Zambian Parliament Sends Away MP Munir Zulu For Wearing Muslim Robe
19 December 2021
Lumezi Member of Parliament
Munir Zulu
------
• Zambian Parliament Sends Away MP Munir Zulu For
Wearing Muslim Robe
• Michigan City Gets Ready To Inaugurate All-Muslim
Government
• Afghanistan Crimes Prove US Pro-Rights,
Counterterrorism Claims of Justice Enforcer Invalid
• Anjuman Jama Masjid In New Gurugram Caught In Legal
Tangle, Struggles To Stand Tall
• Judges Are Not Exempt From Criticism, Holds
Islamabad High Court
Africa
• Nigeria's Islamic Movement Can Never Be Banned:
Sheikh Zakzaky
• Islamic Group, MURIC, Exonerates Buhari, Blames
Ex-President Jonathan For Current Killings,
• Boko Haram Weakened In Nigeria, Preying On Soft
Targets, Says President Buhari
-----
North America
• Trump: Israel's absolute power over Congress
declined under Obama and Biden
• US senator blocks passage of bill to fund Israel’s
Iron Dome
• Canadian pleads guilty in U.S. court for funding
Islamic State’s activities in Syria
-----
South Asia
• Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Blames US for Current
Afghan Economic Crisis That Was Damaged Over The Past 20 Years
• Afghanistan should be provided urgent humanitarian
aids: OIC’s Under-Secretary-General
• Islamic Emirate Must 'Ensure Inclusiveness': Russian
special envoy for Afghanistan
• Afghanistan’s Deputy FM asks Afghan to return to
country
• Russia’s new consignment of humanitarian aids arrive
in Kabul
-----
India
• Muslim Shopkeepers Of Andhra Pradesh Srisailam
Temple Complex Hail Supreme Court Order
• 261 Rohingya Muslims Residing In Punjab: State
Submits Affidavit In SC
• V Muraleedharan terms murder of Kerala BJP leader as
'handy work of Islamic terrorist group'
-----
Pakistan
• Collective Efforts Including Media And Religious
Leaders, Needed To Avoid Sialkot-Like Tragedies: Minister For Religious Affairs
• Opposition asks Imran to stop blaming previous govts
for his failure
• Pakistan’s Covid-19 mortality rate much higher than
global rate
• Petition seeks Balochistan CM’s disqualification
over viral video
• SC ruling to help retired judges join ECP earlier
than two years
-----
Europe
• Belgium's Muslims Appeal EU Court Of Human Rights
Against Ban On Ritual Halal Animal Slaughtering
• Berlin: The Islamist Terror Attack of 2016 and the
Authorities’ Failures
• UK Brexit negotiator Frost resigns in further blow
to PM Johnson
-----
Mideast
• Hamas And Islamic Jihad Improving Preparations For
War
• Yazidi Islamic State survivor latest victim of
'cancel culture'
• Iran Insists Missing Video From Nuclear Site Lost
Due To 'Sabotage'
• Israeli Officials Believe Iran Talks Headed for
'Controlled Conflict' or Interim Deal
• Iran Minister Speaks Of 'Good News' About a
Satellite Launch Till March
-----
Southeast Asia
• PM Ismail Sabri announces RM100m aid for
flood-damaged homes, infrastructure, promises to channel more as needed
• PM Ismail tells Welfare Dept to ensure every flood
victim receives assistance
-----
Arab world
• Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival Screening Was
‘Huge Honour,’ Says Director Of Award-Winning Movie
• Saudi forces destroy two Houthi drones targeting
Khamis Mushayt
• Saudi labour reforms protect workers, preserve
dignity: HRSD deputy
• Saudi Arabia reports 116 new COVID-19 cases, 1 death
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/zambian-parliament-munir-zulu-muslim-robe/d/125988
--------
Zambian Parliament Sends Away MP Munir Zulu For
Wearing Muslim Robe
Lumezi Member of Parliament
Munir Zulu
------
December 18, 2021
Lumezi Member of Zambian Parliament Munir Zulu was
sent away from Parliament for wearing an outfit that allegedly breaches
parliamentary dress code.
Munir Zulu, who is a Muslim, was wearing an outfit
known as the thobe.
The thobe is a long robe worn by Muslim men.
The top is usually tailored like a shirt, but it is
ankle-length and loose.
Zulu stated that he has not breached any Parliamentary
Dress Code as outlined in Standing Orders 206 where his outfit is listed in the
category of African Togas and such outfits are allowed.
But first deputy Speaker, Hon. Attractor Malungo
Chisangano sent the Lumezi lawmaker away.
Source: En.abna24
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original story:
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-----
Michigan City Gets Ready To Inaugurate All-Muslim
Government
Hamtramck Mayor-elect Amer
Ghalib will be the first non-Polish American leader in the city's history.
-----
By Nick Watt
December 18, 2021
Hamtramck, Michigan (CNN)For decades, Hamtramck was
known as Michigan's "Little Warsaw," a city of just two square miles
of tightly-packed houses and factories, spitting distance from downtown
Detroit.
The Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla visited once, back
in 1969, before he became Pope. A statue of Wojtyla, arms outstretched, still
casts a shadow over what's now called Pope Park, where a huge mural of Polish
folk dancers stretches almost an entire city block.
In the 99 years since its incorporation, every mayor
of Hamtramck has been Polish American. That ends January 2, in Hamtramck's
centenary year, when Amer Ghalib will be inaugurated, along with an entirely
Muslim city council.
Hamtramck will become the first known city in the US
with a government made up entirely of Muslims, according to the Muslim Public
Affairs Council, which says it has no record of any other such administration.
Mayor-elect Ghalib was born in Yemen and came to the
United States alone as a young man, with a smattering of broken English and
little else. He's now 42, works in the medical field and is studying to become
a doctor.
Hamtramck's heyday had apparently passed. The city was
decaying. Many factories had closed. Many second and third-generation Polish
Americans had moved to the Detroit suburbs and beyond in the past two decades.
Immigrants, largely from Yemen and Bangladesh, took their place and Hamtramck,
locals say, is now majority Muslim.
Hamtramck is a palimpsest -- where new immigrants have
laid layers of culture and society on top of what was already there. You can
enjoy a sizzling Yemeni foul -- a spicy bean stew -- and flatbread for
breakfast, and still find a kielbasa or a pierogi for lunch. And Hamtramck is
now back on the rise, one of the fastest growing cities in Michigan, census
figures show. The new immigrants are fixing up dilapidated houses, opening
stores and restaurants, putting down roots. And what could be more American
than diving into local politics?
The Michigan city of Hamtramck has long been a home to
immigrants -- first Polish Americans, now families largely from Yemen and
Bangladesh.
"Tonight is a real example that the American
Dream is alive and well in the land of opportunity," Ghalib told the
excitable crowd, gathered to celebrate his landslide victory in the
early-November election. He defeated the incumbent, Karen Majewski, who had
held the post for 16 years.
There is just one American-born member on the new
council: Amanda Jaczkowski, a lifelong Michigander. Her Polish American family
has worshiped for five generations at the same nearby Catholic Church. She
converted to Islam in 2012.
"We are Muslims," Ghalib said, sitting in
the council chamber at city hall where he will soon preside. "We are proud
of our beliefs and values. But we are not going to try and impose them on
others."
Jaczkowski added: "We're gonna take an oath to
protect the Constitution of the United States. And the Constitution of the
United States includes the separation of church and state."
"I think it's gonna be good!" Mara Popovska
told us as she washed an elderly customer's hair at the salon she's run for
decades on the main drag in town. But Popovska's husband wants to up and leave.
"He doesn't have his own friends anymore," she told us. "So, he
doesn't want to stay."
"Who's got friends anymore?" her customer,
Theresa Smith, exclaimed. "Mine are all dead!" Smith, a Polish
American, was born in Hamtramck, has lived in the same house all of her 85
years, and says she plans to die here.
"There's change all your life and you gotta go
with it," said Smith as Popovska pinned her shock of wet, white hair.
"I mean, everybody might have a complaint of something or other. We're
human."
Popovska complains her new neighbors aren't as neat as
she'd like. "I clean every day, they just throw!" she said. But as a
business owner, she agrees Main Street is livelier since new immigrants moved
in.
Smith says she welcomes the changing faces of her
city. "They came into the city. They are fixing up the homes
beautifully," she told us. "When somebody says something against
them, I get angry. Because all of our parents came from someplace at one
time."
When Muslim immigrants first arrived in Hamtramck in
large numbers a decade or two ago, some locals didn't like the call to prayer,
playing from loudspeakers from the roofs of the mosques.
The goal, says Jaczkowski, is to make Hamtramck
welcoming and safe for all. There are no plans, for example, for the council to
make all women cover their hair around town, she volunteered. "There's no
reason for it!" she said.
"The result was announced late at night, you
know, around 10 or 11," he explained. "And part of culture, females
don't go out at night mostly. And, you know, there is still some segregation at
events even when they attend."
Another potential point of friction between Middle
Eastern culture and modern America came this past summer when Hamtramck's Arts
and Culture Commission proposed flying a gay pride flag outside City Hall.
"I am not with or against. I am with everyone's
right to practice what they want. But they shouldn't make it a government
issue," Ghalib told us. "They can do it anywhere else they want, in
their houses, in the street. I'm not against that. It doesn't bother me."
Ghalib claims you cannot now be in favor of flying the
pride flag at City Hall and win an election in Hamtramck. The outgoing mayor,
Majewski, was the deciding vote in the summer in favor of flying the flag.
Ghalib does not want the issue brought before the
council again. "It shouldn't be discussed because it will be divisive, it
will increase the division in the community," he said, before conceding he
never wants to be forced to vote on the issue. It is worth noting the US
military does not allow the pride flag to fly on military bases. And the City
Council of Roseville, California, voted this summer not to fly the pride flag
or other non-governmental flags at their city hall. And there appear to be no
Muslims on the council in Roseville.
Lynn Blasey of Hamtramck's Arts and Culture Commission
supported flying the flag. She ran for city council in the fall and lost.
"We decided we wanted to do a little bit more for pride besides just read
a declaration at the beginning of the month in the City Council meeting,"
she told us. "Our goal was to let the LGBT community here in Hamtramck
know that they're not alone and there are services available to support
them."
Blasey said despite her defeat, she will continue to
work with the council, with the candidates who beat her, for the good of the
community. "I think that was an important message to send to the
community," she says. "Politics don't have to be cutthroat."
Mayor-elect Ghalib met President Joe Biden during the
opening of GM's Factory Zero, the new name for its Detroit-Hamtramck
plant, in November.
Mayor-elect Ghalib met President Joe Biden during the
opening of GM's Factory Zero, the new name for its Detroit-Hamtramck plant, in
November.
Mayor-elect Ghalib knows the national spotlight on
Hamtramck's all-Muslim city council will make his job more difficult. He's
trying to block it out.
"People are like, 'What do you think about this
being a first?'" said council member Jaczkowski. "I'm like, 'Firsts
are great. And now we have to prove it doesn't matter.'"
Source: Edition.cnn
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original story:
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/12/18/us/michigan-hamtramck-all-muslim-council/index.html
-----
Afghanistan Crimes Prove US Pro-Rights,
Counterterrorism Claims of Justice Enforcer Invalid
(Representative Photo)
-----
December 19, 2021
Defending human rights and freedoms globally has been
one of the most glaring slogans various US administrations trumpeted for
decades to justify their policies. Even at times, building on self-proclaimed
role of world police, Washington posed as a justice enforcer.
The facts on the ground, as well as the American
behavior and actions, however, show that there is distance between reality and
claims, and there have been times when the country itself violated justice and
human rights in various world parts.
The latest witness to these violations is murdering of
10 innocent Afghan citizens in an attack following the American occupation
forces' withdrawal and Taliban takeover.
On August 29, the US forces, during withdrawal from
Kabul airport attacked a vehicle, killing 10 civilians including 7 children,
claiming that they identified and attacked one of the masterminds of a suicide
attack on the airport carried out three days earlier. The Pentagon initially
tried to justify the attack, but after aspects went clear, the drone strike was
acknowledged as a mistake. Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby stated that
Washington offers condolence compensations to the families of drone strike.
Following the Pentagon's confession to botched strike,
trial of the military personnel involved was expected to take place inside the
US and or even by international court.
"None of the military personnel involved in a
botched drone strike in Kabul, Afghanistan, that killed 10 civilians will face
any kind of punishment," New York Times reported on Monday, citing a
Pentagon statement. The decision has a translation: Human rights and justice
have never been the case in the American foreign policy and that the White
House only instrumentalized them for decades.
Starting from the 2000s, raising counterterrorism
agenda, the US administrations carried out killings and tested their
newly-developed arms in other countries. The so-called mistaken attack was a
show of anti-ISIS and terror fight in the last days of presence in Afghanistan.
Although the attack took life of the prominent Afghan aid worker Zamari Ahmadi
and members of his family, the American government waged a media show conveying
that Washington is committed to anti-terror war even if the attack was a
mistake.
According to the UN figures, more than 32,000
civilians have been killed in Afghanistan's military conflict over the past 18
years. The revelation of the criminal face of the US forces discredits the
claims about striking the terrorism in Afghanistan over the past two decades,
and possibly like the August incident, the civilians have been the main victims
of the American weapons tests.
But the important thing is that none of the US
military crimes are prosecutable. The crimes in Afghanistan are rejected or
hidden from media outlets, and if disclosed, judicial actions are blocked.
Since long ago, the Americans have been giving no
credibility to the rulings and decisions by human rights organizations and
international courts should they conflict with their interest, going against
their claims of defending human rights. An example case is the International
Criminal Court's looking into killing of the Afghanistan civilians.
In early March last year, ICC, a permanent
international court prosecuting genocides, war crimes, and crimes against
humanity, gave a green light to an investigation into possible American war
crimes in Afghanistan. In the case, the US troops in Afghanistan were accused
of committing war crimes against civilians in Afghanistan. Following this
decision, time's US President Donald Trump boycotted the ICC. He threatened its
prosecutors that they would face economic sanctions from the US if they
investigated the actions of US troops in Afghanistan without Washington's
consent. The sanctions against the judges included assets freeze and travel ban
on them and their families.
Although Joe Biden repealed Trump’s sanctions on the
two senior ICC officials, Washington kept denouncing the court's decisions on
Palestine and Afghanistan. Although the ICC ruling is non-binding to the US, it
gives publicity to the genuine nature of the American presence in various
countries and brings in spotlight the American crimes to the world public
opinion. However, Afghanistan future government would possibly not allow this
crime case go cold and seriously pursue it as part of its international agenda.
Source: Alwaght News
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Anjuman Jama Masjid In New Gurugram Caught In Legal
Tangle, Struggles To Stand Tall
The partially built,
unplastered Anjuman Jama Masjid with rusted iron rods protruding from the
pillars of the yet-to-be-finished first floor at Sector 57. | Photo Credit: KRISHNAN VV
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Ashok Kumar
DECEMBER 19, 2021
Sharing its boundary wall with a multi-storey building
of a private school with a sprawling campus in upscale Sushant Lok Phase-III
township here, stands a partially built, unplastered structure with rusted iron
rods protruding from the pillars of the yet-to-be-finished first floor.
One might be tempted to quickly dismiss this
weather-beaten building on a barely 800 sq m plot as an abandoned structure
until they spot a board on its entry gate, announcing the premises as Anjuman
Jama Masjid.
Situated in Sector 57, this lone mosque on a
Government-allocated land in New Gurugram caters to almost half of the city’s
municipal area spread across south and east zones and a large section of the
floating population commuting to the Millennium City daily for work.
Barely six months after the construction on this plot
began in 2004, a few real estate agents moved the court taking the plea that
the land allocated for the mosque was earmarked for other purposes.
“Only the basement could be constructed when the court
stayed any further construction. In 2013, the construction for the ground and
the first floor began after we won the case in the High Court. But the opposite
party moved the Supreme Court and the construction was stayed yet again. This
time we did not even find time to remove the shuttering for the ongoing
construction. The construction was immediately stopped and the trust ended up
paying lakhs for the shuttering,” said Mohammad Abul, vice-president, Haryana
Anjuman Charitable Trust, pointing at the wooden planks still firmly stuck in
the first-floor roof the building.
Not just that, the entire building is without plaster,
the walls on the ground floor are also incomplete exposing the worshippers to
extreme weather conditions throughout the year. A portion of the ground is
paved with bricks for the visitors to walk around and a temporary room has been
built along the boundary wall for the imam to stay.
Amid the growing population, both the residents and
the floating population, and the raging controversy over the offering of Juma
Namaz in the open, the trust decided to hold prayers in four shifts every
Friday from 12.30 p.m. to 2.30 p.m. to accommodate the maximum worshippers.
People from around a radius of 10-15 km visit the mosque on Fridays for the
Juma Namaz. Mohammad Saeed, a retired Central Government engineer, said he
drove to the mosque every Friday from Sector 50. Gulshad, from Bihar, said he
came to the mosque on a motorcycle from Sector 46 for the Friday prayers since
the controversy over namaz erupted.
Aslam Khan, chairman, Haryana Anjuman Charitable
Trust, said around 1,500 people offered Friday prayers every week. The number
of devotees in the mosque for Juma Namaz has gone up by 25%-30% in the wake of
the controversy.
In 2002, the Government allocated land for 17 temples,
two gurdwaras, one church and one mosque. Though one mosque is not enough in
view of the growing population of Muslims, the stay on construction has added
to our woes. We can accommodate more people once the building is completed. We
hope the Supreme Court to expedite the hearing in the matter in view of this
controversy and settle the case at the earliest,” said Mr. Khan.
Though two Muslim community trusts had applied for
five mosque sites in Gurugram in response to the Government advertisement
seeking applications for allocation of religious sites in 2016, they failed to
get any. The India Islamic Research Centre too sought land for a building for
social and religious activities in Sector 39 earlier this year, but the
application was rejected. The only other mosque in New Gurugram is on the Waqf
Board land near Rajiv Chowk.
The imam at Anjuman Masjid said the partially built
mosque also gave off a bad impression to the foreign visitors from the
community, mostly coming to the city for treatment at posh private hospitals.
The visitors, said the imam, often offered financial help thinking that the
construction was left mid-way due to paucity of funds. “The visitors come to
the mosque with great excitement searching it on Google Maps, but feel
disappointed to see the dilapidated structure,” said the Imam.
Source: The Hindu
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Judges Are Not Exempt From Criticism, Holds Islamabad
High Court
Malik Asad
December 19, 2021
ISLAMABAD: The judiciary, due to its lofty position in
society, is open to criticism and “a judge is not immune from being
criticised”, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) chief justice has observed in a
detailed order on the post-arrest bail plea of a local politician.
IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah had on Dec 16 granted
post-arrest bail to the local leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party, Masoodur
Rehman Abbasi, who had been behind bars since June for criticising Chief
Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed.
According to the detailed order on Saturday, “the
judicial branch of the state has a pivotal role in the society. A judge is not
immune from being criticised. The judiciary, because of the nature of functions
assigned to it under the constitution and the lofty position it enjoys in the
society, is open to criticism.”
The IHC observed that the independence of a judge was
not affected in any manner because of public criticism. “But unthoughtful
criticism, using strong and intemperate language or utterances that are
defamatory in nature, ought to be avoided,” the court advised.
The Federal Investigation Agency had booked and
arrested the PPP leader on a complaint of Mohammad Sohail Sajid registered at
the FIA’s cyber crime circle police station in Islamabad under various sections
of Pakistan Penal Code, 1860 and the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016
(Peca).
The case was registered on the basis of footage of a
portion of a recorded speech that had been uploaded and circulated on the
social media. The transcript of the speech, reproduced in the FIR, explains how
Mr Abbasi had criticised the Chief Justice of Pakistan using strong and
undesirable language.
The court observed in the order: “Prima facie, some
portions appear to be defamatory while the language used was indeed not
temperate.”
However, it was not the case of the FIA that Abbasi
was involved in uploading the footage of the recorded speech on social media
platforms, he had intentionally and publically exhibited, displayed or
transmitted any information through any information system, knowing it to be
false or to harm the repute of the complainant, the court order noted.
When the IHC asked FIA investigation officer Mohammad
Ayaz to justify how, in the facts and circumstances of the case in hand, the
offences mentioned in the FIR were attracted, he was unable to give any
plausible explanation rather conceded that some sections could have not been
invoked.
The FIA also remained unable to explain the locus
standi of the complainant to file a complaint on behalf of the former CJP.
There was nothing on record to show that Mr Abbasi might have said something
against the complainant to justify registration of a criminal case under
person-specific offences relating to defamation or causing harm to a natural
person’s reputation, the court noted.
“It cannot be ruled out that the Agency may have been
influenced by utterances made against the holder of the highest judicial
officer of the country because the registration of the case, prima facie,
appears to be an abuse of the offences under the [Peca] Act of 2016,” the court
order stated.
As per the decision, the allegations in the case in
hand were in the context of ‘objectionable’ and ‘strong language’ used by Mr
Abbasi against the holder of the highest judicial office i.e. the CJP.
While granting post-arrest bail to him against Rs5,000
surety bonds, Justice Minallah cited the bail order in the case of “Mohammad
Shafique Butt and another vs. The State” accused of displaying defamatory
banners against the then sitting judge of Supreme Court, Justice Jawwad S.
Khawaja. The relevant portions of the judgment are “Any perception of
impartiality or bias, even if not a reality, would certainly prejudice the
right to a free trial of any accused. Confidence in the court and assurance of
a fair trial is a prerequisite for the dispensation of justice, and pivotal for
creating public confidence and trust in the judiciary.”
It observed that an independent judge, despite the
harshness or tone of the criticism, could not be provoked to react in such a
manner that results in their becoming the subject matter of a criminal case
because of the profound consequences in the context of due process and fair
trial.
Source: The Dawn
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original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1664610/judges-are-not-exempt-from-criticism-holds-ihc
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Africa
Nigeria's Islamic Movement Can Never Be Banned: Sheikh
Zakzaky
December, 18, 2021
"The IMN is not a name, it is an ideology like
Islamic awareness, Islamic ideology, Islamic education, or Islamic philosophy.
It is a sort of concept. We never used it as a name, and the movement can never
be banned or proscribed," Sheikh Zakzaky said in reaction to the
government's action in proscribing the IMN, Iran Press Reported.
Sheikh Zakzaky said proscribing the IMN is just like
saying one is not permitted to practice his religion, contrary to the Nigerian
constitution.
Source: Tasnim News
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of the original story:
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Islamic Group, MURIC, Exonerates Buhari, Blames
Ex-President Jonathan For Current Killings, Kidnappings In Northern Nigeria
BY SAHARAREPORTERS
DEC 18, 2021
Islamic organisation, the Muslim Rights Concern, has
blamed former President Goodluck Jonathan for the current killings, kidnappings
and destruction going on in the Northern part of Nigeria.
Some protesters had recently took to the streets to
demonstrate against incessant killings, abductions and other crimes in the
Northern part of the country.
Source: Sahara Reporters
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of the original story:
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Boko Haram Weakened In Nigeria, Preying On Soft
Targets, Says President Buhari
BY SAHARAREPORTERS
DEC 18, 2021
President Muhammadu Buhari has said that Boko Haram
terrorist group was fragmented and weakened.
Buhari said despite efforts of the armed forces
against the insurgents, they remain active and are “preying on soft targets”.
The President made the comment while speaking at the
third edition of Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit on Saturday.
Source: Sahara Reporters
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North America
Trump: Israel's absolute power over Congress declined
under Obama and Biden
December 18, 2021
Former US President Donald Trump said that Israel's
"absolute power over Congress" had declined under the administration
of Barack Obama and has slid further under the administration of Joe Biden.
He also said that the majority of American Jews vote
for Democratic candidates but they "either don't like Israel or don't care
about Israel."
Source: Pars Today
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US senator blocks passage of bill to fund Israel’s
Iron Dome
December 19, 2021
US Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky has
reportedly voted to block yet another attempt to provide the Israeli regime
with $1 billion grant to replenish its Iron dome anti-air missile system.
Paul refused to cast his vote after pro-Israeli
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut called on the Senate for
unanimous consent to proceed with the House version of the bill to fund the
missile system of the occupying regime, insisting on the need to find a
financial source to the legislation, the UK-based Middle East Monitor reported
Saturday, citing Israeli news outlets.
"I've consistently opposed spending outside of
the budget unless it's offset by spending cuts elsewhere,” Paul argued in
opposition to the demand for the unanimous consent of the entire US Senate,
adding: “It's not only an opinion that I hold. It's actually the law. It's
called pay as you go."
Source: En.abna24
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Canadian pleads guilty in U.S. court for funding
Islamic State’s activities in Syria
THE CANADIAN PRESS
19-12-2021
U.S. soldiers attend a joint military exercise between
the Syrian Democratic Forces and the U.S.-led international coalition against
the Islamic State group, in the countryside of Deir Ezzor in northeastern Syria
on Dec. 7, 2021.
An Edmonton man who was extradited to the United
States to face charges he helped fund Islamic State terrorism has pleaded
guilty in exchange for a 20-year prison sentence.
Source: The Globeand Mail
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South Asia
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Blames US for Current
Afghan Economic Crisis That Was Damaged Over The Past 20 Years
By Toba Walizada
18-12-2021
Deputy Foreign Minister Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai
said the US is responsible for the existing crisis in Afghanistan and that the
US should play an active role in the Afghan economy because Afghanistan’s
economy was damaged over the past 20 years.
He made the remarks at a ceremony held to mark
International Migrants Day in Kabul, where Khalil Rahman Haqqani, Refugees and
Repatriation minister, and other top officials participated.
Source: Tolonews
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-175940
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Afghanistan should be provided urgent humanitarian
aids: OIC’s Under-Secretary-General
By Najibullah Lalzoy
19 Dec 2021
Under-Secretary-General of Organization of Islamic
Countries Tariq Ali Bakheet said that the international community should come
forward and provide the people of Afghanistan with immediate humanitarian aids.
Speaking ahead of the OIC extraordinary session on
Afghanistan, Bakheet asked both member states of OIC and the international
community to prepare and implement their plans for urgent assistance to
Afghanistan.
Source: khaama Press
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Islamic Emirate Must 'Ensure Inclusiveness': Russian special
envoy for Afghanistan
By Farshad Daryush,
18-12-2021
Russian special envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov
warned that the “Taliban” will risk losing power in Afghanistan if an inclusive
government is not formed.
“Ethnic political inclusiveness is needed. They might
lose power in the near future if they keep acting like that. They will have to
ensure inclusiveness. By the way, we say this without ultimatums, calmly - just
do it. They will have to do it,” Kabulov said.
Source: Tolonews
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https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-175946
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Afghanistan’s Deputy FM asks Afghan to return to
country
By Najibullah Lalzoy
18 Dec 2021
Afghanistan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sher Muhammad
Abbas Stanekzai said that Afghanistan is now safe and secure so all those who
have left the country for economic and political reasons must return.
Speaking at a gathering in Kabul on the occasion of
International Migrants Day, Abbas Stanekzai said the Islamic Emirate of
Afghanistan is committed to its general amnesty and all Afghans can live in
peace.
Source: khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/afghanistans-deputy-fm-asks-afghan-to-return-to-country-547457/
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Russia’s new consignment of humanitarian aids arrive
in Kabul
By Najibullah Lalzoy
18 Dec 2021
Russia’s Tass News Agency has reported that the
country’s three planes packed with humanitarian aids arrived in the Afghan
capital Kabul on Saturday, December 18.
As per reports, the planes have flown from Moscow to
Kabul in the direction of Russia’s Defense Ministry.
Source: khaama Press
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https://www.khaama.com/russias-new-consignment-of-humanitarian-aids-arrive-in-kabul-6587568/
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India
Muslim Shopkeepers Of Andhra Pradesh Srisailam Temple
Complex Hail Supreme Court Order
by Sreenivas Janyala
December 19, 2021
The Muslim shopkeepers of the Sri Bhramaramba
Mallikarjuna Swamy Temple complex in Kurnool district in Andhra Pradesh have
hailed the Supreme Court’s order directing that people from other faiths
already holding shop licences in the temple premises must not be barred from
participating in the auction for shops.
The auctioning process in the premises of this temple
— popularly known as the Srisailam temple — had been put off by the state
government in August 2019 after some Hindu groups opposed participation of
non-Hindus in it citing the AP Charitable and Hindu Religious Institution and
Endowments Act, 1987, which bars non-Hindus from operating near temples.
Source: Indian Express
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https://indianexpress.com/article/india/srisailam-temple-muslim-shopkeepers-hail-sc-order-7679664/
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261 Rohingya Muslims Residing In Punjab: State Submits
Affidavit In SC
18 Dec 2021
The Punjab government has told the Supreme Court that
261 Rohingya Muslims are residing in the state currently and for registration
purposes, their biometric details have been uploaded on the website of the
Government of India.
In an affidavit filed in the top court, the Punjab
government said that it does not share international borders with Bangladesh or
Myanmar.
Source: The Hindu
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V Muraleedharan terms murder of Kerala BJP leader as
'handy work of Islamic terrorist group'
December 19, 2021
Thiruvananthapuram: Hours after BJP OBC morcha state
secretary Renjith Sreenivasan was allegedly killed in Alappuzha, Union Minister
V Muraleedharan termed it as the "handy work of Islamic terrorist
group".
" I've been told that State Secy of BJP OBC
Morcha was stabbed to death, this morning. This is the handy work of Islamic
terrorist group is the info coming from Alleppey (Alappuzha). I demand the
State government to take strict action against perpetrators," he tweeted.
Source: The Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1664650/gurgaon-controversy
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Pakistan
Collective Efforts Including Media And Religious
Leaders, Needed To Avoid Sialkot-Like Tragedies: Minister For Religious Affairs
Kalbe Ali
December 19, 2021
ISLAMABAD: Minister for Religious Affairs Dr Noorul
Haq Qadri on Saturday said collective efforts were needed by all segments of
society, including media and religious leaders, to prevent tragedies like the
lynching of a Sri Lankan factory manager in Sialkot.
He was speaking as chief guest along with Minister for
Human Rights Dr Shireen Mazari at a Christmas party organised by the National
Press Club (NPC).
Source: The Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1664544/collective-efforts-needed-to-avoid-sialkot-like-tragedies-qadri
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Opposition asks Imran to stop blaming previous govts
for his failure
Zulqernain Tahir
December 19, 2021
LAHORE: The opposition has asked Prime Minister Imran
Khan to stop blaming previous governments for his failures and concentrate on
his performance.
“Passing the buck to the Bhuttos and the Sharifs for
his failures in more than three years in government, Imran Khan should know
that this narrative has been outdated,” PPP Senator Sherry Rehman said in a
series of tweets on Saturday.
Source: The Dawn
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Pakistan’s Covid-19 mortality rate much higher than
global rate
Ikram Junaidi
December 19, 2021
ISLAMABAD: Though health experts have been claiming
that Covid-19 has proved less lethal among Asians, global data shows that
Pakistan’s mortality rate is far higher than many regions.
Member of the Scientific Task Force on Covid-19 Dr
Javed Akram was of the view that more Pakistanis died because they visited
hospitals due to complications arising from Covid-19 rather than the infection
itself. He also blamed poor health and diagnostic facilities for the high
number of casualties.
Source: The Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1664608/pakistans-covid-19-mortality-rate-much-higher-than-global-rate
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Petition seeks Balochistan CM’s disqualification over
viral video
Staff Correspondent
December 19, 2021
QUETTA: A petition has been filed in the Balochistan
High Court, seeking disqualification of Chief Minister Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo
after a video went viral on social media showing the chief minister
distributing money among participants of the recently ended 31-day-long Gwadar
sit-in.
The petition was filed by Advocate Amanullah Kanrani
who pleaded the court to disqualify the chief minister for distributing money
among the protesters.
Source: The Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1664606/petition-seeks-balochistan-cms-disqualification-over-viral-video
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SC ruling to help retired judges join ECP earlier than
two years
Iftikhar A. Khan
December 19, 2021
ISLAMABAD: In a rare exercise of its power to “read
in” the law, the Supreme Court has done away with constitutional bar on the
appointment of retired judges as members of the Election Commission of Pakistan
(ECP) before completion of two years after their retirement.
The court in a detailed order on a petition
challenging the Sindh High Court’s judgement of June 12, 2020 validating
appointment of three ECP members made in contravention of the constitutional
bar held that since introduction of 22nd Amendment, the words “or member of
the Election Commission” were to be read in into clause (2) of Article 207 of
the Constitution after the term “Chief Election Commissioner”.
Source: The Dawn
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1664612/sc-ruling-to-help-retired-judges-join-ecp-earlier-than-two-years
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Europe
Belgium's Muslims appeal EU Court of Human Rights
against ban on ritual halal animal slaughtering
December 18, 2021
The Muslim community in Belgium will appeal at the
European Court of Human Rights against the ban on ritual halal animal
slaughtering.
“The Belgian Muslim Executive and the Coordination
Council of Islamic Institutions of Belgium will challenge at the European Court
of Human Rights in Strasbourg the ban imposed by the Flemish and Walloon
government on the ritual slaughter,” the two organizations wrote in a press
statement.
Source: Anadolu
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Berlin: The Islamist Terror Attack of 2016 and the
Authorities’ Failures
By Imanuel Marcus
Dec 19, 2021
Five years ago, the Islamist Anis Amri murdered twelve
people, in a terror attack at one of Berlin’s main Christmas markets. Before
and after the crime, the German authorities kept on failing.
Berlin, December 19th, 2019. Update: December 19th,
2021 (The Berlin Spectator) — In 2014,
Nada Cizmar from Czechia left her son and husband in Dresden and moved to
Berlin. Whether she would have returned to her family later is a question that
will never be answered because she was murdered when she visited the Christmas
market at ‘Breitscheidplatz’ square on the day of the terror attack, December
19th, 2016.
Source: Berlin Spectator
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UK Brexit negotiator Frost resigns in further blow to
PM Johnson
19/12/2021
Former Brexit negotiator David Frost resigned from the
government with immediate effect on Saturday, topping a torrid week for British
Prime Minister Boris Johnson after a party rebellion on new coronavirus curbs
and by-election humiliation.
"It is disappointing that this plan has become
public this evening and in the circumstances I think it is right for me to
write to step down with immediate effect," he said in the letter,
published by Johnson's Downing Street office.
Source: France24
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Mideast
Hamas and Islamic Jihad improving preparations for war
Dalit Halevi
19.12.21
A meeting was held over the weekend between the
commanders of Hamas’ military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, and the Islamic
Jihad’s military wing, the Al-Quds Brigades, on strengthening the
organizations' military strength and raising the level of coordination between
them.
The Palestinian Arab Safa news agency reported that
the participants stressed the paramount importance of the development of
military force in the Gaza Strip and the activity of a joint war room in
conducting the military campaign against Israel and readiness for a military
confrontation in the face of "Zionist threats."
Source: Israel National News
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https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/318849
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Yazidi Islamic State survivor latest victim of 'cancel
culture'
By ZACH HUFF
DECEMBER 18, 2021
Alongside colonialism, imperialism, and
nation-building, “cancel culture” is the latest of toxic Western ideas to be
foisted upon the Middle East. This past week, 2018 Nobel Peace Prize laureate
Nadia Murad was the latest victim of the West’s cancel culture, as she was
disinvited from a book event by Canada’s Toronto District School Board. This
may sound trivial, but it’s a big deal.
Murad is a member of Iraq’s Yazidi ethno-religious
minority. She was kidnapped at age 19 by the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) in
2014. ISIS, at the ascendancy of its power, pillaged, executed, and sexually
exploited locals with reckless abandon. In just her village, some 600 innocents
– including her mother and six of her brothers – were summarily executed. Murad
was taken to be one of 7,000 Yazidi women and girls enslaved.
Source: jpost
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https://www.jpost.com/opinion/canceling-an-islamic-state-victim-opinion-689109
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Iran Insists Missing Video From Nuclear Site Lost Due
To 'Sabotage'
By RFE/RL
December 18, 2021
Iran's Atomic Energy Organization has rejected that it
is responsible for the loss of surveillance video from a
centrifuge-parts-production site, suggesting that the data was lost due to an
attack on the plant this summer.
"The records were destroyed by an act of
sabotage," the agency said in December 18 press statement after the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it had "doubts" about
Iran's explanation for the missing video.
Source: Rferl.Org
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https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-nuclear-video-sabotage/31615405.html
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Israeli Officials Believe Iran Talks Headed for
'Controlled Conflict' or Interim Deal
Jonathan Lis
Dec. 19, 2021
Patience may be running thin, the talks stalled and
the outlook pessimistic, but officially the negotiations on returning to the
international nuclear agreement with Iran may resume as early as this week, and
they continue to be a main avenue for the United States and the world powers.
Source: Haaretz
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Iran Minister Speaks Of 'Good News' About a Satellite
Launch Till March
Iran Military
19-12-2021
Iran’s communication minister said Saturday
"there will be good news” about launching a satellite until March, after
recent reports about preparations at a launch site.
The Associated Press reported earlier this week that
evidence points to Iran preparing a space launch and Iranian media offered a
list of upcoming planned satellite launched.
Source: Iran Intl
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the original story:
https://www.iranintl.com/en/20211218266200
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Southeast Asia
PM Ismail Sabri announces RM100m aid for flood-damaged
homes, infrastructure, promises to channel more as needed
BY DEBRA CHONG
19 Dec 2021
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 19 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri
Ismail Sabri Yaakob today announced an initial fund of RM100 million to repair
houses and infrastructure damaged in the massive floods following torrential
rains across the country over the weekend.
He said RM50 million will be channeled to the National
Disaster Relief Fund for disbursement; with each flood-hit household to get
RM1,000.
Source: Malay Mail
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PM Ismail tells Welfare Dept to ensure every flood
victim receives assistance
19 Dec 2021
KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 19 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri
Ismail Sabri Yaakob has asked the Social Welfare Department to make sure that
every flood victim is being facilitated and receives the assistance channelled
to them.
In a Facebook posting, Ismail Sabri shared a video of
his visit to the temporary relief centre at Sekolah Kebangsaan Johan Setia in
Klang today.
Source: Malay Mail
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Arab world
Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Film Festival screening was
‘huge honor,’ says director of award-winning movie
NADA HAMEED
December 19, 2021
JEDDAH: “It was a huge honor for the film to come here
in particular, because this is the heartland of Islamic tradition,”
Egyptian-American filmmaker and journalist Dina Amer said of having her film
“You Resemble Me” screen during the inaugural Red Sea International Film
Festival in Jeddah, where it won the Audience Award.
“My film, which I have made as a practicing Muslim
woman, is to show that Islam is a beautiful religion and that these actions
that have been done in the name of Islam have nothing to do with our beautiful
faith. And so I felt like this was the perfect place for the film to be
embraced.”
Source: Arab News
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of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1989246/lifestyle
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Saudi forces destroy two Houthi drones targeting
Khamis Mushayt
ARAB NEWS
December 19, 2021
RIYADH: Saudi air defenses have destroyed two armed
drones launched by Houthi militants toward Saudi Arabia's southwestern city of
Khamis Mushayt, state TV reported early Sunday.
The drones were launched from the Sanaa International
Airport, Al-Ekhbariya TV said, quoting a statement by the Arab Coalition
defending Yemen's legitimate government.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/1989311/saudi-arabia
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Saudi labor reforms protect workers, preserve dignity:
HRSD deputy
RAWAN RADWAN
December 18, 2021
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s governing authorities continue
to enhance its labor reforms to improve the working environment and enhance the
laws to protect workers’ rights and establish an attractive working
environment.
Last year, the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and
Social Development launched a Labor Reform Initiative that streamlines labor
market procedure, defines precise mechanisms, improves career mobility, and
protects the rights of employers and employees. In March of this year, the LRI
announced further reforms by offering expats working in the private sector more
freedoms concerning employment, including domestic helpers.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/1989211/saudi-arabia
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Saudi Arabia reports 116 new COVID-19 cases, 1 death
ARAB NEWS
December 19, 2021
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia confirmed 116 new COVID-19 cases
on Saturday, increasing the total number of recorded infections since the
beginning of the pandemic to 550,738.
It also confirmed 1 new coronavirus-related death,
raising the total number of fatalities to 8,861.
Source: Arab News
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of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1989331/saudi-arabia
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/zambian-parliament-munir-zulu-muslim-robe/d/125988