14, 2024

Olukoyede, who spoke at a Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) leadership conference in Lagos on Friday, disclosed that some religious organisations are more corrupt than public offices.

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The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, says the agency recently recovered “many millions from a religious organisation."

Olukoyede, who spoke at a Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) leadership conference in Lagos on Friday, disclosed that some religious organisations are more corrupt than public offices.

Speaking about integrity, the EFCC boss said, "Upon my appointment, I reflected on my role as Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Commission. I recognised that one of our greatest challenges is integrity. Without integrity, corruption flourishes. I asked myself, how can I make a difference from my predecessors?

"The first unprecedented step I took was to publicly declare my assets, setting a new standard. No one mandated me; it was a personal commitment to transparency. I challenged every staff member to do the same because fairness demands clean hands.”

According to him, despite pressures, he upheld the law and rejected improper demands, even from influential figures.

"Though I was warned my stance might jeopardise my position, I remained steadfast. My conviction stems from faith in my principles and a belief in a greater purpose beyond current circumstances.

"Some of the things we do that may compromise us, we will run away from it. So, three weeks after a panel was set up—of course, some of us who followed what happened earlier in 2020, including you, understand what I'm talking about—my name was all over the place, left, right, and centre.”

Olukoyede said he was under investigation for two and a half years and suspended for doing nothing. At the end of the day, he said he was given a clean bill.

“So, if you are here, you are a public officer, you are holding a position of trust, know that one day you'll be called upon to account for your deeds. If it's not here on earth, it will be beyond,” he said.

He noted that he was soon back as the chairman of the same organisation where he was subjected to ridicule before he was found to be clean.

He said, "I recognise that there are many senior pastors here, our daddies and mummies, captains of industries. In the course of my work in the anti-corruption environment, I've had cause to convict pastors.

"It's not a palatable story, but I need to tell you that I've had cause to convict Imams and other religious leaders.”

“Just because someone is called a pastor, Christian, Muslim, or Imam does not insulate them from corruption.

"It saddens me that one of the pastors we convicted belongs to my own denomination. Yes, it might not be a pleasant story to tell, but it's the reality. How many of us can sincerely ask ourselves this question: Can I defend everything I possess today as a pastor, public officer, leader of opinion, or captain of industry?

"We can stand here and speak grammar from morning to evening, but that doesn't mean we are clean. Meanwhile, these are people that occupy front positions in the religious centres.”

He said in other countries, people don't gather in churches or mosques to pray five or ten times a day. He said, “They don't even know Jesus Christ or Muhammad, but they do the right thing. They follow the law, they obey the rules, they comply.

"Let's check ourselves. Are we really God-fearing people? Do we understand what it means to be a Christian or a Muslim, or are we just being religious?

"Those of us at the forefront of this battle, when we make one or two moves, the same people who are supposed to support us begin to throw banter on social media. Look, is it not a shame? Yes, we are not perfect, but when we see something that's going towards doing the right thing, are we not supposed to support it as people who are God-fearing?

“In a particular state, we carried out an operation. We arrested 227 people. As I'm talking to you, 113 were indicted. I've already filed charges against over 80.”

He said in his short time in office, he had had cause to arraign two ex-governors for fraudulent activities running into multiple billions of naira, and recommended several people to be suspended from office.

He said, "Some of you must have read on the pages of newspaper about tens of billions (of naira) that have been recovered in eight months. Tens of billions—I don't want to mention it directly here. I'm not completely proud of that because, looking inward, by virtue of my experience in that environment, I know for you to have recovered even 1 billion, at least 10 billion must have been stolen.

"Is it not a shame that some of us will come out and carry placards when we are asking somebody who has held office for eight years to come and account for what they did? It's shameful.”

He said that “not until we realise and we look inward that we are the cause of our own problems in Nigeria, there will be no solution”.

He pleaded with religious leaders to use their podiums to preach honesty and to go even further by demonstrating it for their congregations to see.

He said, "Just this past week, I've had to recover how many millions from a religious organisation. You appoint a pastor and they use the opportunity to become a big man. We don't even know what you are doing to earn legitimate wealth on your own.

“You live off the people's money, off the ministry, off the church, off the mosque. You can't even explain the source of your wealth. If you, as a religious person are not accountable, how can you expect a public officer to be accountable?”

Regarding his assertion that some religious organisations are more corrupt than public offices, he said, "I have evidence to support that. It may not be expedient for me to share all of it now, but let us go home with that. You look at the speck in somebody else's eye, meanwhile, there is a log in your own eye.

"We preach about these things on the altar, but right under our noses, the same things happen. Sometimes we try to cover it up. Let us deal with our own house, but when it is a public officer, we all start throwing accusations. Are we doing justice to this country?"

"I can speak like this because I'm an insider too, and I also belong to the other side. Now, you know, it's only a foolish person who would condemn their own constituency. But again, the truth must be told; that's part of integrity,” he said.

Source: saharareporters.com

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https://saharareporters.com/2024/07/14/some-nigerian-pastors-imams-live-their-churches-mosques-theyre-more-corrupt-public#google_vignette

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Mass Grave of Islamic State Victims Discovered Near Mosul

July 14, 2024

@Wikimedia Commons

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Iraqi authorities have uncovered a mass grave containing the remains of individuals believed to be victims of the Islamic State (IS) group. The grave is estimated to hold at least 140 bodies and was found approximately 70 kilometers west of Mosul in northern Iraq. Mosul served as the de facto capital of IS's self-proclaimed caliphate.

At the zenith of its power, IS controlled extensive territories in Syria and Iraq. The United Nations estimates that the jihadists left behind more than 200 mass graves in these regions, which may contain nearly 12,000 bodies of missing individuals.

Iraqi authorities have periodically announced the discovery of such graves since the era of the Islamic State, as well as from the time of Saddam Hussein. However, officials in Baghdad have noted that the identification process for the remains is slow, costly, and complex.

Source: novinite.com

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https://www.novinite.com/articles/227161/Mass+Grave+of+Islamic+State+Victims+Discovered+Near+Mosul#google_vignette

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Trump’s ear injury grabs more headlines than murder of 90 Palestinians in Gaza

14 July 2024

By Press TV Website Staff

Donald Trump (L) after the shooting incident in Pennsylvania on Saturday. One of the victims of the Khan Younis massacre (R) by the Israeli regime on Saturday.

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At a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, days ahead of his confirmation as the Republican presidential nominee for the third time, Donald Trump survived what appeared to be an assassination bid.

A barrage of gunshots was heard, which followed scenes of panic and commotion in the crowd and the former US president with his bloodied face being surrounded by Secret Service.

“I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin," Trump wrote on his social media site after the incident that became the new fodder for mainstream media.

Social media has since been abuzz with netizens commenting on the apparent assassination attempt on Trump and comparing it with what Trump himself and other US presidents have done for years.

Many have also pointed to the US-backed genocidal war on Gaza, given that the attack on Trump came barely hours after the latest massacre in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis city.

Dan Dohen, a journalist and filmmaker, in a post on X, formerly Twitter, reminded people of what Trump did as the American president, including ordering the assassination of Iran’s top anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani in January 2020.

“As president, Trump was mostly faithful to the permanent war uniparty's agenda. He ordered the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, sanctioned Russia, sent lethal weapons to Ukraine and escalated the cold war with China,” Cohen wrote.

“The US has no problem assassinating foreign political figures deemed a threat to its agenda. Only the most naïve and ignorant people think that can't happen at home.”

Elijah Magnier, a veteran journalist, also took to his X handle to draw a parallel between what happened to Trump on Saturday and what Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have to endure every day.

“Donald Trump got a bullet through his right ear, and the shooter was killed, and the world was hit by a tsunami,” Magnier wrote.

“The Palestinians get thousands of bullets every day, and the shooters are free, supported by the West, and the world doesn't move an inch.”

Sarah, a prominent social media influencer, had a telling take on the incident related to Trump.

“Mass media is more concerned about Trump being shot in the ear than the 400+ Palestinian civilians murdered and maimed by Israel in Gaza today,” she wrote on her X handle.

“Tells you everything you need to know.”

Denijal Jegic, a Lebanese academic and researcher, in a post on X also called out the double standards of the “collective West” vis a vis Trump incident and the genocide in Gaza.

“The collective West is expressing “thoughts”, “shock” and beautiful wishes to Trump while continuing to massacre more than 180,000 Palestinians in Gaza. Also no contradiction here,” he wrote, sharing screenshots of tweets by top world leaders over the Trump shooting.

Chen Weihua, a Chinese journalist and China Daily EU reporter expressed “shock” over EU leaders responding “more swiftly and strongly” to the assassination attempt on Trump than “mass killings of Palestinians in Gaza.”

Eva Karene Bartlett, a writer and activist, said the incident involving the former US president has gotten and will continue to get more media coverage and outrage than nearly 300 days of genocide in Gaza.

“I would add. You reap what you sow. Any chaos in the US that may ensue is what the US successive regimes and deep state have fomented globally for almost 200 years of savage neocolonialism that has slaughtered millions,” she wrote.

Lebanese journalist for The Cradle, Sharmine Narwine, said it’s “amusing” to hear Americans “express outrage over assassinations” in response to the news about Trump’s assassination bid.

Pertinently, it came hours after close to 100 Palestinians were killed in a missile strike that targeted an area crowded with more than 80,000 displaced people in Khan Younis city.

Almost 38,500 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli-American genocidal war against Palestinians in the besieged Palestinian territory over the past nine months.

Source: presstv.ir

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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2024/07/14/729297/trump-ear-injury-grabs-more-headlines-murder-90-palestinians-gaza

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India

 

'Remains Are Of Pre-existing Temple, Mosque Wall Is New': ASI On Disputed Bhojshala-Kamal Maula Complex in MP

JULY 15, 2024

The Archaeological Survey of India on Monday (July 15) said a scientific investigation of the controversial Bhojshala-Kamal Maula Masjid complex suggests that the remains are of a pre-existing temple. It said the pre-existing structure dates back to the Paramara period, which was a hub of literary and educational activities.

In this temple-mosque dispute in tribal-dominated Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said its study of the site showed that the mosque wall, or ‘mihrab’, is a “new structure” as it is made of a different material than the entire structure. It further said sculptures of Hindu gods have been found at the site, while Sanskrit inscriptions were damaged and reused for the floor and wall of the mosque.

Here are details from the ASI report:

Sanskrit inscriptions damaged, reused for floor and wall of mosque: A large number of large-sized inscriptions in Sanskrit and Prakrit were damaged and reused. These large slabs of fine quality of stones were reused on the floor or the wall veneer by chiselling written surfaces. A number of inscriptions from the pre-existing structures were noticed and copied for the existing structure.

Pillars of pre-existing temple reused in mosque: A variety of pillars and pilasters of different sizes and designs are reused to construct colonnades of the present structure. For achieving the desired height, two pieces of shafts were put one above the other. The art and architecture suggest that they were originally part of temples. For their reuse in the existing structure, figures of deities and humans carved on them were mutilated.

Sculptures of Ganesha, other Hindu gods found on site: A total of 94 sculptures, sculptural fragments, and architectural members with sculptural depiction were noted in the investigation. They are made of basalt, marble, schist, soft stone, sandstone and limestone. Images carved on these included Ganesha, Brahma with his consorts, Narasimha, Bhairava, other gods and goddesses, human and animal figures. Images of animals in different mediums include lion, elephant, horse, dog, monkey, snake, tortoise, swan and bird. Mythical and composite figures include a variety of kirtimukhas, human face, lion face, composite face, vyala of different shapes among others. As human and animal figures are not permitted at a mosque, such images have been chiselled out or defaced. Such attempts can be seen on pillars and pilasters in western and eastern colonnades; on lintel in the western colonnade; entrance of southeast cell and so on.

Source: news18.com

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https://www.news18.com/india/remains-are-of-pre-existing-temple-mosque-wall-is-new-asi-on-disputed-bhojshala-kamal-maula-complex-in-mp-8966352.html

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Muslim Cleric Claims Personal Law Board's Decision On Challenging SC Order On Alimony Should Not Be Hurried

Jul 15, 2024

Aligarh (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 15 (ANI): After the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB (/topic/aimplb)) said that they will challenge the Supreme Court's latest verdict, allowing divorced women to claim maintenance after the period of "Iddat", there have been divergent views from the Muslim community. Cleric Chaudhary Ifraheem Husain (/topic/chaudhary-ifraheem-husain) said that the decision to review the SC Order should not be taken in a hurry

"The way the All India Muslim Personal Law Board wants to review the decision of the Supreme Court I think it should not be hurried. This is because this is linked to Sharia, women and humanity. On one hand, the Muslim Personal Law Board says that Shariat is not applicable in India and on the other hand they say that according to Shariat those who have got talaq should not get alimony. These are contradictory," Husain said speaking to ANI.

Sadaf Fatima claimed that the AIMPLB (/topic/aimplb) wants all laws to be for men and they intend to subjugate women.

"This (Supreme Court judgement) is correct. And I do not want the Muslim Personal Law Board to oppose it. This is because according to Shariah law, it is equal to men and women. But the Muslim Personal Law Board wants all laws to be for men and women should be subjugated. I think the Supreme Court's decision is right," Fatima said while speaking to ANI.

"In Islam, there are specifications about how the couple should behave in a marriage. Husbands have the responsibility to take care of their wives in every way...They have a religious responsibility to take care of her in all aspects till the time she is your wife," Faruqui said speaking about the duties of a married couple as per Islamic law.

Speaking about divorce, Faruqui said that once the talaq is in place the contract comes to an end.

"Now when for one reason or the other, the husband-wife cannot stay together, whether the wife takes khula herself or the husband gives them talaq. Now both of them are free from their contractual obligation.  The kind of facilities, ownership, and responsibilities, both partners are bound by their contract. If anyone is not following these, there should be criminal charges against him and he would be punished according to religious law as well," he said.

Speaking about the duties of the husband to take care of his wife, Faruqui said, "From the Islamic law, as long as you are bound by the pious relationship of nikah it is the duty of the husband to look after everything about the wife, even though she has her own source of income."

The AIMPLB (/topic/aimplb) asserted that the Supreme Court's judgement doesn't augur well "with human reasoning that the man is held responsible for maintaining his ex-wives when the marriage itself is non-existent".

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB (/topic/aimplb)) on Sunday adopted a resolution stating that the recent Supreme Court judgment on the maintenance of Muslim divorcee women was "against the Islamic law (Shariah)".

The board also authorised its president to initiate all possible measures to ensure that this decision is "rolled back". (ANI)

Source: aninews.in

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https://www.aninews.in/news/national/general-news/muslim-cleric-claims-personal-law-boards-decision-on-challenging-sc-order-on-alimony-should-not-be-hurried20240715133614/

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Holding Pak Responsible For Terror Not Sufficient, Need To Go For Self-Introspection: Union Minister

July 13, 2024

Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday said holding only Pakistan responsible for the recent spike in terror activities in Jammu and Kashmir is not sufficient as he called for self-introspection to end illegal activities, which benefit terrorism in the Union Territory.

He said the government is implementing a new strategy, which includes deployment of army in the higher reaches to ensure that peace is restored within one week in Kathua, where five army personnel were killed and an equal number injured in an ambush by the terrorists on July 8.

“The recent terror incidents (in Jammu region) carried out by infiltrators from Pakistan is condemnable. But repeatedly saying that Pakistan has done this is not sufficient. We have to ask ourselves and inner-souls what we have done to end social evils which are benefitting terrorism,” the minister of state in the prime minister’s office told reporters in Kathua.

The minister was in Kathua, part of his Udhampur parliamentary constituency, for a ‘Public Darbar’ – his first after getting elected for the third term – to meet the public and resolve their issues. Kathua Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Minhas and other officers were also present.

The terrorists carried out five attacks within a span of 30 days from June 9 in Reasi, Doda and Kathua districts in otherwise peaceful Jammu region, killing 15 persons, including seven pilgrims and six security personnel and leaving many others injured. Five terrorists were also killed by the security forces.

“The government is already acting tough (against terrorism) but society has also its own responsibility. Repeating that they have come from Pakistan is not sufficient. Pakistan has been doing mischief since 1947 and will continue to do so. It will not listen but the question is what we are doing and we have to ask this to ourselves,” Singh said.

While warning the local terror facilitators of stern action, he urged the society to remain vigilant and join the government’ efforts to deal with the menace of terrorism in the region.

He said drug trafficking, illegal mining, bovine smuggling along with emerging new fashion of encroaching government and poor man’s land is a vicious cycle which somewhat facilitates terrorism and giving bad name to Kathua.

The minister said that he was in constant touch with the home ministry and also met Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi to discuss the prevailing security situation in Jammu in the aftermath of the recent attacks.

“When pressure mounted (on terrorists) in Kashmir, they shifted the focus to Jammu. Our effort was to bring in the army while paramilitary forces are already there. After the deployment of the army, a new strategy is being chalked out (to fight terrorism),” he said.

Singh said the army has taken over positions in the hills so that the terrorists are not able to carry out further attacks.

“Several other measures have also been taken and J&K Police are in full support. The Kathua SSP (senior superintendent of Police) has been camping in the hills for the past four days and the situation will be normal within a week,” he said.

Referring to the killing of a village defence guard (VDG) member in Dudu-Basantgarh in Udhampur in April by the terrorists, the minister said the people were demoralized but setting up of army posts there boosted their morale.

“The revival of VDG is in progress and they will be cared for better than previously,” he said.

Singh said terrorism is linked to illegal activities like drug abuse, which is ruining the lives of youth.

“Anybody linked with illegal crushers, unauthorised mining or land encroachment will not be spared, no matter how influential he thinks of himself or whatever public clout he thinks he enjoys,” he said.

The minister said nobody has a right to indulge in illegal mining and erode the foundations of our precious bridges like Keediyan Gandyal.

Similarly, nobody has the right to earn ill-gotten wealth by turning others’ children into drug addicts because tomorrow his own children may also fall prey to such addiction, Singh said.

“Exemplary and punitive action will be held out against those indulging in these crimes, irrespective of their political affiliations or so-called influence,” he warned.

The minister informed the local administration has acted against 25 illegal crushers and a fresh list of nearly a dozen such crushers is being prepared to take strict action against them as per the law.

Singh flagged the increasing incidents of cattle smuggling in the area, vowing to deal with the crime with an iron hand.

The minister said the journey of development undertaken by the Modi government has transformed the landscape of the Udhampur-Kathua-Doda parliamentary constituency in the last 10 years.

“Milestones of development can be seen at every two kilometres of the constituency,” he said. Singh said the last decade of the Modi government was dedicated to overcoming shortcomings of the previous regimes.

“Now, the government is focussed on consolidating the gains of the past decade in its fresh term,” he pledged.

Source: indianexpress.com

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Police action against clerics in Anantnag over ‘inflammatory’ remarks

July 13, 2024

Two clerics have been “bound down” in Anantnag district for allegedly using inflammatory language targeting a specific community, police said on Saturday.

The clerics were identified as Mushtaq Ahmad Veeri and Abdul Rashid Dawood.

The remarks made were brought to the attention of the Anantnag Police, which promptly initiated proceedings against the two, a police officer said Bounding down entails the accused must give an undertaking that they will indulge in good conduct and refrain from committing any offence.

The officer urged the public to report any instance of hate speech or inflammatory language to the authorities immediately.

Source: indianexpress.com

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Karnataka doctor booked for alleged communal post against Muslims, says his account hacked

July 15, 2024

Karnataka - The Udupi town police filed a suo motu case against the doctor following the outrage.The Udupi town police filed a suo motu case against the doctor following the outrage.

The Udupi district police in Karnataka booked a doctor on Sunday over his alleged communal post against Muslims on X.

The accused, Dr Keerthan Upadhya, works in a private hospital in Udupi’s Brahmavara. On July 13, a person asked on X, “If you could remove one thing from this world, what would it be?” Dr Upadhyan replied, “Muslim community.”

Soon after the post went viral drawing public ire, the doctor deleted it and claimed his account was hacked. “I had stopped using Twitter a few months back and realized something unwanted was posted. Someone was using my account. I have changed my password, login details, and everything related to the account. My account was hacked. Apologies to all here.”

Many on social media demanded action against the doctor over his post, sharing screenshots even though the post had been deleted.

The Udupi town police filed a suo motu case against the doctor following the outrage.

Source: indianexpress.com

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3 militants killed in Kupwara as Army foils infiltration attempt

July 15, 2024

According to sources, the Army on Sunday spotted a group of militants trying to sneak into the Valley in Keran sector in Kupwara. (Representative/ Express file photo by Shuaib Masoodi)According to sources, the Army on Sunday spotted a group of militants trying to sneak into the Valley in Keran sector. (Representative/ Express file photo by Shuaib Masoodi)

The Army on Sunday said it killed three militants trying to infiltrate into the Kashmir Valley, on the Line of Control (LoC) in Keran sector of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara.

This was the first major infiltration attempt in the Keran sector this year and comes less than a month after the Army said it killed an infiltrating militant in the Uri sector of Baramulla.

“Three terrorists have been eliminated in the ongoing anti-infiltration operation on the LoC in Keran sector,” the Army’s Chinar Corps said in a post on X. It also said that weapons and “other war-like stores” had been recovered and that the operation was ongoing.

According to sources, the Army on Sunday spotted a group of militants trying to sneak into the Valley in Keran sector. When Army personnel challenged the militants, they opened fire, after which the Army retaliated and killed three of them, the sources said.

The slain militants have not yet been identified.

While Keran sector had once been a route favoured by infiltrators, in recent years, the area has witnessed relative calm. Owing to the peace on the Keran border and fewer infiltration attempts, the government last year opened the border area for tourism. Over the last two years, Keran has been a hit with both local and domestic tourists.

An infiltration attempt had taken place less than a month ago in Baramulla as well. On June 22, the Army said it killed an infiltrator while a group of militants tried to enter the Valley through the Gohallan village in Baramulla’s Uri sector. In April this year, two infiltrating militants were killed in a gunfight in the same sector.

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Kashmir ‘Martyrs Day’: Marches foiled, leaders claim ‘house arrest’

July 13, 2024

Jammu and Kashmir administration Saturday foiled the plans of mainstream political parties, to pay homage to the 22 Kashmiri people killed by the army of a Dogra ruler on this day in 1931, by preventing them from taking out marches and putting several leaders under house arrest.

Several political leaders, including PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, claimed authorities have put them under house arrest to prevent them from visiting the ‘martyrs’ graveyard’ to pay homage.

There was no official word on the claims made by the politicians.

Mehbooba, a former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, alleged that she was put under “house arrest” at her residence in Khimber in the outskirts of the city. “The gates of my house have been locked up yet again to prevent me from visiting Mazar e Shuhada – an enduring symbol of Kashmir’s resistance and resilience against authoritarianism, oppression and injustice,” she said in a post on X.

The PDP chief said the “sacrifices of our martyrs is a testament that the spirit of Kashmiri’s cannot be crushed” and added that “today even observing it in remembrance of the protesters martyred on this day has been criminalised.” The politician also lamented the bifurcation of erstwhile state of Jammu and kashmir in a post.

“On 5th August, 2019 J&K was dismembered, disempowered and stripped of everything that was sacrosanct for us. They intend to erase each one of our collective memories,” she said.

“But such assaults will only strengthen our determination to continue the fight for our rights and dignity,” she added.

The Centre had on the day abrogated Article 370 and bifurcated the erstwhile state of J-K into Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

Separatist-turned-mainstream politician and People’s Conference chairman Sajad Lone also claimed that he has been put under house arrest.

“For no reason informed of being under house arrest. I really fail to understand what the administration gets in stopping people from going to the martyrs graveyard,” Lone said on X.

He said people have a right to choose their heroes and “the martyrs are heroes for the people of Kashmir.” The gate of the residence of National Conference’s provincial president, Kashmir, Nasir Aslam Wani, was also locked by police.

“The gate has been locked and police personnel deployed to stop us from going to pay our respects at martyrs’ graves. I don’t understand why. We will always remember their sacrifices,” Wani said. Similar claims were made by the party’s chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq, its youth wing president Salman Sagar, and others.

Earlier in the day, police stopped leaders of the Apni Party from visiting the “martyrs’ graveyard.” Some members of the party, led by their president Altaf Bukhari, tried to march from the party’s Sheikh Bagh office here to the graveyard, around 5 km from Naqshband, but were stopped by police.

Later, the leaders held “fateh” prayers on the road and paid tributes to the 22 Kashmiris. NC activists also tried to take out a march from their party headquarters towards the graveyard, but were stopped by the police.

“Despite our top leadership being under house arrest, our dedicated workers attempted to visit Mazar-e-Shouda to pay their respects, but the police stopped us from reaching the site. Our commitment to their legacy of justice, equality, and truth remains steadfast. Their courage inspires us to continue our struggle for a better future,” The NC said on X.

Police also foiled a march by PDP leaders from their party headquarter. NC vice president Omar Abdullah said from next year, Jammu and Kashmir would mark July 13 to pay homage to the 22 Kashmiri people.

“Another 13th July, Martyr’s Day, another round of locked gates and police excesses to stop people from paying homage to those who sacrificed their lives to establish a just, fair and democratic regime in J-K,” Abdullah said in a post on X.

“Everywhere else in the country these people would have been celebrated but in J-K the administration wants to ignore these sacrifices. This is the last year they will be able to do this. InshaAllah, next year we will mark 13th July with the solemnity and respect this day deserves,” he said.

The Supreme Court has asked the Union government to conclude the process for the assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30 this year.

NC MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi said stopping people from paying their respects was not only a disrespect to the idea of democracy but also a huge and “ugly shift” from the values over which the nation was founded.

Mehdi said the police and administration which used to pay homage “to those brave hearts is now told to block the ways heading towards that graveyard and put locks on the doors of those who want to go and pay their respect to those heroes.” July 13 used to be a public holiday in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and a grand official function was held every year on this day where the chief minister or the governor would be the chief guest.

However, the administration dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020.

On the day, mainstream political leaders also used to visit the “martyrs’ graveyard” to pay homage to the 22 Kashmiris who fell to the bullets of the Dogra army while protesting the rule of Maharaja Hari Singh.

None of that, however, happened this year.

Source: indianexpress.com

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Ensure foolproof security for Muharram: IGP Kashmir to officers

July 13, 2024

Kashmir Inspector General of Police V K Birdi on Saturday directed security forces to increase surveillance and ensure foolproof security arrangements for Muhurram-related events in the valley.

Birdi chaired a security review meeting here which was attended by senior officers from the police force and its Criminal Investigation Department, Intelligence Bureau, Sashastra Seema Bal, Central Reserve Police Force, Border Security Force and Indo-Tibetan Border Police.

The meeting focused on various security arrangements put in place for Muharram during which a large number of religious processions are expected to be taken out in various parts of the valley, officials said.

The security measures related to the challenges in the management of mourning processions, crowd control, traffic regulation and maintenance of law and order during the period were also discussed, they said.

The IGP Kashmir directed the officers to have foolproof security arrangements in place to ensure the peaceful conduct of the events. Birdi also directed them to increase surveillance on “anti-national elements” and “mischief mongers”.

He advised the officers to visit imambargahs and mosques to review the security arrangements and conduct coordination meetings with both Sunni and Shia community members.

The IGP Kashmir stressed engagement with the Shia community leaders and members, seeking their cooperation for the safe and peaceful conduct of all the events.

He also directed the district heads to devise comprehensive security strategies and route plans in their respective districts to prevent any untoward event.

During the meeting, the officers also briefed the IGP Kashmir on the ongoing annual Amarnath yatra and its status.

Source: indianexpress.com

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Jammu and Kashmir: Three terrorists killed as army foils infiltration bid along Line of Control in Keran

14.07.24

Three unidentified terrorists were killed on Sunday as army foiled an infiltration bid along the Line of Control (LoC) in Keran sector of Jammu and Kashmir.

The army said the anti-infiltration operation was going on till last reports.

"03x Terrorists have been eliminated in the ongoing anti-infiltration operation on the #LoC in Keran Sector, alongwith recovery of weapons and other war-like stores," Srinagar-based Chinar Corps of the Army posted on X.

Source: telegraphindia.com

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Europe

 

Russian broadcasters to boycott Paris Olympics — media

14 Jul, 2024

Russian television channels and streaming services will not air this year’s Olympic Games, taking place from July 26 to August 11 in Paris, Russian media outlets reported on Saturday.

The IOC initially banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing internationally following the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. In December last year, however, the body removed the blanket ban and ruled that a limited number of individuals from the two countries could take part in the Olympics under a neutral flag. Just 36 Russian athletes are thought to have been approved, but 20 have since refused to take part, citing humiliating conditions.

The IOC also ruled that athletes from both countries would be barred from the traditional parade at the opening ceremony. It is expected to be an open-air event, with athletes traveling on boats down the River Seine for several kilometers, toward the Eiffel Tower.

The IOC also imposed a range of restrictions for qualifying. Athletes who have publicly supported Moscow’s military operation or are in any way linked to the Russian military are not be allowed to take part in the Games.

Major broadcasters such as Channel One Russia and Rossiya 1 have outright refused to show the event “without the flag and anthem of the Russian Federation.” Match TV, however, reportedly planned to purchase broadcasting rights to show selected tournaments featuring Russian participants, but abandoned the idea after wrestlers and judo athletes rejected the IOC invitation to compete.

“We believe that given the suspension of Russian athletes, the event is of little interest to audiences in Russia,” the press service of streaming platform Okko told RBK.

Popular Russian social network VK has also decided against securing digital rights to show the event.

On Saturday, Russian wrestler Shamil Mamedov refused to participate in the Paris Olympics. Out of ten approved wrestlers, he was the only one who was considering competing.

Earlier this month, several high-ranking Russian tennis players including Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov, Daria Kasatkina, Liudmila Samsonova, and Anna Kalinskai declined invitations to compete. The Russian judo federation has also decided against sending athletes to the games.

“The Russian national judo team will not accept the humiliating conditions and will not perform at the Games in Paris,” it said in a statement.

The Paris Summer Olympics is the first event in 40 years to be boycotted by Russia. Previously the USSR snubbed the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles citing “security concerns and chauvinistic sentiments and an anti-Soviet hysteria being whipped up in the United States.”

Source: rt.com

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Russian military liberates another Donbass village

14 Jul, 2024

The Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday announced the liberation of Urozhaynoye, a large village located in the southwest of the Donetsk People’s Republic.

The village has seen intense combat over the past few weeks, with Moscow’s forces gradually seizing control of the settlement, which had been home to around 1,000 residents before the conflict.

“As a result of successful actions, units of the ‘Vostok’ [’East’] grouping of troops captured the village of Urozhaynoye, Donetsk People’s Republic, and are currently conducting house-to-house searches and demining,” the ministry said in its daily briefing.

Earlier this week, a video surfaced online of Russian troops hoisting the country’s flag at the ruins of the village’s administration building. Footage gives a glimpse of the widespread destruction sustained by the settlement.

Urozhaynoye was among a handful of locations wrestled by Ukrainian forces from the Russian military amid the long-hyped counteroffensive last year. The push ultimately resulted in a major failure for Kiev, providing little gains coupled with heavy losses in personnel and hardware.

The few gains yielded by the counteroffensive have been largely reversed after the push waned late last year.

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Zelensky ‘increasingly paranoid’ – Reuters

14 Jul, 2024

Vladimir Zelensky is becoming more and more concerned for his life as the conflict between Moscow and Kiev continues, Reuters has reported, in a profile about the Ukrainian politician on Saturday.

Zelensky “has grown increasingly paranoid about suspected Russian attempts to assassinate him and destabilize Ukraine’s leadership,” a senior European official told the agency. “And rightly so,” he added.

Reuters said that it had spoken with eight current and former Ukrainian and foreign officials, as well as with “several friends and colleagues from [Zelensky’s] past.” According to the agency, “they paint a portrait of a leader who has become tougher and more decisive, less tolerant of mistakes and even prone to paranoia, as he copes with round-the-clock stress and fatigue.”

Zelensky is “a world away” from the TV comedian he used to be before being elected in 2019, Reuters reported. His presidential term officially expired in May and the politician refused to hold a new election, citing the martial law imposed in the country due to the conflict.

He has repeatedly claimed that Moscow had attempted to kill him, without providing any details or evidence. In May, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said that two colonels tasked with protecting high-ranking officials were detained on suspicion of being recruited by Moscow to assassinate Zelensky.

Russian authorities deny accusations of attempting to get rid of Zelensky. “We have no such plans,” Dmitry Polyansky, Russia’s deputy ambassador to the UN, said earlier this year.

Throughout the conflict, Zelensky has become intolerant of alleged incompetence among his officials and advisers, an unnamed member of his team told Reuters. “If he sees people are not prepared or are contradicting each other, he will say ‘get out of here. I don’t have time for this’,” the source said.

Zelensky is also relentless when it comes to pressuring his foreign backers for aid, according to a senior European official. “He repeats 15 times what he needs, that we need to do more or face the consequences, and he doesn’t let it go,” the official stressed.

Ukraine’s former defense minister Aleksey Reznikov, who was sacked last year amid corruption accusations against him, said that Zelensky operates in “a sleep-deprived regime.” The Ukrainian politician’s life consists of “consultations at night and addresses to parliaments, senates... regardless of the time,” he explained.

According to Reznikov, Zelensky has a “grab bag” with a change of clothes and a toothbrush because he often doesn’t know where he would be spending the night. “He is in stress mode 24 hours a day, seven days a week - it’s a never-ending marathon,” he added.

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Kremlin addresses Trump assassination attempt

14 Jul, 2024

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said Russian President Vladimir Putin does not intend to call Donald Trump after Saturday’s attempt on the US Republican presidential frontrunner’s life. He added that Moscow “strongly condemns any forms of political violence,” and extends its condolences to the family of the spectator who was killed in the shooting.

Several shots were fired at Trump’s campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in an apparent assassination attempt. A bullet grazed the politician’s right ear, a person in the crowd was fatally shot, and two more were seriously injured. The GOP hopeful was whisked off stage by Secret Service agents within seconds, and moved to a “safe” place. Authorities later reported that the 20-year-old suspected shooter, who had presumably taken up position on a nearby rooftop, was shot and killed.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Peskov stressed that the Kremlin does not believe that the Biden administration was behind Saturday’s assassination attempt on Trump. He noted, however, that the “atmosphere that was created by this administration during the political struggle… around Trump has led to what America has faced today.”

The Kremlin spokesman also expressed hope that the people injured in the incident would fully recover.

According to Peskov, “the incumbent administration’s style is such that it prefers to resolve all issues from a position of power, including first and foremost in international affairs. No one is ever seeking compromises.”

“Now, this has basically spilled over into the country itself,” the Russian official claimed.

“After numerous attempts to remove Trump from the political arena with the help of legal tools, courts, the prosecution, attempts to politically discredit and compromise the candidate, it was clear to all outside observers that his life was in danger,” the presidential spokesperson stated.

Peskov suggested that the nature of the US political system has encouraged violence, as evidenced by numerous similar cases in the country’s history.

In the wake of the assassination attempt, Trump’s supporters in the US have argued that the mainstream media’s demonization of the Republican presidential hopeful may have played a role in radicalizing the suspected shooter.

In the hours that followed the incident, President Joe Biden, Trump’s rival in the race for the White House, denounced the attack, stressing that “there’s no place for this kind of violence in America.”

Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama have issued statements in a similar vein, also thanking the Secret Service for their swift intervention. A number of other prominent American politicians, including Democratic Party stalwart Nancy Pelosi, have also spoken out against political violence, as have several foreign leaders.

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European cities prime targets for Russian missiles – Moscow

13 Jul, 2024

Moscow has enough capabilities to counter such hostile moves by Washington such as its just-announced deployment of new missiles to Europe, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. Western European nations, however, are only becoming victims of the standoff between the US and Russia.

The spokesman made the remarks to Russian Journalist Pavel Zarubin, who published the excerpts of the interview on his social media on Saturday.

“There has always been a paradoxical situation: the US deployed different types of missiles, of different ranges, but traditionally aimed at our country. Our country, accordingly, identified European locations as targets for our missiles,” Peskov stated.

While Washington continues to “profit” from the escalation, NATO members in Europe are only serving as targets in the standoff, Peskov explained.

“Our country is in the crosshairs of American missiles located in Europe. We’ve been through all this before. All this has already happened. We have enough potential to deter these missiles. But the potential victims are the capitals of these states,” he said.

On Wednesday, Washington announced plans to start deploying long-range weapons in Germany in 2026, including SM-6 and Tomahawk systems, “as part of planning for enduring stationing of these capabilities in the future.” Moscow has already vowed to “calmly” prepare a military response to the hostile move, with Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov describing the plans as “one of the elements of intimidation that, today, is almost the main component of the NATO and US” approach towards Russia.

In late June, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Moscow could resume the production and global deployment of ground-based intermediate- and shorter-range missiles in response to the hostile actions of the US.

“We now know that the US is not only producing these missile systems but has also brought them to Europe, Denmark, to use in exercises. Not long ago, it was reported that they were in the Philippines. It is unclear whether they have taken these missiles out of the Philippines or not,” Putin said at the time.

The munitions of this type were restricted by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), which collapsed in 2019. However, Moscow has abstained from producing and deploying them, as long as Washington also refrained from doing so.

Source: rt.com

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Russian forces strike Ukrainian explosives plant

13 Jul, 2024

The Russian Defense Ministry has said its forces have destroyed an explosives factory in Ukraine. It also reported that Russian troops took out multiple pieces of hardware and artillery guns, including those provided by Western nations, and killed hundreds of Ukrainian service members in a single day.

In a statement on Saturday, the ministry said the explosives facility, as well as a radar, were among the targets hit by Russian Air Force jets, UAVs, missiles and artillery.

In addition, the Russian military is said to have advanced to more favorable positions in several villages in Donetsk Region within the past 24 hours. In those locations, the Ukrainian army lost at least three US-made М113 armored personnel carriers, several US-made М198 howitzers, and one Polish-made self-propelled artillery gun, among the other hardware, the ministry claimed.

Elsewhere along the frontline, Kiev’s forces supposedly lost two US-made M777 howitzers in Zaporozhye and Kharkov regions, along with several radio-electronic warfare systems.

The Russian strikes are said to have killed more than 1,700 Ukrainian troops across the country.

On Monday, the Russian military said it had launched a massive missile and kamikaze drone attack on Ukraine’s military-industrial complex, allegedly striking the Artyom military plant in Kiev, the Yuzhmash plant in Dnepr, and an unnamed factory in Krivoy Rog.

Earlier this month, the Defense Ministry reported that between June 29 and July 5, Moscow’s “high-precision” strikes had hit several Ukrainian air bases, including the Mirgorod military airfield in Poltava Region. According to the Russian military, the attack destroyed five of Kiev’s Su-27 fighter jets, with two more sustaining damage. Ukraine confirmed the strike, insisting, however, that the number of destroyed aircraft was lower.

Russian missiles and kamikaze UAVs are also said to have destroyed a number of energy infrastructure facilities, fuel and missile depots, and drone assembly workshops across Ukraine in late June and early July.

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Africa

 

Over 60 Boko Haram Insurgents and Families Surrender to MNJTF in Cameroon and Niger

Jul 14, 2024

Sixty members of Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) have surrendered to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) under Operation Lake Sanity II. The surrender, which took place between July 1 and July 6, 2024, was facilitated by MNJTF troops who also rescued others from their hideouts.

A statement released by Lt Col Abdullahi Abubakar, the MNJTF Military Public Information Officer, detailed the events. On July 6, 2024, a combined maritime operation by Cameroonian and Nigerian forces in Sector 1, Cameroon, led to the surrender of 56 Boko Haram terrorists. This group comprised 13 adult men and 43 women and children. Additionally, on the same day, 12 family members of terrorists, including five women and seven children, were rescued. These individuals were handed over to the troops of Sector 1, Operation Hadin Kai, in Gamboru and Banki for further action.

Lt Col Abubakar also reported that on July 1, 2024, troops in Sector 4, Niger Republic, received a surrender from 24-year-old Tijjani Muhammad, who turned himself in with an AK-47 rifle, four magazines, and numerous 7.62mm rounds. Muhammad revealed that he had escaped from a Boko Haram camp in Libye Soroa due to the ongoing Operation Lake Sanity II.

“The increasing number of surrenders significantly weakens the operational capability of Boko Haram and undermines the morale of their remaining fighters.

Other terrorists are strongly urged to take advantage of the opportunity to lay down their arms and surrender to the authorities for lasting peace in the Lake Chad basin region,” Lt Col Abubakar added.

The MNJTF’s efforts in Operation Lake Sanity II highlight the ongoing efforts to restore peace and security in the Lake Chad basin, encouraging more insurgents to abandon their activities and seek a peaceful resolution.

Source: vmtnews.ng

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277 Boko Haram Captives Freed, Returned to State Authorities by Nigerian Army

July 14, 2024

The Nigerian Army has freed 277 individuals from Boko Haram captivity and handed them over to Borno State officials. The handover ceremony took place on Thursday at the Maimalari Cantonment in Maiduguri.

Major General K.E. Chigbu, Deputy Theatre Commander of “Operation Hadin Kai,” oversaw the ceremony. The group, consisting of 128 women and 149 children, was rescued during recent military operations in Bama, Dikwa, and Monguno counties of Borno State.

Boko Haram’s insurgency has caused significant suffering in Northeast Nigeria, with the group targeting civilians and kidnapping women and children.

The Borno State government has stepped up to support the rehabilitation of the rescued captives. Hajiya Aishatu Shettima from the Ministry of Women Affairs has pledged to provide medical care, psychological counseling, and assistance for the victims’ reintegration into their communities.

Source: tgnews.com.ng

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Northern Muslim Clerics Warn Sokoto Govt Against Removing Sultan

July 14, 2024

The leadership of the Northern Muslim youth preachers has called on the Sokoto State Government to drop its plan to depose the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III or balkanize his Emirate.

Speaking at a conference in Kaduna on Saturday, the Muslim group said that the Sultan’s position as the spiritual leader of all Nigerian Muslims shouldn’t be desecrated or disrespected by the government or politicians.

They described the Sultan of Sokoto as the pillar of Islam in Nigeria, advocating for the position to be made independent of the government whereby it will be protected from unnecessary political interference.

The Chairman of the  Council of Northern Muslim Youth Preachers, Sheik Bashir Sani, who read the group’s position after the meeting, said Muslims in the country will not sit back and watch the seat of the Sultan being disrespected by the government of Sokoto State and therefore warned the government to desist from such acts.

“The image of the Sultan of Sokoto which is now being desecrated by some authorities is rejected by members of this conference because the Sultan is an Islamic pillar,” Sani said.

“He is a very important person and holds a position that represents all Muslims in this country. The Sultan is the one who leads the Muslim Ummah in our country.  He holds different positions, by chairing the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, the Sultan Foundation and many more, like the National Mosque and the rest. So, this conference is trying to protect the image of the Sultan and the Sultanate Council and our traditional authorities.

“The conference is trying to inform and call the attention of our political authorities to consider the position of the Sultan as  Supreme and an exalted position of the Muslim Ummah in this country.  For it has to be respected and it has to be accorded all the recognition that it deserves. Therefore, we call on the government and other concerned authorities as well as political leaders to join hands with our traditional and religious institutions in order to promote peace, harmony and tranquillity in this country.”

Although the Sokoto State Government has denied any plan to depose the Sultan, other members of the Northern Muslim group including Sheik Abubakar Shanono and Sheik Mohammed Adams said they will use all legal means to protect the Sultan of Sokoto from being removed from office. They therefore advocated assigning constitutional roles to the monarch and making him independent of the government.

Sheik Shanono said: “The sultan is a father to all Muslims in Nigeria,  not even in Nigeria alone, but in West Africa, something about politics shouldn’t touch the Sultan’s Palace or the Sultan himself.

“So, we are calling on all the politicians that are trying to politicise the issues regarding the Sultan and other Emirs in Northern Nigeria to know that we Muslims respect these people.  And we believe that touching them is touching our religion. So, we call on them to take out their politics from the traditional institutions.

“It is also not true that the Sokoto State government is not plotting to remove the Sultan.  We saw it on social media where they took a bill to the state House of Assembly trying to minimise the powers of the Sultan and some roles that the Sultan normally performs.

“We know it is true that the government is trying to undermine the Sultan.  It is politics, maybe they felt the Sultan did something to them before they came into office, so they are trying to attack him.”

Source: channelstv.com

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Rwanda prepares to vote in poll expected to be swept by Kagame

14-07-24

Candidates in Rwanda's presidential election wrapped up campaigning Saturday.

Incumbent President Paul Kagame spoke to thousands of supporters at a rally in the capital Kigali. Monday's vote is expected to extend Kagame's rule, and that of his Rwanda Patriotic Front by five years.

"It is a political phenomenon, that is why many people outside Rwanda do not understand and carelessly speak about Rwanda,'' Kagame told cheering crowds in a mix of English and Kinyarwanda.

Frank Habineza of the Democratic Green Party of Rwanda managed to attract just 100 supporters at a rally on the final day of campaigning.

Habineza and another independent contender Philippe Mpayimana, have struggled to pull crowds to their events.

Criticism of Kagame is severely punished in Rwanda and political dissent is rare.

The 66-year-old, who is running virtually unopposed after three decades in power in the east African nation, appears set to extend his long presidency in Monday's vote.

Source: africanews.com

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Shiites: Police Ban Illegal Protests In Kaduna

15 July 2024

The State Police Command made this known in a statement on Sunday by its spokesperson, ASP Mansir Hassan.

The statement particularly warned that the ban affects the planned Ashura procession by the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), also known as Shiites, to mark the 2024 Islamic Ashura day ceremony.

Hassan noted that the Ashura procession has been known over the years to be characterised by unimaginable violence leading to the destruction of properties, injuries to persons and even loss of lives.

The Kaduna Police spokesperson added that the Shiites group has been outlawed, hence their planned protest is illegal.

Hassan said, “The command has banned every manner of illegal protest in the State.

”This is coming on the heels of a received intelligence indicating that the proscribed Islamic Movement of Nigeria also known as Shi’ite are planning a procession to mark the 2024 Islamic Ashura day ceremony.

“It is an undeniable fact that the said ritual practice has in the recent past been characterised by unimaginable violence leading to the destruction of properties, injuries to persons and even loss of lives.

“It is against this backdrop that the Police command is warning the said sect members, who were since proscribed by law, to drop such a procession idea.”

The Police warned that the Command would not hesitate to bring the full weight of the law to bear on any person or group, especially the outlawed IMN members, that dared to violate the ban.

The statement added, however, that the Commissioner of Police, Kaduna State Command, Mr Ali Dabigi, has called on all law-abiding persons to go about their lawful endeavours without fear, stating that the hard-earned relative peace in the state can never be compromised by the selfish deviance of a few ‘renegades.

Source: naijanews.com

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Abducted Kaduna Journalists Regain Freedom

13 July 2024

The Kaduna State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), on Saturday, announced the release of two abducted journalists, Abdulgafar Alabelewe of The Nation Newspaper and Abdulraheem Aodu of Blueprint Newspaper, by terrorists.

Naija News recalls that the Journalists and their family members were abducted in their separate homes in the Danhono Community near Millennium City, Kaduna.

However, one of the wives was abandoned by the terrorists in the bush due to her illness, and she was able to return home on Sunday morning.

The NUJ, in a terse statement on Saturday evening; stated thus, “Dear Esteemed colleagues

“To the glory of God Almighty, our colleagues, Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Abduraheem Aodu, and their families have been released.

“The Council extends her profound gratitude to the office of the CP, Kaduna State Command, office of the NSA, the DG, DSS, the Inspector General of Police, Kaduna State government, the NUJ President and all well-meaning Nigerians that prayed along with us during the trying time.

“We will soon announce when they will join us in Kaduna so that we can visit, rejoice and glorify God with them. Kaduna Council Chairman, Asma’u Yawo Halilu.”

Source: naijanews.com

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DSS raids Niger community in search of Boko Haram bandits

July 15, 2024

Operatives of the Department of State Service (DSS) Niger State Command for the second times in less than two years have raided a residence of a suspected notorious and hardened Boko Haram in the Gbeganu community of Chanchaga Local Government Area of Niger State.

The raid, which took place during the daytime, caused fear among residents in the area; some of them took to their heels and scampered for safety.

It was gathered that the security operatives on arrival in the community went straight to the residence of the suspected Boko Haram, and embarked on aggressive search in his rooms.

A source familiar with the operation said that this was the third raid in less than four years in the neighboring areas of Nkangbe and Gbeganu, both in Chanchaga local government area.

It was however learnt that the suspect targeted in this raid was allegedly a storekeeper for a terrorist group, although specific details about the recovered weapons were not disclosed.

Residents informed our reporter that a substantial amount of cash, including dollars, was recovered and seized during the operation.

The suspect had been known in the locality as a tricycle rider before the raid revealed his identity in the alleged involvement with terrorist activities.

Previous incidents include a similar raid in October 2023, where a suspected terrorist engaged security forces in a fierce gun battle before escaping, and in June 2021, when a house linked to a notorious kidnapper was demolished after weapons were found and recovered in the raid.

The raids on the community is the second in less than two years.

In one of the joint operations carried out by the security teams,some times last year, a residential building of the suspected bandits was demolished by the security operatives.

However, efforts to get reactions from the state command of the secret service, could not yield the needed result, as a source who craved anonymous told this reporter that “we will make the operation Public as soon as our Investigation is completed”

Source: newnationalstar.com

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Mideast

 

Palestinian president Abbas blames Hamas for continuing war in Gaza

July 13, 2024

RAMALLAH: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Israel and the US were responsible for an attack that killed dozens in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, but the Western-backed leader also blamed Hamas for the continuing war in Gaza.

His comments signal rising tension between Abbas’s Fatah faction and the Islamist Hamas group, which accused the Palestinian president of taking Israel’s side.

Israel said the attack was aimed at killing the Hamas military chief Mohammad Deif and his aide. It remained unclear whether Deif or his deputy were killed in the strike that left at least 90 Palestinians dead and 300 wounded, according to Gaza health ministry.

“The Palestinian presidency condemns the slaughter and holds the Israeli government fully responsible, also the US administration that provides all kinds of support to the occupation and its crimes,” said Abbas in a statement published by his office.

But Abbas, whose authority maintains a limited self-rule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, assigned some blame to Hamas, whose Oct 7 attack inside Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and around 250 others were abducted, kicked off the nine-month war in Gaza.

“The presidency sees that by escaping national unity, and providing free pretexts to the occupation state, the Hamas movement is a partner in bearing legal, moral and political responsibility for the continuation of the Israeli war of genocide in Gaza Strip,” the statement said.

Hamas has run Gaza since its 2007 takeover of the coastal territory from Abbas loyalists.

Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters Abbas’s statement meant the Palestinian Authority “has chosen to be in the same trench with the occupation.”

“Such an attitude will not succeed in blackmailing the resistance or pressuring it,” said Abu Zuhri.

Efforts by Arab mediators, led by Egypt, have so far failed to reconcile power struggles between the two sides.

Another Hamas leader, Basem Naim, who took part in previous reconciliation talks with Abbas’s Fatah faction, said Abbas was to blame for the failure to reach a unity deal.

Naim said Abbas’s comments made him and his authority “partner to the Zioinist enemy and its crimes not only in Gaza but also in all of the Palestinian land.”

Source: arabnews.com

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New administration’s foreign policy to pursue Islamic Revolution values’

Jul 14, 2024

Tehran, IRNA – The declared foreign policy goals of President-elect Pezeshkian and his intention to continue the regional policy of the previous administration show that his administration’s foreign policy will be based on the Islamic Revolution’s values, according to a regional political expert.

Speaking to IRNA about Pezeshkian’s letter to Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Hassan Hanizadeh said that the letter highlighted the 14th administration’s approach to strengthening the Axis of Resistance in the framework of Iran’s general policy and its principles defined by the Supreme Leader.

This message, sent in response to Nasrallah’s congratulatory message Pezeshkian, refuted all the wrong speculations of the opposition media about the change of the 14th administration’s policy towards regional resistance, he said.

He reiterated the fact that the Axis of Resistance and confrontation with the Zionist regime cannot be changed under any circumstances, and this is a fixed principle, and no government can get out of this framework.

This is because Iran is not based upon individuals, but on political, military, and security institutions, and beyond them is the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, who is influential in drawing transnational policies, Hanizadeh explained.

Although the president-elect has high legal authority according to the constitution, the issue of helping the oppressed nations and developing Iran’s spiritual influence is not negotiable, he stressed.

He said the Islamic Republic of Iran is not a fixed geographical concept, but rather a broad concept whose influence is not limited to a specific time and place.

This Islamic humanitarian approach is a part of the unchangeable principles of Islamic values that Imam Khomeini [Founder of the Islamic Revolution] drew as a fixed principle in Iran’s regional and international politics, he stated.

He went on to say that Pezeshkian’s telephone conversations with the heads of different countries, including Iraq, Russia, and Turkey, and the congratulatory messages of the heads of the Arab countries of the Persian Gulf show the high status of the elected president.

This domestic and international support can increase the negotiation capacity of the 14th administration to interact with the world at a high level and will create a more pleasant interaction atmosphere for Iran, he noted.

Source: en.irna.ir

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UN official says worst scenes of Gaza war witnessed at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis

July 15, 2024

RIYADH: A UN official said he witnessed “one of the worst scenes he has seen in Gaza in the past nine months” during his visit to the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis on Saturday.

Scott Anderson, the director of UNRWA Affairs in Gaza, said that “many of the injured were receiving treatment on the hospital floor without disinfectants due to insufficient beds and a lack of essential cleanliness equipment and supplies.”

Nasser Medical Complex is under tremendous strain and burden, with children who are amputees, others paralyzed and deprived of medical treatment, the Saudi Press Agency quoted Anderson as saying.

The UN official also noted how parents were in despair about the conditions of their children.

He added that the United Nations team provided referral services on Saturday, along with additional tents, beds, stretchers, supplies and medications.

He also pointed out the obstacles hindering humanitarian operations prevented aid from reaching people, SPA added.

Source: arabnews.com

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Syrians vote for their next parliament, which may consider allowing Assad to extend his rule

July 15, 2024

DAMASCUS: Syrians were voting for members of a new parliament in an election Monday that was expected to hold few surprises but could pave the way for a constitutional amendment to extend the term of President Bashar Assad.

The vote is the fourth in Syria since mass anti-government protests and a brutal crackdown by security forces spiraled into an ongoing civil war in 2011.

There are 1,516 government-approved candidates running this year for the 250-seat People’s Assembly.

The number of eligible voters has not been announced. In parliamentary elections, unlike presidential elections, the millions of diaspora Syrians — whose numbers have ballooned since the civil war — are not eligible to vote.

Some 8,151 polling stations were set up in 15 voting districts in government-held areas.

In the Druze-majority southern province of Sweida, where anti-government protests have been taking place regularly for nearly a year, many called for a boycott of the polls. Videos posted online showed protesters seizing ballot boxes off a truck in an attempt to stop them arriving to polling stations.

Elsewhere, campaigning was low key and candidates’ campaigns largely revolved around general slogans such as national unity and prosperity.

Assad’s Baath Party won 166 seats in the 2020 elections, representing nearly two-thirds of its membership, in addition to 17 members from allied parties. Another 67 seats went to independent candidates.

Vladimir Pran, an independent adviser on transitional political and electoral processes, said the competitive part of the Syrian election process comes before voters go to the polls, during the Baath Party primary process, when party members vote on which candidates’ names are sent to the party’s central command to make the final list.

“Elections are really already finished... with the end of the primary process,” he said. Once the Baath party list is completed, “you can check the list and the results, and you will see that literally all of them will be in the Parliament.”

The number of incumbents who made the final list this year was relatively low, suggesting a reshuffling within the Baath party.

Maroun Sfeir, a consultant on transitional electoral and political processes, said the 169 candidates put forward by the Baath party alone is past the margin of 167 MPs needed to propose a constitutional amendment, protect the president from being accused of treason and veto legislation.

Adding to that 16 candidates from Baath-allied parties running on the same list, he said, “you’re only three MPs short of three quarters of the parliament, which is required for (passing) a constitutional amendment.”

While that leaves 65 slots open for independent candidates, Sfeir said they should not be expected to present a real opposition bloc.

“They are all pre-vetted... to ensure that they’re all loyal or without any threat,” he said.

With Assad facing term limits that would end his presidency in 2028, the next parliament is widely expected to try to pass a constitutional amendment to extend his term.

Source: arabnews.com

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Gaza civil defense says 15 killed in Israel strike on Gaza school

July 14, 2024

GAZA STRIP, Palestinian Territories: The civil defense agency in Hamas-run Gaza said Sunday that 15 people were killed in a strike on a school sheltering war displaced where the Israeli military said it had targeted “terrorists.”

The strike on the UN-run Abu Araban site in central Gaza’s Nuseirat camp was the fifth on a school-turned-shelter in eight days.

The Abu Araban school was housing “thousands of displaced people,” civil defense agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP, adding that most of the dead were women and children.

Schools in Nuseirat were the target for two of the earlier school strikes as Israel keeps up its offensive against Hamas Palestinian militants who triggered the war with their October 7 attack on Israel.

The Israeli military said its air force “struck a number of terrorists who were operating in the area of UNRWA’s Abu Araban school building in Nuseirat.”

It said the building had “served as a hideout” and base for “attacks” on Israeli troops.

AFPTV images showed the three-story complex standing, with clothes and bedding airing out over its railings. A wall bearing the UN logo had been blown out, and rooms inside were damaged.

On July 6, Israeli aircraft hit Al-Jawni school, also run by the United Nations relief agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), in Nuseirat. UNRWA said about 2,000 people were sheltering there at the time.

The following day, four people died in a strike on the church-run Holy Family school in Gaza City, in the territory’s north, according to the Civil Defense agency.

On Monday, Israel hit another Nuseirat school, again saying it was targeting “terrorists.”

The next day, a hospital source said at least 29 people died in a strike at the entrance to Al-Awda school in the Khan Yunis area, southern Gaza.

Israel says Hamas uses schools, hospitals and other public infrastructure for military purposes. Hamas denies the accusation.

France and Germany on Wednesday called for an investigation into the school strikes.

After the Al-Jawni strike, UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma told AFP that when the war began “we closed the schools and they became shelters.”

UNRWA is the main relief agency in Gaza but more than half, or 190, of its facilities have been hit — “some more than once” — in the military response to the October 7 Hamas attacks, she said.

Source: arabnews.com

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Iranians mourning Imam Hussein’s martyrdom on Tasua

July 15, 2024

Mourners in cities, counties, and villages across Iran are practicing on Monday in Tasua mourning rituals, including religious processions and beating their chests.

Shia Muslims mark the event during the first 10 days of Muharram to honor Imam Hussein, the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, who was martyred in 680 AD in a battle for justice against the much larger army of the Umayyad caliph, Yazid I.

Donning in black as a symbol of their grief, Iranians started the processions early in the morning and would continue until about midnight.

Eulogists recite the events of the Battle of Karbala and elaborate on the underlying messages of Imam Hussein about tyranny and having the courage to fight against it.

They also perform Ta’zieh, a national and religious passion play that narrates the story of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein and his companions in Karbala.

The 10-day event peaks on Ashura, or the tenth day of Muharram, when the thousands-strong army of the tyrant ruler Yazid I martyred Imam Hussein, his companions and some of the Imam’s family members.

Source: ifpnews.com

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Islamic Resistance targets enemy leadership headquarters in “Ayelet”

14 Jul 2024

BEIRUT July 14. 2024 (Saba) - The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon, led by Hezbollah, announced on Sunday that it had targeted, with a swarm of assault marches, a leadership headquarters of the Zionist enemy in Ayelet in northern occupied Palestine, and had achieved direct hits.

The resistance said in a statement: “In support of our steadfast Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and in support of their valiant resistance, and in response to the Zionist enemy’s attacks on the southern villages, the resistance fighters launched an air attack with a squadron of assault marches, targeting the newly established 91st Division headquarters in Ayelet.” .

Source: saba.ye

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https://www.saba.ye/en/news3348764.htm

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Najafis in Iran’s Qom mourn Imam Hussein’s martyrdom by torch-carrying rituals

July 14, 2024

Every year, on the 8th, 9th, and 10th nights of the month of Muharram, on the Islamic calendar, Najafi residents of the Iranian shrine city of Qom carry torches as a symbol of mourning for Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam and the grandson of the Prophet Mohammad, who was martyred along with 72 of his companions on the plains of Karbala over 14 centuries ago.

The black-clad mourners, who hail from the Iraqi city of Najaf, gather at Imam Reza Mosque and the mourning procession moves towards the shrine of Hazrat Masoumeh (AS), the sister of Imam Reza, the 8th Shia Imam, to offer their condolences.

They carry the traditional torches that symbolize the fire that burned the tents of Imam Hussein’s loved ones and companions on Ashura, the 10th day of Muharram in Karbala, Iraq, around 1400 years ago by the tyrant and ruler of the time Yazid I.

Source: ifpnews.com

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As war rages, Palestinian culture stifled in Israel

July 14, 2024

TEL AVIV: Comedian Ayman Nahas said he has kept a “low profile” since Oct. 7, fearing reprisals as an Arab artist in Israel while the country wages war in the Gaza Strip.

He is one of many Arab artists in Israel or annexed East Jerusalem who describe facing increasing hostility and harassment and fearing looming funding cuts or arrests.

“You never know where your place is, and that is not the right atmosphere to perform,” said Nahas, the artistic director at the Arabic-language Sard theater in Haifa, in Israel’s north.

He said that his theater depends on government subsidies “like 99 percent of cultural spaces” in Israel.

But he fears the money could be cut, as happened in 2015 to Al-Midan, another theater in the mixed Arab-Jewish city of Haifa, after it put on a play inspired by the story of a prisoner jailed by Israel over an attack on troops.

One 25-year-old performer, who asked to use the pseudonym Elias to avoid a backlash, said he has put acting aside and became a swimming pool attendant because he was fed up with only getting stereotyped roles.

Other Arab actors say that since the war, they can no longer find work in Israel. Elias has finally found a role in Berlin.

“I have had to go into exile to practice my art,” he said in a Tel Aviv cafe.

“I don’t wear my ‘Free Palestine’ bracelet anymore, and I take care of what I put on social media. I have friends who the police have visited.”

Nonprofit group Mossawa has documented an increase in human rights violations against Israel’s Arab minority since October, including arrests, discrimination at work, and harassment at schools, as well as curbs on the right to protest.

Singer Dalal Abu Amneh, who is also a neuroscientist, was detained for 48 hours for a social media post after Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack that said “the only victor is God.”

Abu Amneh later said she had been harassed in her Jewish-majority hometown of Afula in northern Israel. Her lawyer said she had received hundreds of “death threats.”

About 20 percent of Israel’s 9.5 million inhabitants are Arab, and many of them identify as Palestinian.

They say they are frequently the targets of discrimination by the Jewish majority, and those complaints have grown through more than nine months of war between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza.

Huda Imam, who promotes Palestinian cultural sites in Jerusalem, said that “a cultural silence has taken hold since Oct. 7.”

“There has been a shock, an inability to produce out of fear and respect” for the war’s victims, she added.

“There was a Palestinian cultural life before the war, especially in east Jerusalem,” Imam said, referring to the sector Israel captured in 1967 and later annexed in a move never recognized by most of the international community.

“Now people don’t go out.”

And it is primarily exiles “who give a voice to Palestine,” said Imam, highlighting the rapper Saint Levant, who played at the Coachella music festival in the US in April, and the European-based singer and flute player Nai Barghouti.

Palestinians still express themselves through their “living heritage, like drinking coffee or dancing dabkeh,” a traditional dance, said artist Hani Amra.

Some artists wondered about the relevance of their work now.

“You turn on the television, and you see the war live. The reality is more powerful than any artistic work,” Amer Khalil, the director of east Jerusalem’s Al-Hakawati, also known as the Palestinian National Theater.

The theater, founded in 1984, “has been closed more than 200 times in 40 years” and is again in the crosshairs of Israeli authorities, said Khalil.

“Running a theater is always difficult, but after Oct. 7 things became even more complicated,” he said, adding that Al-Hakawati was preparing a play about that day.

“It is a game, like censorship. It comes and goes.”

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549756/middle-east

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Egypt condemns Israeli airstrikes on Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis

July 14, 2024

CAIRO: Egypt has condemned the Israeli airstrikes on the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.

The deaths in Al-Mawasi, an Israeli-designated “safe zone” where aid groups said hundreds of thousands of people were sheltering, drew condemnation from governments across the region.

The Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip said at least 92 people had been killed, more than half of them women and children, and 300 wounded in Saturday’s strike

In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Emigration and Egyptian Expatriates, Egypt condemned in the strongest terms the Israeli bombing of Al-Mawasi, which is crowded with displaced people, resulting in the death and injury of dozens of innocent Palestinian civilians.

Egypt called on Israel to cease its disregard for the lives of unarmed civilians and to adhere to international humanitarian law.

It also stressed that such crimes would not be subject to a statute of limitations and could not be justified under any pretext.

Egypt emphasized that these continuous violations against Palestinian civilians add serious complications to the current efforts aimed at reaching de-escalation and a ceasefire and exacerbate their suffering amid disgraceful international silence and inaction.

Source: arabnews.com

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North America

 

CAIR Condemns Two New Israeli Massacres of Palestinians in Gaza at UN School, Destroyed Mosque

July 14, 2024

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned both an Israeli massacre of at least 20 Palestinian worshippers praying in the ruins of a Gaza mosque previously destroyed by Israel and a similar massacre of 15 people at a UN-run school sheltering displaced Palestinians.

In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:

“What words are left to describe a world in which massacres occur daily while our own government ships the bombs to a genocidal government so that those massacres can continue. The Biden administration’s silence about the daily slaughter and support for the far-right Israeli government’s genocide is a stain on our national history that will remain for generations.

“All people of conscience must condemn the Israeli genocide, forced starvation and ethnic cleansing and demand that the Biden administration stop aiding and abetting the daily slaughter.”

Yesterday, CAIR called on President Biden to “stop enabling” the mass slaughter of Palestinian civilians after Israel killed at least 90 Palestinians and wounded hundreds in strikes on the al-Mawasi “safe zone” in Gaza.

[NOTE: Al-Mawasi, where Palestinians forced from their homes across Gaza sought shelter, was designated as a “safe humanitarian zone” by the Israeli military.]

CAIR also condemned a newly-reported decision by the Biden administration not to sanction an Israeli army unit despite evidence of gross human rights abuses it committed against Palestinian civilians, including the murder of an elderly Palestinian-American. CNN quoted a former member of the unit who said: “A lot of us probably did not see Arabs, Palestinians in particular, as someone with rights – okay, like they’re really the occupier of some of the land and they need to be moved.”

CAIR recently condemned a reported decision by the Biden administration to send Israel the 500-pound bombs for its genocide in Gaza that had previously been held back.

Israel has slaughtered almost 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly women and children. Other estimates put the total death toll at 186,000. The vast majority of Gazans have been driven from their homes.

CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.            

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Source: cair.com

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https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-condemns-two-new-israeli-massacres-of-palestinians-in-gaza-at-un-school-destroyed-mosque/

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Biden ignoring Black woman supporter rekindles debate on racism in US politics

14 July 2024

By Alireza Akbari

A viral video of US President Joe Biden ignoring a young Black woman during a public event in Madison, Wisconsin, has rekindled the long-running debate over deeply entrenched racism in American politics.

In the video, Biden, who is running for the US presidency again, is seen bypassing a Black woman who holds a Biden-Harris placard in her hand and appears seemingly excited to greet the president.

The Democratic president, whose health issues have come under scrutiny following the disastrous first televised presidential debate with Donald Trump, walked past the Black girl and hugged an older lady.

The woman, visibly disappointed, just kept looking on awkwardly, prompting a wave of reactions.

The incident has again brought the focus back on the deep-rooted plague of racism afflicting American politics, including both major political parties – the Democrats and Republicans.

Biden’s overt racism has been the topic of discussion on several occasions in the past, particularly directed at people of color, including those in his own party.

On July 7, 2021, Tim Murtaugh, a visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundation, penned a commentary shedding light on racist remarks made by the US president.

He highlighted Biden's comments regarding Latinos and their concerns about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, which implied Latinos in the US are all undocumented immigrants subject to expulsion.

Murtaugh emphasized that Biden failed to recognize the sizeable population of over 60 million American citizens of Latino descent in the country.

Scott Walker, a columnist for the Washington Times, expressed similar sentiments in an opinion piece published on July 15, 2022.

Walker criticized Biden and his family, suggesting that their remarks and actions have often exhibited racial insensitivity.

He specifically referenced Jill Biden's July 2022 speech at the conference of UnidosUS, the country's largest Latino advocacy and civil rights organization.

“The diversity of this community — as distinct as the bodegas of the Bronx, as beautiful as the blossoms of Miami and as unique as the breakfast tacos here in San Antonio, is your strength,” she was quoted as saying.

A deeper examination of Biden's past behavior reveals a pattern of racially charged remarks not only targeting ordinary individuals and Latinos but also extending to his former boss, Barack Obama.

Dating back to 2007, when Biden was a senator, he made a racial comment about Obama's African-American identity, describing him as the "first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy."

In another instance in 2006, Biden engaged in inappropriate dialogue at a Delaware convenience store, where he remarked on the growing population of Indian-Americans from India in the state.

"You cannot go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking.”

Biden is, however, not the only Democratic figure to use racially insensitive language.

Senator Harry Reid from Nevada made headlines during the 2008 campaign. Reid referred to Obama as a "light-skinned" black person who lacked a "Negro dialect.”

His comments about Obama were reported in the 2010 book "Game Change" by journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilemann.

Racial insensitivity is not confined to one political party in the US. Both Democrats and Republicans have been criticized for their use of derogatory or insensitive language toward minority groups.

On March 29, 2013, Congressman Don Young faced criticism for using the term "wetbacks" to refer to Latino farm workers, a term widely regarded as derogatory and offensive.

Another notable incident occurred in 2006 when Republican Senator George Allen used the term "macaca" to address an Indian-American campaign volunteer during a campaign stop.

In 2012, Republican Mayor Joseph Maturo found himself in hot water when he faced allegations of racial profiling within his police department towards Latinos.

When asked during a local TV interview what he would do for the Latino community amid allegations of police harassment, Maturo replied, "I might have tacos when I go home. I'm not quite sure yet."

Former President Donald Trump, a key figure in the Republican camp, is famously infamous for his use of racist language targeting various groups, including religious and ethnic minorities and women.

John R. O'Donnell's 1991 book said Trump made disparaging remarks about African Americans, stating: "I have black guys counting my money… I hate it… laziness is a trait in blacks. It really is, I believe that."

On the campaign trail, before he assumed the office of presidency in 2017 and later in 2021, Trump made openly racist and derogatory remarks, calling Mexican immigrants criminals and urging a ban on all Muslims entering the US.

In 2016, he addressed Black Americans in these words: “You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58 percent of your youth is unemployed. What the hell do you have to lose?”

A year later, he said all those coming to the US from Haiti “have AIDS” and added that those coming to the US from Nigeria would never “go back to their huts.”

More famously, he referred to Haiti and African countries as “shithole countries” at an immigration event in January 2018 during his presidency, clearly and unapologetically preferring whites to blacks.

The issue of racism has permeated the United States beyond politics, extending to Hollywood as well, as highlighted by Troy Williams, a member of the Community Advisory Board.

On November 20, 2020, Williams raised alarm about pervasive racism in Hollywood, noting how people of color, including Native Americans, Asians, and Blacks, are targets of racial discrimination.

Racism has defined Hollywood since its inception in the early 1900s. All people of color, particularly Native Americans, Asians and Blacks, were repeated targets of racism.

As with Asians and Native Americans, Black characters often weren’t played by Black people in the early days of Hollywood. They hardly appeared at all, except as caricatures played by white actors in blackface, red-face or yellow-face.

Williams drew attention to the lack of representation and recognition for Black actors in the American film industry, citing the stark disparity in Academy Awards since 1928.

Source: presstv.ir

Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story

https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2024/07/14/729311/biden-ignoring-black-woman-supporter-rekindles-debate-racism-us-politics

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US must never be ‘a killing field’ – Biden

15 Jul, 2024

US President Joe Biden urged Americans to refrain from violence in an address from the Oval Office on Sunday, speaking 24 hours after his election rival Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt.

The president said Americans need to “get out of silos” where people only hear views which they agree with, stressing that "disagreement is inevitable" in a democratic country, and urging everyone to “lower the temperature in our politics.”

“There is no place in America for this kind of violence. Any violence. Period. No exceptions. We cannot allow this violence to be normalized,” Biden said.

While once again condemning the attempt on Trump’s life at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, he also highlighted several recent incidents, including the 2021 storming of the US Capitol building by Trump supporters, the 2020 plot to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and the 2022 assault on the husband of former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

“Politics must never be a little battlefield and, God forbid, a killing field,” the president said. He added that differences must be resolved peacefully, through debate and elections, “not with bullets.”

“The power to change America should always rest in the hands of the people, not in the hands of a would-be assassin,” he stated.

On Saturday, a gunman later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks fired several shots at Trump when he was giving a speech on an open-air stage in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed the former president’s right ear, but he was otherwise unharmed. One spectator was killed, and two more were wounded. Crooks was killed by Secret Service agents.

Although the attack was widely condemned by both Republicans and Democrats, Trump supporters have argued that the Democrats and the media were guilty of inciting hatred against Trump.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson urged the country to “get back to civility.” Speaking on CNN, he said the US needs “a unified message,” given the “heated environment and political division in this country.”

Source: rt.com

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https://www.rt.com/news/601084-us-politics-must-not-become/

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‘One in a million’ PHOTO shows bullet passing Trump

14 Jul, 2024

The New York Times has published a photo appearing to show a bullet flying past Donald Trump’s head, at the moment he was targeted by a gunman at a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday. The image was captured by veteran NYT photographer Doug Mills at the campaign event in the city of Butler, where the Republican presidential hopeful was giving a speech in the run-up to the November 5 election.

Several shots were fired, killing one spectator and severely injuring two more. Trump was whisked off stage by Secret Service agents, and later moved to a “safe” place.” Security officials later reported that the 20-year-old suspected shooter, who had reportedly fired from a nearby rooftop, was shot and killed.

Mills’ photo shows what appears to be a bullet streaking through the air to the right of Trump’s head. The photographer, who has been taking pictures of US presidents for more than four decades, described his experience.

Mills said the event started out as a “very standard, typical rally,” with him and several other photographers standing “in what is called the buffer area just a couple feet from the former president.”

“All of a sudden, there was what I thought were three or four loud pops. At first I thought it was a car. The last thing I thought was it was a gun,” Mills recalled.

He continued to take pictures, but soon could not see the former president as Trump was surrounded by Secret Service agents from all sides, with counter-snipers appearing on the stage.

Despite looking defiant and seemingly unfazed in his photo with a raised fist high, Trump appeared “very, very shocked” the moment after, according to Mills.

The photographer told the paper he had “never been in a more horrific scene” during his decades-long career.

Retired FBI special agent Michael Harrigan, who currently works as a consultant in the firearms industry, confirmed to the newspaper that Mills’ photo most likely captured the “bullet’s path through the air.”

While technically possible with the camera used by Mills, “catching a bullet on a side trajectory as seen in that photo would be a one in a million shot… even if one knew the bullet was coming,” the former FBI agent noted.

Source: rt.com

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https://www.rt.com/news/601034-photo-trump-assassination-attempt-bullet/

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Law enforcement officials say bomb-making materials found in vehicle, home of Trump shooter

14 July 2024

Law enforcement officers have found bomb-making material in the vehicle and home of Donald Trump's rally shooting suspect, Thomas Matthew Crooks.

The 20-year-old Pennsylvania resident, who allegedly fired several shots towards Trump, grazing the upper part of his right ear while he was speaking at a Republican election campaign rally on Saturday, almost getting him before the snipers shot him dead, had kept bomb-making materials inside his vehicle and home, according to law enforcement officials on Sunday.

The suspected shooter was not carrying any sort of identification on him, so the FBI used DNA testing and other methods to confirm his identity by early Sunday morning, just hours after the shooting.

Bomb-making materials were found inside the vehicle of the man suspected in the Trump rally shooting, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. They added, bomb-making materials were also found at his home.

According to another person familiar with the matter, who also spoke to AP on condition of anonymity, an AR-style rifle was found at the shooting scene next to the dead body of the suspected shooter.

The rifle was owned by Crooks’ father, who bought the weapon at least six months ago, the two law enforcement officials told AP. The officials said federal agents were still working to determine when and how the son got possession of it.

Crooks' relatives didn’t immediately respond to AP messages in regard to the news. His father, Matthew Crooks, told CNN late Saturday that he was trying to figure out “what the hell is going on”. He said he wouldn’t speak about his son until after he had talked to law enforcement officials about the shooting.

An AP analysis of more than a dozen videos and photos from the shooting scene, as well as satellite imagery of the Trump rally site, showed the shooter was able to get close to the stage where the former president was speaking.

Images showed a motionless body of a person wearing gray camouflage lying on the roof of a building at AGR International Inc., a manufacturing plant just north of the Butler Farm Show grounds where Trump’s rally was being held.

The rooftop where the person lay is about 120 meters from where Trump was standing. According to experts, a decent marksman could have easily hit a human-sized target at that distance.

Meanwhile, police have cordoned off the premises of the Crooks' residence in Bethel Park, Pa., setting up blockades and preventing traffic near the house.

The Crooks' residence is located in an enclave of modest brick houses in the hills outside Pittsburgh, one of America's traditional blue-collar centers.

The suspected shooter had graduated from Bethel Park High School in 2022, the school district said in a statement to KDKA-TV. Crooks was one of several students that year who had received an award for excellence in maths and science, according to a Tribune-Review story at that time.

In regard to Crooks' political leanings, it's not clear. Records showed Crooks was registered as a Republican in Pennsylvania. However, federal campaign finance reports show he paid $15 to a progressive political action committee on Jan. 20, 2021, the day President Joe Biden was sworn into office. Also, on an online video, which has gone viral, Crooks apparently says he hates both Republicans and Trump.

However, in the end, he says, “you got the wrong guy”. This has sparked divided opinions about the person in the video. Some people believe it’s the suspected shooter Crooks while some are calling it fake, claiming the person is a lookalike.

Pennsylvania’s public court records show Crooks’ past has been clean, and he had no criminal history, or known conviction.

Source: presstv.ir

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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2024/07/14/729334/US-Penn-Thomas-Matthew-Crooks-Bomb-Making-Matrial-Vehicle-Home-Rally-Trump-Shooter

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Pakistan

 

Police ‘arrest’ Imran over several May 9 cases

July 15, 2024

LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: As the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) secured an eight-day remand of former prime minister Imran Khan in a fresh Toshakhana case, Lahore police have also ‘arrested’ him in connection with a dozen cases, including the attack on the Corps Commander House, lodged against the PTI founder over the May 9 riots.

Sources say the ex-PM would not be moved to Lahore for interrogation due to the security risks involved, but will appear before an anti-terrorism court in Lahore via video link today (Monday), where police are expected to seek his remand.

A 13-member team of the Lahore police’s investigation wing visited Adiala Jail on Saturday to quiz the former prime minister regarding the violence which started on May 9 after his arrest from the Islamabad High Court.

Sources said the PTI leader refused to meet the Lahore police team when they tried to gain access to him to interrogate him about the May 9 cases, in which he was nominated on various offences, including charges of provoking the public against the state.

Lahore Investigation DIG Zeeshan Asghar told Dawn that the police arrested the PTI founder as he was the prime suspect in the 12 cases registered at various police stations in the city. Another senior officer told Dawn that the investigation police arrested the PTI founder in 12 out of the total 16 cases registered by the Lahore police over the May 9 attacks.

A 13-member police team, including at least 12 investigating officers (IOs), went to Adiala jail over the weekend. Although prison authorities apprised the PTI founder about the purpose of their visit, Mr Khan refused to meet them.

An official said the team stayed at Adiala jail and sent several messages to Mr Khan, but to no avail. Eventually, the team mentioned the arrest of Imran Khan in 12 cases and returned to the provincial capital.

Out of the dozen cases registered against the former premier, police officials said that two in particular, which pertained to the attacks on the residence of the Lahore corps commander and the Askari Tower, were the focus of police high-ups.

A police official said the corps commander house attack was being probed by a joint investigation team (JIT) led by DIG Investigation Zeeshan Asghar, whereas the Askari Tower case was investigated by SSP Investigations Dr Anoosh Masood Chaudhry. Other cases, including the attack on Shadman police station, were being investigated by divisional SPs.

These cases were registered against Mr Khan over his alleged involvement in the attack on a police station in Shadman, military installations, government properties and officials.

The FIRs were registered with the Sarwar Road, Gulberg, Race Course, Naseerabad, Shadman, and other police stations of Lahore.

Imran on NAB’s remand

Separately, an accountability court in Islamabad handed custody of Mr Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to NAB authorities on physical remand for eight days in the new Toshakhana case.

The decision was announced by Islamabad Accountability Court Judge Muhammad Ali Warraich on a NAB plea. They will be produced in the court on July 22.

It is worth mentioning that on Saturday Mr Khan and his wife were acquitted in the Iddat case but they could not be released as authorities issued fresh orders to arrest him.

Meanwhile, PTI activist Sanam Javed was also rearrested by Islamabad police after she was released by a court.

On Sunday, Magistrate Malik Imran discharged Sanam Javed from an FIA case but she was arrested by the capital city’s police, her lawyer Mian Ashfaq said.

Earlier, Ms Javed told the media that she was released after am “illegal detention” which continued for over a year.

Ms Javed said her stance is the same as it was 14 months back and will remain firm in her stance.

The Islamabad police is yet to confirm or deny the PTI activist’s arrest.

Source: dawn.com

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https://www.dawn.com/news/1845818/police-arrest-imran-over-several-may-9-cases

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Commuters suffer as TLP continues sit-in in Rawalpindi

July 15, 2024

RAWALPINDI: Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) workers and supporters continued their sit-in at Faizabad for the second day on Sunday. Due to the protest, traffic was thrown haywire, disturbing routine life in the garrison city.

The police and local administration closed Murree Road from Shamsabad to Faizabad, forcing people to take a detour to Double Road to reach Islamabad.

As a result, the worst traffic jam was witnessed on Double Road and Sixth Road. Traffic alerts on social media warned people against using Murree Road for travelling to Islamabad.

A senior official of the district administration told Dawn that the TLP had submitted an application, seeking permission to hold a rally on Murree Road but it was turned down.

“The TLP office-bearers wanted to bring out a rally only for a few hours but due to Muharram, we turned down the request and tried to convince them against it,” he added.

However, he said that the rally was brought out and later the TLP staged a sit-in at Faizabad.

“Now, we are not in contact with the TLP office-bearers as they had staged a sit-in in the limits of Islamabad and the capital administration was negotiating with them to end the sit-in,” he added.

On the other hand, traders were worried about the sit-in as less people visited the markets in Raja Bazaar and adjoining markets on Sunday.

“Usually, people from Islamabad visit Raja Bazaar and other markets for shopping but this Sunday there was a considerable reduction in the number of visitors,” said Rawalpindi Traders Association President Sharjeel Mir.

He said traders were already facing the worst financial crisis as they had to pay huge electricity bills, and with less customers, their businesses were getting affected.

He said traders were not against the sit-ins but the capital administration should talk to the protesters so they end their protest as soon as possible.

“Shopkeepers on Murree Road from Shamsabad to Chandni Chowk did no business in the last two days,” he added.

Meanwhile, speakers at the TLP sit-in made it clear that they would continue their protest till their demands were meet.

“We demand that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Natanyahu be declared a terrorist and the government provide medical and food assistance to Palestinians facing brutality of Israeli forces in Gaza and other areas,” said Hafiz Saad Rizvi.

Source: dawn.com

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https://www.dawn.com/news/1845918/commuters-suffer-as-tlp-continues-sit-in-in-rawalpindi

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Ministry to facilitate work permits for Pakistanis in Iraq

July 15, 2024

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development is working on a plan to secure the issuance of work permits for Pakistani citizens in Iraq.

For this purpose, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) will soon be signed between the ministry of overseas Pakistanis and the Iraqi ministry of labour. The issue was discussed in a meeting between Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Chaudhry Salik Hussain and Ambassador of Iraq Hamid Abbas Lafta. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi was also present at the meeting.

“The MoU will make it easier for Pakistani citizens to obtain work permits in Iraq. It will also increase legal immigration and reduce illegal entry into Iraq,” Mr Salik said.

The interior minister also assured the Iraqi ambassador of his full cooperation in resolving the issue of illegal Pakistani residents in Iraq.

MoU will soon be signed to increase legal immigration, says minister

The meeting focused on providing maximum facilities to pilgrims, including the issuance of free-of-cost entry visas and increasing the quota for Pakistani pilgrims.

Mr Naqvi assured the Iraqi envoy that action would be taken against travel agents who charged extra fees to pilgrims. He said each year, hundreds of thousands of Pakistani pilgrims visit Iraq, but they face certain issues, especially during the months of Muharram and Safar.

He said that the government was working to provide maximum facilities to these pilgrims, and if the Iraqi government allowed free-of-charge entry visas to the pilgrims it would greatly facilitate them.

The interior minister also requested the Iraqi government to double the quota for Pakistani pilgrims this year and also to waive the passport submission requirement for Pakistani pilgrims on entering Iraq, because, according to him, it creates problems for them on their return.

The Iraqi ambassador agreed to fully cooperate in this regard to facilitate Pakistani pilgrims. The Iraqi ambassador also provided a list of travel agents who had charged extra fees to pilgrims. The interior minister said strict action would be taken against these travel agents within a week.

During the meeting, the two sides also agreed to soon finalise an agreement on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders.

Source: dawn.com

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https://www.dawn.com/news/1845906/ministry-to-facilitate-work-permits-for-pakistanis-in-iraq

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Governors, CM attend Dawoodi Bohra's Muharram congregation

July 14, 2024

Top government officials — including Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor Faisal Karim Kundi — on Sunday attended the Dawoodi Bohra’s Muharram congregation addressed by the community’s leader Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin.

The official delegation participated in the eighth sermon of Ashara Mubaraka today.

The dignitaries, along with other senior government officials, visited the landmark Dawoodi Bohra masjid in Karachi's Saddar, where they were warmly greeted by Syedna Saifuddin, his family members, and thousands of community members gathered there.

Syedna Saifuddin briefly explained to the guests the significance of the Ashara Mubaraka gatherings. He highlighted Imam Husain ibn Ali’s (RA) principled stand for Islam, justice and humanity, for which he sacrificed his life and those of the Ahle Bayt.

Syedna drew inspiration from a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) where he stated: “All of Creation is a single family dependent upon Allah” and declared that “the most beloved to Allah is the one who benefits His family the most.”

Syedna also explained that Creation comprises all things, and as such we should strive to benefit not just one another but all of Creation.

He also cited the hadith where the Prophet (PBUH) establishes that “Love for one's homeland is an integral element of faith”. Syedna exhorted the Dawoodi Bohra community to be law-abiding and honest citizens, partaking in all activities that result in the progress of the nation.

He extended his gratitude to the governors, chief minister, and the government for providing the Dawoodi Bohra community with every assistance and cooperation in making necessary arrangements for the Ashara Mubaraka congregations in Karachi.

Addressing the gathering, CM Murad said, "Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin's arrival in Karachi is a matter of pride for Sindh. We welcome him and the Dawoodi Bohra community members who have come from all over the world to Karachi for the Muharram congregation."

Governor Tessori expressed his appreciation to Syedna for selecting Karachi to host this year’s Ashara Mubaraka. “Along with Syedna's prayers, the community’s arrival has had a positive impact on the economic conditions of the city.”

The visit by these high-ranking officials to the Ashara Mubaraka sermon highlights the significance of this spiritual gathering and the Dawoodi Bohra community's relations with Pakistan and its people, an official statement read.

“Syedna Saifuddin's words on benefiting all of Creation and loving one's homeland resonate deeply with the community's values and their role as engaged citizens,” it added.

“This interaction between religious and state leaders during such an important religious observance demonstrates the spirit of mutual respect and cooperation that exists in Pakistan's diverse society.”

“As Ashara Mubaraka continues, it not only provides spiritual guidance to the Dawoodi Bohra community but also contributes positively to Karachi's social and economic fabric, reinforcing the community's commitment to national progress and interfaith harmony,” it concluded.

Source: thenews.com.pk

Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story

https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1209725-governors-sindh-cm-attend-dawoodi-bohras-muharram-congregation

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Imran, Bushra sent on 8-day physical remand in Toshakhana reference

July 14, 2024

RAWALPINDI: An accountability court on Sunday approved an eight-day physical remand each of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and his spouse Bushra Bibi in a new Toshakhana reference.

The development comes just a day after the couple received a much-needed relief after a court acquitted them in the iddat case — also known as the un-Islamic nikah case — but it was short-lived as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) arrested the couple in a new Toshakhana reference.

Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka had a day earlier nixed the couple's conviction — in which they were sentenced to seven years in prison and awarded a fine of Rs500,000 each after a trial court found their nikah to be fraudulent as Khawar Maneka, Bushra's ex-husband, moved the court against the couple's marriage.

However, soon after the verdict overturning their conviction, a team of the anti-corruption watchdog headed by Deputy Director Mohsin Haroon arrested the couple in the Adiala Jail in the new reference related to alleged "misuse of power for acquiring Toshakhana gifts".

The PTI, after securing a key legal victory after a 13-member Supreme Court bench declared the party eligible for the allocation of reserved seats, was looking forward to their founder's release — which if it had happened would've given a major boost to the former ruling party.

The accountability court today directed anti-graft watchdog to interrogate the two suspects in Adiala jail and also ordered to produce the couple before the court on July 22.

Khan's lawyer Zaheer Abbas Chaudhary, while speaking to media persons, said that NAB had requested a 14-day physical remand of PTI founder and Bushra.

Chaudhary said that they opposed the physical remanded, pleading that they have engagements in the £190 million reference.

The lawyer said that the ex-premier and his wife's arrest was against the law, adding that their petition seeking bail was already being heard in the Supreme Court.

Imran's legal battles

Khan has been behind bars since August last year after he was sentenced in the Toshakhana criminal case and subsequently sentenced in other cases ahead of the February 8 elections.

Although, the former PM has been granted bail in several May 9 cases registered in Lahore, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad, an anti-terrorism court (ATC) last week cancelled his bail in one of the May 9 cases registered against him and thousands of his supporters in connection with violence against the military and other state installations that erupted following his brief arrest in May 2023.

In June, the Islamabad High Court overturned Khan's conviction on charges of leaking state secrets in the cipher case wherein he was handed down a 10-year prison sentence on charges of making public a classified cable sent to Islamabad by Pakistan's ambassador in Washington in 2022.

Also, ex-premier Khan was given jail sentences — one of 14 years and the other three years — in two cases pertaining to illegally acquiring and selling state gifts. Both sentences have been suspended by high courts while his appeals are heard — however, the conviction in both cases still stands.

Source: thenews.com.pk

Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story

https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1209617-imran-bushra-sent-on-8-day-physical-remand-in-toshakhana-reference

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Political analysts share two cents on iddat case ruling

July 13, 2024

ISLAMABAD: As Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) received another big relief in the shape of its founder Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi's acquittal in the infamous un-Islamic nikah case, senior journalists and political analysts shared their two cents on the crucial ruling that came earlier on Saturday.

Additional Sessions Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka nullified the the former premier and his wife's conviction in iddat case filed by the latter's ex-husband, against the couple's marriage.

In February, the cricketer-turned-politician and Bushra, who is his third wife, were sentenced to seven years in prison and awarded a fine of Rs500,000 each, after a trial court found their nikah to be fraudulent.

However, the couple had filed appeals challenging their conviction and had even moved the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking varying relief from the court.

'Verdict holds immense importance for women'

Reacting to today's development, journalist and analyst Shahzaib Khanzada, while speaking to Geo News, said that the verdict was a "necessary decision" which holds immense importance for women.

He shed light on the sensitivity of the matters related to divorce and re-marriage, especially in the case of women in Pakistani society, who face challenges after separation from their spouses.

“Whether it was expected or not, it was a definitely a necessary decision because the previous decision [conviction] was a very bad one, it was bad for women.

"An ex-husband wakes up after six to seven years, realises that his former wife had remarried during her iddat period and decides to file a court case against her and her current husband, who subsequently end up getting life sentences," Khanzada said.

He insisted that despite some wrongful statements by the PTI founder on various occasions, the "evidences and scenarios presented in this case did not justify making it a criminal case with such strict sentences".

The journalist emphasised that Maneka had made some "extremely obscene remarks about his former wife" and the decision announced today was "correct".

"This was a useless case which was clearly built for political victimisation", he added.

'Defamation suit on cards against Maneka'

Meanwhile, senior journalist and anchorperson Hamid Mir was of the view that Maneka enjoyed the support (of powerful circles) as the trial court's judge was changed upon his hue and cry, that too even after the former judge had reserved a verdict in the case.

He said had the verdict come against the couple then this would have opened the door for more such cases.

Mir said, as per his information, Imran and Bushra were thinking about filing a defamation case against Maneka now, while he, on the other hand still had the right to go in appeal against the order.

'Iddat case most absurd and vile'

Lawyer Salaar Khan said that though the verdict came as a major relief for Khan, his release still depended on other pending cases against him as, for now, it was not expected after his bail was cancelled in the May 9 case earlier this week.

"It will also depend on whether or not an arrest is ordered in any other cases, and proceedings in appeal," he wrote in a post on X.

Of all the cases against Imran, the iddat case was, perhaps, the "most absurd and vile", he said.

"A seven-year sentence — determined after a public audit of a woman's menstrual cycles — has now rightfully been rubbished, with orders to release both Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi," he maintained.

Source: thenews.com.pk

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https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1209348-political-analysts-share-two-cents-on-iddat-case-ruling

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Islamabad, Washington to convene joint 'Law Enforcement Dialogue' in October

July 13, 2024

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States have agreed on holding a "Law Enforcement Dialogue" in October this year as the country continues its efforts to rein in the scourge of terrorism.

The development came during a meeting between Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome wherein both sides discussed matters of mutual interests and strengthening of bilateral relations.

Sources told Geo News earlier this week that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led government had decided to initiate a national dialogue to root out terrorism and extremism in the country.

The move came after the federal government, last month, announced its decision to launch a new anti-terror drive titled "Operation Azm-e-Istehkam" — which drew reservations from several political parties including the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F), the Awami National Party (ANP), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and others.

The Centre has maintained that "no large-scale military operation is being launched" in the country which might result in mass evictions and has reassured that the matter will be brought before the parliament.

PM Shehbaz has also decided to convene an all-parties conference (APC) to evolve consensus on the operation with PTI founder Imran Khan supporting the initiative, saying his party would attend the government-hosted huddle.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Army has also denounced the undue criticism against the newly launched anti-terrorism operation stating that the "vision" was being misrepresented deliberately for "vested interests".

In today's meeting with the US envoy, Naqvi underscored the significance of US support in strengthening Pakistan’s law enforcement agencies.

The meeting also focused on issues such as enhancing cooperation in combating terrorism, narcotics trafficking and bolstering security.

The security czar also highlighted the recent discussions in New York to foster collaboration between the Islamabad Police and the New York Police Department.

It was decided that a delegation from Islamabad Police will soon visit New York to explore further opportunities for cooperation including training programmes.

Reaffirming Islamabad's commitment to protecting all minorities, the minister emphasised their equal rights under the Constitution and said that all those accused in Jaranwala tragedy have been arrested and brought before the court.

His remarks referred to the August 16 incident wherein a crowd vandalised several churches and set scores of houses on fire in Jaranwala town of the industrial district of Faisalabad after clerics made announcements in mosques inciting the mob to attack the Christian community under allegations of blasphemy.

The meeting also touched upon the successful hosting of the T20 World Cup 2024 in the US, showcasing America’s emergence as a new hub for international cricket.

Naqvi expressed his ongoing efforts to organise a tri-nation series between Pakistan, the USA and Canada as well as a cricket league between the US and Canada.

US Ambassador Blome commended the exciting and well-organised matches, highlighting the enjoyment of a large number of fans.

It is to be noted that Green Shirts, during the tournament, had suffered a shocking super over defeat against the hosts who were playing their first-ever world cup.

Source: thenews.com.pk

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https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/1209338-islamabad-washington-to-convene-joint-law-enforcement-dialogue-in-october

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Security forces foil cowardly terrorist attack on Bannu Cantt

July 15, 2024

The security forces have foiled a cowardly terrorist attack on Bannu Cantt this morning.

According to details, the terrorists attempted to enter the Cantt by detonating an explosive laden vehicle on the road between the outer wall of Bannu Cantt and the supply depot.

The security forces foiled the terrorists' attempt by taking timely action.

The security forces have started a clearance operation.

Source: radio.gov.pk

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https://www.radio.gov.pk/15-07-2024/security-forces-foil-cowardly-terrorist-attack-on-bannu-cantt#google_vignette

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World Youth Skills Day being observed today

July 15, 2024

World Youth Skills Day is being observed today (Monday).

The theme of the day is "Youth Skills for Peace and Development" which underscores the crucial role young people play in peacebuilding and conflict resolution.

Source: radio.gov.pk

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https://www.radio.gov.pk/15-07-2024/world-youth-skills-day-being-observed-today

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South Asia

 

Intl community yet to keep promise to lift sanctions on IEA officials, Mujahid

July 15, 2024

KABUL: The spokesperson of the Islamic Emirate Zabihullah Mujahid, in an interview with the private TOLOnews said that the international community has not yet honored its commitments regarding the lifting of sanctions, including the removal of officials’ names from the banned list. Mujahid called on the world’s countries to engage with the Islamic Emirate and reconsider the sanctions. “Unfortunately, some countries have not taken any steps in this regard so far. Some other countries, that had certain laws and details against us, have removed or are in the process of removing them, for which I am grateful. Overall, I want all countries to do the same,” Mujahid said as quot ed by the TV. Mujahid also stated that imposing sanctions on the Islamic Emirate is ineffective but impacts the lives of the people in Afghanistan. Nearly three years have passed since the Islamic Emirate regained power in the country; however, the names of some officials of the current Islamic system still remain on the UN banned list. The Kabul Times

Source: thekabultimes.com

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https://thekabultimes.com/intl-community-yet-to-keep-promise-to-lift-sanctions-on-iea-officials-mujahid/

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Pakistan always creating challenges during Afghanistan’s export season

July 15, 2024

Afghanistan is an agricultural country, where hundreds of thousands of tons of fresh fruits and vegetables are harvested every year, and hundreds of thousands of tons of fresh fruits and vegetables are exported from Afghanistan to various countries. Most of the country’s fresh fruits and vegetables are exported via Afghanistan’s Torkham, Spin Boldak and other ports to the neighboring country. During the export season, the neighboring country has always created challenges for trade between the two countries during Afghanistan’s export season. It is now the season for Afghanistan’s fresh fruits and vegetables and the country’s markets are full of fresh fruits and vegetables. Now that Afghan traders are exporting the country’s fresh fruits and vegetables to neighboring countries, the Pakistan government has announced additional taxes on Afghan products as they have blocked some 300 trucks of fresh fruits and vegetables belonging to Afghan traders from entering the country. The Afghanistan Embassy in Islamabad has reported that Pakistan blocked 300 trucks of fruits and vegetables belonging to Af ghan traders from entering the country. This follows a meeting between the Afghanistan Embassy delegation and Maria Kazi, head of foreign trade, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Pakistan government this Friday. The delegation discussed resolving trade issues, particularly the halt of cargo trucks at the border. According to the Afghanistan embassy in Islamabad, these trucks stuck at Torkham, Spin Boldak, and Chaman border crossings due to lack of documentation from the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) have not yet received permission to enter Pakistan. In a statement issued by the embassy expressed concern over additional taxes on Afghan exports of fresh fruits and vegetables during the export season, viewing it as detrimental to Afghan growers and the domestic market in Pakistan. The Embassy of Afghanistan in Islamabad is now urging Pakistan to issue temporary documentation to allow Afghan traders’ trucks carrying fruits and vegetables to enter and reach their final destination. Disputes over visas, driver passports, and border crossing permits have repeatedly led to the closure of the Torkham crossing. Efforts towards addressing these issues remain crucial for fostering economic stability and regional connectivity in the broader context of South Asian trade dynamics. It is not the first time Pakistan has created challenges for Afghan traders during the export season. Afghan trades face with challenges created by the Pakistan government during the Afghan export season. In the three or four months when it is the season for Pakistan’s oranges, tomatoes, and vegetables, there is no issue. However, when it is the season for Afghanistan’s fresh fruits and vegetables’ season, the Pakistan government either puts additional taxes or blocks trucks transiting our country’s products to the neighboring country. Every year, Pakistan by imposing restrictions during Afghanistan’s fresh fruit and vegetable season exerts increasing pressure on the Afghan government and creates problems for Afghan traders as it has now put additional taxes on Afghanistan’s domestic products and blocked hundreds of Afghan traders’ trucks from entering the country. This can lead to reduced trade and create challenges between the two countries. Pakistan should allow the Afghan traders’ trucks to enter the country, or Afghanistan will take similar steps. Mukhtar Safi

Source: thekabultimes.com

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https://thekabultimes.com/pakistan-always-creating-challenges-during-afghanistans-export-season/

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China to provide nearly $14 million in aid to Afghanistan

July 15, 2024

The Ministry of Economy has announced that China will provide 100 million yuan, approximately $14 million, to address the needs of migrants in  Afghanistan.

The ministry disclosed in a press release on Sunday, July 14th, following a meeting between Din Mohammad Hanif, the Taliban Minister of Economy, and Zhuosheng, China’s Ambassador to Kabul.

According to the press release, discussions during the meeting focused on economic and trade cooperation, investment in  Afghanistan, the construction of the Aynak copper mine road, and the continuation of educational programs in the country.

The Ministry of Economy emphasized that these contributions will be coordinated with the ministry to address the needs of returning migrants in the country.

Meanwhile, concerns persist over the ongoing expulsion of Afghan migrants from Pakistan, with protests from Iran and Pakistan urging a halt to the process.

Earlier, China’s ambassador had informed Taliban officials of China’s readiness to address the issues of returning migrants in  Afghanistan.

It is noteworthy that several human rights organizations have expressed concern about the difficult situation of these migrants in  Afghanistan following their expulsion from Pakistan and have called for attention to their needs.

Source: khaama.com

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https://www.khaama.com/china-to-provide-nearly-14-million-in-aid-to-afghanistan/

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Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi Reaffirms Support for Private Sector Growth and Investment

2024-07-14

KABUL(BNA): Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi, Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs, reaffirmed the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s commitment to supporting the private sector and providing necessary facilities.

During a meeting with Ibrahim Mohib, President of the Afghanistan International Bank (AIB), Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi was briefed on the bank’s services and future plans. Mr. Mohib assured that AIB continues to offer banking services and plans to expand into healthcare, construction materials, and hospitality.

He also highlighted the facilities provided by the Islamic Emirate for trade and investment, expressing AIB’s readiness to support domestic and foreign traders and companies.

Additionally, the Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Salam Hanafi emphasized the crucial role of private banks in the country’s development and reiterated the Islamic Emirate’s support and facilitation for the private sector.

Source: bakhtarnews.af

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https://www.bakhtarnews.af/en/deputy-pm-mawlawi-abdul-salam-hanafi-reaffirms-support-for-private-sector-growth-and-investment/

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Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Kabir Chairs First Meeting of High Commission to Combat Narcotics

2024-07-14

KABUL(BNA): The Deputy Prime Minister for Political Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, chaired the first meeting to establish a High Commission for Combatting Intoxicants and Narcotics at the Sapidar Palace.

During the session, procedures for the commission were discussed. Lieutenant General Mullah Abdulhaq Akhund Hamkar, Deputy Minister of Counter-Narcotics, reported that all poppy fields have been destroyed and numerous narcotics traffickers arrested. He highlighted the Islamic Emirate’s success in combatting narcotics, acknowledged by the international community.

Meanwhile, Mawlawi Abdul Kabir emphasized the commission’s goals, effective nationwide combatting of narcotics, providing alternative crops for farmers, and treating addicts. He stressed the need for unified efforts among relevant departments.

In addition, Deputy PM Mawlawi Abdul Kabir provided guidance on the commission’s mandate and future meeting agendas, reiterating the Islamic Emirate’s clear stance against narcotics, prohibiting cultivation, production, and trafficking.

Source: bakhtarnews.af

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https://www.bakhtarnews.af/en/deputy-pm-mawlawi-abdul-kabir-chairs-first-meeting-of-high-commission-to-combat-narcotics/

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Southeast Asia

 

Jokowi’s religious mining rule divides Indonesian’s largest Islamic organization

15 July 2024

In May 2024, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, known as Jokowi, signed a new regulation to enable the country’s religious organizations to become mining operators.

The policy has been criticized extensively by civil society groups, some of which view the move as the result of a political bargain for Nahdlatul Ulama, the country’s largest Islamic organization, to deliver votes to Jokowi’s chosen successor in the February 2024 presidential election.

Young people within Nahdlatul Ulama told Mongabay Indonesia that Indonesia’s largest Islamic group would be reneging on its environmental commitments if it were to follow through on plans to operate coal mining concessions.

A widely criticized move by Indonesian President Joko Widodo to reform mining rules to bestow coal mining licenses on an allied religious organization is carving a rift between its executive leadership and Islamic activists in the community, sources told Mongabay Indonesia.

On May 30, the president, commonly known as Jokowi, signed a revision to existing mining rules to allow the country’s religious organizations to operate mining concessions.

The unorthodox reform was spearheaded by the country’s investment minister, Jokowi loyalist Bahlil Lahadalia, who has faced serious allegations of impropriety in the revocation and reissuance of mining permits.

In Jakarta, allowing faith groups to become mining operators has been widely interpreted as part of a quid pro quo for the country’s largest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama, for delivering votes to Jokowi ally Prabowo Subianto. Prabowo was elected president in February this year after a court led by Jokowi’s brother-in-law changed age limits to allow Jokowi’s son to run as Prabowo’s vice president.

Prabowo ran for high office in three previous elections over a 15-year period and was rejected by voters in all three contests.

Two-term president Jokowi has long enjoyed extraordinary popularity, according to surveys of Indonesian voters dating back a decade.

The ploy to hitch Jokowi’s 36-year-old inexperienced son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, to the Prabowo ticket transformed opinion polls and propelled Prabowo to a landslide election win.

Civil society groups told Mongabay that the change was fraught with procedural and practical pitfalls.

“It’s nonsense,” Muhammad Jamil, head of the legal desk at the National Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam), a watchdog group, told Mongabay Indonesia on May 1.

With a claimed 100 million followers, Nahdlatul Ulama is by far the largest Islamic organization in Indonesia. The decision on religious mining permits came as Islamic organizations were winning domestic and international praise for increased attention to biodiversity loss and climate change.

Many young Islamic activists inspired by this pivot to the environment have responded to Jokowi’s policymaking with dismay, interviews showed.

“This is fraught with conflicts of interest,” Asman Aziz, the deputy of an NU chapter in East Kalimantan province, told Mongabay Indonesia.

Six former concessions are set to be handed over to religious organizations, four in East Kalimantan and two in South Kalimantan province.

“When NU becomes joined up with the miners, all NU can do is sit back and reap the rewards,” said Asman in East Kalimantan. “It won’t be able to criticize any damage caused by mining.”

A NU low

The country’s largest Islamic organization applied for a coal mining permit in East Kalimantan shortly after Jokowi’s office published Presidential Regulation No. 25 of this year (the rule that has enabled religious groups to obtain mining concessions).

In 2015, however, NU leaders issued an edict against the exploitation of natural resources at the organization’s Bahtsul Masail, a plenary in which Islamic scholars interrogate scripture to decide contemporary policy.

In recent years, civil society organizations and young people within the NU and Muhammadiyah organizations have sought to give environmental action greater centrality. That has sparked changes such as clerical bodies issuing fatwa, a Muslim religious edict, against some forms of environmental damage, as well as grassroots initiatives to foster sustainability.

“I urge the ulama and Muslim leaders to take an active role in conveying issues related to environmental damage — then we will take more concrete actions,” Indonesia’s vice president, Ma’ruf Amin, himself an Islamic cleric, told a gathering of Islamic leaders at the Congress of Muslims for Sustainable Indonesia at Jakarta’s Istiqlal Mosque in 2022.

Roy Murtadho, an NU member who also founded an Islamic boarding school in Bogor, a city just south of the nation’s capital, said that NU moonlighting as a mining magnate would amount to the organization reneging on its environmental commitments.

“Out of many NU congress decisions, the conversion of food-productive land for big business interests was deemed haram [forbidden by Islamic law] — environmental damage that led to social-ecological damage was haram,” Roy said.

Young activists worry NU could enter into an adversarial relationship with local communities or Indigenous groups. Ordinarily, the faith organization would typically be expected to advocate on behalf of people affected by land conversion.

Roy said the policy had the potential to instill recrimination in communities if individuals felt they could not speak against a mining operation out of fear of speaking against the faith.

Others point to the fraught nature of a dangerous business in which workplace accidents are common.

That could expose a faith organization to legal risks regarding culpability. Moreover, the mining business is awash with corruption and legalistic engineering among elites, and any allegations pertaining to illegality could throw NU into a crisis of legitimacy.

Money pit

“The problem is, so far we are not aware of any discussions between PBNU and PWNU regarding this plan — this is a big problem,” Azam said, referring to the national and regional boards of NU.

“It carries the name of the organization, so this should be discussed organizationally,” Azam added. “There is no open discussion on this issue.”

Azam has made representations to the national executive board that mining has caused extensive environmental damage in East Kalimantan. Around 49 children are recorded as having drowned in abandoned mining pits in the province.

“This thing about concessions is a very important strategic issue,” Asman said, adding that decision-making of this importance required the widest possible discussion.

Like many, Asman views the sudden coal patronage as a ploy to bind NU into political loyalty.

Izzuddin Zaky, the chair of a local NU chapter in Trenggalek district, East Java province, refrained from criticizing the leadership, but said the potential costs from mining outweighed any possible benefit.

“We do not have the authority to comment on PBNU’s response regarding the mining concession,” Izzuddin told Mongabay, referring to the NU national board. “But in Trenggalek, our commitment that the gold mines do not operate remains unchanged.”

Azam said that NU should position itself as an advocate for communities affected by mining, not the executor of the environmental change damaging communities.

“As an NU person,” Asman said, “honestly, it makes me really sad.”

Source: news.mongabay.com

Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story

https://news.mongabay.com/2024/07/jokowis-religious-mining-rule-divides-indonesia-faith-group/

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Govt to expedite Syariah Judges’ Remuneration Act - PM Anwar

15-07- 2024

PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today gave his commitment that the government will speed up the proposed implementation of the Syariah Judges’ Remuneration Act to dignify the status of Syariah Court judges in this country.

Anwar, who is also the Minister of Finance, said the matter received the government’s attention because there is a need to balance between the Syariah Judicial Service Scheme and the Civil Judicial Service Scheme.

“I was also informed about the Syariah Judges’ Remuneration Act. Now it is following the PTD (Administrative and Diplomatic Officer) scheme.

“So, God willing, I will ask Dr Na’im (Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar) to speed up the adoption of the Syariah Judges’ Remuneration Act, so that (Syariah Judges) are raised. For me, just negotiate well and resolve it,“ he said when he officiated the Convention to Uphold Malaysia’s Syariah Judiciary and Legislation here today.

Earlier, the Syariah Judges’ Remuneration Scheme was under the PTD Scheme because a Syariah judge was a public service officer.

Commenting further, Anwar said the proposed implementation of the act should be considered to ensure that there are no more views on the lower status of syariah judges.

“It will also definitely give strength and courage to syariah judges to apply the law more authoritatively,“ he said.

Meanwhile, Mohd Na’im said the convention, which was held for the first time, was aimed at strengthening Syariah laws and judiciary in Malaysia as well as strengthening the interests of the religion, the country and the ummah.

“The agenda of upholding Syariah law and judiciary in Malaysia has become an important pillar of the Al-Falah Transformation Plan which has been set in motion by the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) as a platform for improving the administration of Islamic affairs,“ he said.

He said the convention was also a follow-up for scholars, lawyers including administrators to share knowledge, analyse current issues and provide proposals and recommendations towards strengthening the legal and judicial syariah system in this country.

Source: thesun.my

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https://thesun.my/local-news/govt-to-expedite-syariah-judges-remuneration-act-pm-anwar-MG12723843

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Conference of Rulers wants careful drafting of RUU355 on Shariah punishments to avoid perception of haste or weakness, says PM Anwar

15 Jul 2024

PUTRAJAYA, July 15 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the Conference of Rulers wanted amendments to the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 (Bill 355) to be made carefully.

Speaking at the opening of the Convention to Dignify Malaysia’s Syariah Law and Judiciary today, Anwar said he had met the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Nazrin Muizzuddin Shah as chairman of the National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs (MKI), last week regarding Bill 355.

“So far I have not seen any objections or problems either (from) the chief justice who has approved this effort and the Conference of Rulers who has been given an initial briefing.

“The Conference of Rulers gave its consent, but it asked for the Bill to be examined, so that it is not seen as hasty or manifesting weaknesses in its implementation,” he said here.

He said the government will present the results of the negotiations on Bill 355 to MKI next month.

“But of course it cannot be finalised yet because my discussions with the Sultan of Perak should be taken to the international level, before being referred to the Attorney General’s Chambers and then to the Conference of Rulers, because of issues of Islam, customs and citizenship, certain matters must be approved by the Conference of Rulers,” he said.

He said amendments to Bill 355 should be made carefully and take into account the views of all parties, whether the Shariah court or the civil court, including international legal experts.

Anwar said that the cautious approach was taken not as an excuse to delay or underestimate past efforts but there are several major weaknesses in the provisions which should not only be referred to the Attorney General’s Chambers but should also to international experts.

“So that when we introduce this, it is the best example of the implementation of a document, an effort to dignify Islamic law in this context, then it can be used as a guide, harmonising the position and strength of the Shariah court and the civil court,” he said.

In this regard, Anwar said he had instructed the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs), Datuk Mohd Na’im Mokhtar and the Department of Islamic Development (Jakim) to coordinate the matter, and seek the views of international Islamic legal experts.

“I have also instructed, discussed with many who have expertise and skills regardless of which ijtihad, we negotiate so that there is a process (engagement) and I have asked the committee to consult all views, agreeing or disagreeing with the proposal amendments before being brought (to MKI).

“So if you want to make an amendment, make it a truly comprehensive amendment, so that our seriousness in implementing (Bill 355) is not disputed while covering all possible areas,” he said.

Anwar said besides meeting Sultan Nazrin as MKI Chairman last week regarding Bill 355, he also met with the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah (former MKI Chairman) earlier regarding the amendment.

“Both (Sultan Nazrin and Sultan Sharafuddin) agree with the initial framework presented by the expert committee and presented by Mohd Na’im, but we want it to be thoroughly researched.

“I thank Mohd Na’im for speeding up this process and Tuanku Sultan Nazrin expressed his willingness to discuss in the meeting at the end of August,” he said.

Bill 355 aims to increase the limited jurisdiction of the Shariah Court, which is a fine of RM5,000 or three years in prison or/and six lashes to a jurisdiction more in accordance with the Shariah law, except for the death penalty. — Bernama

Source: malaymail.com

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https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2024/07/15/conference-of-rulers-wants-careful-drafting-of-ruu355-on-shariah-punishments-to-avoid-perception-of-haste-or-weakness-says-pm-anwar/143787

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'Anti-Islam' jibe against Rayer earns Pendang MP three-day suspension

Jul 15, 2024

PARLIAMENT | The Dewan Rakyat has slapped Awang Solahuddin Hashim (PN-Pendang) with a three-day suspension following his refusal to retract his "anti-Islam" accusation towards RSN Rayer (Harapan-Jelutong).

Deputy Dewan Rakyat speaker Ramli Mohd Nor delivered the ruling under Standing Order 37(2), after giving Awang (above, right) three warnings to retract his "anti-Islam" statement.

"Jelutong is anti-Islam, so I will not retract...

Source: malaysiakini.com

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https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/711941

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Johari, Brownlee discuss efforts to strengthen Malaysia-New Zealand ties

15-07- 2024

KUALA LUMPUR: Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul and his New Zealand counterpart Gerry Brownlee met today to discuss efforts to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries.

The meeting, which lasted about 45 minutes at Parliament House here, also touched on Malaysia’s upcoming role as ASEAN chair.

According to Johari, other topics discussed included renewable energy, food security and innovation to ensure that initiatives by both countries could benefit the entire ASEAN region.

“We have a lot we can accomplish together, particularly given New Zealand’s expertise in agriculture. We also talked about education, as we have been sending students there since the 1960s, and they have also been sending their students here.

“So, we need to strengthen this relationship to ensure its continuity,” he told reporters after the meeting.

Johari said he also had the opportunity to express gratitude to the New Zealand representative for their military contributions during Malaysia’s emergency period between 1948 and 1967.

“Twenty of their soldiers died here during the emergency. Thus, in my capacity as Speaker of the Malaysian Parliament and on behalf of the Malaysian people, I thank the Speaker of New Zealand,” he said.

Earlier, Brownlee and his delegation were taken to observe the Dewan Rakyat sitting and visit the Senate hall before attending the meeting with Johari.

Brownlee was elected Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives in December 2023.

In the last term of Parliament, Brownlee was the National Party’s spokesperson for Foreign Affairs, GCSB, NZSIS and Emergency Management, and at the end of 2023, took on the additional roles of spokesperson for Defence and Veterans’ Affairs.

Source: thesun.my

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https://thesun.my/local-news/johari-brownlee-discuss-efforts-to-strengthen-malaysia-new-zealand-ties-JG12724629

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Pendang MP ejected from Dewan Rakyat for anti-Islam remark

15-07- 2024

PETALING JAYA: Pendang MP Datuk Awang Hashim has been suspended from the Dewan Rakyat for three days starting today following his “anti-Islam” comment to RSN Rayer (PH-Jelutong) earlier today.

Deputy Speaker Datuk Ramli Md Nor issued the order after Awang refused to retract his comment towards Rayer.

The issue stemmed from Rayer pointing out Awang’s comment towards a former Bersatu MP declaring his support for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, calling the MP “six evils”.

Rayer also raised a point of order last Thursday, alleging several Opposition members insulted Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul using the term “postman”.

Awang then accused Rayer of being anti-Islam, prompting Rayer demanding him to take back his statement.

“I ask him to retract his anti-Islam statement. That is not correct. What I stated is that he mentioned in the chamber (that he wanted) to ruin six former Bersatu members of Parliament,” Rayer was quoted as saying.

The matter was also agreed upon by Sim Tze Tzin (PH-Bayan Baru) who described Awang’s allegations as grave.

Ramli told Awang to retract his statement, asserting that the Parliament needed to be harmonised and not become a spectacle to the public.

“Is this what we want to show to society? YB, retract your statement. Please. Just that part,” Ramli was quoted as saying.

But Awang insisted on standing by his words and did not take back his statement in the end.

Source: thesun.my

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https://thesun.my/local-news/pendang-mp-ejected-from-dewan-rakyat-for-anti-islam-remark-NG12723781

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Home Ministry monitors digital, braille Quran publications - Saifuddin

15-07- 2024

KUALA NERUS: The Home Ministry (KDN) assures that it will monitor every publication of the Quran in digital and braille versions to prevent any errors.

Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said that the ministry would take immediate action if any mistakes are found without waiting for the errors to become serious.

“We do not wait until it becomes serious. We take this as our responsibility... meaning that if they (publishers) produce digital Quran, the Enforcement and Control Division of KDN (PK KDN) has the capability to handle it.

“I am confident it can reduce any potential errors in the production of the digital Quran... as well as the braille version,“ he said.

He was speaking at a press conference after attending a meeting with KDN’s Quran Printing Control and Licensing Board (LPPPQ) here yesterday.

He also said that all imported Quran for distribution in the country remain subject to the Priniting of Quranic Text Act 1986, and that from January to June this year, the ministry had seized 22,414 imported Quran copies valued at RM3.2 million that did not meet Malaysia’s standards.

During today’s programme, he also launched the Malaysian Standard Braille Quran Writing Guidelines to ensure uniformity between braille and standard printed versions of the Quran. He also introduced the Tasheh System, which uses advanced technology for the final proofreading of the Quran.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, he said that KDN will change the firearms usage system for members of the Malaysian Volunteer Department (RELA) to prevent the misuse of firearms.

“From now on, firearms will be stored in the armoury. When the members need to be on duty, only then will they be allowed to take them,“ he said.

Source: thesun.my

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https://thesun.my/local-news/home-ministry-monitors-digital-braille-quran-publications-saifuddin-EG12722503

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World Hokkien music festival platform for Malaysia-China cultural exchange

14-07- 2024

SEPANG: The World Hokkien Golden Melody Awards and the Cross-Strait Hokkien Music Grand Prix 2024 have become an important platform for promoting cultural exchange between Malaysia and China and showcasing Hokkien music on the global stage.

Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board (Tourism Malaysia) deputy chairman, Datuk Yeoh Soon Hin said that the festival, organised by the Hokkien Golden Melody Awards Committee, also serves as a catalyst for strengthening relations between the two countries, especially as this year marks the 50th anniversary of Malaysia-China diplomatic relations.

“Therefore, we should encourage more programmes or activities that can enhance the understanding of the people of both countries regarding each other’s culture and arts.

“In fact, Hokkien is one of the very common dialects in Malaysia, with many Chinese Malaysians speaking this dialect,“ he told reporters after launching the World Hokkien Golden Melody Awards and the Cross-Strait Hokkien Music Grand Prix 2024 at Xiamen University Malaysia here today.

Yeoh said that the Hokkien music competition is open to all parties, including artistes from around the world, and the pinnacle of the awards ceremony will be held in Xiamen, China, on Nov 1.

“Additionally, similar to the hopes of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture and Tourism Malaysia, we want such programmes to attract more tourists from China to visit Malaysia,“ he said.

This Hokkien music competition aims to create a world-class Hokkien golden melody awards ceremony while promoting Hokkien music and the stories of Southern Fujian and China on a global level.

The grand event on Nov 1 will bring together 50 finalists from around the world who will compete in the prestigious final.

Source: thesun.my

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https://thesun.my/local-news/world-hokkien-music-festival-platform-for-malaysia-china-cultural-exchange-HG12721798

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Pendang MP suspended for three days from Dewan Rakyat for calling Jelutong rep Rayer ‘anti-Islam’

15 Jul 2024

KUALA LUMPUR, July 15 — Pendang member of Parliament Datuk Awang Hashim, from Perikatan Nasional, was ejected and suspended from the Dewan Rakyat for three days, starting today following his remark labelling RSN Rayer (PH-Jelutong) as “anti-Islam”.

Deputy Speaker Datuk Ramli Md Nor issued the order after Awang refused to retract his comment against Rayer.

Heated arguments erupted when Rayer stood up while Deputy Minister M. Kulasegaran was tabling the Evidence (Amendment) Bill 2024 for its second reading.

Rayer claimed that some opposition MPs had insulted Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul by referring to him as a “postman” during last Thursday’s session.

Rayer also questioned the actions of several MPs from the Opposition bloc, including Awang, who referred to six former Bersatu MPs that pledged support to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim as “enam jahanam”.

Awang interjected, describing Rayer as anti-Islam, which prompted Rayer to express his displeasure and request that Awang withdraw the remark.

“I urge him to retract his statement. That’s not right. I was referring to how he (Awang) called the six (former Bersatu MPs) ‘jahanam.’ His statement about me being anti-Islam is incorrect and very serious,” said Rayer.

In response, Ramli asked Awang to retract his statement.

“We need to create harmony in this dewan (Dewan Rakyat). Don’t accuse one another and turn this into a public spectacle. Is this what we want to show the community? So, YB (Awang), please retract that statement,” he said.

Despite being warned three times to withdraw his statement, Awang refused, prompting Ramli to order him out of the Dewan Rakyat. — Bernama

Source: malaymail.com

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https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2024/07/15/pendang-mp-suspended-for-three-days-from-dewan-rakyat-for-calling-jelutong-rep-rayer-anti-islam/143793

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Arab World

 

Prince Faisal meets President Erdogan, Hakan Fidan during visit to Istanbul to discuss Saudi-Turkish ties

July 14, 2024

RIYADH: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan was received by Turkish President Recep Erdogan in Istanbul on Sunday on an official visit aimed at strengthening bilateral relations between Saudi Arabia and Turkey, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The also spoke about regional developments and efforts to ensure stability in the region.

The meeting between Prince Faisal and the Turkish president was also attended by Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Political Affairs, Saud Al-Sati, and Saudi ambassador to Turkiye Fahad Abu Al-Nasr.

Prince Faisal was received on his arrival at Ataturk International Airport by the Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Noah Yilmaz. 

During his visit Prince Faisal also met with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan and said in a press conference that Saudi-Turkish relations were witnessing remarkable progress in all political, economic and security fields.

He noted the volume of trade exchange between the two countries amounted to $6.8 billion in 2023, achieving a growth of 15% from the previous year.

He added that he was looking forward to more economic cooperation, especially with the second session of the Saudi-Turkish Coordination Council in Riyadh coming up.

Prince Faisal also revealed he and Fidan spoke about a number of regional issues, most notably the Palestinian issue and the Israeli attack on Gaza. He said the Kingdom and Turkey had identical political positions, stressing that the two countries seek to revive the peace process in the region and continue efforts to stop the Israeli killing and destruction machine.

Saudi Arabia and Turkiye also want to prevent the forced displacement of Palestinians, enable the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, and grant the Palestinian people the right to self-determination by establishing an independent and internationally recognized Palestinian state, he added.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549521/saudi-arabia

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Zest for life: Disabled Saudi artist finds expression in his work

July 14, 2024

JEDDAH: Meet Rakan Kurdi, a Saudi artist who was born with spinal muscular atrophy and is determined to navigate life, and explore art, on his own terms.

Kurdi’s journey with paints and brushes began at a young age when he joined the Children with Disability Association, a specialized school for people with disabilities in Jeddah.

He is now one of the coastal city’s most popular artists, selling works and winning many prizes.

A graphic designer and motivational speaker in addition to his art, Kurdi spoke to Arab News about his life.

An enthusiast from childhood, he was encouraged by his teacher’s words when she told him at the age of 8: “I can see an artist in you. You must work on your talent, learn more at home and keep practicing to develop your skills.”

Speaking about the challenges he faced in school, he said: “My parents decided to enroll me in a regular school in order to associate with regular kids. Unfortunately it did not work right for me because kids at school bullied me and were making fun of me all the time. That’s why I couldn’t pursue my studies.

I am an artist; that’s how I see myself. I don’t want people to like my paintings because of my physical condition.

Rakan Kurdi, Saudi artist

“My greatest strength and source of motivation through all this has been my parents. They never let me feel that I lacked anything.”

After leaving school after the fifth grade, Kurdi dedicated himself to his love for painting, eventually realizing that it was his true calling.

But creating artwork is no easy task for the 32-year-old, who was born with a neuromuscular genetic disorder that left him paralyzed.

However, it has not dampened his creativity. Kurdi has been painting since the age of 8, with his works being showcased in local group exhibitions.

Rakan Kurdi, Saudi artist

He said: “I am an artist; that’s how I see myself. I don’t want people to like my paintings because of my physical condition. I would like to know that my work is self-standing and impressive, regardless of the capabilities of its artist.”

Kurdi continues to live life with an ever-present smile, despite his challenges.

He added: “I have never thought my disability was an obstacle to my dream. Since I stopped going to school, I (have) just continued doing art, participated in various local exhibitions, started to sell my portraits nationally and internationally, and most importantly got married. I am so happy with my life.”

Portraits of King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the late King Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Sheikh Zayed, celebrated Saudi singer Mohammed Abdo, and the late Talal Maddah helped to get Kurdi noticed.

He admits that the biggest project of his career was creating 80 by 110 cm oil paintings of the king and crown prince. His subsequent post on social media received more than 1 million views in less than 19 hours.

He said: “Definitely they are my most expensive and most important portraits.

“I also dedicated a special portrait to Prince Turki bin Salman, who really liked my work and decided to hang it on the wall of the Royal Palace in Jeddah.”

Kurdi’s paintings have won acclaim from across the country and abroad, with commissions ranging from about SR10,000 ($2,666) to SR250,000, depending on the size of the work.

Inspired by the work of Leonardo da Vinci, he said: “We both belong to the same school of art.

“Despite my disability, it’s not difficult to make a realistic painting.”

Social media has proved an important tool to promote his work. He has about 500,000 followers across Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat, and says he receives his orders via the platforms.

With many projects in the pipeline, Kurdi’s hands are full.

He is also continuing his work as a motivational speaker, and added: “(I) just want to inspire everyone to identify and follow their dreams, no matter the obstacles.”

Now that his work has earned recognition in the Kingdom and other Gulf Cooperation Council states, Kurdi hopes to showcase his work in London or Paris.

“It is my dream to showcase my work internationally,” he said.

Source: arabnews.com

Please click the following URL to read the text of the original Story

https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549786/saudi-arabia

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Masam 7 continues Saudi Arabia’s support of Yemeni people

July 14, 2024

RIYADH: The head of Saudi Arabia’s Project Masam, Ousama Al-Gosaibi, thanked and praised the Saudi leadership for the help and support provided to Yemen to eliminate the threat of mines and explosives.

As the Saudi aid agency KSrelief extends Masam’s contract for landmine clearance in Yemen for the seventh consecutive year, Al-Gosaibi said in a press statement that the project succeeded during the past six years in carrying out its humanitarian operations on Yemeni territory, achieving high performance rates in all its field operations.

He said this is considered a significant achievement based on international standards, with the total clearances between the project’s first day and the end of last week totalled 450,919 mines, unexploded ordnance and explosive devices.

Al-Gosaibi said the project’s work strategy was built on strong foundations after extensive studies of the nature of the threat posed by mines of all kinds, in addition to Yemen’s complex terrain that requires concerted human and material efforts.

He added that the project also took into consideration the ongoing military operations, planting of mines, and booby-trapping of land and civilian installations with all kinds of explosives by the Houthi militias.

He said the seventh year will be a continuation of what the project started in mid-2018, with a focus on localized work by intensifying training and logistical support.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549776/saudi-arabia

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Saudi Justice Ministry issues over 330,000 electronic reconciliation documents

July 14, 2024

RIYADH: The Reconciliation Center at the Ministry of Justice issued over 330,000 electronic reconciliation documents in nine tracks, including personal status, traffic, real estate, criminal, commercial, labor, financial, intellectual property, and medical errors.

The center offers reconciliation services on the website taradhi.moj.gov.sa to resolve disputes, with skilled mediators and experts operating according to institutional procedures and approved legislation.

The platform’s reconciliation documents are legally binding and can be enforced through legal actions if agreements are violated, promoting preventive justice and decreasing court cases.

It continuously enhances user experience by introducing new features that simplify and expedite processes, lessen workload and manual labor, and establish electronic connections with internal entities to adapt to digital transformation needs. This reflects the ministry’s progress in digitalization, ensuring the satisfaction of the parties involved while safeguarding their rights.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549666/saudi-arabia

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Weqaa identifies the most invasive plants found in the Kingdom

July 14, 2024

RIYADH: Weqaa, the National Center for the Prevention and Control of Plant Pests and Animal Diseases, recently identified the most invasive plant types discovered in the Kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency reported

The invasive plants identified by the technical team were the prickly pear; two types of Austrocylindropuntia — Hudson pear cactus and Eve’s needle cactus; mesquite (Prosopis); tree tobacco; parthenium; lantanas; two types of argemone; sweet rush plant; and two types of reeds — the common reed and the giant reed.

Weqaa’s CEO Ayman bin Saad Al-Ghamdi said: “This success is the result of the tireless efforts and field visits carried out by the project’s team in various regions of the Kingdom to identify the most important invasive plants and their proliferation location.”

“The Kingdom’s identification and control of invasive plants project is currently working on a new experiment to control the spreading of the opuntia cylindrica and tree tobacco,” Al-Ghamdi said.

He also pointed out that the identification and diagnosis of invasive plants is being studied in cooperation with experts from the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International, and that they are relying on the results of the plants’ identification to create Weqaa’s unique atlas.

Al-Ghamdi underlined the importance of the phytosanitary (plant health) sector in ensuring the monitoring and control of plant pests and crop diseases, applying good agricultural practices, and protecting the flora and biodiversity from pests through the implementation of all the available technical, administrative, legal and logistical measures.

The aforementioned project is part of the Integrated Pest Management scheme, one of the National Transformation Program initiatives aimed at controlling agricultural pests and invasive plants as well as protecting plant production.

The project is implemented in cooperation with the National Center for Vegetation Development and Combating Desertification to ensure the health of plants and crops, namely cultivated plants, to promote economic development and achieve the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 goals.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549566/saudi-arabia

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Saudi crown prince receives message from Emir of Qatar

July 14, 2024

RIYADH: Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Sunday received a letter from the Emir of Qatar, relating to relations between the two brotherly countries, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The message was received on behalf of foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan by deputy minister Waleed Al-Khuraiji during a reception in Riyadh with the Qatari ambassador to the Kingdom Bandar Mohammed Al-Attiyah.

During the reception, they reviewed ties between Saudi Arabia and Qatar and ways to enhance them in various fields, in addition to discussing topics of common interest, SPA added.

Source: arabnews.com

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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2549546/saudi-arabia

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