Author Ranjit Hoskote quits Documenta 16 Art panel over alleged ‘anti-Semitic’ letter he signed in 2019
New Age Islam News Bureau
15 November 2023
Cultural
theorist and curator Ranjit Hoskote
----------
· Ranjit Hoskote quits panel over ‘anti-Semitic’ letter he signed in 2019
· Gaza death toll soars to 11,320 amid relentless Israeli attacks, including 4,650 children
· 'Intensify efforts to combat hate crimes against Muslim minorities'
· Over 20 killed in Islamist militant attack on Congo village
· PM: Humanitarian crisis in Palestine will affect not only Middle East but also global relations
· Pentagon says 55 attacks against US forces in Iraq, Syria last month
-----
India
· Omar Abdullah accuses Congress government of targeting Muslims with Karnataka exam order
· Harbhajan Singh lambasts Inzamam ul Haq for Fake converting to Islam comments
· Muslim vendor arrested for ‘selling eggs’ in Haridwar
· We have failed Palestinian kids: Priyanka Gandhi on Children’s Day
· Israel-Hamas war poses challenge to India-Middle East-Europe corridor: FM
------
Mideast
· Israeli attacks kill 3,100 school students, 130 teachers in Gaza: Report
· Israel raids Gaza’s Al Shifa Hospital, urges Hamas to surrender
· Israeli regime targets Lebanon, Syria again
· Hamas says White House remarks to fuel ‘massacres’ at Gaza hospitals
· Israeli protesters in al-Quds call on Netanyahu to resign as Gaza war rages
· Iranians donate $1.74 million in cash aid to Gaza: IRCS
· Euro-Med strongly condemns execution of an elderly Palestinian by the Israeli occupation army
· Leader hails AllamehTabatabai scientific, personal features
· Raeisi slams organized collective punishment of Gaza people
· Yemeni Ansar Allah confirms missile attack on Israeli targets
· Heavy rain in Gaza brings new problems and fears for Palestinians
· Israel approves some fuel for UN trucks in Gaza
· Islamic Jihad says to keep Israeli captives until conditions improve
------
South Asia
· Afghanistan: Refugees in Torkham region appeal for relocation to their homes
· Afghan miner killed in Northern Turkey to conceal illegal mine
· Pakistan’s mass deportation of Afghans raises regional stability concerns: Crisis Group
· Recognition of Taliban Govt still not on the table: Kabulov
· UN Chief Guterres' Recommendations for Afghanistan's Future
· Madrasa teacher held for abusing 4 students
· Turkmenistan’s new consul general for Herat meets with Muttaqi
· Far in Bangladesh, Palestinian students give their all to return home as doctors
-----
Africa
· FG Probes Cancellation Of 264 Nigerian Passengers’ Visas In Saudi Arabia
· Nigerians heading to Mecca for pilgrimage forced back home
· Somalia: At least 31 killed in floods caused by torrential rains
· Palestinians should be armed to protect themselves – Mandela
-----
Southeast Asia
· Indonesia hosts regional defence chiefs amid multiple global crises, Malaysia’s defence minister calls for Gaza ceasefire
· Gaza an 'indescribable scene of hopelessness', says tearful Nurul Ain on return home
· Defence minister highlights Malaysia's stance on Gaza conflict during ADMM meeting
----
North America
· ‘Let our people go’: Nearly 300,000 rally in Washington for Israel, hostages’ release
· Biden believes deal on Hamas hostages ‘going to happen’
· Canada’s Trudeau: Israel must stop ‘this killing of women, children, babies’ in Gaza
· CAIR Calls on Biden Administration to Condemn Open Calls for Ethnic Cleansing of Gaza by
· CAIR Files Complaint Against Maryland Doctor who Allegedly Expressed Support for Slaughter
of Palestinians
· US extends sanctions waiver allowing Iraq to buy electricity from Iran
· Canadian man was ‘hunting for Muslims to kill,’ prosecutors say
· 400 employees of Biden govt call for ceasefire in Gaza
------
Pakistan
· Kabul raises issue of refugee assets with Islamabad
· Students collect funds for oppressed Palestinians
· LHC dismisses Elahi’s petition against trial court decision
· IHC stays trial court proceedings against Imran in cipher case
· Police target unregistered immigrant children for evacuation
· JI extends invitation to political leadership to join efforts at safeguarding Gaza
------
Europe
· UK parliamentarians to vote on Gaza ceasefire today
· Denmark debates bill to ban desecration of Holy Quran
· British citizens launch a pressure campaign on parliamentarians for Gaza
· Doctor goes on trial in France over Rwanda genocide
· French ambassadors in Muslim nations rebel against Macron’s ‘pro-Israeli shift’
Arab World
· Saudi, Brazilian FMs discuss bilateral ties and war in Gaza
· KSrelief distributes winter clothing coupons for Palestinian refugees in Jordan
· Saudi aid campaign collects $131m for Gaza
· Saudi, Czech FMs discuss latest developments in Gaza
· Awqaf Ministry, CCQ to launch Associate Diploma in Islamic Sciences
· Arab and Islamic countries condemn Israeli bombing of Qatari aid offices in Gaza
Compiled by
New Age Islam News Bureau
URL:
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Author Ranjit Hoskote quits Documenta 16 Art panel over alleged ‘anti-Semitic’ letter he signed in 2019
Vandana
Kalra
November 15, 2023
Cultural
theorist and curator Ranjit Hoskote
------------
Mumbai-based
poet, cultural theorist and curatorRanjitHoskote has resigned from the Finding
Committee for Documenta 16, the 2027 edition of one of the world’s most
prestigious art exhibitions that takes place in Germany once in five years.
Hoskote
quit the committee on November 12, following an article published last week in
the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung, where he was accused of “anti-Semitism”
and sympathising with the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement. It was
based on his signature on a BDS India petition in 2019 protesting a discussion
hosted by the Consulate General of Israel in Mumbai on “Zionism and Hindutva”.
Documenta denounced Hoskote for signing the letter that had “explicitly
anti-Semitic content”.
BDS is
an international movement that aims to mobilise political and economic pressure
on Israel in solidarity with the Palestinians. The German Parliament in 2019
passed a resolution designating the BDS movement against Israel as
anti-Semitic.
Speaking
to The Indian Express, Hoskote said: “My heart breaks for Germany, a country I
love and have long regarded as a second homeland. In the aftermath of World War
II and the end of the Nazi regime, Germany committed itself to openness, to
understanding the Other, to sustaining a cultural life that was welcoming of
diverse ideas and perspectives. Documenta embodied these ideals.”
“I am
saddened beyond words to see how swiftly this has changed in recent years, with
the alarming ascendancy of far-right forces and the normalisation of their
divisive, polarising rhetoric. I am aghast at the cynical way in which some
German politicians are instrumentalising the Shoah to decree absolute impunity
for the Israeli state,” he said.
“Germany,
a state that was looked up to for wisdom and leadership in international
affairs, today stands nearly isolated in its intransigent refusal to call for a
ceasefire in Gaza. I deeply regret to say that this unconditional embrace of
Israel and the branding of any critique of Israel as ‘anti-Semitic’ masks a
rising Islamophobia. Can these political leaders not see that this is the road
to strife, because it will marginalise and place at risk Germany’s considerable
immigrant-origin population, people of Turkish, Arab, Iranian and West African
heritage?”
“In the
art world, the imposition of such ideas has already legitimised censorship and
arbitrary exclusion. Imagine a future edition of the Documenta where every
curator and artist is sworn never to question Israel and never to articulate
sympathy for Palestinian civilians. That immediately counts out a wide swathe
of countries where such a guarantee is impossible to undertake. It also counts
out all cultural practitioners who would prefer to retain their freedom of
conscience and criticality,” Hoskote said.
Also
associated with Documenta 11, when he was invited by then artistic director
OkwuiEnwezor to chair a panel at the Delhi platform in 2001, Hoskote in his
resignation letter said: “It is clear to me that there is no room, in this
toxic atmosphere, for a nuanced discussion of the issues at stake. And now — in
what strikes me as a doomed attempt to save a situation that is beyond saving —
I am being asked to accept a sweeping and untenable definition of anti-Semitism
that conflates the Jewish people with the Israeli state; and that,
correspondingly, misrepresents any expression of sympathy with the Palestinian
people as support for Hamas.”
Referring
to the 2019 petition, Hoskote wrote: “My reason for signing this petition was
because the event clearly posited an equivalence between (Theodor) Herzl and (V
D) Savarkar, and was intended to develop intellectual respectability for an
alliance between Zionism and Hindutva… No member of the German commentariat who
denounced me has asked herself or himself why the Israeli Consulate General
thought it appropriate to equate Zionism with Hindutva in the first place.”
Meanwhile,
another member of the six-person Finding Committee, Israeli artist Bracha
Ettinger, has also resigned for reasons reportedly not connected to Hoskote but
because of the “dark times” affecting Israel.
During
its 2022 edition, Documenta was criticised for showcasing anti-Semitic works. A
report by a commission of experts to investigate the allegations against
Documenta 15 stated that it functioned “as an echo chamber for Israel-related
antisemitism, and sometimes pure antisemitism”.
In a
release issued by Documenta, Andreas Hoffmann, Managing Director of documenta
und Museum FridericianumgGmbH, stated: “I would like to thank Ranjit Hoskoté
for his willingness to stand by us in these difficult times and believe that
his decision to resign is a logical and respectable one… We need to
consistently distance ourselves from all forms of anti-Semitism. The events of
summer 2022 must not be repeated. This is the only way to achieve a genuine new
beginning after the events of documenta fifteen.”
Source: indianexpress.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/hoskote-quits-panel-over-anti-semitic-letter-he-signed-in-2019-9026937/
------
Gaza
death toll soars to 11,320 amid relentless Israeli attacks, including 4,650
children
15.11.2023
Anadolu
staff
The
Palestinian death toll from an ongoing Israeli onslaught in the Gaza Strip has
surged to 11,320 people, the government media office said on Tuesday.
“The
victims include 4,650 children and 3,145 women, while 29,200 others are
injured,” the office said in a statement.
According
to the statement, 3,600 other people remain unaccounted for, including 1,755
children.
“A total
of 198 medics, 22 civil defense personnel and 51 journalists were also killed
in the assaults,” it added.
“The
Israeli aggression has forced 25 hospitals and 52 health care centers out of
service, while 55 ambulances were targeted by Israeli forces,” the statement
said.
The
media office said 40 patients died inside the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City in
the past five days amid an Israeli siege and fuel shortage.
“Eighty-two
people were buried in a mass grave inside the medical complex because of the
intransigence of the occupation, which is still completely besieging the
hospital,” it added.
Israel
has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a
cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.
Thousands
of buildings, including hospitals, mosques and churches, have been damaged or
destroyed in the Israeli offensive.
The
Israeli death toll, meanwhile, stands 1,200, according to official figures.
Source: aa.com.tr
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/gaza-death-toll-soars-to-11-320-amid-relentless-israeli-attacks-including-4-650-children/3053701
------
'Intensify
efforts to combat hate crimes against Muslim minorities'
Nov 14, 2023
Bangladesh
diplomat urges Canada at UN meeting
-----------
Bangladesh
diplomat Abdullah Al Forhad yesterday urged Canada to intensify its efforts to
combat racism, hate speech, hate crimes and discrimination against migrants and
Muslim minorities.
Speaking
at the UN Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, Al Forhad, however, commended
Canada's progress in the protection of human rights and strategy to combat
human trafficking.
Bangladesh
called for measures to be taken to reduce carbon emissions and address the
negative impacts of climate change.
"We
commend the valuable progress made by Canada in the promotion of the protection
of human rights. We acknowledge the ongoing implementation of its nationalist
strategy to combat human trafficking 2019-2024. In spite of cooperation,
Bangladesh offers recommendations to Canada -- intensify efforts to combat
racism, hate speech, hate crimes and discrimination against migrants and Muslim
minorities, take necessary measures to reduce carbon emissions and strengthen international
cooperation in addressing the negative impacts of climate change and, consider
ratifying international convention on the protection of the rights of all
migrants, workers and members of their families," Al Forhad said.
Source: thedailystar.net
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/intensify-efforts-combat-hate-crimes-against-muslim-minorities-3469506
-----
Over 20
killed in Islamist militant attack on Congo village
15
November 2023
Congo's
army said it killed at least six of the militants that night, without going
into detail on the operation.
Image:
REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
-----------
At least
23 people were killed when Islamist militants raided a village in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo late on Sunday, a local official and a
humanitarian worker said.
The
attackers tied up villagers and killed them with machetes and other weapons
while others fled, said a civil society leader, Maurice MabeleMusaidi, who gave
an initial death toll of 19.
Some may
have drowned as they tried to cross the Lamia river into Uganda, he added,
noting that many were still missing.
A local
official said later on Monday that the death toll had risen to at least 33,
including an army captain. Two were children who drowned as they tried to reach
Uganda.
Twenty-three
victims were buried in the village, while six people were taken hostage to help
carry looted goods and then executed, he added.
A
humanitarian worker confirmed his team had helped bury 23 bodies. He said the
army captain's body had been taken to another location.
A
spokesperson for Congo's army said the attack in Beni territory's Watalinga
chiefdom was carried out by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an armed group
based in eastern Congo that has pledged allegiance to Islamic State.
The ADF
formed in Uganda before moving over the border in the 1990s and has been blamed
for thousands of killings in the last decade.
Congo's
army said it killed at least six of the militants that night, without going
into detail on the operation.
The
latest reported killing took place as Congo gears up for general elections on
Dec. 20, for which campaigning is set to begin next week.
The
electoral commission said on Monday that the vote would go ahead despite
security concerns.
Source:
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/africa/2023-11-15-over-20-killed-in-islamist-militant-attack-on-congo-village/
------
PM:
Humanitarian crisis in Palestine will affect not only Middle East but also
global relations
15 Nov
2023
SAN
FRANCISCO: The humanitarian crisis in Palestine is poised to affect not just
Palestine or the broader Middle East but also leave an imprint on global
relations for many years to come, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said.
"What’s
happening today in Palestine will affect us all. The implications of this
strife are significant and long-lasting.
"These
are blatant violations of international law,” he said at a special lecture
entitled: Super Power Rivalry and Rising Tensions in the Asia Pacific, at the
University of California here on Tuesday (Nov 15).
According
to Anwar, Malaysia has consistently called for a ceasefire and a stop to the
incessant bombing of Gaza.
"As
I had declared in the Malaysian Parliament, there are no two ways about it. We
condemn terrorism in all its forms, and we categorically condemn the acts of killing
innocent lives and taking women and children as hostages.
"Likewise,
we unequivocally condemn the bombing of civilians, homes, and hospitals and the
consequential atrocities against innocent lives, children, women, and men being
carried out day and night in Gaza with impunity,” he said.
The
Prime Minister said that Malaysia views this as a humanitarian crisis
precipitated by a brutal and indiscriminate war.
"Ultimately,
this isn’t about which God we pray to. After all, the more than 11,000 victims
in Gaza comprise Muslims and Christians, as well as nationalities of various
countries.
"This
is about preventing more deaths, more suffering, and more hate. Proponents of
the Palestinian cause are neither purveyors of hate speech nor supporters of
terrorism,” he stressed. – Bernama
Source: thestar.com.my
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2023/11/15/pm-humanitarian-crisis-in-palestine-will-affect-not-only-middle-east-but-also-global-relations
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Pentagon
says 55 attacks against US forces in Iraq, Syria last month
[15/November/2023]
WASHINGTON
November 15. 2023 (Saba) - The Pentagon has admitted that American forces
stationed in Iraq and Syria were subjected to 55 attacks within a month, which
led to dozens of American soldiers being slightly injured.
An
American media quoted Sabrina Singh, deputy spokeswoman for the Pentagon, as
saying “Since October 17 until today, we have monitored 55 attacks on American
forces.”
She
added “27 attacks occurred on American forces in Iraq, and 28 attacks in
Syria,” noting that 59 Americans were injured.
The
increase in attacks on American forces comes in solidarity with Gaza in the
“Al-Aqsa Flood” battle, and in response to the ongoing violent Zionist-American
aggression on the Gaza Strip, which resulted in the martyrdom of more than
11,320 people.
The
enemy's crimes and massacres against civilians spark widespread anger in the
Middle East, and have given impetus to the targeting of American bases by
resistance factions in the region.
About
2,500 American soldiers are stationed in Iraq, and about 900 soldiers are
stationed in Syria.
Earlier
yesterday, Tuesday, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq announced the targeting of
the American occupation base in Koniko oil field in Syria, in response to the
crimes of the Zionist enemy in Gaza.
On
Monday, the American base at Kharab al-Jir airport in Hasakah countryside was
targeted by a drone, and several explosions were heard inside the American Omar
oil field base in Deir ez-Zor countryside, eastern Syria.
Source: saba.ye
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3280805.htm
-------
India
Omar
Abdullah accuses Congress government of targeting Muslims with Karnataka exam
order
Nov 14,
2023
The
Karnataka Examination Authority on Tuesday banned any kind of head cover inside
the examination halls.
Baramulla:
National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah has criticised the Congress
government in Karnataka for the state's exam authority's decision to ban any
kind of head cover inside the exam hall for the upcoming recruitment exams,
claiming the order was specifically released to target Muslims. He said it was
a matter of disappointment that it was the Congress which had taken such a
decision, not the BJP.
"It
is a matter of disappointment. Why would the government intervene in wearing
what and what not? Specific orders are released that target Muslims. When it
used to happen in Karnataka earlier, it didn't surprise us since it was the BJP
government in rule at that time. It's disappointing that such orders are being
released in the Congress rule...I would appeal to senior leaders Mallikarjun
Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to rethink the order released in
Karnataka," he told ANI.
The
Karnataka Examination Authority on Tuesday banned any kind of head cover inside
the examination halls during the upcoming recruitment exams of various boards
and corporations in the state. It also banned any kind of electronic gadgets.
Omar
Abdullah's party is a part of the INDIA alliance -- a bloc of 28 parties
against the BJP.
On
November 6, a woman appearing for the Karnataka Public Service Commission
examination was asked to remove her mangalsutra before entering the exam hall.
After the incident triggered an uproar, with Hindutva activists launching a
protest, the authority allowed women to wear the sacred marriage threat and toe
rings inside the examination hall.
The
recruitment exams will be held across the state on November 18 and 19.
The
state government has reportedly banned all head covers amid complaints of usage
of Bluetooth devices by students.
Wearing
Hijab inside educational institutions has become a huge political issue in Karnataka
since January 2022, when the administration of the Government PU College in
Udupi barred six girls with hijab from entering the premises.
Source: hindustantimes.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/omar-abdullah-accuses-congress-government-of-targeting-muslims-with-karnataka-exam-order-101699966737365.html
------
Harbhajan
Singh lambasts Inzamam ul Haq for Fake converting to Islam comments
November 15, 2023
Former
India Cricket Team spinner Harbhajan Singh blasted Inzamam ul Haq for spreading
false and fake news about him. A video went viral on social media where former
Pakistan skipper Inzamam ul Haq claimed that Harbhajan Singh was close to
converting his religion and joining Islam. But Harbhajan Singh then took to
social media to squash the news by claiming that the news was fake.
Indian
Cricket Team fans were left shocked and spellbound when Inzamam ul Haq went on
to disclose on a TV show that a few Muslim Indian players used to pray and
offer Namaz with the Pakistan Cricket Team. Inzamam further added that
Harbhajan was impressed with the words of Maulana Tariq Jameel and was close to
converting his religion.
Inzamam
claimed that Harbhajan was impressed with the words of the Maulana despite not
knowing his original identity. Indian cricket fans immediately tagged the
former Indian spinner and enquired the truth about the matter.
Harbhajan
was visibly angry with the videos that went viral on social media. He lambasted
Inzamam ul Haq and went on to present his point of view. He said, “Is he drunk
or what? I am a proud Indian and Proud Sikh. He is talking nonsense”.
Harbhajan
Singh has lambasted For Pakistan Cricket Team captain & ex Chief selector
Inzamam ul Haq for fake converting to Islam comments
In a
subsequent video that also went viral on social media, the former Pakistan
Cricket Team captain and the ex-Chief Selector of the Pakistan team, Inzamam ul
Haq further went on to claim that he and his fellow teammate Saqlain Mushtaq
tried to covert foreigners and English players to Islam for a club in which
they played.
Recently,
prior to Pakistan’s exit from the World Cup, Inzamam resigned from his post of
Chief Selector of the Pakistan Cricket Team after allegations were raised on
him for conflict of interest.
Source: insidesport.in
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.insidesport.in/harbhajan-singh-lambasts-inzamam-ul-haq-for-fake-converting-to-islam-comments/
-------
Muslim
vendor arrested for ‘selling eggs’ in Haridwar
November
14, 2023
Local
police in the Har Ki Pauri area of Haridwar arrested Nizamuddin, a resident of
Muradabad, for allegedly selling eggs in violation of the law. The arrest was
made after some people reported the vendor to the authorities, claiming to have
caught him with 5 cartons of eggs and a sack.
According
to Sanjeev Chauhan, the in-charge of the local police station, “The accused has
been detained and sent to jail on charges of selling eggs. The arrest was made
based on the information provided by the local residents, who handed him over
to the police along with evidence of his alleged unlawful activities.”
The
incident has sparked controversy, with some questioning the arrest and labeling
it as an unnecessary action against a vendor engaged in a common trade.
Navaid
Hamid expressed his concerns, saying, “Since when has it become a crime to sell
eggs in India? The BJP-led Uttarakhand state police arrested a Muslim vendor
with 5 cartons of eggs in Haridwar. No right-thinking citizen expects any
action from @India_NHRC as the poor vendor is Muslim.”
Source: muslimmirror.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://muslimmirror.com/eng/muslim-vendor-arrested-for-selling-eggs-in-haridwar/
-------
We have
failed Palestinian kids: Priyanka Gandhi on Children’s Day
November
14, 2023
New
Delhi : Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi, who has been critical of
killings of the civilians and children in the Israel-Hamas war on the occasion
of Children’s day again reiterated her demand to bring an end to the
“horrendous violence” and said that we have “failed” the thousands of children
that are being massacred in Palestine every moment.
She made
the remarks on the occasion of independent India’s first Prime Minister Pandit
Jawaharlal Nehru’s 134th birth anniversary, which is also celebrated as
children’s day in India.
“On
Children’s Day, today, let us remind ourselves that we have failed the
thousands of children that are being massacred in Palestine every moment,”
Priyanka Gandhi wrote on X.
“They
deserved better from humanity. We must all raise our voices and demand an end
to the horrendous violence being committed against them.”
Her
remarks came a day after she had hit out at international community over the
death of 10,000 people including 5,000 children in Israel-Hamas war in Gaza
saying still, no shock to the conscience of those supporting this genocide and
shame on the governments supporting this destruction.
In a
post on X, Priyanka Gandhi on Monday said: “What a deplorable and disgraceful
milestone…over 10,000 people killed in Gaza of which almost half are children.
One child is being killed every ten minutes according to the WHO, and now tiny
babies had to be removed from their incubators due to lack of oxygen and were
left to die.”
Hitting
at international community, she said: “Still, no shock to the conscience of
those supporting this genocide, no ceasefire…just more bombs, more violence,
more killings and more suffering. Shame on the governments supporting this
destruction. When is it going to be enough?”
Her
remarks came after more than 10,000 people have been killed in Gaza since
Israel launched its military offensive.
Israel
declared war on Hamas after the Islamist militant group launched an attack on
October 7, killing 1,400 in Israel and kidnapping more than 240. Israel
retaliated by launching an air and ground offensive on Gaza, vowing to
eliminate the militant group.
Earlier,
India abstained from voting on the Jordan-drafted resolution that called for a
truce in Israel but did not condemn Hamas’s attack.
India
voted in favour of an amendment proposed by Canada to insert a paragraph
condemning Hamas.
Priyanka
Gandhi had earlier also said that she was shocked and ashamed that our country
has abstained from voting for a ceasefire in Gaza. — IANS
Source: muslimmirror.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://muslimmirror.com/eng/we-have-failed-palestinian-kids-priyanka-gandhi-on-childrens-day/
------
Israel-Hamas
war poses challenge to India-Middle East-Europe corridor: FM
15th
November 2023
New
Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman admitted on Wednesday that the
Israel-Hamas war poses a challenge to the proposed India-Middle East-Europe
Connectivity Corridor (IMEC) which is aimed at improving connectivity and
cutting emissions.
The
agreement on the IMEC project was signed at a G20 meeting in New Delhi in
September this year under India’s presidency. The rail and ports corridor is
envisaged to pass through Israel linking the Middle East and South Asia, and
part of the US strategy to counter China’s Belt and Road push on global
infrastructure.
The corridor
“is not without its geopolitical challenges and the ongoing conflict in Israel
and Gaza is a worrying manifestation of these,” Sitharaman said at Indo-Pacific
Regional Dialogue 2023 here.
However,
she maintained that the project would be a win-win situation for all
stakeholders as it will put in place a more efficient system of transportation
that will reduce logistics costs, increase economic unity, create more jobs and
lower carbon emissions.
The IMEC
will be predominantly maritime in nature. This will connect Indian ports such
as Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority in Mumbai, Mundra and Kandla (Gujarat), with
West Asia’s ports including Fujairah and Abu Dhabi in the UAE, and Saudi
Arabia’s Dammam and Ghuwaifat ports.
There
will also be a rail segment that will continue the IMEC and provide connection
to the Saudi Arabian cities of Haradh and Al Haditha, onward to the port of
Haifa in Israel.
“The
final segment, which some call the Northern Corridor, will once again be a
maritime segment connecting the port of Haifa to the Greek port of Piraeus and
there on to Europe,” Sitharaman added.
Source: siasat.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.siasat.com/israel-hamas-war-poses-challenge-to-india-middle-east-europe-corridor-fm-2879734/
-----
Mideast
Israeli
attacks kill 3,100 school students, 130 teachers in Gaza: Report
14
November 2023
Latest
figures show as many as 3,141 Palestinian students along with 130 teachers and
administrators have been killed by Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip
and occupied West Bank since October 7.
In a
statement released on Tuesday, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics
(PCBS) said 3,117 Palestinian students were killed in the bombarded enclave
between October 7and November 11 while 24 students were killed in the West
Bank.
A
further 4,863 have been injured during this period; 4,613 of them in Gaza and
250 in the West Bank. As many as 403 teachers and administrators were wounded
by the Israeli raids on the besieged strip while more than 40 teachers and
administrators were arrested in West Bank.
Israeli
occupation forces have also arrested 67 students, all of them from the West
Bank, during that period.
The PCBS
report found that the Israeli warplanes purposefully targeted 239 government
schools in the blockaded strip with air strikes, causing severe destruction to
45 schools while 50 schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency
for Refugees (UNRWA) were attacked.
In the
occupied West Bank, the Israeli army has attacked 27 government schools.
Meanwhile,
the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) says more
than 700,000 children in Gaza have been displaced amid brutal Israeli strikes
against the coastal enclave.
The
United Nations International Children
Palestinians
in Gaza have been witnessing an unending cycle of bloodshed for 39 consecutive
days. Israel’s fresh airstrikes have claimed dozens more civilian lives across
the besieged territory.
At least
six members of a Palestinian family were killed in an attack on a house in the
Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza. They are in addition to 30 people killed
in yet another airstrike there.
In the
southern city of Khan Yunis, 10 people were killed in the new Israeli
bombardment.
That, as
the Israeli regime has declared southern Gaza a Safe Zone, ordering civilians
in the northern part of the besieged territory to move there.
A Senior
Hamas official rejects Israel’s ‘false’ claim al-Shifa Hospital being used as a
‘command’ post for fighters.
Israel
intensified its attacks on Gaza’s south, despite ordering civilians in northern
Gaza to flee to what it calls the southern “safe zone.”
The
total Palestinian death toll from the Israeli war now tops 11,250, mostly women
and children. Apart from residential buildings, hospitals are not safe from
Israeli strikes either.
More
than 60 politicians have called on the ICC to investigate Israel for causing
genocide in the Gaza Strip.
More
Palestinians fall victim to Israeli aggression in West Bank
More
Palestinians have fallen victim to Israeli aggression across the occupied West
Bank. Regime forces have killed seven Palestinians during pre-dawn raids on the
city of Tulkarm and a refugee camp there.
The
Palestinian health ministry said the people were killed in clashes with Israeli
forces, and drone strikes by the regime. A dozen more were injured, with some
being in critical condition. Regime’s troopers also fatally shot another man in
the Beit Ainun Junction area.
There
have been reports of clashes in the town of Qalqilia as well. Israel has
intensified its bloody attacks on the West Bank.
Nearly
190 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s forces and settlers across the
occupied territories since October the seventh.
Source: presstv.ir
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-------
Israel
raids Gaza’s Al Shifa Hospital, urges Hamas to surrender
November
15, 2023
GAZA:
The Israeli military said it was carrying out a raid on Wednesday against Hamas
group in Al Shifa Hospital, having urged them to surrender with thousands of
Palestinian civilians still sheltering inside Gaza Strip’s biggest hospital.
Dr.
Munir al-Bursh, director-general of the Gaza health ministry, told Al Jazeera
television that Israeli forces had raided the western side of the medical
complex.
“There
are big explosions and dust entered the areas where we are.
We
believe an explosion occurred inside the hospital,“Bursh said.
Hours
later, Gaza health ministry spokesperson Ashraf al-Qidra to Al Jazeera: “The
occupation army is now in the basement, and searching the basement. They are
inside the complex, shooting and carrying out bombings”.
Israeli
forces first raided the surgery and emergency departments, Mohammed Zaqout, the
Gaza health ministry’s director of hospitals, told Al Jazeera.
Reuters
was unable to independently confirm the situation at Al Shifa.
Global
calls for a humanitarian ceasefire have mounted in recent days, and the fate of
Al Shifa has become a focus of international alarm because of worsening
conditions in the facility, where thousands of patients, medical staff and
displaced people have been trapped during the Israeli assault on Gaza in the
past five weeks.
Israel
has said that Hamas has a command centre underneath Al Shifa and uses the
hospital and tunnels beneath it to conceal military operations and to hold
hostages. Hamas denies it.
In a
statement, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said: “Based on intelligence
information and an operational necessity, IDF forces are carrying out a precise
and targeted operation against Hamas in a specified area in the Shifa
hospital.”
Israel
drone strikes deep into Lebanese territory: official media
The
military added: “The IDF forces include medical teams and Arabic speakers, who
have undergone specified training to prepare for this complex and sensitive
environment, with the intent that no harm is caused to the civilians.”
Israeli
army spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner told CNN the hospital and
compound were for Hamas “a central hub of their operations, perhaps even the
beating heart and maybe even a centre of gravity.”
The US
said on Tuesday that its own intelligence supported Israel’s conclusions.
Hamas
said on Wednesday that US announcement had effectively given a “green light”
for Israel to raid the hospital.
The
group said it held Israel and US President Joe Biden fully responsible for the operation.
“We do
not support striking a hospital from the air and we don’t want to see a
firefight in a hospital where innocent people, helpless people, sick people
trying to get medical care they deserve are caught in the crossfire.
Hospitals
and patients must be protected,“ a White House National Security Council
spokesperson said in a statement.
Israeli
forces have waged fierce street battles against Hamas fighters over the past 10
days before advancing into the centre of Gaza City and surrounding Al Shifa.
Israel
has sworn to destroy Hamas in retaliation for the cross-border assault into
Israel on Oct 7. Israel says Hamas killed 1,200 people in the rampage and took
more than 240 hostage.
In the
West Bank, a separate Palestinian enclave not controlled by Hamas, Palestinian
Authority Health Minister Mai Alkaila said Israel was “committing a new crime
against humanity, medical staff and patients by besieging” Al Shifa.
“We hold
the occupation forces fully responsible for the lives of the medical staff,
patients and displaced people in Al Shifa,” Alkaila said in a statement.
Dire
conditions
Al Shifa
is a sprawling complex of buildings and courtyards a few hundred metres from
Gaza City’s fishing port.
Buildings
on the western side of the complex, which the Gaza official said was the site
of the raid, include the internal medicine and dialysis departments.
Israeli
forces kill Palestinian youth during West Bank raid
Hamas
says 650 patients and 5,000 to 7,000 other civilians are trapped inside the
hospital grounds, under constant fire from Israeli snipers and drones.
Amid
shortages of fuel, water and supplies, it says 40 patients have died in recent
days.
Thirty-six
babies are left from the neo-natal ward after three died.
Without
fuel for generators to power incubators, the babies were being kept as warm as
possible, lined up eight to a bed.
Palestinians
trapped in the hospital dug a mass grave on Tuesday to bury patients who died
and no plan was in place to evacuate babies despite Israel announcing an offer
to send portable incubators, Qidra, Gaza’s health ministry spokesman, said.
Qidra
said there were about 100 bodies decomposing inside and no way to get them out.
UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply disturbed by the “dramatic loss
of life” in the hospitals, his spokesman said. “In the name of humanity, the
secretary-general calls for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire,” the spokesman
told reporters. Medical officials in Hamas-run Gaza say more than 11,000 people
are confirmed dead from Israeli strikes, around 40% of them children, and
countless others were trapped under rubble.
Around
two-thirds of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been made homeless, unable to
escape the territory where food, fuel, fresh water and medical supplies are
running out.
International
law
Israel’s
move toward Shifa hospital has raised questions about how it would interpret
international laws on protection of medical facilities and the thousands of
displaced people sheltering there, UN human rights officials have said.
Hospitals
are protected buildings under international humanitarian law.
But
allegations that Shifa is also being used for military purposes complicated the
situation because that would also breach international law, UN officials have
said.
Medical
units used for acts harmful to the enemy, and which have ignored a warning to
stop doing so, lose their special protection under international law.
Israel
said in its statement on Wednesday that it had given Gaza authorities 12 hours
to cease military activities within the hospital. “Unfortunately, it did not,”
the military statement said.
Source: brecorder.com
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-------
Israeli
regime targets Lebanon, Syria again
Nov 15,
2023
TEHRAN,
Nov. 15 (MNA) – Arab news sources early Wednesday reported that the Israeli
regime has carried out fresh attacks near the borders of occupied Palestine
with Lebanon and Syria.
The
Israeli regime targeted southern Lebanon with a fighter jet and attacked the
western suburb of Syria's Daraa with 3 artillery shells.
Back in
October, the Israeli regime's military forces used white phosphorus munitions
again as they attacked areas near the border with Lebanon.
The
Zionist military and Hezbollah in Lebanon have been exchanging fire on a daily
basis since the start of the Gaza conflict on October 7.
The
Israeli regime waged a bloody war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian
Resistance movement Hamas launched Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the
occupying entity.
The
Palestinian death toll from Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip has climbed to
11,180, including 4,609 children and 3,100 women. More than 28,000 others
injured in the regime’s military onslaught so far.
At least
22 hospitals and 49 health centers have ceased operations in Gaza due to
Israeli attacks and a shortage of fuel needed to operate power generators.
Source: mehrnews.com
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https://en.mehrnews.com/news/208364/Israeli-regime-targets-Lebanon-Syria-again
------
Hamas
says White House remarks to fuel ‘massacres’ at Gaza hospitals
November
15, 2023
GAZA
STRIP, Palestinian Territories: Hamas said Tuesday that White House’s remarks
that the Islamist group had a command center at Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza was a
“green light” to Israel to commit “brutal massacres” targeting medical
facilities in the Palestinian territory.
“These
statements give a green light to the Israeli occupation to commit further
brutal massacres targeting hospitals, with the goal of destroying Gaza’s health
care system and displacing Palestinians,” the militant group said in a
statement issued in English.
“The
United States bears direct responsibility for enabling Israel’s genocidal war
on Gaza,” the group added.
The
group’s reaction came soon after US National Security Council spokesman John
Kirby charged that the Islamists had a “command and control node” at Al-Shifa
hospital in Gaza.
“They
have stored weapons there and they’re prepared to respond to an Israeli
military operation against that facility,” he told reporters.
Source: arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408976/middle-east
-------
Israeli
protesters in al-Quds call on Netanyahu to resign as Gaza war rages
15
November 2023
Israeli
protesters have marched on the parliament in al-Quds, calling for the
resignation of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid the regime’s brutal war
against the Gaza Strip.
The
protesters gathered outside the Israeli parliament, known as the Knesset, on
Tuesday, saying Netanyahu is unfit for office, blaming the premier for the
Palestinian resistance movement Hamas' surprise attack last month, and the
regime's subsequent attack which has killed more than 11,000 people so far.
“Go, go,
go,” the protesters chanted.
"Any
moment that our prime minister is in his role is dangerous for the citizens,
for the soldiers, and he needs to quit," a protester said.
"If
you're talking about unity, it's better without Netanyahu… I'd say it's best
that he leave as soon as possible. He's not worthy of the office, and he
certainly has not been a person who has taken the interest of Israel as his prime
duty,” another protester said.
“His
prime duty has always been to survive as prime minister, as if his being prime
minister is the national interest of” Israel, the protester added.
Report
says US officials are already gauging potential successors to Netanyahu as he
is "significantly weakened" by Israelis’ anger over the regime
"We
gather here to say that the one to be blamed is our prime minister. That he has
to go down and leave office and let another government to rule in Israel and
try to make it better, because what happened till now is terrible and we cannot
afford that he will continue to be our prime minister, " said another
demonstrator.
The
latest protest comes as Israel is intensifying its attacks on Gaza despite
widespread international condemnation.
Israel
waged the war on Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out the surprise
Operation Al-Aqsa Storm into the occupied territories in response to the
occupying regime’s intensified crimes against the Palestinian people.
According
to the Gaza-based health ministry, at least 11,250 Palestinians have been
killed in the strikes, most of them women and children, and more than 29,000
others have been injured in the Israeli strikes.
Tel Aviv
has also imposed a “complete siege” on Gaza, cutting off fuel, electricity,
food, and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there.
Tens of
thousands hold protests against Israel
The
occupied territories have also been rocked by mass anti-regime rallies since
January, when Netanyahu’s cabinet announced a legislation package that would
roll back some supreme court powers and give the governing hard-right coalition
decisive sway in picking judges.
The
protests soon turned into a movement against the Netanyahu regime.
Source: presstv.ir
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/11/15/714644/Palestine-Israel-protesters-parliament-call-resignation-Netanyahu-Gaza-Strip-war
------
Iranians
donate $1.74 million in cash aid to Gaza: IRCS
Nov 14, 2023
TEHRAN,
Nov. 14 (MNA) – The Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) has announced that cash
donations from Iranians to the Palestinian people of Gaza have reached $1.74
million at the end of the fifth week of the donation campaign.
The
campaign was launched to collect financial aid for the residents of Gaza, Vahid
Salimi, the head of the volunteers of the IRCS, said on Tuesday.
The
donations have been deposited into the official accounts of the IRCS in the
Central Bank of Iran and Bank Melli.
Since
the Israeli regime attacked Gaza on October 7, more than 11,000 people, many of
them women and children, have lost their lives in the attacks.
Source:
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https://en.mehrnews.com/news/208352/Iranians-donate-1-74-million-in-cash-aid-to-Gaza-IRCS
-----
Euro-Med
strongly condemns execution of an elderly Palestinian by the Israeli occupation
army
[15/November/2023]
GENEVA
November 15. 2023 (Saba)- The Israeli army’s execution of an elderly
Palestinian after using him in a propaganda campaign promoting its “safe
corridor” in Gaza was strongly condemned in a statement released by Euro-Med
Human Rights Monitor on Tuesday.
The
rights organisation expressed outrage over Israel’s incorporating the man into
its attempt to cover up horrific crimes against displaced Palestinians fleeing
Israeli violence in the northern Gaza Strip.
Israel’s
army released a photo of one of its soldiers talking to Bashir Hajji, a
79-year-old resident of Gaza City's Zaytoun neighborhood, as he travelled on
Salah al-Din Road, the main route to the southern Gaza Valley. The soldier in
the photo appears to be helping and protecting displaced Palestinian civilians,
said Euro-Med Monitor, yet Hajji was subjected to a field execution on the
morning of Friday 10 November.
The
elderly man’s granddaughter, Hala Hajji, told the Euro-Med Monitor team that
her grandfather was brutally executed while crossing the “safe corridor” when
members of the Israeli army intentionally shot him in the head and back. She
also confirmed that he is in the photo that was put out by Israel—exposing the
Israeli army's dangerous practice of flagrantly fabricating stories.
Euro-Med
Monitor stated that it has previously documented dozens of cases where the
Israeli army executed displaced Palestinians by live bullets and, in some
cases, by artillery shells. Those displaced were attempting to flee to the
south of Wadi Gaza at the Israeli army’s request.
Euro-Med
Human Rights Monitor renewed its calls for the United Nations and the
International Criminal Court to open an urgent independent investigation into
the execution crimes to which displaced Palestinians have been and are still
being subjected to, to hold those who ordered such crimes accountable, and to
achieve justice for the victims.
Source: saba.ye
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https://www.saba.ye/en/news3280772.htm
------
Leader
hails AllamehTabatabai scientific, personal features
Nov 15,
2023
TEHRAN,
Nov. 15 (MNA) – The Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali
Khamenei hailed the scientific and personal characteristics of Iranian scholar
and philosopher Ayatollah AllamehSeyyed Mohammad Hossein Tabatabai.
"One
of the important works of Ayatollah Mohammad Hossein Tabatabai in the midst of
the invasion of imported and foreign ideas was intellectual jihad and the
formation of a strong intellectual base with an aggressive structure," the
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said in a
meeting with organizers of the International Congress in Honor of
"Ayatollah AllamehSeyyed Mohammad Hossein Tabatabai.
Principles
of Philosophy and the Method of Realism and Tafsir al-Mizan, written by
AllamehTabatabai, are examples of this scientific jihad, the Leader said.
The
Leader of the Islamic Revolution considered the second outstanding feature of
Allamah to be the practice of moral teachings instead of just presenting moral
content.
AllamehTabatabaei,
despite all his scientific aspects, was a soft-spoken, humble, warm, charming,
and eloquent person in friendly and public interactions, he said.
AllamehTabatabai
was not as well known during his lifetime as he is now, and thanks to his
sincerity, AllamehTabatabai's character and works will be known more day by day
in the country and the world, the Leader added.
Ayatollah
AllamehSeyyed Mohammad Hossein Tabatabai was an Iranian scholar, cleric, and
philosopher, one of the most prominent thinkers in modern Shia Islam.
Source: mehrnews.com
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https://en.mehrnews.com/news/208372/Leader-hails-Allameh-Tabatabai-scientific-personal-features
------
Raeisi
slams organized collective punishment of Gaza people
Nov 14, 2023
TEHRAN,
Nov. 14 (MNA) – Iranian President Ebrahim Raiesi has slammed the collective
punishment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip which he says is being done in an
organized manner.
In a
letter addressed to world leaders on Tuesday, Raiesi said that the Israeli
regime’s killing of thousands of people in Gaza, including many women and
children, its destruction of hospitals, mosques, churches, houses, and critical
infrastructure as well as its refusal to lift a blockade that has led to a
shortage of water, electricity and food in the enclave amounts to an “intensive
and organized collective punishment” of the people in Gaza and is in clear
violation of all fundamental principles of the international law.
Raiesi
said in the letter that Palestine, as a nation under occupation, is entitled to
the right to resist aggression and occupation through all means, including
armed struggle, adding that the same international laws do not give the Zionist
regime of Israel a legitimate right to defend itself through killing civilians.
He
called on world leaders to condemn the crimes committed by the Israeli regime
in Gaza and to force the regime to stop its aggression on the enclave.
President
Raiesi said the international community has a duty to force the Israeli regime
to lift its blockade on Gaza to allow humanitarian aid, including food,
medicine and fuel, to reach the people in the territory.
At the
end of letter, the Iranian president expressed hope that the Almighty God may
save the oppressed Palestinian nation from occupation, aggression and crimes of
the Zionist regime.
The full
text of President Raeisi's letter addressed to world leaders is as follows:
His
Excellency Mr. Mark Rutte
Prime
Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
Greetings,
Your
Excellency,
I am
writing this letter to Your Excellency in the context of the continuation of
the Zionist regime's brutal attack on the Gaza Strip, which has so far led to
the martyrdom of more than 10,000 Palestinian civilians, including about 70%
children and women, and the wounding of more than 26,000 others, as well as the
extensive destruction of hospitals and schools, mosques, churches, houses and
vital infrastructures of Gaza.
These
crimes are carried out under the pretext of confronting the actions of
Palestinian liberation resistance groups, which, according to the established
rules of international law, the Palestinian nation, as a nation under
occupation, has the inherent right to self-determination and resistance against
aggression and Occupation "by resorting to all means, including armed
methods" and on the other hand, according to the same rules, the occupying
Zionist regime lacks any right to claim it is "legitimate defense".
These
heinous crimes, together with the complete siege of the Gaza Strip and cutting
off the flow of electricity, water, food and fuel to that area, are practically
a severe and systematic collective punishment that substantively violates all
the fundamental principles of international law, especially international
humanitarian law and International human rights, and there is no doubt that
these crimes are clear examples of genocide, war crimes and crimes against
humanity.
The
extent, intensity and cruelty of committing these crimes, and the fact that
they have been perpetrated within only one month, especially the brutal killing
of several thousands of innocent children, hurt the heart of every free person,
and underscore the urgency and necessity of fulfilling the humanitarian duties
of all the freedom-loving governments of the world to help the oppressed people
of Palestine and the immediate cessation of the crimes of the Zionist regime.
In this
regard, the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran believes that the
humanitarian and legal duty of regional and international organizations and all
freedom-loving governments requires them to take effective measures to
immediately and completely stop the military attacks against the residents of
Gaza.
In the
same vein, and in addition to strongly condemning the unbridled crimes
committed by the Zionists against the oppressed Palestinian nation and
resolutely supporting the realization of all the inherent rights of the
Palestinian nation, including the right to self-determination, resistance to
aggression and occupation, it is necessary and incumbent upon all of us to
engage in efforts with the aim to return all Palestinian refugees to their land
of fathers and their ancestors and the formation of a Palestinian state in the
entire Palestinian territories with Al-Quds Sharif as its capital, to request
the relevant international forums to force the occupying regime to immediately
stop all its attacks on the Gaza strip and all its illegal actions, including
Jewish settlements and killing and arresting of Palestinians in other occupied
areas of Palestine; to refrain from any action to forcibly relocate
Palestinians inside or outside of Palestine; to push for immediate, complete
and unconditional lifting of the blockade of the Gaza Strip; to provide the
ground for immediate, unhindered, widespread and sufficient humanitarian aid in
Gaza, especially food, medicine and fuel; to activate pressure levers against
the Zionist regime, including cutting off political and economic relations and
embargoing its goods; to try to end the impunity of crimes against Palestinians
through an effective and serious effort to provide a practical basis for the
pursuit, trial and punishment of the leaders, perpetrators and supporters of
the crimes of the occupying regime in Palestine and to immediately and
extensively help to start the process of rebuilding the ruins of the Gaza
Strip.
I pray
to the Almighty for the health and well-being of your Excellency and the
liberation of the oppressed Palestinian nation from the occupation, oppression,
aggression and crimes of the Zionist regime.
Source: mehrnews.com
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-------
Yemeni
Ansar Allah confirms missile attack on Israeli targets
Nov 15,
2023
TEHRAN,
Nov. 15 (MNA) – Yemen's Ansar Allah Movement, has confirmed in a statement that
it has launched ballistic missile attacks on sensitive locations within
Israeli-occupied territories of Palestine.
The
statement, released late Tuesday, revealed that the missiles targeted Eilat,
located in the southernmost region of occupied Palestine.
In
addition to the missile attack, the Movement disclosed that a drone attack had
been carried out 24 hours earlier on the same location.
The Yemeni
group also said that it would not hesitate to attack Israeli ships in the Red
Sea or any other location. They stated that these attacks would continue until
the Zionist regime ceases its violations in the Gaza Strip.
The
Israeli military has confirmed the attacks.
The
leader of the Ansar Allah movement in Yemen, Sayyed Abdul-Malik al-Houthi,
spoke during an annual event commemorating martyrs, Al Mayadeen reported.
The
Resistance leader's speech heavily focused on the Israeli aggression on the
Gaza Strip and the subpar Arab and Islamic response to "Israel's"
acts of genocide against the Palestinian people.
Sayyed
al-Houthi highlighted the heinous crimes committed by the Israeli occupation
against the Palestinian people, which include the bombing of residential areas
and hospitals, as well as the killing of thousands of civilians.
The
leader condemned the deliberate "inaction of Arab states" who have
not yet effectively responded to the massacring of the Palestinian people.
He
slammed those who are "without conscience" who are in "deep
comas", amid mounting footage depicting the suffering of Palestinians.
The
leader of Ansar Allah said the Gaza Strip is facing an "Israeli and
Arab-" led blockade, as the Egyptian-controlled Rafah crossing into Gaza
has not seen substantial aid pass through it.
He
emphasized that "no serious efforts" are being made to deliver aid to
Gaza.
"Arab
regimes lack seriousness in [mobilizing their efforts] toward Gaza, and they do
not have the willingness to do so."
Source: mehrnews.com
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https://en.mehrnews.com/news/208375/Yemeni-Ansar-Allah-confirms-missile-attack-on-Israeli-targets
------
Heavy
rain in Gaza brings new problems and fears for Palestinians
November
14, 2023
GAZA:
Heavy rain in Gaza on Tuesday brought new concerns and challenges for
Palestinians, many of whom are homeless and living in makeshift tents after
weeks of Israeli bombardment.
The
start of the rainy season and the possibility of flooding increased fears that
the densely populated enclave’s sewage system will be overwhelmed and disease
will spread.
At a UN
shelter in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, the rain brought dismay for displaced
people who woke to find the clothes they put out to dry the night had been
drenched by rain.
“We were
in a house built of concrete and now we are in a tent,” said FayezaSrour, who
sought safety in the south after Israel began its military offensive in
response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas fighters who entered southern Israel
from Gaza.
“The
nylon tarps, the tent and the wood will not resist any flooding... People
sleeping on the floor, what will they do? Where will they go?“
Winters
can be wet and cold in Gaza, and the enclave is sometimes hit by flooding.
Another displaced
Gazan, Karim Mreish, said people at the shelter were praying for the rain to
stop.
“Those
children, those women, those elderly pray God that it doesn’t rain,” he said.
“If it does it will be very difficult and words will fail to describe our suffering.”
The
World Health Organization (WHO) said last week that Gaza faced an increased
risk of disease spreading because Israeli air bombardments had disrupted the
health system, limited access to clean water and caused people to crowd in
shelters.
It voiced
concern on Tuesday about the prospect of rain causing flooding and overwhelming
already meagre and damaged sewage facilities.
“We’ve
already got outbreaks of diarrheal diseases,” WHO spokesperson Margaret Harris
said in Geneva.
She said
there were more than 30,000 cases of diarrhea in a period when WHO would
normally expect 2,000 cases.
“We’ve
got so much infrastructural damage. We’ve got a lack of clean water. We’ve got
people very, very crowded together. This is another reason why we are begging
for a cease-fire to happen now,” she said.
Ahmed
Bayram, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Refugee Council, said the start of the
rainy season could mark “the most difficult week in Gaza since the (military)
escalation began.”
“Heavy
rains will mean more impeded movement for people and rescue teams,” he said.
“It will make it harder to save people stuck under the rubble, or to bury the
dead, all of this amidst ceaseless bombardment and a fuel shortage
catastrophe.”
THE
‘HERE AND NOW’
Israel
vowed to wipe out Hamas after the Oct.7 attack, in which Israel said over 1,200
people were killed and about 240 were taken hostage. Medical officials in Gaza
say over 11,000 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since then.
Facing
the daunting scale of the humanitarian needs of Gaza’s 2.3 million people, aid
organizations have been unable to plan for the challenges posed by rain and
flooding.
Juliette
Touma, Director of Communications at the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA),
said the organization was focused on meeting the population’s needs “here and
now.”
“We’re
barely able to make it from one hour to the next ourselves, because the
situation on the ground is so, so, so desperate,” she said.
Touma
said just a small amount of rain could cause the streets of Gaza to flood,
given the sewage system’s inability to absorb water.
“This is
on a normal day. This is not when half of Gaza, if not more, is in rubble,” she
said.
The
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it had also been unable to
plan far beyond Gazans’ daily needs. “The situation is so volatile and
complicated as a result of the hostilities that we have focused really squarely
on the humanitarian consequences as they shift from one day to the next,” said
William Schomburg, head of the ICRC delegation in Gaza.
The rain
brought relief for some displaced Palestinians in the central Gaza Strip town
of Deir Al-Balah who had not been able to drink clean and fresh water in the
past weeks. Some placed plastic buckets outside their tents to gather rainwater
to drink.
“We have
been drinking salty water for 30 days. There has been no fresh water. I have
just collected this from the rainwater,” said Um Mohammad Shahin.
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408936/middle-east
-----
Israel
approves some fuel for UN trucks in Gaza
November
15, 2023
BEIRUT:
Israel has given approval for 24,000 liters of diesel fuel to be used by trucks
for United Nations operations in the Gaza Strip, a humanitarian source said on
Tuesday.
The fuel
is only meant for UN trucks, and not for hospitals, the source said. The United
States pressured the UN to accept the fuel, the source added.
The
Israeli military had no immediate comment. There was no immediate comment from
Hamas.
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408986/middle-east
-----
Islamic
Jihad says to keep Israeli captives until conditions improve
14
November 2023
The
leader of the Palestinian resistance movement Islamic Jihad says the group may
keep Israeli captives it took in an operation in early October until
circumstances improve for a prisoner exchange deal with the Israeli regime.
In a
statement on Tuesday, Ziad al-Nakhala criticized the method used by the Israeli
regime to secure the release of captives held by the Islamic Jihad in the Gaza
Strip.
Nakhala
said the tactics may push the resistance group out of any deal with Israel and
force it to keep the captives it holds “for better circumstances.”
The
comments came five days after the Islamic Jihad released a video of two Israeli
captives and said it was ready to release them on humanitarian and medical
grounds if the Israeli regime met conditions set by the group for a prisoner
exchange.
The
captives are among more than 240 Israeli settlers and military personnel that
were taken by resistance forces during a blitz on October 7 into the Israeli-occupied
territories near Gaza.
Most of
the captives are held by Hamas, the dominant resistance movement in Gaza which
orchestrated the unprecedented operation against Israel.
The
exchange of the captives with thousands of Palestinians held in Israeli jails
is among the main conditions set by resistance groups for agreeing to ceasefire
in Gaza where the Israeli regime has been involved in a relentless military
campaign against the civilians for more than five weeks.
Israel
has blocked water, food, and electricity into Gaza, plunging the besieged
territory into a humanitarian crisis.
Hamas
said on Sunday that it had suspended prisoner exchange talks with the Israelis
in response to the escalation of the regime’s crimes in Gaza.
A
Palestinian source later told Reuters that prisoner exchange talks had been
halted because of Israel’s imposition of a siege on al-Shifa Hospital, the
largest hospital in Gaza, where thousands of patients and refugees have been
housed in recent weeks.
More
than 11,500 people have been killed in Israel’s attacks on Gaza since early
October. That comes as the regime has imposed a total blockade on the territory
by preventing food, fuel and medical supplies from reaching the people in need.
Source: presstv.ir
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/11/14/714623/Palestine-Islamic-Jihad-Israeli-captives-Nakhala
-----
South Asia
Afghanistan:
Refugees in Torkham region appeal for relocation to their homes
Nov 15, 2023
KABUL:
Refugees who have returned to Afghanistan and taken up temporary housing in the
Torkham Crossing region have urged the present administration to expedite the
registration and assistance distribution processes so that they can return to
their homes as soon as possible, according to TOLOnews.
Before
winter approaches, the refugees have requested the Taliban for help.
"We
want the government to work for the people who are here and return them to
their areas and create a job for them there," a returned refugee, Abdul
Waris, said, according to TOLOnews.
"We
want them to send us to our areas where, if we don't have land or something
else, we will complain on the spot," said Merajddin, another refugee who
had returned home.
Meanwhile,
the Afghan Red Crescent Society's representatives acknowledged that food
assistance would not be able to permanently address the difficulties faced by
these returnees, but they emphasised that they would now focus more on the
migrants who relocate to isolated parts of the nation.
"We
try to bring some aid here, but our main goal is to help the refugees in remote
areas," said, Matiul Haq Khalis, the president of the Afghan Red Crescent
Society.
Since
the Pakistgovernment announced the deadline, more Afghan immigrants have been returning
through the Torkham border; with officials estimating that 500 families use
this route daily on average to return to their own country.
A month
and a half ago, 55,000 people have entered the nation again through the Torkham
border, according to local officials in Nangarhar, TOLOnews reported.
Many of
these families have finished registration and biometric procedures.
"55,000
refugees who entered the country through Torkham for one and a half months have
returned to the country," the local official in Torkham, Qureshi Badlon
said.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/afghanistan-refugees-in-torkham-region-appeal-for-relocation-to-their-homes/articleshow/105225914.cms
-----
Afghan
miner killed in Northern Turkey to conceal illegal mine
Fidel
Rahmati
November
14, 2023
A tragic
incident in northern Turkey has brought to light the horrifying consequences of
illegal coal mining operations. An Afghan man named Vezir Mohammad Nourtani,
aged 50 and a father of four, lost his life under appalling circumstances.
On
November 11, Nourtani’s lifeless body was discovered in a forested area in the
Black Sea province of Zonguldak. His body had suffered burns, suggesting a grim
fate awaited him, the GazeteDuvar news website reported.
However,
an autopsy revealed a disturbing truth – Nourtani had passed away on November
9, two days before the discovery of his lifeless form. It was apparent that his
body had been concealed in the forested area.
Investigations
into this gruesome incident have led to the detention of six individuals,
including the mine’s owners. The case is unfolding with each passing
revelation.
During
questioning, one of the suspects, Serkan Kayabaş, revealed that when he
stumbled upon Nourtani unconscious on the ground, he promptly alerted the
mine’s owners, EnverGideroğlu and HakanKornoş.
The
distressing part of the narrative is that when HakanKornoş arrived at the scene,
he decided against seeking medical help for the injured Afghan man, instead
opting to place him in his car.
It is
important to note that the other miners insisted on obtaining medical
assistance for Nourtani, highlighting their concern for his life.
Shockingly,
the mine’s owners, Gideroğlu and Kornoş, resorted to threats to silence the
witnesses and prevent them from reporting the incident to the authorities.
GazeteDuvar,
a news outlet, has reported that the suspects confessed to their heinous crimes
during their testimonies. They admitted to taking Nourtani’s life to conceal
the illegal mining operation from law enforcement.
Vezir
Mohammad Nourtani, who had only begun working at the mine a month prior, met a
tragic end. His body now rests in Zonguldak, a stark reminder of the perils
faced by those caught in the web of illegal activities.
Meanwhile,
many Afghan refugees find themselves in dire conditions in neighbouring
countries such as Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey. In these host nations, they often
lack access to essential services like education and medical treatment, leaving
them in challenging circumstances.
Unfortunately,
many also encounter various forms of violations, including harassment, torture,
and mistreatment by local authorities and police, further compounding their
hardships in seeking refuge.
Source: khaama.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.khaama.com/afghan-miner-killed-in-northern-turkey-to-conceal-illegal-mine/
-------
Pakistan’s
mass deportation of Afghans raises regional stability concerns: Crisis Group
Fidel
Rahmati
November
14, 2023
Pakistan’s
forced repatriation policy has drawn sharp warnings from the International
Crisis Group (ICG), which has raised concerns about the potential for a
humanitarian catastrophe. In a recent report, the ICG highlighted that this
policy could have far-reaching consequences for Pakistan and the entire region.
According
to the ICG, the expulsion of Afghan refugees by Pakistan could exacerbate
security risks for both countries. With the Taliban struggling to manage the
influx of returning Afghans seeking employment to support their families, there
is a real possibility that some may turn to criminal activities or even armed
opposition against the Taliban’s rule.
In a
counterintuitive twist, the ICG also pointed out that the Tehrik-i-Taliban
Pakistan (TTP) could benefit from the chaos. The returnees, who are familiar
with Pakistan, might be persuaded to launch attacks against the state that
disrupted their lives, potentially strengthening the TTP’s position.
“Should
the Taliban be unable to manage an influx of returnees desperate for work to
sustain their families, as is likely, some might be enticed into criminality or
armed opposition to the Taliban’s rule,” ICG said.
“Perversely,
one of the winners in the ensuing chaos might be the TTP itself, which might
find among the returnees’ cohort individuals who are familiar with Pakistan and
could be persuaded to attack the state that upended their lives,” it added.
The
report further highlighted that migration from Afghanistan could surge
significantly, leading to concerns in Europe and along the migrant trail in
countries like Iran and Turkey. The implications of this mass movement of
people could reverberate globally.
The
ICG’s recommendations include urging Pakistan and Afghanistan to negotiate an
agreement for gradual repatriations that adhere to legal and humanitarian
principles. This approach seeks to avoid a crisis and uphold international
norms.
Notably,
Pakistan initiated round-up operations across the country after the voluntary
departure deadline passed on November 1. The Taliban views the expulsion of
refugees as a pressure tactic employed by Pakistan, but it denies that this
poses any risks to regional stability.
Source: khaama.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.khaama.com/pakistans-mass-deportation-of-afghans-raises-regional-stability-concerns-crisis-group/
-----
Recognition
of Taliban Govt still not on the table: Kabulov
Fidel
Rahmati
November
14, 2023
The
special representative of Russia for Afghanistan has unequivocally declared
that Moscow has no plans to recognize the Taliban formally.
Zamir
Kabulov told the TASS news agency that Russia has repeatedly stated at all
possible levels that there is no discussion about recognizing the Taliban.
He told
TASS, “There is no progress, and this has been discussed at all possible
levels.”
Russia
is a member of the United Nations Security Council and has consistently
emphasized that the Taliban must adhere to their commitments, including
combating terrorist groups and forming an inclusive government.
Russia’s
representative for Afghanistan also reported to TASS that Moscow and Washington
are not engaged in any negotiations regarding Afghanistan.
Meanwhile,
Kabulov said there will soon be another UN-mediated international meeting of
special envoys on Afghanistan.
“We are
planning a range of broad international events on Afghanistan. Our regional
partners and we remember that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres planned to
gather special envoys, just as he did, you will remember, in Doha in the
spring, after the presentation of a report from his special coordinator,”
Kabulov said on Monday, cited by Tass.
“As far
as I can see, such a report has been presented and distributed. We will have to
study it thoroughly since he [the UN chief] said that after all the parties
concerned analyze the report, he would like to bring everyone together
somewhere to exchange views. Bearing this in mind, we are in no hurry. First,
we will scrutinize this report; we have already begun, and then an invitation
from New York will probably come,” he added.
The
first conference on Afghanistan convened at the initiative of UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Doha on May 1 to 2, 2023.
Source: khaama.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.khaama.com/recognition-of-taliban-govt-still-not-on-the-table-kabulov/
--------
UN Chief
Guterres' Recommendations for Afghanistan's Future
November
14, 2023
The UN
Secretary-General in his independent assessment of the situation of Afghanistan
said that needs of Afghans should be addressed, and a roadmap should be created
to facilitate engagement between the international community and Afghanistan.
The
second part of the assessment recommends:
“Building
Confidence by Addressing the Immediate Needs of Afghans, continuing cooperation
on key security, regional and political Issues, A roadmap for reintegration of
the state of Afghanistan into the international system, mechanisms to support
engagement.”
The
assessment of the UN chief also includes the current concerns of the world about
Afghanistan.
The
assessment said the current Afghan government is expected to fight against
current threats to regional and international stability.
“Referring
to the international concerns about the use of Afghan soil as threats to other
countries, planning and financing of terrorist acts, and the production, sale
and trafficking of illegal narcotics,” are parts of the assessment’s concerns
about Afghanistan.
The
Islamic Emirate has always emphasized that Afghanistan’s soil will never be
used against other countries.
“It has
been two years since the start of the rule of the Islamic Emirate and no threat
has been posed for other countries from Afghanistan’s soil. Why is the world
continuing to raise such concerns? Why should this issue be repeated all the
times?” said Zabiullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate.
“Supporting
bilateral and multilateral security cooperation, cooperating with international
counter-narcotics efforts, strengthening international borders, expanding
international cooperation and assistance in areas that advance regional and
global priorities, Reviewing and updating relevant provisions of the UN,
gradually resuming diplomatic engagement inside Afghanistan,” are all listed in
the assessment.
“By
respecting the rights and freedoms of people, Afghanistan can integrate with
the rest of the world and the international community, otherwise; prospects for
a better future of Afghanistan will not exist,” said Sayed Jawad Sajadi, a
political analyst.
On March
16, the UNSC asked the UN Secretary-General to present an independent
assessment of the situation of Afghanistan by November 17, 2023.
The UN
chief and his team prepared and presented the UNSC their 21-page assessment
after seven months of meetings with officials of the Islamic Emirate and other
stakeholders of Afghanistan.
Source: tolonews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-186032
-------
Madrasa
teacher held for abusing 4 students
Nov 15, 2023
Police arrested
a madrasa teacher on charge of sexually abusing four students in port city's
KalshiDighir Par area yesterday.
The
arrestee is Omar Faruk, 21. He is the teacher of a madrasa in Kalshi Dighi.
"The
teacher was handed over to police by madrasa authority after students
complained to their guardians in this regard," said OC Sanjoy Kumar Sinha
of Port Police Station.
https://www.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news/madrasa-teacher-held-abusing-4-students-3469941
------
Turkmenistan’s
new consul general for Herat meets with Muttaqi
November
14, 2023
Turkmenistan’s
new consul general in Herat has submitted his letter of credentials to
Afghanistan’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.
BatyrYolov,
submitted his credentials on Tuesday to Muttaqi in Kabul.
Foreign
ministry of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), says that at the event, which
was attended by the Ambassador of Turkmenistan Khawaja Awadov, Muttaqi welcomed
the new consul general of Turkmenistan and wished him success in his new
mission. Muttaqi described the 30-year relations of the Islamic Emirate with
Turkmenistan as positive and assured the ambassador and consul general of
Turkmenistan that all IEA institutions are ready to fully cooperate in
bilateral projects.
Muttaqi
expressed the readiness of Afghanistan with full enthusiasm in relation to the
start of practical work of TAPI and TAP projects.
Also,
the acting Foreign Minister thanked Turkmenistan for its assistance to the
affected citizens due to the recent earthquakes in Herat.
The new consul
general of Turkmenistan thanked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and promised to
work closely with the local government of Herat province on related issues.
The
Ambassador of Turkmenistan in turn called the relations between Afghanistan and
Turkmenistan friendly and expressed hope that the leaders of the Islamic
Emirate will visit Turkmenistan in the near future.
Awadov
also said his country is working on many options regarding the TAPI and TAP
projects, which will eventually be shared with the Afghan side.
Source: ariananews.af
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.ariananews.af/turkmenistans-new-consul-general-for-herat-meets-with-muttaqi/
------
Far in
Bangladesh, Palestinian students give their all to return home as doctors
November
14, 2023
DHAKA:
Ibrahim Kishko arrived in Bangladesh from Gaza two years ago to study medicine
— a dream he hopes to fulfill soon so that he could be of use back home, where
a month of Israeli attacks has brought unprecedented death and destruction.
Kishko
is one of 100 Palestinian students currently pursuing higher education on the
Bangladeshi government’s scholarships. Most of them study medicine.
Kishko,
21, is enrolled in the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery program at
Dhaka Medical College.
“I need
maybe three years more, then I will move to Palestine ... so I can help my
people there, I can help my family, my relatives, everyone will have access to
me,” he told Arab News.
“If I
want to help my family, I have to complete my MBBS now. My responsibility, I
feel, is to complete my studies and to get my MBBS. After that, I will be able
to help.”
Israel
has been bombing the densely populated Palestinian territory every day since
Oct. 7, in retaliation for an attack by the Gaza-based militant group Hamas.
Israeli
airstrikes on civilians have since killed more than 11,200 people, mostly women
and children, and wounded tens of thousands more.
Gaza’s
Ministry of Health estimates that among the dead are 200 doctors, paramedics
and nurses.
The
World Health Organization says that 36 health facilities, including 22
hospitals, have been destroyed or damaged, and only a handful remain
operational, as the number of injured people is surging every day.
There is
no one in Gaza who has not lost a family member to the ongoing Israeli
onslaught, including Kishko, whose family’s neighborhood in Gaza City was
bombed by the Israeli military on Oct. 30.
“They
bombed three houses ... they killed 175,” he said. “Maybe 15 out of them are my
cousins and others, my relatives. I have actually a list of the names of my
family members who were killed, and most of them are children and women.”
Isaac
Namoura, Kishko’s peer from Shaheed Sharowardi Medical College in Dhaka, is
originally from the West Bank, but as a Palestinian also shares the same fate
and history as his colleague from Gaza.
He wants
to give his all to become useful for his people and country.
“A lot
of people think that it’s very hard to give something to the society, but it’s
not, especially when you live in the Palestinian society, (where) everyone has
lost something, everyone has lost land, everyone had lost a brother, a father,
a sister, a son,” Namoura said.
“It’s
very easy to contribute to such a society because we, the Palestinians, we
appreciate everything. We appreciate the little things we have in life because
a lot of good things were taken from us.”
When he
completes medicine, Namoura wants to get his license as soon as possible and
find a job to earn money that would allow him to establish his own clinic,
where he wants to admit everyone.
There
will be a wooden box at the clinic for payment, for those with the means to
pay. But those who cannot, will still be treated equally.
“Medical
ethics teaches that you treat people no matter their background ... you don’t
segregate between people. You treat people equally,” he told Arab News. “This
is very important for me, because if I become a doctor, inshallah, which I am
planning to, it’s going to be a big help to my people.”
For now,
he needs to wait another three years and complete his studies the best he can.
“It’s
very, very important for me to be the best doctor I can,” he said. “When I go
back home ... I’ll come back with knowledge, come back with something to
offer.”
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408781/world
-------
Africa
FG
Probes Cancellation Of 264 Nigerian Passengers’ Visas In Saudi Arabia
November
14, 2023
November
14, (THEWILL) – The Federal Government on Tuesday, is investigating the
cancellation of visas of 264 passengers by Saudi authorities.
THEWILL
reports that authorities in Saudi Arabia on Monday asked an Air Peace aircraft
with 264 passengers to return to Nigeria after it arrived in Jeddah.
The
flight, which took off from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos
via the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano on Sunday night and arrived in
Jeddah on Monday.
While
all 264 passengers went through the Advanced Passengers Information System
(APIS) during the check-in formalities in Nigeria, a clearance was also
monitored by the Saudi Authorities; only 87 were allowed to remain in Jeddah
and 177 returned to Nigeria after intervention by the Nigerian embassy.
Responding
to the development, Special Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Al-Kasim Abdulkadir in a statement, said the the Ministry has opened
investigations into the incident to see if any consular or aviation rules have
been flouted.
According
to the Ministry, Nigeria has just participated in the Saudi-Africa summit,
where bilateral discussions covering several sectors of the economy and
mutually beneficial commitments were made between the two countries.
Source: thewillnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://thewillnews.com/fg-probes-cancellation-of-264-nigerian-passengers-visas-in-saudi-arabia/
-----
Nigerians heading to Mecca for pilgrimage forced back home
November
14, 2023
Over 170
Nigerians en route to Saudi Arabia were denied entry on Monday, as their visas
were reportedly revoked by Saudi authorities upon arrival, according to
Nigerian media.
A total
of 264 passengers, originating from Lagos and Kano, had obtained visas and
passed thorough screenings before departure. However, their visas were
allegedly revoked while in transit.
Upon
landing, Saudi authorities declined entry, instructing the Nigerian Air Peace
airline to return the passengers to Nigeria.
The
Saudi authorities have not provided any official statement on the incident.
Passengers
expressed surprise at the visa cancellation, asserting they had fulfilled all
entry requirements for the Middle East country.
After
intervention by the Nigerian embassy, Saudi Arabia allowed entry to 87
passengers, while the remaining 177 were repatriated to Nigeria on Monday
night.
Reports
indicate that many passengers were on a journey to perform the lesser Hajj
(Umrah), a pilgrimage to the Islamic holy city of Mecca.
Source: africanews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.africanews.com/2023/11/14/nigerians-heading-to-mecca-for-pilgrimage-forced-back-home/
------
Somalia:
At least 31 killed in floods caused by torrential rains
November
14, 2023
Floods
caused by torrential rainfall have killed at least 31 people in various parts
of Somalia, according to the Somali government.
Residents
in Beledweyne, in central Somalia, could be seen wading through floodwaters on
Monday.
Local
resident Ahmed Idow described the situation in the area as "extremely
bad," adding that "people are running for their lives because of the
force of the water. Some people are using tractors to get through."
Since
October, floods have displaced nearly half a million people and disrupted the
lives of over 1.2 million people, Minister of Information DaudAweis told
reporters on Sunday in the capital Mogadishu.
They
have also caused extensive damage to civilian infrastructure notably in the
Gedo region of southern Somalia, he said.
The U.N.
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA, which has given
$25 million to help mitigate the impact of flooding, warned in a statement
Thursday of “a flood event of a magnitude statistically likely only once in 100
years, with significant anticipated humanitarian impacts.”
The
lives of some 1.6 million people in Somalia could be disrupted by floods during
the rainy season that lasts until December, with 1.5 million hectares of
farmland potentially being destroyed, it said.
Mogadishu
has been ravaged by downpours that, at times, swept away vulnerable people,
including children and the elderly, and disrupted transportation.
Floods
are also affecting neighboring Kenya, where the death toll stood at 15 on
Monday, according to the Kenya Red Cross. The port city of Mombasa and the
northeastern counties of Mandera and Wajir are the worst affected.
Source: africanews.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.africanews.com/2023/11/14/somalia-at-least-31-killed-in-floods-caused-by-torrential-rains/
------
Palestinians
should be armed to protect themselves – Mandela
14 Nov,
2023
Mayibuye
Mandela, a South African political activist and great grandson of Nelson
Mandela, spoke to RT about the late anti-apartheid leader, while calling for
support for the Palestinian people.
He noted
that Nelson Mandela had expressed his deep gratitude for the unwavering support
of the Palestinians, who stood in solidarity with him during the dark days of
apartheid in South Africa.
Speaking
to RT in an exclusive interview on Tuesday, Mayibuye said it appears to him
that Israel can do whatever it wants with impunity.
“It
seems that Israel is being given almost a carte blanche to do whatever it is.
And I don’t blame America, they’ve always been on the wrong side of history,”
he said, adding that the US has a powerful media which is “funded by the most
powerful propagandists.” He compared the Israel-Hamas war with apartheid,
claiming that the US had sent CIA agents to arrest Nelson Mandela, and
“international forces sponsored what was happening.”
South
Africa has imposed sanctions on Israel and “calls for peace to support
Palestine,” he said. “Israel’s embassies must be removed. The food on the
shelves, if they come from Israel, must be removed. We must sanction Israel.”
The
Palestinians and Hamas must defend themselves, and “need to be armed” by South
Africa, Mayibuye said.
He
stressed that South Africa does not have any problem with the Jewish people.
“We have the problem with the Zionists who are oppressing the Palestinian
people, killing the children of Gaza and pregnant women,” he stated, adding
that during apartheid in South Africa, there were white people who fought
against the oppressors – “against their own skin color.”
Source: rt.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.rt.com/africa/587259-nelson-mandela-grandson-israel-hamas-war/
-------
Southeast Asia
Indonesia
hosts regional defence chiefs amid multiple global crises, Malaysia’s defence
minister calls for Gaza ceasefire
15 Nov
2023
JAKARTA,
Nov 15 — Defence ministers in Asean called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza
and a durable solution to the crisis in Myanmar during the opening of a
regional meeting in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Defence
ministers from the Asian bloc are attending the two-day meeting alongside key
players in the Indo-Pacific as major powers jostle for regional influence, and
as conflicts deepen from Myanmar to the Middle East.
Opening
the annual get-together, Indonesian Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto said the
world’s largest Muslim-majority nation was deeply saddened by the deteriorating
conditions in Gaza, particularly the “horrid” humanitarian situation.
“Indonesia’s
stance is clear and firm. We push and call for immediate cessation of
hostilities and the immediate setting up of corridors for humanitarian
assistance,” he said in his opening remarks.
Visiting
Washington this week, Indonesian President Joko Widodo pressed US President Joe
Biden to do more to end Israel’s war with Hamas.
Malaysian
Defence Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan reiterated the calls for an immediate
ceasefire in Gaza, saying that Malaysia “condemns terrorism in all forms”,
including taking people as hostages and the bombing of civilian homes.
As chair
of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) this year, Prabowo also
urged his counterparts to push for concrete progress toward a peaceful solution
in Myanmar, which has been riven by chaos and violence since a 2021 coup.
The
annual meeting comes as conflict rages in the Middle East and Ukraine and as
tensions ratchet up in disputed waters in the South China Sea, where China is
accused of aggression against the Philippines, which has US backing and seeks
to boost its military ties with Japan.
All
Aseandefence ministers, with the exception of Myanmar’s, attended Wednesday’s
forum, with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin to meet counterparts later in the
day.
The talks
will expand on Thursday to include Russia, China, Japan, South Korea, India,
New Zealand and Australia.
Asean, a
region of about 660 million people with a combined gross domestic product of
more than US$3.2 trillion, has for years been courted by Washington and
Beijing, but their fierce rivalry has caused its members concern.
“Competition
is good. But competition should not deteriorate into a zero-sum game,”
Indonesia’s defence minister and presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto told a
foreign policy forum this week, where he stressed the importance of
non-alignment.
Air
Lieutenant General Jing Jianfeng, deputy chief of staff of the Joint Staff
Department of China’s Central Military Commission, will represent China. The
country removed its defence minister in October, raising questions about the
stability of the leadership around President Xi Jinping.
Austin
comes to Indonesia from South Korea, where he reiterated concerns about Russia
and China helping North Korea to evade sanctions and Moscow’s closer military
ties with Pyongyang.
Aaron
Connelly, senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in
Singapore, said conflict in Gaza and Ukraine and China’s moves to block
Philippine resupply missions at a disputed reef will most likely feature at the
meeting.
“This
forum is not one where major geopolitical developments are really addressed or
moved forward in any significant way. But we do expect discussions from the US
and Philippines on topics like the Second Thomas Shoal, Israel-Hamas, Ukraine,”
Connelly said. — Reuters
Source: malaymail.com
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chiefs-amid-multiple-global-crises-malaysias-defence-minister-calls-for-gaza-ceasefire/102155
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Gaza an
'indescribable scene of hopelessness', says tearful Nurul Ain on return home
14 Nov
2023
SEPANG:
Starvation, death and anarchy – this is the reality of the people living in the
conflict area of Gaza, says Malaysian Nurul Ain Haron, who finally returned
home safely.
Tears
streamed down the 37-year old's face as she stepped foot outside the special
lounge exit gate of Kuala Lumpur International Airport and embraced her family
members on Tuesday (Nov 14) night.
Nurul
Ain's father, HaronHamim, 65, and mother Mastura Yusof, 61, wore faces of
relief as they embraced their daughter who had been performing charity work in
Gaza.
But for
Nurul Ain, who returned with her Palestinian husband, Mohamed AM Shaat, her
experiences in Gaza had traumatised her, as she was seen visibly shaken while
talking to the media.
"Even
though I received many donations from people, there was no food, no blankets,
nothing...," Nurul Ain said as she broke into tears.
"Every
day, people would fight on the streets to buy bread but the biggest bread
factory in Gaza was bombed, which made everything worse,"
"We
couldn't even get money as Israel had cut off money supply to banks and even if
we could withdraw money, fights would break out among the people and it was an
indescribable scene of hopelessness," she said.
She also
recounted gruesome scenes of death that she encountered after one of her
husband's relatives' house was destroyed by Israeli missile strikes.
"We
almost fell into despair when we heard Shahir's (no full name given) home was
destroyed as he had just cooked for us a few days prior.
"We
couldn't even recognise his corpse," Nurul Ain said as she broke into
tears again, adding that the situation in Gaza was far worse than it had been
back during Israel's 2014 intrusion.
The
visibly distressed woman then thanked the government for the efforts to bring
her home and begged for a ceasefire in Gaza for the sake of her husband's
family that were still living there.
Source: thestar.com.my
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Defence
minister highlights Malaysia's stance on Gaza conflict during ADMM meeting
November
15, 2023
JAKARTA:
At the 17th AseanDefence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM) and 10th ADMM-Plus held in
Jakarta today, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan voiced Malaysia's
profound concern regarding the situation in Gaza and the urgent call for an
immediate ceasefire.
During
this critical juncture, Mohamad emphasized the imperative need to halt further
loss of life, suffering, and destruction. He called upon all parties to
exercise maximum restraint and actively engage in de-escalation efforts.
"In
these challenging times, Malaysia reiterates its unwavering demand for an
immediate ceasefire, unobstructed humanitarian access, and the unequivocal
rejection of any attempts to forcibly displace the Palestinian people from
their rightful land," said Mohamad during his opening remarks at the
event.
Mohamad
is leading the Malaysian delegation to the two-day meetings, themed 'Peace,
Prosperity, and Security,' alongside the Ministry's Secretary-General, Datuk
Seri Isham Ishak, Deputy Secretary-General (Policy) Mohamad YaniDaud, and other
ministry officials.
As
Indonesia assumed the chairmanship of ADMM and ADMM-Plus for 2023, Indonesian
Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto presided over the meeting. In his address,
Prabowo raised concerns about the deteriorating situation in Myanmar and called
upon Asean member states to actively support Myanmar in finding a lasting
solution.
Recognising
the interconnected nature of the world, Prabowo acknowledged that conflicts in
one region can have ripple effects on others. He underscored the significance
of united efforts both locally and globally.
Prabowo
also pointed out that escalating conflicts in regions such as Russia, Ukraine,
and the Middle East elevate the risk of severe humanitarian crises.
He said,
"Indonesia is actively engaging with various parties to resolve this issue
and establish a humanitarian corridor for the victims in Gaza." He
highlighted the pressing need for the United Nations to take more robust
actions to prevent similar conflicts. – Bernama
Source: nst.com.my
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North America
‘Let our
people go’: Nearly 300,000 rally in Washington for Israel, hostages’ release
[15/November/2023]
Nearly
300,000 people rallied in Washington on Tuesday at the March for Israel,
calling for the release of the hostages held by terrorists in Gaza and invoking
the Holocaust while condemning Hamas’s October 7 onslaught with a cry of “Never
Again.”
Conference
of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations CEO William Daroff said
over 290,000 people attended the event, making it the largest pro-Israel
gathering in US history.
Buses
and flights to the US capital were organized by local Jewish federations,
schools, synagogues, Israeli expatriate groups and Jewish community centers,
while many more made their own way to the March for Israel.
President
Isaac Herzog addressed the rally by video link from the Western Wall in
Jerusalem, demanding the return of the hostages held in Gaza, and declaring
that “Never Again is now.”
“Today
we come together, as a family, one big mishpacha, to march for Israel. To march
for the babies, the boys and girls, women and men viciously held hostage by
Hamas,” Herzog said.
“To
march for the right of every Jew to live proudly and safely in America, in
Israel and around the world. Above all, we come together to march for good over
evil, for human morality over blood thirst. We march for light over darkness,”
he said.
“Eighty
years ago, Jews came out of Auschwitz and vowed ‘Never Again.’ As the blue and
white flag was hoisted over our ancient homeland, we vowed ‘Never Again.’ Forty
days ago, a terrorist army invaded the sovereign State of Israel and butchered
hundreds upon hundreds of Israelis in the largest massacre since the Holocaust.
Let us cry out, together: Never Again. Never Again is now,” he said.
Herzog
also praised US President Joe Biden for the “moral clarity and bold actions of
our American allies.”
“Once
again in Jewish history, we demand: Let our people go. Whilst our loved ones
are held captive in Gaza, and our soldiers are fighting for our beloved Israel
– Jews all over the world are assaulted for being Jewish. The hatred, the lies,
the brutality, the disgraceful outburst of ancient antisemitism are an
embarrassment to all civilized people and nations.”
“Jews in
America must be safe. Jews all over the world must be safe,” Herzog said.
In one
of the most warmly received speeches, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries
listed a history of persecution of the Jewish people through the ages,
explaining that it anchored “the moral case for Israel,” and culminating, “The
Jewish people were violently expelled from the Middle East. The Jewish people
were systematically murdered by the Nazi regime. The Jewish people were
violently attacked by Hamas on October 7th, resulting in the largest loss of
Jewish life in a single day since the Holocaust. So we are here, more than
100,000 strong, to unequivocally declare, Never Again. Never Again. Never
Again. The State of Israel must always exist as a safe haven for the Jewish
people.”
He went
on: “And so we stand together with the Jewish community in Israel, we stand
together with the Jewish community in America, we stand together with the
Jewish community all throughout the world. We stand together in the effort to
crush antisemitism. We stand together in the effort to crush anti-Jewish hate.
We stand together in the effort to bring home the hostages. We stand together
in the effort to make sure that America will always be a safe space for the
Jewish community in every single zip code.”
After
weeks of pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protests with calls for a Palestinian
state to be established “from the river to the sea,” a phrase also used by US
House of Representatives Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the US congressional
leadership slammed the chant, seen by many as a call for the elimination of
Israel.
“When Hamas
says from the river to the sea, they mean all the present-day Israel should be
a Jewish-free land,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told the crowd.
“We
stand with you, and we will not rest until you get all the assistance you
need,” Schumer said before leading the ralliers in chants of “Am Yisrael Chai.”
Speaking
after Schumer, US House Speaker Mike Johnson said: “We’ve heard many echoes of
Hamas’s rallying cry, ‘From the river to the sea,’ and I’m convinced that a lot
of these college students who are engaging in these protests do not understand
that is an explicit call for the extermination of Israel.
“It is
unacceptable for any political leader in this nation to give credence to this
dangerous rhetoric,” he said.
Johnson
also described the calls for a ceasefire as “outrageous.”
“Israel
will cease their counter-offensive when Hamas ceases to be a threat to the
Jewish state,” Johnson said to cheers
Israel
has said there will not be a ceasefire without the release of the hostages, and
that a ceasefire would merely aid Hamas and help it regroup and replenish its
stocks. The US has supported Israel in its stance, but is instead promoting the
use of humanitarian pauses for the entry of aid into the beleaguered Gaza Strip
and to allow civilians to evacuate from the battle-zone northern part of the
enclave, where Hamas has many of its strongholds.
The
Biden administration’s antisemitism envoy Deborah Lipstadt told the crowd that
the US government “stands shoulder to shoulder against Jew hatred.”
“Today
in America we give antisemitism no sanction, no foothold, no tolerance, not on
campus, not in our schools, not in our neighborhoods, not in our streets or the
streets of our cities. Not in our government. Nowhere. not now, not ever,”
Lipstadt declared.
Demonstrators
in support of Israel gather to denounce antisemitism and call for the release
of hostages from Gaza, on the National Mall in Washington, DC, on November 14,
2023. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP)“When protesters chant ‘Peace and glory to the
martyrs,’ that incites more hatred, more deaths,” she said.
“It is a
danger to the values and underpinning of the stability and decency of any
society anywhere in the world. Hate is not a zero-sum game, hate and violence
directed at any member of our society because of who they are is un-American
and wrong,” Lipstadt said.
The
rally was also addressed by relatives of the some 240 hostages taken captive by
Hamas and other terror groups as they rampaged through southern Israel on
October 7, also killing some 1,200 people.
Rachel
Goldberg, whose son Hersh Goldberg-Polin was seriously injured before he was
taken hostage by Hamas terrorists at the Supernova desert rave, told the rally
that the families of those kidnapped “have lived the last 39 days in
slow-motion torment.”
“We all
have third-degree burns on our souls,” she said.
“But the
real souls suffering are those of the hostages and they want to ask everyone in
the world, why? Why is the world accepting that 240 human beings from almost 30
countries have been stolen and buried alive,” she said, referring to the fact
that many of the hostages are believed to be held underground in the Hamas
terror group’s labyrinth of tunnels underneath the Gaza Strip.
“These
children of god range in age from 9 months to 87 years. They are Christians,
Muslims, Jews, Buddhists and Hindus,” she said.
Describing
a Christian who saved Jews during the Holocaust, she said, “What the world
needs to start thinking about today is what will your excuse be?”
“Bring
them home now,” Goldberg concluded.
OrnaNeutra,
mother of hostage Omer Neutra, described her son as “a big guy, six foot two,
always with a smile on his face.”
She said
the dual US-Israeli citizen is crazy about sports, and was raised with a love
and a passion for both of his homelands.
“From a place
of deep pain, we hold strong for you, Omer. We speak in your name, tirelessly…
Omer you’re not just my beloved son, you touch so many in deep and profound
ways,” she said.
Alana
Zeitchik, whose six cousins were taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz said that for too
many in the West, the suffering of families, “has become a footnote.”
“To
demand the release of the hostages is not an act of politics, nor is it an act
of war,” she said.
In a
fiery speech, Columbia University student Noa Fay described how over 100 professors
have advocated for the destruction of Israel on her campus.
“I am a
Black, Native American Jewish American woman and I will not be silenced…. I
will continue to shout,” said Fay.
“We are
the Jews of the Diaspora, this is how we fight. We fight loudly and we fight
peacefully. We are far from helpless, we are far from hopeless,” she said.
However,
not all the speakers at the rally were welcomed — progressive groups fumed over
the decision to invite controversial evangelical Pastor John Hagee as a
speaker, even though no other Jewish clergy members were on the speakers’ list.
The
Homeland Security Department designated the march a “level 1” security event,
the highest classification in its system and one usually used for the Super
Bowl and other major events, two law enforcement officials told The Associated
Press.
The
designation meant the event required substantial law enforcement assistance
from federal agencies, the officials said.
Police
stationed snowplows as temporary roadblocks nearby and a military-style armored
vehicle was deployed, while protesters’ bags were searched before being allowed
to enter the area.
Many of
the demonstrators wore Israeli flags wrapped around their shoulders, flowing
behind them, or held small Israeli flags in their hands.
“I hope
that it shows solidarity” with Israel, said Jackie Seley of Rockville,
Maryland, who came with friends from New York. “And I hope that it raises
awareness for the hostages that are currently in danger.”
Sergei
Kravchick, 64, said he was “proud” to see the large turnout in Washington
“We of
course support Israel… We’re doing exactly what we have to do,” he said.
Mark
Moore, 48, a Christian pastor from Chicago, said he considers Israel “the only
bastion of freedom” in the Middle East and that although he wanted peace
ultimately, “I’m praying for peace… secured through victory so it does not
continue with this endless cycle of violence.”
The
demonstration, which was also seen by many as a message of gratitude to Biden
for his strong support of Israel in its war against Hamas, came after multiple
pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protests in the US, as well as a sharp spike in
antisemitism, particularly on college campuses.
Unable
to make it to the rally was a delegation of 900 people organized by the Jewish
Federation of Detroit that was left stranded at Washington’s Dulles Airport
after their bus drivers refused to take them to a pro-Israel event, Daroff
said.
Source: timesofisrael.com
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-------
Biden
believes deal on Hamas hostages ‘going to happen’
15 Nov
2023
WASHINGTON,
Nov 15 — US President Joe Biden said Tuesday he believes that a deal with Hamas
to free the hostages they are holding in the Gaza Strip will happen, but did
not offer specifics.
“I’ve
been talking with people involved every single day. I believe it’s going to
happen but I don’t want to get into detail,” Biden told reporters at the White
House when asked about an eventual agreement.
When
asked if he had a message for the families of those being held by the
Palestinian militant group, he replied: “Hang in there. We’re coming.”
Nine
Americans and a person with permanent US residency are among an estimated 240
people taken hostage by Hamas fighters last month when they crossed the border
to stage the deadliest attack in Israeli history.
“I
cannot look you in the eye and tell you how many of those hostages are still
alive,” US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told a news conference on
Monday.
Biden
spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, and the White
House said the two “discussed at length ongoing efforts to secure the release
of hostages held by Hamas, including many children and a number of Americans.”
The
October 7 Hamas attack left around 1,200 dead on the Israeli side, mostly
civilians, according to the latest official Israeli figures.
The
health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says Israel’s relentless assault in
retaliation has killed more than 11,300 people, also mostly civilians,
including thousands of children.
On
Tuesday, Qatar urged Israel and Hamas to take up its offer to mediate to reach
a deal.
The
United States has repeatedly asked for a pause in the fighting to facilitate
the liberation of those held in Gaza.
The
White House said Tuesday that Biden’s main advisor on the Middle East, Brett
McGurk, would head to the region, notably to Qatar, where Hamas has its
political office, to discuss the hostages issue. — AFP
Source: malaymail.com
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-----
Canada’s
Trudeau: Israel must stop ‘this killing of women, children, babies’ in Gaza
15 Nov
2023
Canadian
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday urged Israel to stop “this killing of
women, of children, of babies” in the Gaza Strip, drawing a rebuke from his
Israeli counterpart.
During a
news conference, Trudeau lamented the “heart-wrenching” situation in Gaza and
said “the price of justice cannot be the continued suffering of all Palestinian
civilians.”
“Even
wars have rules. All innocent life is equal in worth — Israeli and
Palestinian,” he said.
The
Canadian premier called on Israel to “exercise maximum restraint” while
fighting against Hamas terrorists in Gaza, saying “the world is watching.”
“We’re
hearing the testimonies of doctors, family members, survivors, kids who have
lost their parents,” Trudeau said. “The world is witnessing this killing of
women, of children, of babies.”
“This
has to stop.”
Responding
to Trudeau, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “it is not Israel that is
deliberately targeting civilians but Hamas that beheaded, burned and massacred
civilians in the worst horrors perpetrated on Jews since the Holocaust.”
“While
Israel is doing everything to keep civilians out of harm’s way, Hamas is doing
everything to keep them in harm’s way,” Netanyahu wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“Israel provides civilians in Gaza humanitarian corridors and safe zones, Hamas
prevents them from leaving at gunpoint.”
“It is
Hamas not Israel that should be held accountable for committing a double war
crime – targeting civilians while hiding behind civilians.”
Netanyahu
also said “the forces of civilization must back Israel in defeating Hamas
barbarism.”
Trudeau’s
comments echoed remarks made over the weekend by French President Emmanuel
Macron, who told the BBC there was “no justification” for Israel’s alleged
bombing of “these babies, these ladies, these old people” and said “there is no
reason for that and no legitimacy. So we do urge Israel to stop.” He also
reiterated a call for a ceasefire in Gaza — which Israel has rejected as
handing victory to the Hamas terror group.
Macron
was strongly criticized by Netanyahu and other Israeli officials, with the
prime minister saying the French president had “made a serious mistake,
factually and morally,” in his allegations against Israel.
“We can
do without the moral preaching,” Netanyahu added.
France
later sought to mitigate the controversy, with a French diplomatic source
telling media that Macron “never implied and does not think that Israeli forces
are deliberately targeting civilians. He has been consistently qualifying
Hamas’s use of hostages or civilian population as unacceptable blackmail.”
The
source reiterated Macron’s condemnation of the October 7 Hamas attack, while
also asserting his wish that more be done to alleviate the humanitarian
situation in Gaza.
President
Isaac Herzog also said Macron called him to stress he “does not and did not
intend to accuse Israel of intentionally harming innocent civilians in the
campaign against the terrorist organization Hamas.
Source: timesofisrael.com
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CAIR
Calls on Biden Administration to Condemn Open Calls for Ethnic Cleansing of
Gaza by Top Israeli Officials
Ismail
Allison
November
14, 2023
(WASHINGTON,
DC – 11/14/2023) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the
nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on
the Biden administration to condemn the now open call for the ethnic cleansing
of Gaza by top Israeli officials.
A senior
member of Israel’s government said it would be better for Palestinians there to
leave for other countries. That call for ethnic cleansing of Gaza echoed a
similar call by two members of the Israeli parliament who wrote in a Wall
Street Journal editorial that Gazans should relocate to other countries.
In a
statement, CAIR National Executive Director NihadAwad, who is of Palestinian
heritage, said:
“We ask
President Biden to finally acknowledge what the world has known and witnessed –
that Israel is engaged in a genocidal campaign of ethnic cleansing targeting
all the Palestinian people – whether in Gaza or other occupied Palestinian
land. Silence on this issue, and continuing silence on Israel’s campaign of
genocide in Gaza, will long be remembered not only by Palestinians and Muslims
worldwide, but also by all people who value human rights and dignity.
“There
must be an immediate ceasefire so that humanitarian aid can flow to the people
of Gaza suffering under this genocidal campaign.”
This
latest call for ethnic cleansing and collective punishment by Israeli officials
is not new.
Israeli
President Herzog declared, “It is an entire nation out there that is
responsible. It is not true this rhetoric about civilians not being aware, not
involved. It’s absolutely not true.”
The
Israeli defense minister said that the government was justified in cutting off
water, electricity and other basic necessities to all Palestinians because
Israel is fighting “human animals.”
Israeli
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu justified the mass bombing of Gaza by
referencing ancient biblical verse about the mass slaughter of an entire city
from animals to infants.
The
Israeli government also demanded a million residents of northern Gaza leave their
homes or face death, an act of ethnic cleansing. An Israeli military
spokesperson admitted that the aim of the bombing in Gaza was destruction
rather than accuracy.
Yesterday,
CAIR welcomed an internal State Department dissent memo accusing President
Biden of “spreading misinformation” about Israel’s attacks on the Palestinian
people and stating that Israel is committing “war crimes” in Gaza.
Over the
weekend, CAIR called on the Biden administration to urgently intervene to stop
the Israeli government’s ongoing siege of Al Shifa Hospital in Gaza.
CAIR
said the Biden administration shares the blame for the latest Israeli massacre
of Palestinian civilians sheltering at a school in Gaza and for its attacks
targeting hospitals in Gaza.
Washington,
D.C., based CAIR called a threat by the Israeli government to bomb a children’s
hospital in Gaza “pure barbarism” and reiterated its call on the Biden
administration to demand an immediate ceasefire. CAIR also condemned the
shooting of Palestinian woman at a checkpoint by Israeli forces and Israeli
airstrikes on South Gaza.
[NOTE:
Almost 100,000 Americans have used CAIR’s action alert to contact their members
of Congress and call for an end to the violence and the renewal of U.S.-led
efforts to end the occupation. SEE: Urge Your Members of Congress to Address
Root Cause of Mideast Violence]
CAIR’s
mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote
justice, and empower American Muslims.
La
misión de CAIR es proteger las libertadesciviles, mejorar la comprensión del
Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanesen los Estados Unidos.
Source: cair.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-calls-on-biden-administration-to-condemn-open-calls-for-ethnic-cleansing-of-gaza-by-top-israeli-officials/
-------
CAIR
Files Complaint Against Maryland Doctor who Allegedly Expressed Support for
Slaughter of Palestinians
Ismail
Allison
November
14, 2023
(BALTIMORE,
MD, 11/14/2023) – The Maryland office of the Council on American-Islamic
Relations (CAIR) today filed a complaint with the Maryland Board of Physicians
against Dr. Darren Klugman, a doctor who has reportedly made racist social
media posts targeting Palestinians and endorsing genocide against them.
The
posts shared with CAIR referred to Palestinians as “barbaric animals,”
expressed his support for their “large scale slaughter” and forced
displacement, and labeled them as “people who rape and murder civilians.”
In a
statement, CAIR Maryland Director Zainab Chaudry:
“These
abhorrent comments reportedly made by Dr. Klugman are deeply troubling and must
be addressed swiftly and transparently. Physicians take an oath to do no harm.
They are entrusted with treating patients from all faiths and backgrounds. A
doctor who harbors views that any ethnic group is less than human and expresses
support for their extermination cannot be trusted to diligently uphold their
ethical and moral obligation to serve the medical needs of their patient
population to the best of their ability. It places patients’ safety and
well-being in jeopardy and undermines trust within medical institutions. Dr.
Klugman serves a pediatric population in a diverse community which is
especially vulnerable. We urge the Maryland Board of Physicians to launch a
full investigation and, if Dr. Klugman is determined to have indeed made these
reprehensible posts, we call on the board to revoke his medical license
immediately and issue a memo to physicians across the state that this type of
misconduct will not be tolerated.”
CAIR’s
mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote
justice, and empower American Muslims.
La
misión de CAIR es proteger las libertadesciviles, mejorar la comprensión del
Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanesen los Estados Unidos.
Source: cair.com
Please click the following URL to read
the full text of the original
https://www.cair.com/press_releases/cair-files-complaint-against-maryland-doctor-who-expressed-support-for-slaughter-of-palestinians/
----
US
extends sanctions waiver allowing Iraq to buy electricity from Iran
November
15, 2023
WASHINGTON:
The Biden administration has extended by four months a sanctions waiver that
will allow Iraq to continue to purchase electricity from Iran and gives Iran
limited access to the proceeds to buy humanitarian goods.
Secretary
of State Antony Blinken signed the 120-day waiver extension and it was
transmitted to Congress on Tuesday, US officials said. The move is likely to
draw criticism from Iran hawks on Capitol Hill and elsewhere who believe the
extension will reward Iran at a time when it is coming under increasing
pressure to end its support for proxy groups, including Hamas, that are
destabilizing the Middle East.
There is
roughly $10 billion in Iraqi payments for Iranian electricity currently being
held in escrow accounts in Iraq, and the waiver will allow Baghdad to maintain
its energy imports without fear of US penalties for violating sanctions on
Iran.
It will
also keep in place a provision — included in the last 120-day waiver — under
which portions of the electricity proceeds can be transferred to accounts in
Oman and then converted to euros or other widely traded currencies for Iran to
buy non-sanctioned products.
The
officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the decision-making
process, said Blinken signed the waiver mainly because the administration
doesn’t want to cut Iraq off from a critical source of energy.
But,
they said the administration is confident Iran will not be able to use any of
the money for nefarious purposes. They said a rigorous vetting process is in
place to ensure that the cash can only be used for food, medicine, medical
equipment and agricultural goods.
Blinken
visited Baghdad on Nov. 5 and met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia
Al-Sudani during the course of a Middle East trip focused on the Israel-Hamas
war and efforts to prevent it from spreading into a broader regional conflict.
The
officials added that only a small amount of the money held in Iraq had been
transferred to Oman during the past 120 days and that none of the money now
held in Omani banks had yet been spent.
The
waiver is similar to one signed by Blinken earlier this year, which freed up
some $6 billion that South Korea had paid to Iran for oil imports in exchange
for the release of Americans held prisoner by Tehran. Under that waiver, the
money held by South Korea was transferred to banks in Qatar and is also
restricted for the purchase of humanitarian supplies.
However,
Iran hawks point out that the waivers can allow Iran to free up domestic
revenue it would have otherwise spent on humanitarian goods to fund proxies
like Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and the Houthis in Yemen.
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2409006/world
-------
Canadian
man was ‘hunting for Muslims to kill,’ prosecutors say
November
15, 2023
OTTAWA:
A Canadian man was “hunting for Muslims to kill” when he slammed his pickup
truck into a family out on an evening stroll, the prosecution said in closing
arguments Tuesday.
Nathaniel
Veltman, now 22, is on trial for wiping out three generations of the Afzaal
family in June 2021 in London, Ontario.
He
pleaded not guilty to four counts of murder, which prosecutors say were
premeditated, as well as one count of attempted murder.
The case
marks the first time a Canadian jury has been asked to consider a terrorism
motive related to white supremacy.
While
acknowledging Veltman’s responsibility for the killings, the defense said he
should be convicted of a lesser charge of manslaughter.
Prosecutor
Fraser Ball told the jury they have “everything you could possibly need to
convict in this case,” including the defendant’s confession to police.
He said
Veltman had penned a “terrorist manifesto,” found on his computer, in which he
espoused white nationalism and described his hate for Muslims.
The
accused “dressed like a soldier” wearing body armor and a helmet, and “pumped
himself up” before the attack. “He was hunting for Muslims to kill,” Fraser
said.
When
Veltman passed the Afzaal family on a London street, the Crown attorney said,
he turned his pick-up truck around and accelerated “pedal to the metal,”
jumping the curb as he drove into them.
Bodies
flew into the air.
Salman
Afzaal, 46, his wife Madiha Salman, 44, their 15-year-old daughter Yumnah and
her grandmother Talat Afzaal, 74, were killed. A nine-year-old boy orphaned in
the ramming suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
Veltman
was arrested in a nearby parking lot and told police he wanted to “send a
strong message” against Muslim immigration.
Ball
said that message was “brutal and terrifying: Leave this country or you and
your loved ones could be next.”
Defense
lawyer Christopher Hicks argued that Veltman suffered from mental disorders and
childhood traumas that led to “depression and anxiety.”
He also
consumed three grams of hallucinogenic psilocybin mushrooms prior to the attack
that, according to Hicks, left him feeling detached or disconnected from
reality “as if in a dream or surreal state, a state of extreme confusion wherein
his brain was in turmoil.”
“He is
responsible for the deaths of these people,” Hicks concluded, but added that
Veltman did not have the necessary “mental acuity for planning and
deliberation” for murder or terrorism.
Veltman
faces up to life in prison if convicted of first-degree murder. Manslaughter
carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison.
This was
the deadliest anti-Muslim attack in Canada since a shooting at a mosque in
Quebec City in 2017 that left six dead. The perpetrator of that shooting was
not charged with terrorism.
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408966/world
-------
400
employees of Biden govt call for ceasefire in Gaza
November
15, 2023
WASHINGTON:
More than 400 Biden administration employees have sent an open letter to the US
President, demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza while more than 10,000
carnation stems were laid on the steps of the Capitol Hill, each representing a
civilian life lost since Oct 7.
The open
letter by the Biden administration employees reflects a significant call for
the ceasefire, breaking from the usual practice of aides staying in the
background. The appeal outlined specific actions they want President Biden to
take for de-escalation and humanitarian relief in the region.
“We call
on President Biden to urgently demand a ceasefire; and to call for
de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of
Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians,” the federal employees
wrote in their letter.
They
also demanded the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic
services to Gaza and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the besieged
Palestinian enclave.
The
letter, signed and released to the media on Tuesday, said the signatories
represent a coalition of Biden-Harris administration political appointees and
civil servants, positioned across the domestic and foreign policy spheres,
working in federal agencies, departments, independent agencies, and the White
House.
“Every
day, you’re going in to work for this administration, then you’re going to look
at your phone, you’re going to see the suffering that you kind of feel like
you’re causing,” one of the employees told NBC News television channel. “A lot
of people are no longer comfortable being silent, no longer comfortable being
complacent in a way.”
Carnations
at Capitol
The
carnations, sent to Congress by congressional aides, arrived by the
wheelbarrow. Blood-red, pink, orange, and yellow, stems were laid on the steps
at the base of the Capitol building. Each was meant to represent a civilian
life lost in the conflict.
The
display of carnations was a poignant symbol, emphasising the human cost of the
Gaza crisis. The New York Times (NYT) called it “a remarkably open break from
the cardinal Capitol Hill rule that holds that aides should stay in the
background and never publicly contradict the boss”.
The
congressional staff, as well as the federal employees, breached major service
rules by openly disagreeing with their bosses on this issue. They could face
legal action.
The
carnations were brought over by more than 100 congressional staff members, all
wearing masks to hide their identities.
Last
week, they also staged a walkout to honour the civilians killed in Gaza and
called for a ceasefire.
The vast
majority of lawmakers in both Republican and Democratic parties have rejected
calls for a ceasefire, saying Israel has a right to go after Hamas.
“But
many Democratic congressional staff members, most of them under the age of 35,
have found themselves in stark disagreement with their bosses and the Biden
administration on an issue that cuts to the heart of their values,” the NYT
commented.
Source: dawn.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1789401/400-employees-of-biden-govt-call-for-ceasefire-in-gaza
------
Pakistan
Kabul
raises issue of refugee assets with Islamabad
November
15, 2023
ISLAMABAD:
The Taliban’s acting commerce minister met Pakistan’s foreign minister in
Islamabad this week, an Afghan embassy statement said on Tuesday, discussing
trade and how the thousands of Afghan citizens Pakistan is expelling could take
cash and other assets back to their homeland.
The
visit takes place less than a week after Pakistan said that its move to expel
hundreds of thousands of undocumented Afghans was a response to the
unwillingness of the Taliban-led administration to act against militants using
Afghanistan to carry out attacks in Pakistan.
Taliban
officials say militancy is an internal matter for Pakistan and have called on
Islamabad to halt its deportation of Afghan citizens.
“Bilateral
trade, especially the stranded goods of [Afghan] traders in Karachi port,
smooth transfer of [Afghan] refugees’ properties to (Afghanistan) and related
issues were discussed,” Afghanistan’s embassy in Islamabad said in the
statement, on acting commerce minister Haji Nooruddin Azizi’s meeting with
caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani.
Afghan
citizens returning to Afghanistan have said there are restrictions on the
transfer of cash and property to Afghanistan from Pakistan, where many had
built businesses and homes for decades.
The
Foreign Office said Mr Jilani conveyed the message: “Full potential for
regional trade and connectivity can be harnessed with collective action against
terrorism.”
Afghanistan-bound
containers
The
Afghan minister urged Pakistan to release thousands of containers of imports it
said were stuck at Karachi Port since Islamabad clamped down on transnational
cargo.
Pakistan
authorities say they have lost millions of dollars in taxes because goods are
being sent duty-free from its ports to land-locked Afghanistan, and then
smuggled back across the border.
Afghan
authorities say Pakistan has stopped more than 3,000 Afghanistan-bound
containers at Karachi port while demanding more tax and duty payments, causing
millions of dollars in losses to traders.
The
goods include high-end electronics, machine parts, chemicals and textiles — all
of which attract huge tariffs if imported to Pakistan.
The
quantities of these goods destined for Afghanistan have soared in the past two
years and are unrealistic given the size of the market there, Pakistan officials
say.
Mr Azizi
and Mr Jilani spoke about “the transit problems and challenges of the two
countries”, the statement from the Afghan embassy said.
“Hundreds
of these containers have been parked since several months, while some have been
stopped more than a year. The goods inside are spoiling and the traders are
suffering losses,” an official of the Afghan consulate in Peshawar said.
The
trade row is one of several thorny issues that have grown between Kabul and
Islamabad since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021.
Source: dawn.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1789399/kabul-raises-issue-of-refugee-assets-with-islamabad
-------
Students
collect funds for oppressed Palestinians
2023-11-15
KARACHI:
In solidarity with their Palestinian brothers and sisters, students of the UIT
University (UITU) organised a relief camp to collect donations for the
Palestinian people. In the donation drive students, faculty, and staff participated.
Over the
one week, the relief camp collected approximately 300,000 Pakistani rupees. The
funds were donated to the Al-Khidmat Foundation, a Pakistani non-profit
organisation that provides humanitarian aid to Palestinians.
UITU
Vice Chancellor Dr Johar Ali informed the students about the ongoing Israeli
occupation of Palestinian territories and urged them to do whatever they can to
help the Palestinian people.
“The
Palestinian people, despite being displaced from their homeland and facing
oppression, have maintained their determination and are fighting for their
rights,” Dr Johar said. “We must stand with them in their struggle.”
In
addition to their own personal resources, the students also received donations
from their friends and families. They also held prayers for the Palestinian
people.
Source: brecorder.com
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https://www.brecorder.com/news/40273246/students-collect-funds-for-oppressed-palestinians
----
LHC
dismisses Elahi’s petition against trial court decision
November
15, 2023
LAHORE:
The Lahore High Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition of PTI President Parvez
Elahi challenging the decision of withdrawal of his bail by a trial court in a
case of alleged illegal appointments in the Punjab Assembly.
Justice
Sultan Tanvir Ahmed heard the petition filed by Mr Elahi challenging the
decision of the anti-corruption court to withdraw his bail.
The
trial court had revoked the bail in the illegal appointments case on Oct 11
allowing a review petition of the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE).
Mr Elahi
and another suspect, Rai Mumtaz Hussain Babar, approached the high court contending
that the decision of the trial court was contrary to the law.
Former
CM challenged bail cancellation order
The
petition highlighted that the trial court did not have the authority to review
its own decisions, therefore, the impugned decision should be declared null and
void, and bail should be reinstated.
However,
Justice Ahmad sustained the trial court order and dismissed the petition.
In this
case, Mr Elahi is accused of making illegal appointments in the assembly and
receiving kickbacks.
The ACE
alleged that successful candidates had been denied the job and those who had
not even sat in the examination had been appointed. It further said that Mr
Elahi, being then chief minister, misused his authority and influenced the
appointment process after taking bribes from the beneficiaries.
Source: dawn.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1789393/lhc-dismisses-elahis-petition-against-trial-court-decision
-------
IHC
stays trial court proceedings against Imran in cipher case
November
14, 2023
The
Islamabad High Court on Tuesday halted proceedings against PTI Chairman Imran
Khan in the cipher case, stressing the need for the court to be informed about
the “circumstances” that prompted the trial to be conducted in jail.
The IHC
division bench, comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice
SamanRafat Imtiaz, passed the orders on the ex-premier’s intra-court appeal
against a single-member bench’s decision that had approved Imran’s jail trial.
The
cipher case pertains to a diplomatic document that the Federal Investigation
Agency’s charge sheet alleges was never returned by Imran. The PTI has long
held that the document contained a threat from the United States to oust Imran
as prime minister.
The
former premier and his aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who is also behind bars, were
indicted in the case on Oct 23. They have pleaded not guilty.
The IHC
has endorsed Imran’s indictment, disposing of his plea against the same, but
had also instructed the special court judge to ensure a “fair trial”.
During
the hearing today, PTI chief Imran Khan’s lawyer, Salman Akram Raja, and the
Attorney General Mansoor Awan were present in the court.
At the
outset, Awan informed the bench that the federal cabinet had approved Imran’s
jail trial, adding that a copy of the relevant notification would be presented.
Justice
Aurangzeb said the court would scrutinise the notification, questioning the
“extraordinary circumstances” that led to the trial being conducted in its
current manner. “We want to know the actual events; you have to inform us,” the
judge observed.
The
court also sought clarification on the reasons behind the federal cabinet’s
approval of the jail trial. “The most important question lies in determining
the status of court proceedings preceding the cabinet’s approval,” Justice
Aurangzeb asked.
The
judge also referred to former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi’s jail trial,
saying, “It was conducted at Tihar Jail where media was not allowed. Similar to
that scenario involving a former premier, this case also involves the ex-PM.”
After
the arguments, the court sought a reply from the attorney general and adjourned
the hearing.
Cipher
case
Earlier
today, Special Court (Official Secrets Act) Judge AbualHasnatZulqarnain
presided over the hearing of the cipher case conducted at the Adiala district
jail.
Prior to
the hearing, the PTI leaders’ legal teams and relatives as well as the FIA’s
team reached jail.
Barrister
Salman Safdar, Umair Niazi, Sikander Zulqarnain and Khalid Yousuf Chaudhry
appeared as Imran’s counsels while Barrister Taimur Malik and Faiza Shah were
among Qureshi’s lawyers.
Zulfiqar
Abbas Naqvi and Shah Khawar were among the prosecutors who appeared before the
trial court.
Limited
family members of both the accused were allowed to attend the hearing today as
they were permitted to do so during the previous hearing.
The
former foreign minister’s daughters GauharBano and MehrBano, as well as the
ex-premier’s sisters Aleema Khan, Dr Uzma Khanum and Naureen Khanum, reached
the Adaila Jail to attend the hearing.
Talking
to media after the six-hour-long hearing, Qureshi’s lawyer Barrister Malik said
statements of two witnesses, including an official of the Foreign Office, were
recorded in the court.
He said
the defence team requested that they be provided the FO’s transcript issued on
April 25 last year. “We have asked the judge to provide us copies of all the
documents submitted as case record,” Malik added.
He said
the hearing was subsequently adjourned till Friday.
Law
ministry approves jail trial in Al-Qadir case
Meanwhile,
the law ministry issued a notification approving Imran’s trial for offences
under the National Accountability Ordinance, 1999 at the Adiala jail.
The
notification was issued hours after an Islamabad accountability court sought
details from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) about whether a
notification was issued for a jail hearing of the Al-Qadir Trust case against
Imran.
The PTI
chairman was first arrested in the Al-Qadir Trust case on May 9, which led to
violent protests countrywide. He was released two days later after the Supreme
Court deemed his arrest unlawful.
In
August, the PTI chief was jailed after he was convicted in the Toshakhana case.
Although his sentence was suspended on Aug 29, Imran remained in jail because
he was on judicial remand in the cipher case.
While
Imran is already imprisoned in Adiala Jail in the cipher case, he was also put
under arrest yesterday by NAB in the Al-Qadir Trust case and the Toshakhana
reference.
Today,
Judge Mohammad Bashir presided over the hearing. At the outset of the
proceedings, he asked the NAB prosecutor when he planned to present the former
premier before the court.
He also
inquired whether Imran was still in jail or was shifted to NAB’s office, to
which the prosecutor answered that it was not in his knowledge.
Judge
Bashir then ordered the prosecutor to inquire about the matter and also if
there was a notification issued regarding the jail trial of the former prime minister.
When
reporters, who were in the courtroom inquired about the case, the judge replied
that only NAB could tell where the PTI chairman would be presented. When asked
about the jail trial, the judge observed that if a notification for the same
had been issued, the hearing would be held in Adiala jail.
Judge
Bashir also asked if the reporters would go to the jail for coverage, to which
they replied that they were not allowed to enter the jail for reporting.
At this,
the judge remarked, “There should be permission. This is why open courts exist.
If there is a jail trial, then we will also do something about you all. Can’t
we give [reporters] any [entry] pass, etc?”
The
reporters agreed they should be given access to cover trial proceedings while
the judge noted, “This is the benefit of an open court that whatever the
witness is saying, everyone can hear for themselves.”
Source: dawn.com
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1789246/ihc-stays-trial-court-proceedings-against-imran-in-cipher-case
------
Police
target unregistered immigrant children for evacuation
November
15, 2023
LAHORE:
The
Punjab Police has declared that unregistered children of immigrants listed with
the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) will now be treated as
illegal immigrants, necessitating their deportation from the province.
Inspector
General of Police (IGP) Dr Usman Anwar has directed field officers to expedite
the evacuation of all illegal immigrants, regardless of their inclusion in the
provided lists. Expressing frustration over the slow pace of deportation, Dr
Anwar emphasised the need for a more rapid and efficient process.
Meanwhile,
out of the 300 immigrants evicted so far, a majority hailed from South Punjab,
particularly the Multan and DG Khan divisions. The IGP chaired a video-link
conference with all senior police officers to address the challenges and
discuss strategies for accelerated action.
The
video-link conference was attended by Additional IG Special Branch Zulfiqar
Hameed, Additional IG Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) Waseem Sial, all RPOs,
CPOs, and DPOs. Senior officers, including Additional IG Investigation Muhammad
Idrees Ahmad, DIG Operations Punjab Waqas Nazir, AIG Operations Dr Asad Ejaz
Malhi and AIG Admin Ammara Athar, were also present.
IGP Dr
Anwar stressed the importance of coordination among special branch, CTD,
security agencies, and intelligence sources for a more efficient evacuation
process.
He
directed officers to ensure a peaceful evacuation for all immigrants, whether
included in lists or not, and to closely monitor those attempting to hide by
migrating between districts.
Source: tribune.com.pk
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https://tribune.com.pk/story/2446416/police-target-unregistered-immigrant-children-for-evacuation
-----
JI
extends invitation to political leadership to join efforts at safeguarding Gaza
2023-11-15
LAHORE:
Chief of Jamaat-e-Islami Sirajul Haq has extended an invitation to the
political leadership to join the efforts aimed at safeguarding Gaza.
Addressing
a mass gathering at Thoker Niaz Baig on Tuesday, he emphasized that mere
statements and resolutions from the Muslim world would not deter Israeli
aggression against the Palestinian people.
He said
the JI would continue support for Gaza and hold a historic Palestine solidarity
rally in Lahore on November 19.
He
expressed disappointment with the OIC Summit in Riyadh, asserting that it fell
short of meeting the expectations of the Ummah, particularly in the face of the
extraordinary challenges confronting the people of Palestine.
He
contended that the reluctance of rulers to take visible action for Palestine
was rooted in their apprehension of the United States.
Talking
about the prevailing political landscape, Haq criticized the caretaker
government for unquestioningly following IMF directives, resulting in a
significant inflationary burden on the impoverished. He highlighted the
caretakers’ lack of decision-making authority on policy matters, citing the
soaring prices of essential commodities that have placed them beyond the
financial means of the common man. He underscored the difficulty faced by the
masses in meeting the costs of both their children's education and basic
utilities simultaneously.
Blaming
the governments for the public’s plight and economic woes, Haq called on the
people to vote for the honest and dedicated leadership of Jamaat-e-Islami in
the upcoming elections to steer the country in the right direction.
Meanwhile,
a delegation of scholars from Norway engaged in meetings with the JI chief at
Mansoorh.
Haq
highlighted the significant challenge posed by Islamphobia in Western
societies, emphasizing the responsibility of governments to protect the faith
and rights of millions of Muslim inhabitants. He called for Western governments
to disassociate from supporting Israeli atrocities in Gaza, noting that backing
aggressors and cruelty would foster injustice globally. He asserted that Islam
ensures human dignity and respect.
Source: brecorder.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.brecorder.com/news/40273249/ji-extends-invitation-to-political-leadership-to-join-efforts-at-safeguarding-gaza
------
Europe
UK
parliamentarians to vote on Gaza ceasefire today
November 15, 2023
LONDON:
Members of the UK House of Commons are likely to vote on Wednesday on an
amendment brought by the Scottish National Party on an immediate ceasefire and
halt to fighting in Gaza.
The
motion was moved last week by the Scottish National Party, which said it
intends to seek a vote calling on the UK government to “join the international
community in urgently pressing all parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire”.
Last
week, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer “cannot just sit on their hands” while
“collective punishment” takes place.
A second
amendment calling for a ceasefire has been tabled by a Labour backbencher. House
of Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle will decide if the amendments are selected
for consideration, which would then lead to a vote.
Labour
party ‘in turmoil’ over proposal
On
Tuesday evening, multiple news reports suggested the Labour party is in turmoil
over the impending ceasefire vote. The Guardian reported that Labour leader
Keir Starmer is facing growing pressure to support the Labour amendment backing
a ceasefire in Gaza to avoid the possibility of his own MPs voting for an SNP
motion that will call for an immediate halt to the fighting.
In
recent weeks, Starmer has said that a ceasefire would not be appropriate
because it would embolden Hamas, but his comments have left the Labour party
divided.
Dozens
of MPs defied their leader to call for a ceasefire, with at least 19 members of
the frontbench publicly contradicting their party’s official position.
Labour’s
current position on the conflict between Israel and Hamas is to call for a
“humanitarian pause” rather than a full ceasefire, which is the same position
as the UK government and the United States.
“Everyone
is begging [Starmer] to do it,” one Labour MP told the paper. Starmer is facing
a backlash from multiple shadow ministers, who the paper said are “ready to
resign rather than vote against calling for a ceasefire in the Middle East”,
which Starmer has refused to back.
Last
week, The Guardian reported that Labour figures are urging MPs not to
“undermine the party in Scotland” by supporting the SNP motion demanding a
ceasefire.
BBC
reported that Starmer is considering putting Labour’s position on the conflict
to a vote on Wednesday in an effort to maintain party unity. The report said
Labour may back a separate amendment condemning Israel’s actions, without
calling for a ceasefire amid fears that several frontbenchers might resign
their positions in order to vote for the SNP motion.
“It’s
better to give the party a position to unify behind, rather than asking them to
sit on their hands during the SNP vote,” a party source told BBC.
Digital
news site Politic Home quoted a Labour source as saying that Labour
frontbenchers “may be sacked” if they vote for the SNP amendment calling for a
ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Ahead of
the vote, Amnesty International in a statement said it’s a “vital moment for
all MPs to show they truly support the protection of civilians in Gaza and
Israel”.
“A
negotiated and comprehensive ceasefire would put a stop to unlawful attacks by
all parties, halt the rapidly rising civilian death toll in Gaza and enable aid
agencies to get life-saving aid, water and medical supplies into Gaza in
response to what have been staggering levels of human suffering,” said Sacha
Deshmukh, Amnesty International UK’s Chief Executive.
“A
ceasefire is also likely to be essential to securing the release of the
hostages captured on Oct 7. We call on all parties to allow MPs to have a free
vote on this vital issue, and call on all MPs to get behind the vote and add
their voice to mounting international concern at the catastrophic loss of civilian
life in Israel and Gaza.”
Source: dawn.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1789454/uk-parliamentarians-to-vote-on-gaza-ceasefire-today
------
Denmark
debates bill to ban desecration of Holy Quran
November 14, 2023
Denmark’s
parliament on Tuesday will debate a bill to ban burnings of the Holy Quran,
after a string of desecrations of the holy book sparked anger in Muslim
countries.
Nearly
1,000 protesters attempted to march to the Danish embassy in Baghdad’s
fortified Green Zone in late July, following a call by firebrand cleric Moqtada
Sadr.
Denmark’s
government said the tensions posed a threat to national security.
The bill
aims to make it a criminal offence to “publicly or with the intention of
dissemination in a wider circle to treat a text with strong religious
significance for a religious community… inappropriately,” according to a
summary on the parliament’s website.
Offenders
could face up to two years in prison.
Between
July 21 and October 24 this year, 483 book burnings or flag burnings were
recorded in Denmark, according to national police figures.
Initially
announced at the end of August, the bill was amended following criticism that
its first draft limited freedom of expression and would be difficult to
enforce.
“The
bill has been narrowed to specifically target improper treatment of scriptures
of significant religious importance,” the justice ministry said in a statement
at the end of October.
The bill
was originally planned to cover objects of significant religious importance.
Criticism
The
first draft of the bill was criticised by some — including politicians,
artists, media and freedom of speech experts — who saw it as a return to a blasphemy
law that Denmark abolished in 2017.
Police
and judicial officials also feared it would be difficult to enforce. “With the
changes we are now proposing, the law will be easier to navigate — including
for the police and the courts,” Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said in the
statement in October, noting that the terrorist threat against Denmark had
intensified.
The new
legislation would be included in chapter 12 of Denmark’s penal code, which
covers national security.
In 2006,
a wave of anti-Danish anger and violence erupted in the Muslim world following
the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
After
the first reading Tuesday, the proposed bill must be studied by a committee and
then submitted for two further readings before a vote.
Source: dawn.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1789235/denmark-debates-bill-to-ban-desecration-of-holy-quran
-------
British
citizens launch a pressure campaign on parliamentarians for Gaza
[15/November/2023]
LONDON
November 15. 2023 (Saba) - A number of civil institutions and human rights
activists in Britain launched on Tuesday, a campaign under the title “No
ceasefire, no vote” aimed at pressuring parliamentarians to support a ceasefire
in Gaza.
According
to British media, this came about by British citizens sending a letter to
parliamentarians telling them that if they did not announce their support for
the ceasefire, they would not get their votes.
Thousands
of Britons began participating in this campaign launched by the “Friends of
Al-Aqsa” Foundation, to send the largest number of messages to parliamentarians
before tomorrow’s session in Parliament, Thursday, to discuss the ceasefire in
Gaza.
Indeed,
a number of Britons of Palestinian or Arab origins succeeded in attracting the
attention of parliamentarians in their region, and obtained from them promises
to convey their demands to the leadership of the Labor and Conservative
parties.
Source: saba.ye
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.saba.ye/en/news3280773.htm
------
Doctor
goes on trial in France over Rwanda genocide
November
15, 2023
PARIS: A
Rwandan doctor went on trial in France on Tuesday on charges of committing
genocide and crimes against humanity during Rwanda’s 1994 massacres, after a
three-decade investigation by French authorities.
Sixty-eight-year-old
SostheneMunyemana appeared before the Assize Court in the French capital nearly
30 years after a complaint was filed against him in the southwestern French
city of Bordeaux in 1995.
The
former gynaecologist, accused of organizing torture and killings during the
genocide of Tutsis in Rwanda, took to the stand and expressed his “compassion”
for the families of the genocide victims.
“This is
the first time that I’ve had the opportunity to speak publicly since this
affair began,” he said, wearing a blue striped shirt and a grey jacket. “It’s
also the moment to think of these families.”
Munyemana,
who denies the charges against him, faces life in prison if convicted.
The
trial, scheduled to last five weeks, will be recorded for historical archives.
Nearly 70 witnesses are expected to testify.
It is
the sixth trial in France of an alleged participant in the massacres, in which
around 800,000 people, most of them ethnic Tutsis, were slaughtered over 100
days by Hutu soldiers and extremist militias, according to UN figures.
“We’re
waiting for justice to be done at last,” Rachel Lindon, a lawyer representing
26 victims, said ahead of the trial.
“The
more time passes, the fewer witnesses we have,” she added.
Judge
Marc Sommerer chalked up the length of the investigation to factors including
the “need to carry out investigations abroad” and that France only set up a
crimes against humanity unit in 2012.
In 2008,
France rejected an asylum request by Munyemana, who worked in a hospital at
Villeneuve-sur-Lot in southwest France for a decade.
But it
also in 2010 rejected an extradition request from Rwanda after Munyemana’s
lawyers argued he could not receive a fair trial there.
In 2011,
a French court charged the father-of-three on suspicion of taking part in the
1994 genocide.
An
ethnic Hutu, he lived in Butare in southern Rwanda at the time.
Munyemana
was close to Jean Kambanda, the head of the interim government established
after the plane carrying then-president Juvenal Habyarimana was shot down by a
missile in 1994.
On
Tuesday, Munyemana said he hadn’t been aware of the radicalization of his
friend who lived in Kigali and he saw occasionally.
“When we
met, it was more for family reasons,” he said.
“If he
radicalized at the end of November 1993, I didn’t know it because we didn’t see
each other again until June 19” the following year, the date which Kambanda
went to his home to check up on him, he said.
A lawyer
representing a civil society group retorted that Kambanda had called Munyemana
one of his supporters.
“Just
because Kambanda said it doesn’t mean we must believe it,” Munyemana said.
With a
hoarse voice, he assured the court that he had no antagonism with ethnic Tutsis
and recalled his father taking in a Tutsi when he was a child.
He also
described a former Tutsi teacher having taken him “under his arm” and helping
him succeed in school.
Munyemana
is accused of helping draft a letter of support for the interim government,
which encouraged the massacre of the Tutsis.
He is
also accused of helping set up roadblocks to round up people and keeping them
in inhumane conditions in local government offices before their execution.
Munyemana
argues that the government offices to which he held the key served as a
“refuge” for Tutsis who were seeking protection.
One of
Munyemana’s lawyers, Jean-Yves Dupeux, has argued that the case “rests only” on
decades-old witness accounts.
France
has been one of the top destinations for fugitives fleeing justice over the
Rwandan slaughter.
Rwanda
under President Paul Kagame has accused Paris of not being willing to extradite
genocide suspects or bring them to justice.
Since
2014, France has tried and convicted six figures including a former spy chief,
two ex-mayors and a former hotel chauffeur.
Source: brusselssignal.eu
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2409041/world
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French
ambassadors in Muslim nations rebel against Macron’s ‘pro-Israeli shift’
14
November 2023
Ten
French ambassadors in the Middle East have written to President Macron to
oppose his “pro-Israeli” stance in the Israel-Hamas war.
Macron
shows signs of bending under the pressure, both within his government and on
the street. On Friday, he criticised Israel for causing an excessive number of
civilian casualties, saying Israel should “stop killing women and babies” in
Gaza.
By
siding with Israel, Macron has caused “serious” and “long-lasting” damage to
Arab Middle Eastern countries’ trust in France, the ambassadors say.
Some
French ambassadors say they have been denied access to decision makers in the
countries where they are stationed, while one reports receiving death threats.
Arab
governments “feel that we are betraying ourselves; they believe that our
discourse based on humanism is in contradiction with our new approach. For
them, France with its alternative voice no longer exists,” says the letter.
The
letter represents an “unprecedented collective step on the part of French
ambassadors in the Middle East”, according to former diplomats.
Large
groups have protested in front of French embassies in Arab countries.
French
diplomacy met previous difficulties in the region when French satirical
magazine Charlie Hebdo published caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad in 2020.
The Quai
d’Orsay downplays the importance of the letter, saying it receives “many
others” and it is instead “the political authorities elected by the French (…)
who decide on France’s foreign policy”, says Le Figaro.
France
is using its influence “wisely”, government spokesman Olivier Véran argued
Tuesday morning on France Inter.
A
humanitarian conference for Gaza, hosted in Paris, saw large sums of money
promised for the Palestinians, including €100 million in French humanitarian
aid to Gaza.
Source: brusselssignal.eu
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https://brusselssignal.eu/2023/11/french-ambassadors-in-muslim-nations-rebel-against-macrons-pro-israeli-shift/
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Arab World
Saudi,
Brazilian FMs discuss bilateral ties and war in Gaza
November
14, 2023
LONDON:
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan received a phone call on
Tuesday from his Brazilian counterpart Mauro Vieira, the Saudi Press Agency
reported.
The two
officials discussed the latest developments in the Gaza Strip, as well as
military escalation in the region.
Prince
Faisal stressed the importance of an immediate ceasefire, securing humanitarian
corridors for the entry of urgent aid, and stopping Israel’s forced
displacement of Palestinians from the enclave.
The
foreign ministers also looked at ways to bolster bilateral relations between
their countries and discussed regional and international issues of mutual
interest.
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408956/saudi-arabia
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KSrelief
distributes winter clothing coupons for Palestinian refugees in Jordan
November
14, 2023
RIYADH:
The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center has distributed shopping
vouchers to nearly 2,000 Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Saudi Press Agency
reported on Tuesday.
The
coupons allow refugees to purchase winter clothing at designated stores located
in refugee camps across the Balqa, Zarqa, and Madaba governorates.
The
initiative comes as part of the second phase of the winter clothing
distribution project (Kanaf) for 2023, a joint effort with the Jordanian
Hashemite Charitable Organization.
This
effort is also in line with a broader series of relief projects by Saudi
Arabia, aiming to cater to the fundamental needs of Palestinian refugees in
Jordan and shield them from severe winter conditions.
Source: arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408826/saudi-arabia
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Saudi
aid campaign collects $131m for Gaza
November
14, 2023
RIYADH:
The national fundraising campaign to provide assistance to the people of Gaza
has so far raised over SR491 million ($131 million).
The
initiative was launched on Sahem by Saudi aid agency KSrelief, in line with
directives from King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. By Tuesday,
more than 767,000 people had accessed the platform to make donations.
Contributions
can be made through Sahem’s website at sahem.ksrelief.org. Donors can also
transfer funds directly to the campaign’s Al-Rajhi Bank account, or by
downloading the Sahem app on their mobile devices from Apple’s App Store or
Google Play.
Meanwhile,
a sixth Saudi relief plane carrying aid from the Kingdom for Gaza arrived at
El-Arish International Airport in Egypt on Tuesday. The aid was dispatched from
King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.
The
plane transported 35 tons of materials, including food and shelter, as part of
the Kingdom’s campaign to assist the people of Gaza, the Saudi Press Agency
reported.
This
initiative was launched by order of the king and the crown prince, in alignment
with Saudi Arabia’s longstanding commitment to supporting the Palestinian
people during times of crisis.
Five
Saudi relief planes, each carrying 35 tons of aid, have arrived in Egypt in the
last five days.
Earlier,
a team from KSrelief held talks with Osama Nugali, the Saudi ambassador to
Egypt, to explore ways to transport shelter materials, food baskets and medical
supplies through the Rafah border crossing to assist Gaza.
Source: arabnews.com
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408816/saudi-arabia
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Saudi,
Czech FMs discuss latest developments in Gaza
November
14, 2023
RIYADH:
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan received a phone call on
Tuesday from his Czech counterpart Jan Lipavsky, Saudi Press Agency reported.
During
the call, the two officials discussed the latest developments in the Gaza Strip
as well as military escalation in the region.
Prince
Faisal stressed the importance of reaching an immediate ceasefire and securing
humanitarian corridors for the entry of urgent aid.
He also
highlighted the importance of the international community fulfilling its
responsibilities to stop Israel’s attacks on civilians and hospitals, as well
as its forced displacement of Palestinians from occupied Gaza.
Source: arabnews.com
Please click the following URL to read
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2408741/saudi-arabia
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Awqaf
Ministry, CCQ to launch Associate Diploma in Islamic Sciences
15 Nov
2023 -
Doha,
Qatar: The Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs in coordination with the
Community College of Qatar (CCQ) will launch an Associate Diploma Programme in
Da’wah and Islamic Sciences.
The
two-year programme for developing the performance of Imams, preachers, and
those working in the Sharia law sector of the ministry will begin from 2023-24
fall semester.
To
implement the programme, Assistant Undersecretary for Dawah and Mosque Affairs
at the ministry, Mohammed bin Hamad Al Kuwari, and President of CCQ Dr. Khalid
Mohamed Al Horr yesterday signed an agreement.
The
agreement aims at establishing a degree programme in Islamic studies for
students nominated by the ministry from its employees, and in a way that
achieves sustainable development of its human resources.
Speaking
at the signing ceremony, Al Kuwari said the diploma programme aims to prepare,
qualify and develop the performance of Imams, preachers and holders of Sharia
positions in the ministry with a number of 25 students.
He said
the programme will continue for two academic years, starting in the 2023-2024
fall semester. “The Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs is looking forward to
expand the scope of cooperation and partnership with CCQ to implement other
scientific, academic and training programmes for ministry employees to achieve
Qatar National Vision 2030 in the field of sustainable human resources
development,” said Al Kuwari.
He said
the agreement will provide opportunities for the Ministry's employees to teach
at CCQ following the policies and regulations in force at the college.
Al Horr
said, “We value this cooperation with the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic
Affairs, by offering the Associate Diploma in Da’wah and Islamic Sciences,
which provides Imams, preachers, and holders of Sharia positions in the
ministry a unique opportunity to enhance their knowledge and Sharia sciences by
continuing to learn, in a way that achieves a positive and sustainable impact to
contribute to the renaissance of the state.”
He said
that the college has devoted its efforts to implementing the terms of this
cooperation starting from the fall of 2023-2024, where there will be a study
plan developed for students nominated by the ministry from its employees, after
it was agreed to accept 25 students at the beginning of each academic year.
“The CCQ
will work, through its teaching staff, to fulfil all the programme requirements
for beneficiaries who meet the admission requirements, and to ensure a high
level of academic and scientific quality,” said Al Horr. He said this
memorandum of cooperation establishes a solid foundation for cooperation
between the two institutions, and paves the way for the ministry’s employees to
be future leaders, armed with science and knowledge to advance the values and
morals of community members in order to achieve sustainable development of
human resources.
Source: thepeninsulaqatar.com
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Arab and
Islamic countries condemn Israeli bombing of Qatari aid offices in Gaza
Nov 14,
2023
Arab and
Islamic countries have strongly criticised Israel's bombing of the headquarters
of the Qatar Committee for the Reconstruction of Gaza.
Through
the humanitarian office, Qatar disburses monthly grants in support of 100,000
families in the Gaza Strip, at a rate of $100 for each family.
Saudi Arabia,
the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Egypt and Jordan – along with the Gulf Co-operation
Council and Organisation of Islamic Co-operation – all issued statements of
condemnation late on Monday against the Israeli air strikes on the offices of
the organisation, which has played a vital role in Gaza's reconstruction for
more than a decade.
Qatar’s
Foreign Ministry denounced the Israeli bombing as “blatant aggression.”
“The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs also calls on the Israeli occupation to stop
providing flimsy justifications for targeting civilian objects, health
facilities, and civilians and using misleading information,” it said.
The Gaza
reconstruction committee was set up by Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to
administer a $407 million grant from Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani to
rebuild Gaza’s destroyed infrastructure in 2012.
Unverified
photos posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, by users from Gaza showed the
aftermath of the Israeli bombing of the Qatari aid office, with graffiti
symbols and words spray-painted in Hebrew on the walls of the building.
The Gulf
state, which has been meditating hostage releases between Israel and Hamas,
said the attack on Monday was “an extension of Israel’s behaviour of targeting
civilians”.
Saudi
Arabia’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the “blatant aggression by the
occupation forces on the Qatari committee's headquarters” and expressed
solidarity with Qatar.
The
kingdom urged the international community to immediately put an end to
“violations committed by the occupation authorities”.
The UAE
also strongly condemned the Israeli attack on the Qatari committee's
headquarters, emphasising the need for an immediate ceasefire to prevent
further bloodshed.
Kuwait,
Oman and Egypt’s foreign ministries also criticised the bombing, describing it
as a “crime” and “heinous act.”
Kuwait
called on the international community to “put an end to these Israeli
violations carried out under transparent pretexts and lies exposed to the
world.”
Jordan,
meanwhile, said the Israeli bombing of the Qatari facility in Gaza was a
“reprehensible war crime to be added to Israel's criminal record”.
The
continuing war has killed 11,240 Palestinians in Gaza and about 1,200 people in
Israel, according to official figures from both sides.
Source: thenationalnews.com
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https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/palestine-israel/2023/11/14/arab-and-islamic-countries-condemn-israeli-bombing-of-qatari-aid-offices-in-gaza/
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URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/ranjit-hoskote-panel-letter-documenta/d/131116