New Age Islam News Bureau
29 September 2020
A view of Krishna Janambhoomi temple and Shahi Idgah
mosque in Mathura (PTI)
------
• Gujarat: Muslims Arrange Last Rites of COVID Victims
Irrespective Of Religion
• Father of Pakistani Man, Ali Hassan, Who Stabbed Two
outside the Former Paris Office of the Controversial Charlie Hebdo Magazine
says, Proud of My Son
• Threat to Evacuate US Diplomats from Iraq Raises
Fear of War
• Azerbaijani Army Takes Control of Occupied High
Grounds
• Saudi Arabia Takes down Terrorist Cell Trained by
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards
• Yemen War: Journos Gather ‘War Crime’ Evidence at
Scene of Saudi-Led Airstrike
• Abdullah Visit to Pakistan ‘Forges Common
Understanding on Afghan Peace’: Qureshi
India
• Priests’ Body: No Temple-Mosque Dispute In Mathura,
We Don’t Want What Happened In Ayodhya to Happen Here
• Gujarat: Muslims Arrange Last Rites of COVID Victims
Irrespective Of Religion
• Wasim Rizvi Former Shia Central Waqf Board Chairman
Writes to PM: Scrap Places of Worship
Act to Reclaim Land from Mosques Constructed Over Ancient Temples
• Pakistan Delisted 4000 Terrorists to Sustain Terror
Ecosystem, India Tells UN Rights Body
• J&K Medical Student Tabish Khan Turning Waste To
Art
• SSP-rank officer promoting Islamophobia, says Jammu
Muslim body
• NIA court gives life sentence to Kerala man for
joining Islamic State, imposes fine of Rs 2.10 lakh
• Terrorist slain in Pulwama encounter was
longest-surviving Lashkar commander: DGP
• Pakistan violates ceasefire along LoC in Jammu and
Kashmir’s Poonch
--------
Pakistan
• Father of Pakistani Man, Ali Hassan, Who Stabbed Two
outside the Former Paris Office of the Controversial Charlie Hebdo Magazine
says, Proud of My Son
• Pakistan’s Opposition, Public Increasingly Irked by
the Military’s Role in Politics
• Shia-Sunni Rift on Rise in Pakistan, But Imran Khan
Govt’s Silence May Be Strategic
• ‘Muslim Economies Need To Reduce Trust Deficit
through Frequent Trade Fairs’
• PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif arrested in
money-laundering case
• Afghan reconciliation leader thanks Pakistan for
facilitating peace process
--------
North America
• Threat to Evacuate US Diplomats from Iraq Raises
Fear of War
• US to try to end violence between Armenia,
Azerbaijan
• US hopes Turkey-Greece talks lead to rapprochement
--------
Europe
• Azerbaijani Army Takes Control of Occupied High
Grounds
• Azerbaijan Opens Fire towards Military Unit In
Armenia, Hits Civilian Bus
• UK's Johnson raises concerns with Turkey's Erdogan
over east Med tensions
• Russia calls on Azerbaijan, Armenia to exercise
restraint
• Aliyev, Macron discuss Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict
--------
Arab world
• Saudi Arabia Takes down Terrorist Cell Trained by
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards
• Threat to evacuate US diplomats from Iraq raises
fear of war
• EU is ‘disappointed’ and ‘concerned’ after Lebanon
prime minister-designate resigns
• Egypt police arrest 382 people protesting against
President Sisi: Rights group
• At least 5 civilians killed in rocket fire near
Baghdad airport: Army
--------
Mideast
• Yemen War: Journos Gather ‘War Crime’ Evidence at
Scene of Saudi-Led Airstrike
• Rayeesi: Iran’s Judiciary Uninfluenced by US,
Europeans’ Hues and Cries
• IRGC Spokesman: US, Europe Not Able to Confront Iran
• Iran Warns Armenia, Azerbaijan to Watch Bullets
• Iran Strongly Dismisses Possibility of Bilateral
Talks with US
• Turkey’s Erdogan sees EU summit as chance for reset:
Spokesman
--------
South Asia
• Abdullah Visit to Pakistan ‘Forges Common
Understanding on Afghan Peace’: Qureshi
• Pakistan Opens Borders to Afghanistan
• Sri Lanka, Afghanistan Ink Bilateral MOU
--------
Southeast Asia
• Federal Court Rejects Jais’ Bid To Appeal against
Quashing Of Shariah Charges against Ezra Zaid
• Selangor Religious Authorities Fail in Move over
Publication Of Book
• Musa Aman confident new CM Hajiji will take Sabah to
greater heights
• Perak targets five million domestic tourists amid
spike in Covid-19 cases
• PM Muhyiddin: Islam compelled Putrajaya to impose
MCO to save lives
--------
Africa
• Civilian Prime Minister Appointed In Mali with Eye
on Removal of ECOWAS Sanctions
• Sudan signs deal with foreign donors granting
financial aid to poor families
• Nigeria’s labor unions suspend planned strike
• Somalia: 16 al-Shabaab terrorists killed, 40 kids
freed
• Nigeria's Boko Haram crisis: 'Bomb on donkey' used
to ambush Borno governor
• 13 Boko Haram militants surrender to Nigerian troops
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/priests-body-no-temple-mosque/d/122986
--------
Priests’ Body: No Temple-Mosque Dispute In Mathura, We Don’t Want What Happened In Ayodhya to Happen Here
Sep 29, 2020
A view of Krishna Janambhoomi temple and Shahi Idgah
mosque in Mathura (PTI)
------
AGRA: “We don’t want what happened in Ayodhya to happen here,” said Mahesh Pathak, president of the All India Teerth Purohit Mahasabha. The body of priests said there is no dispute on the temple and the mosque as the matter was resolved by an agreement five decades ago, but the issue is being unnecessarily raked up again for “political gain.”
The All India Teerth Purohit Mahasabha is a 60 years
old registered organisation with its head office in Haridwar. It has over 90
organisations of temple priests across the country as its members.
“Even if there were any disagreement, it would have
been resolved amicably by the two communities without disrupting peace …. This
is just an unnecessary diversion after 52 years of the agreement between the
managements of Shahi Idgah mosque and Sri Krishna Janamsthan Sansthan in 1968,”
said Mahesh Pathak, the national president of the priests’ body.
Notably, Pathak had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha
elections from Mathura as a Congress candidate.
“Being a local resident and the president of priests’
body, it is my moral responsibility to maintain the peaceful atmosphere of the
religious town. Some outsiders are trying to spoil the peace and harmony of the
temple town by raising issues which could create communal tensions in the
city,” he added.
The suit, filed by Lucknow resident Ranjana Agnihotri
and five others, including a Delhi resident, claims that the mosque is exactly
where Krishna was born and they have sought the ownership of the entire
13.37-acre land. It also sought cancellation of a compromise decree between the
governing body of the temple complex and the management trust of the mosque in
1968.
The court hearing on the issue of ownership of Krishna
Janmasthan land and the removal of Shahi Eidgah mosque in Mathura was deferred
to September 30.
Meanwhile, Sri Krishna Janmasthan Seva Sansthan
secretary Kapil Sharma said that the matter is not related to the ownership of
the land only, but also the sentiments and faith of lakhs of Krishna devotees.
Hence, a logical decision is needed in the matter, he added. The Sansthan is
also a party to the petition filed by the Lucknow resident.
On the possibility of an out-of-court resolution of
the dispute, Sharma said, “Had it been possible then the Ayodhya matter would too
have been resolved.” He added that the court’s decisions will be followed by
everyone.
In a petition filed in a Mathura court by Supreme
Court lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, it has been stated that Shree Krishna
Janmasthan Seva Sansthan is a registered society that has overpowered the
trust, which was “non-functional since 1958 and had fraudulently entered into a
compromise with the Committee of Management Trust Masjid Idgah on October
12,1968”.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/no-temple-mosque-dispute-in-mathura-says-priests-body/articleshow/78370580.cms
--------
Gujarat: Muslims Arrange Last Rites of COVID Victims
Irrespective Of Religion
Sep 29, 2020
A team of 22 Muslim social workers arranges the last
rites of COVID-19 victims irrespective of religion.
------
Vadodara: A team of 22 Muslim social workers arranges
the last rites of COVID-19 victims irrespective of religion.
Talking to media person, Zubair Gopalani said that in
some cases, relatives were scared to perform the rites of the victim. He said
that in such situations, Baroda Muslim Doctors Association not only performed
the last rites but also followed all the rituals as per the deceased’s faith.
Service available 24/7
The association also ensures that the service is
available 24/7 by introducing shift system.
Disclose the details of the precautionary measures,
Gopalani said that all persons who arrange the final rites cover their body
with PPE. They also dump PPE once the rites are completed, he added.
He further said that no person among the 22 member
team ever contracted coronavirus.
Coronavirus cases in Gujarat
Meanwile, The total number of cases in the state now
stands at 1,28,949.
“Of which, there are 16,354 active cases, 1,09,211
patients were discharged while 3,384 have succumbed to the virus,” State Health
Department.
India’s COVID-19 count reached 57,32,519 including
9,66,382 active cases, and 46,74,988 cured, discharged, or migrated patients
and 91,149 deaths, informed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
https://www.siasat.com/gujarat-muslims-arrange-last-rites-of-covid-victims-irrespective-of-religion-1985771/amp/
--------
Father of Pakistani Man, Ali Hassan, Who Stabbed Two
outside the Former Paris Office of the Controversial Charlie Hebdo Magazine
says, Proud of My Son
Imtiaz Ahmad
Sep 28, 2020
This grab taken from a video obtained by AFP shows
French police detaining an alleged suspect after several people were injured
near the former offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo
following an attack by a man wielding a knife in Paris on September 25,
2020.(AFP)
----
The father of Ali Hassan, a young man who stabbed two
persons in an attack using a meat cleaver outside the former Paris office of
the controversial Charlie Hebdo magazine last week, has said he is “proud” of
his son. In an interview to the web-based channel Naya Pakistan, the father,
whose name is not revealed, said his son has “done a great job” and he is “very
happy” about the attack.
The French government had condemned the stabbing on
Friday outside the former office of the satirical magazine as an act of
“Islamist terrorism”.
The man, earlier identified as Ali Hassan, seriously
injured two employees of TV production agency Premieres Lignes, whose offices
are in the same city centre block that used to house the magazine Charlie
Hebdo. The magazine had shifted out after the January 2015 attacks on Charlie
Hebdo, a policewoman and a Jewish supermarket that left 17 people dead. The
magazine’s current address is kept secret for security reasons, AFP reported.
On Monday, the news agency said the man, who had
declared earlier in a two-minute video that he was going to target the
magazine, identified himself as Zaheer Hassan Mehmood.
Ali Hassan aka Zaheer Hassan Mehmood is accused of
stabbing two persons believed to be working with the magazine. Friday’s attack
came three weeks into a trial in Paris of suspected accomplices of the culprits
in the January 2015 attacks on Charlie Hebdo, a policewoman and a Jewish
supermarket that left 17 people dead, news agency Reuters said.
Back in Pakistan, the attacker’s father appealed to
the Imran Khan government and other Islamic countries to help bring his son
home. “I want to appeal to the Pakistan government to bring my son home. He has
done service in the cause of Islam and we are a Muslim country,” he told the
Pakistani channel.
Ali Hassan, his father said, “was a good son” who
prayed regularly and attended Milad twice a year. He said that Ali Hassan was a
follower of Muhammad Ilyas Qadri, a Pakistani Sunni Muslim scholar and founder
of the Dawat-e-Islami organisation, which has established a chain of madrasas
across Pakistan and abroad.
Ali Hassan’s father, a farmer, lives in the small town
of Mandi Bahauddin in Punjab. He said that Ali Hassan had gone to France two
years ago. Of his five sons, three are abroad - two in France and one in Italy.
“My son has the heart of a lion,” he told his interviewer.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/proud-of-my-son-says-father-of-pakistani-man-who-stabbed-2-in-paris/story-4SlYyadJihMniXNBp6ENbI.html
--------
Threat to evacuate US diplomats from Iraq raises fear
of war
28 September 2020
Washington has made preparations to withdraw diplomats
from Iraq after warning Baghdad it could shut its embassy, two Iraqi officials
and two Western diplomats said, a step Iraqis fear could turn their country
into a battle zone.
Any move by the United States to reduce its diplomatic
presence in a country where it has up to 5,000 troops would be widely seen in
the region as an escalation of its confrontation with Iran, which Washington
blames for missile and bomb attacks.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
That in turn would open the possibility of military
action, with just weeks to go before an election in which President Donald
Trump has campaigned on a hard line towards Tehran and its proxies.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threatened to close the
embassy in a phone call a week ago to President Barham Salih, two Iraqi
government sources said. The conversation was initially reported by an Iraqi
news website.
By Sunday, Washington had begun preparations to
withdraw diplomatic staff if such a decision is taken, those sources and the
two Western diplomats said.
The concern among the Iraqis is that withdrawing
diplomats would be followed quickly by military action against forces
Washington blamed for attacks.
Populist Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who commands a
following of millions of Iraqis, last week pleaded for groups to avoid
aggravation that would turn Iraq into a battleground.
One of the Western diplomats said the US
administration did not "want to be limited in their options" to
weaken Iran or pro-Iranian militias in Iraq. Asked whether he expected
Washington to respond with economic or military measures, the diplomat replied:
"Strikes."
The US State Department, asked about plans to withdraw
from Iraq, said: "We never comment on the Secretary's private diplomatic
conversations with foreign leaders ... Iran-backed groups launching rockets at
our Embassy are a danger not only to us but to the Government of Iraq."
Earlier this month, the United States military said it
would reduce its presence in Iraq to 3,000 troops from 5,200.
The Pentagon said on Monday it was committed to
supporting Iraq's long-term "security, stability, and prosperity" and
US military operations against Islamic State continued.
Perennial risk
In a region polarized between allies of Iran and the
United States, Iraq is the rare exception: a country that has close ties with
both. But that has left it open to a perennial risk of becoming a battleground
in a proxy war.
That risk was hammered home in January this year, when
Washington killed Iran's most important military commander, Qassem Soleimani,
with a drone strike at Baghdad airport. Iran responded with missiles fired at
US bases in Iraq.
Since then, a new prime minister has taken power in
Iraq, supported by the United States, while Tehran still maintains close links
to powerful Shia armed movements.
Rockets regularly fly across the Tigris towards the
heavily fortified US diplomatic compound, constructed to be the biggest US
embassy in the world in central Baghdad's so-called Green Zone during the US
occupation after a 2003 invasion.
In recent weeks rocket attacks near the embassy have
increased and roadside bombs targeted convoys carrying equipment to the US-led
military coalition. One roadside attack hit a British convoy in Baghdad, the
first of its kind against Western diplomats in Iraq for years.
On Monday three children and two women were killed
when two militia rockets hit a family home, the Iraqi military said. Police
sources said Baghdad airport was the intended target.
Two Iraqi intelligence sources suggested plans to
withdraw American diplomats were not yet in motion, and would depend on whether
Iraqi security forces were able to do a better job of halting attacks. They
said they had received orders to prevent attacks on US sites, and had been told
that US evacuations would begin only if that effort failed.
Double-edged sword
Iraqis are concerned about the impact of November's
presidential election on the Trump administration's decision-making.
While Trump has boasted of his hard line against Iran,
he has also long promised to withdraw US troops from engagements in the Middle
East. The United States is already drawing down its force sent to help defeat
Islamic State fighters in Iraq from 2014-2017.
Some Iraqi officials dismissed Pompeo's threat to pull
out diplomats as bluster, designed to scare armed groups into stopping attacks.
But they said it could backfire by provoking the militias instead, if they
sense an opportunity to push Washington to retreat.
"The American threat to close their embassy is
merely a pressure tactic, but is a double-edged sword," said Gati Rikabi,
a member of Iraq's parliamentary security committee.
He and another committee member said US moves were
designed to scare Iraqi leaders into supporting Prime Minister Mustafa
al-Kadhimi, who has tried to check the power of Iran-aligned militia groups,
with scant success.
Hawks on both sides
The militias are under public pressure to rein in
supporters who might provoke Washington. Since last year, public opinion in
Iraq has turned sharply against political groups seen as fomenting violence on
behalf of Iran.
Publicly, the powerful Iran-backed Shia militia groups
which control large factions in parliament have tried to distance themselves
from attacks on Western targets.
US officials say they think the Shia militias or their
Iranian backers have created splinter offshoots to carry out such attacks,
allowing the main organisations to evade blame.
A senior figure in a Shia Muslim political party said
he thought Trump might want to pull out diplomats to keep them out of harm's
way and avoid an embarrassing pre-election incident.
Militia attacks were not necessarily under Tehran's
control, he said, noting that Iran's foreign ministry had publicly called for a
halt to attacks on diplomatic missions in Iraq.
"Iran wants to boot the Americans out, but not at
any cost. It doesn't want instability on its Western border," the Shia
leader said. "Just like there are hawks in the US, there are hawks in Iran
who have contact with the groups carrying out attacks, who aren't necessarily
following state policy."
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/29/Threat-to-evacuate-US-diplomats-from-Iraq-raises-fear-of-war
--------
Threat to evacuate US diplomats from Iraq raises fear
of war
28 September 2020
Washington has made preparations to withdraw diplomats
from Iraq after warning Baghdad it could shut its embassy, two Iraqi officials
and two Western diplomats said, a step Iraqis fear could turn their country
into a battle zone.
Any move by the United States to reduce its diplomatic
presence in a country where it has up to 5,000 troops would be widely seen in
the region as an escalation of its confrontation with Iran, which Washington
blames for missile and bomb attacks.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
That in turn would open the possibility of military
action, with just weeks to go before an election in which President Donald
Trump has campaigned on a hard line towards Tehran and its proxies.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threatened to close the
embassy in a phone call a week ago to President Barham Salih, two Iraqi
government sources said. The conversation was initially reported by an Iraqi
news website.
By Sunday, Washington had begun preparations to
withdraw diplomatic staff if such a decision is taken, those sources and the
two Western diplomats said.
The concern among the Iraqis is that withdrawing
diplomats would be followed quickly by military action against forces
Washington blamed for attacks.
Populist Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who commands a
following of millions of Iraqis, last week pleaded for groups to avoid
aggravation that would turn Iraq into a battleground.
One of the Western diplomats said the US
administration did not "want to be limited in their options" to
weaken Iran or pro-Iranian militias in Iraq. Asked whether he expected
Washington to respond with economic or military measures, the diplomat replied:
"Strikes."
The US State Department, asked about plans to withdraw
from Iraq, said: "We never comment on the Secretary's private diplomatic
conversations with foreign leaders ... Iran-backed groups launching rockets at
our Embassy are a danger not only to us but to the Government of Iraq."
Earlier this month, the United States military said it
would reduce its presence in Iraq to 3,000 troops from 5,200.
The Pentagon said on Monday it was committed to
supporting Iraq's long-term "security, stability, and prosperity" and
US military operations against Islamic State continued.
Perennial risk
In a region polarized between allies of Iran and the
United States, Iraq is the rare exception: a country that has close ties with
both. But that has left it open to a perennial risk of becoming a battleground
in a proxy war.
That risk was hammered home in January this year, when
Washington killed Iran's most important military commander, Qassem Soleimani,
with a drone strike at Baghdad airport. Iran responded with missiles fired at
US bases in Iraq.
Since then, a new prime minister has taken power in
Iraq, supported by the United States, while Tehran still maintains close links
to powerful Shia armed movements.
Rockets regularly fly across the Tigris towards the
heavily fortified US diplomatic compound, constructed to be the biggest US
embassy in the world in central Baghdad's so-called Green Zone during the US
occupation after a 2003 invasion.
In recent weeks rocket attacks near the embassy have
increased and roadside bombs targeted convoys carrying equipment to the US-led
military coalition. One roadside attack hit a British convoy in Baghdad, the
first of its kind against Western diplomats in Iraq for years.
On Monday three children and two women were killed
when two militia rockets hit a family home, the Iraqi military said. Police
sources said Baghdad airport was the intended target.
Two Iraqi intelligence sources suggested plans to
withdraw American diplomats were not yet in motion, and would depend on whether
Iraqi security forces were able to do a better job of halting attacks. They
said they had received orders to prevent attacks on US sites, and had been told
that US evacuations would begin only if that effort failed.
Double-edged sword
Iraqis are concerned about the impact of November's
presidential election on the Trump administration's decision-making.
While Trump has boasted of his hard line against Iran,
he has also long promised to withdraw US troops from engagements in the Middle
East. The United States is already drawing down its force sent to help defeat
Islamic State fighters in Iraq from 2014-2017.
Some Iraqi officials dismissed Pompeo's threat to pull
out diplomats as bluster, designed to scare armed groups into stopping attacks.
But they said it could backfire by provoking the militias instead, if they
sense an opportunity to push Washington to retreat.
"The American threat to close their embassy is
merely a pressure tactic, but is a double-edged sword," said Gati Rikabi,
a member of Iraq's parliamentary security committee.
He and another committee member said US moves were
designed to scare Iraqi leaders into supporting Prime Minister Mustafa
al-Kadhimi, who has tried to check the power of Iran-aligned militia groups,
with scant success.
Hawks on both sides
The militias are under public pressure to rein in
supporters who might provoke Washington. Since last year, public opinion in
Iraq has turned sharply against political groups seen as fomenting violence on
behalf of Iran.
Publicly, the powerful Iran-backed Shia militia groups
which control large factions in parliament have tried to distance themselves
from attacks on Western targets.
US officials say they think the Shia militias or their
Iranian backers have created splinter offshoots to carry out such attacks,
allowing the main organisations to evade blame.
A senior figure in a Shia Muslim political party said
he thought Trump might want to pull out diplomats to keep them out of harm's
way and avoid an embarrassing pre-election incident.
Militia attacks were not necessarily under Tehran's
control, he said, noting that Iran's foreign ministry had publicly called for a
halt to attacks on diplomatic missions in Iraq.
"Iran wants to boot the Americans out, but not at
any cost. It doesn't want instability on its Western border," the Shia
leader said. "Just like there are hawks in the US, there are hawks in Iran
who have contact with the groups carrying out attacks, who aren't necessarily
following state policy."
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/29/Threat-to-evacuate-US-diplomats-from-Iraq-raises-fear-of-war
--------
Azerbaijani army takes control of occupied high
grounds
Jeyhun Aliyev
28.09.2020
Azerbaijani army cleared several "advantageous
high grounds" around the Talysh village of the occupying Armenian forces,
the country's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday.
Border clashes broke out early Sunday when the
Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani civilian settlements and military
positions, leading to casualties.
"Units of the Azerbaijan Army, moving from the
high grounds and advantageous positions liberated from the Armenian armed
forces, continue the counter-attack to consolidate the achieved success,"
the ministry said.
The written statement also said that a large number of
Armenian forces have been killed, adding "the enemy" suffered heavy
losses.
"By inflicting rocket-artillery and air strikes
on enemy positions, he was forced to retreat from the frontiers he was trying
to hold," it added.
Relations between the two former Soviet nations have
been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Upper Karabakh, or
Nagorno-Karabakh, an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.
Four UN Security Council and two UN General Assembly
resolutions as well as many international organizations demand the withdrawal
of the occupying forces.
The OSCE Minsk Group – co-chaired by France, Russia
and the US – was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict,
but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was declared in 1994.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/azerbaijani-army-takes-control-of-occupied-high-grounds/1987956
--------
Saudi Arabia takes down terrorist cell trained by
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards
Tuqa Khalid
28 September 2020
Saudi Arabia took down this month a terrorist cell
that received training by the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) in Iran, arrested 10
individuals and seized weapons and explosives, the spokesman for the presidency
of the State Security said on Monday.
Three members of the terrorist cell received training
inside Iran including different methods of creating explosives, while the rest
were “linked to the cell in various roles,” state news agency SPA reported
citing a statement by the Saudi State Security.
For all the latest headlines follow our Google News
channel online or via the app.
The Saudi authorities also seized large quantities of
weapons and explosives hidden in a house and on a farm, including electrical
components used in the making of explosives such as capacitors, transformers
and resistors, gunpowder, chemicals, Kalashnikov rifles, guns, sniper rifle,
live ammunition, machine guns, blades, military clothes, and wireless
communication devices.
The authorities are interrogating all 10 of the
arrested individuals to find out more information about their activities and
others who are connected to them inside the country and abroad, and they will
be referred to prosecution after the investigations are complete.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2020/09/28/Saudi-Arabia-takes-down-terrorist-cell-trained-by-Iran-s-Revolutionary-Guards
--------
Yemen war: Journos gather ‘war crime’ evidence at
scene of Saudi-led airstrike
28 September 2020
A group of journalists have looked for evidence of war
crime at the scene of a recent massacre of civilians, including children,
during a Saudi Arabia-led strike that targeted a civilian home near Yemen’s
border with the kingdom.
The Sky News team that identified itself as the first
journalists to independently investigate the attack, “discovered evidence of a
recent potential war crime in northern Yemen by the Saudi-led coalition, which
is backed by the US and Britain,” the network reported on its website on
Monday.
The attack saw a jet reaching the remote village of
Washah before striking the home where only women and children were present at
the time, while refusing to even “touch” any other nearby structure.
“No other home in the area was touched,” the network
cited a relative as saying. A total of nine civilians were killed in the
attack, six of them children.
The war has killed tens of thousands of Yemenis and
rendered the country into the scene of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis in
an unsuccessful attempt to restore power to Yemen’s former Saudi-allied
officials.
The ammunition used in the bombing against the village
was identified as US-made 500-pound (230-kilogram) GBU-12 Paveway II bomb.
Around this time last year, UK-based rights body Amnesty International likewise
revealed that the same type of ammunition, manufactured by US company Raytheon,
had been used in an airstrike on Yemen’s southwestern province of Ta’izz,
killing six people, including three children.
The bomb that is used for precision strikes has been
regularly dropped on the Arab world’s poorest nation in the course of the
Saudi-led war. This is while the invading coalition claims that it refuses to
deliberately target civilians.
Following the attack on the village, the jet was still
circling for around 15 minutes above the site, the Sky News report said,
pointing to a common practice by the coalition’s warplanes that is apparently
aimed at scaring relief workers and others trying to help away from the places
that have just been attacked.
After the United States, the UK and France rank among
the biggest supporters of the war, likewise providing the invading coalition
with arms as well as logistical and political backing.
Sky News said, “There's already growing controversy
over why Britain is still supporting the campaign.”
The Amnesty has also found the Western trio to be
complicit in the war crimes that have been committed by the coalition against
the Yemeni people.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/28/635181/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-massacre-war-crime-civilians-investigation
--------
Abdullah Visit to Pakistan ‘Forges Common
Understanding on Afghan Peace’: Qureshi
29 Sep 2020
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – The Foreign Minister of Pakistan
Shah Mahmoud Qureshi said Chairman of HCNR Abdullah Abdullah’s visit will
greatly help to strengthen relations with Afghanistan and “forge a common
understanding on the Afghan peace process,” MoFA said in a statement Monday evening.
Welcoming Abdullah in Pakistna, Qureshi said this
visit “will open a new chapter in bilateral ties, further strengthen relations”
and “forge a common understanding” on the Afghan peace process.
Reaffirming Pakistan’s support for the Afghan peace
process, he said Pakistan has “always maintained there is no military solution
to the Afghan conflict and encouraged all parties to reach a political solution
through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned process.”
The Qureshi underscored Pakistan’s support for a peaceful,
stable, united, sovereign and prosperous Afghanistan, saying “mistakes of the
past should not be repeated; nor past history should dictate the future course
of action.”
“…there was a need to guard against the detrimental
role of ‘spoilers’, both within and outside Afghanistan, who do not wish to see
return of peace in the region,” he added.
The remarks came after Abdullah made his first
officials visit to Pakistan as Chairman of High Council for National
Reconciliation of Afghanistan.
Abdullah and his delegation is due to meet Prime
Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday.
https://www.khaama.com/abdullah-visit-to-pakistan-forges-common-understanding-on-afghan-peace-qureshi-2343/
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India
Wasim Rizvi Former Shia Central Waqf Board Chairman
Writes to PM: Scrap Places of Worship
Act to Reclaim Land from Mosques Constructed Over Ancient Temples
By Maulshree Seth
September 29, 2020
DEMANDING THAT the Places of Worship Act, 1991, be
abolished and that a high-level committee be appointed to “reclaim land from
mosques constructed over ancient temples,” Wasim Rizvi, former chairman of
Uttar Pradesh Shia central Waqf Board, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
Monday. Demanding that the “original status” of such sites be restored, Rizvi gave
details of such structures not just in Uttar Pradesh but also in Gujarat, West
Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and New Delhi.
Rizvi gave examples of Keshav Dev Mandir and “Krishna
Janmabhoomi” in Mathura and claimed that the temple was demolished by Aurangzeb
in 1670 and a mosque was constructed there. He also cited the example of Atala
Devi Temple in Jaunpur district of eastern Uttar Pradesh and claimed that the
temple was demolished in 1377 by Firoz Shah Tughlaq and Atala Mosque was built
instead.
Rizvi alleged in the letter that these ancient temples
were demolished by the Mughals and “mosques were illegally constructed
instead.” He wrote that India is a democratic country but “hardliners who came
from outside looted the country”.
“Thus, it is my request that the Places of Worship
Act, 1991… should be abolished and such mosques should be removed from these
places and a high level committee or new legislation should be constituted to
restore temples in their original places,” wrote Rizvi. “I have sent a proposal
to the Prime Minister to abolish The Places of Worship Act, 1991, which was
formulated by Congress to appease radical forces and protect illegal mosques
constructed by mugols by demolition of temples. I have given details of such
mosques and temples,” claimed Rizvi.
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/scrap-places-of-worship-act-shia-waqf-board-ex-chief-writes-to-pm-6629208/
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Pakistan delisted 4000 terrorists to sustain terror
ecosystem, India tells UN rights body
Sep 29, 2020
NEW DELHI: In another showdown at the UN Human Rights
Council, India on Monday accused Pakistan of delisting 4000 terrorists to
sustain its terror ecosystem and of using training camps and terrorist launch
pads in PoK for ramping up cross-border terrorism.
The government said that none of Pakistan’s "vile
accusations" against India could stifle the voice of the minorities and
the people under its subjugation.
"The fate of religious and ethnic minorities is
well known when beheading is the only option in Pakistan in exchange for
freedom of religion," said Pawan Badhe, first secretary with Indian
permanent mission in Geneva, exercising India's right of reply after Pakistan
again raised the issue of alleged human rights violations in India.
The official said various international organisations
had termed Pakistan as the killing fields for minorities and that the Ahmadis
remained the most persecuted community in Pakistan under the aegis of "the
so-called Constitution of Pakistan".
Badhe said Pakistan’s "deceit and hypocrisy"
was best demonstrated when it orchestrated mass influx to Pakistan-occupied
parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh through
discriminatory domicile laws.
"It’s baffling that there are three outsiders for
every 4 in the Pakistan-occupied parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu
& Kashmir and Ladakh. While civil, political and constitutional rights are
non-existent in Pakistan-occupied parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu
& Kashmir and Ladakh, deliberate economic policies have also subjugated
them to a life of extreme poverty," he said.
"In contrast, full-scale training camps and
launch pads of terrorists are being escalated (sic) in Pakistan-occupied parts
of Indian Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh at great expense
for sustaining cross border terrorism against India. It’s not without reason
that Pakistan remains a safe harbour for terrorists. While the world is busy
combating the Covid-19 pandemic, Pakistan hoodwinks the world to allow
delisting more than 4000 proscribed terrorists to sustain its terror
ecosystem," added the official.
In scathing counter-attack on the human rights issue,
the official also said it was deplorable that Pakistan had institutionalised
enforced disappearance as a tool of subjugation against dissent and criticism
not just against individuals but against the entire society. "Children as
young as 12 years old in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh are normally
abducted and trained to be suicide bombers," he said.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/pakistan-delisted-4000-terrorists-to-sustain-terror-ecosystem-india-tells-un-rights-body/articleshow/78375282.cms
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J&K medical student Tabish Khan turning waste to
art
Sep 29, 2020
ANANTNAG: Pursuing two of her passions simultaneously,
Tabish Aijaz Khan of Anantnag district is a self-taught artist who paints on
Chinar leaves and waste material while pursuing her education.
Tabish hailing from Iqbal Abad in South Kashmir's
Anantnag district is currently pursuing MBBS and is having tremendous skills in
painting. She has been a self-taught painting artist since her school days. She
was in 4th standard when she first drew painting and since then it has become
her hobby.
"I started painting cartoons and drawings back in
school as a hobby and with practice, my painting skills were improved,"
Tabish told ANI.
Back in 2016, Tabish completed her schooling and took
up painting while preparing for medical college. This is when she realized that
she is passionate about her art.
"I started painting more in 2016 and I used to
post the pictures of my art on the social media platforms for which I received
a great response. It encouraged me to paint more. Earlier, I used to think it
is my hobby but during this time, I realised it was my passion," she said.
Being an artist, Tabish sees even a broken cup and
chinar leaf as her canvas.
"I paint on canvas sheet, papers but I also paint
on waste material like chinar leaves, wooden block, broken cup, plate eggshell,
and stone. As I believe that nothing is useless, it is the way you see the
object. When those useless things are painted, it is turned into a beautiful
art piece," she added.
On being asked about her parent's reaction to her
painting, Tabish said, "Currently, I am in the fourth year of my medical
course. My parents have always been supportive. They have encouraged me to
pursue both painting and MBBS."
"Painting helps me to relieve my stress as my
course (medical) is a stressful one," she added.
Tabish's mother said, "I am really proud of my
daughter. She always wanted to pursue the medical course and become a doctor. I
am happy to see her pursue both - painting and academics."
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/jk-medical-student-tabish-khan-turning-waste-to-art/articleshow/78377749.cms
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SSP-rank officer promoting Islamophobia, says Jammu
Muslim body
SEPTEMBER 28, 2020
He is resorting to a sinister campaign through his
personal twitter handle, it says
The Jammu-based Muslim Joint Action Committee (MJAC),
in a letter written to the J&K Home secretary, has alleged that a SSP-rank
officer “was resorting to wanton vilification and repeated attacks through his
tweets on Islam and Muslims”.
“SSP, Security, Jammu, Mr. Swarn Singh Kotwal through his
tweets on Islam and Muslims is projecting them as terrorists and airing his
political views in contravention to the service conducts rules,” the letter
written by Parvez Khan, member of the MJAC, reads.
The letter, also addressed to top police officers of
the Union Territory (UT), said despite being in a very sensitive place of
posting and responsible for the safety and security of all sections of society,
“he on August 29, 2020 used an unexpected language to project all Muslims as
terrorists”.
The alleged tweet of the SSP attached with the letter
reads: “Time n again all political parties after every terrorist act of
violence paddles aatankwad Ka Koi dharm Nahin hota......but this I think is the
biggest fraud being played on all of us. From Delhi, Bengaluru to Sweden the
religion is very much visible. Srilanaka n Burma knew it in days (sic).”
“The SSP through his personal twitter handle has been
resorting to a planned and sinister campaign to malign Muslims and Islam and
create an atmosphere of Islamophobia. The moral turpitude is aimed clearly at
creating enmity and feelings of hatred and ill-will between different
religions.”
The complainant sought an investigation and legal
action against the officer.
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ssp-rank-officer-promoting-islamophobia-says-jammu-muslim-body/article32717778.ece
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NIA court gives life sentence to Kerala man for
joining Islamic State, imposes fine of Rs 2.10 lakh
September 28, 2020
Kochi: An NIA court on Monday awarded life imprisonment
to a man who was convicted for intentionally and knowingly joining Islamic
State and later proceeding to Iraq to further the activities of the dreaded
terror group.
The Special NIA court also imposed a fine of Rs
2,10,000 on Subahani Haja Moideen, who hails from Idukki district, who was
arrested by the NIA in 2016 following a crackdown in Tamil Nadu with the help
of central security agencies and other state police.
The court on Friday had found him guilty under IPC
Sections 120(B) (Criminal Conspiracy), Section 125 (waging war against Asiatic
power in alliance with the Government of India) and Unlawful Activities
(Prevention) Act, Section 20 (Punishment for being member of terrorist gang or
organisation).
The court had also convicted him under UAPA Section 38
(Offence relating to membership of a terrorist organisation) and 39 (Offence
relating to support given to a terrorist organisation).
However, Moideen was found not guilty for an offence
under IPC section 122 (Collecting arms, etc, with intention of waging war
against the Government of India).
According to the chargesheet filed by the National
Investigation Agency, Moideen intentionally and knowingly became an Islamic
State member in April 2015.
To further the activities of the terror group, he
proceeded to Iraq during April-September 2015, joined the terrorist
organisation and waged war against the Government of Iraq, an Asiatic Power in
alliance with the Government of India, the NIA had said in its chargesheet.
https://www.firstpost.com/india/nia-court-gives-life-sentence-to-kerala-man-for-joining-islamic-state-imposes-fine-of-rs-2-10-lakh-8859311.html
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Terrorist slain in Pulwama encounter was
longest-surviving Lashkar commander: DGP
Sep 28, 2020
SRINAGAR: Top Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Aijaz Ahmed
Reshi, who was killed along with an aide in an anti-terror operation in
Pulwama’s Samboora area late Sunday, was one of the longest surviving
commanders of the outfit, J&K DGP Dilbagh Singh said on Monday. Lashkar’s
main recruiter, Reshi was involved in numerous attacks on security forces,
inflicting heavy casualties.
Reshi initially worked as an overground worker and had
joined militancy even before Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani, the
poster boy of new-age militancy in J&K who was killed in an encounter in
July 2016, DGP Singh told reporters at district police lines in Awantipora,
Pulwama.
Reshi had recruited ultras like Towseef Khanday, Rafiq
Dar and Adil Ahmed, all of whom rose to top ranks before being slain by
security forces in different anti-terror operations. “Reshi had also recruited
and trained Sajad Ahmed Sofi, who was killed alongside him in Sunday’s
encounter,” the DGP said.
“Reshi took part in an attack at EDI Pampore killing
eight CRPF men. He had transported the Lashkar men to the spot as well,” DGP
Singh said. “He had fired at an Army party, killing three soldiers at Kadlabal,
Pampore,” he added.
The encounter at Samboora started Sunday afternoon but
due to darkness, a search operation couldn’t take place even after the gunfight
came to a close with the killing of two terrorists. A soldier was also injured
in the fire exchange. When a search was started on Monday morning, bodies of
the slain ultras were recovered along with two AK-47 rifles, two magazines,
some rounds and other incriminating material, DGP Singh said.
“Reshi’s killing is a big success for the security
forces and there will be a significant dip in the local terrorist recruitment
in the areas he was operating,” the DGP said, adding that the militancy graph in
J&K is now lower as compared to previous years. “In the past 15 days, three
youth were brought back. And this year so far, 24 youth who had left homes and
joined militancy were brought back with the active cooperation of their
parents,” he said.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/terrorist-slain-in-pulwama-encounter-was-longest-surviving-lashkar-commander-dgp/articleshow/78371619.cms
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Pakistan violates ceasefire along LoC in Jammu and
Kashmir’s Poonch
Edited by Arpan Rai
Sep 29, 2020
The Indian Army is responding to firing from across
the border in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district on Tuesday. The firing is a
result of Pakistan violating the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC),
said the army.
“Pakistan initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by
firing with small arms and intense shelling with mortars along LoC in Mankote
sector in Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir. Indian Army retaliated befittingly,” army
officials said.
The firing started in the Mankote sector in Poonch
around 4:30 am on Tuesday, they added.
In September alone this year, the Pakistan army has
violated the ceasefire 44 times this month.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/pakistan-violates-ceasefire-along-loc-in-jammu-and-kashmir-s-poonch/story-FqLxsYWq7XlqkSh1y4cR2O.html
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Pakistan
Pakistan’s
opposition, public increasingly irked by the military’s role in politics
TCA
Raghavan
Sep
28, 2020
Former
Pakistan prime minister (PM), Nawaz Sharif’s, defiant roar summarises both his
biography and Pakistan’s history over the past three decades. The occasion was
an opposition conference on video on September 20. Quite apart from what the
former PM said, the occasion was significant. The conference was hosted by the
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). It brought together all the major opposition
parties and leaders. The Pakistan Muslim League (N) — Nawaz Sharif’s party —
coordinating action with the PPP has not been seen for some time. These two
together make up a large chunk of the political spectrum and both are now
increasingly led by charismatic next generation leaders — Nawaz Sharif’s
daughter Maryam Nawaz and Benazir Bhutto’s son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. What is
common to both is that they attach to their names that of a parent who was the
political face of Pakistan for long periods of its history — Nawaz Sharif and
Benazir Bhutto. This is dynastic politics, of course, but it is also real
politics.
What
made the news most was Nawaz Sharif’s broadside against Prime Minister Imran Khan
and his government, of course, but more against those “who installed Imran Khan
and who manipulated elections to bring an incapable man like him into power and
thus, destroyed the country”. Khan’s failures of economic and foreign policy,
on Kashmir, Pakistan’s international isolation, alienation from Saudi Arabia
and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the stagnation of the
China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), thus formed one aspect of the speech.
The real firepower was in the references to the erosion and throttling of
democracy, that “every child knows that no prime minister has been allowed to
complete five years in power”, of a “state above the state”.
All
this refers to the role of the military — euphemistically called the
establishment — in politics. What has been less reported than his references to
the military and the generals were the comments about the judiciary and how it
acts in concert with the military.
Nawaz
Sharif has been PM longer than anyone else — in all over nine years but spread
over three terms in which the first (November 1990-July 1993) and the third
(June 2013-July 2017) are separated by a quarter of a century. While the
military, or at least certain generals, had much to do with his meteoric rise
through the 1980s, once PM, Nawaz Sharif acted as if he was in charge. His
first tenure ended, therefore, with a bitter feud with the president; the
second with a coup after General Pervez
Musharraf’s Kargil misadventure; the third with what amounted to a judicial
coup – or so at least many in Pakistan felt. In each of the three terms, his
party had a majority but this was no defence against the forces arrayed against
him.
The
third term was marked by near constant friction with the military on a whole
range of issues. A close political associate and astute observer, former
foreign minister Sartaj Aziz, has recently written: “Nawaz Sharif’s transition
away from the military establishment grew incrementally when his core political
interests or stakes were threatened by the absence of real democracy”. Nawaz
Sharif’s second and third terms stand out for his willingness to walk
Pakistan’s most dangerous minefield — relations with India. That story is well
known. The point, however, is that Nawaz Sharif understood intuitively that his
authority as PM could be cemented only by limiting the role of the military and
for this to happen some improvement of relations, if not normalisation with
India, was essential. Sartaj Aziz also notes, “Fundamentally, Nawaz Sharif did
not fully comprehend the depth and strength of de facto forces and also ignored
the importance of a broader coalition of political forces for establishing the
supremacy of democratic institutions.”
Whether
this present front of opposition unity and better atmospherics between the
leaders of the PML-(N) and the PPP, therefore, heralds something new happening
in Pakistan is too early to say. Nawaz Sharif stands disqualified from politics
for life and effectively in exile. Most Pakistani politicians in the opposition
are fearful of the skeletons in their cupboards and the risk of jail or worse
is real. Yet for all this both the PML-(N) and the PPP have remained largely
intact with no major desertions or breakaways in the past two years. Khan’s
problems, on the other hand, are mounting — not the least of which is managing
the growing clamour in public discourse that the military is too involved in
national affairs. Nawaz Sharif’s speech is designed clearly at advancing this
discourse. Certainly he knows that what displeases the military more than
anything else is an open discussion of its political role. Possibly he believes
that agitation on this front will increase pressure — both on Khan and the
military — and mistakes happen under pressure. The September speech may well
mark Nawaz Sharif’s fourth foray into Pakistan’s murky terrain of curbing the
military. If that is so, then describing Nawaz Sharif as epitomising a man with
his future behind him may well sum up his biography as also Pakistan’s
political history.
https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/pakistan-s-opposition-public-increasingly-irked-by-the-military-s-role-in-politics/story-M46BvE5zUDfqBfIg426xgM.html
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Shia-Sunni
rift on rise in Pakistan, but Imran Khan govt’s silence may be strategic
AYESHA
SIDDIQA
28
September, 2020
Pakistan’s
mainstream media may have hid it well, but sectarian tension between Sunnis and
Shias seems to be back, especially in the commercial capital of Karachi and
some urban centres of Punjab. Although Pakistan’s state authorities and its
supporters on social media have tried to project this conflict as an Indian
conspiracy, the accusation does not explain the fact that a number of Deobandi
parties, extremist, and militant groups have come together to harass the Shia
population right in the eyesight of the country’s security apparatus. Violence
has not begun, but its likelihood looms large. The fear generated through
sloganeering is in itself harmful for the Shias.
The
real question, however, is why has such tension returned? Why is it that all
major Deobandi militant groups are back to knocking at the doors of Pakistan’s
Shias? And why are non-militant Sunni religious groups, such as the Deobandis
and Barelvis, trying to scare the life out of Shias, or anyone who is
supporting Iran?
Many
people I spoke with are linking the recent development with the Pakistani
government and military’s desire to divert attention from retired Lt General
Asim Bajwa’s scam of his large personal business empire in the United States.
Some tend to see it in the context of pushing back the political opposition.
Such explanations are worth thinking about but don’t sufficiently explain the
reemergence of the Shia-Sunni discord or why the State would take such a major
risk of unleashing danger that is tantamount to walking on a landmine.
Saving
Asim Bajwa’s reputation may be necessary, but it doesn’t deserve such a risk.
The missing piece of the puzzle is probably Iran, and perhaps Tehran’s links
with China.
Eruption
of anger
It
was in the second week of September that thousands of Deobandi followers took
to Karachi’s main Shahrae Faisal road chanting anti-Shia slogans, referring to
the community as ‘kafir’ (non-Muslim) and calling upon the state to ban Ashura,
the Shias’ main religious event to mourn the death of Prophet Muhammad’s
grandson Hussain in 680 AD. A prominent Sunni cleric even demanded an end to
Muharram processions.
For
Shias, the first month of the Islamic calendar, Muharram, is spent remembering
the tragic incident that also lays out the fractious history and internal
conflict of Islam dating back to the early years. This year, Deobandi clerics
accused some of their Shia counterparts of committing blasphemy against certain
controversial figures in Islamic history whom the Deobandis respect but the
Shias don’t. This division is known and historic, but the sudden eruption of
anger is strange.
The
Imran Khan government’s response, thus far, has been to stop the media from
reporting on the matter. This is probably an attempt to contain any outbreak of
violence, because Shias in Pakistan are a sizeable minority. They represent
about 21 per cent of the total Muslim population, the highest number in a
country after Iran.
However,
violence is inevitable because the anger and anxiety on both sides seem to be
mounting. There is also the fact that Deobandi ideology has been given a freer
hand, as demonstrated by the passing of the Tahaffuz-e-Bunyad bill in July 2020
in the provincial Punjab Assembly. While incorporating blasphemy law in
government rules even deeper, the bill is problematic due to its lack of
consensus on key religious concepts between Sunnis and Shias.
One
would imagine that the State would try to avoid any outbreak of violence or
even tension. After all, Pakistan has reportedly witnessed the killing of
approximately 4,847 Shias in incidents of sectarian violence between 2001 and
2018. Karachi saw the targeted killing of Shia doctors and lawyers in 1999,
even before 9/11. The sectarian violence, which was irksome for the state, was
finally brought under control as a result of the two key military operations
against terrorism — Zarbe Azab (2014-17) and Radul Fasad (2017-19).
Interestingly,
the Barelvis who are known for greater sympathy with the Shias also seem to
have turned against them now. Although the ideological shift had started to
become visible in the early part of 2010, the Barelvi Tehreek-e-Labbaik
Pakistan (TLP) joining the Deobandis against the Shias is even more dramatic.
The
limited but highly dangerous Deobandi gatherings followed by the Barelvi TLP
rallies expressing shared anti-Shia sentiment despite having divergent
ideologies could blow up in Pakistan’s face.
Also
read: Asim Bajwa’s dirty money is RAW saazish in Imran Khan’s Pakistan
Violence
and influence
Like
the Middle East, Pakistan could prove to be a whirlpool of sectarian tension
and violence. Though the first instance of Sunni-Shia tension erupted around
1951 in Sindh, it built up more decisively during the 1980s. General
Zia-ul-Haq’s regime looked away while the Anjuman-e-Sipah-e-Sahaba (ASS) took
birth in Jhang, South Punjab in 1986. It later turned into the Sipah-e-Sahaba
Pakistan (SSP) that became the mothership of all Deobandi militancy. It gave
birth to Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) during the early 1990s, and also the
Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Ansar, and later Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM).
During
counter-terrorism operations by Pakistan, segments from the SSP, LeJ and JeM
went into making the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Some members of this
even went on to join Daesh. The SSP was also one of the first organisations to
fight in Afghanistan. Besides militancy, the organisation also engaged in
politics. Its leader, Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, initially contested elections in 1988
from a Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam–Fazlur Rehman (JUI-F) ticket, and later formed
his own party. Around the time Haq was killed in 1990 outside Islamabad,
Pakistan saw a lot of bloodshed, including sectarian violence, through the
decade of the 1980s, 1990s, and the 2000s. Like the evolution of its militant
wings, the SSP’s political face also evolved. One of its current forms is the
group Ahle Sunnat-Wal-Jamaat (ASWJ), which is visible in electoral politics.
The SSP and other militant groups are part of the Deobandi network that
comprises militant outfits, political groups, and welfare institutions.
The
network is so well spread out in the largest province of Punjab that there are
over 20,000 staunch Deobandi voters in every constituency, which makes the
group important for all political parties and builds their influence. The
JUI-F, headed by Maulana Fazlur Rehman, is one of the most prominent faces of
the network. It is instrumental in partnering with the Pakistan Peoples Party
(PPP) and spreading the influence of Rehman’s network in Sindh and Baluchistan.
The
Iran angle
The
Jaish-e-Mohammed, which was considered as dedicated to Kashmir, began talking
about sectarian issues as recently as early September 2020.
The
need to hide Asim Bajwa’s financial sins is not sufficient reason to explain
the sudden turn in JeM’s narrative. Though not going all guns blazing after
Shias, its recent writings have clearly stated that it subscribes to the
overall ASWJ ideology. The JeM, however, has taken a more aggressive position
against the Ahmediyas and blasphemy, particularly challenging France on the
Charlie Hebdo issue. These were matters that the JeM has avoided in the past.
Its members that I spoke with would categorically say that they didn’t want to divert
attention from jihad outside Pakistan.
To
many, the internal shift in the Deobandi militant discourse indicates a growing
Saudi influence. Indeed, in one of its publications on 12 August, the JeM
seemed angry when it described the Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi as
“these traitor Makhdooms and their patrons will find their name in hell along
with Pervez Musharraf [for abandoning the fight for Kashmir]”. Clearly, the
reference to Kashmir was a peg to lash out at Qureshi for his recent rant against
Riyadh. Most of the Deobandi militant organisations and its madrassa network
are beholden to Middle Eastern patronage that started during the 1980s.
However,
this in itself is not an indication that the JeM or the Deobandi network has
grown independent of the Pakistani state. In fact, starting from early 2018,
JeM literature had begun criticising Iran, something that was never done in the
past. This was happening before the Pakistan government claimed that Masood
Azhar and his family had gone missing.
The
rise in sectarian rhetoric or focus on Iran, which is linked with the sectarian
issue, even of militant outfits that were never known to dabble in such
matters, indicates a critical shift. It is possible that the Deobandi network
is responding to changes in larger Middle Eastern politics. Some argue that
fear is being used as a tool to silence Shias from raising their voice in
support of Iran, or against the peace deal between the UAE and Israel that may
even extend to Saudi Arabia. The re-emergence of the TTP in bordering areas,
the re-birth of the Malik Ishaq group of LeJ that is now more vociferously
using a sectarian agenda, along with the presence of Daesh in areas of
Afghanistan close to Pakistan, could pose a challenge for Iran.
It
certainly raises questions about the security of Iran’s development projects in
cooperation with China.
The
silence of the Pakistani government can be explained as its urge to discourage
domestic violence. However, it may also be to hide some internal divisions
regarding its geo-political agenda — issues like recognition of Israel, a
necessary containment of Iran, and its continued dependence on the US. It also
raises questions about Pakistan’s attitude towards the China–Pakistan Economic
Corridor (CPEC) and China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which as expert
Andrew Small recently argued is coming down on Pakistan’s agenda. The silence
on an ever-bloating sectarianism may turn out to be more strategic than
tactical.
Ayesha
Siddiqa is research associate, SOAS London and author of Military Inc; Inside
Pakistan’s Military Economy. She tweets: @iamthedrifter. Views are personal.
https://theprint.in/opinion/shia-sunni-rift-on-rise-in-pakistan-but-imran-khan-govts-silence-may-be-strategic/511942/
--------
‘Muslim
economies need to reduce trust deficit through frequent trade fairs’
September
29, 2020
KARACHI:
Foreign and local dignitaries on Monday emphasised need of removing trust
deficits in the Muslim economies through frequent trade fairs and meetings to
strengthen their economic cooperation.
Sheikh
Sultan, vice president of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FPCCI) said Muslim countries have enormous resources and potentials
to succeed, but the task is to translate the potential into real asset.
“Absence
of unity and cooperation among the OIC (Organization of Islamic Cooperation)
countries is a biggest challenge in the present uncertain political and
economic situation,” Sultan said, addressing a webinar organised by the FPCCI.
OIC
is the second largest bloc of the world and represents one-fourth of total land
with 4.1 percent of the world population. Gross GDP of OIC is $6.5 trillion
with average per capita income $ 7,189. Intra-regional trade is 17.5 percent of
total trade of OIC countries while the intra-region foreign direct investment
stands 2-3 percent of GDP.
“Pakistan
has strong and significant relations with all Muslim nations at political
level, but these relations do not reflect in terms of trade volume despite the
fact that there is huge potential of trade,” said Sultan.
“The
reason behind the low level of trade is lack of information sharing and low
level of interaction among the private sectors of Pakistan and OIC countries.”
Pakistan has signed free trade agreement only with Malaysia and preferential
trade agreements with Indonesia, Mauritius and Iran.
Trade
and Investment Attaché of Pakistan in Qatar Salman Ali said value-added food
products, pharmaceutical, construction material and agro based product have
huge export opportunities for Pakistan.
“FPCCI
and TDAP (Trader Development Authority of Pakistan) should regularly
participate in the exhibitions organised by Qatar for the enhancement of
trade,” Ali said. Trade and Investment Attache of Pakistan in Jordan Khadim Ali
said India and Europe are penetrating in Jordan and share of Pakistan in
Jordan’s trade is less than one percent. “There are no marketing efforts and
only one delegation of Pakistan visited Jordan last year,” he said.
Consul
General of Pakistan in Turkey Bilal Pasha said there is no trade agreement
among 57 countries of OIC, which is the main reason of low intra-regional
trade. “Market access, connectivity, transportation, financial connectivity and
B2B connectivity are challenges which Pakistan faces in trade with Muslim countries,”
said Pasha. “Turkey is advance in science and technology and there is scope of
collaboration for both countries in light engineering, chemical, agriculture,
leather and textile.”
Trade
and Investment Attaché of Pakistan in Indonesia Fauzia Perveen said there are
huge non-tariff barriers in terms of import licence and quality requirements.
Pakistan
and Indonesia operationalised preferential trade agreement in 2013, which is
mainly benefiting Indonesia. Lack of shipping lines is another issue and almost
20-25 days are required for trade with Indonesia. Dates, meat and ethanol have
potentials of exports towards Indonesia, Perveen said.
Commercial
Secretary of Pakistan in Tajikistan Rashid Imtiaz said Tajikistan is gateway to
Central Asia and Pakistan is mainly exporting sugar and importing cotton from
Tajikistan. “Connectivity is the main issue due to uncertain situation in
Afghanistan.”
Commercial
Counselor of Pakistan in Oman Hanif Bashir said India and China are marketing
their products in Oman, which is mainly an importing country. Bashir also
advised regular business council meetings, trade fairs and exhibitions.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/721699-muslim-economies-need-to-reduce-trust-deficit-through-frequent-trade-fairs
--------
PML-N
president Shahbaz Sharif arrested in money-laundering case
Sep
28, 2020
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan’s anti-corruption watchdog, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB),
arrested Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president and leader of the
opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif from the Lahore high court
premises on Monday in a money-laundering case after his bail application was
rejected.
The
arrest came days after the Army had counselled the opposition not to drag the
GHQ into their fight with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan,
Sharif
had appeared before the high court to secure an extension to his pre-arrest
bail when his plea was rejected. Within minutes of bail denial, the anti-graft
body took him into custody. A two-member HC bench had extended Sharif’s
pre-arrest bail earlier this month.
Sharif’s
court appearance drew a large crowd of PML-N supporters, including women,
chanting slogans against the NAB, PM Imran Khan and his government. Following
Sharif’s arrest, footage of a scuffle between security personnel and charged
PML-N supporters was aired on TV stations.
The
case against him is related to NAB’s December 2019 reference under which it had
frozen 23 properties owned by Sharif and his sons, Hamza and Suleman, over
claims that they had acquired assets beyond their known sources of income and
laundered money.
According
to NAB, an investigation had found that the PML-N president had allegedly
acquired properties in the name of his wives Nusrat and Tehmina Durrani. The
PML-N denies the allegations, claiming that the anti-corruption body was merely
trying to harass the opposition at the government’s behest.
“Make
no mistake. Shahbaz Sharif has been arrested ONLY because he REFUSED to play in
the hands of those who wanted to use him against his brother (Nawaz Sharif),”
Maryam Nawaz, PML-N leader and ex-PM Nawaz Sharif’s daughter, posted on
Twitter. “He preferred standing behind prison bars than to stand against his
brother,” she said.
In
another tweet, Maryam said: “If there were accountability and justice in this
country, it would not have been Shahbaz Sharif who was arrested but Asim Bajwa
and his family.”
Earlier
this month, a Pakistani journalist broke the news alleging that the current
chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and former military
spokesperson Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa (Retd) had used his offices, since 2002,
when he was a lieutenant colonel, in setting up the off-shore businesses of his
wife, sons and brothers. “The media was pressured not to broadcast news of
Bajwa’s corruption but later forced to air his clarification of news which was
already not reported in local media,” she said.
Reacting
to the arrest, PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb claimed that it was the
direct result of the united opposition’s all-party conference. “For the past
two years, the NAB and PM Khan nexus has been harassing all political
opponents,” she said, alleging that Sharif’s arrest was clear proof that the
incumbent government has started the process to rig the upcoming
Gilgit-Baltistan elections. “This was done on the orders of Imran Khan,” she
alleged. “We will not be discouraged from our fight against this government,”
she said, adding, “This drama will not succeed.”
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/pml-n-president-shahbaz-sharif-arrested-in-money-laundering-case/articleshow/78371621.cms
--------
Afghan
reconciliation leader thanks Pakistan for facilitating peace process
29
Sep 2020
Chairman
of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation Dr Abdullah Abdullah
on Monday thanked the Pakistani leadership for its efforts to take the Afghan
peace process to its logical conclusion, Radio Pakistan reported.
Abdullah
lauded Pakistan's role in the peace process during a meeting with Foreign
Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in Islamabad.
Qureshi
said Pakistan backed a peaceful and durable political solution of Afghanistan's
conflict through an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process.
He
said Pakistan had been playing the role of a facilitator in the process
"as a shared responsibility", according to the report.
The
foreign minister said the US-Taliban agreement and later the intra-Afghan
dialogue held in Doha had raised the prospects of longlasting peace in
Afghanistan. He said the Afghan leadership should seize this "historic opportunity"
and undertake serious efforts to take the peace process to its conclusion.
Qureshi
said an eye should also be kept on "the spoilers who do not want peace and
stability in the region", adding that the international community will
have to come forward for the reconstruction and economic stability of
Afghanistan.
"Pakistan
desires dignified return of millions of Afghan refugees to their
homeland," the minister said.
He
said Pakistan respects the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Afghanistan
and wants to develop strong economic cooperation with the neighbouring country.
Addressing
a press conference after the meeting, Qureshi said Pakistan had always
maintained that there was no military solution to the Afghan conflict, which
could be ended only through a political settlement.
"We
have fulfilled our responsibility, now you have to go forward and play your
part and I hope that you will be successful," he told the Afghan
leadership. "Whatever we can do to facilitate we have done and will do
it."
Earlier
in the day, Abdullah had arrived in Islamabad on a three-day official visit.
This is the Afghan leader's first visit to Pakistan in his capacity as chairman
of the High Council for National Reconciliation.
He
is accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising prominent members of the
council.
According
to the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abdullah will also
meet Prime Minister Imran Khan, President Dr Arif Alvi, Senate Chairman Sadiq
Sanjrani and National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser during the trip.
In
a tweet shortly after arriving, Abdullah said that he will meet the Pakistani
leadership and "exchange views on Afghanistan peace and bilateral
relations".
Later,
he visited the Foreign Office where he was welcomed by FM Qureshi. The visiting
dignitary also planted a sapling at the premises.
On
Sunday, the Afghan leader had stated that the visit would provide a unique
opportunity for the two sides to exchange views on Afghanistan peace talks in
Doha and bilateral relations.
"I
hope this visit will open a new chapter of mutual cooperation at all levels,
especially on achieving a lasting and dignified peace in Afghanistan," he
had said on Twitter.
During
his visit, Abdullah will also speak at the Institute of Strategic Studies
Islamabad and will also meet journalists.
The
visit will provide an opportunity for wide-ranging exchange of views on the
Afghan peace process and strengthening of Pakistan-Afghanistan bilateral
relations and people-to-people interaction.
Hasty
withdrawal from Afghanistan would be unwise: PM Imran
In
an op-ed published in The Washington Post on Saturday, Prime Minister Imran
Khan warned that a hasty international withdrawal from Afghanistan would be
"unwise" and cautioned against setting unrealistic timelines.
The
premier said that the path leading to the talks between the Afghan leadership
and the Taliban was not easy but "we were able to press on thanks to the
courage and flexibility that were on display from all sides".
He
pointed out that the United States and its allies had facilitated the prisoner
exchange — which the Taliban had linked to resumption of the peace talks —
while both the Afghan government and the Taliban had "responded to the
Afghan people’s yearning for peace".
The
premier said that the intra-Afghan negotiations were "likely to be even
more difficult, requiring patience and compromise from all sides".
"Progress
could be slow and painstaking; there may even be the occasional deadlock, as
Afghans work together for their future. At such times, we would do well to
remember that a bloodless deadlock on the negotiating table is infinitely
better than a bloody stalemate on the battlefield," he wrote.
He
added that all sides who were invested in the Afghan peace process should
"resist the temptation for setting unrealistic timelines". He also
warned of regional spoilers, who he said saw instability in Afghanistan as an
advantage for their own political purposes.
The
premier highlighted that it was important to start planning for what would
happen in post-war Afghanistan. "How can the world help a post-war
Afghanistan transition to sustainable peace? How do we create conditions that
will enable the millions of Afghan refugees living in Pakistan, and other
countries, to return to their homeland with dignity and honour?"
He
assured that Pakistan would continue to support the Afghan peace process.
"Like the United States, Pakistan does not want to see Afghanistan become
a sanctuary for international terrorism ever again."
https://www.dawn.com/news/1582095/afghan-reconciliation-leader-thanks-pakistan-for-facilitating-peace-process
--------
North America
US
to try to end violence between Armenia, Azerbaijan
Betul
Yuruk
28.09.2020
NEW
YORK
President
Donald Trump said Sunday that the US is looking into what can be done to stop
the violence between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh
region.
Trump
told reporters at a White House press conference that the US has “a lot of good
relationships in that area. We will see if we can stop it.”
Border
clashes broke out early Sunday after Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani
civilian settlements and military positions in the region, which is also known
as Upper Karabakh.
Relations
between the two former Soviet nations have been tense since 1991, when the
Armenian military 'occupied' Upper Karabakh, an internationally recognized
territory of Azerbaijan.
Four
UN Security Council and two UN General Assembly resolutions as well as many
international organizations demand the withdrawal of the occupying forces.
The
OSCE Minsk Group – co-chaired by France, Russia and the US – was formed in 1992
to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire,
however, was agreed upon in 1994.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/us-to-try-to-end-violence-between-armenia-azerbaijan/1987815
--------
US
hopes Turkey-Greece talks lead to rapprochement
Michael
Hernandez
28.09.2020
WASHINGTON
Secretary
of State Mike Pompeo said Monday the US hopes forthcoming Greek and Turkish
talks to resolve maritime disputes in the eastern Mediterranean will lead to
better bilateral relations between the neighbors.
"We’ve
said all along the way conflict is resolved is not through shows of force, it’s
not through demonstrations of power, it’s through dialogue. It’s through
international systems, agreement, conversations, dialogue. That’s how these
maritime disputes ought to be resolved," Pompeo said during an interview
with Greece's Athens News Agency.
"We
hope the exploratory talks not only get kicked off right, but it’s important
that they’re resolved in a way that delivers outcomes that each of the two
nations find more than acceptable," he added.
Addressing
the UN General Assembly on Friday, Greek Premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis hailed the
forthcoming talks with Ankara as "a step in the right direction”.
“If
President Erdogan really believes the UN stands as a beacon of hope and a
bastion of global cooperation, I would urge him to act in accordance with this
fact,” he said, referring to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Greece,
with France's support, has disputed Turkey's energy exploration in the eastern
Mediterranean, 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 drill
ships with a military escort to explore for energy on its continental shelf,
saying that Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus also have rights
in the region.
To
reduce tensions, Turkey has called for dialogue to ensure fair sharing of the
region's resources.
The
61st round of exploratory talks between Turkey and Greece will start soon, the
Greek Foreign Ministry said last week.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/us-hopes-turkey-greece-talks-lead-to-rapprochement/1988782
--------
Europe
Azerbaijan
opens fire towards military unit in Armenia, hits civilian bus
29
September 2020
Azeri
armed forces opened fire on an Armenian military unit in the border town of
Vardenis, and miles away from a breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region which has
been the focus of clashes in the past few days, the Armenian defense ministry
said.
A
civilian bus was set on fire after being hit by an Azeri unmanned drone, it
said in a statement.
Separately,
Armenia denied an earlier report by Azerbaijan’s defense ministry that the
Armenian army had shelled the Dashkesan region on the border between the two
countries.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/world/2020/09/29/Azerbaijan-open-fire-towards-military-unit-in-Armenia-hit-civilian-bus-Defense-Mini
--------
UK's
Johnson raises concerns with Turkey's Erdogan over east Med tensions
29
September 2020
British
Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Monday
that he was concerned about tensions in the eastern Mediterranean, welcoming
news that Turkey and Greece had agreed to talks, Johnson's office said in a
statement.
NATO
allies Greece and Turkey, at loggerheads on a range of issues, have agreed to
resume exploratory talks over contested maritime claims following weeks of tension,
and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was beginning a two-day trip to Greece.
"The
Prime Minister expressed his concern about recent tensions in the Eastern
Mediterranean. He stressed the need for calm and welcomed the news that Turkey
and Greece have agreed to talks," Johnson's office said.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/29/UK-s-Johnson-raises-concerns-with-Turkey-s-Erdogan-over-east-Med-tensions
--------
Russia
calls on Azerbaijan, Armenia to exercise restraint
Elena
Teslova
28.09.2020
MOSCOW
Russia
on Monday called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to exercise restraint and give up
military methods of conducting affairs.
Speaking
to reporters, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the escalation of the
conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is the “most serious concern.”
Russia
considers it “inappropriate” to draw a conclusion on who is right and who is
guilty, and uses its good relations with Armenia and Azerbaijan in a bid to
de-escalate the situation, Peskov said.
Russian
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has been in contact with his Armenian and
Azerbaijani counterparts in order to promote peacemaking efforts, he added.
The
Kremlin spokesman said that President Vladimir Putin held a phone talk with
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at the latter’s request on Sunday and
that he will talk to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev if necessary.
Moscow
is also "in full contact" with Ankara on the issue, the spokesman
added.
“At
the moment, we call on all parties, especially the parties to the conflict, to
exercise maximum restraint, to abandon military methods of conducting affairs,
and also to refrain from any steps that may provoke further undesirable
aggravation of the situation,” he said.
Border
clashes broke out early Sunday when Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani
civilian settlements and military positions, leading to casualties.
Azerbaijan’s
parliament declared a state of war in some of its cities and regions following
Armenia’s border violations and attacks in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh
region.
Relations
between the two former Soviet neighbors have been tense since 1991, when the
Armenian military occupied Upper Karabakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, an
internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.
Four
UN Security Council and two UN General Assembly resolutions as well as many
international organizations demand the withdrawal of the occupying forces.
The
OSCE Minsk Group – co-chaired by France, Russia and the US – was formed in 1992
to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire,
however, was agreed upon in 1994.
France,
Germany and Russia, among others, have urged an immediate halt to clashes in
the occupied region.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/russia-calls-on-azerbaijan-armenia-to-exercise-restraint/1988438
--------
Aliyev,
Macron discuss Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict
Ruslan
Rehimov
28.09.2020
BAKU
The
presidents of Azerbaijan and France on Monday discussed escalating hostilities
after the Armenian forces shelled Azerbaijani military and civilian positions
in the occupied Upper Karabakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Emmanuel
Macron phoned Ilham Aliyev and voiced concern about clashes on the
Armenian-Azerbaijani frontline, saying the problem should be resolved through
negotiations, according to a statement from Azerbaijan’s Presidency.
Aliyev
noted that the Armenian administration deliberately disrupted the negotiation
process and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statement that
“Nagorno-Karabakh is Armenia” had given a serious blow to the process, the
statement read.
The
Azerbaijani president said the Armenian army fired at the Azerbaijani positions
and civilian settlements on Sep. 27, causing civilian and military casualties,
and the Azerbaijani army started a counterattack in response, the statement
added.
Aliyev
emphasized that the Armenian administration is responsible for all the events,
according to the statement.
Border
clashes broke out early Sunday after Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani
civilian settlements and military positions in the region, which is also known
as Upper Karabakh.
Relations
between the two former Soviet nations have been tense since 1991, when the
Armenian military occupied Upper Karabakh, an internationally recognized
territory of Azerbaijan.
Four
UN Security Council and two UN General Assembly resolutions as well as many
international organizations demand the withdrawal of the occupying forces.
The
OSCE Minsk Group – co-chaired by France, Russia and the US – was formed in 1992
to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire,
however, was agreed upon in 1994.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/asia-pacific/aliyev-macron-discuss-armenia-azerbaijan-conflict/1988019
--------
Arab world
Threat
to evacuate US diplomats from Iraq raises fear of war
28
September 2020
Washington
has made preparations to withdraw diplomats from Iraq after warning Baghdad it could
shut its embassy, two Iraqi officials and two Western diplomats said, a step
Iraqis fear could turn their country into a battle zone.
Any
move by the United States to reduce its diplomatic presence in a country where
it has up to 5,000 troops would be widely seen in the region as an escalation
of its confrontation with Iran, which Washington blames for missile and bomb
attacks.
That
in turn would open the possibility of military action, with just weeks to go
before an election in which President Donald Trump has campaigned on a hard
line towards Tehran and its proxies.
Secretary
of State Mike Pompeo threatened to close the embassy in a phone call a week ago
to President Barham Salih, two Iraqi government sources said. The conversation
was initially reported by an Iraqi news website.
By
Sunday, Washington had begun preparations to withdraw diplomatic staff if such
a decision is taken, those sources and the two Western diplomats said.
The
concern among the Iraqis is that withdrawing diplomats would be followed
quickly by military action against forces Washington blamed for attacks.
Populist
Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who commands a following of millions of Iraqis,
last week pleaded for groups to avoid aggravation that would turn Iraq into a
battleground.
One
of the Western diplomats said the US administration did not "want to be
limited in their options" to weaken Iran or pro-Iranian militias in Iraq.
Asked whether he expected Washington to respond with economic or military
measures, the diplomat replied: "Strikes."
The
US State Department, asked about plans to withdraw from Iraq, said: "We
never comment on the Secretary's private diplomatic conversations with foreign
leaders ... Iran-backed groups launching rockets at our Embassy are a danger
not only to us but to the Government of Iraq."
Earlier
this month, the United States military said it would reduce its presence in
Iraq to 3,000 troops from 5,200.
The
Pentagon said on Monday it was committed to supporting Iraq's long-term
"security, stability, and prosperity" and US military operations
against Islamic State continued.
Perennial
risk
In
a region polarized between allies of Iran and the United States, Iraq is the
rare exception: a country that has close ties with both. But that has left it
open to a perennial risk of becoming a battleground in a proxy war.
That
risk was hammered home in January this year, when Washington killed Iran's most
important military commander, Qassem Soleimani, with a drone strike at Baghdad
airport. Iran responded with missiles fired at US bases in Iraq.
Since
then, a new prime minister has taken power in Iraq, supported by the United
States, while Tehran still maintains close links to powerful Shia armed
movements.
Rockets
regularly fly across the Tigris towards the heavily fortified US diplomatic
compound, constructed to be the biggest US embassy in the world in central
Baghdad's so-called Green Zone during the US occupation after a 2003 invasion.
In
recent weeks rocket attacks near the embassy have increased and roadside bombs
targeted convoys carrying equipment to the US-led military coalition. One
roadside attack hit a British convoy in Baghdad, the first of its kind against
Western diplomats in Iraq for years.
On
Monday three children and two women were killed when two militia rockets hit a
family home, the Iraqi military said. Police sources said Baghdad airport was
the intended target.
Two
Iraqi intelligence sources suggested plans to withdraw American diplomats were
not yet in motion, and would depend on whether Iraqi security forces were able
to do a better job of halting attacks. They said they had received orders to
prevent attacks on US sites, and had been told that US evacuations would begin
only if that effort failed.
Double-edged
sword
Iraqis
are concerned about the impact of November's presidential election on the Trump
administration's decision-making.
While
Trump has boasted of his hard line against Iran, he has also long promised to
withdraw US troops from engagements in the Middle East. The United States is
already drawing down its force sent to help defeat Islamic State fighters in
Iraq from 2014-2017.
Some
Iraqi officials dismissed Pompeo's threat to pull out diplomats as bluster,
designed to scare armed groups into stopping attacks. But they said it could
backfire by provoking the militias instead, if they sense an opportunity to
push Washington to retreat.
"The
American threat to close their embassy is merely a pressure tactic, but is a
double-edged sword," said Gati Rikabi, a member of Iraq's parliamentary security
committee.
He
and another committee member said US moves were designed to scare Iraqi leaders
into supporting Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, who has tried to check the
power of Iran-aligned militia groups, with scant success.
Hawks
on both sides
The
militias are under public pressure to rein in supporters who might provoke
Washington. Since last year, public opinion in Iraq has turned sharply against
political groups seen as fomenting violence on behalf of Iran.
Publicly,
the powerful Iran-backed Shia militia groups which control large factions in
parliament have tried to distance themselves from attacks on Western targets.
US
officials say they think the Shia militias or their Iranian backers have
created splinter offshoots to carry out such attacks, allowing the main
organisations to evade blame.
A
senior figure in a Shia Muslim political party said he thought Trump might want
to pull out diplomats to keep them out of harm's way and avoid an embarrassing
pre-election incident.
Militia
attacks were not necessarily under Tehran's control, he said, noting that
Iran's foreign ministry had publicly called for a halt to attacks on diplomatic
missions in Iraq.
"Iran
wants to boot the Americans out, but not at any cost. It doesn't want
instability on its Western border," the Shia leader said. "Just like
there are hawks in the US, there are hawks in Iran who have contact with the
groups carrying out attacks, who aren't necessarily following state
policy."
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/29/Threat-to-evacuate-US-diplomats-from-Iraq-raises-fear-of-war
--------
EU
is ‘disappointed’ and ‘concerned’ after Lebanon prime minister-designate
resigns
28
September 2020
The
European Union said on Monday it is disappointed and concerned about the
Lebanese prime minister-designate’s decision to quit, urging Lebanon to form a
government to win financial support from the International Monetary Fund.
For
all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
“The
European Union notes with disappointment and concern the resignation of Prime
Minister-designate Mustapha Adib and the circumstances that led to his
decision,” the EU’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said in a statement.
“Lebanon’s
leaders must unite and do their utmost for the timely formation of a
government,” Borrell said. “The swift formation of a government would be also
crucial to reach an urgently needed agreement with the International Monetary
Fund.”
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/28/EU-is-disappointed-and-concerned-after-Lebanon-prime-minister-designate-s-resigna
--------
Egypt
police arrest 382 people protesting against President Sisi: Rights group
28
September 2020
At
least 382 people have been arrested in Egypt in the wake of a recent spate of
demonstrations against the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, a
rights group says.
The
Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms said on Monday that it had directly
documented 249 cases of arrest over the past nine days.
Another
133 had been documented by other rights groups or lawyers, it added.
Egypt’s
public prosecutor recently said it had ordered the release of 68 minors in
connection with the demonstrations.
Anti-government
protesters have braved a heavy-handed crackdown by the police in the past few
days.
Apart
from the capital Cairo, protesters have also taken to the streets in the
governorates of Giza, Damietta on the Nile Delta and Luxor in the south.
Several
videos posted online purportedly show security forces firing live bullets to
disperse the angry crowds.
On
Saturday, family members and medical sources said a protester had been killed
in clashes with the police in a village south of Cairo.
A
major grievance against the Sisi administration has to do with his decision to
order the demolition of ‘illegal’ construction nationwide. People are required
to pay a fine to legalize their home ownership.
In
an apparent reference to the protests, Sisi on Sunday praised Egyptians for
enduring tough economic conditions and said some were trying to exploit Egypt's
challenges to undermine the country.
“They
choose the difficult conditions to offend and sow suspicion among Egyptians
about what we are doing – that this is at their expense and against them,” Sisi
said during the inauguration of a petrochemical plant north of Cairo.
Exiled
businessman Mohamed Ali, who has influenced the anti-Sisi protests since last
year in online videos, has intensified his efforts recently.
The
prominent opposition figure has accused the government of wasting money on
lavish construction projects.
Last
year’s protests sparked a wide-ranging crackdown by the police and security
forces. Amnesty International said at least 4,000 people had been arrested.
Since
his election in 2014, Sisi has overseen a broad crackdown on political dissent,
which was extended with a wave of arrests last September.
Security
services tried to preempt the latest wave of protests by launching a campaign
of arrests that included political figures and high-profile activists.
Egypt
declared as unauthorized all demonstrations in 2013 after Sisi, then defense
minister, led a military coup and ousted the democratically-elected President
Mohamed Morsi.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/28/635225/Egypt-police-Sisi
--------
At
least 5 civilians killed in rocket fire near Baghdad airport: Army
29
September 2020
Three
Iraqi children and two women from the same family were killed Monday when a
rocket targeting Baghdad airport, where US troops are stationed, fell instead
on their home, the army said.
The
latest in a string of incidents targeting American interests in Iraq came after
Washington threatened to close its embassy and withdraw its 3,000 troops from
the country unless the rocket attacks stop.
For
all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
attacks, which started around a year ago, have caused few casualties.
Monday's
incident was the first to claim so many civilian lives. The army said it also wounded
two other children.
Twitter
accounts supporting US arch-enemy Iran regularly praise the attacks, but that
was not the case Monday, and no group immediately claimed responsibility.
Previous
attacks of the same nature have been claimed by murky groups saying they are
acting against the "American occupier".
Experts
say they include former members of pro-Iranian factions of the Hashed al-Shaabi
paramilitary alliance.
The
Iraqi army, in its statement Monday, accused "criminal gangs and groups of
outlaws" of seeking to "create chaos and terrorize people".
Between
October and July, at least 39 rocket attacks targeted US interests in Iraq.
Almost the same number again have taken place since.
Iraqi
intelligence sources have blamed the attacks on a small group of hardline
Iran-backed paramilitary factions.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/29/At-least-5-civilians-killed-in-rocket-fire-near-Baghdad-airport-Army
--------
Mideast
Rayeesi:
Iran’s Judiciary Uninfluenced by US, Europeans’ Hues and Cries
Sep
28, 2020
“The
US and certain European states are centers of crimes and they put their knees
on the neck of justice-seekers to stop their voice as a new torture method,”
Rayeesi said on Monday, addressing the Judiciary officials in Tehran.
He
warned that the enemies want to display crime and murder as a normal thing in
the Iranian society, and underlined, “The Judiciary will not be influenced by
the hues and cries of the hegemonic system and the mercenaries of the US and
Europe and merely moves on the path of justice and law.”
Rayeesi
also blasted the western states for instrumental use of human rights.
His
remarks came after the US officials and some European missions and envoys to
Iran, including the German ambassador, made comments in reaction to the
execution of 27‑year‑old Iranian Navid Afkari who had received a death
sentence for murdering a citizen in 2018.
Based
on Islamic Sharia Laws, the family of the victim decide the fate of the
murderer after the convict is found guilty at the court under a judicial decree
called Qisas, i.e. "retaliation in kind", "eye for an eye",
or retributive justice; they could either receive ransom money or ask for
hanging in retribution.
The
family of the victim, Hassan Torkmani, a Water and Sewage Organization
employee, had urged to practice their right of hanging in retribution.
But
since Navid Afkari had also taken part in 2018 protests in some Iranian cities,
opposition groups based in Europe and the US have been seeking to politicize
the case.
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990707000892
--------
IRGC
Spokesman: US, Europe Not Able to Confront Iran
Sep
28, 2020
“Today,
the Americans and Europeans are much weaker than the past in treating Iran and
they will not be able to confront Iran in any areas,” General Sharif said,
addressing a ceremony in the Northeastern province of Khorassan Razavi on
Monday.
He
added that the Iranian nation’s strong determination and obedience to the
Supreme Leader have paralyzed the enemies in confrontation against the country.
“If
we were not a powerful country, the Americans would not raise such hues and
cries against us,” General Sharif said.
In
relevant remarks on Saturday, Iranian Army Deputy Commander Brigadier General
Mohammad Hossein Dadras said that the US power to impose its unilateral
policies to the world is declining.
“Today,
we have attained such a power and honor that if we send a ship to the other
side of the world (Latin America), it carries out its mission well without
being disturbed; this is the shadow of our power in that region,” General
Dadras said.
He
referred to the US declining power, and said, “Today the countries which have
been under the US hegemony have distanced themselves from the country and we
are witnessing new world powers and [the US] unilateralism is being
annihilated.”
Deputy
Head of Iran's Ports and Maritime Organization Jalil Eslami underlined last
month that given the Iranian vessels’ professional behavior in international
waters, Washington is not able to seize them under the pretext of sanctions.
“If
a country acts based on the technical and engineering protocols and the rules,
no country can seize its ships,” Eslami told reporters in Tehran.
He
referred to the US sanctions against Iran and Washington’s attempts to use them
as a pretext to carry out illegal acts against the Iranian vessels, and said,
“Experience has shown that the US can adopt no measure against the ships which
have Iranian flag and identity.”
Eslami
reminded of the Iranian vessels’ recent voyage to Venezuela to supply the
country with its needed fuel, and said, “Iran’s oil tankers met all
international maritime rules and the US could not do anything.”
Early
in June, five Iranian oil tankers carrying millions of barrels of gasoline and
components entered the ports of the fuel-starved South American country and
came back to Iran.
The
ships, their cargoes and their insurance papers had all been issued by Iran.
President
Maduro appreciated Iran, China, Russia and Cuba for their assistance to Caracas,
describing them as the real friends of his country.
Late
in June, the sixth Iranian ship loaded with food and medical supplies anchored
at the port of La Guayra in Venezuela to help the Latin American country in
fighting coronavirus epidemic.
President
Rouhani said his country is always entitled to defend its sovereignty and
territorial integrity, and warned that if his country's oil tankers in the
Caribbean or anywhere in the world get into trouble by the Americans, Tehran
will definitely retaliate.
“Although
some of the US measures have created unacceptable conditions in different parts
of the world, we will not be the initiator of tension and clash,” Rouhani said
in a phone call with the Qatari Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in May.
Referring
to the American moves in the Caribbean, he reiterated, “If our oil tankers face
problems in the Caribbean Sea or anywhere in the world by the Americans, they
will face problems reciprocally."
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990707000798
--------
Iran
Warns Armenia, Azerbaijan to Watch Bullets
Sep
28, 2020
“We
warn them that no bullet should be shot towards our borders. Two mortar rounds
had hit areas near our borders by mistake and we notified them and we hope that
tranquility will be established,” General Rezayee told reporters in Tehran on
Monday.
He
called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to resolve their problems through talks, and
said, “Of course, we monitor their fire exchanges and these clashes will not
benefit any of them as others could misuse the situation.”
General
Rezayee said that he has sent messages to the authorities of the two countries’
border guards.
Iran
has invited the neighboring countries of Azerbaijan Republic and Armenia to
avoid tensions and adhere to self-restraint to resolve Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict, stressing the need for regional peace.
Iranian
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called on his Azeri and Armenian
counterparts to refrain from military ways as tensions have risen between the
two countries over Nagorno-Karabakh region.
During
phone conversations with Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan and
Azeri Foreign Minister Jeyhoun Bayramov, Zarif voiced concern over the
situation and called on both sides to declare ceasefire and end hostilities.
He
called for negotiations according to the international law and expressed Iran's
readiness to use all its capacities to help settle disputes.
Battles
between Armenian and Azerbaijan forces over the disputed region of
Nagorno-Karabakh have continued overnight, as international calls for calm
after the heaviest fighting between the two sides in years grew.
The
Armenian Defence Ministry on Monday morning reported fighting throughout the
night, while Azerbaijan’s Defence Ministry said Armenian forces were shelling
the town of Terter.
The
clashes between the two former Soviet republics, which fought a war in the
1990s, were the latest flare-up of a long-running conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway region that is inside Azerbaijan but is run by
ethnic Armenians.
Defence
ministry officials in Nagorno-Karabakh said on Monday 15 more servicemen had
died overnight, bringing their total military fatality count to 32 since
clashes erupted on Sunday morning.
Both
sides, meanwhile, reported civilian casualties.
Nagorno-Karabakh
separatists said one Armenian woman and a child were killed, while Baku said
that an Azerbaijani family of five died in shelling launched by Armenian
separatists.
“We
are tired of Azerbaijan’s threats, we will fight to the death to resolve the
problem once and for all,” Artak Bagdasaryan, 36, told the AFP news agency in
Yerevan, adding that he was waiting to be conscripted into the army.
Azerbaijan
claimed it captured a strategic mountain in the region that helps control
transport communications between Yerevan and the enclave.
The
clashes prompted a flurry of diplomacy to reduce tension in a decades-old
conflict amid fears the violence could spiral out of control.
“We
are a step away from a large-scale war,” Olesya Vartanyan of the International
Crisis Group told AFP.
“One
of the main reasons for the current escalation is a lack of any proactive
international mediation between the sides for weeks,” she added.
“We’re
looking at it very strongly,” he told a news briefing, adding, “We have a lot
of good relationships in that area. We’ll see if we can stop it.”
The
US State Department condemned the violence in a statement, calling for an
immediate halt to hostilities and any rhetoric or other actions that could make
the situation worse.
US
Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden said in a
statement that hostilities could escalate into a wider conflict and urged the
Donald Trump administration to push for more observers along the ceasefire line
and for Russia “to stop cynically providing arms to both sides”.
Nagorno-Karabakh
broke away from Azerbaijan as the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 after fighting
that left 30,000 dead and forced many more from their homes.
Although
a ceasefire was reached in 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia frequently accuse each
other of attacks around Nagorno-Karabakh and along the separate
Azerbaijan-Armenia frontier.
Armenia
said Azerbaijani forces had attacked civilian targets including
Nagorno-Karabakh’s capital, Stepanakert, and promised a “proportionate response”.
“We
stay strong next to our army to protect our motherland from Azeri invasion,”
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan wrote on Twitter.
Azerbaijan
denied an Armenian Defence Ministry statement that said Azerbaijani helicopters
and tanks had been destroyed, and accused Armenian forces of launching
“deliberate and targeted” attacks along the front line.
“We
defend our territory, our cause is right!” Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev
said in an address to the nation, echoing the words of Joseph Stalin at the
outbreak of World War II in Russia. “Karabakh is Azerbaijan,” he said.
Both
Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh declared martial law and military mobilisation.
Azerbaijan imposed military rule and a curfew in large cities.
Turkey,
an Azerbaijan ally, said it was talking to members of the so-called Minsk
Group, which mediates between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Russia, France and the US
are co-presidents.
Russian
President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone to Pashinyan but no details of the
conversation were available, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke
to Aliyev.
Erdogan,
promising support for Azerbaijan, said Armenia was “the biggest threat to peace
in the region” and called on “the entire world to stand with Azerbaijan in
their battle against invasion and cruelty”.
Pashinyan
hit back, accusing Turkey of “dangerous behaviour” and urging the international
community to ensure Ankara does not get involved in the conflict.
UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “extremely concerned” and called
on the sides to stop fighting and return to talks.
The
European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and
Pope Francis also urged both sides to stop military actions and return to
negotiations.
At
least 200 people were killed in a flare-up of the conflict between Armenia and
Azerbaijan in April 2016. At least 16 people were killed in clashes in July.
Azerbaijan
has pledged to take back the territory, by force if necessary, while Armenia
has said it will do all it can to defend the area.
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990707000686
--------
Iran
Strongly Dismisses Possibility of Bilateral Talks with US
Sep
28, 2020
“There
have been no talks held or due to be held,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed
Khatibzadeh told reporters in a press conference in Tehran.
He
referred to US President Donald Trump’s recent remarks that he will reach an
agreement with Iran in half a day and talks will be held in more difficult
conditions for Tehran after the US elections, and said, “Mr. Trump does not
have any correct understanding of the nature of international relations and
ties between Iran and the US. Also, his advisors apparently do not want to
understand what has happened.”
Khatibzadeh
said that the path is clear, and explained, "The US should first accept
its big mistake [i.e. withdrawal from the nuclear deal], respect the
international laws and its undertakings, stop the inhuman war and cruel
sanctions against the Iranian nation and make up for the loses and damages
inflicted on Iran, then it can find a corner in the room of negotiations
between Iran and the Group 4+1 (France, Britain, Germany, Russia and China)
based on the nuclear deal."
In
relevant remarks earlier this month, Khatibzadeh blasted the US for continued
economic terrorism against Tehran, stressing that his country would not change
its policies while under sanctions.
“It
is clear that the path of our policies towards the US has not changed and the
US is still bullying and practicing economic terrorism against the Iranian
nation and it is not ashamed of saying publically that it is attempting to
witness the Iranian nation hungry and as long as this policy continues, Iran’s
policy will not change either,” Khatibzadeh said.
He
added that the US is also attempting to block flow of capital through the
humanitarian channel launched by Switzerland to help Iran purchase the needed
medicine and food, and noted, “We are much pessimistic about the US aims and
measures.”
Asked
about Russia’s preparedness to help direct talks between Iran and the US,
Khatibzadeh said that Tehran is sure about the Russian friends’ good will but
is suspicious of Washington’s aims and behavior.
Trump,
a stern critic of the historic deal, unilaterally pulled Washington out of the
JCPOA in May 2018, and unleashed the “toughest ever” sanctions against the
Islamic Republic in defiance of global criticism in an attempt to strangle the
Iranian oil trade, but to no avail since its "so-called maximum pressure
policy" has failed to push Tehran to the negotiating table.
In
response to the US’ unilateral move, Tehran has so far rowed back on its
nuclear commitments four times in compliance with Articles 26 and 36 of the
JCPOA, but stressed that its retaliatory measures will be reversible as soon as
Europe finds practical ways to shield the mutual trade from the US sanctions.
Tehran
has particularly been disappointed with failure of the three European
signatories to the JCPOA -- Britain, France and Germany -- to protect its
business interests under the deal after the United States' withdrawal.
On
January 5, Iran took a final step in reducing its commitments, and said it
would no longer observe any operational limitations on its nuclear industry,
whether concerning the capacity and level of uranium enrichment, the volume of
stockpiled uranium or research and development.
Now
the US has stepped up attempts aimed at extending the UN arms ban on Iran that
is set to expire as part of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),
which has been endorsed by Security Council Resolution 2231.
The
US first sought to extend the Iran's arms embargo in a fresh UNSC resolution in
contradiction to the contents of the Resolution 2231 in two attempts within a
month, but failed.
The
United Nations Security Council resoundingly rejected last month the second US
bid to extend an arms embargo on Iran, which is due to expire in October.
The
resolution needed support from nine of 15 votes to pass. Eleven members
abstained, including France, Germany and Britain, while the US and the Dominican
Republic were the only “yes” votes.
The
United States has become isolated over Iran at the Security Council following
President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the multilateral Iran nuclear deal
2018.
Iran
had said that the US resolution would fail to gain the required support at the
Security Council, pointing out that Washington has no legal right to invoke a
snapback mechanism to reinstate sanctions against Tehran under the 2015 nuclear
deal that the US unilaterally left in May 2018.
In
relevant remarks in August, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said
it is by no means justifiable for the US to use Dispute Resolution Mechanism
with regard to UNSC Resolution 2231.
"US
recourse to Dispute Resolution Mechanism in 2231 has NO LEG TO STAND ON,"
Zarif wrote on his Twitter page late Sunday.
"AmbJohnBolton
has repeated today what he said on May 8, 2018, while National Security Advisor
in the Trump administration," he noted, adding, "At least he is
consistent—a trait notably absent in this US administration."
Zarif'
tweet came in reaction to former US National Security Advisor John Bolton's
article in Wall Street Journal where he criticized US' decision to trigger
‘snapback mechanism’ against Iran, saying, "The agreement [Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action]’s backers argue that Washington, having withdrawn
from the deal, has no standing to invoke its provisions. They’re right. It’s
too cute by half to say we’re in the nuclear deal for purposes we want but not
for those we don’t."
https://en.farsnews.ir/newstext.aspx?nn=13990707000454
--------
Turkey’s
Erdogan sees EU summit as chance for reset: Spokesman
28
September 2020
Turkey
sees a European Union summit this week as an opportunity to reset relations
between them, but the bloc must produce specific proposals and a timetable to
work on a roadmap together, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesman said.
Tensions
flared between Turkey and EU member Greece after Ankara sent a seismic vessel
to explore for hydrocarbons in disputed waters in the eastern Mediterranean
last month and the October 1-2 summit aims to calm the bitter dispute.
For
all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
A
Turkish and a Greek warship collided during the standoff and Turkey has since
recalled the Oruc Reis vessel to allow for diplomacy. Ankara and Athens have
agreed to resume talks over their contested maritime claims.
However,
the row has also brought to a head strains between EU candidate Turkey and the
bloc over issues such as migration, Turkey’s involvement in Syria and Libya and
what the EU says is growing authoritarianism under Erdogan.
“I
believe the EU summit has a chance to have a reset in Turkey-EU relations. It
is an important opportunity. We can have a reset there. And I see this willingness
on the part of many EU member countries,” presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin
told Reuters.
“They
also have to understand that they cannot expect Turkey to do everything,” Kalin
said in an interview. “It must be a mutual process. If Turkey is expected to do
X, Y, Z, EU countries must fulfill their responsibilities as well.”
Senior
EU diplomats and officials have said the bloc is unlikely to follow through on
a threat to impose sanctions on Turkey after Ankara’s agreement last week to
resume exploratory talks with Greece, which were halted in 2016.
Work
was continuing on deciding a date for the resumption of talks, Kalin said,
adding the talks would continue where they left off and focus not just on
issues of continental shelves and maritime limits, but on islands and air
space.
He
said he believed the talks would have a positive impact and would also focus on
political consultation and military-to-military talks. “In all of these three
tracks we believe we will make some good progress very soon,” he said.
Turkey
got involved in a war of words with France during the east Mediterranean
dispute and Erdogan last week held his first talks with French President
Emmanuel Macron in months in a bid to ease the tensions.
Kalin
said there was a positive atmosphere in those talks with the two leaders
agreeing to try and find ways to minimize their differences.
“I
believe all these things will produce a more positive agenda and a more
positive atmosphere between Turkey and France,” he said.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/28/Turkey-s-Erdogan-sees-EU-summit-as-chance-for-reset-Spokesman
--------
South Asia
Pakistan
Opens Borders to Afghanistan
By
Mohammad Haroon Alim
29
Sep 2020
Pakistan
has announced that it will open its land border with Afghanistan for
passengers, and transfer of goods from the country.
Mohammad
Sadiq Pakistan’s special envoy to Afghanistan said in a tweet Monday night,
that “All border terminals with Afghanistan located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,
including Torkham, will be opened for pedestrian traffic on Tuesdays,
Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Will fully revert to pre-Corona schedule
shortly. Officials at the border crossings are being informed.”
The
Pakistani government blocked all transit routes and public transportation after
the outbreak of the coronavirus.
“At
the request of the Afghanistan government, Pakistan opened five border
crossing-points for facilitating transit trade, bilateral trade, and pedestrian
movement, the Foreign Minister also highlighted the USD 1 billion development
and capacity-building assistance that Pakistan has extended to support
reconstruction and economic development in Afghanistan,” Pakistan’s Foreign
Ministry said in a statement.
This
comes in as Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the High Council for Nation
Reconciliation, traveled to Pakistan on Monday at the official invitation of
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan.
During
his three-day visit, the chairman of HCNR will discuss the Afghan peace process
and bilateral co-operation with Pakistani governmental officials.
https://www.khaama.com/pakistan-opens-its-borders-to-afghanistan-889765/
--------
Sri
Lanka, Afghanistan Ink Bilateral MOU
By
Mohammad Haroon Alim
29
Sep 2020
On
Monday, September 28, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka signed a “historical”
memorandum, which provides both nations a trading desk within commerce chambers
and helps their shared commercial goals put to practice.
The
MOU was virtually signed between, CEOs of the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce
and Investment, Sayed Zaman Hashemi, and the Ceylon (Sri Lankan) Chamber of
Commerce, Manjula de Silva.
Afghanistan
Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Ashraf Haidari, also witnessed the signing ceremony of
this memorandum.
“I
am delighted to witness the fruition of our shared hard efforts over the past
year to sign this historic MOU between our two Chambers of Commerce, which I
have no doubt will work together, in partnership with our two Embassies here
and in Kabul, to foster and deepen commercial ties between Afghanistan and Sri
Lanka,” the statement quoted.
The
Afghan Ambassador acknowledged the strong support from the leaderships of both
countries for expanding bilateral relationships, and forging long lasting
people to people ties between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.
The
MOU enables both of the chambers to “disseminate all such information as may be
relevant to enhance bilateral trade and business; initiate and promote joint
ventures, partnerships and other business linkages; provide technical
expertise; arrange visits between the two countries; formulate proposals to
accelerate bilateral relations; and convene meetings, conferences, and
discussions.” The statement read.
To
that end, both sides agreed on regular webinars, including major investors, to
exchange business ideas and to discuss the specifics of investment
opportunities in agribusiness (tea, saffron, coconut oil, fresh fruits and
dried nuts), services (skilled and unskilled labor), logistics, textiles
(garments, rugs and carpets), gemstones (precious and semi-precious stones),
tourism, medical tourism, higher education tourism, as well as other sectors of
mutual investment interest.
Haidari
stated, that pending Air Services Agreement, Trade, Investment Promotion and
Protection Agreements are to be signed to enhance and facilitate bilateral
trade.
Once
signed both countries could initiate a free trade MOU (FTA) to remove all the
barriers and gain easy-profitable trade and investments, the nations will
benefit a growth in all the aspects of bilateral cooperation ties.
https://www.khaama.com/sri-lanka-afghanistan-signs-historic-bilateral-mou-987831/
--------
Southeast Asia
Federal
Court rejects Jais’ bid to appeal against quashing of Shariah charges against
Ezra Zaid
29
Sep 2020
BY
IDA LIM
PUTRAJAYA,
Sept 29 — The Federal Court today rejected the Selangor Islamic Religious
Affairs Department’s (Jais) attempt to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s
decision in favour of publishing company ZI Publications Sdn Bhd’s director
Mohd Ezra Mohd Zaid over a book published in 2012.
Today
was the hearing of an application for leave to appeal by Jais, the Selangor
state government and three others from the Selangor Islamic authorities against
a previous court ruling that had quashed the Shariah trial against Ezra for a
Shariah offence purportedly committed by his company ZI Publications.
After
hearing arguments from both sides, Federal Court judge Datuk Zaleha Yusof said
the three-man bench that she chaired had decided not to accept the arguments by
Jais’ lawyers and accept the arguments by Ezra’s lawyers instead.
“This
is our unanimous decision. Sorry Puan Fatimah, we are not with you, we are with
Encik Fahri. Application is dismissed and costs to be paid to the first and
second respondent,” she said, before then ordering Jais and the five others to
pay a total of RM10,000 in costs to both ZI Publications and Ezra.
The
other Federal Court judges on the panel today are Datuk Zabariah Mohd Yusof and
Datuk Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal.
Can
a company be charged with Shariah offences?
Earlier,
Selangor state assistant legal adviser Siti Fatimah Talib, who represented Jais
and the others from the Selangor Islamic bodies, had presented six questions of
law to the Federal Court, which she said were novel legal questions that should
be heard and decided by the court.
Siti
Fatimah then argued that the Shariah offence in a Selangor state law should
apply to Ezra who is the director of ZI Publications.
Under
Section 16 of the Syariah Criminal Offences (Selangor) Enactment 1995 which was
used to charge Ezra, it was stated that “any person” who among other things
prints or publishes any book with contents contrary to Islamic law shall be
guilty of an offence.
Siti
Fatimah noted that this Selangor state law did not define what a “person”
means, but said that the Interpretation Act’s Section 3 which gives the
definition of “person” as including “a body of persons, corporate or
unincorporate” could be used to interpret the Selangor state law.
Citing
the Section 3 definition which defines “person” as also covering artificial
legal persons such as companies, Siti Fatimah then argued that this meant that
both the company ZI Publications and its director Ezra could be charged in the
Shariah court for offences under the Syariah Criminal Offences (Selangor)
Enactment.
The
decision that states a company cannot profess a religion
Fahri
Azzat, one of the lawyers representing Ezra and ZI Publications, said that the
legal questions put forward by Jais’ lawyers could be summed up as revolving
around two issues.
“The
first is can a company be charged in Shariah court. The other one, can a
director be held personally liable for acts committed by a company that
purportedly committed Shariah offences.
“There
is no controversy over these questions, and it actually stems from a
misunderstanding of who these Shariah laws apply to. So My Lady, we say at the
outset all these questions have already been dealt with and already answered in
a previous Federal Court case,” he told the Federal Court.
Fahri
also highlighted that Section 1(2) of the Syariah Criminal Offences (Selangor)
Enactment 1995 — the state law which was used to charge Ezra — states that
“this Enactment shall apply to Muslims only”.
Fahri
pointed out that this meant that this Selangor state law does not apply simply
to “persons”, but applies specifically to “persons professing the religion of
Islam”.
Fahri
then quoted the Court of Appeal’s September 2019 decision in Ezra’s case, where
the court had said that it is well established in law that a company is a
separate legal entity from its shareholders and that a company cannot assume
the religion of shareholders.
The
Court of Appeal had also then emphasised that a company as an artificial legal
person is incapable of practising or professing a religion, unlike individuals
or natural persons who can profess a religion.
Fahri
then read out the Federal Court’s 1998 decision in the case of Kesultanan
Pahang v Sathask Realty Sdn Bhd, where the court had examined a Pahang state
law and whether it applied to a company and said: “Therefore, in the context of
Section 2, an artificial legal person, as opposed to a natural person, cannot
be a ‘Malay’ and become a subject of the Ruler of Pahang. This is because a
corporation cannot speak Malay or any Malayan language and cannot profess
Islam.”
“So
there we have it. That’s the answer to all these questions and there is no need
for this application to go any further,” Fahri said when arguing why the
Federal Court should dismiss Jais’ application for leave to appeal.
This
same Federal Court ruling in 1998 was also cited by the Court of Appeal when it
had in September 2019 ruled in favour of Ezra and quashed the Shariah trial
against him.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/09/29/federal-court-rejects-jais-bid-to-appeal-against-quashing-of-shariah-charge/1907721
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Selangor
religious authorities fail in move over publication of book
V
Anbalagan
September
29, 2020
PUTRAJAYA:
An eight-year ordeal for a director of a company which published a book said to
have gone against the Quran and hadith has come to an end.
This
follows a Federal Court decision by a three-member bench today to refuse leave
to an appeal application by the Selangor religious authorities and the state
government.
“This
is our unanimous decision. Sorry, we are not with you,” said bench chairman
Zaleha Yusof to Selangor assistant legal adviser Siti Fatimah Talib, who
represented the Islamic Religious Department (Jais), its director-general,
enforcement chief, Selangor shariah prosecution chief and the Selangor
government.
This
means the six legal questions posed by the applicants did not cross the
threshold of Section 96 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964 as they were not
novel.
Zaleha,
who sat with Zabariah Mohd Yusof and Harmindar Singh Dhaliwal, also ordered the
applicants to pay RM10,000 in costs to company director Ezra Zaid and ZI
Publications Sdn Bhd.
Siti
Fatimah had earlier submitted that Ezra could be prosecuted for whatever
offence allegedly committed by the company under the Selangor Syariah Criminal
Enactment.
She
said the company was an “artificial person”.
“Section
3 of the Interpretation Act states that ‘person’ includes a body of persons,
corporate or unincorporate,” said Siti Fatimah, who was assisted by state legal
officer Muhammad Haziq Hashim.
She
said leave ought to be granted for the court to clarify if the common law
applies to shariah law to lift the corporate veil of a company.
Lawyer
Fahri Azzat said the questions posed had been dealt with by a previous Federal
Court hearing as shariah law only applied to persons professing the religion of
Islam.
“A
corporation cannot speak Malay or any Malayan language and cannot profess
Islam,” he said, citing a passage from the case of Kesultanan Pahang v Sathask
Realty Sdn Bhd.
Senior
federal counsel Maisarah Juhari, who represented the federal government, said
it was not taking a position as it was only a nominal respondent.
Ezra
told reporters later he was relieved following the apex court’s decision to
dismiss the leave application.
“I
feel great as the judges supported last year’s Court of Appeal ruling in our
favour,” said Ezra, the son of former law minister Zaid Ibrahim.
Fahri,
who was assisted by lawyers K Shanmuga and Nizam Bashir, said he hoped the
shariah prosecutor would drop the criminal charges against Ezra.
He
said the High Court would also assess damages payable to Ezra, as ordered by
the Court of Appeal.
On
Sept 25, Court of Appeal judge Umi Kalthum Abdul Majid, who chaired a
three-member bench, allowed the appeal by Ezra, who published “Allah, Kebebasan
dan Cinta”, the Malay translation of Canadian author Irshad Manji’s work
“Allah, Liberty and Love”.
Umi
had said the conduct of the state religious authorities would lead to the “law
of the jungle and rule by ulama”.
Ezra,
in his suit, had asked for compensation for mental distress, agony and torture
when he was under the watch of Jais’ enforcement officials.
On
March 7, 2018, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur dismissed Ezra’s bid to challenge
the religious authorities’ action against him for publishing the book.
Ezra
claimed trial at the Syariah Court on March 7, 2013, under Section 16 of the
Syariah Criminal Enactment.
In
2012, the home ministry banned Manji’s book, saying it contravened the
teachings of the Quran and hadith.
The
books were also seized during a raid by Jais on Ezra’s publishing firm, ZI
Publications.
https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2020/09/29/selangor-religious-authorities-fail-in-move-over-publication-of-book/
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Musa
Aman confident new CM Hajiji will take Sabah to greater heights
29
Sep 2020
BY
YISWAREE PALANSAMY
KUALA
LUMPUR, Sept 29 — Former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman today
congratulated Datuk Hajiji Mohd Noor on his swearing in as the 16th chief
minister of the state, following a whirlwind election amidst the Covid-19
pandemic.
In
a statement today, Musa said Hajiji, who served as a minister under his
leadership when he was the 14th chief minister, had always given his full
commitment and professionalism to his job.
“While
he is a compassionate individual, he is a firm leader, able to make decisions
without fear or favour.
“I
am confident that with his wisdom and vast experience, he has the capacity to
lead Sabah, bringing the much needed economic revival for the people and future
development of the state,” Musa said.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/09/29/musa-aman-confident-new-cm-hajiji-will-take-sabah-to-greater-heights/1907713
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Perak
targets five million domestic tourists amid spike in Covid-19 cases
29
Sep 2020
BY
JOHN BUNYAN
IPOH,
Sept 29 — The Perak government is targeting five million domestic tourists for
this year amid a spike in Covid-19 cases in Malaysia, which has crossed the
11,000 mark, with 1,011 active cases.
State
Housing, Local Government and Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Nolee Ashilin
Mohammed Radzi said the target was set following the overwhelming bookings
received by hotels around Perak post the movement control order.
“We
have received more than 90,000 room bookings in 67 sample hotels around Perak,”
she told a press conference after attending the closing ceremony of the Semarak
Tourism Carnival at the Lost World Hotel Sunway here.
Based
on 2019’s statistics, Nolee said that Perak had received a total of 10.1
million domestic tourists, who stayed overnight.
“However,
for this year we are only targeting half of the amount we achieved last year
due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Cooperation
among industry players is important in order to develop tourism packages which
will attract the domestic visitors to come more than once,” she added.
Noting
the spike Covid-19 cases at the moment, Nolee said that the state government
will do its best to maintain its green zone status.
“This
is what we can do at the moment. That’s why we urge and emphasise industry
players to carry on with the standard operating procedures.
“We
also need to educate the people who visit the state to play their part as
responsible tourists in order to maintain their safety,” she said.
Yesterday,
Malaysia reported 115 new Covid-19 cases, bringing Malaysia’s cumulative
positive cases to 11,034 while the death toll remained at 134.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/09/29/perak-targets-five-million-domestic-tourists-amid-spike-in-covid-19-cases/1907740
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PM
Muhyiddin: Islam compelled Putrajaya to impose MCO to save lives
29
Sep 2020
BY
SYED JAYMAL ZAHIID
SEPANG,
Sept 29 — Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said today his government
based its response to the Covid-19 pandemic on Islamic principles, applying the
maqasid shariah to prevent the spread of the coronavirus and save lives.
The
maqasid shariah is defined as the overriding philosophy or objective of Islamic
law.
Muhyiddin
told an international Shariah law conference here that the movement control
order was intended to preserve lives and protect citizes’ right to faith, a key
tenet of Shariah law.
“In
order to protect lives, which is one of the principles of maqasid shariah, the
government had enforced several phases of the movement control order,”
Muhyiddin said in his opening speech at the Nusantara Shariah Legal and
Judiciary Conference.
“As
the ruling government, we have a duty to curb the spread of this dangerous virus,
and that was why we enforced the MCO,” he added.
https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2020/09/29/pm-muhyiddin-islam-compelled-putrajaya-to-impose-mco-to-save-lives/1907760
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Africa
Civilian
prime minister appointed in Mali with eye on removal of ECOWAS sanctions
28
September 2020
Moctar
Ouane, Mali's former foreign minister and a civilian, has been appointed as the
African nation’s interim prime minister, in a political gesture that would
likely convince the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to lift
the sanctions it slapped on the country in the wake of last month's military
coup.
The
appointment of a civilian prime minister was a major prerequisite set by the
West African regional economic bloc to remove the economic sanctions imposed on
Mali following the junta's takeover of the country
Following
the August 18 mutiny by Malian armed forces, ECOWAS 15 member states closed
their borders with and stopped financial flows to the country, exerting
pressure on the junta to hand back the government to civilians.
Ouane,
64, had served as Mali’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations from
1995 to 2002 and later as a diplomatic adviser to ECOWAS.
From
2004 to 2011, under former President Amadou Toumani Toure, he was minister of
foreign affairs.
Mali’s
new transitional president, former Defense Minister Bah Ndaw, appointed Ouane
as prime minister on Sunday.
Ndaw,
himself a retired colonel, was sworn into office as Mali's transitional
president on Friday.
Junta
coup leader Colonel Assimi Goita agreed to let Ndaw act as the head of the
transitional government until presidential elections are held in 18 months.
Goita made himself Ndaw's vice-president.
Five
weeks ago, former president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta was overthrown by the junta.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2020/09/28/635180/ECOWAS-Mali-Ouane-Appointment-Prime-Minister
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Sudan
signs deal with foreign donors granting financial aid to poor families
28
September 2020
The
EU, several member states and the World Bank have signed a deal for almost $190
million in direct financial aid to poor families in Sudan, official news agency
SUNA said.
The
Sudan Family Support Program (SFSP) aims to give some 32 million people, or
around 80 percent of the population, 500 Sudanese pounds (nine dollars at the
official rate, or just over two dollars on the black market) per person per
month for a year, according to the World Bank.
Direct
aid payments to half a million people across several of Sudan’s states will start
in October, SUNA said, and the program will be gradually expanded over two
years, for a total cost of $1.9 billion.
For
all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
EU-World
Bank financing announced Sunday accounts for $110 million, while contributions
from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden amount to a
total of $78.2 million, according to an EU statement.
The
deal was signed in Khartoum in the presence of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok.
Acting
finance minister Heba Mohamed Ali Ahmed called the SFSP “an important part of
the transitional government’s reform agenda.”
“It
will alleviate some of the economic challenges currently facing Sudanese
throughout the country, including in rural areas, especially women and the most
vulnerable,” she said, according to the EU statement.
Experts
say the move aims to ease the impact on the population as the government
progressively cuts fuel subsidies in response to a huge budget deficit and an
economic crisis aggravated by the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Sudan
declared a state of economic emergency earlier this month to avert a downturn
due to the dramatic fall of its local currency against the US dollar and
soaring inflation.
In
July, Sudan recorded a year-on-year inflation rate of almost 150 percent,
according to the central bank.
Economic
hardship, which triggered protests in December 2018 that led to the ouster of
long-time autocrat Omar al-Bashir, remains a pressing challenge in Sudan.
Hamdok
has said his government needs $8 billion to rescue the ailing economy, while in
June, international donors pledged just $1.8 billion in aid to Sudan’s
transitional authorities.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/09/28/Sudan-signs-deal-with-foreign-donors-granting-financial-aid-to-poor-families
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Nigeria’s
labor unions suspend planned strike
28.09.2020
Labor
unions in Nigeria suspended a nationwide strike planned for Monday against hike
in petrol prices and electricity tariffs, following reaching an agreement with
the government, local media reported.
In
a meeting that continued until the wee hours of Monday, the two sides agreed to
suspend the application of the cost-reflective electricity tariff adjustments
for two weeks, and to “reduce the overdependency on importation of petroleum
products to ensure energy security,” according to The Punch local news website.
However,
the price of petrol will remain unchanged, according to Nairametrics local
website.
“All
parties agreed on the urgency for increasing the local refining capacity of the
nation to reduce the overdependency on importation of petroleum products to
ensure energy security, reduce cost of finished products, increase employment
and business opportunities for Nigerians,” The Punch quoted the communique as
reading.
The
agreement also handled housing needs of the labors.
“On
Housing, 10 per cent to be allocated to Nigerian workers under the ongoing
Ministry of Housing and Finance initiative ,” the communique was quoted as
reading.
Trade
Union Congress’ President Quadri Olaleye told The Punch: “We signed a document
to suspend the action for two weeks for the government to implement those
things that we agreed in the agreement. So, we are suspending [the strike] for
two weeks.”
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/nigeria-s-labor-unions-suspend-planned-strike/1988359
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Somalia:
16 al-Shabaab terrorists killed, 40 kids freed
Mohammed
Dhaysane
26.09.2020
GAROWE,
Somalia
At
least 16 al-Shabaab terrorists were killed and 40 captive children rescued in a
military operation in southwestern Somalia, officials said on Saturday.
The
operation against the al-Qaeda affiliated group was carried out near the
recently liberated agricultural town of Bariire, located 62 kilometers (38
miles) from the capital Mogadishu, in the Lower Shabelle region.
“During
the operation in Nuuney village outside Bariire town, the military managed to
rescue at least 40 children hailing from different parts of the country,” Ahmed
Hassan Salad, a military commander, told the media.
The
insurgents had kidnapped the children and planned to use them as suicide
bombers, according to Somali military radio.
Security
officials in the Lower Shabelle region told Anadolu Agency that operations
against al-Shabaab will continue without letup to curb the group’s ability to
disrupt next year’s presidential and parliamentary elections.
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/somalia-16-al-shabaab-terrorists-killed-40-kids-freed/1986494
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Nigeria's
Boko Haram crisis: 'Bomb on donkey' used to ambush Borno governor
29
September 2020
Militants
linked to the Islamic State group (IS) have used a donkey strapped with
explosives to ambush the convoy of the governor of Nigeria's north-eastern
Borno state.
Governor
Babagana Zulum was returning to the state capital, Maiduguri, from Baga town
when they were ambushed.
Sunday's
attack came two days after he had survived another attack while travelling to
an area near Lake Chad.
At
least 18 people were killed in that ambush.
Among
them were 14 police officers and soldiers and four civilians.
Islamic
State West Africa Province (Iswap) militants, who were behind the attack, split
from Boko Haram, an Islamist group that launched its insurgency in
north-eastern Nigeria a decade ago.
The
group's campaign of violence has spread to neighbouring countries, killing more
than 30,000 people and forcing two million from their homes, according to the
UN.
What
happened in Sunday's attack?
Governor
Zulum was returning from Baga where he had accompanied hundreds of residents
who returned to the town they fled in 2014 following deadly jihadist attacks.
When
soldiers saw the donkey on the road, they shot at it. Explosives then went off
and the militants immediately came out from their hide-out to open fire on the
convoy, an official who was in one of the vehicles in Governor Zulum's convoy
told the BBC.
A
number of insurgents were killed in the ensuing shoot-out. No-one in the convoy
- including the governor - was injured but some vehicles were damaged by
bullets, the official said.
Governor
Zulum said last week that feeding people displaced by violence in the state was
not financially sustainable, insisting that the only option was for them to
return and rebuild their homes in order to live a "dignified" life,
news agency AFP reports.
Aid
agencies have, however, expressed worry about the people's security.
Despite
regional efforts to end Boko Haram's campaign of violence, the group has
stepped up its attacks in recent months.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-54331260
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13
Boko Haram militants surrender to Nigerian troops
September
28, 2020
The
Nigerian military on Sunday confirmed that 13 suspected Boko Haram militants
surrendered to troops during an operation aimed at smoking out remnants of the
terror group in the country’s northeast region.
The
terrorists surrendered as troops on Saturday “sustained aerial bombardment and
aggressive intensive clearance operation” in the Bama area of the northern
state of Borno, John Enenche, the military spokesman, said in a statement.
According
to Enenche, 17 children and six women, identified as family members of the
suspected militants, also surrendered to troops at the Kodila village in the
same Bama area of Borno.
He
added that the suspects are currently undergoing “thorough profiling and
investigation in line with global best practices in handling such cases.”
Boko
Haram has been trying to establish an Islamist state in northeastern Nigeria
since 2009, extending its attacks to countries in the Lake Chad Basin
https://africa.cgtn.com/2020/09/28/13-boko-haram-militants-surrender-to-nigerian-troops/
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/priests-body-no-temple-mosque/d/122986