Textbook Changes Made By NCERT Part Of ‘Symbolic Genocide Of Muslims’, Says Historian Tanika Sarkar
New Age Islam News Bureau
19 June 2023
Historian Tanika Sarkar
----
India
• RSS Muslim Wing Pushes For Uniform
Civil Code, To Run Awareness Campaigns Across Country
• ‘Hindus and Muslims work together so
that Amarnath Yatra can go smoothly’, says Farooq Abdullah
• ‘Nationalist Muslims Not Aurangzeb’s
Descendants, They Don’t Endorse Him’: BJP Leader
• ‘Love Jihad’ Is A Conspiracy Theory: The
Many Holes In Purola’s ‘Love Jihad’ Plot
• Uttarakhand: After Purola, Muslim
shopkeeper's shop closed in Kalsi for selling puja items
• Two Men Arrested In Bulandshahr For
Brutally Assaulting Muslim Labourer, Tying Him To A Tree
------
Pakistan
• Delegation of Kashmiri leaders visits
Jinnah House in Lahore
• Most wanted terrorist killed by
security forces in KP
• Pak-Iran to enhance bilateral trade,
expand cooperation in diverse fields
• Pakistan observing 'Day of Mourning’
today for victims of Greek shipwreck
--------
Europe
• London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, Warns Of
'Very Real’ Terror Threat OnFinsbury Park Mosque Attack Anniversary
• Decision Day As MPs To Decide Boris
Johnson's Partygate Punishment
• Surrey area named as 'Mecca for dogging',
according to TikToker: 'Everything goes on here'
--------
North America
• Possible Islamist attack on Vienna’s
Pride parade foiled
• Libs Freak as Muslim-Led City Bans
Pride, Celebrates Being ‘F*gless’.
--------
South Asia
• Ground Paved for Investment
Opportunities in the Country: Hanafi
• Statement of IEA’s Spokesperson
Regarding SIGAR’s Report
• Afghan Deputy Minister Meets UNESCO
Director, Discusses Areas of Cooperation
• Afghan, Iranian Officials Meet and
Discus Khaf-Herat Railway
• 'Ansar al Islam' activist held in city
• Bangladesh will never bow down to any
external interference: PM
--------
Southeast Asia
• Chinese Spy Tech Could Make Iran’s
Islamic Regime Even More Dangerous
• MACC found no criminal elements in
Nazlan probe, says PM
• Selangor assembly to be dissolved on
Friday
• Muslims In Singapore To Celebrate Hari
Raya Haji (Eid Al-Adha) On June 29: Mufti
• Austria foils pride parade attack,
officials say
--------
Mideast
• Zionist Settlers Renew Their Storming
Al-Aqsa Mosque Courtyards
• Iran has no obstacles to deepen ties
with Islamic countries: President Raisi
• US Basketball Player, Ahmad Young,
Embraces Islam In Palestine
• Iran pursuing Gen. Soleimani's efforts
towards Muslim unity
• Pan-Islamic grouping condemns school
attack in Uganda
• SalamAir announces direct flights to
the Islamic Republic of Iran
• First Mecca pilgrimage flight from
Yemen's capital in seven years as Iran-Saudi relations warm
--------
Arab World
• Saudi Arabia, Kosovo Officials Discuss
Ways To Boost Economic Relations
• Tuwaiq Academy launches metaverse
training camps in Riyadh
• First Yemeni Hajj flight lands in
Jeddah from Houthi-controlled Sanaa
• Drug dealers, smugglers arrested
across Saudi Arabia
• More than 43,000 pilgrims receive
medical care
• Yemeni, Moroccan pilgrims arrive in
Saudi Arabia
--------
Africa
• Chief Imam Regains Freedom From
Kidnappers In Ondo
• Sultan directs Muslims to look out for
crescent of Dhul-Hijjah
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/ncert-genocide-muslims-tanika/d/130029
------
Textbook Changes Made By NCERT Part Of
‘Symbolic Genocide Of Muslims’, Says Historian Tanika Sarkar
Historian Tanika Sarkar
----
19.06.23
Subhoranjan Dasgupta
The NCERT, a government body that
prepares school textbooks, has made controversial changes to the Class X and
XII syllabuses, deleting topics from the Mughals to the theory of evolution.
Historian Tanika Sarkar, former JNU professor of history whose book Hindu
Nationalism in India is regarded as a classic, explains the reasons for this
new writing of history in this dialogue with Subhoranjan Dasgupta, professor of
human science.
Q: Massive deletion of history has now
been added to the gross distortion of history. Not only despotic Aurangzeb but
also majestic Akbar has been wiped out from the textbooks for senior school
students. What is the motive behind this?
Sarkar: A symbolic genocide of Indian
Muslims has long been happening. Muslim place names are being changed
everywhere, along, of course, with actual killings of Muslims as well as
violent hate speeches targeting the community. And all this under the maximum
immunity.
It is no surprise, therefore, that
Muslim contributions to Indian political and cultural life will be excised from
history textbooks. The chapter on the history of the medieval Islamic world is
gone as well. It is also no surprise that Akbar will come under the axe – for
his reign gives the lie to the canard that all Muslim emperors were intolerant
and fanatical without exception.
Akbar’s and Jehangir’s deep interest in
other faiths, their investment in interfaith dialogues – all this is anathema
to Hindutvawadis who detest such principles. So, they will fill Indian history
with Hindu achievements alone, whether real or imagined. They will also remove
all instances of historical figures and activities that counter their account
of Muslim villainy.
We will do well to remember that the RSS
has a total of 38 fronts, of which the BJP is one. Of these, only one branch is
dedicated to a knowledge form and that is history. They have created and taught
their histories very innovatively through their innumerable affiliates and
sub-affiliates among highly diverse social segments for decades.
The alterations to the NCERT textbooks
are, therefore, just the beginning, and much more rewriting is definitely on
the way. These are a small, though very visible, part of their larger
pedagogical agenda. A lot more is happening below the surface and a popular
historical common-sense is being composed and disseminated of which we know
little.
They have also removed large and
significant portions of non-Indian historical information from the NCERT books
that accompanied Indian historical developments as “Elsewhere” boxes in the
text: so that our students should know what else was happening in the world at
a given time, so that they learnt to see Indian history as a part of world
history. The intention behind their removals is to render the students insular,
cut off from the larger world.
They have also removed histories of
revolutions and struggles for rights and justice, which are seen as foreign
imports, as antithetical to Hindu values.
So there is a twofold aim: to annex
positive historical values as essentially and primarily Hindu – for instance,
ancient India is described as the mother of democracy, even though democracy is
entirely a modern concept.
Simultaneously, they want to throw out
certain values which have so far been important parts of our modern politics
but which do not chime well with their intentions. We have seen how the
constitutional emphasis on the rights of citizens is now subordinated to an
emphasis on duties. So citizens have only duties towards those who run the
State: their own inviolable rights are of no matter.
Q: Again, the assassination of Gandhi,
the role of Nathuram Godse and the subsequent banning of the RSS – this entire
dark episode has been severely truncated if not deleted. One feels like asking,
does the Sangh Parivar still consider Godse a patriot? Even now temples are
being built to honour him.
Sarkar: They have removed the
description of Godse as a Brahmin of an extremist political persuasion. While
they have not deleted – so far – mentions of Gandhi and his assassination, they
do not want to disclose the caste of the man who killed him. They also do not
want to describe his political ideology as extremist – that epithet has to be
reserved for Muslim politicians alone, so far as they are concerned.
Q: Not a word on the Gujarat genocide of
2002. How can history textbooks do this?
Sarkar: Prime Minister Modi was the
chief minister of Gujarat when the violence happened there, practically
unchecked for days. So certain kinds of histories are consigned to oblivion. We
have seen how the BBC documentary on Gujarat was taken off the public realm and
how students who were screening it were punished. This, however, is a common
failing and few political organisations have the courage to face up to
uncomfortable truths. We must always guard against this tendency in ourselves.
Q: The latest is the axing of the theory
of evolution. More than 1,800 scientists have declared their protest. Does the
present dispensation want to eliminate the entire Western tradition of science
and philosophy and replace it with the so-called “Hindu System of Knowledge”?
Sarkar: I am told that a whole lot of
other changes have also occurred in the science syllabi. I suppose the reason
is that the students must not be given an inkling that any significant
discovery or invention ever happened outside the Hindu world. If a Hindu
discovery or invention cannot be proved by evidence, then evidence must cede
place to politics. Following on this strange logic, the entire original
contributions of Newton and Einstein, the law of gravity and the theory of
relativity, respectively, could also be deleted from the science syllabus in
the future.
Q: This deletion --- rather, suppression
-- I think, began when Murli Manohar Joshi was the HRD minister. He ensured
that the sixth volume of the Towards Freedom series, edited and prepared by
historian Sumit Sarkar, did not see the light of day. What were the reasons that
provoked the minister to effect this suppression, perhaps the first of its
kind?
Sarkar: Alongside Sumit Sarkar’s volume,
Professor Panikkar’s volume was also withdrawn from circulation. Professor
Parthasarathi Gupta’s volume was heavily and wrongly criticised at a time when
the historian was no longer alive to defend his work.
Since these were all volumes that
compiled archival sources and explained them, this is yet another instance of
removing concrete evidence that appeared uncomfortable to a particular brand of
politics.
Sarkar’s volume contained some archival
material that showed RSS involvement in the 1946 violence. The purpose of the
withdrawal was to present a version of the 1946-47 violence that would focus
elaborately and “imaginatively” on Muslim violence alone and show Hindus as
mere victims.
Such a history of the Partition has
circulated among and through a number of mass fronts for decades. It is an
exceptionally effective mode of creating and utilising a convenient public
memory to mobilise and keep alive Hindu hatred against Muslims.
Q: The experts who wrote the school
textbooks were not consulted before the deletions were made. The NCERT has
described the measure as “rationalisation” and has not offered any explanation.
Why this secret operation?
Sarkar: These textbooks were compiled
over a long time, and the authors and editors had reflected seriously on how to
make histories come alive for students, how to relate them also to their
everyday lives and interests. There were chapters on clothes, sports and so on
for that purpose, which have also been taken out.
Naturally, the excisions had to be done
behind closed doors as the authors, if consulted, would have been able to show
why these were important.
Source: telegraphindia.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/textbook-changes-made-by-ncert-part-of-symbolic-genocide-of-muslims-says-historian/cid/1946042
--------
Pakistan To Try Blasphemy Suspects Under
Terrorism Charges After Pact With Radical Islamist Group, Tehreek-i-Labbaik
Pakistan
Jun 19, 2023
By Press Trust of India: Succumbing to
the demands of a radical Islamist party, the Pakistan government has agreed to
try blasphemy suspects under terrorism charges in addition to the other
sections of the country's penal code.
The Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP)
ended its 25-day-long march protest at Sarai Alamgir, Gujrat district, some 200
km from Lahore, on Saturday after signing a pact with the Pakistan Muslim
League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led federal government.
Federal Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah
said the government has accepted "all legitimate" demands of the TLP,
especially on blasphemy laws.
In a 12-point agreement signed on
Saturday with the TLP, the federal government agreed to book those accused of
committing blasphemy and charged with Section 295-C (use of derogatory remarks,
etc., in respect of the Holy Prophet) of Pakistan Penal Code under the
Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), 1997, too.
"Besides, speedy trials of the
blasphemy accused will be ensured. For the first time, a Counter Blasphemy
Wing (CBW) will be established under the Federal Investigation Agency
(FIA)," Sanaullah said, adding the government would ensure steps to block
blasphemous content on social media.
The radical Islamic group gained
political capital as the federal government agreed to issue a letter declaring
that the TLP was not a terrorist organisation, the Dawn newspaper reported.
The government also conceded to lift the
ban on the coverage of TLP on broadcast and social media while agreeing to
withdraw all political cases filed against TLP workers and leaders.
Sanaullah said the TLP leaders whose
names have been taken off the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997,
will have the freedom of movement, and the federal government will issue
directives to provincial governments for it.
According to Amnesty International,
Pakistan’s blasphemy laws are often used against religious minorities and
others who are the target of false accusations.
The addition of terrorism charges will
make the blasphemy suspects more vulnerable.
Source: indiatoday.in
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/pakistan-government-blasphemy-terrorism-law-tehreek-i-labbaik-pakistan-tlp-2394716-2023-06-19
--------
All-Muslim Council In Michigan Bans LGBTQ
Pride Flags
People overflow into a hallway to
listen to public comment before the vote about banning the LGBTQ Pride flag on
government buildings and city property, including other flags representing
racial and political issues.
------
18th June 2023
Earlier this week, Hamtramck City
Council approved a proposed “neutrality flag” resolution that effectively
banned LGBTQ+, religious, ethnic, racial and political flags from being flown
on city property.
According to local media, several
speakers who addressed the council on Tuesday said they supported the
resolution, and many applauded in agreement. About 125 also sent in written
comments, with many against the proposal.
The resolution said:
“WHEREAS, the City of Hamtramck is one
of the most diverse cities in the United States, in which we should proudly
promote and embrace its diversity; and
“WHEREAS, the City must and will serve
and treat its residents equally, with no discrimination, or special treatment
to any group of people; and
“WHEREAS, the City has authorized in the
past, the Human Relations Commission to install nations flags on the City
flagpoles to represent the international character of the City, Resolution
2013- 102: and
“WHEREAS, each religious, ethnic,
racial, political, or sexually oriented group is already represented by the
country it belongs to; and
“WHEREAS, the City does not want to open
the door for radical or racist groups to ask for their flags to be flown; and
“WHEREAS, this resolution does not in
any way, shape or form infringe upon the fundamental right of an individual or
business in the City of Hamtramck to engage free speech. Nor does this
resolution limit speech by public employees provided that such employees engage
in such speech in a protected time, manner and place.
“NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the
City Council of the City of Hamtramck, Wayne County, Michigan, that the
government of the City of Hamtramck does not allow any religious, ethnic,
racial, political, or sexual orientation group flags to be flown on the City’s
public properties, and that only, the American flag, the flag of the State of
Michigan, the Hamtramck Flag, the Prisoner of War flag and the nations’ flags
that represent the international character of our City shall be flown.”
In 2022, Hamtramck, which is only 2
square miles, appointed its first all-Muslim city council and mayor. The city
is among the most diverse in Michigan.
Many told the council they believed
limiting the types of flags allowed was a way to criticize the LGBTQ+ community
and defied Hamtramck’s reputation as an inclusive place.
“This resolution, to me, feels like a
thinly veiled attack on one flag,” said Darren Shelton, executive director of
the city’s Planet Ant Theatre.
“We have to respect every human being,”
said Bill Meyer, executive director of One Hamtramck LLC.
“I have a right to say I’m against the
gay pride flag,” one man told the council.
Source: 5pillarsuk.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://5pillarsuk.com/2023/06/18/all-muslim-council-in-michigan-bans-lgbtq-pride-flags/
--------
Muslim-Led City Bans Pride Flags On
Public Property, Sparking A Debate On Discrimination And Religious Expression
Pride flags.
Steve Luciano/AP Photo
------
June 18, 2023
The city of Hamtramck, Michigan, has
banned LGBTQ+ flags from all publicly owned flagpoles, The Associated Press
reported.
The decision, announced in a lengthy
council meeting, sparked a debate around discrimination and religious
expression in the city, which elected a Muslim-majority council in 2015 — the
first city in the US to do so, per The Guardian.
The city had built up a reputation for
its liberal values, so the move to ban the Pride flag — which some council
members said clashed with the beliefs of some Muslims in the area — left many
citizens appalled, The Guardian reported.
"We want to respect the religious
rights of our citizens," council member Nayeem Choudhury said.
When the meeting opened up to public
comments, one woman protested the move by kissing a woman standing next to her,
per The AP.
"You guys are welcome,"
Choudhury said, adding "why do you have to have the flag shown on
government property to be represented? You're already represented. We already
know who you are."
The former Hamtramck mayor Karen
Majewski said that there was "a sense of betrayal" following the
move, per The Guardian.
But Dawud Walid, director of the
Michigan branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, argued that
Hamtramck's flag policy didn't discriminate against any particular group,
according to The AP.
"If there was one group that was
not being granted access to something while others were then we would have a
problem," Walid said.
In a letter posted to Twitter, Detroit
City FC, a professional soccer team based in Hamtramck, described the council's
decision as "inexcusable."
The club said that "Pride flags
send a powerful message that all are welcome and that the community values
diversity."
The team urged the council to reconsider
their decision, saying that such actions have the "intent of further
marginalizing already marginalized members of our community."
Local businesses and residents are
reportedly not banned from flying Pride flags on their private property.
Source: businessinsider.in
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/world/news/muslim-led-city-bans-pride-flags-on-public-property-sparking-a-debate-on-discrimination-and-religious-expression/articleshow/101088321.cms
--------
Baghlan Residents Calls for Sharia Law
Enforcement on Criminals in Afghanistan Islamic Emirate
Photo:
Bakhtar News Agency
-----
2023-06-18
BAGHLAN (BNA) The residents of Baghlan,
asked the Islamic Emirate to enforce Sharia rules of law on criminals in this
province.
With the Sharia law enforcement the
level of crimes will reduce in the country, the believes.
After a money exchange service was
robbed in Baghlan, people asked the local and security officials to increase
their efforts to find the criminals and punish them in the light of Islamic
Sharia law.
They want this to be a warning to other
people who commit such crimes.
The Governor of Baghlan, Mawlavi Abdul
Rahman Haqqani, said that in the system of the Islamic Emirate, there is a
severe punishment for thieves, and people who engage in criminal will be
punished based on Sharia law.
Mr. Haqqani tasked Baghlan’s security
officials to quickly identify and arrest the people who are involved in crimes.
Source: bakhtarnews.af
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://bakhtarnews.af/en/baghlan-residents-calls-for-sharia-law-enforcement-on-criminals/
--------
India
RSS Muslim wing pushes for Uniform Civil
Code, to run awareness campaigns across country
Jun 19, 2023
By Ram Kinkar Singh: Muslim Rashtriya
Manch, an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) pushed for Uniform
Civil Code (UCC) and said that it is planning to run awareness campaigns across
the country, catering to people of the Muslim community.
Indresh Kumar, the chief patron of the
forum, argued that several countries follow the 'one law of all' system,
including Islamic countries. He said it also applies to the United States,
Canada, England, Germany and other countries.
He argued that Muslims living in
countries that follow one law have no objection to it. "The Muslims there
follow the law there. Then why is it only in India that Muslims have doubts or suspicions
about it?" he asked.
He also claimed that the "so-called
secular parties" in India have kept Muslims in fear of UCC for centuries.
"An awareness campaign will be run from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, to remove
the fear related to UCC," he said.
Indresh Kumar's remarks come days after
the Law Commission of India issued a public notice on June 14, soliciting
opinions and comments on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). "There are so many
religions in the country and all of them will be respected by one country, one
law," he said.
The new notification states that
considering the relevance and importance of the subject, as well as the court
orders related to it, the 22nd Law Commission of India deemed it necessary to
revisit the topic.
Besides, National Media Minority Morcha
Incharge Yasir Jilani said that out of 25 crore Muslims, even 3 percent are not
graduates. "Muslims should understand why they are the most backward even
after 75 years of independence? How can a Uniform Civil Code among innumerable
religions be a threat to only Muslims?"
He further added, "This law is not
against any caste, religion and community, but respects and protects all
religions and works for brotherhood among all. Those who oppose this
nationalist law actually do not want solidarity and harmony among
religions."
The Uniform Civil Code proposes the
formulation of one law for India. This law would be applicable to all,
irrespective of their religion. It will pertain to all matters, including
marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption, etc.
Source: indiatoday.in
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/rss-muslim-wing-indresh-kumar-uniform-civil-code-2394698-2023-06-19
--------
‘Hindus and Muslims work together so
that Amarnath Yatra can go smoothly’, says Farooq Abdullah
18 Jun 2023
Dubbing it as an opportunity for
communal harmony, Jammu and Kashmir National Conference President Farooq
Abdullah on June 18 in Jammu and Kashmir’s Srinagar said that ‘Hindus and
Muslims work together so that Amarnath Yatra can go smoothly’. He also stressed
on the close knit connection between the devotees and the Kashmiri people who
earn after helping the devotees visiting the Amarnath Temple.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/hindus-and-muslims-work-together-so-that-amarnath-yatra-can-go-smoothly-says-farooq-abdullah/videoshow/101087770.cms
--------
‘Nationalist Muslims Not Aurangzeb’s
Descendants, They Don’t Endorse Him’: BJP Leader
Deputy CM's remarks came a day after
Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) president Prakash Ambedkar visited the Aurangzeb
memorial at Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.
June 19, 2023
Earlier, Fadnavis was in the news cycle
for railing against citizens he calls “Aurangzeb kiaulad”, after some youths
displayed photos of 17th-century Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in a procession in
Ahmednagar.
Days after his “Aurangzeb Ki Auladein”
(heirs of Aurangzeb) remark stirred a row, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister
Devendra Fadnavis Sunday evoked the Mughal emperor once again, saying that
“‘nationalist Muslims in this country don’t endorse Aurangzeb.”
“Our king is only Chhatrapati Shivaji
Maharaj. We cannot have another king. Muslims in India are not descendants of
Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb and his clan came from outside. Nationalist Muslims in the
country don’t endorse Aurangzeb. They respect only Chhatrapati Shivaji Mahara,”
Fadnavis said while addressing a public rally in Maharashtra’s Akola.
The deputy CM’s remarks came a day after
Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) president Prakash Ambedkar visited the Aurangzeb
memorial at Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar. “Instead of abusing Aurangzeb we should
reflect on why he ruled here. What were the reasons… We should be mindful of
our past. And instead of spreading hatred let us reconcile to facts and look at
it as historical past,” Ambedkar had told reporters.
Last week, Fadnavis stated that
riot-like situations had developed Maharashtra because people of a particular
community are glorifying Aurangzeb and said that Aurangzeb’s “auladein”
(progenies) have taken birth in the state. Earlier this month, the Kolhapur
district saw violence after various right-wing organisations gathered to protest
against social media posts showing an image of 18th-century Mysore ruler Tipu
Sultan and Mughal ruler Aurangazeb.
In the past two weeks, FIRs have been
registered against several minors across the state, including a 14-year-old boy
from Beed, for uploading photographs and videos of Aurangzeb.
Source: indianexpress.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/national-muslims-dont-approve-of-aurangzeb-not-his-descendants-fadnavis-after-ahmednagar-nagpur-unrest-8671916/
--------
‘Love Jihad’ Is A Conspiracy Theory :The
Many Holes In Purola’s‘Love Jihad’ Plot
19-06-23
What gave charge to the Hindutva
campaign to oust Muslims from the hill town of Purola in Uttarakhand was the allegation
of ‘love jihad’.
‘Love jihad’ is a conspiracy theory that
accuses Muslim men of trapping Hindu women into romantic relationships in order
to convert them to Islam. It has been repeatedly used by several Hindu
supremacist organisations to discredit inter-faith relationships and to stoke
animosity between Hindus and Muslims.
On May 26, two men – Ubaid Khan and
Jitender Saini – were arrested for trying to abduct a 14-year-old girl in
Purola town in Uttarkashi district. Although one of the accused was Hindu.
Hindu groups claimed this was a case of ‘love jihad’.
In the days to follow, anti-Muslim
marches were taken out in the town, demanding that Muslim traders leave the
town and “eviction” notices pasted on their shops. “The love jihadis are
informed that they should leave the town …otherwise they will face
consequences,” read a notice signed by an organisation called the Devbhoomi
Raksha Abhiyan.
But several accounts have emerged to
suggest one important fact – that there was no inter-faith relationship between
the teenager and any of the men to begin with.
What the accused’s families say
Both Khan and Saini are lodged in the
district jail in Tehri Garhwal. Their families claim that they are innocent –
and that neither knew the 14-year-old.
Saini was a mechanic at a bike repair
shop in Kumola Road, Purola. Across the road from this shop was a furniture
store owned by Ubaid Khan’s family – where Khan, 21, worked. Saini and Khan,
both of whose families are from Bijnore in western Uttar Pradesh, were friends.
Saini’s father, Attar Saini, said when
he met his 23-year-old son in jail on May 29, he narrated the events of that
day to him.
“That day, the girl had come to my son’s
shop. She asked for an address to some place,” Attar said. “My son and his
friend accompanied her to the bus stand. After that, they returned to their
shops. They did not try to abduct her.”
Attar said his son did not know the
girl. “My son has been caught up in Hindu- Muslim tensions,” he said.
The elder brother of Ubaid Khan, too,
told Scroll that he did not know the girl, nor was he involved in any
relationship with him. “Ubaid had no relation with her,” said Amir Khan.
According to Amir Khan’s version of the
events, two hours after Ubaid returned to his shop, having dropped the girl to
the bus stand, a crowd of 50 men led by local Hindutva activists arrived and
started asking him questions. Then, the crowd took him to the nearby police
post where a bigger crowd had already gathered.
A little later, Saini was brought to the
police post by some men. “The police gave in to pressure from the crowd to file
the case and arrest my brother,” said Amir Khan.
‘Only to create communal tension’
Among those who have spoken up to
contest the narrative of “love jihad’ is the 14-year-old’s uncle.
In an interview to Hindustan Times, the
40-year-old schoolteacher said, “There were attempts from the first hour to
make this a communal issue. [Hindu] right-wing activists even prepared a police
complaint for us on their own, but the police didn’t accept it,” he told the
newspaper.
He added: “It was never a love jihad
case, but a regular crime. Those that committed it, are behind bars. The
judiciary will now decide.”
According to the complaint filed by the
girl’s uncle, and seen by Scroll, both Khan and Saini “lured her from his shop
and took her to a petrol pump”. Khan introduced himself as “Ankit” to the girl,
the complaint said. While they were trying to put her in a tempo, they were
spotted by local residents, who raised an alarm.
Khan and Saini then fled the spot,
according to the complaint. Both the men were arrested on charges of kidnapping
a minor girl under sections of the Indian Penal Code, and under the Protection
of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
According to the 14-year-old’s uncle, he
was approached by several Hindutva groups to join their campaign but he turned
them down. “I understand all they want to do is to create communal tension,” he
told Hindustan Times.
A police officer investigating the case
corroborated the girl’s uncle’s claim. “Khan and Saini are not involved in any
‘love jihad’. People can say anything but our investigation did not find
anything like that,” he told Scroll, on condition of anonymity,
He pointed out that police investigation
has revealed that neither Saini nor Khan knew the teenager. “She asked them for
an address in the market and then they took her to the bus stand, where they
tried to put her in a tempo. They wanted to take advantage of her,” he said.
Both Khan and Saini have denied the
charges, the police officer added.
The journalist’s role
One of the first mentions of “love
jihad” in the case, according to a report in The Morning Context, was in a
story carried by a “little-known website called ‘bbckhabar.in’”.
The website is run by Purola-based
journalist Anil Aswal, a correspondent for the Hindi newspaper Amar Ujala. The
story, which reported that “a matter of love jihad has come to light in Purola
Nagar Panchayat”, was shared on several WhatsApp groups, leading to angry
reactions from Hindu traders.
Aswal told The Morning Context that the
incident was a matter of “love jihad” because “the boy had been chatting with
the girl for a year as Ankit”. He also said he doubted that Saini was a Hindu,
and was using a false name to hide his identity. He did not offer any evidence
for these claims.
According to another report in
Newslaundry, Aswal tried to convince the girl’s uncle to file a “fake police
complaint”, alleging that his niece had been a victim of “love jihad”. The
report quoted Khajan Singh Chauhan, the station house officer of Purola, saying
that he had seen Aswal trying to pressure the girl’s uncle.
‘A chance to target us’
Khan’s family owns three businesses in
Purola – a mattress shop, a furniture showroom and an ice cream factory.
Amir Khan said that the case against his
brother was a result of a plot hatched by “some Hindutva men”. “Muslims work
hard and our businesses are doing well. Some people do not like it. Now they
have got a chance to target us,” Amir Khan said.
Khan’s family fled the town a day after
he was arrested. According to Amir Khan, the traders’ union, Byapar Mandal
Purola, asked the family to shut their business and leave. “They gave us 24
hours. We packed our bags in two hours and left for our hometown in Najibabad,
Bijnor, on May 27 afternoon.”
Ankit Pawar, a member of the traders’
union, denied serving any such ultimatum, saying they had only asked Amir Khan
to down the shutters as they were afraid the mob might attack them. “It was for
their safety. We did not ask them vacate the shop,” Pawar said on Sunday. “The
market is now open and Muslims have also resumed their businesses.”
Other residents of the town, too,
expressed their discomfort with how communal tensions were whipped up over the
incident.
“The media and some people have made
this whole issue a Hindu- Muslim thing,” said Vinay Himani, who had rented out
his house to the Khan family. “The reality is that there is also a Hindu
accused in the case. Once the two men were handed over to the police, the
people should have let the police do their job. Instead, we are seeing a
communal conflict.”
Source: scroll.in
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://scroll.in/article/1051133/the-many-holes-in-purolas-love-jihad-plot
--------
Uttarakhand: After Purola, Muslim
shopkeeper's shop closed in Kalsi for selling puja items
19th June 2023
DEHRADUN: Activists of Rudra Sena,
Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal staged a protest at Kalsi Gate market
against a Muslim man for selling items used for worshipping Hindu deities. The
shop was forced to close amid massive protests.
Sensing that the situation was
deteriorating, the police of Kalsi police station took the Rudra Sena leader
into custody.
After being released from the police
station, Rakesh Tomar 'Uttarakhandi' told TNIE, "The dairy farm shop is
allotted in the name of a woman. About four months ago, was rented out against
the rules to a person belonging to a particular religion. Rakesh Tomar alleged,
"The said person belonging to a particular religion is selling items of
worship material by hiding his real identity. Due to which the faith of Hindu
religion is being hurt".
Kalsi police station in-charge
RavindraNegi told this reporter, "No one can be allowed to spoil the
atmosphere of the city. Rakesh Tomar has
been released conditionally after instructions". After this, talks have
also been held with the dairy management in this regard. The management has
been asked to settle the dispute related to the shop.
Activists of Rudra Sena, Vishwa Hindu
Parishad and Bajrang Dal, led by Rudrasena founder Rakesh 'Uttarakhandi',
gathered at Kalsi Bazar on Saturday where they staged a sit-in. Though the
police managed to end the agitation after some time, the situation has remained
calm but tense since then.
Rakesh Tomar of Rudra Sena said,
"The meat shop in the market is being operated by hiding the identity of a
particular religion. There is no 'halal' board outside the shop. "Such
shops will not be allowed to operate under any circumstances," he said. "If the dairy management does not cancel
the allotment of the shop within seven days, the agitation will be launched
again", added Tomar.
Source: newindianexpress.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2023/jun/19/uttarakhand-after-purola-muslim-shopkeepers-shop-closed-in-kalsi-for-selling-puja-items-2586275.html
--------
Two Men Arrested In Bulandshahr For
Brutally Assaulting Muslim Laborer, Tying Him To A Tree
18 JUN 2023
In a shocking incident that has sparked
outrage, two individuals have been apprehended by the police in Uttar Pradesh's
Bulandshahr district. The arrests were made after the accused allegedly
subjected a Muslim laborer, Sahil, to a horrific ordeal. According to reports,
Sahil was tied to a tree, physically assaulted, had his head partially shaved,
and was coerced into chanting religious slogans, as reported by NDTV.
The distressing incident came to light
after a video, recorded by one of the three perpetrators involved, went viral,
causing a political uproar. Asaduddin Owaisi, the Hyderabad Member of
Parliament and leader of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM),
strongly criticized the actions of the Uttar Pradesh police. Owaisi shared the
video and questioned the authorities' response, emphasizing the need for
justice and highlighting the challenges faced by those seeking redress for
injustices.
Surendra Nath Tiwari, the additional
superintendent of police, acknowledged the video as evidence and confirmed that
a first information report (FIR) had been registered against the accused at
Kakod police station. The two arrested individuals have been identified as
Gajendra, Saurabh, and Dhanni, according to sources within the police
department.
Sahil's father, Shakeel, expressed his
anguish and alleged that his son was wrongfully incarcerated after the
incident. Shockingly, Shakeel claimed that the police had urged him to seek a
compromise with the accused and resorted to threats. Despite naming the
perpetrators in their complaint, the family felt helpless and demanded justice,
as they were being coerced to drop the charges.
Sahil's mother, in her complaint, also
revealed that the accused had confiscated his mobile phone and took away Rs.
1,500 in cash during the ordeal.
Source: outlookindia.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.outlookindia.com/national/two-men-arrested-in-bulandshahr-for-brutally-assaulting-muslim-laborer-tying-him-to-a-tree-news-295842
---------
Pakistan
Delegation of Kashmiri leaders visits
Jinnah House in Lahore
June 18, 2023
A delegation of Kashmiri leaders led by
Hurriyat leader Abdul Hameed Lone visited the Jinnah House in Lahore on Sunday.
Talking to media, Abdul Hameed Lone said
people of Jammu and Kashmir will remember the 9th May as a black day.
He said that incident of 9th May is a
nefarious attempt to tarnish the image of the country.
He said some political elements
propagandized and misled the youth and incited them to attack the Jinnah House.
Source: radio.gov.pk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.radio.gov.pk/18-06-2023/delegation-of-kashmiri-leaders-visits-jinnah-house-in-lahore
--------
Most wanted terrorist killed by security
forces in KP
June 18, 2023
The security forces in an intelligence
based operation, have killed the most wanted terrorist commander Zafar alias
Zafari and two of his group members in Dara Adam Khel on Sunday.
According to the security sources, the
slain terrorist commander belonged to the TTP and was involved in 26 grenade
attacks in Pakistan.
The intelligence agencies and security
forces hunt down terrorists by adopting unconventional operational procedures
based on corroborated intelligence.
Source: radio.gov.pk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.radio.gov.pk/18-06-2023/most-wanted-terrorist-killed-by-security-forces-in-kp
--------
Pak-Iran to enhance bilateral trade,
expand cooperation in diverse fields
June 19, 2023
Pakistan and Iran have agreed to enhance
and diversify bilateral trade and expand cooperation in energy, transport
connectivity, education and people-to-people exchanges.
It was agreed at the 12th round of
Pakistan-Iran Bilateral Political Consultations was held in Tehran.
Foreign Secretary Dr. Asad Majeed Khan
and Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran, Ali BagheriKani, led the respective sides.
The two sides held discussions covering
the entire range of bilateral relations and reviewed the status of
implementation of decisions of the last BPC.
Both sides underscored the significance
of regular convening of various institutional mechanisms, including Joint
Economic Commission and Joint Trade Committee to forge closer cooperation in
areas of mutual interest.
The two sides reaffirmed their
commitment to continue cooperation at multilateral fora, including the UN, OIC
and ECO and strengthen dialogue on global and regional issues of common
concern.
The Foreign Secretary welcomed the
normalization of diplomatic relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
He briefed his Iranian counterpart about
the situation in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir marked by grave
human rights violations, and appreciated Iran's steadfast support for the
Kashmir cause.
The Foreign Secretary also called on
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. They agreed to maintain the current
momentum of high-level bilateral exchanges and strengthen mutually-beneficial
cooperation in diverse fields.
In a separate meeting with Member
Parliament/ Chairman Pakistan-Iran Parliamentary Friendship Group, Ahmad
AmirabadiFarahani both sides emphasized the importance of enhancing
Parliamentary exchanges.
Foreign Secretary Dr. Asad Majeed Khan
held a meeting with Secretary General KhosravNoziri of Economic Cooperation
Organization and reaffirmed Pakistan's support to the organization. He also
highlighted the importance of intra-regional connectivity and trade promotion
among ECO member states.
In Tehran, the Foreign Secretary also
interacted with the Iranian intelligentsia and scholars at the leading Iranian
think tank, Institute of Peace and International Studies where he highlighted
Pakistan's role toward promotion of peace and development in the region.
Source: radio.gov.pk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.radio.gov.pk/19-06-2023/pak-iran-to-enhance-bilateral-trade-expand-cooperation-in-diverse-fields
--------
Pakistan observing 'Day of Mourning’
today for victims of Greek shipwreck
June 19, 2023
A day of mourning is being observed in
the country today (Monday) over tragic deaths of Pakistani migrants in the ship
sinking incident near coast of Greece on Wednesday.
Observing the day of mourning was
announced by Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif yesterday.
The national flag will fly on half-mast
today and special prayers will be offered for the deceased.
Source: radio.gov.pk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.radio.gov.pk/19-06-2023/pakistan-observing-day-of-mourning-today-for-victims-of-greek-shipwreck
--------
Europe
London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, Warns Of 'Very
Real’ Terror Threat OnFinsbury ParkMosque Attack Anniversary
Jun 19, 2023
London mayor Sadiq Khan warned the
threat of terrorism is “still very real” on the sixth anniversary of the
Finsbury Park terror attack.
Darren Osborne drove a van into
worshippers outside the Muslim Welfare House shortly after Ramadan evening
prayers on June 19, 2017 killing Makram Ali, 51, and injuring 11 others.
Osborne, from Cardiff, was found guilty
of terrorism-related murder and jailed for life in February 2018.
Mohamed Mahmoud – the imam who was
hailed for calming fellow Muslims and preventing retaliation after the attack –
was later made an OBE for services to the community in London.
Mr Khan said the local community’s
reaction to the attack “showed how Londoners will always stand together”.
“My thoughts are with the family and
friends of Makram Ali who so tragically lost his life and all those who were
injured in the Finsbury Park terror attack six years ago,” he said.
“London’s rich diversity is our greatest
strength, and we will never be cowed by terrorism.
“The evolving threat of terrorism is
still very real which is why I am continuing to take action by investing record
amounts in the police and funding important projects which help our communities
stand up to all forms of hate so that we can build a safer London for
everyone.”
At a memorial service at Finsbury Park
mosque last year, Mr Ali’s daughter Ruzina Akhtar said that her father was “one
of the most gentle human beings you could have met” who “always had a smile on
his face and was cracking jokes at the most random of times to make others
laugh”.
“He was a compassionate husband, a
loving father and doting grandfather who was adored by everyone,” she said.
She said his death had left “a black
hole”.
Source: thenationalnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2023/06/18/london-mayor-warns-of-very-real-terror-threat-on-mosque-attack-anniversary/
--------
Decision day as MPs to decide Boris
Johnson's partygate punishment
Jun 19, 2023
British MPs prepare to vote on a damning
report which found that Boris Johnson deliberately lied to parliament five
times about lockdown-breaking parties.
The Privileges Committee last week said
it had established that the former prime minister “had knowledge of breaches of
the rules and guidance that occurred in No 10” and recommended that he be
banned for three months.
Many Conservative MPs are expected to
abstain, fearing a backlash from party members and voters loyal to the former
prime minister. Mr Johnson resigned recently, claiming he had been driven out
of politics as a result of the investigation.
The current Conservative leader, Rishi
Sunak, has refused to say whether he will approve the report that found that Mr
Johnson lied over partygate, saying he "would not want to influence anyone
in advance of that vote".
Speaking to Good Morning Britain on ITV
on Monday, the prime minister said: "This committee was established under
the former prime minister.
“It commanded the confidence of the
house at the time and I'm sure that they have done their work thoroughly and I
respect them for that.
"This is a matter for the house
rather than the government, that's an important distinction and that is why I
wouldn't want to influence anyone in advance of that vote.
"It will be up to each and every
individual MP to make a decision of what they want to do when the time comes,
it's important the government doesn't get involved in that because it is a
matter for parliament and members as individuals, not as members of
government."
The motion on the Privileges Committee's
findings comes as Scotland Yard is considering the footage from a 2020
Christmas gathering at Conservative Party headquarters.
Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove, who
has apologised for the video showing Tory staff dancing and joking about Covid
restrictions, will also abstain from a vote.
He said it was a matter for each
individual MP to decide their own course of action over the committee findings
– leaving the door open for other Conservatives to follow suit and potentially
avoid casting a ballot.
Whether or not a vote on the report
takes place on Monday – which is the former prime minister's birthday – depends
in part on how many Johnson loyalists decide to oppose the report.
The former prime minister was urging his
allies not to oppose it, arguing the sanctions have no practical effect,
although critics say the level of support shown for him would have been low
anyway.
Tory MPs will be given a free vote, but
allies of Mr Johnson warned they could face battles with their local parties to
remain as candidates at the next election if they back the motion.
Senior backbencher Bill Cash, writing in
the Sunday Telegraph, said he would turn up to vote against the findings,
citing the former prime minister's "historic achievements".
But with at least three potentially
damaging by-elections looming after the resignations of Mr Johnson, Nigel Adams
and David Warburton, many could decide instead to spend Monday hitting the
campaign trail.
No 10 has declined to say whether the
prime minister will attend the debate, but he will be hosting a foreign leader
in Downing Street on Monday, which could give him an excuse not to take part.
The Times and The Telegraph newspapers
report he is expected to not cast a vote on the committee's findings.
In a scathing 108-page report, the
cross-party group of MPs recommended a 90-day suspension for Mr Johnson's
"repeated contempts" of parliament had he not pre-emptively resigned.
It also says he should be denied the parliamentary pass usually given to former
MPs.
The former Conservative leader has
dismissed the findings of the committee, which he likened to a "kangaroo
court," as smacking of "bias" – attacks that led it to recommend
a harsher sanction against him.
If the report is not opposed then it
could just be nodded through the Commons.
The sanctions proposed by the
Tory-majority committee are expected to pass regardless, with only a relatively
small group of Johnson loyalists expected to oppose the report's findings.
The debate comes after the Sunday Mirror
obtained a video appearing to show Conservative staff dancing and joking about
Covid restrictions at the height of the pandemic.
The footage of the event, which happened
when indoor socialising was banned and people across the country were separated
from family and friends, poses a further setback to Mr Sunak's efforts to move
on from his predecessor-but-one's legacy.
It has also renewed accusations from
opposition parties that the prime minister is weak for not intervening over Mr
Johnson's resignation honours.
Both former London mayoral candidate
Shaun Bailey and Tory aide Ben Mallet – who were handed a peerage and an OBE
respectively – attended the gathering.
Mr Gove told the BBC's Sunday with Laura
Kuenssberg the pair should not be stripped of their honours because rules allow
outgoing prime ministers to make such appointments.
The Metropolitan Police, which
previously investigated the gathering and claimed there was "insufficient
evidence to disprove the version of events provided by attendees", said it
is looking at the video.
A spokesperson for the force said:
"We are aware of the footage and are considering it."
CCHQ said "formal disciplinary
action" was taken against four staff members, who were seconded to Mr
Bailey's mayoral campaign, over the unauthorised event.
Mr Bailey had reportedly left the
gathering when the video was taken and has previously apologised for his
involvement.
Source: thenationalnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/uk-news/2023/06/19/boris-johnson-vote-partygate-report/
--------
Surrey area named as 'Mecca for
dogging', according to TikToker: 'Everything goes on here'
18 JUN 2023
A TikToker has named the Surrey area
that is the "Mecca for dogging" in a hilarious tongue-in-cheek viral
video. Phil Carr took a tour of some of the county's 70-plus sites that have
become synonymous with an outdoor "meet and greet".
In the nearly four-minute clip, with
humourous barking sounds every time the word "dogging" is said,
"the nation's favourite county" is described as "the
epicentre" for the public sex act - and Phil gave a few thoughts as to
why. Taking a tour during the school holidays in the hopes of "not bumping
into doggers" as "my online reputation and my marriage are both
hanging on by their fingertips", he said: "Well, the county has more
woodland than any other in the country, and it's all common land, which means
lots of secluded car parks surrounded by trees to escape into.
"But the second thing is Surrey is
in the middle of the south-east, so it's within a short drive of millions and
millions of people in London and the other Home Counties. And the third reason
is we are Surrey if we choose to do something we are the best at it."
Hotspots in the tour include some
toilets in Dorking where Phil once bumped into two men "having a brief
physical relationship", and a little alleyway next to his former primary
school. But there was one area that was described as the "Mecca for
dogging", right next to the A3 and an RHS garden.
Phil said: "I'm now at a place
called Wisley Common, this is the famous one that most people in the south-east
would have heard of. It's a Mecca for dogging and has been for decades.
Absolutely everything goes on here... anything you could possibly imagine.
"But what I wasn't banking on would
be how active it is during a weekday during the school holidays. There are way
too many people loitering in the car parks in the woods for my liking."
Phil then decides to go elsewhere to
explain the legal status of the act before the camera moves to the next clip
where he "has got a follower" as he decides to swiftly head back to
the car. The viral clip has had more than 51,000 views on Facebook and an
incredible 380,000-plus on TikTok, with nearly 1,000 comments across both
social media platforms.
Source: getsurrey.co.uk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/surrey-area-named-mecca-dogging-27146861
--------
North America
Possible Islamist attack on Vienna’s
Pride parade foiled
author image
GerganaKrasteva
Sunday 18 Jun 2023
A possible attack on the annual LGBTQ+
Pride parade in Vienna, Austria, was foiled with hours to go, police have
confirmed.
Three men with alleged links to the Islamic
State (IS) terrorist group were arrested before the start of yesterday’s
celebration.
The suspects, aged 14, 17 and 20, are
Austrian nationals of Bosnian and Chechen origin, and one of them was already
known to the police, Omar Haijawi-Pirchner from the State Protection and
Intelligence Directorate (DSN) said during a press conference today.
They had allegedly become radicalised
online and developed views sympathetic to IS, according to Mr Haijawi-Pirchner.
But he stressed there was ‘no danger’
for the around 300,000 Pride participants at ‘any time’.
The intelligence service had received
advance knowledge of the suspects’ alleged plans, kept them ‘under constant
control’, and arrested them on the orders of the St Poelten public prosecutor’s
office following house searches on Saturday that uncovered evidence, including
weapons, ORF reported.
The organisers of the parade were
informed about today’s events, after the police raid had already taken place,
ORF reported.
Source: metro.co.uk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://metro.co.uk/2023/06/18/austria-possible-islamist-attack-on-viennas-lgbtq-pride-parade-foiled-18971874/?ito=newsnow-feed
--------
Libs Freak as Muslim-Led City Bans
Pride, Celebrates Being ‘F*gless’.
Hamtramck, a Muslim-dominated city in
Michigan, is celebrating making the city ‘fagless,’ after the local council
voted to ban LGBTQIA+ Pride flags from being flown or displayed on public
property. The city – which was featured heavily in National Pulse editor Raheem
Kassam’s 2017 bestseller ‘No Go Zones’ – voted unanimously last Wednesday in
favor of a resolution which also prohibits displaying flags with ethnic,
political, or racial views. “I’m working for the people, what the majority of
the people like,” said council member Mohammed Hassan. Another councillor,
Nadeem Choudhury, asked, “why do you have to have the flag shown on government
property to be represented? You’re already represented. We already know who you
are.” The city’s Mayor, Amer Ghalib, told the Guardian that local “LGBTQ+
supporters had stoked tension by “forcing their agendas on others.”” “There is
an overreaction to the situation, and some people are not willing to accept the
fact that they lost,” he added. This follows the revelation that conservative
boycotts of brands such as Bud Light “are working” to fight back against the
LGBT movement.
Source: thenationalpulse.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://thenationalpulse.com/2023/06/18/libs-freak-as-muslim-led-city-bans-pride-celebrates-being-fgless/
--------
South Asia
Ground Paved for Investment
Opportunities in the Country: Hanafi
2023-06-18
KABUL (BNA) Deputy Prime Minister for
administrative affairs, Mawlavi Abdul Salam Hanafi, met with Mohammad Yunus
Mohmand, the head of the chambers of commerce, and Haji KhanjanAlkozi, a member
of the Afghanistan chambers of commerce and investment.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has
made every effort to remove the Barrier in the way of trade and investment and
is still striving to provide the all facilities for businessmen and investors,
said Hanafi during the meeting, according to a statement.
He said that the main Barrier to
investment such as insecurity and corruption have been removed and asked Afghan
businessmen and investors living abroad to return to the country and contribute
to the progress and development of Afghanistan through investment and trade.
Source: bakhtarnews.af
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://bakhtarnews.af/en/ground-paved-for-investment-opportunities-in-the-country-hanafi/
--------
Statement of IEA’s Spokesperson
Regarding SIGAR’s Report
2023-06-18
KABUL (BNA) SIGAR was created aimed at
controlling, calculating and investigating of American expenditures during the
occupation in Afghanistan, and after the end of the occupation, now, the agency
is carrying out propaganda against the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
The agency mentioned in its latest
report that the Islamic Emirate is facing serious security problems and that
foreign armed groups and domestic threats have increased in Afghanistan
resulting in increasing the level of risk for some countries.
We strongly reject SIGAR’s propaganda,
the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has full control over the situation and
moreover, we will not allow any group or side to destabilize Afghanistan and or
use Afghan soil against any other country.
The current security and stability which
has been ensured by the Islamic Emirate throughout the country, the whole
world, especially the people of Afghanistan, have not experienced in the last
forty years.
No foreign armed group is active in
Afghanistan and the intelligence project called “Daesh” has also been severely
damaged and is on the verge of being destroyed.
In addition, there are no internal armed
threats, and now, the people of Afghanistan live in calm and peaceful
situation.
Despite the fact, why America spreads
such concerns? Propaganda? Or it increases the level of worry among our
neighboring countries?
It may be the arbitrary actions of some
groups in America or that America wants to make the region unsafe and unstable,
in order to take revenge of their defeat from the people of Afghanistan or to
spoil the relationship of the Islamic Emirate with its neighbors and the
countries of the region.
We advise the Americans to put an end to
their hatred and enmity with Afghan nation, Afghanistan is not a threat to
anyone, but on the contrary, the Islamic Emirate wants good and constructive
relations with the international community, including the United States of
America.
Source: bakhtarnews.af
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://bakhtarnews.af/en/statement-of-ieas-spokesperson-regarding-sigars-report/
--------
Afghan Deputy Minister Meets UNESCO
Director, Discusses Areas of Cooperation
June 19, 2023
During the meeting, LodaMarella, an
expert in management planning and a professor at the University of Florence,
shared a strategic master plan of Bamyan province with the Deputy Minister of
Information and Culture, who has been working on it together with the Ministry
of Urban Development since 2018, a statement said.
Ms. Marella shared details about the
future development projects of Bamyan province and the protection of historical
sites and wetlands in this master plan.
For the implementation of the Bamyan
province master-plan, a joint committee will be appointed by the relevant
ministries and after a comprehensive assessment, necessary measures will be taken
for future works, Mawlavi Azizi said.
Besides appreciating the continuous
efforts of international organizations to preserve historical sites in the
country, Deputy Minister Azizi said the Afghan interim government is ready to
cooperate and work with these organizations in identifying and restoring the
ancient sites in Afghanistan.
This comes as the Taliban regime blew up
the giant “Buddhas of Bamyan” during their previous spell from 1996-2001, which
prompted worldwide condemnations.
Besides all the odds, UNESCO and other
international organizations continue working in Afghanistan across fields from
restoring historical sites to providing life-saving aid to needy families
throughout the country during these difficult times.
Source: khaama.com
Please click
the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.khaama.com/afghan-deputy-minister-meets-unesco-director-discusses-areas-of-cooperation/
--------
Afghan, Iranian Officials Meet and
Discus Khaf-Herat Railway
June 19, 2023
The Embassy of Iran to Kabul has said
that the two sides discussed railway cooperation and utilization of the
Khaf-Herat railway, a railway linking the two sanctioned countries t to the
global markets via China.
The Iranian Embassy in Kabul on Sunday
in a tweet said, “Views were exchanged to increase railway cooperation,
including the operation of the Khaf-Herat railway, completion of the route, and
enhancing educational, technical and equipment cooperation between the two
sides.
The Taliban authorities are optimistic
to utilize the Khaf-Herat railway as they have already dispatched a group of
employees to retain the required training in Tehran.
During the former Afghanistan
government, the Taliban were accused of destabilizing the security of the
Khaf-Herat railway. Nearly three years ago, due to the explosion of a bomb
placed on this route, at least four people were killed, and the then-Afghan
Presidential Palace blamed the Taliban for the incident.
The Khaf-Herat railway project has been
part of a proposed $2 billion Five Nations Railway Corridor (FNRC), which would
run through Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and China. The total
length is 2,000 km and the railway route runs from Herat to the Afghan-Tajik
border and, after crossing Tajikistan, passes through Kyrgyzstan, where it will
reach China’s Xinjiang region via the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (CKU)
railway.
Source: khaama.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.khaama.com/afghan-iranian-officials-meet-and-discus-khaf-herat-railway/
--------
'Ansar al Islam' activist held in city
18 Jun 2023
DHAKA, June 18, 2023 (BSS) - The
Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU) of Bangladesh Police arrested an active member of the
banned militant group 'Ansar al Islam' Rabiul Hasan Rana alias Rana from the
city's Jatrabari area early today.
Superintendent of Police (media and
awareness wing) of the ATU Mohammad Aslam Khan confirmed the matter to BSS,
saying, on a tip off, a team of ATU arrested Rana from MatuailPashcimpara of
Jatrabari police station in the city at around 12:25 am.
Rana, 24, is an honors third-year
student of Management Department at Demra University College, he said, adding
that the ATU team recovered a mobile phone, two SIM cards and soft copies of 11
books on extremism from his possession.
Besides, a Dhaka court today put Rana on
a one remand as the ATU placed him before court seeking a three-day remand for
interrogation, said ATU sources.
Source: bssnews.net
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.bssnews.net/news/131974
--------
Bangladesh will never bow down to any
external interference: PM
18 Jun 2023
DHAKA, June 18, 2023 (BSS) - Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina today made it clear that as an independent and sovereign
country, Bangladesh will never bow down to any external interference.
"We'll not bow down to
interferences of anyone. It is our decision," she said while addressing a
special Darbar (assembly) arranged at her office here, marking the 37th
founding anniversary of the Special Security Force (SSF).
"We're an independent nation. We've
achieved our country through a war," said Sheikh Hasina, mentioning that
Bangladesh is an independent and sovereign country.
Bangladesh is following the foreign
policy, framed by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,
"Friendship to all and malice towards none," she said her government
has been working to make friendship with imperative ones and doing whatever
necessary to develop the country.
She said Bangladesh is progressing fast
and will do further defying many obstacles and conspiracies.
Bangladesh faced obstacles and
conspiracies time and again, but it has successfully overcome these, said the
premier, adding, "So, still many obstacles and conspiracies continue. The
reason is that when a country makes rapid progress, many may not tolerate it.
So, they start making various disturbances."
"There is nothing to be unnerved
with these (disturbance)," she said urging all the people of the country
to move with self-confidence and self-esteem, keeping the heads high as an
independent and victorious nation in the world stage.
Prime Minister's Principal Secretary M
Tofazzel Hossain Miah was also present.
SSF Director General (DG) Major General
MdMajibur Rahman, in his welcome speech, presented the different activities of
the force.
At the outset of the ceremony, a video
documentary on SSF and its activities was screened.
At the function, the Prime Minister
unveiled the cover of a book titled " DurnitirBiruddyeBangabandhurUkti"
with 75 excerpts of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman
compiled by SSF DG Major General MdMajibur Rahman.
On June 15 in 1986, the Presidential
Security Force (PSF) was formed, which was later renamed as Special Security
Force (SSF) in 1991 following the restoration of the parliamentary system of
government in the country.
The force was originally intended to
provide "physical security" both to the president wherever he may be
and to VIPs, including any head of the state or government or any person
declared to be a VIP by the government.
Following the restoration of the
parliamentary system, its primary function is to protect the President, the
Prime Minister and other VIPs.
Talking about the modern technology, the
Prime Minister asked the armed forces and law enforcement agencies to pay a
special attention to the prevention of misuse of the latest technology.
"Technology has opened the path for
our development. But, we have to pay a special attention so that these
technologies can't harm the people of our country, if they use these," she
said.
Mentioning that the technology has
created many apprehensions, she said that the patterns of terrorism and
militancy are also changing.
The premier extended her sincere thanks
to the SSF members for performing their duty with utmost efficiency and
sincerity.
"I believe that SSF will continue
to improve day by day through proper leadership, right guidelines, and
professionalism and sincerity of every member of this force," she said.
On the SSF Raising Day, Sheikh Hasina
expected that the force would become an ideal security force in terms of
discipline, loyalty and professional standards.
In her speech, the Prime Minister
highlighted the success of her government in various sectors including the
Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord, exchange of enclaves with India,
settlement of maritime boundary disputes and construction of the Padma Bridge
as well as inauguration of 100 bridges and 100 roads in a day.
She said that they protested against the
alleged corruption charges raised by the World Bank because her government had
no weakness.
Apart from this, Sheikh Hasina said that
they have demonstrated their capability by constructing the Padma Bridge with
own funding, adding that Bangladesh is now given respect by all due to it.
Source: bssnews.net
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.bssnews.net/news-flash/131868
--------
Southeast Asia
Chinese spy tech could make Iran’s
Islamic regime even more dangerous
June 19, 2023
Iran (MNN) — Western sanctions and
diplomacy lose effect as Iran strengthens ties with China and Saudi Arabia.
In 2018, former U.S. President Donald
Trump exited a 2015 nuclear accord and reimposed sanctions to curb oil exports
and the associated revenue to Iran’s government. Sanctions continued during
President Joe Biden’s term, yet Iran’s oil exports rose, hitting a five-year
high in 2023.
Previously, sanctions could sway Iran
toward diplomatic efforts. Now, a weakened U.S. presence in the region and new
geopolitical partnerships allow Iran to pursue its own agenda.
“Iran has not been held accountable for
the executions and atrocities it has committed since September of 2022’s
uprising. The international community is not doing anything,” Heart4Iran’s Mike
Ansari says.
Technology will likely play a key role
in Iran’s authoritarian governance. Last year, China helped Iran install
security cameras nationwide to crack down on protests. Saudi Arabia uses
similar technology from China to build a futuristic “smart city” run on A.I.
and user data.
Smart cities allegedly use data and
surveillance to improve efficiency and safety. Skeptics voice concern about
privacy and individual freedoms.
“The whole conversation is not revolving
around the safety and security of these nations. It’s revolving around
espionage, or spying on people and violating people’s rights,” Ansari says.
“Countries that are willing to violate
human rights and religious freedom are the ones using these extreme measures to
[control the population.]”
Iran already uses digital means to
target and persecute Christians. Chinese support could make the Islamic regime
even more dangerous.
“Anything that may threaten the
foundations of Islamic tenants is an enemy, and they’re going to deal with it
very sternly,” Ansari says of Iran’s regime.
The digital world may be full of
threats, but God is there, too. Heart4Iran’s virtual church provides a haven
for secret believers. A platform called “My Kelisa” hosts evangelism and
discipleship resources. Learn more here.
Pray that the Lord will help people in
Iran discover His truth. “Pray that God would open the door for freedom to
reign and for people to start experiencing their God-given right,” Ansari
requests.
Source: mnnonline.org
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.mnnonline.org/news/chinese-spy-tech-could-make-irans-islamic-regime-even-more-dangerous/
--------
MACC found no criminal elements in
Nazlan probe, says PM
19 Jun 2023
KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption
Commission did not find any elements of criminal offences in its investigation
of appeal court judge Nazlan Ghazali, says Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Anwar told the Dewan Negara that MACC
had “thoroughly” investigated claims that Justice Nazlan had a conflict of
interest when, as a high court judge, he presided over Najib Razak’s trial in
the SRC International case.
“MACC found no criminal element and the
Attorney-General’s Chambers agreed,” said the prime minister.
Anwar said allegations that Nazlan had
violated the Judges’ Code of Ethics were a non-issue, as the Federal Court had
made a ruling on the matter.
He also pointed out that Najib had
retracted allegations of bribery against Nazlan in an affidavit to the Federal
Court in August 2022.
However, Najib insisted that there was
evidence of a conflict of interest when the judge presided over his SRC case.
Anwar reiterated that the Federal Court
had found that Nazlan’s previous job with Maybank as its general counsel had
nothing to do with Najib’s charges.
In March, law and institutional reform
minister Azalina Othman Said had said in a letter to Najib’s solicitors that
MACC had concluded that the judge had violated the code of ethics and had a
conflict of interest when presiding over the SRC case.
She had said this was based on a report
of MACC’s findings dated Feb 20, which the agency had extended to her.
On Feb 24, a seven-member Federal Court
panel led by TengkuMaimun ruled that MACC had not followed protocol when
conducting its investigations into Nazlan.
The apex court said investigating bodies
like MACC must consult the chief justice before initiating a probe against
judges. Its failure to do so showed there was “a lack of bona fide on their
part”.
Nazlan, now a judge on the Court of Appeal,
had convicted Najib in July 2020 on charges of abuse of power, money laundering
and criminal breach of trust over RM42 million in funds belonging to SRC
International.
He sentenced Najib to 12 years’ jail and
fined him RM210 million. Najib’s appeal to the Court of Appeal was dismissed in
December 2021. The Federal Court on Aug 23 last year upheld the conviction and
sentence.
Najib began serving his 12-year prison
term immediately following the Federal Court decision.
In April, a separate Federal Court bench
dismissed Najib’s application for a review of his conviction and sentence.
Source: freemalaysiatoday.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2023/06/19/macc-found-no-criminal-elements-in-nazlan-probe-says-pm/
--------
Selangor assembly to be dissolved on
Friday
19 Jun 2023
PETALING JAYA: The Selangor legislative
assembly will be dissolved on Friday, paving the way for fresh elections.
Bernama quoted the private secretary to
Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah as saying the state ruler had given his consent
to the dissolution.
The Selangor state assembly’s term
expires on Sunday, when it would have dissolved automatically.
Under the constitution, elections must
be held within 60 days of the assembly’s dissolution.
The legislative assemblies of five other
states, Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Penang and Negeri Sembilan, are similarly
expected to be dissolved soon.
There are 56 seats in the Selangor state
assembly, with 45 members on the government side and seven held by the
opposition. One seat is vacant and one seat is held by the Speaker, Ng Suee Lim
of DAP, who does not vote except to break a tie.
PakatanHarapan holds 40 seats through
PKR (19), DAP (15), Amanah (6). Its coalition partner BarisanNasional holds 5
seats through Umno, while PBM (2 seats) and Warisan (1) are allied with the
government.
The seven-member opposition is formed by
PerikatanNasional through Bersatu (4) and PAS (1) and Pejuang (2).
Source: freemalaysiatoday.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2023/06/19/selangor-assembly-to-dissolve-on-friday/
--------
Muslims In Singapore To Celebrate Hari
Raya Haji (Eid Al-Adha)On June 29: Mufti
JUN 18, 2023
SINGAPORE – Muslims in Singapore will
celebrate Hari Raya Haji on June 29, the Republic’s top Islamic leader said on
Sunday.
In a media statement, Mufti
NazirudinMohd Nasir said that based on astronomical calculations, the crescent
moon did not appear at sunset on Sunday, signifying the beginning of Zulhijjah
– the 12th month of the Muslim calendar – on June 20.
Hari Raya Haji, also known as Eid
Al-Adha, is celebrated on the 10th day of Zulhijjah and marks the end of the
haj pilgrimage to Mecca.
The Mufti added: “Let us welcome this
month with more good deeds and make prayers for the safety of our haj
pilgrims.”
Some 900 Muslims from Singapore will be
performing the haj in 2023, a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim
who can afford it.
The Islamic Religious Council of
Singapore (Muis) announced in January that Singapore’s allocation for the
annual pilgrimage in 2023 was 900 places, the same number as in 2022 and before
the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Republic was initially allocated 407
places in 2022, but the number was later increased.
Also in January, Minister-in-charge of
Muslim Affairs MasagosZulkifli signed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, an agreement for
the 2023 pilgrimage with Saudi Minister of Haj and Umrah Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al
Rabiah.
“Dr Tawfiq assured me that he and his
team understand the strong aspiration of our prospective pilgrims and will
review Singapore’s requests for more haj places,” Mr Masagos said in a Facebook
post then.
The festival of Hari Raya Haji also sees
the ritual of korban, which involves the slaughtering of livestock, such as
sheep and lambs. The meat is then distributed to fellow Muslims and the needy.
The korban ritual typically takes place
in mosques here, but was modified in 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic, with
sheep being sacrificed in Australia and their meat chilled, before being
transported to Singapore. Muis confirmed in May that the arrangement will
continue in 2023.
Fifty-two mosques will be offering
overseas korban services, with registration closing on Friday. All slots will
be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Those who wish to perform korban can
either register physically by visiting one of the 52 participating mosques, or
do so online at www.ourmasjid.sg/korban, which also shows the full list of
mosques involved in 2023.
Source: straitstimes.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/muslims-in-singapore-to-celebrate-hari-raya-haji-on-june-29-mufti
--------
Austria foils pride parade attack,
officials say
Jun 18, 2023
VIENNA – Austrian police have arrested
three youngsters, including a 14-year-old, for allegedly planning an attack at
Vienna’s pride parade, which drew hundreds of thousands of people, officials
said Sunday.
The men aged 14, 17 and 20 and suspected
of being Islamic State sympathizers were held ahead of the parade, according to
domestic intelligence agency (DSN) chief Omar Haijawi-Pirchner.
He told reporters that there was “never
any threat” to those who participated in the Pride Parade in central Vienna on
Saturday.
“They sympathized with the Islamic State
online and shared extremist content. In this context, the suspects focused on
the Pride Parade as a potential target for an attack,” the interior ministry
said in a press release.
During raids on two premises on
Saturday, authorities discovered weapons and other evidence against the three
Austrians with Bosnian and Chechen roots.
One of them was already previously known
to police. They had planned to use “knives or vehicles” in the attack, police
told reporters.
Some 300,000 took part in the parade for
LGBTQ rights.
In November 2020, a convicted Islamic
State group sympathizer went on a shooting rampage in downtown Vienna, killing
four and wounding 23 others before police shot him dead.
It marked the Alpine nation’s first
deadly jihadi attack.
Earlier this year, a Vienna court
sentenced two alleged accomplices of the gunman to life in prison, while two
others received prison terms of 19 and 20 years.
Source: japantimes.co.jp
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/06/18/world/austria-lgbtq-attack/
--------
Mideast
Zionist settlers renew their storming
Al-Aqsa Mosque courtyards
[18/June/2023]
GAZA June 18. 2023 (Saba)-Dozens of
Zionist settlers renewed today, Sunday, their storming of the courtyards of the
blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied city of Al-Quds, from the side of the
Mughrabi Gate, under heavy guard from the Zionist enemy forces.
The Palestinian News Agency, Wafa,
reported that dozens of settlers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque, organized provocative
tours in its courtyards, received explanations about the alleged
"temple", and performed Talmudic rituals near its doors.
The Zionist enemy forces also continued
to impose restrictions on the entry of Palestinians from Al-Quds and the 48
lands of Al-Aqsa, checking their identities and detaining some of them at its
external gates.
Every day, except for Friday and
Saturday, Al-Aqsa Mosque witnesses a series of violations and incursions by
settlers, protected by the occupation police, in an attempt to impose full
control over the Holy Mosque and divide it temporally and spatially.
Source: saba.ye
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3247044.htm
--------
Iran has no obstacles to deepen ties
with Islamic countries: President Raisi
Tehran (ISNA) - In a meeting with Saudi
Arabia's Foreign Minister, the Iranian President said, "Only the enemies
of Muslims, and the Zionist Regime at the head of them, are upset with the
development of bilateral and regional cooperation between Iran and Saudi
Arabia".
President Ebrahim Raisi welcomed the
establishment of relations between the two important and influential countries
of the World of Islam, and pointed out the Hajj season and the presence of
Muslims from all over the world in the land of revelation, saying, "The
interests of the two nations are in the dialogue and interaction between Tehran
and Riyadh".
Emphasizing the government's
neighbourhood policy and that the Islamic Republic of Iran does not see any
obstacles to the development of relations with Islamic countries, president
Raisi pointed out the welcome and satisfaction of Islamic governments and
nations to establish Tehran-Riyadh relations and stated, "Only the enemies
of Muslims, and the Zionist Regime at the head of them, are upset with the
development of bilateral and regional cooperation between Iran and Saudi
Arabia".
Stating that there are various issues
and problems in our region that have become the cause of issues for the Islamic
Ummah, the President said, "With cooperation and dialogue between the
countries of the region, these problems can be overcome, and there is no need
for outsiders to interfere in this direction".
The President referred to the successful
experience of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the fight against terrorism and
the annihilation of takfiri groups and added, "The results and experiences
of this successful fight are among the issues that can be the focus of
cooperation between the two countries".
President Raisi stated, "The
Zionist Regime is not only the enemy of the Palestinians, but also it is a
threat to all Muslims, and the normalization of relations of some countries
with this regime not only does not create security, but is also against the
opinion of the Islamic Ummah".
In this meeting, Faisal bin Farhan, the
Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, expressed satisfaction with the establishment
of relations between the two Islamic countries and his trip to Tehran, saying,
"We are in a golden stage that we should appreciate, and cooperation with
the Islamic Republic of Iran provides the opportunity to benefit from for both
parties and the region".
Referring to the order of the King of
Saudi Arabia to form various commissions to develop relations with Iran, the
Saudi Foreign Minister referred to his country's efforts to upgrade relations
to a strategic level and added, "Economic, developmental and cultural
cooperation is on the agenda of Tehran and Riyadh".
Stating that some countries in the world
do not want our region to achieve peace and progress, Faisal bin Farhan said,
"With the development of the current interaction between Iran and Saudi
Arabia at the level of all Islamic countries, endless achievements will emerge,
and guarantee that no foreign country can interfere in our region".
Source: en.isna.ir
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://en.isna.ir/news/1402032818075/Iran-has-no-obstacles-to-deepen-ties-with-Islamic-countries
--------
US Basketball Player, Ahmad Young,
Embraces Islam In Palestine
19/06/2023
U.S. basketball player, Ahmad Young, has
embraced Islam after playing for the Qalandia basketball league in Palestine,
influenced by experiences during Ramadan and the hospitality of the Palestinian
people, according to Palestinian media.
His spiritual transformation is said to
have deeply been influenced by his experiences during the holy month of
Ramadan.
In video footage circulating on social
media, Young could be seen uttering the Shahadah, or proclamation of Islamic
faith, surrounded by fellow team members who then embrace the player as they
later celebrate this joyous occasion.
Young's transition from the Californian
collegiate courts to Club Qalandia in Palestine represents a significant stride
in his career, while his admiration for the hospitable culture of Palestine
marks his personal journey.
Before making his move to Palestine,
Ahmad Young was a notable figure in Californian collegiate basketball. On
November 2, he signed a professional agreement to join Club Qalandia, a team
under the auspices of the Palestinian Basketball Federation (PBF). The team
operates out of Ramallah, Palestine, which is situated approximately forty
minutes to the north of the revered city of Quds.By Khan Muhammad An Nazmus
Saqib
Source: yenisafak.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.yenisafak.com/en/sports/us-basketball-player-embraces-islam-in-palestine-3665348
--------
Iran pursuing Gen. Soleimani's efforts
towards Muslim unity
Jun 19, 2023
TEHRAN, Jun. 19 (MNA) – The Iranian
foreign minister has lauded decades-long efforts by the late anti-terror
commander Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani in establishing unity and spirit
of brotherhood among Muslim nations.
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the
statement in a post on his Twitter account on Sunday in reference to the latest
critical developments in West Asia, including the resumption of diplomatic ties
between Iran and Saudi Arabia, and the readmission of Syria into the Arab
League after more than a decade.
“Striving for unity and brotherhood
between the Islamic Ummah and the oppressed and cognizant people of the region
was the very same plan that the 'General of hearts', beloved Qassem Soleimani,
the great hero of the fight against Zionism and terrorism, did not sleep over
for 30 years! Obviously, this plan has enemies, but it is important that the
plan is being vigorously pursued,” Amir-Abdollahian wrote.
The top Iranian diplomat met and
conferred on Saturday with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, who
had traveled to Tehran on the first visit since the two West Asian powers
agreed to restore ties following a seven-year rupture.
Farhan also held separate talks with
President Ebrahim Raeisi, who said enemies, particularly Israel, are the only
ones furious at the improvement of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Last week, Iran officially reopened its
embassy in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, in line with a China-brokered
reconciliation agreement.
Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed in Beijing
on March 10 to resume relations and reopen diplomatic missions within two
months.
They also agreed to implement a security
cooperation agreement signed in April 2001 and another accord reached in May
1998 to boost economic, commercial, investment, technical, scientific, cultural,
sports, and youth affairs cooperation.
The rapprochement is part of a broader
realignment in West Asia that has also seen Syria return to the Arab fold after
12 years.
On May 7, Arab government
representatives in Cairo voted to return Syria to the Arab League. All 13 of
the 22 member states that attended the session endorsed the decision.
The Arab League suspended Syria’s
membership in November 2011, citing an alleged crackdown by Damascus on
opposition protests. Syria said the move was “illegal and a violation of the
organization’s charter.”
Syria was one of the six founding
members of the Arab League in 1945.
Gen. Soleimani spearheaded Iran's
advisory mission in Syria, at the request of the Damascus government, to rid
the nation of Daesh terrorists.
Source: en.mehrnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/202166/Iran-pursuing-Gen-Soleimani-s-efforts-towards-Muslim-unity
---------
Pan-Islamic grouping condemns school
attack in Uganda
18.06.2023
ISTANBUL
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation
(OIC) on Sunday strongly condemned a terrorist attack on a school on Uganda's
western border, which left at least 41 people dead.
In a statement, the Jeddah-based
organization offered “its deepest condolences and sympathy to the relatives of
the victims and to the government and people of Uganda and wished the injured a
quick recovery.”
The pan-Islamic grouping reiterated “its
principled position against all forms and manifestations of terrorism.”
The OIC also renewed “its full support
to the Ugandan authorities in fighting terrorism.”
At least 41 people, mostly students,
were killed when five attackers linked to the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group
attacked the Lhubiriha secondary school in Mpondwe near border with Congo on
Friday.
*Writing by IkramKouachi
Source: aa.com.tr
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/pan-islamic-grouping-condemns-school-attack-in-uganda/2925482
--------
SalamAir announces direct flights to the
Islamic Republic of Iran
18/June/2023
Muscat: SalamAir has announced bi-weekly
direct flights from Sohar Airport to Shiraz Airport in the Islamic Republic of
Iran starting from the next month - July 5, 2023.
Oman's SalamAir, the fastest growing
airline in the Sultanate, has announced a direct flight from Sohar Airport to
Shiraz in Iran, one-way, on Wednesdays and Fridays, starting from July 5, 2023.
Book your direct flight to Shiraz with
SalamAir via the SalamAir website or call 24272222.
Source: timesofoman.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://timesofoman.com/article/132345-salamair-announces-direct-flights-to-the-islamic-republic-of-iran
--------
First Mecca pilgrimage flight from
Yemen's capital in seven years as Iran-Saudi relations warm
THE first flight carrying pilgrims to
Saudi Arabia for hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca, in more than seven years took
off from Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa at the weekend.
The airport’s manager Khalid al-Shayyef
said further flights to the coastal city of Jeddah would take place on Monday
and Wednesday, and more were planned.
Yemenis from Houthi-controlled parts of
the country have been unable to travel to Saudi Arabia since the latter led a
coalition to war with them in 2015, seeking to restore the ousted regime of
Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who fled to Riyadh after his overthrow the previous
year.
Over 400,000 people are estimated to
have died from the ensuing conflict, in which Saudi forces — benefiting from
British arms supplies and logistical assistance — are accused of war crimes
including the indiscriminate bombing of residential areas, schools and
hospitals.
The flights signal a rapprochement
between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis that has followed the China-brokered
resumption of relations between Riyadh and Tehran, which supports the Houthis.
These had been broken off in 2016, after
Iranian protesters attacked Saudi diplomatic missions following the Saudi
execution of a leading Shi’ite cleric.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin
Farhan arrived in the Iranian capital on Saturday to officially open the new
Saudi embassy there, and announced that Saudi King Salman has invited Iranian
President Ebrahim Raisi on a state visit.
Mr Raisi reportedly told Prince Faisal
that the normalisation of relations with Israel by some Arab states in 2020
following a diplomatic push by then US president Donald Trump was a security
issue for the Middle East and needed to be reversed. Saudi Arabia has not
normalised relations with Tel Aviv.
Source: morningstaronline.co.uk
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/b/first-mecca-pilgrimage-flight-from-yemens-capital-in-seven-years-as-iran-saudi-relations-warm
--------
Arab World
Saudi Arabia, Kosovo offcials discuss
ways to boost economic relations
June 18, 2023
RIYADH: Saudi Investment Minister Khalid
Al-Falih recently met Kosovan Prime Minister AlbinKurti in Pristina, Kosovo.
The Saudi minister conveyed the
greetings of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Kurti.
During the meeting, the two discussed
ways to enhance economic and developmental relations between Saudi Arabia and
Kosovo.
Al-Falih also met Kosovan Minister of
Finance, Labor and Transfers HekuranMurati to discuss opportunities for
investment, areas of cooperation and vital projects between the Kingdom and
Kosovo.
Source: arabnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2323931/saudi-arabia
--------
Tuwaiq Academy launches metaverse
training camps in Riyadh
June 18, 2023
RIYADH: Tuwaiq Academy has opened
registration for the Metaverse Academy camps for students in Riyadh.
The camps, the first of their kind in
the Middle East and North Africa, will be held in partnership with Meta and
will teach trainees to build and develop metaverse systems.
Three educational tracks will vary in
duration, with one-day, four-week and nine-month options available, and will be
held at the academy's head office in Riyadh.
The one-day online course will introduce
the concept of virtual worlds, and technologies in the field of augmented and
virtual reality.
The second track, a four-week course,
will allow trainees to develop their skills in metaverse technologies using
Meta Spark software.
The third track is an intensive
nine-month program that will immerse trainees in the world of the metaverse by
offering experience as a developer of 3D immersive real-time applications and
creating AR effects using Meta Spark Studio.
The Tuwaiq Academy has partnered with
multinational corporations including Google, Amazon, IBM, Cisco, Apple, Alibaba
Cloud, Oracle, Microsoft, Trend Micro and Offensive Security to launch training
programs.
More than 3,000 people benefit from the
Tuwaiq Academy through camps and programs it holds in partnership with major
international companies specializing in digital, cybersecurity, emerging technologies,
programming and drones.
Source: arabnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
Those interested in participating in the
Tuwaiq Academy’s programs courses can
register on https://metaverse.tuwaiq.edu.sa/
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2323891/saudi-arabia
--------
First Yemeni Hajj flight lands in Jeddah
from Houthi-controlled Sanaa
June 18, 2023
AL-MUKALLA: A Yemenia Airways plane
carrying 275 Yemeni pilgrims departed Houthi-controlled Sanaa on Saturday evening
for Saudi Arabia for the first time in years.
The Yemeni national airline said that
the flight landed at Jeddah airport in Saudi Arabia on Saturday evening, and
that two additional flights scheduled for Monday and Wednesday would transport
more pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.
Sanaa airport has been closed to
commercial flights since the first day of the Arab coalition military
intervention in March 2015, as the Yemeni government and the Arab coalition
have repeatedly accused the Houthis of smuggling weapons and turning the
airport into a military base for storing explosive-rigged drones and ballistic
missiles.
The airport was opened for commercial
flights to Amman in May last year under the UN-brokered truce, and the Houthis
were requested to reciprocate by abandoning their siege of Taiz, a term that
they have not met.
The first commercial flights from
Houthi-controlled Sanaa to Saudi Arabia have spurred praise for Saudi Arabia’s
efforts to alleviate the suffering of Yemenis while also laying the groundwork
for the end of the war.
The EU delegation to Yemen on Sunday
welcomed the resumption of commercial flights between Sanaa and Saudi Arabia,
and commended Saudi Arabia for “the gestures” that would lead to the war’s end.
“Very important Hajj flight from Sanaa to
KSA yesterday, the first in years, permitting Yemenis to perform religious
obligations. Gestures such as this by Saudi Arabia are most welcome, and should
help bring an end to the conflict,” the EU delegation said on Twitter.
The UN Yemen envoy, Hans Grundberg, on
Sunday urged Yemenis to take advantage of the spiritual atmosphere during the
annual Hajj season to reach an agreement to ease restrictions on movements of
citizens and launch a comprehensive peace process, thanking Saudi Arabia for
its assistance in facilitating the departure of flights from Sanaa to Saudi
Arabia.
“I hope this positive step and the
spirit of peace of the Hajj season encourage the parties to take more steps to
ease freedom of movement restrictions including inside Yemen, reach a nationwide
ceasefire and start an inclusive political dialogue under UN auspices,”
Grundberg tweeted.
The US also praised the Kingdom for
facilitating Hajj flights from Houthi-controlled Sanaa, as well as other
related measures to foster peace in Yemen.
“We credit Saudi Arabia for its efforts
to support the truce over recent months, including the historic Hajj flights
today that enable Yemenis to perform their religious obligations and other
flights soon to follow,” the US National Security Council said in a statement
on Saturday.
“The US remains engaged with all parties
to consolidate the ongoing benefits from the truce, and to ultimately end the
war altogether through a Yemeni-led political process.”
Similarly, the Yemen government’s
officials said that 19,366 Yemeni pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia,
including 18,173 pilgrims who entered the Kingdom through the Al-Wadea border
crossing.
Source: arabnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2323866/saudi-arabia
---------
Drug dealers, smugglers arrested across
Saudi Arabia
June 18, 2023
RIYADH: Saudi authorities have arrested
several people across the country for drug-related offenses in recent days.
On Sunday, Border Guard land patrols in
Jazan’s Al-Ardah governorate thwarted an attempt to smuggle 90 kilograms of
qat.
Then the land patrols foiled an attempt
to smuggle 400 kg of qat, in a second operation.
In addition, the authorities arrested
two citizens for attempting to sell 151 kg of qat, which had been found hidden
in their vehicle.
In a separate operation, the General
Directorate of Narcotics Control arrested two Pakistani residents in the Jeddah
governorate for attempting to sell 9.5 kg of methamphetamine.
Also, police officers in the Makkah
region arrested two Ethiopian nationals attempting to sell 2 kg of hashish.
In the Rafha region, the police arrested
a resident, a member of a displaced tribe, for attempting to sell 18 kg of
hashish that was found hidden in his vehicle.
Preliminary legal procedures have been
completed and all seized narcotics handed over to the authorities. All those
arrested have been referred to the Public Prosecution.
Members of the public can report
suspected smuggling or other violations in strict confidence via email —
1910@zatca.gov.sa — or through the designated number for security reports, 1910
from within the country, or +966114208417 from overseas. A financial reward is
offered if the information leads to the discovery of a crime.
Source: arabnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2323831/saudi-arabia
--------
More than 43,000 pilgrims receive
medical care
June 18, 2023
RIYADH: More than 43,000 pilgrims have
received medical services at seasonal health centers since the beginning of
DulQaada, the Saudi Ministry of Health announced.
Among them, 28,878 pilgrims received
health services at centers near the Prophet’s Mosque and the central region of
Madinah. Additionally, 3,365 pilgrims were admitted to emergency units at
different hospitals, four underwent open heart surgery, 51 underwent cardiac
catheterization, and another 44 surgeries were performed.
In terms of specific services, 98
dialysis procedures were conducted, and 150,008 pilgrims received health
awareness services in various locations such as hotels, shelters, shuttle buses
and public facilities.
This medical care is a crucial part of
the services provided by the Saudi government at all arrival and departure
points throughout the Hajj season.
The government has employed qualified
medical staff and is offering health awareness and education programs for
pilgrims and visitors during their stay in Madinah before and after performing
Hajj.
Over 10,900 people were served at Halat
Ammar port in Tabuk as part of a program to ensure excellence in serving
pilgrims.
To facilitate Hajj and Umrah rituals for
pilgrims and visitors from Arab and Islamic nations, the General Presidency for
the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques is providing 185 programs and initiatives
at the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque.
This includes using artificial
intelligence, digitizing programs and electronic applications to enhance
services. Information is available in multiple languages.
Source: arabnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2323816/saudi-arabia
--------
Yemeni, Moroccan pilgrims arrive in
Saudi Arabia
June 18, 2023
JEDDAH: The first group of pilgrims from
Yemen — 270 in total — have arrived in Jeddah, where they were received by the
Yemeni Vice Consul General Ahmed Al-Saadi, and officials from the Ministry of
Hajj and Umrah.
The ministry announced last week that it
will facilitate the arrival of Yemeni pilgrims for this year’s Hajj season from
Sanaa International Airport to King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah.
The Yemeni pilgrims praised the
facilities and services provided by the Saudi government to help them complete
their pilgrimage with ease and comfort.
Meanwhile, the Kingdom continues to
serve pilgrims through the expanded Makkah Route initiative.
Pilgrims from countries including
Morocco, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkiye and Cote d’Ivoire
have praised the initiative implemented in their countries.
The first Moroccan Makkah Route
beneficiaries also arrived in Jeddah and were received by Director of Passports
Department Maj. Gen. Suleiman Al-Youssef.
Launched in 2019 in Muslim-majority
countries, the scheme allows Hajj pilgrims to fulfill all visa, customs and
health requirements in one place, at their airport of origin, saving hours of
waiting before and on arrival in the Kingdom.
The process begins with the issue of
electronic visas and individual information collection, followed by streamlined
passport procedures before departure.
Stickers are placed on luggage and
passports containing information regarding the flight and place of residence of
each pilgrim. The tagging service is carried out by a specialized team working
under the supervision of the ministry.
Teams at King Abdulaziz International
Airport in Jeddah and Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz International Airport
receive the luggage and deliver it to the pilgrim’s accommodation.
JadidatArar Land Port, a new pilgrim
hall, has also been established to improve the facilities provided to pilgrims
and streamline the operational processes.
The hall can accommodate over 20,000
pilgrims, as well as 400 buses daily. It features 68 passport counters and six
areas designated for inspection and processing procedures.
Pilgrims from Iraq, totaling 16,000,
have praised the services and modern facilities provided at the hall, and
conveyed their appreciation and gratitude to King Salman and Crown Prince
Mohammed bin Salman for the excellent support and accommodation.
Source: arabnews.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2323766/saudi-arabia
--------
Africa
Chief Imam Regains Freedom From
Kidnappers In Ondo
June 19, 2023
The Chief Imam of Uso community, Alhaji
Ibrahim BodundeOyinlade, who was abducted by gunmen on his farm on Saturday
afternoon has regained his freedom.
The Public Relations Officer of Ondo
State Police Command, SP FunmilayoOdunlami-Omisanya confirmed this to Channels
Television on Monday morning.
She revealed that the victim was
released late Sunday evening but couldn’t say if any ransom was paid to the
abductors before the cleric was released.
The Chief Imam was abducted early on
Saturday by some yet to be identified gunmen in Owo Local Government Area of
Ondo State.
The 67 year old Islamic Cleric was
reportedly taken from his his farm at Asolo Camp, at about 3pm.
According to a family source, the
kidnappers had contacted the family, demanding that ransom be paid for his
release.
Though the Divisional Police Officer in
Uso and his men, along with local vigilantes were said to have gone combing the
bush in the area in order to rescue the victim and apprehend the abductors,
however, it is not clear how the Imam managed to escaped from his captors.
Source: channelstv.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://www.channelstv.com/2023/06/19/chief-imam-regains-freedom-from-kidnappers-in-ondo/
--------
Sultan directs Muslims to look out for
crescent of Dhul-Hijjah
June 17, 2023
Sa’ad Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto on
Saturday directed Muslims to look out for the new moon of Dhul-Hijjah 1444 AH
from Sunday.
Mr Abubakar, who is the president
General Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, NSCIA, gave the directive
in a statement signed by Sambo Junaidu, the chairman of the Advisory Committee
on Religious Affairs, Sultanate Council, Sokoto.
Dhul-Hijjah is the 12th and the last
month in the Islamic calendar in which Muslims perform annual pilgrimage (Hajj)
and celebrate Eid-el-Kabir festival.
The statement said, “This is to inform
the Muslim Ummah that, Sunday 18th June, which is equivalent to 29th day of
Dhul-Qadah shall be the day to look for the new moon of Dhul-Hijjah 1444 AH.
“Muslims are therefore requested to
start looking for the new moon on Sunday and report its sighting to the nearest
District or village Head for onward communication to the Sultan,”
The statement prayed Allah to help all
Muslims in the discharge of their religious duty.
Source: dailynigerian.com
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original
https://dailynigerian.com/sultan-directs-muslims-3/
--------
URL:
https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/ncert-genocide-muslims-tanika/d/130029