New Age Islam News Bureau
15 November 2021
Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General
Mette Knudsen met with women religious scholars in Kabul.
----
• Taliban Hold Military Parade with US-Made Weapons in
Kabul in Show of Strength
• Former Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board
chairman Wasim Rizvi Wants to Be Cremated, Not Buried
• 27 Renowned Islamic Scholars, Physicians and
Academics Granted Saudi Citizenship
• Turkish Man, Living In Germany, Pedals Around Globe
to Fight Islamophobia, Racism
South Asia
• ‘Afghanistan doesn’t want conflict with any country,
including India’
• The string of Islamic state attacks that killed
three generations of one Afghan family
• Taliban to reassess documents of residential towns,
estate dealers
• ISIS-K claims responsibility for Saturday's
explosion in Kabul
----
North America
• Taliban Hold Military Parade with US-Made Weapons in
Kabul in Show of Strength
--------
India
• Curfew in Amravati after Fresh Violence during the
Saturday Bandh Call By Saffron Outfits
• Maharashtra Violence: VHP Seeks Ban on Muslim Organisation,
Raza Academy
• President Kovind to Visit Bangladesh on December 16
to Attend Victory Day Celebrations: Reports
• Ganesh Kumar, the Army Man Held for ‘Sharing’
Intelligence Inputs with Pakistan Operative
------
Arab World
• Saudi Arabia sees no purpose in engaging Lebanon at
this time: FM
• Embraces and flowers greet Kuwaiti prisoners freed
under amnesty
• Egypt Bans Donation Boxes in Mosques Nationwide: An
Explainer
• Colombia says monitoring Lebanon's Hezbollah over
‘criminal’ acts
• Iraq to start repatriating citizens in Belarus
Thursday: ministry
------
Europe
• Polish Muslim Leader Helps Feed Migrants and
Soldiers
• Hungary Will Not Leave EU, Wants To Reform It, PM
Orban Says
• France denies handing over executed journalist Zam
to Iran: Report
• UK counter-terrorist police arrest three after
deadly car blast
--------
Pakistan
• Indian Sikhs Set Nov 19 as Deadline for Kartarpur
Corridor Reopening
• 20 Indian fishermen released from Pakistani jail to
return via Attari-Wagah border
• Opposition asks speaker to form new panel on poll
reforms
• Opposition rejects Senate’s decision of including
Fawad, Swati in ECP panel
--------
Southeast Asia
• Call It Dollah or Wahhab, PAS Minister Says Party
Still Opposes Timah Whisky despite Cabinet’s Nod
' • Second
chance': Family of Indian-origin man on death row in Singapore pleads
• Sabah Allows Funeral Rites at Non-Muslim Houses Of
Worship from Tomorrow, Says State Minister
--------
Mideast
• Israel Denies Espionage Charge against Couple
Arrested In Turkey
• Coalition Strikes Houthis In Support Of Yemeni
Forces On West Coast
• Iranian Lawmakers Hail Army’s Massive ‘Zolfaqar
1400’ Drills
• MP Underlines Jewish Community’s Support for Iranian
Athletes Abstaining Competition against Israeli Opponents
• Iran, Kyrgyzstan Vow to Broaden Economic Cooperation
--------
Africa
• Hundreds in Israel Protest for Rescue Of Ethiopia
Jews
• Libya's Presidency Council calls for ‘simultaneous’
elections
• Tunisian protesters try to break through security
barriers near parliament
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/religious-scholars-kabul-un-afghanistan/d/125775
--------
UN Special Representative in Afghanistan Meets Women Religious
Scholars in Kabul, Discusses Islamic Law, Women's Rights Issues
Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General
Mette Knudsen met with women religious scholars in Kabul.
----
Nov 15, 2021
KABUL: A top UN Special Representative in Afghanistan
on Sunday met with women religious scholars in Kabul and discussed different
aspects of Islamic Law and the key issues concerning rights of girls and women
in the country.
Deputy Special Representative of the UN
Secretary-General in the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), Mette
Knudsen, has been holding several rounds of talks with all stakeholders in the country
including Taliban to address various issues including need for humanitarian
aid.
"UNAMA Dep-Head @Metknu hosted women religious
scholars in Kabul today. They discussed different aspects of Islamic Law, the
importance of girls being able to go to school and women being gainfully
employed," UNAMA tweeted.
UNAMA Dep-Head @Metknu hosted women religious scholars
in Kabul today. They discussed different aspects of Islamic…
https://t.co/fXfblnxV4v
— UNAMA News (@UNAMAnews) 1636907155000
This meeting came the same day as Islamic clerics from
several countries across the world, including India, held a virtual conference,
where they called for the formation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan.
The participants, from India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and
Croatia, stressed the need to form a unified position on countering ISIS in
Islamic countries, TOLOnews reported.
"Controlling the government by a certain
ethnicity and ignoring other ethnicities is impossible. This will cause chaos
in Afghanistan because it is obvious that all ethnicities have power and are
looking for their rights," said Ayatullah Syed Yasin, a top Iraqi
religious cleric. The meeting also highlighted the importance of human rights
and women's rights.
Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai had called on the
international community to cooperate with Afghanistan on the issue of
counter-terrorism.
"If you are really concerned about the security
of yourself and the world and remain committed to the pledges on Afghanistan,
in such a critical and vital situation and to ensure peace and stability, help
the people of Afghanistan," Karzai was quoted as saying by TOLOnews.
Two months have passed since the Taliban regained
control of Kabul, as the US and its allies departed, wrapping up their 20-year
military presence in Afghanistan.
Going against all promises of inclusive government,
the Taliban have appointed an all-male cabinet. They abolished the Ministry of
Women's Affairs, and handed over the women's ministry building to the
reinstated Ministry of Vice and Virtue, which was responsible for some of the
worst abuses against women during the Taliban's previous period in power from
1996-2001.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
Taliban Hold Military Parade with US-Made Weapons in Kabul
in Show of Strength
Nov 14, 2021
A military helicopter is pictured during the Taliban
military parade in Kabul, Afghanistan November 14, 2021. | Photo Credit: Reuters
-----
KABUL: Taliban forces held a military parade in Kabul
on Sunday using captured American-made armoured vehicles and Russian
helicopters in a display that showed their ongoing transformation from an
insurgent force to a regular standing army.
The Taliban operated as insurgent fighters for two
decades but have used the large stock of weapons and equipment left behind when
the former Western-backed government collapsed in August to overhaul their
forces.
The parade was linked to the graduation of 250 freshly
trained soldiers, defence ministry spokesman Enayatullah Khwarazmi said.
The exercise involved dozens of US-made M117 armoured
security vehicles driving slowly up and down a major Kabul road with MI-17
helicopters patrolling overhead. Many soldiers carried American made-M4 assault
rifles.
Most of the weapons and equipment the Taliban forces
are now using are those supplied by Washington to the American-backed
government in Kabul in a bid to construct an Afghan national force capable of
fighting the Taliban.
Those forces melted away with the fleeing of Afghan
President Ashraf Ghani from Afghanistan - leaving the Taliban to take over
major military assets.
Taliban officials have said that pilots, mechanics and
other specialists from the former Afghan National Army would be integrated into
a new force, which has also started wearing conventional military uniforms in
place of the traditional Afghan clothing normally worn by their fighters.
According to a report late last year by the Special
Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (Sigar), the US government
transferred to the Afghan government more than $28 billion worth of defence
articles and services, including weapons, ammunition, vehicles, night-vision
devices, aircraft, and surveillance systems, from 2002 to 2017.
Some of the aircraft were flown into neighbouring
Central Asian Countries by fleeing Afghan forces, but the Taliban have
inherited other aircraft. It remains unclear how many are operational.
As the US troops departed, they destroyed more than 70
aircraft, dozens of armoured vehicles and disabled air defences before flying
out of Kabul's Hamid Karzai International Airport following a chaotic
evacuation operation.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
Former Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board chairman Wasim Rizvi Wants to Be
Cremated, Not Buried
15th November 2021
Wasim Rizvi says he wants his body to be cremated,
Mahant Narasimhanand should light his pyre
-----
Lucknow: Former Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board
chairman Wasim Rizvi has a penchant for controversies. He has now released a
video-recorded message expressing his desire to be cremated according to Hindu
rituals and not buried.
In the video released on Sunday, Rizvi mentioned that
his body must be handed over to his Hindu friend, Mahant Narasimha Nanda
Saraswati of the Dasna temple, and he should light his pyre.
Wasim Rizvi has earned the ire of his entire community
after he challenged 26 ‘ayats’ of the Quran and then claimed to have written a
new Quran.
He has reportedly received death threats from Muslim
groups for filing a PIL in the Supreme Court seeking the removal of verses from
the Quran, which he alleges “teach violence”.
Source: Daily Siasat
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
https://www.siasat.com/wasim-rizvi-wants-to-be-cremated-not-buried-2225341/
--------
27 Renowned Islamic Scholars, Physicians And Academics
Granted Saudi Citizenship
November 15, 2021
Sayyed Muhammad Al-Husseini (first on the left), Dr.
Radwan al-Sayed (first on the right), Mustafa Ceric (second on the lift),
Dr.Khaled Hamwi (second on the right).
-----
RIYADH — The preliminary lists of those who were
granted Saudi citizenship following the issuance of royal orders by Custodian
of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman encompass all the vital fields of Saudi
life.
Granting of the citizenship was in recognition of
their distinguished services and outstanding contributions in all major walks
of life through decades-long dedications and relentless efforts that qualified
them to attain a distinguished status in the Saudi society.
The list of those who were granted citizenship
included 27 renowned Islamic scholars, eminent physicians and well Known
academics, according to a report in Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.
The scholars included those who involved in framing
and approving the historic Makkah Document. At the international conference of
Islamic scholars, organized by Muslim World League (MWL) in May 2019, King
Salman presented the document, which was signed by more than 1,200 Islamic
scholars and 4500 intellectuals from 139 countries and 27 Muslim schools of
thought.
President of the World Bosniak Congress and Former
Grand Mufti of Bosnia and Herzegovina Mustafa Ceric is one among the scholars
who were granted citizenship.
The scholars include Hussein Al-Daoudi, chairman of
the Scandinavian Council for Relations; Dr. Muhammad Nimr El-Sammak, secretary
general of the National Islamic-Christian Committee for Dialogue, Lebanon and
he is considered one of the leading Arab thinkers; Dr. Radwan al-Sayed,
researcher in Islamic Thought Studies, and winner of the King Faisal
International Prize in the field of Islamic studies.
All these scholars are members of the MWL Supreme
Council and they ratified the Makkah Document. Other scholars are Abdullah
Saleh Abdullah, a leading Iraqi academic and historian specialized in the
history of the Kingdom and the Gulf in general, and Sayyed Muhammad
Al-Husseini, secretary general of the Arabic Islamic Council of Lebanon, and an
eminent Shiite scholar.
Saudi Arabia also granted citizenship to a group of
distinguished medical personalities in their respective fields and they are:
Dr. Emad Muhammad Talijeh, renowned infectious
diseases consultant, who published more than 87 scientific papers.
Dr. Farouq Oweida, consultant cardiothoracic surgeon,
who worked as a consultant for cardiac surgery at the National Guard Hospital
in Riyadh, and currently working as a consultant for heart surgery and head of
the cardiac surgery Department at Saud Al Babtain Center. He performed more
than 5,000 open-heart surgeries at Saud Al-Babtain Center.
Dr. Imad Uddin Najeh Ezzat Kanaan, head of the
Department of Neurology at King Faisal Specialist Hospital, and he is
considered one of the most famous neurosurgeons in the world. He was nominated
by the Canadian Academy as the 16 best surgeons in the world.
Dr.Khaled Hamwi: Deputy director for Clinical
Excellence in the First Health Cluster in Sharqia, and served as director of
the Organ Transplant Center at King Fahd Specialist Hospital in Dammam.
Dr. Muhammad Ghayath Jamil: Medical director of the
Intensive Care Unit for Organ Transplantation, medical director of the
Telemedicine Unit, and former medical director of the Sleep Medicine Unit at
King Faisal Specialist Hospital. He is former president of the Saudi Sleep
Medicine Group and director of telemedicine program.
Dr. Walid Khaled Rashid: Consultant of hematology,
stem cell transplantation and bone marrow transplantation at King Faisal
Specialist Hospital.
Dr. Mustafa Abdullah Saleh: A renowned physician who
presented 235 scientific papers in specialized international scientific fields.
Saudi citizenship has also been granted to a group of
prominent academics and educational figures who have made significant contributions
in their respective fields: They include several professors of King Fahd
University of Petroleum and Minerals who made outstanding contributions in
various academic specializations.
They are Bekir Yilbas, Ansir Merah, Mohammed Abdel
Aziz Mustafa Habib, Mohamed Abdel Karim Antar, Tawfiq Abdo Saleh Awad, Ali
Hussein Muqaibel, Azzedine Zerkin, Samir Mekid, Ayman Helmy Al-Maleh, Bassam
El-Ali, Salaheldin El-Katatny and Mohamed Ahmed Nasr Eldin Mahmoud.
Hadi Mohamed Aqoun and Musa Qari Syed were also
granted citizenship. Aqoun is holder of doctorate in electrical engineering
from Washington University and he presented 37 research papers in international
conferences.
Musa Qari Syed is a nuclear scientist with master’s
degree in radiochemistry from the University of Iowa, and doctorates in
Radiological Sciences from Ohio Medical College in Toledo, and in Higher
Education Administration from Pennsylvania University. He served as consultant
of several world universities including those in Saudi Arabia.
Source: Saudi Gazette
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
Turkish Man, Living In Germany, Pedals Around Globe to
Fight Islamophobia, Racism
November 15, 2021
(Photo courtesy: aa.com)
-----
A Turkish man living in Germany has been pedalling his
bike in various parts of the world since 2020 to raise awareness of the
scourges of racism and Islamophobia.
Recai Karaca Pak is on the bike explaining that racist
and Islamophobic news reports against Muslims and Turks in Europe are
unfounded.
The 47-year-old engineer hit the road in August last
year and reached Turkey in the sixth week of his journey. After visiting
various Turkish provinces for a year, Pak came to Istanbul on Oct. 29.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency about his long journey, Pak
said there is a smear media campaign against Muslims and Turks in Europe.
“This situation opens the door to racism. I jumped on
my bike to raise awareness and set off from Europe to Turkey. I traveled to
many European countries and told people that the propaganda against Muslims was
wrong,” he said.
“Those Europeans know that Muslims are not against
them. They have fraternal relations with Muslims. But those who do not know
Muslims keep a distance because of the media propaganda,” he explained, adding:
“I want to show our humanity and character to those who do not know us.”
“Muslims face racism and encounter difficulties in
finding a job or renting an apartment in many places. Our mosques face over 400
attacks a year. The solution is to introduce and express ourselves,” Pak said,
noting that he wanted to inform the whole world about being a Turk, as well as
about the Turkish culture and the extent of racism against Turks and Muslims.
Source: ABNA24
Please click the following URL to read the text of the
original story:
--------
South Asia
‘Afghanistan doesn’t want conflict with any country,
including India’
Nov 15, 2021
ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan’s interim foreign minister Amir
Khan Muttaqi, in an interview to BBC Urdu, has said that his country does not
want conflict with any other country, including India. He added that the
Islamic Emirate now controls the entire country and Daesh (the militant Islamic
State group) has been eliminated from most of Afghanistan.
“We do not want Afghanistan to have a conflict with
any other country or have challenges arise that could affect our nation. When
we participated in the Moscow conference, the representatives of India,
Pakistan and several other countries were also present. We had a positive
conversation with New Delhi and others,” Muttaqi responded when asked about
relations with India.
Calling Daesh a threat, the Afghan minister said the
Taliban government has eliminated it from a major part of the country.
“Previously, 70% of Afghanistan was under the control
of the Islamic Emirate and the Daesh only had presence in areas ruled by the
former Afghan government. After the Taliban took over, the government took
effective measures to control them and confine them to certain areas,” he
added.
The Afghan minister further said that his country has
been acting as a mediator between Pakistan and the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban
Pakistan (TTP) on the desire of both parties.
“The two sides have not yet reached an agreement, but
the process has had a good start, leading to the announcement of a month-long
ceasefire,” Muttaqi said, adding that he was hopeful that the process would not
face obstacles in the future and that relations between the Pakistan government
and TTP would improve.
Dispelling the impression that women were being
excluded from education and work in offices in Afghanistan, Muttaqi said:
“Women have 100% inclusion in the health sector. They are also in the education
sector. They are working in every sector where they are required. Our
government has not fired any female official who had worked under the previous
government.”
“We have no such policy to deny women of their rights
in any field. Their salaries, as well as opportunities for education and
employment, were also not affected,” he added.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
The string of Islamic state attacks that killed three
generations of one Afghan family
November 15, 2021
When Masooma Rajabi saw her relatives flooding into
the family’s courtyard, she broke down in sobs.
Her family had congregated there twice over the past
two weeks: First, to mourn the loss of her husband, who had been killed in a
suicide attack on a Shiite mosque in northern Afghanistan and then again after
another blast ripped through a Shiite mosque in Kandahar, killing her
father-in-law and lodging shrapnel in the skull of her 15-year-old son, Maisam.
She had clung to hope that Maisam would recover. But
now, seeing her husband’s cousins and her mother quietly weeping, Masooma knew
she had lost him, too.
“How is this possible?” asked Masooma, 32, burying her
face in her damp head scarf.
For decades, violence has torn through Afghanistan’s
Shiite community, perpetuated first by the Taliban — who consider Shiites
heretics — and in more recent years by the Islamic State group’s Afghanistan
affiliate, Islamic State Khorasan, or ISIS-K.
When the Taliban, hard-line Sunni Muslims, seized
power in August, they vowed to end decades of bloodshed and sought to reassure
Afghan Shiites that they would not again be their targets, as they were during
the group’s previous rule from 1996 to 2001. This time around, the Taliban have
allowed Shiites to observe the holy holiday of Ashura; they dispatched a Shiite
cleric to do outreach in Shiite communities; they visited Shiite mosques to
demonstrate solidarity; and they vowed that the new government would keep them
safe.
But two suicide bombings by Islamic State Khorasan at
mosques in October, which together killed more than 90 people and injured
hundreds of others, stoked fears that, in fact, the Taliban would allow the
Islamic State’s campaign against Afghan Shiites to go unchecked. The attacks
also fueled concerns in neighboring Iran, a Shiite Muslim theocracy and
self-proclaimed defender of Shiite Muslims around the world, where officials
have voiced concerns about the fate of Afghan Shiites under Taliban rule and
the threat of a resurgent Islamic State Khorasan launching attacks on Iranian
soil.
Now many Afghan Shiites fear the beginning of a new
brutal chapter, one in which their security depends on the very movement that
once targeted them.
Few understand that devastating new reality more than
Masooma and her family. In the span of just two weeks, she and her relatives
lost a grandfather, father and son — three generations of Afghan men who spent
most of their lives in a country at war but died after the bloodshed was meant
to be over.
“When the Taliban became in power, we were not
expecting these things,” said Masooma’s uncle-in-law, Abdul Raziq Rajabi, 50,
the morning after Maisam died. “But I can’t say now whether the Taliban will
support our people or not.”
After the attack, an uneasy quiet enveloped their
neighborhood of mud brick houses stitched together with narrow alleyways and
electric wires dangling overhead. It is one of a handful of Shiite districts in
Kandahar, the Pashtun heartland of the country. Some Shiites there are Hazara —
an ethnic minority that has been persecuted for centuries — who migrated to the
southern city for work or to flee violence. Others have lived in the south for
hundreds of years.
Masooma’s father-in-law, Haji Nematullah Rajabi, 60,
migrated from the central province of Ghazni to Kandahar nearly a half-century
ago and lived a comfortable life in the relative calm of the city. He started
selling agricultural equipment; married his wife, Sughra; and eventually had a
daughter and two sons.
Ezzatullah Rajabi, 33, Sughra and Nematullah’s son,
married Masooma, and they had three boys of their own. They moved to Kunduz, an
economic hub of northern Afghanistan. The move made sense to expand the family
business but terrified Ezzatullah’s mother. After the Taliban briefly seized
the city in 2015 and 2016, Sughra called every week begging him to return to
Kandahar.
Still, when the Taliban began their military offensive
last summer, even Ezzatullah was on edge. After the group seized power and
offered public pledges to protect Afghan Shiites, who make up 10% to 20% of the
country’s population, Ezzatullah said his fears dissipated.
Then, Oct. 8, an Islamic State group suicide attack
devastated Ezzatullah’s mosque in Kunduz, killing at least 43 people.
Masooma heard the explosion and sprinted to the
mosque, knowing her husband had gone there to pray. She scoured the bodies
being carried out in bloody scarves, looking for him. The next morning,
Nematullah arrived from Kandahar and found Ezzatullah’s body — his limbs bent
like a rag doll — in a hospital morgue. Seeing him, Nematullah nearly
collapsed.
The family returned to Kandahar to bury Ezzatullah,
and the following Friday — determined to show his unwavering faith — Nematullah
went to his mosque to pray. He called Masooma three times that morning asking
her to send his oldest grandson, Maisam, to join him.
Masooma relented. But about 1 p.m., she heard another
blast — this time from two suicide bombers who barged into the mosque during
Friday prayers. The explosion left bodies scattered across bloodstained
carpets. Dazed survivors poured out of the building through broken windows,
while others looked for loved ones.
Nematullah’s surviving son, Ahmad Zia, found him among
the bodies — his right side bloodied, eyes closed and barely able to speak —
and then spotted Maisam, whose head was wrapped in a bloodied scarf. He brought
them both to the hospital where Maisam was put on life support and Nematullah
died — one of at least 47 people killed that day.
The attack on Bibi Fatima Mosque was Islamic State
Khorasan’s first in Kandahar, the Taliban’s historic stronghold, and it shocked
the Shiite community there. For many, the week that followed was a blur of
funerals and mourning. In one Shiite neighborhood, mourners poured into a
cemetery for bombing victims each day, whispering prayers at the row of fresh
graves.
By the cemetery gate, talk of security consumed a
group of men as they passed around a pot of tea. The new, untested government
could not confront the resurgent threat from Islamic State Khorasan, some said.
Others questioned the Taliban’s professed intentions to protect Afghan Shiites
— even wondering whether some Talibs might see the recent attacks as an
invitation to freely kill Shiites.
“The Taliban are just saying they are trying to keep
our security, but why should we believe them?” asked Khalil, 36, staring at the
graves.
For Shiite community leaders, the implication of the
bombing was clear: It was time to take security back into their own hands. Days
after the attack, they met with Taliban officials at the mosque — the air still
heavy with the smell of charred flesh — and demanded that the new government
return seized weapons to the roughly 40 Shiite places of worship in Kandahar.
The Taliban agreed to return up to three weapons to
every Shiite mosque and offered compensation to families of the bombing victims.
“It is the right not only of the Shia’s nation, but
the right of all Kandahar’s people to be secure,” Haji Mullah Abdul Ghafar
Mohammadi, 41, the Taliban police chief in Kandahar, said in an interview.
But weeks later, the Taliban had still not yet returned
the weapons, prompting some Shiite leaders to take matters into their own
hands.
As men poured into Bibi Fatima Mosque the following
Friday, two men with Kalashnikov rifles manned the entrance while plainclothes
security guards kept watch from behind nearby shop counters. Others were
perched on nearly every roof in the vicinity, their bodies hunched over and
weapons aimed at the pavement below.
Source: Indian Express
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Taliban to reassess documents of residential towns,
estate dealers
15 Nov 2021
The Justice Ministry of the Islamic Emirate of
Afghanistan said that they reassess the documents of residential towns, estate
dealers, and car dealers in Kabul.
The ministry had asked the owners of all residential
towns, estates, and car dealers to submit their documents to the ministry of
justice for reassessment.
The spokesperson of the ministry Muhammad Bashar said
that they have extended the time and added that the owners have another seven
days to submit their license and documents to the relevant administrations or
the ministry.
Muhammad Bashar warned of canceling the documents and
licenses of the residential towns that have violated the city’s plan or have
usurped the land.
Officials of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan said
that they have found up to 15 residential towns in Kabul that are either built
illegally or have usurped the land.
Source: Khaama Press
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/taliban-to-reassess-documents-of-residential-towns-estate-dealers-25236/
--------
ISIS-K claims responsibility for Saturday's explosion
in Kabul
Nov 15, 2021
KABUL: The Islamic State (ISIS-K) has claimed
responsibility for Saturday's explosion in the western part of Kabul.
The explosion in Dasht-e-Barchi of Kabul left three
dead and six more wounded, Khamma Press reported,
Afghan journalist Hameed Saighani was among those who
died in the explosion but sources have told Khaama press that Saighani was
assassinated in the northern part of Kabul.
The Islamic Emirate spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid,
said the explosion reportedly was caused by a transport vehicle that caught
fire. He said an investigation had begun into the incident.
The security situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated
significantly since the Taliban took control of Kabul on August 15.ISIS has
carried out several attacks including an attack on Kabul Airport during an
evacuation by the US forces following the fall of Kabul.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
North America
Taliban Hold Military Parade with US-Made Weapons in
Kabul in Show of Strength
15 November ,2021
Taliban forces held a military parade in Kabul on Sunday
using captured American-made armored vehicles and Russian helicopters in a
display that showed their ongoing transformation from an insurgent force to a
regular standing army.
The Taliban operated as insurgent fighters for two
decades but have used the large stock of weapons and equipment left behind when
the former Western-backed government collapsed in August to overhaul their
forces.
The parade was linked to the graduation of 250 freshly
trained soldiers, defense ministry spokesman Enayatullah Khwarazmi said.
The exercise involved dozens of US-made M117 armoured
security vehicles driving slowly up and down a major Kabul road with MI-17
helicopters patrolling overhead. Many soldiers carried American made-M4 assault
rifles.
Most of the weapons and equipment the Taliban forces
are now using are those supplied by Washington to the American-backed
government in Kabul in a bid to construct an Afghan national force capable of
fighting the Taliban.
Those forces melted away with the fleeing of Afghan
President Ashraf Ghani from Afghanistan -- leaving the Taliban to take over
major military assets.
Taliban officials have said that pilots, mechanics and
other specialists from the former Afghan National Army would be integrated into
a new force, which has also started wearing conventional military uniforms in
place of the traditional Afghan clothing normally worn by their fighters.
According to a report late last year by the Special
Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (Sigar), the US government
transferred to the Afghan government more than $28 billion worth of defense
articles and services, including weapons, ammunition, vehicles, night-vision
devices, aircraft, and surveillance systems, from 2002 to 2017.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
India
Curfew in Amravati after Fresh Violence during The
Saturday Bandh Call By Saffron Outfits
Nov 14, 2021
NAGPUR/NASHIK/AURANGABAD: As violence erupted in
various parts of Amravati during the Saturday bandh call by saffron outfits,
police imposed a four-day curfew and also shut down Internet there. Saturday’s
bandh call was in response to Friday’s protest rallies by Muslim organisations
to condemn the recent violence in Tripura. The rally witnessed stone pelting in
which shops were damaged, leading to the bandh call.
Internet services will remain suspended for three days
to prevent the spread of rumours that fuel violence, said city police
commissioner Arti Singh. On Saturday, hundreds of people, many of them holding
saffron flags and raising slogans, came out on the streets in Rajkamal Chowk
area. Some people hurled stones at shops in Rajkamal Chowk and other places,
police said, adding that the cops lathi-charged the protesters to bring the
situation under control.
To aid the police force there, about hundred cops and
10 officers from Nagpur have been sent. Also, One or two companies of State
Reserve Police Force (SRPF) are expected to reach Amravati soon. Except for
medical emergencies, people are not allowed to come out of houses. The Nashik
rural police have so far booked close to 1,500 people on charges of rioting,
robberies, attempt to murder and assault . Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said the
violence in Amravati and other places was aimed at destabilising the Maha Vikas
Aghadi (MVA) government. Opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis said it was wrong
to organise rallies in the state for an incident that “never occurred”.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Maharashtra Violence: VHP Seeks Ban on Muslim
Organisation, Raza Academy
14th November 2021
Nagpur: Against the backdrop of recent incidents of
stone-pelting in various cities in Maharashtra during the rallies taken out in
protest against the purported communal violence in Tripura, the Vishva Hindu
Parishad (VHP) on Sunday demanded a ban on Muslim organisation, Raza Academy.
Addressing a press conference at the VHP office in the
Dhantoli area of Nagpur in Maharashtra, VHP general secretary Milind Parande
said the right-wing body will lodge FIRs in various police stations against the
rioters.
If the police fail to register the offence, VHP will
take action, he said, adding that a delegation of VHP leaders would meet
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari in this regard.
He demanded that the Maharashtra government make
rioters pay up for the damage caused to public and private property during the
incidents of stone-pelting on Friday.
On Saturday, a curfew was clamped in Amravati city in
east Maharashtra for four days and Internet services were shut down after a mob
hurled stones at shops during a Bandh (shut-down) allegedly organised by local
BJP workers in protest against the rallies organised by Muslim organisations
the day before to condemn the recent violence in Tripura, police had said.
On Friday, stone-pelting was reported during rallies
taken out by Muslim organisations in Amravati, Nanded, Malegaon (in Nashik
district), Washim and Yavatmal.
Raza Academy had handed over a memorandum to the
Maharashtra governor. Those affected by the violence in Tripura should be given
compensation and the mosques which were damaged should be reconstructed, it had
demanded.
Source: Daily Siasat
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/maha-violence-vhp-seeks-ban-on-raza-academy-2225157/
--------
President Kovind to visit Bangladesh on December 16 to
attend Victory Day celebrations: Reports
Nov 15, 2021
DHAKA: President Ram Nath Kovind will visit Dhaka on
December 16 to attend the Victory Day celebrations, the media here quoted the
Bangladesh Foreign Minister as saying.
President Kovind is visiting the neighbouring country
on December 16 and 17 on the invitation of his Bangladesh counterpart Abdul
Hamid, the Daily Star newspaper reported on Sunday.
"This will be the first visit by the 14th
President of India to Bangladesh," Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen said.
Bangladesh and India are jointly organising a
"Logo and Backdrop" designing competition, marking the Maitri Diwas
on December 6, the report said.
According to a report in the Dhaka Tribune, Bangladesh
and India are working together eyeing two mega events next month - Maitri Diwas
and Victory Day of Bangladesh - on December 6 and December 16 respectively with
exchange of high-level visits.
Apart from the Victory Day celebrations, the president
will also take part in other key engagements, it said.
Bangladesh is commemorating Mujib Borsho, the birth
centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and 50 years of the country's war of
liberation. The two countries are also celebrating 50 years of the
establishment of diplomatic ties.
The Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971 broke after the
sudden crackdown at midnight on March 25, 1971 in the erstwhile East Pakistan
by the Pakistani troops and ended on December 16.
Pakistan conceded defeat and unconditionally
surrendered in Dhaka to the allied forces comprising the freedom fighters and
the Indian soldiers.
Officially three million people were killed during the
nine-month long war.
The two countries decided to commemorate December 6 as
Maitri Diwas (Friendship Day), the day when India recognised Bangladesh in
1971, the report said.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Ganesh Kumar, the Army Man Held for ‘Sharing’
Intelligence Inputs with Pakistan Operative
Nov 15, 2021
PATNA: An Indian Army jawan posted at Armed Forces
Medical College (AFMC) in Pune was arrested at Khagaul in western Patna on
Sunday for allegedly passing on sensitive information to a Pakistani
intelligence operative (PIO) after falling prey to honey trap. The jawan,
identified as Ganesh Kumar, who is currently on leave, belongs to Ashthawan in
Nalanda district of Bihar.
The anti-terrorist squad (ATS) of the state police and
intelligence agencies found some sensitive documents saved in his cellphone.
City SP Ashok Kumar Mishra said Ganesh was working as a nursing staff at AFMC,
Pune. Intelligence sources said Ganesh came in touch with a Pakistani operative
over WhatsApp around two years ago and was honey-trapped to pass on information
about order of battle, which means location of army units on ground.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Arab World
Saudi Arabia sees no purpose in engaging Lebanon at
this time: FM
14 November ,2021
Saudi Arabia does not plan to engage with Lebanon’s
government at the current time, reiterating a call on the political elite to
end what it called the domination of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group on the
country’s political system.
The recent comments were made by Saudi Arabia’s
Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan who spoke on the latest developments
on the deepening political rift with Lebanon following critical comments about
the Arab Coalition military intervention in Yemen by Lebanon’s Information
Minister George Kordahi.
“We see no useful purpose of engaging with the
Lebanese government at this point in time,” Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin
Farhan al-Saud told France 24 television in an interview aired on Saturday.
“We think that the political class needs to step up
and take the necessary actions to liberate Lebanon from the domination of
Hezbollah, and through Hezbollah, Iran.”
Late last month, Prince Faisal told Al Arabiya that
there was no crisis with but rather a crisis in Lebanon due to the hegemony of
Iran’s proxies.
“The problem is even bigger. The problem in Lebanon is
the continued Hezbollah dominance of the political system, and the continued
inability of governments, political officials and political leaders in Lebanon
to take a way out of this crisis and from this tunneled crisis,” he told Al
Arabiya.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Embraces and flowers greet Kuwaiti prisoners freed
under amnesty
14 November ,2021
Kuwait released a group of prisoners on Sunday
pardoned by the emir in an amnesty intended to defuse a political row,
including Shia Muslim Kuwaitis convicted in 2016 for spying for Iran and
Lebanon’s Iran-allied Hezbollah.
The amnesty, which also included former MPs in
self-exile abroad, was a key demand of opposition lawmakers locked in a dispute
with the government over the prime minister’s refusal to be questioned in
parliament. Earlier on Sunday the emir accepted the government’s resignation in
another step to end the feud.
Women threw flower petals as more than 10 prisoners
were seen exiting a bus in a parking lot outside the central prison, where more
than 200 relatives and friends gathered to meet them, embracing amid chants of
“There is no god but God.”
Authorities have so far not disclosed how many
convicts were released on Sunday, but one lawyer said 20 had been freed.
“I feel as would anyone wrongly accused who has been
released,” said Hassan Daoud, among those convicted in the ‘Abdali cell’ spying
case.
The trial of the alleged cell, named for the place
where a weapons cache was discovered in a 2015 raid, had been described as
possibly unfair by Amnesty International and opened up rare sectarian divisions
in the majority Sunni Gulf state, where relations with the minority Shi’ite
community have been mostly amicable.
“This amnesty includes all sects in an equal manner,”
Fawaz Alkhateeb, a lawyer of one of the men released on Sunday, said at the
parking lot, where Shia clerics also gathered.
The emir on Saturday issued two decrees granting
pardons and reduced sentences to 35 people, including former lawmakers in
self-exile in Turkey sentenced for storming the parliament building in 2011
protests against corruption.
The decrees pardoned two members of the alleged cell,
along with four convicted of covering for the group, and halved the sentences
of 18 others, some of whom had already served the commuted term.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Egypt bans donation boxes in mosques nationwide: An
Explainer
Zeinab El-Gundy
14 Nov 2021
Egypt’s religious authorities have issued a decision
banning direct donations in mosques nationwide, ending the long-time practice
of putting charity in "donation boxes" at the worship houses.
Citizens can now donate directly to two-official
accounts at the Central Bank of Egypt opened by the Religious Endowment
Ministry. One of the accounts is dedicated to mosque maintenance while the
other is for social charity.
Many Muslim worshipers like to donate cash at mosques,
as a good deed, for the repairing of mosques or social services, including
holding Quran recitation lessons or providing charity services for the
surrounding community.
The country’s Ministry of Religious Endowment had
ordered the mosques, particularly those that are not under its supervision, to
remove the donations boxes within ten days that ended on 11 November 2021.
There are more than 140,000 officially registered
mosques nationwide, Minister of Religious Endowment Mokhtar Gomaa said in
September 2020.
However, the decision does not apply to mosques run by
the Sufi orders.
Sufi “vows” donation boxes
Last week, the decision was met by rejection from
Egypt’s Sufi orders, known for its “vows” donations boxes.
“Vows” simply means that a Muslim vows to make a
donation to a mosque or a shrine of a Sufi saint or sheikh if God grants him
his wish.
The practice of “vows” is very common in grand mosques
like Al-Hussein Mosque or Al-Siyada Zeinab Mosque in Cairo. It historically
goes beyond religion. It is not Muslims or Christians alone who donate “vows”,
but the practice has its roots in ancient Egypt’s religious system.
Responding to the Sufi orders’ rejection, the
Religious of Endowments Ministry said the “vows mosques” of Sufi orders’
mosques will be exempted from the decision.
The ministry also said it will issue a list of those
excluded mosques within days with the names and the number of “vows boxes”.
Chairman of the Supreme Council of Sufism in Egypt
Abdel Hady El-Kasaby, who is a member of parliament, said last week there are
at least 200 mosques following the Sufi orders in Egypt with revenue generated
from “vows donations” reaching EGP 30 million annually.
Even before the exception given to the Sufi orders’
mosques, there had been bylaws in place that regulated its vows donation boxes.
According to those bylaws, 10% of total annual vows
donations go to the General Sheikhdom of the Sufi orders in Egypt while 90% of
the donations go to the Ministry of Religious endowment.
Why to ban donations boxes in Mosques across Egypt
There are direct economic and security reasons behind
the decision of the Ministry of Religious Endowment to scrap donations boxes.
Mokhtar Gamaa, Minister of Religious Endowment, said
in media statements the new regulation aims to achieve transparency and ensure
the money of donations will eventually go to the mosques’ maintenance and
social services.
Gomaa added that the revenues of donation boxes
reached EGP 6 million only before 2014, but since modern methods in operating
those boxes were applied, their revenues reached more than EGP 30 million
annually right before the coronavirus pandemic.
Security reason
Egypt has been fighting radical Islamist groups that
have for decades used donation boxes in some mosques as a source of finance as
there was no control or supervision on how those donations were used.
The ultra-conservative Salafi groups as well as the
outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, which is designated as a terrorist organization in
Egypt, have used the boxes for financing their activities.
Also, the mosques’ donations boxes had been a target
of theft for a very long time. Organized gangs will replace the original boxes
filled with money with fake empty boxes, particularly in rural areas. Some
Thieves use paper clips to lift small amounts of cash from the boxes.
Source: Ahram Online
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/439598.aspx
--------
Colombia says monitoring Lebanon's Hezbollah over
‘criminal’ acts
15 November ,2021
Colombia said Sunday it is monitoring the activities
there of the pro-Iranian group Hezbollah, accusing it of having conducted
criminal activities.
“Two months ago we had to deal with a situation where
we had to organize an operation to capture and expel two criminals commissioned
by Hezbollah with the intention of committing a criminal act in Colombia,”
Defense Minister Diego Molano said in an interview with the daily El Tiempo.
He provided no details of the government operation.
But the newspaper, citing sources in Colombia's
military intelligence services, said the Lebanese Shia movement was spying on
American and Israeli businessmen in Colombia.
Colombia has a sizable Lebanese community.
Hezbollah has been reported to have a presence in
Venezuela and other Latin American countries.
Molano said there was a “risk with Hezbollah in
Venezuela and what its links to drug traffic or terrorist groups on the
Venezuelan side (of the border) could generate for national security.”
Colombia has accused neighboring Venezuela of
sheltering and supporting guerrillas fighting against Bogota. Relations between
the two are tense, and the common border has been largely closed since 2015.
On November 8, while accompanying President Ivan Duque
on an official visit to Israel, Molano said the two countries had a “common
enemy in Iran and Hezbollah,” which he said not only operated against Israel
but supported the leftist regime in Venezuela.
But on Sunday, Molano said he had spoken “hastily.”
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Iraq to start repatriating citizens in Belarus
Thursday: ministry
November 15, 2021
BAGHDAD: The Iraqi government said it was organizing a
repatriation flight this Thursday for its citizens stuck on the Poland-Belarus
border on a “voluntary” basis.
“Iraq will carry out a first flight for those who wish
to return voluntarily on the 18th” of November from Belarus, Iraqi foreign
ministry spokesman Ahmed Al-Sahaf told Iraqi television overnight Sunday to
Monday.
He did not say how many people would be able to board
the Minsk-Baghdad flight, but said Iraq had recorded 571 of its citizens stuck
on the border who have said they are ready to return “voluntarily.”
Thousands of migrants from the Middle East, including
many from Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region, are camped out on the EU-Belarus
border, creating a stand-off between the EU and US on one side and Belarus and
its ally Russia on the other.
Western countries accuse Belarusian President
Alexander Lukashenko’s government of engineering the crisis by encouraging
migrants to come to Belarus and then taking them to the border.
Regular air links between Baghdad and Minsk have been
suspended since August, while Belarusian diplomatic missions in Baghdad and
Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, have been closed for more than a week.
The measures “have reduced the trips by Iraqis (to
Belarus) but the problem is that some are now taking indirect flights, passing
through Turkey, Qatar, the UAE and Egypt,” Sahaf said.
On Friday, Turkey banned citizens of Syria, Iraq and
Yemen from flying from its airports to Belarus, while private Syrian carrier
Cham Wings Airlines on Saturday halted flights to Minsk.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1968131/middle-east
--------
Europe
Polish Muslim leader helps feed migrants and soldiers
November 15, 2021
BOHONIKI, Poland: Maciej Szczęsnowicz cried when he
saw migrants at the border for the first time, hungry and exhausted from the
ordeal of being stuck while trying to enter from Belarus.
The chairman of the local Muslim community in the
eastern Polish village of Bohoniki, Szczęsnowicz saw people so tired they could
no longer stand, so hungry that they picked mushrooms from the ground to eat
and when given an apple, ate the seeds.
But what hurt him the most was hearing the sounds of
their suffering.
“It’s the sound of the crying and screaming of the
children,” he said. “It’s the worst thing.”
As Poland has seen migrants from the Middle East
crossing from Belarus into an area of forests and swamps, Szczęsnowicz has
gotten to work helping to collect clothing and prepare food for them.
A large number of migrants appeared this week at
Poland’s border, intensifying a political standoff between the European Union
and Belarus. With a buildup of forces on the border, Szczęsnowicz is also
helping to feed soldiers and other service people protecting the country.
The AP visited him on Saturday in a restaurant where
he and other volunteers were preparing a large pot of steaming chicken and
vegetable soup. It was destined for soldiers and other guards on the border,
but he hopes that some also makes its way to the migrants.
While the border zone is off-limits due a state of
emergency in force since early September, his delivery of soup to the border
has given him access others do not have — and a view of the suffering of the
people just across razor wire fences in Belarus.
Thousands of migrants have been trying for months to
slip through Poland’s eastern border from Belarus, hoping to make their way
toward Western Europe.
To Polish and EU politicians, the arrival of the
migrants, most of whom are Muslims from the Middle East, is viewed as a problem
to stop.
But there is a significant number of Poles who simply
see human beings in need of a helping hand and have been seeking ways to help
them. Medics have been going into the woods to provide medical help to those who
manage to slip through. They are often sick or injured. Meanwhile, people
across the country have been donating money to organizations taking food and
other help to the migrants in the forests.
Most of the volunteers are Roman Catholic, as is their
country, but Szczęsnowicz heads the Muslim community in Bohoniki, where a tiny
minority still lives that is descended from a population of Muslim Tatars who
settled in the area 600 years ago.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1967991/world
--------
Hungary will not leave EU, wants to reform it, PM
Orban says
November 14, 2021
BUDAPEST, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Hungary will not leave
the European Union but will resist attempts from Brussels to erode its
sovereignty, Prime Minister Viktor Orban told his Fidesz party on Sunday.
Nationalist Orban, who faces a close parliamentary
election next year for the first time in more than a decade, was re-elected
chairman of Fidesz on Sunday.
"After communist bureaucracy ... we don't want
new dictates this time from Brussels," Orban told cheering party
delegates, adding Hungary would reject western liberalism.
"We will not give up the right to defend our
borders, to stop migrants ... we insist that marriage in Hungary is between a
man and a woman, a father is a man and a mother is a woman ... and they should
leave our children alone."
In power since 2010, 58-year-old Orban has cast
himself as a defender of Hungary's cultural identity against Muslim migration
into Europe and a protector of Christian values against Western liberalism.
That has won him domestic popularity, especially among
core Fidesz voters, but brought criticism from rights groups and LGBT
campaigners.
Orban said the EU must be reformed and Hungary's aim
was to achieve change, not leave the bloc that it joined in 2004.
"We don't want to leave the EU at all, they can't
get rid of us so easily," he said. "We want to keep our sovereignty
and we don't want to find ourselves in a united states of Europe, instead of
integration."
Source: Reuters
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
France denies handing over executed journalist Zam to
Iran: Report
14 November ,2021
France has denied allegations it collaborated with
Iran in the abduction of Iranian journalist Ruhollah Zam, whom Tehran executed
in 2020, BBC Persian reported on Friday, citing a French diplomatic source.
Akbar Khoshkushk, a former Iranian intelligence
officer, claimed last week that France agreed to hand over Paris-based Zam in
exchange for a French spy masquerading as an ISIS member who had been captured
by Iran-backed militants in Syria.
“These allegations are completely baseless,” the BBC
quoted an unnamed French diplomatic source as saying. “France has condemned in
the strongest possible terms the abduction and execution of Ruhollah Zam.”
Iran executed Zam in December 2020 after convicting
him of inciting violence during anti-government protests in late 2017.
From Paris, Zam ran Amadnews, a channel on popular
messaging app Telegram which had over a million followers.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text of
the original story:
--------
UK counter-terrorist police arrest three after deadly
car blast
14 November ,2021
Counter-terrorism officers arrested three people after
a vehicle explosion outside the Women's Hospital in Liverpool, northern England,
left one person dead and another injured on Sunday, police said, adding that
they were leading the investigation.
The police said a male passenger in the car was
declared dead at the scene, while the driver, who was also a man, was injured
and remains in hospital in a stable condition.
British interior minister Priti Patel said in a tweet
she is being kept regularly updated on the incident.
Three men - aged 29, 26, and 21 - were detained in the
Kensington area of the city and arrested under the Terrorism Act, the police
said in a statement.
Police understood that the car involved was a taxi
that pulled up at the hospital shortly before the explosion occurred.
Chief Constable Serena Kennedy said police were called
to reports of a car explosion just before 1100 GMT on Sunday.
“Work is still ongoing to establish what has
happened,” she told media.
Source: Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
Indian Sikhs set Nov 19 as deadline for Kartarpur
Corridor reopening
November 14, 2021
As Pakistan issues visas to 3,000 Sikh pilgrims for
the 552nd birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak, the Sikh community in India has
given a deadline of November 19 to their government for reopening the Kartarpur
Corridor.
“Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has issued
around 3,000 visas to Indian Sikh pilgrims to participate in the 552nd birth
anniversary celebrations of Baba Guru Nanak in Pakistan from November 17 to
November 26, 2021. Thousands of Sikh pilgrims residing in countries other than
India would also be visiting Pakistan to attend the event,” the Pakistan High
Commission in India announced Friday.
During their stay in Pakistan, the Sikh pilgrims would
pay obeisance at different Gurdwaras including Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana
Sahib and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur.
However, the Sikhs in India have formed a Sri
Kartarpur Sahib Corridor Sangarash Committee (SKSCSC) which had announced to
take its movement for the cause on international platforms if the demand was
not met by November 19.
The Indian media quoted SKSCSC member Surinderpal
Singh Talibpur as saying they had formed a 13-member committee to demand the
reopening of the Kartarpur Corridor so that followers could travel to Pakistan
and return on the same day after paying obeisance at Gurdwara Darbar Sahib.
Another member of SKSCSC, Balwinder Singh Pakhoke,
said they had offered prayers at the international border at Dera Baba Nanak
for the reopening of the Kartarpur Corridor at the earliest.
“If the government doesn’t accept our demand, then we
will spread our movement across the state to generate pressure on the
government,” said Pakhoke.
Talibpur claimed that they had received immense
response from the foreign Sikh bodies who had assured them of throwing their
weight behind the SKSCSC’s movement.
“After November 19, we will hold a meeting and also
have virtual discussions with our supporters abroad to chalk out further course
of action,” he said.
On Friday, the Foreign Office spokesperson said that
the Corridor was open from the Pakistan side and India was also expected to
allow the Sikh pilgrims desiring to join the upcoming celebrations.
“We are all set to welcome thousands of devotees from
India and around the world coming to Pakistan for the upcoming birth
anniversary celebrations … for which elaborate arrangements have been put in
place,” he said in his weekly press briefing.
Pakistan also commemorated the second anniversary of
the opening of the Kartarpur Corridor-dubbed the ‘Corridor of Hope’ by the UN
Secretary-General.
Inaugurated by Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2019, the
Corridor is a shining example of Pakistan’s efforts to promote interfaith
harmony and reflected the primacy Pakistan accorded to religious minorities in
the country.
On the second anniversary of the Corridor, Prime
Minister Imran Khan had tweeted: “Today is the second anniversary of the
Kartarpur Corridor – a corridor of interfaith harmony that allows India’s Sikh
community special access to one of their holiest sites.”
He said Kartarpur Corridor reflected his government’s
commitment to minority rights and interfaith harmony.
Source: Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
20 Indian fishermen released from Pakistani jail to
return via Attari-Wagah border
Nov 14, 2021
KARACHI: At least 20 Indian fishermen have been
released from a jail in Karachi on the completion of their sentences and would
be repatriated via the Attari-Wagah border, reported local media.
Many of the fishermen who were released from Landhi
District Jail, Malir, Karachi were arrested about four years ago and sentenced
to imprisonment, reported Samaa TV.
They were released after the orders of the same were issued
by the Sindh Home Department.
The authorities in India have confirmed the
citizenship of the fishermen, reported the newspaper citing the jail
superintendent.
The Indian fishermen are scheduled to leave for Lahore
and thereafter will be taken to the Wagah border where they would be handed
over to the Indian authorities.
Officials at Landhi Jail said that 588 Indian
prisoners are still locked in the prison most of whom are fishermen.
India and Pakistan arrest each other's fishermen over
the allegations of violation of maritime frontiers, reported the newspaper.
Meanwhile, India summoned a senior diplomat from the
Pakistan High Commission on November 8 and lodged a strong protest on the
incident of unprovoked firing at Indian fishermen by the Pakistan side, sources
said.
They said that the senior diplomat from Pakistan High
Commission was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs.
Source: Times of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Opposition asks speaker to form new panel on poll
reforms
Amir Wasim
November 15, 2021
ISLAMABAD: The joint opposition in parliament has
asked National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser to constitute a new parliamentary
committee to take up electoral reforms as a whole in the form of a “complete
package”.
The demand was made by Leader of the Opposition in the
National Assembly and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz
Sharif through a letter which he had written to the speaker on behalf of all
the opposition parties in parliament after a meeting of the steering committee
of the joint opposition on Sunday.
The meeting of the newly formed steering committee had
been convened to review the letter written by the speaker on Nov 11 inviting
the opposition parties for talks on the pending legislation, including bills
regarding the use of electronic voting machine (EVM) and I-voting for overseas
Pakistanis.
In his letter, the speaker had suggested to the
opposition to activate the Parliamentary Committee on Legislative Business
which he had formed to consider 21 bills that had been bulldozed by the
government in the National Assembly on June 10 in the absence of the opposition
members.
However, the opposition parties rejected the speaker’s
proposal, saying the committee had been formed “without following the required
legislative procedure” and despite holding three meetings, it could not even
finalise its terms of reference for its procedural jurisdiction due to lack of
support by the government members.
“During this period, all the bills which were to be
considered by this committee either lapsed or were rejected by the Senate and
were referred to the joint sitting of parliament, thus completely negating the
purpose for which the Parliamentary Committee on Legislative Business was
formed,” writes Mr Sharif in the letter, a copy of which was released to the
media by the PML-N’s media office.
The speaker had constituted the committee on
legislative business following the threat by the opposition members to boycott
the budget session of the assembly after the treasury and opposition members
disrupted the proceedings of the lower house of parliament when the former did
not allow Shehbaz Sharif to deliver his opening speech for three days.
“The opposition believes that issues of national
interest, especially legislation with wide-ranging long-term impact on the
people of Pakistan, should be resolved through consensus-oriented
consultation,” writes Mr Sharif.
The opposition leader proposed to the speaker that a
parliamentary committee composed of the members from both the houses of
parliament should be formed to consider and approve with consensus a complete
package of electoral reforms that should also include the election bills which
were passed by the National Assembly but could not sail through the Senate
within the constitutionally stipulated 90 days.
Mr Sharif suggested that the composition of the
parliamentary committee should be on the basis of a similar committee formed by
the then speaker, Ayaz Sadiq, in July 2014 to consider and approve the
electoral reforms package. He informed the speaker that the said committee had
held 117 meetings and unanimously passed an electoral reforms legislative
package on November 10, 2017. The previous committee on electoral reforms was
headed by then finance minister Ishaq Dar.
The joint opposition has, however, suggested that the
Parliamentary Committee on Legislative Business could be allowed to function
and it should consider the other bills passed by the National Assembly but not
adopted by the Senate and had been referred to the joint sitting of parliament.
The opposition maintained that this process would be
in consonance with parliamentary practice and precedence to achieve the
required consensus on issues of national importance.
Meanwhile, PPP secretary general Nayyar Bokhari in a
statement claimed that the option of bringing a no-confidence motion against
the prime minister, the speaker or the Senate chairman was under consideration
of the joint opposition. He said the joint opposition after consultation would
decide the strategy as to how the present “unconstitutional government” could
be sent packing and from where they should take a start for it.
Earlier, Speaker Asad Qaiser in his letter to the
opposition leader had stated that both the government and opposition should
proceed ahead with a view to building consensus beyond party politics on all
reforms of common interest in the larger national interest. He had asked the opposition
leader to play his role in reviving the consultation process on the
“controversial bills” through the Parliamentary Committee on Legislative
Business. He was of the view that the consultation process had not been
completed by the committee.
The speaker had written the letter to Mr Sharif on the
demand of the joint opposition which had asked him to give them in writing the
terms of engagements with them that should include a categorical statement that
it was the government which was approaching them for a dialogue and an
assurance that the recently promulgated controversial ordinances would also be
discussed in the parliamentary committee.
The decision that the opposition would seek everything
in writing from the speaker had been taken by the members of the steering
committee of the joint opposition at a meeting on November 11.
The opposition parties had formed the steering
committee on November 10 to devise a joint strategy inside parliament after the
government put off the joint session of parliament within 24 hours of its
summoning after struggling to ensure the presence of required number of members
and due to reservations shown by its allies over the proposed electoral reforms
bills regarding the use of EVM and introduction of I-voting for overseas Pakistanis.
Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry had claimed
that the joint session had been put off because the government wanted to once
again engage the opposition on electoral reforms which was an issue linked to
the country’s future. He had also declared that the government would not take
back steps on poll reforms, even if they did not reach a consensus on it.
On the other hand, the opposition claimed that the
joint session was cancelled by the government after becoming politically
isolated and it did not have the numbers anymore to bulldoze their bills as
their own people and allies had stepped back.
Meanwhile, Fawad Chaudhry through his official social
media account on Twitter on Sunday said the issue of electoral reforms was not
the agenda of Imran Khan or Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), it was a national
agenda.
The minister said all political parties should move
forward for creation of consensus on electoral reforms. He said it would be a
great achievement of the political system if an electoral system was
established under which all the political leadership could trust the elections
results.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1658162/opposition-asks-speaker-to-form-new-panel-on-poll-reforms
--------
Opposition rejects Senate’s decision of including
Fawad, Swati in ECP panel
November 14, 2021
The joint opposition has refused to accept the changes
in the panel on the appointment of the members of the Election Commission of
Pakistan (ECP) after the Senate chairman included federal ministers Fawad
Chaudhry and Azam Swati in the committee.
The Opposition took the decision on Sunday, during a
virtual meeting of the opposition steering committee that was held to mull over
the National Assembly speaker’s letter to the opposition seeking cooperation on
important legislation.
The meeting had Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)
leaders Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Ayaz Sadiq, Sadiq Rafiq, Marriyum Aurangzeb;
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leaders Yousaf Raza Gillani, Shazia Marri, Sherry
Rehman; and Kamran Murtaza and Shahida Akhtar Ali of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam
(JUI) in attendance.
About the changes in the ECP panel, the opposition
members said during the meeting that the government included two members –
Fawad and Swati – who have in the past threatened the ECP chief. One of the
members talked about setting the ECP on fire, they said, adding that now these
people were being asked to decide on the appointment of the ECP members.
The opposition also expressed reservations over the
government’s decision to remove Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) from the committee. The steering committee
will also liaise with the PML-Q and MQM-P on the ECP issue.
It may be noted that Senator Kamil Ali Agha of the
PML-Q had been replaced by Azam Nazir Tarar of the PML-N, while Senator Taj
Haider of the PPP had replaced Khalida Ateeb of the MQM.
During the meeting, it was decided that the opposition
will support the government on important legislation, but it will not help it
tailor laws to facilitate individuals. The legislation should be in accordance
with the constitution and the law, they concurred.
Source: Pakistan Today
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Southeast Asia
Call
It Dollah or Wahhab, PAS Minister Says Party Still Opposes Timah Whisky despite
Cabinet’s Nod
15
Nov 2021
BY
R. LOHESWAR
KUALA
LUMPUR, Nov 15 — Islamist party PAS has said that it remains opposed to the
local whisky brand called “Timah”, even as the Cabinet approved the name over
the weekend.
Religious
Affairs Minister Idris Ahmad was quoted saying nobody in the party agrees to
the decision and the consumption of alcohol no matter what name is used for the
brand.
“As
far as this alcohol issue is concerned whether it be Timah, Dollah or Wahab PAS
do not agree with it,” the PAS vice-president was quoted saying by Malay daily
Sinar Harian.
Dollah
and Wahab are Malay male names. No alcoholic drinks have been given those
names.
“No
one from the party supports the whisky brand Timah,” he reportedly added.
Last
Saturday, the Cabinet allowed the whisky brand Timah to keep its name.
Transport
Minister Wee Ka Siong along with Domestic Trade and Cooperatives Minister
Alexander Nanta Linggi said the manufacturer will be required to include an
additional label on the whisky bottle to explain its name refers to the Malay
word for “tin”.
Last
month, Idris had called for Timah whisky to immediately change its brand name
and the picture used on the bottle.
Idris
said such things should not happen as they are provocative while the use of the
name could cause confusion to the community and religion.
Source:
Malay Mail
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
'Second
chance': Family of Indian-origin man on death row in Singapore pleads
Nov
15, 2021
The
sister of a Malaysian man facing imminent execution despite concerns he is
mentally disabled has pleaded with Singapore to give him a "second
chance".
Nagaenthran
K. Dharmalingam, sentenced to death in 2010 for trafficking a small amount of
heroin into Singapore, was originally set to be hanged last week after losing a
series of appeals.
The
execution in the city-state, which has some of the world's toughest drugs laws,
was postponed after the 33-year-old contracted the coronavirus, but campaigners
fear the delay will be short.
His
family are not giving up, however, with his sister Sarmila Dharmalingam urging
the city-state to "give him a second chance".
"We
hope the Singapore government will spare his life," the 35-year-old told
AFP in an interview Sunday from the family home in Tanjung Rambutan, in the
northern Malaysian state of Perak.
"He
is suffering from an intellectual disability."
Nagaenthran's
case has sparked a storm of criticism, with the European Union and United Nations
rights experts speaking out against it, and a clemency petition getting around
85,000 signatures.
A
last-ditch court challenge is being mounted and while chances of success look
slim, Sarmila and her family are holding out hope.
"All
our family members are holding prayers for his life to be spared," said
the housewife, who is ethnic Indian and a member of the Hindu minority in
mostly Muslim Malaysia.
"I
believe in miracles... With God's grace, a miracle will happen."
Last-ditch
challenge
Nagaenthran
was arrested aged 21 as he tried to enter Singapore from neighbouring Malaysia
with a bundle of heroin weighing about 43 grams -- equivalent to about three
tablespoons -- strapped to his thigh.
Campaigners
say he has an IQ of just 69, a level recognised as an intellectual disability,
was coerced into transporting the drugs, and was struggling with an alcohol
problem at the time.
But
Singapore, which insists the death penalty is an effective deterrent against
crime, has shown little sign of heeding calls for clemency.
The
home affairs ministry said earlier this month that psychiatrists had stated
during previous court proceedings that Nagaenthran was not intellectually
disabled.
Legal
rulings also concluded that he "clearly understood the nature of his
acts", which were aimed at paying off debts, it said in a statement.
A
written appeal from Malaysia's Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob was also
brushed off, with his Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong responding that
Nagaenthran had been given "full due process under the law".
'He
wants to come home'
Sarmila
-- one of Nagaenthran's three siblings -- recalled the shock when her family
received a letter from Singapore authorities on October 26 informing them her
brother would be hanged on November 10.
Preparations
for the Hindu festival of Diwali were halted so the family could figure out how
his mother, who works as a cleaner, and other relatives could travel to
Singapore to see him before the execution.
Naganethran's
eldest sister, Sarmila struggles to accept her brother is a convicted drug
smuggler and still has fond memories of playing childhood games with him.
He
was a "lovable person. He was very caring", she said.
During
more than a decade behind bars, Nagaenthran developed a passion for arts and
crafts, making cards for his family back home to mark occasions such as
Mother's Day.
His
sister believes he was coerced into drug smuggling, as he was "timid and
easily influenced by others".
Rights
groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, say the planned
execution would breach international laws against capital punishment for people
with mental disabilities.
Source:
Hindustan Times
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Sabah
allows funeral rites at non-Muslim houses of worship from tomorrow, says state
minister
08
Nov 2021
KOTA
KINABALU, Nov 8 — Funerals and last rites at non-Muslim houses of worship and
funeral parlours will be allowed in the state, with a capacity of 50 per cent,
starting tomorrow, said Sabah Local Government and Housing Minister, Datuk
Masidi Manjun.
He
said that the period of operation allowed was from 6am to 8pm daily, and it
must not exceed two hours per session, in adherence to regulations under Phase
Four of the National Recovery Plan (PPN).
“However,
the permission is only for fully-vaccinated individuals.
“According
to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) set, individuals or families who
have yet to be fully vaccinated are strictly prohibited from entering houses of
worship, except for children aged 12 and below whose parents have been fully
vaccinated,” he said in a statement here tonight.
Commenting
on the development of daily Covid-19 cases in Sabah, Masidi said the number of
cases for Sabah continued the declining trend, at 364 cases today compared with
405 reported yesterday.
Source:
Malay Mail
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Mideast
Israel
denies espionage charge against couple arrested in Turkey
14
November ,2021
Israel
is working for the release of an Israeli couple being held in Turkey, denying
allegations carried by Turkish state media that the two were spies, the Israeli
prime minister said.
Prime
Minister Naftali Bennett said in a statement that he had spoken the family of
the two Israelis, Natali and Mody Oknin, and updated them on the efforts being
made to bring them back to Israel.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
couple, Bennett said, “as has already been emphasized by officials, do not work
for any Israeli agency.”
“The
most senior echelons in Israel dealt with this issue throughout the weekend,
led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and will continue to work tirelessly
with the aim of finding a solution as soon as possible,” he said.
A
Turkish court arrested the Israeli couple on Friday on charges of espionage for
taking photographs of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s residence from the
Camlica Tower, a telecommunications tower in Istanbul with observation decks,
Turkey’s state-run Anadolu agency reported.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Coalition
strikes Houthis in support of Yemeni forces on west coast
November
15, 2021
DUBAI:
Saudi coalition forces launched airstrikes Sunday, killing more than 80 Houthi
militia and destroying 19 vehicles in Sirwah, Al-Bayda and Al-Jawf in Yemen, TV
news channel Al-Arabiya reported.
The
strikes came in support of Yemeni forces on the west coast, sources said,
adding that the coalition air forces also thwarted a Houthi attack on Al-Balaq,
west of Marib.
Source:
Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1968071/middle-east
--------
Iranian
Lawmakers Hail Army’s Massive ‘Zolfaqar 1400’ Drills
2021-November-14
The
massive Zulfiqar 1400 wargames were held in November for 3 days in the
Southeastern regions of the country by the Army with strategic goals and
creation of deterrence power through expansion of the depth of influence and
detection and destruction of distant goals of enemies, resistance of Army
equipment against enemy radars electronic warfare and development of
multi-dimensional defense, as well as operational purposes of increasing combat
power and defense of the country’s territorial integrity, strengthening the
presence in international waters and strategic areas, monitoring energy lines,
upgrading military readiness to stand against the enemies’ excessive demands
and, if necessary, reciprocal measures to establish sustainable security for
the shipping lines, supporting maritime transport and the sea-based economy,
improving the readiness and efficiency of bases and secondary and mobile
command and control centers, transferring know-how and experience of the young
generation, utilizing existing capabilities in area of drone missions,
evaluating speed of operation and agility of power combination and the strength
of the four units of the Army in supporting each other in the presence of
mobile attacking brigades and armored and artillery units, different types of
reconnaissance planes, fighters and transport aircraft, different types of
surface and submarine vessels, different types of reconnaissance and combat
drones in different ranges and different types of surface-to-surface,
land-to-air and coast-to-sea missile systems, electronic warfare systems, the
statement said.
It
added that during the drills, 132 exercises were planned and performed by the
Army's four units in the form of joint, coordinated and simultaneous operations.
The
Iranian MPs lauded and appreciated the tireless efforts of the commanders,
officers, soldiers and personnel of the Army forces, specially Army Commander
Major General Seyed Abdolrahim Mousavi.
The
Iranian Army in a ceremony last Tuesday wrapped up the joint military drills,
dubbed Zolfaqar 1400, in Makran region in the Southern parts of the country
after achieving all planned objectives.
The
Army had started the main phase of the Zolfaqar 1400 joint drills last Sunday
with the Air Force's F-4 bombers destroying ground targets with optimized
missiles.
The
Iranian Army Air Force's F-4 bombers carried out long-range flights from their
bases to the general zone of the exercises and conducted air refueling
operations from the tanker aircraft, destroying ground targets of the
hypothetical enemy with optimized missiles, including a new generation of
optimized air-to-surface missiles in the general zone of the wargames.
The
main phase of the joint drills began with participation of the infantry,
armored and mechanized units of the Army Ground Forces, Air Defense Forces'
defense systems, and naval surface vessels with the support of Army Air Force's
fighters and drones in the general zone of Makran Coast.
The
home-made cruise missiles of the Iranian Army destroyed several surface targets
and vessels during the second day of Zolfaqar 1400 drills on Monday.
"In
this stage of the exercises, the Iranian cruise missile, Qader, was fired from
the Army Navy's tactical platform of coast-to-sea missiles in Makran coasts and
hit a vessel 200km away," Spokesman of the drills Rear Admiral Seyed
Mahmoud Mousavi said.
Also,
destruction of a surface target by indigenized Nasr cruise missile fired from
the Navy's missile launcher was another exercise conducted in this stage of the
wargames, he added.
Meantime,
the Iran-made long-range Qadir cruise missile destroyed a surface target 300km
away from a missile-launcher warship.
"Unique
capabilities, including effective warheads with high explosive power as well as
ability to withstand the enemy's electronic warfare, are among the features of
the Navy's cruise missiles, which proved to be effective in these
exercises," Rear Admiral Mousavi said.
Meantime,
the Iranian Army's Air Defense Force discovered two US drones flying in FIR and
ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone) areas of the country during the Zolfaqar
1400 drills, and forced them to leave the region.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
MP
Underlines Jewish Community’s Support for Iranian Athletes Abstaining
Competition against Israeli Opponents
2021-November-14
“Today,
abstention from rivalry against Zionist athletes is not limited to Iranian
athletes, and athletes from other countries are not either willing to face the
sports representatives of the child-killing regime,” Sameh Yah told FNA on
Sunday.
“The
Iranian Jewish Society approves the measure by Iranian athletes who withdraw from
competitions against the athletes of the Zionist regime and supports this
worthy and favorable behavior,” he added.
Sameh
Yah also stressed the necessity for the government to increase legal and
diplomatic support for the Iranian athletes who refuse to compete against the
Zionists as emphasized by Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah
Seyed Ali Khamenei.
In
September, Ayatollah Khamenei had called on the Iranian foreign and sports
ministries as well as the judiciary to support the athletes, even foreign ones,
who refrain from recognizing the Zionist regime of Israel.
Ayatollah
Khamenei made the remarks, addressing the medal winners from among the Islamic
Republic of Iran's participants at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Ayatollah
Khamenei described non-recognition of the criminal Zionist regime in sports
fields as a very important issue, saying, "The illegitimate Zionist regime
is trying to gain legitimacy by participating in international sports arenas,
and the world arrogance is also helping it in this regard, but respected sports
officials and athletes should not be passive in this area at all."
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Iran,
Kyrgyzstan Vow to Broaden Economic Cooperation
2021-November-14
During
the meeting in the Iranian capital, Khandouzi and Amangeldiev explored avenues
for bolstering and reinvigorating mutual cooperation in different fields.
During
the meeting, the Iranian economy minister pointed to the foreign policy of
Iran's current administration under President Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi and said
that Iran's policy is prioritizing developing relations with the neighboring
states.
Khandouzi
also emphasized the need for creating necessary facilities for the promotion
and improvement of the activity of traders and economic activists of the two
countries.
Amangeldiev,
for his turn, pointed to the necessity of development of trade and economic
ties between Iran and Kyrgyzstan, and stressed the unique and unparalleled
capacities of Iran in the field of transport of goods, specially via Bandar
Abbas to the Caspian Sea, and the desire of Central Asian states for
strengthening North-South Corridor.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14000823000597/Iran-Kyrgyzsan-Vw-Braden-Ecnmic-Cperain
--------
Africa
Hundreds
in Israel protest for rescue of Ethiopia Jews
14
November ,2021
Hundreds
staged a protest in Jerusalem on Sunday to demand the Israeli government rescue
Ethiopian Jews from the conflict-stricken country.
“Aliyah
(immigration) now!” and “Rescue them!”, the demonstrators chanted outside Prime
Minister Naftali Bennett's office, carrying pictures of family members.
A
year of fighting in Ethiopia between Tigray rebels and government forces has
left hundreds of thousands in famine-like conditions.
Among
the demonstrators was Ethiopian-born Integration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata, a
member of Bennett's diverse coalition government.
“I
vow not to abandon this battle to bring our families to Israel,” she said.
According
to a support committee, the interior and immigration ministries have agreed to
assist in reuniting 5,000 Ethiopians with family members living in Israel.
But
ministry officials, contacted by AFP, said no such decision has been taken.
Israel's
Ethiopian Jewish community, known as Falashas, number more than 140,000. They
often complain of discrimination and lack of government support.
In
late 2020, the Israeli government authorized 2,000 Falashas with families in
the Jewish state to immigrate.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
Libya's
Presidency Council calls for ‘simultaneous’ elections
Mohammad
Erteima
14.11.2021
TRIPOLI,
Libya – Libya's Presidency Council on Sunday called for holding the parliamentary
and presidential elections simultaneously.
In
a statement, the council called for taking all measures to ensure a
"comprehensive elections process" with a view to building confidence
among the parties and ensuring "transparency and fairness of the
polls."
The
statement also underlined the importance of international efforts to secure and
monitor the electoral process.
The
council’s call comes amid differences and disagreements on electoral laws
between the parliament, the High Council of State and the unity government.
On
Friday, participants in an international conference in Paris on Libya
threatened sanctions against parties seeking to obstruct or undermine political
transition in Libya.
Libya’s
transitional Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh said at a news conference that
participants in the conference agreed to sanction those who refuse to accept
results of the elections.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/libyas-presidency-council-calls-for-simultaneous-elections/2420652
--------
Tunisian
protesters try to break through security barriers near parliament
14
November ,2021
Tunisian
police clashed with protesters, attempting to break through security barriers
near the chamber of the suspended parliament on Sunday as demonstrators marched
against President Kais Saied’s seizure of political power four months ago.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Hundreds
of police had blocked off the area where thousands of protesters were gathering
to demand that Saied restore parliament and normal democratic rule.
Increasingly
vocal opposition, along with a looming crisis in public finances, may pose a
new test of how Saied and the new government he has appointed will tackle
threats to their authority.
“Shut
down Kais Saied” and “Freedom! Freedom! End the police state!” protesters
chanted as they pulled down barriers obstructing the roads leading to the
parliament building at the capital’s Bardo palace, leading to clashes.
“We
are under one-man rule since July 25... we will stay here until they open the
roads and end the siege,” said Jawher Ben Mbarek, a protest leader.
Saied
seized nearly all powers in July, suspending the parliament and dismissing the
government in a move his critics called a coup, before installing a new prime
minister and announcing he could rule by decree.
The
president said his actions were needed to end governmental paralysis after
years of political squabbling and economic stagnation, and has promised to
uphold rights and freedoms won in the 2011 revolution that brought democracy.
His
moves appeared to have widespread popularity and thousands of his supporters
gathered for a rally to back him last month.
However,
several prominent politicians have been arrested and hundreds have faced travel
bans, while a former president living outside Tunisia, Moncef Marzouki, faces
prosecution for his verbal attacks on Saied.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
--------
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/religious-scholars-kabul-un-afghanistan/d/125775
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism