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Islamic World News ( 3 Jun 2019, NewAgeIslam.Com)

To Foster Communal Harmony, the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) Has Been Organising Masjid Darshan, during Ramzan

New Age Islam News Bureau

3 Jun 2019

Photo: A Jamaat-e-Islami Hind resource person giving a talk inside a temple in Kamblewadi in Bidar district as part of its outreach programme in the holy month of Ramzan. | Photo Credit: Gopichand T.

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India

• To Foster Communal Harmony, the Jamaat-E-Islami Hind (JIH) Has Been Organising Masjid Darshan, during Ramzan

• Youth Breaks Ramzan Fast To Save Seven-Year-Old Girl Suffering From Thalassemia

• Pakistan stops guests from attending iftaar hosted by Indian envoy, India protests

• Their nationality yet to be confirmed, 28 Indians in Pak jails after serving sentence

• Politics Live: Bill to Ban Triple Talaq To Be Brought Again, Ravi Shankar Prasad

• Varanasi: Hindu family makes traditional vermicelli for Muslims during Ramzan

• Senior ISIS leader hailing from India killed in Afghanistan airstrike

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North America

• Young North Texas Muslims pursue self-improvement through Ramadan traditions

• Trump administration says it will negotiate with Iran with ‘no preconditions’

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Africa

• How I Risked My Life To Save Over 200 Christians – Muslim Cleric

• Sudanese forces storm protest camp, nine people dead

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Arab World

• Damascus Slams Makkah Summit Endorsement of Syria Transition

• Over 40 Terrorists Killed, Injured in Explosion in Aleppo

• Kurds say 800 women, children to leave crowded camp

• Senior Iraqi MP: Iran Entitled to Attack US Bases in Iraq If Threatened

• Homs: Israel Launches Missile Attacks on T4 Airport

• Gunmen attack Iraqi Communist, Islamic Dawa party offices

• 19 killed in a car bomb explosion near mosque in Syria’s Azaz: Monitor

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South Asia

• Taliban Militants Have Taken 4 Members Of Peace Movement To Unknown Location For Talks

• Airstrikes kill 40 Taliban militants in Badghis province

• 25 Taliban militants killed in Afghan Special Forces raid, airstrikes in Ghazni

• 17 Taliban militants killed in Special Forces operation, airstrikes in Uruzgan and Zabul

• Architect of deadly attack on Kabul police check killed in armed forces operation

• 5 killed, 10 wounded in an explosion in Kabul city

• Seize the moment for peace, FO urges all sides in Afghan war

• Bomb targets government bus in Kabul, as hopes dwindle for end of Ramadan cease-fire

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Mideast

• FM Underlines Failure of Saudi Attempts against Iran in Mecca Meeting

• Iraqi Source: Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi in Al-Anbar Desert Near Border with Syria

• Leader's Top Military Aide: Iran Ready to Sign Non-Aggression Pact with Neighboring States

• Hamas blames Israel for repercussions of attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque

• IRGC Says Iran to Keep Resisting US Pressures, Following Imam Khomeini’s Path

• Saudi, UAE slam Qatar for rejecting outcome of Mecca talks on Iran

• Ankara Strongly Attempting to Save Terrorist Groups amid Syrian Army Operations in North

• Tahrir Al-Sham's Ringleader Al-Jolani Looking for Developing Turkish Drones with EU Expert's Help

• Turkish Army, Allied Militants Engage in Fierce Clashes with Kurdish Fighters in Aleppo

• Iran Shows Indifference to US’ Game of Words, Re-Urges Washington to Prove Honesty with Action

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SouthEast Asia

• Islamic group in Gowa celebrates Idul Fitri on Monday

• DBKL clears 400 stalls in illegal Lorong TAR Ramadan bazaar

• Gunman shoots dead village chief at mosque in Narathiwat

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Europe

• Man attempted to attack worshippers at mosque with hammer

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Pakistan

• Bureaucratic inefficiency troubles Pakistani students in China

Compiled By New Age Islam News Bureau

URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/to-foster-communal-harmony-jamaat/d/118787

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To Foster Communal Harmony, the Jamaat-E-Islami Hind (JIH) Has Been Organising Masjid Darshan, during Ramzan

Rishikesh Bahadur Desai BELAGAVI, JUNE 03, 2019 00:31 IST

In an initiative to foster communal harmony, the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) has been organising masjid darshan (visits to mosques) for non-Muslims, during Ramzan, at several places in the State.

In Bidar, lectures on Islam by imams are being organised in Hindu temples. This programme expands on the JIH’s earlier effort to serve iftar (breaking of fast in the evening) during the Muslim holy month. “I believe that this [initiative] is bringing different communities closer,” said Mohammad Altaf Amjad, JIH’s chief organiser of the events.

Basava Kalyan in Bidar is one of the taluks where the initiative is under way. “We have planned programmes in 78 places, including in villages and in Basava Kalyan town,” said Mohammad Aslam, JIH coordinator.

Friendly tour

A masjid darshan typically begins with iftar. Village residents are invited to the local mosque and taken around the premises, including the prayer hall. A JIH resource person speaks to visitors on the importance of fasting and other Islamic traditions. Resource persons Kalim Abid, Zakir Hussain, Mohammad Zabiuddin, Mohammad Azhar and Mohammad Junaid speak in Kannada, while Mohammad Mujeebuddin and Sajid Azad speak in Marathi.“Wherever possible, we form joint committees to fight the evils of alcoholism and dowry. We have formed such committees in eight villages; most have women members,” said Mr. Aslam. “Some visitors told me that they had never visited a mosque though they had been curious about it all their lives. We would have served a great purpose if we succeeded in removing misconceptions of even one of the visitors in this month.”

Inter-faith support

Yadlagundi in Bidar is one of the villages that does not have a mosque.

Villagers have been inviting the faithful to break their fast at the Mahadev temple here for two years now. On Friday, a group led by temple committee secretary Jagannath Reddy, facilitated JIH members at the temple.

“Though this was planned as a Statewide programme, we have asked our office-bearers to choose villages and towns where there is least resistance. We don’t want to create any misunderstanding over pressurising someone to open their holy place for us, or making them feel compelled to enter a mosque,” said Syed Tanveer, public relations officer of the JIH’s State unit.

Hotspots

“Secondly, we have focused especially on places that have a history of communal disturbances. Our volunteers are meeting village elders at such places and inviting them to hold iftars along with us, and to visit mosques. We are also exploring the possibility of sending to temples and mutts [elsewhere in the State, beyond Bidar] speakers on subjects like communal harmony, misconceptions about Islam, and the reasons behind the month-long fasting during Ramzan,” Mr. Tanveer said.

‘Opening minds’

The JIH believes masjid committees should provide space to Muslim women for praying in mosques, and some mosques are already doing this. Entry of non-Muslim women to mosques as part of the masjid darshan initiative could inspire more of their own women [Muslim women of the local communities] to pray in mosques,” Mr. Tanveer noted.

“A lot of non-Muslims believe that mosques are exclusive places of worship for Muslims. Sadly, a considerable number of Muslims also hold such beliefs. Such programmes will clear misconceptions in both communities,” he added.

“We are not only opening up our places of worship, we are also hoping to open our minds.”

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/masjid-tours-talks-in-temples-to-foster-communal-harmony/article27407595.ece

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Young North Texas Muslims pursue self-improvement through Ramadan traditions

It was 2 a.m., but the streets were well-lit and teeming with people. Not in Deep Ellum or on Lower Greenville. At the Islamic Association of Collin County in Plano, where Muslims of all backgrounds gathered before dawn Saturday.

They'd come to spend the holiest night on the Islamic calendar together. Muslims fast every day during the lunar month of Ramadan and believe the Quran was revealed on or about the 27th night, called Laylat Al-Qadr.

The Islamic Association's mosque provides services year-round, but Friday's Laylat Al-Qadr unites the faithful from sunset to sunrise for a night of forgiveness and blessings.

As June begins, many young Muslims are on break from classes. Older worshippers find hope in the students who are home from college — the future leaders of their community. But some also fear their numbers may be dwindling, a common concern across faiths as modern life competes with centuries-old traditions.

The young Muslims who were celebrating Friday night say they may have their own interpretations of Ramadan, but they remain true to the spirit that binds them to their faith.

More than fasting

Danial Syed, 18, said that though fasting from dawn to sunset may be the most widely known obligation of Ramadan, Muslims are called upon to forgo other things, too.

Interpretations vary from person to person, but the faithful are expected to break bad habits such as gossiping, cursing and fighting.

“Because you’re not eating, you’re more aware of all the other things you do," Syed said. "You know the bad things you need to work on. It’s not just starving yourself.”

The purpose is spiritual growth.

Syed, who will soon be a freshman at UT-Dallas, explained that though he will be on his own, he won't change the way he behaves during Ramadan. Fasting is for Allah, who is “always watching,” he said.

Faraj Khan Pathan chats with Raiyan Uddin, middle, as Talha Mohammed keeps an eye on the game of Ludo at Islamic Association of Collin County in Plano Texas on Sunday, June 2, 2019. (ShabanAthuman/Staff Photographer) (ShabanAthuman/Staff Photographer)

Douaa Hassan, a 26-year-old industrial engineer from Plano, described fasting as a sort of spiritual cleanse, a time to work on one’s faith without distraction.

Muslims believe that Ramadan is a time when Allah locks up Satan and his helpers, making improvement easier for followers.

“You start to notice all the things you’re doing wrong,” Hassan said. “You really start to look at yourself and say, no, I need to do better.”

The ultimate test of a successful Ramadan, Hassan believes, is whether one maintains the improvements after the month ends. Ideally, people will become stronger in their faith each year as they build on good habits.

Not even water?

Because fasting is about the only thing a lot of people in the United States know about Ramadan, that's what many young Muslims are asked about.

And the most common question is simple: not even water?

Many Muslims do avoid all food and beverages from pre-dawn to sunset during the holy month, but the requirement provides exceptions for children, pregnant women and the elderly, as well as anyone else who is likely to suffer health consequences from fasting.

AmeraLawand, 23, said some non-Muslim friends seem to think Ramadan is inhumane, but she said the hunger subsides after the first few days. In fact, waking for predawn meals can feel like the hardest part.

Usmaan Hasan, a 21-year-old senior at the University of Texas at Austin, said non-Muslims' questions are more informed now that intermittent fasting has become a popular way to manage one's appetite.

“I might just be fortunate to be in a community of people who are relatively more aware of the environment around them and different cultures,” Hasan said. “I don't feel the need to correct people too much.”

https://www.dallasnews.com/life/faith/2019/06/02/young-north-texas-muslims-pursue-self-improvement-ramadan-traditions

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How I risked my life to save over 200 Christians – Muslim cleric

Sunday, June 2, 2019

AbubakarAbdullahi

AhajiAbubakarAbdullahi, 83-year old Chief Imam of a mosque in Yelwa- GindiAkwati village, BarkinLadi Local Government Area of Plateau, said he risked his life to save some people in the June 23, 2018 BarkinLadi attacks in Plateau.

Abdullahi protected over 200 people fleeing from attacks by suspected bandits in Yelwa-GindiAkwati, Swei and Nghar villages in BarkinLadi Local Government Area of Plateau.

Abubakar, who was speaking while receiving award from the U.S. Mission in Nigeria, said on Sunday in Abuja that his action saved those who took refuge in the mosque and in his house.

The cleric, who spoke through an interpreter said that the unfortunate incident happened on Saturday June 23, 2018, after the mid-afternoon prayers at about 4 p.m.

“After the prayer, we started hearing some gunshots first from the nearby village known as GidanAkwati up to Yelwa, my village.

“The entire village was engulfed in violence the kind we had never experienced before; the villagers were confused running for their safety.

“We then encouraged people to come in, women, men and children to all come in; and we closed the doors afterwards,” he said.

According to him, the attackers surrounded the mosque, they were trying to force the door open.

“We then overheard them (attackers) saying there are Berom and Christians who are in the mosque.

“Later, we heard the attackers were targeting the Berom’s and Christians in the community, we came out through the window and asked why they wanted to harm the people who came for refuge in the house of God.

“Soon we heard some of the attackers had also gone to my house trying to gain access because some people are also taking refuge in my house at that time,” he said.

The Imam said that he told the attackers at some point that they had to kill him first before harming his ‘guests’ and this went on for about four hours.

“We also informed them not go ahead and destroy the people’s crops. The attackers asked all the women to come out, that they did not want to harm them, but I refused.”

“The ploy is to know who is a Muslim and who is a Christian. ”The Muslim women then donated their clothes and hijab to the people, saying if it comes to that, we will all die with them.

“When that did not work, they said they are going to set the house ablaze, that is when I went down and told them to kill me first,” he said.

According to him, those in the mosque stayed there for five days, they were fed and taken care of.

“It lasted for about five days and in order to keep them protected the, Muslims were praying outside the mosque until they were evacuated to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp,” he said.

The cleric, who expressed shock at the level of the attack, said that such had never happened in the past 17 years of crises in the state.

He said that the villagers had been living together in peace before the crisis.

“There are intermarriages between us and exchange in ceremony both Christmas and Muslim festival, there are seven different languages in those communities and we have been living in peace before the crisis.

“Islam has taught us that when someone comes to us in distress you have an obligation to protect such a person until the situation becomes normal,” he said.

The U. S. Ambassador, Stuart Symington, who presented the Peacemaker Award, described the act as heroic for saving the lives of those who took refuge in the Mosque.

He urged citizens to emulate the cleric’s virtue of kindness to promote peace and brotherhood, saying the act had raised hope of cohesiveness in a society faced with growing distrust.

https://www.pmnewsnigeria.com/2019/06/02/how-i-risked-my-life-to-save-over-200-christians-83-year-old-muslim-cleric/

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Damascus slams Makkah summit endorsement of Syria transition

AFPUpdated June 03, 2019

DAMASCUS: Syria denounced on Sunday the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s endorsement of a longstanding UN-backed proposal for a transitional governing body integrating opposition elements in the conflict hit country, state media said.

The 57-member OIC met in Makkah this week and in its closing statement on Saturday threw its support behind a 2012 Geneva communique calling for the establishment of a transitional governing body in Syria with full executive powers.

“The closing communique of the summit only expresses the obvious and continuous dependence of these countries on their masters in the West,” a source at the Syrian foreign ministry told state news agency SANA.

Harking back to the Geneva proposals “and the idea of a government transitional body (...) confirms the chronic blindness of participating states to developments” in Syria in recent years, the source added.

UN-sponsored negotiations have been gradually eclipsed by parallel Moscow-backed negotiations known as the Astana process.

The Astana process was launched in January 2017 by Russia and Iran — allies of the Damascus regime — and by Turkey, which backs rebels in Syria’s eight year civil war.

The OIC on Saturday also denounced Washington’s decision on March 25 to recognise Israel’s claim of sovereignty over the part of the Golan Heights it seized from Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War.

But Syria’s government said “it was not waiting for support or a statement from this summit or others like it to assert its right over the Golan,” SANA said.

Regionally, the United Arab Emirates has begun a rapprochement with Damascus, by opening an embassy after years of closure, while relations have also improved with Bahrain and Jordan.

But regional power — and former Syrian opposition backer — Saudi Arabia remains hostile to President Bashar al-Assad, who has made a military comeback with Russian military support since 2015, clawing back almost two-thirds of the country’s territory.

Syria’s multi-fronted war has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since it began with the repression of anti-government protests in 2011.

Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2019

https://www.dawn.com/news/1486246/damascus-slams-makkah-summit-endorsement-of-syria-transition

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Taliban militants have taken 4 members of Peace Movement to unknown location for talks

By Khaama Press / in Afghanistan / on Monday, 03 Jun 2019

The Taliban militants have taken four members of People’s Peace Movement to an unknown location for talks.

The head of public relations of People’s Peace Movement Bacha Khan Muladad confirmed that the Taliban militants have taken four members of the movement to an unknown location.

Muladad further added that the Taliban militants have summoned the leader of the movement Iqbal Khyber and spokesman of the movement BismillahWatandost.

The Taliban militants have also summoned the leader of the movement for Helmand Ghulam SarwarGhafari and Haji FarhadAdil.

This comes as a group of 30 members of People’s Peace Movement marched towards Musa Qala district of Helmand province four days ago.

The members of the movement launched the march in a bid to demand peace and halt to ongoing conflict in the country.

In the meantime, Muladad said it has been two days that the members of the movement are in the areas controlled by Taliban in Helmand.

https://www.khaama.com/taliban-militants-have-taken-4-members-of-peace-movement-to-unknown-location-for-talks-03533/

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FM Underlines Failure of Saudi Attempts against Iran in Mecca Meeting

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad JavadZarif stressed that Saudi Arabia has failed to rally support in its anti-Iran quest through the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) conference in Mecca.

"Saudi Arabia's attempts in the region to form a coalition against Iran and Yemen in Mecca meeting will fail," Zarif said in Tehran on Monday.

He added that the Yemeni people will certainly win over the Saudi-led coalition which has attacked the country, and said, "Today, supporting Yemen is the responsibility of all of us."

Saudi Arabia and its allies, including the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, and Sudan, launched a brutal war against Yemen in March 2015 in an attempt to reinstall Yemen’s former president AbdRabbuh Mansur Hadi.

The aggression initially consisted of a bombing campaign but was later coupled with a naval blockade and the deployment of ground forces to Yemen. Around 20,000 people have died since the war began, says Yemen’s Health Ministry.

The Saudi-led war has also taken a heavy toll on the country’s infrastructure, destroying hospitals, schools, and factories. The United Nations (UN) has said that a record 22.2 million Yemenis are in dire need of food, including 8.4 million threatened by severe hunger.

Despite Riyadh's claims that it is bombing the positions of the Ansarullah fighters, Saudi bombers are flattening residential areas and civilian infrastructures.

According to several reports, the Saudi-led air campaign against Yemen has driven the impoverished country towards humanitarian disaster, as Saudi Arabia's deadly campaign prevented the patients from travelling abroad for treatment and blocked the entry of medicine into the war-torn country.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13980313000638

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Pakistan stops guests from attending iftaar hosted by Indian envoy, India protests

by Shubhajit Roy

June 3, 2019

India on Sunday lodged a strong protest by issuing a note verbale to Pakistan over intimidation of guests invited for an iftaar party in Islamabad on Saturday. The iftaar, traditionally held in the holy month of Ramzan, was hosted by Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria at Hotel Serena in Islamabad’s Diplomatic Enclave.

A statement from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad said more than 300 Pakistani guests were turned away, including parliamentarians, government officials, media representatives, retired military officials, businessmen, and retired diplomats, in addition to citizens from all walks of life.

According to sources, a former spokesperson of the Pakistan Army, Major General (retired) Athar Abbas, was among those stopped. Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Farhatullah Babar was able to attend “after much difficulty”.

High Commissioner Bisaria later told his guests that some of them could not make it to the party. “I want to apologise because some of you faced a lot of trouble to come here and some of our friends could not come,” he said.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Indian High Commission said that the guests faced “unprecedented harassment and intimidation at the hands of security agencies”.

“A concerted campaign was launched by Pakistan’s security agencies in the days preceding the Iftar function to reach out to invitees to actively dissuade them from attending the event. Those guests who did reach the function venue, in some cases from places as far as Lahore and Karachi, were intimidated and physically stopped from attending the Iftar function by Pakistani security forces, who had virtually laid the Serena hotel under siege”, the statement said, adding that many guests from the diplomatic community based in Islamabad were also subjected to harassment.

Sources said despite facing harassment and questioning about 130 people were able to attend the event, including leaders from major political parties such as the PTI, PML(N) and PPP who, a source said, “came in their personal capacity, and not as representatives of their parties”.

Tweeting about the harassment he faced, senior PPP leader Farhatullah Babar, who was advisor to former Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari, said, “Came to Serena for iftar hosted by Indian HC. Hotel seems barricaded. Told that iftar cancelled. When insisted, I was told to use other gate. Other gate also closed and told to go back to front gate again. What’s going on, something fishy,” he tweeted.

Babar said that he somehow managed to attend the Indian mission’s iftar despite efforts by the local authorities to stop invitees on one pretext or other.

in its statement, the Indian High Commission said that in violation of diplomatic norms, a large Pakistani security detachment, equipped with fork lifts, was detailed outside Serena Hotel to aggressively turned away Pakistani citizens. “In some cases, cars used by invitees were lifted and removed using forklifts”, it said.

“The security forces stationed on the main road outside Hotel Serena rudely rebuffed and intimidated officers and diplomatic staff of the High Commission of India who tried to ascertain from the security personnel the reasons for harassment of the guests. Some officials were jostled, pushed, abused and aggressively threatened with bodily harm. In some cases, mobile phones belonging to officials were snatched away,” it said.

The Indian High Commission called the events of June 1 “disappointing” and said they not only “violate basic norms of diplomatic conduct but are against all notions of civilized behaviour”.

“Stopping diplomats and officials of the High Commission of India in Pakistan from discharging their diplomatic functions by intimidation and coercion is entirely counter-productive for our bilateral relationship,” the statement said.

“We have requested the government of Pakistan to urgently investigate these ugly events and share the results of the exercise with the High Commission of India. Further, we have emphasized to the government of Pakistan the need to ensure that diplomats and officials of the High Commission of India are allowed to discharge their diplomatic functions without fear of coercion or harassment,” it said.

The incident takes place more than two months after the Indian government’s security establishment stepped up screening of guests attending the Pakistan National Day event in Delhi. Then, on March 23, as guests walked past barricades manned by Delhi Police, security personnel in plain clothes asked the guests about the purpose of the visit. After they were shown the invitation card, the police personnel had noted down the details of the guests: name, designation, organisation, address and mobile number. The Indian government had decided to boycott the event, on the pretext that Hurriyat leaders had been invited.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/pakistan-stops-guests-from-attending-iftaar-hosted-by-indian-envoy-india-protests-5761677/

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India

Youth breaks Ramzan fast to save seven-year-old girl suffering from thalassemia

Osman Gani Sheikh did not think twice when he received a call from the girl’s father, a stranger to him, that he was in dire need of A-positive blood but could not find any donor.

Published: 02nd June 2019 01:54 PM | Last Updated: 02nd June 2019 02:30 PM | A+A A-

Kolkata: A Muslim youth broke his fast so he could donate blood to a seven-year-old girl, who is suffering from thalassemia, in Nadia district, a region in India—Bangladesh border in West Bengal, the state that witnessed a sharp polarisation among the electors on the issue of religion in the last Lok Sabha elections.

Osman Gani Sheikh did not think twice when he received a call from the girl’s father, a stranger to him, that he was in dire need of A-positive blood but could not find any donor.

‘‘I mentioned my contact number in my Facebook profile and mentioned if anyone needs blood, he or she can contact me. The girl’s father got my number from one of his friends. I had to break my fast to save the girl’s life. I did not think twice. It is because I had to run pillar to post to collect blood for one of my relatives in 2016. Since then, I decided to donate blood,’’ said Osman, a post-graduate student of History.

Fish vendor Gautam Das’s only child Rakhi has be suffering from the disease since the past three years. He took her daughter to the district hospital in Krishnagar where doctors told him that immediate blood transfusion was required. But the father could not find blood that matches with her daughter’s blood group.

Rakhi’s mother Tapashi broke down. ‘‘A youth living in the same area where we reside contacted and informed me about Osman’s Facebook profile. He also gave his contact number,’’ said Gautam.

‘‘I received a call from an unknown person on Friday night. He was crying and requesting me to save her daughter. I assured him that I would reach the hospital next morning,’’ said Osman.

The youth in his early 20s boarded bus early on Saturday morning and arrived Krishnagar. ‘‘I was on fasting. The doctors told me I would not be allowed to donate blood. They suggested me to eat biscuits and water. I had no option left other than breaking fasting,’’ recounted Osman.

Schindranath Sarkar, the superintendent of the hospital, said the girl’s health condition would have been critical if she was not given blood immediately.

Gautam said he would never forget Osman’s help. ‘‘He assured of helping me again in future,’’ he said.

Osman is also group admin of a Whatsapp group with more than 1,000 members from all over West Bengal. ‘‘Since I had to face same plight two years ago, I formed the group to help people in distress. Me and the other members of the Whatsapp group do not entertain calls from any third person. We only respond to the patients’ family members,’’ he said.

http://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2019/jun/02/youth-breaks-ramzan-fast-to-save-seven-year-old-girl-suffering-from-thalassemia-1984993.html

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Pakistan stops guests from attending iftaar hosted by Indian envoy, India protests

by Shubhajit Roy

June 3, 2019

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Indian High Commission said that the guests faced “unprecedented harassment and intimidation at the hands of security agencies”.

Babar said that he somehow managed to attend the Indian mission’s iftar despite efforts by the local authorities to stop invitees on one pretext or other.

The Indian High Commission called the events of June 1 “disappointing” and said they not only “violate basic norms of diplomatic conduct but are against all notions of civilized behaviour”.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/pakistan-stops-guests-from-attending-iftaar-hosted-by-indian-envoy-india-protests-5761677/

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Their nationality yet to be confirmed, 28 Indians in Pak jails after serving sentence

by Gopal Kateshiya

June 3, 2019

As many as 28 Indian civilians are still languishing in the jails of Pakistan despite having completed their prison terms as India has been unable to confirm their nationality. Ten other Indians, whose Indian nationality has been confirmed, also continue to be in the jails of Pakistan, according to an RTI reply received by peace activist Jatin Desai from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad.

In response to an an application filed by Desai under the RTI (Right to Information) Act, the Indian High Commission in Islamabad stated consular access had been granted at various times between 2008 and 2018 to 45 Indian civil prisoners lodged in Pakistan’s jails. Out of them, 38 have completed their varying prison sentences for violating Pakistani laws. But none of them has been repatriated to India till date as the Indian government is in the process of confirming nationality of 28 of them, including five women. The remaining 10 are still in the custody of Pakistan despite their prison terms ending between 2014 and 2018 and their Indian nationality having been confirmed by the Indian government.

Out of the rest seven, whose jail sentence have not been completed, the Indian government has confirmed the nationality of five and is in the process of completing the verification of two others. Of these two, one is an undertrial while the other’s prison term is to get over in 2021. Thus, in all, verification of nationality of 30 is pending with the Indian government while the remaining 15 have been confirmed to be Indian nationals.

Among the 10 prisoners who have completed their jail terms and whose Indian nationality has also been ascertained is 53-year-old cattlherder Mohammad Ismail Samma of Nana Dinara, a border village of Kutch district. The Indian Express had first reported in January 2018 that Samma, who had gone missing from a village on the India-Pakistan border in 2008, was found in a Pakistan jail. While the Indian government had information about Samma being in Pakistan custody since 2014, his family came to know about it in 2017 after being informed by a fellow Kutch resident who was also arraigned in Pakistan but was repatriated in October, 2017. When The Indian Express had reported Samma’s case, the Indian authorities had stated that his nationality verification was pending. However, the latest RTI reply reveals that Samma’s Indian nationality has been confirmed. Samma’s prison term had ended in October 2016.

Likewise is the case of Babli Bhai Yograj, he completed his jail term in May 2014 and his Indian nationality has been also verified. Records show he had been granted consular access in 2015.

Among the 28 prisoners who have served their jail terms but are waiting to be sent back home as their nationality has not been confirmed yet by India is a hearing and speech impaired man. His prison term had ended in 2002.

“The list of 28 civilian prisoners who are waiting to return home after serving their prison terms in Pakistan also includes five women. Two of these women completed their prison terms in 2007, while one more completed her time in jail in 2009. The remaining two were meant to be free from 2011 and 2014, respectively ,after they completed their sentences but have been unable to come back home as their nationality verification is pending. Authorities of both the countries must show sensitivity on this issue,” Desai, the Mumbai-based journalist-activist, told The Indian Express.

“We are a superpower in some sense then why does it take so long even to ascertain if a person is an Indian citizen or not? We can understand difficulties about the hearing and speech impaired person, but then you have to think out of the box. For example, Cheby S, who is one of the civilians whose prison term ended in 2015 is somewhat not mentally sharp and he says that he belongs to Buxar village. There is a district called Buxar in Bihar as well as a village of the same name in Uttar Pradesh. The government can think of publishing photographs of such individuals to help establish their identity and complete verification of their nationality,” Desai, who has served as the general secretary of the Indian chapter of Pakistan-India People’s Forum for Peace and Democracy (PIPFPD), added.

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/their-nationality-yet-to-be-confirmed-28-indians-in-pak-jails-after-serving-sentence-5761701/

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Politics live: Bill to ban triple talaq to be brought again, Ravi Shankar Prasad

The Hindu Net Desk JUNE 03, 2019

Bill to ban triple talaq to be brought again, Ravi Shankar Prasad

The government will bring a bill to ban the practice of instant triple talaq again in Parliament, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said Monday.

With the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha last month, the contentious bill on banning triple talaq had lapsed as it could not be passed by Parliament and was pending in Rajya Sabha.

Asked whether the bill on triple talaq would be brought again, Prasad said, “Obviously. (The issue of) triple talaq is part of our (BJP) manifesto. Why not?”

Responding to a question on uniform civil code, he said the government would hold “political consultations” on the issue even as he goes through the Law Commission report on the issue.

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/politics-live-update-june-3-2019/article27410777.ece

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Varanasi: Hindu family makes traditional vermicelli for Muslims during Ramzan

ANI | General News

Last Updated at June 2, 2019

In an example of communal harmony, a Hindu family residing in Afsanganj is producing traditional Vermicelli or Seviyan for their Muslim brothers during the fasting month of Ramzan.

Despite the scorching heat, women and men were seen drying Vermicelli, which is used in making sheer khurma, a famous dessert which is a part of the meal that breaks the fast on Eid.

"We start making vermicelli 3 months before the Ramzan. Muslim brothers come to us to buy it. Here, we do not discriminate people based on their religion. Some Muslim customers also give us blessings. We also export our products to other countries," Anant Lal Kesarkani, the shopkeeper said.

"In every season, out of all types of vermicelli, rumani semiya becomes the most preferred product by the customers. At present, we are producing three types of semiya which are different in the sizes," said Ashrafi Lal Kesri.

Last week, as a goodwill gesture, a Muslim man from Bihar's Darbhanga city chose humanity over his religion when he broke his Ramzan fast and donated his blood to save the life of a two-year-old child. The man, Mohammad Ashfaq, recently came across a Facebook post, where the infant's family had posted a message urging users to donate blood for the child.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

https://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ani/varanasi-hindu-family-makes-traditional-vermicelli-for-muslims-during-ramzan-119060200336_1.html

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Senior ISIS leader hailing from India killed in Afghanistan airstrike

By Khaama Press / in Afghanistan / on Monday, 03 Jun 2019

An airstrike has killed a senior leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group in Afghanistan.

Hailing from India, Rashid Abdullah was the leader of the Kerala module of ISIS terrorist group.

An unidentified ISIS operative has confirmed the killing of Rashid Abdullah by issuing a message in Telegram application.

The airstrikes also killed two other Indians, two women and four children, according to the message obtained by Times of India.

The airstrike was apparently carried out in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.

This comes as the security situation in some districts of Nangarhar province has deteriorated during the recent years.

Both Taliban and ISIS militants are active in remote and restive areas of the province.

The anti-government armed elements often attempt to carry out terrorist related activities in Jalalabad city and other parts of Nangarhar.

Meanwhile, the Afghan forces are busy conducting counter-terrorism operations against both groups in this province.

The U.S. forces also conduct regular airstrikes in restive districts of Nangarhar to suppress ISIS, Taliban and other anti-government militants.

https://www.khaama.com/senior-isis-leader-hailing-from-india-killed-in-afghanistan-airstrike-03532/

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North America

Young North Texas Muslims pursue self-improvement through Ramadan traditions

The Islamic Association's mosque provides services year-round, but Friday's Laylat Al-Qadr unites the faithful from sunset to sunrise for a night of forgiveness and blessings.

The young Muslims who were celebrating Friday night say they may have their own interpretations of Ramadan, but they remain true to the spirit that binds them to their faith.

More than fasting

Danial Syed, 18, said that though fasting from dawn to sunset may be the most widely known obligation of Ramadan, Muslims are called upon to forgo other things, too.

Interpretations vary from person to person, but the faithful are expected to break bad habits such as gossiping, cursing and fighting.

“Because you’re not eating, you’re more aware of all the other things you do," Syed said. "You know the bad things you need to work on. It’s not just starving yourself.”

The purpose is spiritual growth.

Faraj Khan Pathan chats with Raiyan Uddin, middle, as Talha Mohammed keeps an eye on the game of Ludo at Islamic Association of Collin County in Plano Texas on Sunday, June 2, 2019. (Shaban Athuman/Staff Photographer) (Shaban Athuman/Staff Photographer)

Douaa Hassan, a 26-year-old industrial engineer from Plano, described fasting as a sort of spiritual cleanse, a time to work on one’s faith without distraction.

Muslims believe that Ramadan is a time when Allah locks up Satan and his helpers, making improvement easier for followers.

“You start to notice all the things you’re doing wrong,” Hassan said. “You really start to look at yourself and say, no, I need to do better.”

Not even water?

Because fasting is about the only thing a lot of people in the United States know about Ramadan, that's what many young Muslims are asked about.

And the most common question is simple: not even water?

Amera Lawand, 23, said some non-Muslim friends seem to think Ramadan is inhumane, but she said the hunger subsides after the first few days. In fact, waking for predawn meals can feel like the hardest part.

Usmaan Hasan, a 21-year-old senior at the University of Texas at Austin, said non-Muslims' questions are more informed now that intermittent fasting has become a popular way to manage one's appetite.

https://www.dallasnews.com/life/faith/2019/06/02/young-north-texas-muslims-pursue-self-improvement-ramadan-traditions

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Trump administration says it will negotiate with Iran with ‘no preconditions’

June 3, 2019

Written by Edward Wong

In a second major softening of U.S. policy toward Iran in recent days, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday that the Trump administration was ready to negotiate with the country’s clerical leaders with “no preconditions.”

The statement followed President Donald Trump’s comment last week that he was ready to talk to Iranian leaders and was not seeking regime change, overruling a longtime goal of his national security adviser. Pompeo’s statement also recalibrated his earlier position that the United States would not lift sanctions on Iran unless it complied with a dozen sweeping demands, suggesting that those demands could be part of negotiations instead of preconditions.

Iran’s leaders consider the demands unacceptable.

Tensions between the United States and Iran have escalated sharply in recent weeks, raising fears that the two countries were edging toward war. The less combative language does not change the fact that the Trump administration has tightened economic sanctions on Iran, ordered 1,500 additional troops to the Persian Gulf and revised military plans against Iran.

Even in opening the door to talks, Pompeo said the United States would continue to try to counter Iran’s support of groups in the Middle East that undermine U.S. interests.

“We’re prepared to engage in a conversation with no preconditions,” Pompeo said at a news conference in Switzerland, which acts as a conduit between Washington and Tehran. “We’re ready to sit down with them. But the American effort to fundamentally reverse the malign activity of the Islamic Republic, this revolutionary force, is going to continue.”

Trump appears to be trying to walk a tightrope on Iran policy. He has told aides he wants to avoid a war, yet his top foreign policy officials are pressing him to amplify a “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran that relies on sanctions and shows of military force.

The talk of negotiations by Trump and now Pompeo play to Trump’s dealmaker image. It suggests that even as he ratchets up military and financial pressure against Iran that he is also seeking a new deal to keep Iran from building a nuclear weapon.

“I think the administration is trying to de-escalate tensions to accommodate the president’s recent statements that he’d like to negotiate with Iran,” said Dalia Dassa Kaye, a Middle East analyst at the RAND Corp., a research group. “But the problem is Secretary Pompeo’s statement is still talking about negotiations only when Iran starts acting like a ‘normal’ country. That type of language is not likely to entice the Iranians to the table, especially as maximum pressure policies continue on the ground.”

Pompeo’s comments Sunday were responding to an opening by President Hassan Rouhani of Iran on Saturday. Rouhani said Iran was willing to talk with the United States if it “sits respectfully at the negotiating table” rather than ordering Iran to hold discussions.

“We have shown that we do not submit to bullying,” Rouhani said, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.

An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Sunday that Pompeo’s statement was “word play” and that what mattered to Tehran was a change in the U.S. government’s “general approach and actual behavior toward the Iranian nation,” Iran’s Mehr News Agency reported.

Trump abandoned a nuclear deal with Iran a year ago, fulfilling a campaign promise, and reimposed major economic sanctions in November. More recently, his administration has designated an arm of the Iranian military as a terrorist organization, ended permission for eight countries to buy oil from Iran despite economic sanctions, accused Iran of plotting to attack American targets in the Middle East and sent a battle group to the region.

Nuclear experts said Iran had been complying with the nuclear agreement, which it had negotiated with six world powers in 2015 in exchange for the lifting of harsh economic sanctions. The agreement limited Iran’s ability to produce nuclear fuel for 15 years.

European nations still abide by the agreement and have urged Iran to stick with it.

Last month, Rouhani said Iran would stop abiding by parts of the agreement, and would resume the production of nuclear centrifuges and begin accumulating nuclear material. He said Iran was not following “the path of war,” but choosing “the path of diplomacy.”

Pompeo met Sunday with Ignazio Cassis, the Swiss foreign minister, to discuss Iran and other matters in a centuries-old castle in Bellinzona, a medieval Italian-speaking town of pastel-painted homes nestled among steep, green valleys.

Switzerland has acted as an interlocutor between the United States and Iran since Washington broke off diplomatic relations with Tehran in 1980, and it hosted negotiations over the 2015 nuclear deal forged by the Obama administration.

Cassis stressed the urgent need to bring down tensions between the United States and Iran. He said Switzerland was willing to broker any diplomacy, but only if both governments commit to talks.

Cassis added that Iranians are suffering from the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration, and Switzerland is ready to provide humanitarian medical aid and food. But the Trump administration must allow banks to transfer payments from Iran.

His plea rebutted earlier remarks from Pompeo, who has insisted that the sanctions do not bar humanitarian aid from Iran.

As representatives of American interests in Iran, Swiss diplomats have also tried to make visits to U.S. prisoners in the country. Iran is holding at least six U.S. citizens and one permanent resident.

Pompeo declined on Sunday to speak in detail about any talks conducted through Switzerland or other third parties to free the prisoners, but did not deny that such negotiations could be taking place.

“The United States is working with all willing nations to assist us in getting them returned,” he said.

In July, Trump said he was willing to talk to Iran with “no preconditions,” but that was well before tensions soared. On May 5, John R. Bolton, the hawkish national security adviser, said the White House had ordered the accelerated movement of an aircraft carrier strike group and bombers to the Persian Gulf from the Mediterranean Sea.

U.S. officials told reporters afterward that they had gotten intelligence that showed the Iranian military or allied Arab militias might attack U.S. interests. Pompeo ordered almost all U.S. diplomats to leave Iraq, which borders Iran.

But European officials and some U.S. legislators who had seen the same intelligence said the threat level did not look much higher than usual and did not warrant the measures and tone of urgency adopted by the Trump administration.

They criticized Trump’s announcement on May 24 that he was ordering 1,500 more troops to the region and declaring an emergency over Iran to push through arms sales to Tehran’s main regional rivals, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Those sales had been blocked by Congress because the weapons are used to kill civilians in the disastrous Yemen civil war.

Against the backdrop of tensions with Iran, there has been a conspicuous flurry of diplomacy between top U.S. and Swiss officials. On May 16, Trump hosted Ueli Maurer, the Swiss president, at the White House — a first by an American president.

On Wednesday, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s top leader, said his nation would not negotiate directly with the United States. But he said talks could be conducted through a third party. Rouhani’s comments Saturday left open the possibility of direct talks.

Pompeo and Bolton have prioritized confronting Iran over what the State Department calls Tehran’s “expansionist foreign policy.” Last year, Pompeo made 12 demands of Iran that included a call for Iranian leaders to drop support for political groups and militias in nearby Arab countries and for the release of all U.S. prisoners.

Hua Qu, the wife of Wang Xiyue, a Princeton graduate student imprisoned by Iran since 2016 on a charge of espionage, wrote on May 24 in The Washington Post that she was imploring world powers to get Tehran to free her husband.

https://indianexpress.com/article/world/trump-administration-says-it-will-negotiate-with-iran-with-no-preconditions-5761746/

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Africa

How I risked my life to save over 200 Christians – Muslim cleric

Sunday, June 2, 2019

Abubakar Abdullahi

Ahaji Abubakar Abdullahi, 83-year old Chief Imam of a mosque in Yelwa- Gindi Akwati village, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau, said he risked his life to save some people in the June 23, 2018 Barkin Ladi attacks in Plateau.

Abdullahi protected over 200 people fleeing from attacks by suspected bandits in Yelwa-Gindi Akwati, Swei and Nghar villages in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau.

Abubakar, who was speaking while receiving award from the U.S. Mission in Nigeria, said on Sunday in Abuja that his action saved those who took refuge in the mosque and in his house.

The cleric, who spoke through an interpreter said that the unfortunate incident happened on Saturday June 23, 2018, after the mid-afternoon prayers at about 4 p.m.

“After the prayer, we started hearing some gunshots first from the nearby village known as Gidan Akwati up to Yelwa, my village.