Not Quran but ‘Badass-Do-Goodery’ Significant Motivating Factor for Young Men Joining Daesh: Expert
New Age Islam
News Bureau
07 September
2020
The Quran is not a
significant motivating factor for young men joining Daesh, a researcher has
found.
------
• Leading
Canadian Jewish Group Joins Demand for Action Against Chinese Persecution of
Uyghur Muslims
• Mahapanchayat
Called by Fringe Outfits in Baghpat, UP, against ‘Love Jihad’ Postponed
• Turkey Calls
Macron ‘Hysterical’ Over Syria, Libya, East Mediterranean
• Intra-Afghan
Talks Must Preserve ‘Democratic and Human Rights’: EU, Canada
• Imran Khan
Announces Rs 1.1 Trillion Package to Address Infrastructure Issues in Karachi
• World Assembly
of Islamic Awakening: Zionists, US behind Sacrilege of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH)
Arab World
• Not Quran but ‘Badass-Do-Goodery’
Significant Motivating Factor for Young Men Joining Daesh: Expert
• Lebanon Says
It Will ‘Abolish Kafala,’ To Protect the Rights of Migrant and Domestic Workers
• Saudi King
Tells Trump That Kingdom Is Eager to Achieve Fair Solution to Palestinian Issue
• Saudi Imam
Faces Criticism After Sermon Seen as Prelude to Normalization with Israel
• US, Israel spy
services blew up Beirut port: Lebanese party
• Iraqi
Parliament’s Defense Commission Opposes Direct Talks with Turkey
• Street in Beirut
renamed after slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, photos suggest
--------
North America
• Leading
Canadian Jewish Group Joins Demand for Action Against Chinese Persecution of
Uyghur Muslims
• US, Israel
Building A Ring of Fire Around Iran: Former American Diplomat
• Healing
Black-Jewish and Muslim-Jewish divides
--------
India
• Mahapanchayat
Called by Fringe Outfits in Baghpat, UP, against ‘Love Jihad’ Postponed
• ‘Pakistan,
China Planning Against Us’: BSF Chief to Jawans On Visit to LoC
• NIA To Send
Investigative Team to Probe Kabul Gurdwara Attack
• J&K:
Soldier killed; 2 others injured as Pakistan violates ceasefire
--------
Europe
• Turkey Calls
Macron ‘Hysterical’ Over Syria, Libya, East Mediterranean
• UK Could
Explore Arms Embargo as Option to Bring Iran Into Line: Defense Minister
• UN chief warns
of famine risk in four conflict-struck countries, including Yemen
• Turkish
defense chief to meet senior NATO official
• Palestine:
Serbia moving embassy to Jerusalem illegal
--------
South Asia
• Intra-Afghan
Talks Must Preserve ‘Democratic and Human Rights’: EU, Canada
• Rohingya tour
islet marked for relocation by Bangladesh
• Afghan
government troops repel Taliban offensive in Kandahar
• Narayanganj
Mosque Blast: Petition Seeks Tk 50 Lakh Compensation from Titas For Each
Victim’s Family
--------
Pakistan
• Imran Khan Announces
Rs 1.1 Trillion Package to Address Infrastructure Issues in Karachi
• Army will win
hybrid war with nation’s help: Bajwa
--------
Mideast
• World Assembly
of Islamic Awakening: Zionists, US behind Sacrilege of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH)
• Israel, UAE
foreign diplomats meet publicly for first time in Africa
• Hamas leader
says group has missiles that can hit Tel Aviv
• Turkey begins
military drills in north Cyprus amid tensions in eastern Mediterranean
• Palestinian-Lebanese
Alliance: Hamas, Hezbollah Put Up United Front Against Israel
• Sanctions
against Turkey on EU table over Greece tensions: France
• Palestinian
shot, detained over alleged stabbing attack in West Bank
• Over two dozen
Palestinian prisoners injured in Israeli raids in Ofer prison
• Israel to ask
US for advanced weapons after F-35 jets sale to UAE: Report
• Dozen arrested
as anti-Netanyahu protest turns violent in Jerusalem al-Quds
• 24 killed in
clashes in northern Yemen
--------
Southeast Asia
• Dewan Negara
To Debate Philippine Claim to Sabah, Says Rais Yatim
• Nearly 300
Rohingya migrants come ashore in Indonesia
• Long Umno
history makes Muhyiddin credible, says analyst
--------
Africa
• Warlord Haftar
Again Violates Libyan Cease-Fire
• Saudi Arabia
Denounces ‘Terrorist Attack’ In Tunisia
• Libya’s
warring sides hold talks in Morocco
• Tunisian
police kill three militants after officer stabbed to death
• Gunmen kill 22
people in two separate attacks in central Nigeria: Officials
• Nigeria
introduces airdrop of foods for terror victims
Compiled by New
Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/not-quran-badass-goodery-significant/d/122808
--------
Not Quran but ‘Badass-Do-Goodery’ Significant Motivating Factor for Young Men Joining Daesh: Expert
September 06,
2020
The Quran is not a
significant motivating factor for young men joining Daesh, a researcher has
found.
------
LONDON: The
Qur’an is not a significant motivating factor for young men joining Daesh, a
researcher has found.
The desire for “badass-do-goodery”
is the main motivating factor, said Omar Shaukat, a former senior research
fellow with the Afro-Middle East Centre in Johannesburg who interviewed young
men who were considering joining Daesh at the height of its “caliphate” in
2014-15.
Knowing that
most young men do not become extremists because of religious factors can play a
role in rehabilitating them, he added.
Shaukat said he
offered prospective Daesh recruits “a more effective strategy” for improving
the lives of Muslims than becoming militant.
Would-be
militants need to be offered “non-violent or non-hateful ways of being radical
that would still hold up in their eyes as being effective — or at least more
effective than they can achieve by associating with IS-like (Daesh-like) groups,”
he added.
Extremism can be
“cured,” but that requires rejecting the taboo of engaging with potential
terrorists, as well as the legal restrictions that come with such engagement,
he said.
“The cure, I
would say, is civil society reaching out to these groups of people and trying
to set up a dialogue,” Shaukat added.
“Not taking up
the militant (path) but doing more social justice work and community work. Show
them that’s a better and more effective strategy than becoming militant.”
The South
African researcher said he had persuaded potential Daesh recruits not to join
the organization by convincing them that extreme and grotesque acts of violence
had historically not been successful in bringing about change.
Documents leaked
to the Associated Press in 2016 corroborate Shaukat’s findings. They showed
that new Daesh recruits were often poorly versed in Islamic teachings, with the
overwhelming majority having only basic knowledge of the Qur’an and Shariah
law.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1730491/world
--------
Leading Canadian
Jewish Group Joins Demand for Action Against Chinese Persecution of Uyghur
Muslims
by Benjamin
Kerstein
Uyghur Muslims rounded up by
Chinese authorities for transport to concentration camps. Photo: Twitter.
-----
A leading
Canadian Jewish group joined with leaders of the Uyghur Muslim community over
the weekend to condemn China’s persecution of the Uyghurs and demand that
Canada and other members of the international community take action against it.
The statement,
by B’nai Brith Canada, the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project, and the World Uyghur
Congress, pointedly condemned China’s current policies toward the Uyghurs, a
Muslim minority group in the region of Xinjiang, who have been subjected to a
brutal campaign of dislocation and “reeducation” by the Chinese government in
recent months.
Reports indicate
that this campaign has included deportations to concentration camps, torture,
unsanitary conditions, and psychological pressure techniques intended to force
the Uyghurs to conform to the communist party line.
“For Jews around
the world, such events have a terrible resonance and provide a moral imperative
to speak out,” B’nai Brith said in the statement.
Michael Mostyn,
Chief Executive Officer of B’nai Brith Canada, added, “We are calling on all
international human rights organizations to unequivocally condemn the
mistreatment of the Uyghurs and to join us in making this issue a pivotal part
of our campaigning.”
“We also call on
the Government of Canada to condemn China’s conduct in the strongest possible
terms, and to use all available means to help bring it to an end,” he added.
Dolkun Isa,
President of the World Uyghur Congress, said, “China is committing full-scale
ethnic genocide against Uyghurs and targeting our distinct identity through
vast networks of concentration camps, torture, and death chambers.”
“We are very
grateful that B’nai Brith Canada and the global Jewish community, victims of
genocide themselves in the past century, are standing in solidarity with
Uyghurs in the face of evil,” he stated.
Mehmet Tohti,
Executive Director of the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project, Canada, called the
persecution of the Uyghurs “a 21st century ethnic genocide.”
“The silence of
many nations around the world is shocking the conscience of human
civilization,” he asserted. “The time for verbal expression of concern is over.
Now, we need action to fulfill our promise of Never Again.”
The groups urged
the government of Canada to pressure the Chinese government to grant the United
Nations full access to Xinjiang, demand a full report on the Uyghurs’ current
situation, condemn Chinese persecution of minorities, and speak out on the
issue in international forums.
In addition,
B’nai Brith called on the Canadian government to sanction Chinese officials for
their involvement in the persecution of the Uyghurs.
The group also
demanded the release of Canadian citizen Huseyin Celil, who is being held
captive by the Chinese government for his work on behalf of Uyghur rights.
https://www.algemeiner.com/2020/09/06/leading-canadian-jewish-group-joins-demand-for-action-against-chinese-persecution-of-uyghur-muslims/
--------
Mahapanchayat
Called by Fringe Outfits in Baghpat, UP, against ‘Love Jihad’ Postponed
September 7,
2020
Fringe outfits in Baghpat
had called for a public gathering after a Hindu woman allegedly eloped with a
Muslim man in Baghpat's Khekra area earlier this year. (Representational image)
-----
A Mahapanchayat
against ‘love jihad’ schedule to be held on Monday in Baghpat was postponed.
Fringe outfits in Baghpat had called for a public gathering after a Hindu woman
allegedly eloped with a Muslim man in Baghpat’s Khekra area earlier this year.
A demonstration was held on August 26 by the members of these outfits and local
residents.
“This case
happened in February when a man brainwashed a Hindu woman and took her with
him. Our demand is straightforward and we want the police to recover the woman.
We have been staging a protest and were supposed to hold the meeting tomorrow.
Due to corona cases and assurance we are delaying it and it might be held after
10 days,” said Nitin, district in-charge of Hindu Jagran Manch.
According to a
senior police official, two teams have been formed to trace the whereabouts of
a woman and a case under section 364 (kidnapping) has been filed in the Khekra
Police Station.
This comes days
after UP CM Yogi Adityanath had asked Home Department to formulate a plan to
curb love jihad cases in the state.
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/up-mahapanchayat-against-love-jihad-postponed-6585932/
--------
Turkey calls
Macron ‘hysterical’ over Syria, Libya, East Mediterranean
05 September
2020
Turkish foreign
minister has called French President Emmanuel Macron “hysterical” over his
meddling in foreign-backed conflicts in Libya and Syria as well as Ankara’s
dispute with Greece over sea boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Speaking during
a press briefing in capital Ankara on Friday, Mevlut Cavusoglu emphasized that
Turkey had foiled French hope for renegade military strongman Khalifa Haftar to
capture the Libyan capital of Tripoli by providing military support to the
internationally-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA), repelling
Haftar’s assault back in June.
“In Libya they
(France) supported the putschist Haftar and made a grave mistake,” he said,
adding, “Things changed, balances shifted, Haftar was defeated and Macron
became hysterical.”
Ankara has
blamed Paris for politically backing Haftar and his rebel forces known as
Libyan National Army (LNA) against the Tripoli-based GNA, having previously
given him military assistance to fight pro-government forces. Paris, however,
denies this.
In June, Turkey
and France nearly came to blows after a French warship attempted to inspect a
Turkish vessel as part of a UN arms embargo against Libya.
“With that
hysteria, he didn’t know what to do. Right after that, he said our ships had
harassed their ships in the eastern Mediterranean but couldn’t document this
and was humiliated,” the Turkish minister said.
Cavusoglu also
reiterated Ankara’s position that France was the country provoking Greece the
most in the eastern Mediterranean conflict, calling on Paris to cooperate with
Turkey to accomplish regional stability.
He then stated
mockingly, “There is no need for such hysterical behavior from France, it makes
them look laughable. We are two NATO member countries.”
Meanwhile, there
was no immediate reaction to Cavusoglu’s harsh criticism of Paris by Macron’s
Elysee office or the French foreign ministry.
France has also
backed Athens in the east Mediterranean maritime dispute, taking part in joint
war games with Italy, Greece and Cyprus amid conflicting Greek-Turkish claims
to continental shelves in areas of exploration for oil and natural gas.
During his
Friday remarks, Turkey’s top diplomat also accused Greece of shunning dialog
and lying after Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis denied it had agreed
to NATO-brokered talks aimed at de-escalating tensions in disputed waters in
the eastern Mediterranean.
“Let threats go
away so that the contacts can begin,” Mitsotakis said earlier on Friday,
prompting Cavusoglu to accuse him of “lying,” saying, “Greece denied the
secretary general’s (remarks) but the one lying here is not the NATO secretary
general, it’s Greece itself. Greece showed once more than it's not in favor of dialog.”
Ties between the
two NATO allies have also deteriorated over conflicting policies in Syria,
Libya, and they have exchanged accusations in recent weeks. Both countries are
known to have backed and supplied militants waging terror in the war-ravaged
Arab nations.
Meanwhile,
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week lashed at the leaders of
France and Greece.
Speaking at a
ceremony commemorating Victory Day on Sunday, Erdogan called the leaders of the
two European Union countries “greedy and incompetent” for challenging Ankara’s
energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean. The occasion marked the defeat
of the Greek army by the Turks in the Battle of Dumlupinar in 1922.
“Do Greeks
accept what could happen to them because of their greedy and incompetent
leaders?” asked Erdogan. “Do the French know the price they will pay because of
their greedy and incompetent leaders?”
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/05/633365/Turkey-Foreign-Minister-Mevlut-Cavusoglu-French-President-Emmanuel-Macron-Greece-Mediterranean-boundary-dispute-Syria-Libya
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Intra-Afghan
Talks must Preserve ‘Democratic and Human Rights’: EU, Canada
By Mohammad Arif
Sheva
07 Sep 2020
KABUL,
Afghanistan – The EU Head of Mission in Kabul and the Ambassador of Canada said
the upcoming Intra-Afghan talks must preserve the “democratic and human rights”
of people in the country.
In a joint
statement on Sunday, both representatives said achievements of the past two
decades are “human rights, rule of law and democratic freedoms, including the
increased respect for the rights and freedoms of women and girls” that should
be considered during the peace negotiations.
“We especially
urge for the full participation of women in all aspects of the negotiations,”
the statement said as quoted by local media.
It came at a
time both the Afghan and Taliban delegation are preparing to hold Intra-Afghan
talks that will determine not only the security but also the future of
Afghanistan.
“There is no
military solution to the conflict and the still unacceptably high level of
violence is contrary to expectations of a meaningful peace process and the
principles of the UN Charter,” the statement read.
“We urge the
Taliban to respect the desire of the citizens of Afghanistan and heed the UN
Secretary-General’s and the UN Security Council’s unanimous call for an
immediate unconditional, comprehensive, and nationwide ceasefire.”
https://www.khaama.com/intra-afghan-talks-must-preserve-democratic-and-human-rights-eu-canada-2343/
--------
Imran Khan
announces Rs 1.1 trillion package to address infrastructure issues in Karachi
Sep 6, 2020
KARACHI:
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has unveiled a financial package worth Rs1.1
trillion to address the chronic municipal and infrastructure issues of Karachi,
the country's financial hub, after record-breaking monsoon rains caused
widespread devastation in the city and left at least 60 people dead. The
rainfall spell which started in July and continued into August totally exposed
the poor civic infrastructure including the drainage system of the city,
prompting the federal government to take notice of the protests and complaints
of the Karachites.
Khan, who
visited Karachi on Saturday, unveiled the financial package at a joint press
conference with the Sindh province Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and
Governor, Imran Ismail.
While Khan's
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf () party rules the centre and Punjab, Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan provinces, the Opposition Pakistan Peoples Party
governs the southern Sindh province.
There had been a
heated exchange of allegations by the ministers and Sindh government officials
over who is responsible for the pathetic civic condition of Karachi.
The Prime
Minister has formed a "Karachi Committee" which includes the PPP and
other opposition party members and has said they will deal with Karachi's
problems together.
Khan said all
stakeholders will be involved in its implementation.
"The
package we have brought for Karachi is historic," he said.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/imran-khan-announces-rs-1-1-trillion-package-to-address-infrastructure-issues-in-karachi/articleshow/77963453.cms
--------
World Assembly
of Islamic Awakening: Zionists, US behind Sacrilege of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH)
Sep 06, 2020
“Charlie Hebdo's
sinister insult is a continued deceitful plot and act done in recent years by
the ominous triangle of the US, the international Zionism and the western front
in the face of the spread of the culture and school of Islam and the
implementation of Islamophobia in France,” Velayati said on Sunday.
He added that
forming and strengthening terrorist groups in the name of Islam, repeatedly
insulting the character of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), tarnishing the image of
Islam, making insulting videos and animations, etc. are among the insulting
cultural actions along with military, political and economic measures such as
terrorism, sanctions, bribery, war, compromise and deal which seek to hold
Islam and Muslims back on the path of human advancement and civilization and
prevent delivering of the message of peace and friendship of pure Islam to the
hearts.
“The World
Assembly of Islamic Awakening condemns this crime and the big insult to the
great Prophet of Islam and calls on all Muslims of the world to thwart the
conspiracies of the anti-Islam theorists and policymakers by carrying out such
actions while maintaining vigilance and sharpness,” Velayati said.
In relevant
remarks on Friday, Iranian Parliament Speaker's Special Aide for International
Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian condemned the recent insulting moves against
the Holy Quran and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), terming them as the revival of ISIL
terrorism.
“Charlie Hebdo
blasphemy to Prophet Muhammad and desecration of Quran in Sweden are deemed as
the resumption of Daeshi [ISIL] terrorism against Islam,” Amir-Abdollahian
wrote on his Twitter account.
“The abhorrent
moves and extremism provocation have no room in democracy and freedom of
expression; [they only] threaten the divine discourse, peace and security,” he
added.
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990616000872
--------
Arab World
Lebanon Says It
Will ‘Abolish Kafala,’ To Protect the Rights of Migrant and Domestic Workers
05 September
2020
Lebanon
caretaker Labour Minister Lamia Yammine Douaihy said on Friday that she has
issued an order abolishing the country’s kafala system to ensure the rights of
migrant and domestic workers are protected.
The kafala, or
sponsorship, system ties workers to their employer, and under the system,
migrant workers must obtain written permission to transfer employers and leave
the country.
The move would
allow “this group to obtain all of their contractual rights and benefit from
wider social protection,” Douaihy wrote in a tweet.
Human Rights
Watch researcher Aya Majzoub noted that while the new unified labor contract
for migrant workers is a first step, it does not abolish the kafala system.
Reforms to the
system have been long sought by activists who say the current system is rife
with human rights violations.
In March,
activists and government officials, among others, met in Beirut to discuss
reforms to the system.
More recently,
the system has come under pressure as the country descends steadily into
economic collapse and families who can no longer afford to support their
live-in workers have thrown them out on the streets, often not returning their
passports, leaving them stranded. Dozens of women have been dumped outside the
Ethiopian embassy in Beirut.
“Their status in
the country is regulated by the kafala system – a restrictive immigration
regime of laws, regulations, and customary practices – that ties migrant
workers’ legal residency to their employer. Workers cannot leave or change
employers without their employers’ consent, placing them at risk of
exploitation and abuse,” read a Human Rights Watch report from July on the
kafala system in Lebanon.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/05/Lebanon-says-it-will-abolish-kafala-activists-say-new-measures-come-up-short
--------
Saudi King tells
Trump that kingdom is eager to achieve fair solution to Palestinian issue
07 Sep 2020
Saudi Arabia’s
King Salman told US President Donald Trump in a phone call on Sunday that the
kingdom was eager to achieve a fair and permanent solution to the Palestinian
issue, which he said was the main starting point of the kingdom’s proposed Arab
Peace Initiative, the state news agency reported.
The leaders
spoke by phone following a historic US brokered accord last month under which
the United Arab Emirates agreed to become the third Arab state to normalise
ties with Israel after Egypt and Jordan.
King Salman told
Trump he appreciated US efforts to support peace and that Saudi Arabia wanted
to see a fair and permanent solution to the Palestinian issue based on the Arab
Peace Initiative proposed by the kingdom in 2002.
Under the
proposal, Arab nations have offered Israel normalised ties in return for a
statehood deal with the Palestinians and full Israeli withdrawal from territory
captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Saudi Arabia,
the birthplace of Islam and site of its holiest shrines, does not recognise
Israel.
However, this
month the kingdom said it would allow flights between UAE and Israel, including
by Israeli airliners, to use its airspace.
White House
adviser and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner has said he hopes another Arab
country normalises ties with within months.
No other Arab
state has said so far it is considering following the UAE.
King Salman’s
son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Kushner discussed the need for the
Palestinians and the Israelis to resume negotiations and reach a lasting peace
after Kushner visited the UAE last month.
The UAE-Israel
deal was met by overwhelming Palestinian opposition.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1578388/saudi-king-tells-trump-that-kingdom-is-eager-to-achieve-fair-solution-to-palestinian-issue
--------
Saudi imam faces
criticism after sermon seen as prelude to normalization with Israel
07 September
2020
Abdulrahman
al-Sudais, the imam of the Grand Mosque of Mecca, is facing criticism over a
sermon that was interpreted as a prelude to Saudi Arabia's normalization with
Israel.
In a Friday
sermon, Sudais spoke about dialogue and kindness to non-Muslims, clearly referencing
to Jews.
His comments
came less than a month after the United Arab Emirates and Israel reached a
US-brokered deal to normalize relations, amid speculation other Persian Gulf
Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, would follow suit.
Sudais called on
worshipers to avoid "any misconceptions about correct beliefs in the heart
coexisting with having healthy dealings in interpersonal exchanges and
international relations".
"When the
course of healthy human dialogue is neglected, parts of people's civilizations
will collide, and the language that will become prevalent is one of violence,
exclusion and hatred," he said.
His remarks
caused a stir on social media, with many users accusing Sudais of exploiting
the platform of Islam's holiest mosque to promote normalization that undermines
the Palestinian cause.
His sermon also
referred to the status of al-Asqa Mosque in Jerusalem al-Quds.
Sudais said
al-Asqa Mosque had been "taken prisoner", adding, "This is an
issue that is of utmost priority to the people of Islam and it must not be
forgotten amid new struggles that appear."
"It must be
kept in mind, but without exaggerations in the media or battles on the
internet."
At the end of
his sermon, the imam prayed to God to "rescue al-Aqsa Mosque from the
clutches of the aggressors" and allow it to be "a revered location
until the day of reckoning".
Justifying
normalization and at the same time praying for saving al-Aqsa from the
aggressors was deemed as a contradiction by social media users, many of whom
accused the imam of betraying the Palestinian cause.
The Palestinian
resistance movement of Hamas on Friday called on Saudi Arabia and Bahrain to
stop helping the UAE implement its normalization deal with Israel, after the
two countries opened their airspace to flights between Israel and the UAE.
Hamas spokesman
Hazem Qassem said that backing the UAE in implementing the deal would embolden
the Israeli regime to “commit more crimes.”
The first direct
flight between Israel and the UAE was conducted on Monday through the Saudi
airspace.
Meanwhile, Saudi
Arabia’s King Salman told US President Donald Trump in a phone call on Sunday
that the kingdom wanted to see a fair and permanent solution to the Palestinian
issue based on the so-called Arab Peace Initiative.
The so-called
Arab Peace Initiative, which was proposed by Saudi Arabia in 2002, calls on
Israel to agree to a “two-state solution” along the 1967 lines and a “just”
solution to the Palestinian refugee issue.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/07/633503/Saudi-imam-slammed-normalization-Israel
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US, Israel spy
services blew up Beirut port: Lebanese party
07 September
2020
A Lebanese
political party says it was the American and Israeli spy services that set off
last month’s hugely deadly explosion at the capital Beirut’s port.
“Beirut’s port
was blown up by American and Israeli spy services,” Najah Wakim, president of
the People’s Movement, told Lebanon’s al-Mayadeen television network on Sunday.
"The FBI,
the US’s criminal investigation organization, has announced a probe into the
August 4 explosion in order to hide the reality that lies behind the blast,” he
added.
At least 190
people died, more than 6,500 others were injured, and a substantial swathe of
Beirut was destroyed in the explosion caused by some 2,700 tonnes of ammonium
nitrate at the port.
“They’re after
hiding the truth similar to what happened in the case of former prime minister
Rafiq Hariri’s assassination,” Wakim said. He was referring to a 2005 explosion
in Beirut that killed the ex-premier and others, setting off a supposedly
United Nations-backed investigation and an endless trend of questions.
Future will
prove Washington’s role in the tragedy, Wakim added, saying the Americans sent
French President Emanuel Macron to Lebanon to prevent the implementation of an
innovative Russo-Chinese intervention in the aftermath of the explosion.
Macron first
visited Beirut soon after the explosion and paid another visit to the city last
Tuesday, dishing out ultimatums to the Lebanese officials to implement
“reforms” or face “sanctions.”
The explosion
has been followed by serious other upheavals in the country, including
thousands-strong rallies, attempts at breaking into the parliament by the
protesters, and the resignation of the entire government of former prime
minister Hasan Diab.
The Lebanese
resistance movement of Hezbollah that defends the country against Israel and
interventionist efforts by Tel Aviv’s allies, most notably the United States,
has called for accountability for the explosion, while strongly urging
countrywide unity and integrity.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/07/633509/Lebanon-United-States-Israel-spy-agencies-Beirut-explosion
--------
Iraqi
Parliament’s Defense Commission Opposes Direct Talks with Turkey
Sep 06, 2020
Chairman of the
Security and Defense Commission Mohammadreza Al-e Haider was quoted by the
Arabic-language Wa’a news agency as saying on Sunday that Turkey’s insistence
on violation of Iraq’ sovereignty leaves the parliament with no other choice
but to oppose direct talks.
“Our
precondition for talks is Turkey’s withdrawal from the Iraqi borderlines which
is now under occupation,” he added.
Al-e Haider
called for an extraordinary meeting of the AL or the OIC to study the issue.
Meantime,
another member of the Commission, Kate’e Najman al-Rakabi, called on the Iraqi
government to file a complaint at the UN Security Council against Turkey.
Turkey resumed
airstrikes on the Yazidi heartland of Sinjar in Northern Iraq on Aug. 25 after
first attacking the area in mid-June. Turkish airstrikes have been going on for
months in other parts of Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
The Turkish
drone struck an Iraqi border guard convoy in the Bradost area, North of Erbil.
The strike that killed two senior officers was part of Turkish operations by
land and air against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in parts of the
Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Following the
incident, Iraq’s Foreign Ministry summoned Turkey’s Ambassador to Iraq Fatih
Yildiz Aug. 12, calling the strike an act of aggression and a violation of the
country’s sovereignty. The Iraqi government canceled the Turkish defense
minister’s visit to Baghdad and other scheduled visits by Turkish officials to
Iraq.
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990616000917
--------
Street in Beirut
renamed after slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, photos suggest
Yaghoub Fazeli
September 07,
2020
A street in the
Hezbollah-dominated southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital Beirut has been
renamed after slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, according to images
shared on social media.
Images of a
street sign in Beirut that read “Martyr Hajj Qassem Suleimani Street” emerged
on Twitter on Sunday, drawing criticism from Arab and Lebanese users.
The street,
previously named “Fantasy World,” was renamed by the Ghobeiry municipality in
Beirut’s southern suburbs, an area known as “dahiyeh” that has often been
described as a Hezbollah stronghold.
By law, street
name changes in Lebanon must be approved by the country’s interior ministry. It
is unclear whether the ministry has approved the name change in this case.
Some Arab and
Lebanese users have criticized the name change, interpreting it as another sign
of Iran’s influence in Lebanon.
“If it could,
the Ghobeiry municipality would rename the capital Beirut ‘Hajj Qassem
Soleimani’,” one Lebanon-based journalist tweeted in Arabic.
Shia Lebanese
cleric Muhammad Ali al-Hussaini, who is critical of Iran and Hezbollah,
described the name street name in an Arabic tweet as a “provocation” and “a
blatant challenge to the feelings of the Lebanese and Arabs who know Soleimani
as a terrorist who left his destructive stamp in a large number of Arab
countries.”
Soleimani, who
headed the Quds Force, the overseas arms of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps (IRGC), was killed by a US airstrike at Baghdad’s international airport
on January 3.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/07/Street-in-Beirut-renamed-after-slain-Iranian-general-Qassem-Soleimani-photos-suggest
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North America
US, Israel
building a ring of fire around Iran: Former American diplomat
05 September
2020
By J. Michael
Springmann
In my view, the
basis for Jared Kushner's trips to the Middle East can be divided into two
parts:
One, of course, is his support for Israel and his
efforts to end the Palestinian problem for the Israelis by getting Arab states
to disavow support for the Palestinians and to ensure that their interests --
their rulers' interests, rather -- are best served by trade and diplomatic
deals with the Israelis. The Apartheid Entity has been working for years to
establish relationships with the United Arab Emirates, and, apparently, from
what I've seen, they've been trying to do the same thing with a number of other
countries in the region. Certainly,
there's been plenty of cooperation between the Israelis and the Saudis. It
wasn't that long ago that the Saudis permitted EL AL overflights to India, and
they permitted the overflight of the plane carrying Israeli officials and Jared
Kushner along with US national security adviser Robert O’Brien, former U.S.
envoy for Iran Brian Hook, and envoy for Middle Eastern affairs Avi Berkowitz
to the United Arab Emirates.
But, Two, I
think the major point of all this, for the which Palestinian problem is simply
a cover, is that Trump is reacting to his repeated defeats in the United
Nations. He is attempting to put more sanctions
on Iran and trying a snapback of the weapons sanctions against Iran that are
going to expire in October, just next month. So I think what they're trying to
do is show Trump is opposing Iran and bypassing the United Nations, bypassing
the wishes of many Americans. Although I
think there are too many Americans who support Israel and its goals.
The real issue is to ring Iran with a group of
hostile Arab States under the flag of Israel, with United States and Saudi
Arabia support. Certainly the (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council, set up by the
Saudis back, I think, in the 1980s, comprises some of the most repressive,
repulsive and medieval governments in the world. And they oppress their own
people. They object to any kind of democracy. They object to giving any kind of
aid and comfort to their Shia populations. And they all detest and despise Iran
and will do anything to harm Iran. And Trump and Israel are working hard to present a United Front
against Iran throughout the Arabian Peninsula. You've got American bases, of
course, in Kuwait, and in Bahrain - the home of the Fifth Fleet, which has no
business being in the Persian Gulf. So, I think you're going to see American
bases or Arab bases all along the southern shore of the Persian Gulf, and they're
all going to be aimed at Iran. Certainly, at Al Udeid Air Base, there's some
10,000 American servicemen and it has runways long enough for the largest
American bombers like the antiquated B52. So the whole purpose, then , is to
ring Iran with fire, either American fire or Israeli and Arab fire. I can't see
how any Arab states can do this but then these are not Arab states. They're
statelets. They are leftover from the British occupation of the region in the
19th century, and they are basically lines drawn on the map rather than real
countries. Prior to discovering oil, the primary basis for their economies was
pearl diving.
So, I think that
you're forging alliances with countries
that are divorced from their own people. Hopefully, in the future, the people
will rise up against their oppressive rulers and put an end to this nonsense
the American cooked up. Unfortunately,
now, the program seems to be going very
well and Kushner and company are bragging that they assume more Arab states
will be joining the United Arab Emirates.
Obviously you'll see Saudi Arabia in there. While they
have been coy about what their plans, they are the controlling force in
the region and they've been negotiating secretly with the Israelis for years. I
think that they will eventually get control 0of the entire Peninsula, with the
exception of Yemen, that the Saudis and the UAE have not yet destroyed.
Unfortunately, it's a very bad future
from a very bad scenario. We can only
hope that the people will rise up in the Persian Gulf countries and overthrow
their corrupt, incompetent, illegitimate
governments, thus putting an end to this (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council.
J. Michael
Springmann is a former American diplomat, and political commentator based in
Washington, DC. He had formerly worked
at the US Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration and as a
diplomat with the US Department of State. He had been assigned to Germany,
India, Saudi Arabia, and the Bureau of Intelligence and Research in Washington,
DC.
He’s the author
of two books, Visas for Al Qaeda: CIA Handouts That Rocked the World: An
Insider's View and Goodbye, Europe? Hello, Chaos?: Merkel's Migrant Bomb.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/05/633401/US,-Israel-attempting-to-establish-a-ring-of-fire-around-Iran
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Healing
Black-Jewish and Muslim-Jewish divides
September 4,
2020
Ari Gordon
(RNS) — Some in
our communities consider our friendship peculiar. What could an Orthodox Jewish
academic from New York and an African American imam raised in North Carolina
have in common?
But over the
years we have built trust on a foundation of mutual respect and joint action.
We visit, learn about, and teach in one another’s faith communities. We stand
in solidarity when the other’s people are attacked. Above all, we nurture a
bond of brotherhood through our shared human experience.
We have been
pained to see a growing rift between African Americans and American Jews, as
loud — even if not representative — voices hurl conspiratorial accusations and
hateful rhetoric.
Those in our
communities and without who prefer to sow seeds of division for political gain
often trade on the lack of personal connections between the two communities and
perceptions that are too often built upon ignorance of the other. For Jews and
Muslims, meanwhile, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict presents a further
challenge on the path toward Black-Jewish unity.
To counter these
sources of division, we support initiatives such as #BlackJewishUnityWeek, a
new collaboration of the American Jewish Committee and the National Urban
League that begins Monday (Sept. 7). This partnership extends a proud history
of shared struggle for civil rights to help America fulfill its promise of
equal opportunities and justice for all.
But rapprochement
between African Americans and Jews also carries the potential to bridge divides
between Jews and African American Muslims, who make up 20% of all Muslims in
the U.S. We can draw on shared religious values, a common empathy for the
downtrodden, and a dire need for allies in the parallel fights against
anti-Semitism and racism.
Our respective
religious heritage, a pillar of identity for both groups, mandates that we
embrace diversity, oppose inequity, elevate justice and encourage partnership.
The Quran
teaches that from a single soul Almighty God created diverse expressions of
human life — "male and female, nations and tribes” — to stimulate our
curiosity to know one another and that differences in our “tongues and colors”
point to God’s greatness. The Talmud echoes the sentiment when it explains that
humanity was created from a single person, Adam, to affirm the unity of the
Creator, the equality of all, so that we might marvel in the sacred splendor of
our diversity.
The holy texts
of both traditions are replete with calls to justice, as when the Quran
proclaims that “God’s word is fulfilled in truth and justice” and when the
prophet Zachariah demands “justice with truth, and mercy towards one
another."
In America,
great leaders of our communities manifested these values in action. Rabbi
Abraham Joshua Heschel taught that “no religion is an island” and demonstrated
just what he meant by marching alongside the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in
Selma. Imam W. Deen Mohammed, the American Muslim leader who passed away in
2008, regularly preached the unity of the human family, an ideal that
underpinned his rejection of racial supremacy and his decades of active
interfaith cooperation with Jews and Christians.
Both of our
communities know suffering, whether it be exile, genocide, slavery or
discrimination. Neither of our communities' experiences as Americans or people
of faith can be fully articulated without reference to oppression.
The two of us
feel this heritage personally: One of us descends from enslaved Africans, torn
from their homes and robbed of their humanity, mistreated, oppressed and
degraded; the other from survivors of the Holocaust, their culture decimated
and families exterminated by Nazi hatred and barbarism. We reject competitive victimization.
Rather, our legacies of oppression call us to empathy with those in pain and to
action.
Year after year
the FBI reports that anti-Black violence dominates race-based hate crimes in
our country. Jews remain the major target of crimes based upon victims’
religion, while Muslims experienced the greatest increase in hate crimes in
three of the last four years.
To push back
against the rise in hate crimes, we joined the Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council
(MJAC), co-convened by AJC and the Islamic Society of North America. MJAC’s
work to fight prejudice and bridge social divides is a tangible expression of
our religious values and the lessons of oppression in action.
As American Jews
and African American Muslims, we can dispense with the toxicity of mutual
suspicion and reciprocal disparagement to write a new chapter of
cooperation.
It is our hope
that our partnership might bless this country as Imam Mohammad did in 1992,
when he offered the first invocation by a Muslim before the U.S. Senate, that
America “live as a prosperous nation of ‘many in one’ and as a people of faith
taking pride in human decency, industry and service,” and that “her big heart
for charity, compassion, repentance, and mercy continue to beat strongly within
all of us.”
https://religionnews.com/2020/09/04/healing-black-jewish-and-muslim-jewish-divides/
--------
India
‘Pakistan, China
Planning Against Us’: BSF Chief to Jawans On Visit to LoC
Ravi Krishnan
Khajuria
Sep 07, 2020
On the last leg
of his three-day visit to Jammu region, director general of Border Security
Force Rakesh Asthana visited Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri and Poonch sector
underscoring the force being the first line of defence on the border, urging it
to be wary as both “China and Pakistan are planning against us”.
Though the Army
has the operational command of the 744-km long LoC, the BSF has also been
deployed to assist the former.
“On Sunday, the
third day of his visit, Director General of Border Security Force, Rakesh
Asthana visited various forward defence locations in Poonch and Rajouri sector
and took stock of the situation. He was accompanied by SS Panwar, ADG (WC) and
NS Jamwal, IG BSF, Jammu Frontier,” said an official spokesperson.
The DG was
briefed by ID Singh, DIG Rajouri and field commanders on the LoC regarding the
operational preparedness and situation.
Appreciating the
measures adopted by the troops while maintaining domination, the DG emphasised
on meeting the security challenges more effectively.
Lauding the
excellent synergy amongst all the security forces, the DG exhorted all ranks to
maintain a high standard of discipline and professionalism.
He also
addressed Sainik Sammelan in the BSF Paloura Camp Jammu and said that since
Pakistan and China were planning against India, the BSF’s role became more
important in guarding the borders.
“This is a very
crucial time for all, as both our neighbouring countries are planning against
us. So, our role has become more important now as we are the first line of
Indian defence,” the spokesperson quoted the DG as saying.
He was very
appreciative of the vigilant BSF jawans who guard the nation’s border 24x7
defying all hostile conditions.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/pakistan-china-planning-against-us-bsf-chief-to-jawans-on-visit-to-loc/story-EYkDZLzPuEUwfBQKxq8fOO.html
--------
NIA To Send
Investigative Team To Probe Kabul Gurdwara Attack
By Mohammad
Haroon Alim
07 Sep 2020
India’s National
Investigation Agency will send a team to Kabul to investigate the Gurdwara
attacks in March, which left 27 dead including an Indian citizen.
It’s the first
mission of this agency to probe a terror act against an Indian outside the
country’s soil.
India Today
reported on Sunday, A team of 3 to 4 investigative members will leave for Kabul
to investigate their first mission, following an amendment to the NIA which
allows this agency to investigate terrorism against Indians and Indian
interests abroad.
Due to security
concerns, officials have not provided further detail, but reports show the team
is hopeful to gain access to several prisoners involved in the attack.
The attack on
Gurdwara was claimed by ISIK. The suicide attackers also involve an Indian
doctor affiliated with ISIK -‘Ijas Kallukettiya Purayil’, whose son and wife
are currently in prison in Kabul.
https://www.khaama.com/nia-sends-investigative-team-to-probe-kabul-gurdwara-attack-876654/
--------
J&K: Soldier
killed; 2 others injured as Pakistan violates ceasefire
September 6,
2020
An Indian Army
soldier was killed and two others were injured in firing and mortar shelling by
Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district on
Saturday.
The Army said it
has given a “befitting response to the ceasefire violation”.
According to
officials, Pakistani troops opened fire on Indian positions in the Naugam
sector of Kupwara on Saturday morning. This was followed by intense mortar
shelling on Indian pickets.
Indian soldiers
responded and a soldier was killed and two others were injured during the
exchange.
“Pakistan
initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation (CFV) along the LoC in Naugam sector
in the morning of September 5 by firing mortars and other weapons,” Defence
spokesman Col Rajesh Kalia said, adding, “One soldier laid down his life in the
line of duty. Two soldiers sustained injuries and have been evacuated to 92
Base Hospital (in Srinagar). Their condition in stable.”
Sources said the
exchange of fire and mortars was intense and rare in this sector. While there
has been a surge in cross-LoC firing in Jammu’s Rajouri and Poonch sectors, the
Valley has relatively seen fewer such incidents.
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/jk-soldier-killed-2-others-injured-as-pakistan-violates-ceasefire-6584851/
--------
Europe
UK could explore
arms embargo as option to bring Iran into line: Defense Minister
Tommy Hilton and
Omar Elkatouri
06 September
2020
The UK could
explore the option of extending the arms embargo on Iran as a means of bringing
Tehran’s destabilizing regional behavior into line, said the UK’s Secretary of
State for Defense Ben Wallace, despite the country voting against the US
proposal to extend the embargo at the UN Security Council.
In a
wide-ranging exclusive interview with Al Arabiya, Wallace discussed how the UK
still believes in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as the best way of containing
Iran’s threat to the region, despite the Iranians breaching the deal and the US
withdrawing from it.
For all the
latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Although the UK
voted against extending the current UN arms embargo on Iran along with Germany
and France, Wallace told Al Arabiya that an arms embargo is a tool that the UK
government could explore in the future.
“Whoever
breaches it [the Iran nuclear deal], causes us problems so we have to try and
get to a place where we bring people back into line. Returning to the arms
embargo, or not lifting the arms embargo, it is one of the tool that we can all
explore. For now we are trying to bring them back into compliance. The arms embargo
doesn’t come out for a few weeks, that is where we can make other decisions,”
he said.
Wallace also
clarified that the UK would not have a military relationship with Iran
regardless of the lifting of the arms embargo, and had not sold arms to Tehran
for many years due to its support for terrorism and destabilizing activities.
“Iran’s behavior
in the region, supporting terrorism, it’s supporting terrorism, it’s supporting
destabilizing activities around the region everywhere from the Lebanese
Hezbollah, all the way to the Houthis in Yemen. All of that means the UK is not
in any way interested in engaging with military cooperation with Iran or arms
sales that are currently threatening all of our shipping in the Strait of
Hormuz,” he said.
The arms embargo
is set to expire on October 18, 2020.
Deep, historic
relations with Saudi Arabia
Wallace also
said that the UK and Saudi Arabia have deep, historic relations ahead of his
upcoming visit to the Kingdom.
“We have been
side by side nearly a hundred years on many issues, Saudi Arabia and the United
Kingdom. Our relationship is deep, it’s long and it is not just about defense
industrial sales and defense partnering,” he told Al Arabiya.
The UK helps
keep Saudi Arabia safe from attacks by Iran or the Iran-backed Houthi militia
in Yemen, explained Wallace, adding that the UK would continue to sell arms to
Saudi Arabia.
Wallace is set
to visit the Kingdom this week, where he will meet with Saudi Arabia's deputy
defense minister and a range of other defense and military officials and
partners.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/features/2020/09/06/UK-could-explore-arms-embargo-as-option-to-bring-Iran-into-line-Defense-Minister
--------
UN chief warns
of famine risk in four conflict-struck countries, including Yemen
05 September
2020
UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that there is a risk of famine and
widespread food insecurity in four countries affected by conflict - Congo,
Yemen, northeast Nigeria and South Sudan - and the lives of millions of people
are in danger.
In a note to
Security Council members obtained by The Associated Press on Friday, the UN
chief said the four countries rank “among the largest food crises in the
world,” according to the 2020 Global Report on Food Crises and recent food
security analyses. But funding to help is very low, he said.
“Action is
needed now,” Guterres said. “Having endured years of armed conflict and related
violence, the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen, northeast
Nigeria and South Sudan are again facing the specter of heightened food
insecurity and potentially famine.”
For all the
latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The UN chief
said key indicators “are similarly deteriorating” in a number of other
conflict-hit countries including Somalia, Burkina Faso and Afghanistan.
“The situation
varies from country to country, but civilians are being killed, injured and
displaced; livelihoods are destroyed; and availability of and access to food
disrupted, amid growing fragility,” Guterres said. “At the same time,
humanitarian operations are attacked, delayed or obstructed from delivering
life-saving assistance.”
He said food
insecurity in conflict-affected countries “is now further exacerbated by
natural disasters, economic shocks and public health crises, all compounded by
the COVID-19 pandemic.”
UN humanitarian
chief Mark Lowcock said in an interview with AP that the economic fallout from
the pandemic including lock downs, border closures and restrictions on movement
have all had “a big effect on food security and agricultural productivity.”
And extremists
have taken the opportunity “to make hay out of all this,” he said.
“Everybody is
very preoccupied by COVID and the virus,” Lowcock said. But “it is not the
virus that’s creating most of the carnage. It is other things, and we need to
focus on the things that will really cause the biggest loss of life.”
Lowcock said
many of those things are consequences of COVID-19 – the economic contraction,
the declining availability of basic public services, “the insecurity into which
extremist groups are occupying themselves.”
He said a lot of
effort has gone into things like providing personal protective equipment,
public information campaigns on the virus, water and sanitation campaigns, “all
of which are good things.”
“But if you do
those at the expense of basic humanitarian needs in these badly affected
places, what you end up with is not a reduction in loss of life but an increase
in loss of life,” Lowcock said.
He said having
four countries meet the requirement in a 2018 Security Council resolution to
report to the council when the risk of conflict-induced famine and widespread
food insecurity occurs is highly significant.
According to the
secretary-general’s note, escalating violence in volatile eastern Congo “is
again driving disastrous levels of food insecurity and hunger,” and the latest
analysis “indicates that over 21 million people are in crisis or worse levels
of acute food insecurity.”
With only 22
percent of the UN humanitarian appeal currently funded, Guterres said, “core
programs will need to be reduced or suspended.”
In Yemen, where
the international community mobilized to prevent famine two years ago, he said,
“the risk is slowly returning.” Escalating conflict and economic decline
brought the Arab world’s poorest nation to the brink of famine two years ago,
and similar conditions and worsening key indicators are emerging today, he
said.
A recent survey
indicated that 3.2 million people in government-controlled areas are now
“highly food insecure,” and food prices are 140 percent higher than averages
before the conflict began in 2015, Guterres said. “But with only 24 percent of
humanitarian requirements funded in 2020, agencies are now forced to reduce or
close core programs.”
In northeast
Nigeria’s Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, he said, “alarming levels of food
insecurity and hunger have arisen largely as a result of the actions” of
extremists affiliated with armed groups.
Guterres said
estimates suggest more than 10 million people in the three states - about 80
percent of the population - need humanitarian assistance and protection, an
almost 50 percent increase since last year and the highest recorded since
humanitarian operations began. Yet, the UN appeal is only 33 percent funded,
its lowest level, he said.
In South Sudan’s
Jonglei and Greater Pibor administrative area, Guterres said the situation
deteriorated rapidly in the first half of 2020, “fueled by escalating violence
and insecurity,” Guterres said.
Fighting has
been accompanied by widespread attacks on agricultural and pastoral land and
the looting of livestock and food, leaving more that 1.4 million people in the
area “facing crisis or worse levels of acute food insecurity, he said. In
addition, at least 350,000 children suffer from severe or moderate acute
malnutrition.”
Guterres said
the latest outlook from the Famine Early Warning Systems Network “is flagging
worsening catastrophe conditions ... in areas affected by the violence.”
Lowcock said
“there’s a paradox” because overall UN humanitarian funding is ahead of 2019,
which was a record year.
“But the money
is not following the greatest need,” he said. “Some of our appeals are
relatively well funded, but some of the places where the problems are worst are
poorly funded - Nigeria, Yemen, Congo, they’re all in that category.”
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/05/UN-chief-warns-of-famine-risk-in-four-conflict-struck-countries-including-Yemen
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Turkish defense
chief to meet senior NATO official
Sarp Ozer
07.09.2020
Turkey's defense
minister on Monday will meet with the head of the NATO Military Committee.
Hulusi Akar and
NATO's Stuart Peach will gather at the National Defense Ministry building in
the capital Ankara.
The meeting
comes after NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced Friday that talks
had started between Turkey and Greece to resolve tensions over the Eastern
Mediterranean.
On Thursday,
Stoltenberg had said that Ankara and Athens agreed to enter into technical
talks at NATO to reduce the risk of incidents and accidents in the Eastern
Mediterranean, which the Greek government denied later on.
Greece has
disputed Turkey's current energy exploration in the region, trying to box in
Turkish maritime territory based on small islands near the Turkish coast.
Turkey -- the
country with the longest coastline on the Mediterranean -- has sent out drill
ships to explore for energy on its continental shelf, saying that Turkey and
the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) have rights in the region.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/turkish-defense-chief-to-meet-senior-nato-official/1965130
--------
Palestine:
Serbia moving embassy to Jerusalem illegal
Mustafa Talha
Öztürk
05.09.2020
The announcement
by Serbia to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is contrary to
international law and UN resolutions, Palestine's ambassador to Belgrade said
Friday.
Mohammed
Nabhan's remarks came after Washington announced Serbia is committed to moving
its embassy.
"That is,
as far as it happens, contrary to international law and to
UN resolutions
relating to the Palestinian question and to Jerusalem as an occupied city and
that it harms the rights of the Palestinian People to exercise its state in all
the territories that Israel occupied in 1967 including Jerusalem," said a
statement from the embassy.
Harmful to
Serbia-Palestine friendship
Nabhan said the
decision would strain relations between the two countries.
"There is
no doubt that this would harm the traditional friendship between Palestine and
Serbia and would not serve this development," said Nabhan, adding that he
is considered a friend to Serbia and the Serbian people and he is hoping
friendly Serbia would distance itself from statements form Washington.
Serbian and
Kosovar leaders met in a US-sponsored two-day dialogue in Washington where they
reached an historic milestone -- agreeing to normalize economic ties.
Serbia and
Kosovo signed separate agreements with the US in which Serbia agreed to move
its embassy to Jerusalem. Kosovo and Israel agreed to normalize relations and
establish diplomatic ties.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/palestine-serbia-moving-embassy-to-jerusalem-illegal/1963692
--------
South Asia
Rohingya tour
islet marked for relocation by Bangladesh
SM Najmus
Sakib
05.09.2020
DHAKA,
Bangladesh
Bangladesh on
Saturday took a group of Rohingya refugees to inspect a tiny islet near its
coast, where it hopes to relocate the persecuted community despite widespread
criticism of the plan.
A total of 40
Rohingya refugees were taken to Bhashan Char, an islet in the Bay of Bengal
around 50 kilometers (31 miles) off Bangladesh’s southwestern coast.
Accompanied by
Bangladesh army and navy personnel, the Rohingya community members will remain
on the islet for three days.
“They will have
the chance to thoroughly inspect the island and the facilities constructed by
the Bangladesh government, which include buildings that can house up to 100,000
people,” said Mohammad Shamsu Douza, a top official working on refugee affairs
in Bangladesh.
“The group can
evaluate the living conditions and decide whether the land is suitable for
relocation.”
There are around
1.2 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh who sought shelter in the country
after fleeing state persecution and genocide in neighboring Myanmar.
They have been
living in one of the world’s largest refugee settlements in Cox’s Bazar in
southeastern Bangladesh.
Dhaka has been
pressing for the community to return to Myanmar but the Rohingya oppose
repatriation due to persisting threats to their lives.
Prickly proposal
Bangladesh came
up with a plan to relocate the community to the Bhashan Char islet, but the
move has been widely criticized by rights groups and refugee agencies.
Some have said
the new location will be nothing but “an open-air prison” for the Rohingya
community.
The group taken
to the islet on Saturday did not include any representatives from international
organizations, a point that Douza refused to comment on.
However, he
claimed that Bangladesh remains keen to facilitate a visit of UN agencies to
the island.
A UN official
told Anadolu Agency that any relocation must be voluntary and can only commence
after a thorough evaluation by competent authorities.
“The UN’s
longstanding position remains that comprehensive technical and protection
assessments to evaluate the safety and sustainability of life on Bhasan Char
are essential before any relocations to the island take place, and that any
relocations should be voluntary,” said Mostafa Mohammad Sazzad Hossain, a UN
Refugee Agency (UNHCR) communications officer in Dhaka.
“Go-and-see
visits are one important part of ensuring refugees can make an informed choice
about voluntary relocation to the island. The safety and protection of refugees
are the most important considerations, as is the need for any relocation to be
voluntary.”
He said the
agency remains “prepared to proceed with this onsite assessment work.”
“However, the
UNHCR has neither been involved in this visit nor [was it] requested to support
it,” Hossain said.
World’s most
persecuted people
According to
Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and
children, fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched
a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017, pushing their
number in Bangladesh above 1.2 million.
Since Aug. 25,
2017, nearly 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar’s state
forces, according to a report by the Ontario International Development Agency
(OIDA).
More than 34,000
Rohingya were also thrown into fires, while over 114,000 others were beaten,
said the OIDA report, titled Forced Migration of Rohingya: The Untold
Experience.
As many as
18,000 Rohingya women and girls were raped by Myanmar’s army and police, and
over 115,000 Rohingya homes were burned down, while 113,000 others were
vandalized, it added.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/rohingya-tour-islet-marked-for-relocation-by-bangladesh/1964208
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Afghan
government troops repel Taliban offensive in Kandahar
06 September
2020
Afghan security
forces have repelled an overnight attack by the Taliban and killed at least 10
members of the militant group in the southern province of Kandahar.
Afghanistan's
Defense Ministry said Sunday the fatalities took place in the Shah Wali Kot
district of Kandahar late Saturday and that the Taliban’s “attack was pushed
back by the security forces.”
Security forces,
he said, also destroyed four Taliban motorbikes.
In recent weeks,
the Taliban have staged almost daily battlefield attacks across various parts
of the war-ravaged country.
Last Thursday,
the militants killed four civilians during clashes with Afghan forces in the
central flood-hit Parwan province. At least one Afghan soldier was reportedly
killed and two others were injured in the fierce fighting in the troubled
region.
The spike in
violence comes as talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government have
stalled again in the wake of a controversial prisoner swap.
The exchange,
part of a deal between the Taliban and the United States, was considered a
prelude to peace talks that were initially due to begin between the militants
and Kabul in March.
Under the deal
with the US, the militant group agreed to stop its attacks on foreign forces in
return for the US military’s withdrawal from Afghanistan and the prisoner swap
with the government.
The Afghan
government is a party neither to the negotiations nor to the deal, but it has
been acting in accordance with its terms, including by agreeing to free Taliban
prisoners.
Official data
shows bombings and other assaults by the Taliban have surged 70 percent since
the militant group signed the deal with the United States in February.
Washington
invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban-run government in 2001 on the
pretext of fighting terrorism following the September 11 attacks in New York.
The militants
control more lands than ever since the ouster, while many parts of the country
remain plagued by militancy despite the presence of foreign troops.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633438/Afghan-security-forces-Taliban-attack-Kandahar
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Narayanganj
mosque blast: petition seeks Tk 50 lakh compensation from Titas for each
victim’s family
September 07,
2020
A writ petition
was filed with the High Court today, seeking its order upon the authorities
concerned of Titas Gas Ltd to give Tk 50 lakh in compensation to each family of
victims, who died and suffered injuries from the Narayanganj mosque blast.
Twenty-six
people have so far died and several others suffered injuries from the explosion
at Pashchim Talla Baitus Salam Mosque of Narayanganj after Esha prayers on
Friday.
There has been
widespread allegation that the explosion was caused by gas that leaked from
underground pipeline and accumulated inside the ground floor of the mosque.
Supreme Court
lawyer Mar-um Khondaker submitted the writ petition this morning as a public
interest litigation to the HC, praying to the government to identify the
persons responsible for the negligence in repairing the gas pipeline which
reportedly caused the explosion.
In the petition,
she said officials of Titas Gas Ltd have reportedly sought Tk 50,000 from the
mosque committee to repair the leakage of gas pipeline.
The Titas Gas
Ltd did not repair the gas line as its officials were not given the money,
Mar-um Khondaker told The Daily Star.
The lawyer said
the HC may hold hearing on the writ petition tomorrow.
https://www.thedailystar.net/country/news/narayanganj-mosque-blast-petition-seeks-tk-50-lakh-compensation-titas-each-victims-family-1957241
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Pakistan
Army will win
hybrid war with nation’s help: Bajwa
Aamir Yasin
07 Sep 2020
RAWALPINDI:
Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa has warned against efforts
he said being made to discredit the country and its armed forces and said that
army with the cooperation of the nation will win the “fifth generation or
hybrid war”.
“We are facing
the challenge that has been imposed on us in the form of the fifth generation
or hybrid war. Its purpose is to discredit the country and its armed forces and
spread chaos. We are well aware of this danger. We will surely succeed in
winning this war with the cooperation of the nation, by the will of Almighty
Allah,” Gen Bajwa said at a ceremony held at the General Headquarters on Sunday
as part of celebration of Defence and Martyrs’ Day.
On the occasion,
he conferred awards on military personnel for acts of gallantry during various
operations.
The families of
the martyrs and Ghazis, senior serving officers and soldiers attended the
ceremony. As many as 40 officers were awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz (military), 24
officers and soldiers were awarded Tamgha-i-Basalat and a soldier was awarded
the United Nations Medal. The medals of the martyrs were received by their
family members.
Warns against
efforts to discredit armed forces; rejects any unilateral decision on Kashmir
issue
The army chief
warned against war. “I want to send a message to my nation and the world that Pakistan
is a peace-loving country. But if war is imposed on us, we will befittingly
respond to every aggression. We are always ready to defeat nefarious intentions
of the enemy.”
Gen Bajwa said
the nation had gone through great trials during the past 20 years. There was a
state of war on the eastern and western borders and there were trials like
earthquakes and floods, he said, adding the nation fought a nerve-wracking war
against terrorism and extremism in which thousands were killed and millions
were displaced.
The COAS
underlined that Pakistani security forces had rendered many sacrifices for the
establishment of peace in different parts of the world by becoming part of the
United Nations peacekeeping force.
“We want peace
in the whole world and especially in our region. Pakistan’s key role in peace
efforts in Afghanistan is a testament to that, but our neighbour India has, as
always, taken an irresponsible stance,” he said.
The army chief
said that India by illegally abrogating the special status of illegally
occupied Jammu and Kashmir had once again threatened the peace of the region.
He said there
was no doubt that Kashmir was a recognised dispute and Pakistan did not accept
any unilateral decision in this regard.
He said that
Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had declared Kashmir the jugular vein of
Pakistan. “This is part of our faith. We will not show any flexibility in this
regard.”
“Pakistan’s
armed forces are fully equipped, vigilant and aware. And God willing, they are
ready to respond immediately and with full force to any move of the enemy,” he
said.
The army chief
said that armed forces of Pakistan in September 1965 had defeated an enemy many
times greater in might than it. He said that recently
Pakistan had
again demonstrated this in response to the failed air strike at Balakot and the
enemy should have no doubt about it.
He said Sept 6,
1965 was an indelible chapter in the history of Pakistan. “This is the day when
countless stories of unity of the nation, love of homeland, sacrifice and
bravery were marked in history.”
“It is not just
a day for the nation but evidence to our courage and we also commemorate the
martyrs of 1948, 1965, 1971, the Kargil War and the war on terror,” Gen Bajwa
said.
He paid tribute
to the families of the martyrs and said: “I salute them. I assure them that we
will never forget the sacrifice of their loved ones. Our martyrs are our heroes
and the nations that forget their heroes are annihilated.”
The COAS said
that the entire nation was indebted to the patience and sacrifice of the
families of the martyrs. “Just as the martyrs are the pride of the whole
nation, so are you our pride,” he added.
The army chief
congratulated the officers, junior commissioned officers and soldiers who
received the awards at the ceremony.
“Time has tried
us many times and we have succeeded every time. Pakistan is a living reality.
Our blood, our passion and our actions will bear witness to this on every
front,” he said.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1578234/army-will-win-hybrid-war-with-nations-help-bajwa
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Mideast
Israel, UAE
foreign diplomats meet publicly for first time in Africa
06 September
2020
Foreign envoys
of the UAE and Israel held a meeting in Nigeria on Sunday, marking the first
public meeting between diplomats of the two countries in Africa.
Israeli
Ambassador to Nigeria Shimon Ben-Shoshan received UAE Charge d’Affaires in
Nigeria Khalifa Al Mehrizi, according to videos and photos posted to social
media by the Israeli government.
Ben-Shoshan
greeted Al Mehrizi with the Arabic salutation “salaam alaykum,” translated as
“peace be upon you” in English.
The two
officials were photographed in discussion with Emirati and Israeli flags on a
nearby table.
The meeting,
believed to be the first time foreign diplomats of the UAE and Israel have
convened publicly, follows last week’s historic visit of an Israeli delegation
to the UAE capital city Abu Dhabi.
Israeli and
Emirati representatives from the fields of finance, health, tourism,
investment, foreign policy, diplomacy, tourism, and culture met face-to-face to
discuss future collaborations in the various sectors.
The first
publicly confirmed in-person meeting of Israeli and Emirati officials,
following the establishment of the treaty, occurred last month when UAE
National Security Adviser Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed
bilateral cooperation with Yossi Cohen, head of Israel's foreign intelligence,
the Mossad on August 18.
The peace
agreement between the two countries, announced on August 13, is expected to be
officially signed in Washington in the next two weeks.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/06/Israel-UAE-foreign-diplomats-meet-publicly-for-first-time-in-Africa
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Hamas leader
says group has missiles that can hit Tel Aviv
September 07,
2020
BEIRUT: The
leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas on Sunday warned Israel that his
organization has missiles capable of striking the city of Tel Aviv, Israel’s
commercial and cultural center, and areas beyond it.
Ismail Haniyeh’s
comments during a visit to Lebanon followed an escalation in recent weeks in
which Hamas-affiliated groups fired rockets into Israel and Israeli warplanes
struck areas in the Gaza Strip, which is ruled by Hamas.
Hamas announced
last week that international mediators had brokered a new set of
“understandings” with Israel, halting the latest round of fighting for the time
being in exchange for an easing of Israeli restrictions on the Gaza Strip.
Haniyeh gave a
speech in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ein el-Hilweh near the southern port
city of Sidon, where he received a hero’s welcome by armed men who carried him
on their shoulders.
Haniyeh and a
Hamas delegation met earlier with the leader of the Lebanese militant group
Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, during which they discussed the situation in the
Middle East and the recent normalization of relations between the United Arab
Emirates and Israel, a Hezbollah statement said.
“Our missiles
had a range of several kilometers (miles) from the border with Gaza,” Haniyeh
said. “Today the resistance in Gaza has missiles that can hit Tel Aviv and
beyond Tel Aviv.”
Hamas rockets
have reached Tel Aviv and beyond in previous rounds of fighting, but such
launches are rare and considered a serious escalation by Israel. The seaside
metropolis is located some 70 kilometers (45 miles) north of Gaza.
Israel and Hamas
have fought three wars and several smaller battles over the last 13 years.
Neither side is believed to be seeking war, but any casualties could ignite a
wider conflict.
In recent weeks,
groups affiliated with Hamas launched incendiary balloons into Israel, igniting
farmland in a bid to pressure Israel to ease the blockade it imposed on Gaza
when Hamas seized power in 2007. The group had also fired rockets into Israel
in recent weeks, which was seen as a significant escalation.
Haniyeh was
criticized during his visit by some in Lebanon on social media. One post
sarcastically asked whether it would be better for him to threaten Israel from
the West Bank, which is ruled by the Palestinian Authority and with whom Hamas
has a longstanding feud. Another post said Lebanon has enough problems at the
moment, and doesn’t need Hamas on top of that.
Lebanon is
grappling with its worst economic and financial crisis in decades, and the
capital Beirut was devastated one month ago by a massive explosion, the result
of nearly 3,000 tons of ammonium nitrates igniting at the port. The blast
killed more than 190 and injured thousands.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1730656/middle-east
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Turkey begins
military drills in north Cyprus amid tensions in eastern Mediterranean
06 September
2020
Turkey’s armed
forces on Sunday began annual exercises in the breakaway republic of northern
Cyprus – an entity recognized only by Ankara – as tensions brewed with Greece
in the eastern Mediterranean.
Turkey’s hunt
for gas and oil reserves in waters claimed by Greece has put huge strain on the
relationship between the two NATO members.
Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday raised the stakes and warned Greece:
“They will either understand the language of politics and diplomacy, or on the
field through bitter experiences.”
For all the
latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
NATO said
earlier technical talks would start to avoid incidents between the two
countries’ navies, but Athens said it had not agreed to the talks and Ankara
accused Greece of shunning dialogue.
As the tension
ran high, the Turkish military began its exercises called “Mediterranean Storm”
with the Turkish Cypriot Security Command, Vice President Fuat Oktay said on
Twitter.
“The security
priorities of our country and the TRNC (Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus)
are indispensable,” Oktay said.
The Turkish
defense ministry also tweeted that the exercises, which are due to last until
Thursday, continued “successfully.”
Cyprus is
divided between the Greek Cypriot-run south – an EU member state – and the
Turkish Cypriot north.
Turkey has
stationed tens of thousands of troops in the north of the island since its 1974
invasion, which followed a coup engineered by military rulers in Athens.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/06/Turkey-begins-military-exercises-in-north-Cyprus-amid-tensions-in-eastern-Mediterrane
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Palestinian-Lebanese
alliance: Hamas, Hezbollah put up united front against Israel
06 September
2020
Hamas Political
Bureau chief and Hezbollah secretary general have agreed on further
strengthening of relations and coordination between the Palestinian and
Lebanese resistance movements in the face of growing threats from their common
enemy, Israel.
The meeting came
during a recent visit to Beirut by the Hamas official, Ismail Haniyeh, who has
traveled to the Lebanese capital for the first time in 27 years for an
across-the-board meeting of all Palestinian factions, the Lebanese
Arabic-language online newspaper Elnashra reported on Sunday.
Haniyeh and
Hezbollah chief Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah used the opportunity to address
political and military developments across the Palestinian territories and
Lebanon.
The two
prominent resistance figures also discussed the so-called deal of the century,
the growing trend of normalization between some Arab regimes and Israel as well
as the international Muslim community’s responsibility in the face of these
threats.
The United
States, Israel’s biggest ally, wheeled out the controversial deal this January.
The scheme ensured Tel Aviv of Washington’s support for huge violations against
Palestinians, including the Israeli regime’s annexation of some 30 percent of
the occupied West Bank.
The officials
emphasized the need for the resistance front’s steadiness and strength to
counter these threats facing the Palestinians and the broader Muslim world.
In a statement,
Hezbollah said the two resistance leaders insisted that relations between their
movements must be characterized by strength and cooperation.
The groups’ ties
“have been founded on the principles of faith, brotherliness, Jihad (struggle
on the path of God), common destiny, and expansion of [standing] cooperation
and coordination mechanisms between them,” it added.
Hamas missiles
can raze Tel Aviv and beyond: Haniyeh
In a related
development, Haniyeh said later on Sunday that Hamas is in possession of
missiles, which can raze to the ground not only the Israeli capital city, but
many areas of the occupied territories beyond that.
“The resistance
front has missiles in the Gaza Strip with, which can raze Tel Aviv and areas
beyond that to the ground,” Haniyeh said while touring a Palestinian refugee
camp in Lebanon.
He noted that
the enemy of the Palestinian nation must know that Palestinians will neither
forget, nor forgive the historical injustice done to them.
“We will never
forget the right of return [to our homeland] regardless of how much sacrifice
it needs [to be realized],” the Hamas leader said.
Haniyeh added
that the normalization process that has begun in the region is not
representative of the real position of the regional nations, noting, “Palestine
still has its special place in the conscience of nations.”
The movements
have spearheaded resistance efforts against Israeli aggression in their
respective nations.
Hamas defends
the Gaza Strip against Israel. Tel Aviv has taken the Palestinian territory
under incessant attacks, three all-out wars, and a crippling siege since 2007.
Hezbollah has
also fought off two Israeli wars targeting Lebanon in the 2000s, each time
forcing the Israeli military into a retreat.
During the trip,
Haniyeh also met with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and caretaker
prime minister Hassan Diab.
The plenary
gathering of the Palestinian factions also featured emphasis on the same points
raised during Haniyeh and Nasrallah’s meeting.
A final
statement issued after the Palestinian event warned that the threats posed to
the Palestinian nation by Tel Aviv, Washington, and the Arab regimes sought to
undermine the main principles of the Palestinian cause.
The principles
being targeted, the statement added, included the Palestinians’ right to an
independent state “on all occupied Palestinian territories” as well as Gaza,
and the right of the Palestinian refugees to return to their homes.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633434/Palestine-Lebanon-Hamas-Hezbollah-meeting-Haniyeh-Nasrallah-Israel-United-States-Arab-regimes
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Sanctions
against Turkey on EU table over Greece tensions: France
06 September
2020
France says
sanctions against Turkey are on the table during an upcoming meeting of the
European Council as tensions with Greece deepen.
Foreign Minister
Jean-Yves Le Drian made the comment on Sunday, adding that he and his
counterparts in other member states of the European Union (EU) had already
discussed “the range of reprisals we could take with regards to Turkey”, whose
conflict with neighboring Greece and Cyprus is ratcheting up.
Turkey and
Greece, both NATO members, have been embroiled in a long-running territorial
dispute in the eastern Mediterranean over the region's rich resources.
On August 10,
Turkey began a military-backed hydrocarbon exploration venture in waters
between Greece and Cyprus, escalating tensions in a strategic corridor.
Infuriated
Greece responded with naval drills to defend its maritime territory. Siding
with Athens, French frigates and fighter jets have already been deployed in the
region.
There have been
encounters between Turkish vessels and those of rival Greece.
Cyprus, for its
part, has accused Turkey of breaching its sovereignty by drilling in the
waters. All sides have deployed naval and air forces to assert their competing
claims.
Le Drian, during
an interview with France Inter radio, also urged Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan to begin talks over its Eastern Mediterranean ambitions between now and
the European Council meeting, which is scheduled to be held on September 24 and
25.
“It's up to the
Turks to show that this matter... can be discussed,” the French foreign
minister further said. “If so, we can create a virtuous circle for all the
problems on the table.”
Le Drian,
however, did not specify the nature of the possible sanctions against Ankara,
but noted that there was an “entire series of measures.”
“We are not
short of options, and he knows that,” he further said, referring to the Turkish
president.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633482/France-Turkey-sanctions-European-Counci-Greece-Cyprus
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Palestinian
shot, detained over alleged stabbing attack in West Bank
06 September
2020
Israeli forces
have wounded and taken into custody a Palestinian young man over an alleged
stabbing attack in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli
occupation forces claimed that the Palestinian had approached a group of
soldiers outside the illegal settlement of Ariel in Salfit district and
attempted to stab them before running away on Sunday afternoon.
The young man
was shot in the leg and arrested a short distance from the area.
The Times of
Israel newspaper quoted a military source as saying in a statement that the
regime forces chased after the assailant "and performed an arrest, which
included gunfire, and detained him.”
No Israeli
soldiers were injured during the encounter in the northern West Bank.
The Israeli
police fatally shot a 17-year-old Palestinian in the occupied Old City of
Jerusalem al-Quds last month for his role in an alleged stabbing attack which
Tel Aviv claimed had injured two.
Human rights
groups have repeatedly criticized the Tel Aviv regime for its shoot-to-kill
policy as a large number of the Palestinians killed at the scene of the alleged
attacks did not pose serious threats to Israelis.
Israeli troops
have on numerous occasions been caught on camera brutally killing Palestinians,
with the videos going viral online and sparking international condemnation.
The Sunday
incident comes as anger is boiling in the Middle East and elsewhere over a
recent agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to normalize
diplomatic relations, with Palestinian leaders describing it as a “stab in the
back” by an Arab country.
Dozens of people
raided the UAE embassy in the Libyan capital city of Tripoli last month to
express their outrage over the normalization pact between the Persian Gulf
country and Tel Aviv.
Various
Palestinian factions in the occupied West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip have
roundly condemned the normalization deal between the UAE and the Tel Aviv
regime.
The occupied
Palestinian territories have witnessed new tensions ever since US President
Donald Trump announced his decision on December 6, 2017 to recognize Jerusalem
al-Quds as Israel’s "capital" and relocate the US embassy in Israel
from Tel Aviv to the occupied city.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633479/Israel-stabbing-Ariel-settlement
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Over two dozen
Palestinian prisoners injured in Israeli raids in Ofer prison
06 September
2020
At least 26
Palestinian inmates have been injured during violent raids on their cells days
after a Palestinian prisoner died in an Israeli prison, local media reports
say.
Palestinian
Prisoner Society (PPS) said on Sunday that the Israeli prison guards raided the
cells and attacked the prisoners at Ofer Prison and Detention Center near West
Bank city of Ramallah.
The jail
authorities also confiscated all electric appliances and their personal
belongings, it added.
The Palestinian
Commission of Detainees’ and Ex-Detainees’ Affairs said that the extremely hot
and humid atmosphere inside Israeli jails has turned the lives of Palestinian
prisoners into a hell.
According to the
commission, the severe heat wave has aggravated the suffering of the
Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli jails, especially in the desert and
coastal prisons, such as Negev, Nafha, Ashkelon, Damon, and Gilboa.
The latest raids
come after a 45-year-old Daoud Talaat Khatib died of heart attack at Ofer
prison on Wednesday night.
Khatib, from the
West Bank city of Bethlehem, was detained by Israeli occupation forces in 2001
and was sentenced to 18 years and 8 months in jail. He was scheduled to
complete his prison sentence and be released on December 4.
The deceased
Palestinian suffered from bad health condition during his detention and in 2017
had a heart attack, but medical negligence by the Israeli prison authorities
contributed to the deterioration of his health until his death.
At least 850
Palestinian prisoners, including minors, are held in Ofer and lately there were
reports of coronavirus cases among some prisoners.
Israel's policy
of medical negligence
The Committee of
Prisoners’ Affairs estimates that at least 225 Palestinians have died in
Israeli jails since 1967, when Israelis occupied the Palestinian territories.
Palestinian
resistance movement Hamas recently blamed "Israel's policy of medical
negligence" for the detainee's death, describing the policy as "a
crime against humanity and a brazen violation of all international law and
norms".
Many Palestinian
inmates are kept in Israeli custody without trial or charge under the so-called
Israeli policy of administrative detention.
Palestinians
complain that they are subjected to assault and torture at Israeli prisons. The
detainees have on many occasions resorted to open-ended hunger strikes to voice
their outrage at dire prison conditions.
In recent
months, several countries and international organizations have called for the
release of Palestinian prisoners with health problems as well as children,
women and elders in Israeli prisons.
Defense for Children
International-Palestine (DCIP) has repeatedly called on the Israeli authorities
to take immediate action to release all Palestinian child detainees.
There have been
growing calls from regional and international rights groups, including the
Europal Forum, to put pressure on the Israeli regime to provide Palestinian
prisoners with enough protection against the COVID-19 pandemic.
On April 6, the
secretary general of the Arab League appealed to the International Committee of
the Red Cross (ICRC) to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners from the
Israeli jails amid rising coronavirus cases in the occupied territories.
Ahmed Abul
Gheit, in a letter addressed to Director General of ICRC Robert Mardini
expressed regret that the Israeli authorities had released some settlers
charged with criminal offenses, but excluded the Palestinian prisoners.
The Palestinian
Foreign Ministry said in March that Tel Aviv must “take full and direct
responsibility for the life and health of the prisoners” as the contagion rages
around the world, including across the occupied Palestinian territories.
Israel to seize
archaeological Palestinian area in occupied West Bank
The Israeli
authorities have also announced measures to seize the ancient ruins of Deir
Samaan, located northwest of the town of Kufr al-Dik, west of the northern West
Bank city of Salfit.
Abdullah Kmail,
the governor of Salfit said that the Israeli occupation authorities had
published an announcement written in Hebrew declaring seizure of the site.
Deir Samaan,
which dates back more than 1,600 years, is an ancient Byzantine village located
on top of a hill 350 meters above sea level with archaeological buildings.
The Israeli
regime has always come up with different excuses to grab Palestinian-owned land
and to continue building and expanding illegal settlements in the occupied
territories.
US President
Donald Trump had already given Tel Aviv the green light for the land grab in
his self-proclaimed “deal of the century,” which was unveiled in January with
the aim of re-drawing the Middle East map.
Palestinian
resistance groups have pledged unity against Israel’s annexation of Palestinian
areas and vowed to “topple” Trump's Middle East plan.
More than
600,000 Israelis live in over 230 settlements built since the 1967 Israeli
occupation of Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem
al-Quds.
All Israeli
settlements are illegal under international law. The UN Security Council has
condemned Israel’s settlement activities in the occupied territories in several
resolutions.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633467/Palestine-West-Bank-PPS--Israel-Ofer-jail-
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Israel to ask US
for advanced weapons after F-35 jets sale to UAE: Report
07 September
2020
Israel will ask
the United States for advanced weapons to maintain Tel Aviv's alleged “military
edge” in the Middle East after it failed to block the sale of American-made
F-35 stealth fighters to the United Arab Emirates, a report says.
Yedioth Ahronoth
newspaper reported on Sunday that Israel’s ministry of military affairs may ask
the US to move forward the supply of advanced weapons systems by one year.
The New York
Times reported on September 3 that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu
has privately gone along with a plan for the US administration to sell advanced
weapons, in particular US-made F-35 stealth fighter jets, to the UAE despite
his public opposition. Netanyahu later denied the report.
On August 31,
Israeli minister of military affairs Benny Gantz said Israel will retain its
alleged “military edge” in the region despite any possible deals, hinting that
Tel Aviv would demand compensation for any arms deal signed between the US and
the UAE.
“We also make
deals with the United States, and we can also get more platforms and systems.
This is not a one-sided deal.”
Gantz and US
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper spoke by telephone on September 4 and discussed
the UAE normalization deal.
“Both leaders
exchanged views on how recent developments will advance shared US-Israeli
defense priorities, and committed to maintaining an open dialogue about
potential avenues for cooperation,” the US Department of Defense said in a
statement.
Israel and the
UAE on August 13 reached a deal that will lead to a full normalization of
diplomatic relations between the two sides, in an agreement apparently brokered
by US President Donald Trump.
The agreement
sparked anger in the Middle East and elsewhere, with Palestinian leaders
describing it as a “stab in the back” by an Arab country.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/07/633515/Israel-US-advanced-weapons-F-35-UAE
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Dozen arrested
as anti-Netanyahu protest turns violent in Jerusalem al-Quds
06 September
2020
Israeli police
have clashed with people protesting against prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu
in Jerusalem al-Quds for the 11th consecutive week, arresting 12 demonstrators.
Thousands of
Israelis marched Saturday night to Paris Square outside Netanyahu’s official
residence, demanding that he resign over corruption charges and his handling of
the coronavirus crisis, which has led to soaring unemployment in the occupied
territories.
Holding banners
reading “Revolution” and “Get out of here,” the protesters projected a sign
aimed at the prime minister on a building reading in Hebrew, “Enough with you.”
Scuffles were
reported as policemen attempted to stop the participants from veering off-path
or crossing barricades.
Police said two
officers were injured as demonstrators tried to bust through a police barrier.
Shortly after midnight,
the crowd was dispersed from Paris Square, with senior Jerusalem al-Quds police
commander Amir Barazani reporting 12 arrests.
The centrist
parliamentary faction Yesh Atid-Telem said in a statement that a group of its
activists and lawmakers joined the rally against the regime.
Reports said
attendance at Saturday’s protest was lower than in previous weeks due to the
scorching weather and the beginning of the school year.
“We got to Paris
Square around 10, and we saw there wasn’t the same amount as last week, we
can’t ignore that,” said Nitzan Ron, who coordinates volunteers for Peace Now
NGO. “But we still saw thousands of people show up, despite coronavirus and the
end of the summer vacation.”
“The future of
the protests is an open question. I hope it works out, that the demonstrations
will continue,” Ron added.
Protesters are
angry with a recent spike in virus infection cases in Israel, which stands at
128,936. The death toll has also passed 1,000 amid a hasty reopening of the
economy in the occupied lands.
They carried
giant submarines, in reference to a massive procurement bribery scandal.
Several of Netanyahu’s associates have been indicated in the so-called
submarine affair.
In addition to
Jerusalem al-Quds, people held similar anti-Netanyahu rallies elsewhere across
the occupied lands at some 300 bridges and major intersections.
Protesters
gathered outside Netanyahu's private home in Caesarea, with former army
commander Major General Noam Tibon attending the event.
"The
corrupted Bibi is the one responsible for the failure that Israel is
experiencing. …These demonstrations will eventually send Bibi home," he
said.
Parallel
gatherings also took place in Hadera and the Arab cities of Taibeh and
Nazareth.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633426/Israel-Benjamin-Netanyahu-protest-Jerusalem
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24 killed in
clashes in northern Yemen
September 07,
2020
More than 20
people were killed in clashes in Yemen’s northern province of Al-Jawf late
Sunday as government troops tried to reclaim positions lost months ago to the
Houthi group.
Yemen’s
internationally recognized government has been fighting the Iran-allied
insurgents since 2014, when the Houthis seized much of the north including the
capital Sanaa.
A government
military source said 16 Houthis and eight loyalists were killed in clashes
Sunday night.
Government
troops captured more than 40 rebels, the source told AFP.
Meanwhile, the
insurgents advanced in the neighbouring Marib governorate, in particular the
Mahliya district, after heavy fighting that also resulted in casualties.
Houthis took
control of the capital of Al-Jawf earlier this year in a strategic advance that
means they now threaten oil-producing Marib province.
Tens of
thousands of people have been killed in the Yemen conflict, which the United
Nations has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
Fighting has
carried on despite repeated calls for a ceasefire to help combat coronavirus,
which health agencies fear could be disastrous in impoverished Yemen.
More than 1,900
cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the country, including 572 deaths.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1730746/middle-east
--------
Southeast Asia
Dewan Negara to
debate Philippine claim to Sabah, says Rais Yatim
Monday, 07 Sep
2020
KUALA LUMPUR,
Sept 7 — The Dewan Negara has allowed for discussion this afternoon an urgent
motion on the Philippine claim to Sabah, said Dewan Negara president Tan Sri
Rais Yatim.
He said the
motion will be debated in accordance with Standing Orders 17(3), with the
proposer allowed to speak for up to 30 minutes and for the government side to
reply within a similar time period.
Rais said he
considered the motion and found that it fulfilled the criteria to be allowed
for debate, namely that the matter is definite, urgent and of public
importance. — Bernama
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/09/07/dewan-negara-to-debate-philippine-claim-to-sabah-says-rais-yatim/1900901
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Nearly 300
Rohingya migrants come ashore in Indonesia
September 7,
2020
LHOKSEUMAWE:
Nearly 300 Rohingya migrants came ashore on Indonesia’s Sumatra island early
Monday, authorities said, in one of the biggest such landings by the persecuted
Myanmar minority in the Muslim-majority nation in years.
The migrants,
including more than a dozen children, were spotted at sea by locals who helped
them land near Lhokseumawe city on Sumatra’s northern coast, according to Munir
Cut Ali, the head of Ujong Blang village.
“We saw a boat
coming ashore in Ujong Blang and so then we helped them land safely,” Ali told
AFP.
At least one
member of the group, which included 102 men, 181 women and 14 children, was ill
and had to be rushed to a local hospital for treatment, said the area’s
military chief Roni Mahendra.
He added that
the group would need to be tested for the coronavirus.
“Later the local
government will find a proper place to house them.”
It was not
immediately clear how long the migrants had been at sea or what type of vessel
they arrived in.
The group was
reported to be the largest to land in Indonesia since at least 2015.
The incident
comes after about 100 Rohingya, mostly women and children, arrived in the same
area in June following what they described as a perilous four-month sea journey
that saw them beaten by traffickers and forced to drink their own urine to stay
alive.
The members of
the Muslim minority said they had set off earlier this year near a Rohingya
refugee camp in Bangladesh, next to their native Myanmar.
Around a million
Rohingya live in cramped and squalid refugee camps in Bangladesh, where human
traffickers also run lucrative operations promising to find them sanctuary
abroad.
Muslim-majority
Indonesia and neighbouring Malaysia are favoured destinations for Rohingya
fleeing persecution and violence in mostly Buddhist Myanmar.
In July,
Malaysian authorities said some two dozen Rohingya migrants feared to have
drowned off the country’s coast after a treacherous boat crossing had been
found alive, hiding in bushes on an island.
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/world/2020/09/07/nearly-300-rohingya-migrants-come-ashore-in-indonesia/
--------
Long Umno
history makes Muhyiddin credible, says analyst
Faiz Zainudin
September 7,
2020
PETALING JAYA:
Muhyiddin Yassin’s public credibility as prime minister is a product of his
long history in Umno, says a political analyst who takes issue with Khairy
Jamaluddin’s assertion that others lack Muhyiddin’s charisma.
Universiti
Teknologi Malaysia lecturer Azmi Hassan said Muhyiddin’s standing in the eyes
of the public came from his days in Umno, not from PPBM, the party he
co-founded after leaving Umno.
“So it is a bit
awkward when Khairy claims that there is no other leader who has enough of a status
to be considered for the prime ministership. There are more people in Umno who
have the right authority,” said Azmi.
He said Umno had
a long history of producing national leaders who rose from the grassroots, and
Muhyiddin was one of them.
Last week,
Khairy, a former Umno Youth leader and minister, was quoted in a news report
saying that an opinion poll on public acceptance of Muhyiddin backed his view
of Muhyiddin’s standing.
There was no one
other than Muhyiddin to head the current government, whether from Umno, PAS or
PPBM. “The question of the (prime minister after the next general election) is
still under discussion,” Khairy had said.
But Azmi said
Khairy’s statement was personal. He speculated on the reasons behind Khairy’s
comment, saying perhaps Khairy did not want to be accused of being interested
in the post himself.
“He is part of
Umno and should be able to assess for himself whether there are competent
leaders in Umno. Maybe Khairy said so because he does not want to be accused of
being biased in favour of Umno. Maybe Khairy does not want the Perikatan
Nasional government to be unstable, which is why he expressed support for
Muhyiddin,” Azmi said.
However,
Khairy’s statement could be read as a challenge to Umno leaders to prove that
the party would trigger a process to produce the best candidate for the prime
ministership.
Another analyst,
Kamarul Zaman Yusoff of Universiti Utara Malaysia, said other Umno and PAS
leaders had not been given the opportunity to lead the country and their
credibility had not been tested.
“Potential
national leaders from Umno and PAS lacked the opportunity to show their mettle
because of Muhyiddin’s performance after being appointed prime minister,”
Kamarul said.
Kamarul said the
question of who would succeed Muhyiddin was not being discussed because of a
wish to avoid politicking, although each political party would definitely have
its own candidate.
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2020/09/07/long-umno-history-makes-muhyiddin-credible-says-analyst/
--------
Africa
Warlord Haftar
again violates Libyan cease-fire
Mucahit
Aydemir
06.09.2020
TRIPOLI, Libya
The Libyan army
said Sunday that warlord Khalifa Haftar again violated a cease-fire deal and
targeted the country’s troops with multiple Grad missiles.
Army sources
told Anadolu Agency the warlord’s militia fired 10 missiles at different army
posts late Saturday in violation of a cease-fire agreement brokered Aug. 21.
The attack did
not cause casualties nor inflict damage on military hardware, said sources.
The army
announced Aug. 27 the first breach of the cease-fire by Haftar’s militia, which
fired more than one dozen Grad rockets at army positions west of Sirte.
Libya has been
torn by civil war since the ouster of late ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
The Government
of National Accord (GNA) was founded in 2015 under a UN-led agreement, but
efforts for a long-term political settlement failed due to a military offensive
by forces loyal to Haftar.
The UN
recognizes Fayez al-Sarraj’s government as the country’s legitimate authority
as Tripoli has battled Haftar's militias since April 2019 in a conflict that
has claimed thousands of lives.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/warlord-haftar-again-violates-libyan-cease-fire-/1964296
--------
Saudi Arabia
denounces ‘terrorist attack’ in Tunisia
Tommy Hilton
06 September
2020
Saudi Arabia
denounced the knife attack that killed a Tunisian National Guard officer and
wounded another in the coastal town of Sousse in a statement published by the official
Saudi Press Agency on Sunday.
Tunisian
authorities announced that a National Guard patrol had been attacked in Sousse,
which is 140 kilometers (80 miles) south of the capital Tunis, on Sunday.
“A patrol of two
National Guard officers was attacked with a knife in the centre of Sousse,”
said a National Guard spokesman, Houcem Eddine Jebali, reported AFP.
“One died as a
martyr and the other was wounded and is hospitalized,” he said, adding that
“this is a terrorist attack”.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/north-africa/2020/09/06/Saudi-Arabia-denounces-terrorist-attack-in-Tunisia
--------
Libya’s warring
sides hold talks in Morocco
06 September
2020
Delegates from
Libya’s rival administrations met for talks Sunday in Morocco, more than two
weeks after the two sides announced a surprise ceasefire.
The meeting,
held at the initiative of Morocco, which had hosted peace talks in 2015 that
led to the creation of the Government of National Accord (GNA), kicked off in
the coastal town of Bouznika, south of Rabat.
Dubbed “Libyan
Dialogue,” the talks brought together five members of the GNA and five from a
parliament headquartered in the eastern Libyan city of Tobruk.
Moroccan Foreign
Minister Nasser Bourita, in remarks before the meeting got underway, said his
country was offering the Libyans “space” to discuss points of contention
dividing them.
“The kingdom is
ready to provide Libyans with a space to discuss (issues), according to their
will, and will applaud them regardless of the outcome,” Bourita said.
“Morocco has no
agenda or initiative to submit” to the two sides, Bourita added.
A solution to
Libya’s crisis must be decided by the Libyans themselves under the auspices of
the UN, he said, before delegates met behind closed doors.
Libya has been
convulsed by political chaos and warfare for much of the period since the 2011
revolution that ousted Muammar Gaddafi.
In June, the GNA
ended a 14-month LNA assault on the capital and forced it to retreat, bringing
a close to months of heavy bombardment.
On August 22,
the rival administrations announced separately that they would cease all
hostilities and hold nationwide elections, drawing praise from world powers.
At a January
summit in Berlin, the main countries involved in the Libyan conflict agreed to
respect an arms embargo and to stop interfering in Libya’s domestic affairs.
But on
Wednesday, the interim UN envoy for Libya, Stephanie Williams, denounced what
she called “blatant” ongoing violations of the arms embargo in the North
African country.
According to an
interim report from UN experts, “the arms embargo remains totally ineffective”
and violations are “extensive, blatant and with complete disregard for the
sanctions.”
Williams said
the UN mission UNSMIL was also receiving reports of the “large-scale presence
of foreign mercenaries and operatives” in Libya, adding that this complicates
chances of a future settlement.
Sunday’s meeting
in Morocco coincided with talks in Istanbul between Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan and GNA head Fayyez al-Sarraj, the Turkish presidency said,
without elaborating.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/north-africa/2020/09/06/Libya-s-warring-sides-hold-talks-in-Morocco
--------
Tunisian police
kill three militants after officer stabbed to death
06 September
2020
Police in
Tunisia have chased and shot dead three militants after they attacked two
police officers, killing one of them.
National Guard
spokesman Houcem Eddine Jebali said a patrol of two National Guard officers was
attacked with a knife in the center of Sousse on Sunday.
"One died
as a martyr and the other was wounded and is hospitalized," he said,
adding "This was a terrorist attack".
The assailants
took the officers’ gun and vehicle, but security forces followed them through
the city's tourist area of El-Kantaoui, said Jebali. He said that in a
firefight three terrorists were killed.
The attack on
security forces came just two days after the government of Prime Minister
Hichem Mechichi took power in the North African country.
Tunisia has been
hit by a spate of militant attacks claimed by the Daesh and al-Qaeda terrorist
groups since 2011, killing dozens of security personnel and foreign tourists.
An attack
against security forces protecting the US Embassy in Tunis killed a Tunisian
police officer and left several others wounded in March.
2015 was a
particularly bloody year, with three major deadly attacks claimed by the Daesh
group.
An attack at the
capital's Bardo museum in March killed 21 foreign tourists and a security
guard.
Just three
months later, 38 foreign tourists were killed in the shooting rampage at
Sousse. And that November, a bomb blast on a bus in central Tunis killed 12
presidential guards.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/06/633445/Tunisia-knife-attack-militans
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Gunmen kill 22
people in two separate attacks in central Nigeria: Officials
04 September
2020
Gunmen have
killed 22 people, including 19 vigilantes, in two separate attacks in central
Nigeria, officials said Friday, in the latest violence by cattle rustlers in
the region.
"The
criminals killed 22 people in the attacks on Dukku and Kagara towns," in
Niger state on Wednesday, Kabiru Muhammad Maikundi, the state director of
security told AFP.
In the first
attack, dozens of assailants riding on motorcycles attacked Dukku in Rijau
district to kidnap locals for ransom but local vigilantes engaged them in a gunfight,
Maikundi told AFP.
"There was
a gun battle in which 18 vigilantes were killed by the criminals," he
said.
In a separate
attack on the same day, another armed gang invaded Kagara in nearby Rafi
district, breaking into a bank but failing to enter the vault, Maikundi said.
A team of
policemen engaged the assailants in a "fierce battle" in which four
people were killed, he said.
State police
commissioner Adamu Usman confirmed the toll during a visit to Kagara on
Thursday, adding that the victims included a policeman and a vigilante.
Armed gangs of
cattle thieves and kidnappers regularly raid villages in central and
northwestern Nigeria, killing and kidnapping people as well as looting and
burning homes.
Security experts
have warned that jihadist groups may have infiltrated the area.
Last month, Boko
Haram, which has waged a bloody insurgency since 2009 in northeast Nigeria,
released a propaganda video showing bandits from Niger state pledging
allegiance to the group.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/04/633306/Nigeria-gunmen
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Nigeria
introduces airdrop of foods for terror victims
Olarewaju
Kola
06.09.2020
Nigeria’s
government on Sunday announced to deliver aid by air to civilians in remote
communities northeast of the country as they are not accessible by road due to
terror attacks or difficult terrains.
Minister of
Humanitarian Affairs Sadiya Farouq said the Nigeria Air Force will drop foods
and other relief items to several civilians.
"There have
been issues of inaccessible areas where humanitarian workers cannot reach the
people," she told reporters in Maiduguri, the capital city of northeastern
Borno state, during the demonstration of the airdrop of foods by Nigerian Air
Force.
Farouq said the
government would take statistics of the hard-to-reach communities and civilian
population to ensure proper airdrops of the relief.
"We are
going to follow it up with air surveillance," the minister promised.
About 3 million
people have been displaced in over a decade of Boko Haram terror activities in
the regions. Scores of civilians are still trapped in remote communities unable
to flee due to insecurity on the roads.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/nigeria-introduces-airdrop-of-foods-for-terror-victims/1964755
--------
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