'Jihadi’ Attack Lie Exposed, Woman Entrepreneur, Thushara Ajith Kallayil, Booked For Spreading Communal Hatred
New
Age Islam News Bureau
02
November 2021
The
police also arrested two of her accomplices on Sunday — Abin Bensus Antony, 22
and Vishnu Shivadas, 26.
-----
• Islamic
Emirate of Afghanistan Pledge to Support Freedom of Expression Based On Islamic
Values
• US
Congressman Expresses Concern over Hindu-Muslim Violence in Tripura and
Bangladesh
• Tehreek-i-Labbaik
Pakistan Didn't Demand French Envoy's Expulsion, Closure of Embassy: Mufti
Muneeb
• Egypt's
Supreme Administrative Court Bans Use of Mosques for Political Purposes
India
• Muslim
Community Is ‘Not Adamant’ Members Are ‘Ready To Accommodate and Change for
Peace and Harmony’, Say Gurgaon Muslim Groups
• ‘Jihadi’
Attack Lie Exposed, Woman Entrepreneur, Thushara Ajith Kallayil, Booked For
Spreading Communal Hatred
• Kerala
Bishop, Mar Joseph Kallarangatt Booked For Love and Narcotic Jihad Remark Promoting
Feelings of Religious Hatred
• Will
Donate Rs 5,100 for Puja At Namaz Site: Muslim Ekta Manch Chairman
• FIR
against J&K BJP leader over hate speech against Muslims
--------
South Asia
• ISIS-K
Unable To Recruit People in Afghanistan: Taliban Reacted To Wall Street Journal
Report
• Open
to receiving Indian diplomats, humanitarian aid: Taliban
• Bangladesh
violence shows body counts go on increasing, but scenarios stay the same
• Amrullah
Saleh asks Ashraf Ghani to release tapes with Khalilzad, foreign diplomats
• Blast,
gunfire heard in Afghan capital Kabul
--------
North America
• US
blasts Iran-backed Houthis after latest missile strike kills civilians
• Biden
suggests US desperately trying to ‘encourage’ Iran to resume negotiations
• US
hostility toward Iran since Islamic Revolution remains hard-wired: Analyst
--------
Pakistan
• PPP
Leaders Term Govt-TLP Agreement ‘Surrender By The State’
• PM
wants PTI leaders to back Azam Swati, Fawad Chaudhry in row with ECP
• Another
policeman injured in TLP attack dies
• Government
‘mulls’ release of Saad Rizvi
--------
Arab World
• Daesh
Terrorists Arrested In Iraq's Anbar, Nineveh, As Army Pledges To ‘Shake the
Earth’ Under Their Feet
• Saudi
Arabia Executes Young Shia Man Accused of Alleged Terror Activities
• First
Of 200 Imams from Indonesia Arrive To Serve In UAE Mosques
• Lebanon’s
PM looks to resolve Gulf crisis in meetings with Qatar’s Emir, Kuwait’s PM
• Iraqi
man sentenced to death for murder of two journalists
• US
senators urge Biden to hit Lebanon’s politicians, Hezbollah with more sanctions
• Saudi
Arabia hands down long prison sentence to Yemeni journalist
--------
Mideast
• Israel
Demolishes Muslim Cemetery near Al Aqsa Mosque to Build Park
• Israelis
storm Al-Aqsa Mosque compound as military detain Palestinians in Bethlehem
• Iran:
Israel's Impudence Result of Human Rights Advocates' Silence
• Iran:
Senator Cruz Admits "Rogue" Nature of US Regimes
• Israel
to seize more land in al-Quds’ Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood despite intl. outcry
against evictions
• Supreme
council for Hamas captives holds Israel responsible for lives of hunger
strikers
• Many
killed and wounded in Houthi missile strike on religious school in Marib
• Israeli
forces detain Palestinian university professor in overnight raids in West Bank
• Palestinians
rights group says Israel implements apartheid regime of discriminatory laws,
policies
--------
Southeast Asia
• Timah
Whisky Issue Shows Need To Respect Each Other, Says Amanah MP
• No
ban yet on ‘sensitive’ brand names, says minister
• Named
in Pandora Papers, deputy finance minister says company linked to him now
dormant
--------
Africa
• International
Mediation Underway To End Sudan Crisis: UN Envoy
• Sudan
leaders' whereabouts unknown after coup: Lawyer
• 10
civilians killed in armed attack in northern Burkina Faso
• Suspected
militants kill around 10 civilians in Burkina Faso
• Ethiopia
tried to limit rare UN report on Tigray war abuses
--------
Europe
• Bulgaria
sends soldiers to tackle migrant influx from Turkey
• Germany
had turned blind eye to neo-Nazi terror: Interior minister
• UK
to sell naval ships to Egypt for first time in 30 years
• France
shuts down Allonnes mosque, plans to close 7 more: Darmanin
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
--------
‘Jihadi’
Attack Lie Exposed, Woman Entrepreneur, Thushara Ajith Kallayil, Booked For
Spreading Communal Hatred
The
police also arrested two of her accomplices on Sunday — Abin Bensus Antony, 22
and Vishnu Shivadas, 26.
-----
K.M.
Rakesh
02.11.21
A
woman entrepreneur who alleged “jihadis” had attacked her because she planned
to open a non-halal restaurant has been booked for spreading communal hatred
with false accusations, Kerala police have said.
Thushara
Ajith Kallayil, 40, and her husband Ajith Kumar also face attempt-to-murder
charges over a brawl with two men one of whom needed surgery for serious
injuries, officers said.
It’s
this October 24 brawl with two non-Muslims — possibly over personal motives,
the police said — that Thushara allegedly portrayed on social media as a jihadi
attack.
The
couple are in hiding but the police on Sunday arrested two alleged accomplices
— Abin Bensus Antony, 22, and Vishnu Shivadas, 26 — saying they had
participated in the brawl.
The
two young men are believed to be employees of another no-halal restaurant that
Thushara runs in her hometown of Ernakulam.
Thushara
had become the toast of pro-Rightwing media outlets and Sangh parivar leaders
in January by opening Kerala’s first no-halal restaurant.
Her
complaint of a jihadi attack received a lot of traction in the local and
national media, with Kerala BJP president K. Surendran among those who
expressed outrage.
“Strongly
condemn the attacks against Smt. Thushara Ajith. A group of Muslim fanatics
brutally attacked the woman entrepreneur due to non-compliance of Halal in her
hotel. What happened in Kakkanad is nothing less than Talibanism. I urge the
people of Kerala to reject #HalalInvasion,” Surendran tweeted on October 25.
A
barrage of social media posts followed from pro-parivar netizens. But Rightwing
activist Rahul Easwar, a regular on TV debates, apologised after the police
statement.
“Apologies
for the earlier tweet. I am sorry that I fell for the wrong information which
many of our friends also unknowingly fell for in national media. Hope we all
correct. Will take more care in the future. Facts are Gods,” Easwar tweeted on
Friday.
Thushara
had rented space in a commercial building in Ernakulam city’s tech district of
Kakkanad, planning to open her second no-halal restaurant. But she could not
because the building was a subject of litigation between several promoters.
The
police say that on October 24 night, the couple and the two alleged accomplices
vandalised the chaat counter of the Dine Restaurant, located near Thushara’s
proposed no-halal eatery. Officers said the act had been captured on CCTV.
When
the owners of Dine Restaurant, Nakul S. Babu and Binoj George, confronted the
four, a fight broke out.
Source:
Telegraph India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Muslim
Community Is ‘Not Adamant’, Members Are ‘Ready To Accommodate and Change for
Peace and Harmony’, Say Gurgaon Muslim Groups
Nov
2, 2021
Gurgaon:
Facing protests for weeks over Namaz being offered in public places, members of
the Muslim community on Monday submitted a memorandum to chief minister Manohar
Lal Khattar, saying they were ready to stop Friday prayers in open areas that
are part of government land.
Joined
by members of the Haryana Waqf Board, they also sought removal of encroachments
from mosques and Waqf properties to make space for the prayer congregations for
the sake of peace and harmony. The memorandum was sent through the Gurgaon
deputy commissioner.
The
city currently has 37 designated Namaz sites that were earmarked after protests
erupted in 2018 over Friday prayers in open spaces. The past few weeks have
seen similar protests, with two memorandums being submitted by various local
outfits seeking a ban. One of the organisations, Sanyukt Hindu Sangarsh Samiti,
had declared on Sunday it would perform Govardhan Puja at the designated Sector
12 namaz site next Friday.
Haryana
Waqf Board member Khurshid Rajaka, who is also chairman of Muslim Rashtriya
Manch, said prayers cannot be conducted regularly under police protection.
“Prayers that are held against the wishes of the people are not in tune with
Islam and national unity,” he said. Rajaka added that the issue was being used
“to pitch one community against the other”. He said the Muslim community is
“not adamant” and its members are “ready to accommodate and change for peace
and harmony”.
The
Waqf Board has 19 land parcels in Gurgaon, out of which six are vacant and the
rest encroached. Rajaka said they have submitted the list of the sites to the
administration, requesting it to free the land so they can be used for Namaz.
“We have requested mosques to conduct multiple rounds of prayers on Friday to
accommodate as many people as possible,” he added.
Some
private individuals have also volunteered their land for Namaz, Rajaka said. In
the memorandum, the community has also demanded land in new sectors for
construction of mosques, he added.
Shahzad
Khan of Muslim Ekta Manch said the issue has led to tension being created in
the city every now and then. “We want to stop this tension forever, even if it
means giving up some of the (Namaz) sites,” said Khan. He added that the
community is ready to offer Namaz only at places identified by the authorities
in consultation with all stakeholders.
Deputy
commissioner Yash Garg said a high-powered committee comprising officials from
the administration, police and members of both the communities has been formed
to resolve the issue. “It will discuss at length the sites, objections from the
groups and possible solutions. Our priority is to maintain law and order and
ensure peace and harmony,” he added.
Source:
Times of India
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Islamic
Emirate of Afghanistan Pledge to Support Freedom of Expression Based On Islamic
Values
2
November 2021
(Representation Photo)
----
Taliban
on Monday pledged to support the freedom of expression under the Islamic
regulations, local media reported citing officials.
Talking
at a ceremony held to increase coordination between the media and related
institutions, the spokesman for the Interior Minister Sayed Khosti said that
the Islamic Emirate would not allow anyone to silence the freedom of
expression, Tolo News reported.
"The
Islamic Emirate supports the freedom of expression based on Islamic values and
the country's interest, and is committed to not allow anyone to make obstacles
for the media," he added.
According
to the publication, the journalists and media watchdogs called on the officials
of the Islamic Emirate to form a clear scheme for freedom of speech and media
policy.
"An
amendment should be formed for the media. So, based on the scheme of the Islamic
Emirate the media should run their activities," said Abdul Moyed Hashimi,
head of Afghanistan's journalists safety committee.
Meanwhile,
Police radio, which had halted operations for nearly three months, resumed
broadcasting on Monday, Tolo News reported.
However,
due to the shutdown of many media organizations which made dozens of media
workers jobless, some Afghan journalists have been forced to take hazardous
jobs.
Mustafa
Jafari, a cameraman, who has worked in Afghan media for around eight years, is currently
working as a vendor.
"I
was jobless for four months. I felt that I was going to have mental problems
because I was home night and days," Tolo News quoted Jafari as saying.
Earlier
a journalist union said that more than 30 acts of violence towards journalists
have been recorded in Afghanistan since the Taliban came to power.
"Afghanistan's
National Journalists' Union conducted a general assessment over the
journalists' status for Afghanistan across the country and it shows that over
30 cases of violence against journalists happened," Masroor Lufti, the
head of the union, said.
Source:
Catch News
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
US
Congressman Expresses Concern over Hindu-Muslim Violence in Tripura And
Bangladesh
02
Nov 2021
A
paramilitary soldier patrols past a shop that was set on fire in Rowa village,
about 220 kilometers from Agartala, in the northeastern Indian state of
Tripura, Wednesday, October 27, 2021. |
Photo Credit: AP
-----
US
Congressman Andy Levin has expressed concern over the communal clashes in
Bangladesh and Indian state Tripura.
"I'm
deeply concerned by news of continued violence between Hindus and Muslims in
the Tripura state of India and in Bangladesh,” Congressman Andy Levin said in a
tweet.
Hindu
temples and homes were targeted in mob attacks in Bangladesh in mid-October
during the Durga puja festivities over an alleged blasphemous post on social
media.
Hindu
outfits in neighbouring Tripura called for protests demanding justice for
minority members in Bangladesh, leading to sporadic clashes in the state.
Congressman further alleged the role of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the
complacency of Tripura State Police,
“Provocative
and brutal incitement by state and non-state actors against religious
minorities must be condemned in the strongest terms,” Levin said as he
re-tweeted a story from The Washington Post in this regard.
Source:
Outlook India
--------
Tehreek-i-Labbaik
Pakistan Didn't Demand French Envoy's Expulsion, Closure of Embassy: Mufti
Muneeb
In
this file photo, Mufti Muneebur Rehman addresses a press conference. —
DawnNewsTV
----
Dawn.com
November
1, 2021
Mufti
Muneebur Rehman dispelled on Monday the impression that the proscribed
Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) had demanded the expulsion of the French
ambassador and the closure of the embassy.
"Lies
were spoken on television about the talks [with the TLP], that they had
demanded the expulsion of the French ambassador, the closure of the embassy and
to break ties with the European Union. This was a blatant lie," the cleric
said during a press conference in Karachi.
"So
how can trust be established when government officials speak lies
publicly?" he questioned, adding that those who participated in the
negotiations did not have personal agendas and were patriots, calling the whole
process a "marathon intellectual exercise".
Mufti
Muneeb was among the clerics who facilitated talks between the government and
the proscribed group, helping both sides reach an agreement after an impasse of
three weeks.
'Liberals
more incensed than enemies'
He
further said the country's "liberals" were more incensed than
Pakistan's external enemies over the government's recent agreement with the
TLP.
He
was responding to a question from a reporter about Information Minister Fawad
Chaudhry's statement that there was "at least some good news" after
India lost to New Zealand during the ongoing T20 World Cup.
Asked
whether ministers that the negotiating team had objected to were included in
the negotiations, the cleric shook his head. "When we went, you should
understand [the implication]."
He
also stated that the "liberals" who were instigating the government,
would be the first ones to jump ship when faced with choppy waters. "We've
seen them before in one ship, then another and now in this ship."
The
cleric said that liberals were crying about the writ of the state, similar to
what had happened during the Lal Masjid operation in 2007.
"Till
12 at night they talked about the writ of the state, but when the unfortunate
operation took place they opposed it," he said, branding such people as
the enemies of the government.
Talks
with TLP
The
cleric's comments come a day after members of the negotiating team from the
government side claimed that they had reached an agreement with the proscribed
group in order to end the nearly three-week-long impasse, but refused to
divulge its details.
Mufti
Muneeb, who along with some other clerics facilitated the talks, said the
agreement had the backing of jailed TLP chief Saad Rizvi.
Refusing
to share contents of the deal, the cleric said its details would be made public
at an "appropriate time". He, however, said its "positive
result" would be visible to the nation next week or during the next 10
days. He then used an English proverb “action speaks louder than words” to
justify the move to keep details of the deal secret.
Prior
to this, a team of 19 senior clerics had met Prime Minister Imran Khan at his
Banigala residence on Saturday. The delegation was led by Minister for
Religious Affairs Pir Noorul Haq Qadri.
However,
the senior clerics, all of whom were Barelvis, had objected to the presence of
Special Representative to Prime Minister on Religious Harmony Hafiz Tahir
Ashrafi in the meeting, after which he left. The information minister, who was
on his way to Banigala, was also told not to come as the delegation had
objected to his presence as well. The minister’s announced press talk was also
cancelled.
Both
Tahir Ashrafi and Fawad Chaudhry were not visible in the official footage
released by the PM secretariat after the meeting.
When
contacted, Fawad Chaudhry said he was not even invited to the meeting. He said
the announcement made by the PID regarding his news conference was mistakenly
released as the presser was in fact scheduled by Interior Minister Sheikh
Rashid Ahmed, but was later done by the religious affairs minister.
On
the other hand, Tahir Ashrafi responded to media queries through a tweet,
claiming that he and Fawad Chaudhry were not there because they had to go to
some other meeting.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Egypt's
Supreme Administrative Court Bans Use of Mosques for Political Purposes
25
Sep 2021
File
Photo: the administrative Court in Egypt s State Council in Giza. Al-Ahram
-----
Egypt's
Supreme Administrative Court issued on Saturday a final verdict banning the use
of mosques for political purposes and upholding the state's right to
supervising them.
The
ruling upheld a previous decision by the minister of Awqaf to place 42 mosques
in Beheira governorate under the ministry's supervision, stating that the
government should control the mosques by all legal means.
This
comes as part of the country’s efforts to control the religious discourse and
teaching methods within worship houses.
Source:
Ahram Online
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/423747.aspx
--------
India
Kerala
Bishop, Mar Joseph Kallarangatt Booked For Love and Narcotic Jihad Remark
Promoting Feelings of Religious Hatred
Vivek
Rajagopal
November
2, 2021
The
Kuravilangad police in Kerala have registered a case against Pala Bishop Mar
Joseph Kallarangatt over his controversial 'narcotic jihad' remark on the basis
of a complaint which said the priest committed the offence of promoting
feelings of hatred between different groups on the grounds of religion.
A
magistrate court directed the police to register a case against the bishop. A
petition by the All India Imam Council was filed against the bishop's remark.
The
petition seeking to register a case against the Bishop was filed by Abdul Aziz
Maulavi, the Kottayam district president of the council.
He
moved the court after the police refused to register the case against the
bishop on the basis of his complaint.
The
bishop, at a function held in a church in Kuravilangad in Kottayam district on
September 9, had stated that Christian girls were falling prey to "love
and narcotic jihad" in Kerala and wherever arms cannot be used, extremists
were using such methods to destroy the state's youth.
Source:
India Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Will
donate Rs 5,100 for puja at namaz site: Muslim Ekta Manch chairman
November
2, 2021
Members
of the Muslim Ekta Manch met the Gurgaon deputy commissioner Monday, demanding
that the administration let them use the 19 Waqf board properties and mosques
in Gurgaon, which have been allegedly encroached upon or are disputed, so they
don’t have to offer namaz in public places.
This
comes a day after members of right-wing organisations, under the umbrella of
the Sanyukt Hindu Sangharsh Samiti, said they would conduct Govardhan Puja this
Friday at the Sector 12 site where namaz is offered.
Shehzad
Khan, chairman of the Muslim Ekta Manch, said, “We met the DC and shared our
concerns. We have requested the administration to either allot us land so we
can build mosques or let us use the current ones so we can offer namaz there.
If the 19 mosques in Gurgaon are restored to us, then we will not pray in the
open. For the past few months, some anti-social elements have disrupted prayers
and tried to promote enmity. We want harmony to exist among communities.”
Source:
Indian Express
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/puja-namaz-site-donation-muslim-ekta-manch-7602845/
--------
FIR
against J&K BJP leader over hate speech against Muslims
Sunil
Bhat Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu
November
2, 2021
The
Jammu and Kashmir Police has registered an FIR against senior BJP leader and
former MLC Vikram Randhawa for allegedly making derogatory remarks against
Kashmiri Muslims. The case was registered at Bahu Fort Police Station on the
basis of a written complaint by advocate Muzaffar Ali Shah.
The
FIR was filed after a video of Vikram Randhawa purportedly making derogatory
remarks against Muslims went viral on social media.
Vikram
Randhawa allegedly made the comments over incidents of celebration in several
parts of Kashmir following the Pakistan team’s win against India in the T20
World Cup match.
The
case has been registered under IPC sections 295-A (deliberate and malicious
acts, intended to outrage religious feelings) and 505 (intent to incite, or
which is likely to incite, any class or community of persons to commit any
offence against any other class or community), and other relevant sections.
BJP
serves show cause notice to Vikram Randhawa
The
J&K unit of BJP served a show-cause notice to Randhawa, with party chief
Ravinder Raina saying his remarks were against the basic principles of the
party, which believes in respecting all faiths.
"The
video came to the notice of the party and a show-cause notice was immediately
served to him by the disciplinary committee as such a language cannot be
tolerated," Raina said.
Source:
India Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
South Asia
ISIS-K
Unable To Recruit People In Afghanistan: Taliban Reacted To Wall Street Journal
Report
02
Nov 2021
A
spokesperson of the Taliban has reacted to the report of Wall Street Journal
and said that the ISIS-K is completely unable to recruit people in Afghanistan.
Bilal
Karimi has said that ISIS-K is just a phenomenon and does not exist at all in
Afghanistan leave alone recruiting people in the country.
Wall
Street Journal in its latest report had claimed that former US-trained Afghan
spies are joining the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria-Khorasan in particular in
northern Afghanistan to survive and fight the Taliban.
Spokesperson
of the Taliban said that their intelligence has strictly been following the
group and they are being suppressed wherever they pose a potential threat.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Open
to receiving Indian diplomats, humanitarian aid: Taliban
Sachin
Parashar
Nov
2, 2021
Amid
renewed efforts by the government in Kabul to seek international recognition,
the Taliban have said they are open to receiving Indian diplomats and providing
security to them.
And
as winter fast approaches, threatening to worsen further the humanitarian
crisis in Afghanistan, Taliban spokesperson and ambassador-designate to UN
Suhail Shaheen also told ToI Taliban will welcome aid at this critical
juncture.
"We
are open to receiving all diplomats and committed to providing security for
their routine diplomatic functions," said Shaheen, responding to a query
by ToI on whether or not Indian diplomats can return to Afghanistan.
"Similarly,
we welcome humanitarian aids in this critical time as the winter is around the
corner," he added, when asked about India's aid offer to Afghanistan on
the margins of the recent Moscow Format talks.
Unlike
their silence on the first official engagement with India in Doha in August
this year, Taliban were quick to confirm the meeting with an Indian delegation
in Moscow last month. They also said that India had offered humanitarian
assistance to Afghanistan in the Moscow meeting and that both sides felt it was
necessary to take into account each other's concerns and improve
"diplomatic and economic relations".
The
Indian government is likely to focus on humanitarian assistance for the Afghan
people in a conference of national security advisers it has proposed to
organise next month. India has also been in exploring the possibility of
delivering humanitarian aid to Afghans via the Wagah-Attari land border.
Significantly, the government sought to know last month from Pakistan, which
prevents India from exporting to Afghanistan through the aforementioned route,
if it would allow India to transport a large consignment of wheat (around
50,000 MT) and medical aid to Afghanistan.
While
it will be interesting to see in the coming days whether or not Pakistan facilitates
this initiative, India first has to ensure there is an assurance of
non-discriminatory distribution of food and medical aid once it reaches
Afghanistan. India believes such an exercise must be monitored by the UN.
Source:
Times of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Bangladesh
violence shows body counts go on increasing, but scenarios stay the same
Shiv
Visvanathan
November
01, 2021
There
is something about death and violence today that is horribly repetitive. The
body counts increase but the scenarios remain the same. There is no time to
pause and mourn. There is little space for prayer. A man dies and we play idiot
detectives wondering who he was. As long as he belongs to a sociological
category, it suffices. People don’t die, it is categories that are snuffed out.
The
recent violence in Bangladesh is an example. All it required in this
information age was rumour and suspicion. Both found wings in social media
whose genocidal count must be assessed one day. The story is stark, something
concocted by an idiot Dostoevsky. There are no greys, no doubts in a mannequin
world of white and dark, Hindu and Muslim.
The
story goes that a rumour went viral. Someone photographed a picture of a Quran
placed at Durga’s feet. The alleged blasphemy went viral. Violence followed to
avenge what was seen as an act of blasphemy. The police later discovered that
the men who placed the Quran and the man who made the incident viral were both
Muslims. They have been arrested.
Three
things are obvious from the story so far. There is a stark dualism in the
society which is sustained by a semiotics of suspicion. Each side immediately
suspects the other. As a result, instead of blasphemy we have a gross
brutality, an obscenity of violence. Second, oral rumour needs the sanctity of
social media to give it an epidemic power. Three, there is little attempt at
reconciliation. The lives of confrontation remain stark. It is as if these acts
of violence are rituals to sustain the bleakness of this impoverished
opposition.
The
additional irony comes from the fact that many of these events get charged by
electoral democracy. Electoral politics with its demographic imperatives is
tweaked into dynamism with acts of violence which reveal both power of the
majority and the uncertainty of minorities. Stereotypes come into play.
The
entire scenario is kneejerk, black, and stark. A mere economy of stereotypes is
enough to create the scenario of violence. One realises violence does not need
complex scripts. It works with behaviouristic signals which would shame even
Pavlov’s dogs. In fact, one is forced to ask what happens to culture and memory
of these moments. India’s role in the making of Bangladesh is forgotten. In
fact, one must understand that electorally 30 per cent of the electorate were
pro-Pakistani. Out of this emerges many of the fundamentalist elements at play
today.
There
is also an ambivalence about secularism. Bangladesh under Mujib was inaugurated
as a secular State but Bangladesh under the generals was fundamentalist. Sheikh
Hasina’s determined attempt to revive the vision of her father has met with
mixed results. Fundamentalism is a readily exploitable vote-bank while
secularism is a painful exercise in constitutional politics. Added to it is the
stark incentive of appropriating Hindu property.
Real
estate makes many of the inner wheels of violence creating an effective mix of
greed and ideology. The knee jerk myth of fundamentalism also claims to feed on
reports of violence on Muslims in India. It is as if attacking the Hindu in
Bangladesh restores justice. The sheer demographic fact that the Hindu
population is less than 10 percent shows the cultural impoverishment of
Bangladesh as a multicultural society.
Yet
in fairness, one must acknowledge Hasina’s sense of the secular imagination.
She reinjected the secular imagination of Mujib into the constitution. It takes
courage to handle an unholy combination of military and mullah. She realises
also that the Jamaat punished for war crimes is still pining for retribution
and revenge. Revenge-like ideology adds to the simplicity and starkness of
violence and muddies politics in a society desperately seeking democracy.
Source:
First Post
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Amrullah
Saleh asks Ashraf Ghani to release tapes with Khalilzad, foreign diplomats
02
Nov 2021
First
Vice President of the previous Afghan government Amrullah Saleh has asked
Ashraf Ghani to release the tapes of his cover stations on the peace process
with Zalmay Khalilzad and other relevant foreign diplomats in particular of the
past July and August.
Amrullah
Saleh in a Twitter post said that Ashraf Ghani must do it to counter the
growing propaganda that accuses the Afghan side of the collapse of Afghanistan.
“I
know these tapes exist and you have them. This is the time to release.” Reads
Saleh’s tweet.
This
comes after US former special envoy to Afghanistan’s reconciliation Zalmay
Khalilzad and US secretary of state Antonio Blenkin accused Ashraf Ghani to
have been behind the collapse of the previous Afghan government.
Source:
Khaama Press
Please
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--------
Blast,
gunfire heard in Afghan capital Kabul
November
02, 2021
KABUL:
A powerful explosion followed by the sound of gunfire was heard close to the
Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan military hospital in the Afghan capital Kabul on
Tuesday, a witness said.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1959816/world
--------
North America
US
blasts Iran-backed Houthis after latest missile strike kills civilians
02
November ,2021
The
US blasted the Iran-backed Houthis for their latest attack on civilian targets
inside Yemen as they continue to refuse a ceasefire to end the yearslong war.
“I
deplore the latest Houthi attacks on Marib, which killed and injured dozens,
including women and children,” Charge d’Affaires Cathy Westley said in a
statement posted to Twitter.
Westley
called on the Houthis to “break this endless cycle of senseless violence” and
agree to a comprehensive ceasefire.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Biden
suggests US desperately trying to ‘encourage’ Iran to resume negotiations
31
October 2021
US
President Joe Biden, whose country left the internationally backed nuclear
agreement with Iran, has suggested that diplomacy with Tehran is “the best way”
in dealing with the country.
He
made the comments amid skepticism in Tehran about real action by Washington in
repeated claims of a serious will to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action, which former President Donald Trump scrapped.
Speaking
at the conclusion of the Group of 20 (G-20) Summit in Rome, Italy, Biden
further suggested that the idea had the backing of German Chancellor Angela Merkel,
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron.
“Together
with Prime Minister Johnson and Merkel and President Macron, we came together
to reiterate our shared belief,” he said, repeating the baseless claims that
Tehran is seeking atomic bombs through its nuclear program.
Biden
also suggested that Iran should “resume serious, good faith negotiations. He
made the comments despite the fact that his administration has been pursuing
the same anti-Iran policies promoted by former President Trump, who quit the
JCPOA outright and imposed new sanctions on the country.
Earlier
in the day, Iran’s top diplomat asserted that such the US will to return to
nuclear talks only exists in the rhetoric and “in their actions,” adding that
“a simpler way” to deal with the situation is for Washington to resume talks
“at the point where Trump left off.”
“I
personally believe that if there were serious will in America to return to the
JCPOA, there would be no need to all these talks,” noted Hossein Amir-Abdollahian
in an interview.
The
claims of a serious will to return to the nuclear deal was also promoted by the
US secretary of state, who also suggested that the United States was
“absolutely in lockstep together” with Germany, France, and the United Kingdom
over the matter.
“We
continue to believe that diplomacy is the best way to deal with the challenges,
the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program,” Antony Blinken claimed in an
interview with CNN. “There’s still a window through which Iran can come back to
the talks, and we can come back to mutual compliance with the agreement, and
that would be the best result. But it really depends on whether Iran is serious
about doing that.”
The
US to diplomat also appeared on CBS News to claim that the US and the European
signatories of the JCPOA were “on the same page.”
Source:
Press TV
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2021/10/31/669657/Biden-Blinken-nuclear-deal-G20-JCPOA-US
--------
US
hostility toward Iran since Islamic Revolution remains hard-wired: Analyst
31
October 2021
US
hostility toward Iran since its 1979 Islamic Revolution remains hard-wired
because Tehran refuses to subordinate its sovereign rights to Washington,
according to American writer and political analyst Stephen Lendman.
Lendman
said in a commentary to Press TV on Sunday that the landmark nuclear agreement
is virtually dead “because of legitimate Iranian demands Biden regime
hardliners refuse to accept.”
“Iran
justifiably wants all illegally imposed US sanctions removed. It wants
guarantees against re-imposing them. It wants Biden regime assurance that
Washington won’t pull out of the deal again if returns to compliance,” he
commented.
“It
wants assurance of binding US compliance with UN Security Council Resolution
2231 provisions — unanimously agreed to on July 14, 2015, adopted on October
18, 2015, implemented on January 16, 2016,” he added.
“Biden
regime hardliners agreed to lift some sanctions, leaving others in place. It
maintains the right to illegally impose new ones at its discretion. It
unacceptably wants curbs imposed on Iran’s legitimate ballistic missile program.
Along with other Iranian weapons, they’re solely for defense, not offense the
way hegemon USA, NATO and Israel operate,” the analyst said.
“The
Biden regime also wants the JCPOA used as a platform for ‘building a stronger
and longer deal working with (US) partners,’” he explained.
“Their
scheme is all about weakening Iran’s ability to defend itself against US or
Israeli aggression if launched,” he noted.
“It
wants legitimate Iranian support for Syria, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s
Houthis halted or sharply curtailed. All its demands are in return for hollow
US promises to be breached at its discretion. Its demands assure rejection, not
acceptance,” he stressed.
The
analyst said these are the reasons “why multiple rounds of talks failed,
further ones virtually sure to fare no better.”
“No
matter how long they continue, both right wings of the US war party remain
militantly hostile toward Iranian freedom from their control,” he reiterated.
Lendman
opined that “Biden regime promises to return to JCPOA compliance were hollow
when made. Iran knows what it’s up against.”
“US
hostility toward Iran since its liberating 1979 revolution remains hard-wired
with no prospect of softening as long as the Islamic Republic refuses to
subordinate its sovereign rights to a higher power in Washington,” he stated.
Concluding
his remarks, Lendman said, “On Friday, unbending Biden regime hostility and
duplicity toward Iran was on display for everyone paying attention to see.”
“It’s
Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed new
illegal sanctions on two senior Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members and
two Iranian firms allegedly linked to the IRGC.”
Source:
Press TV
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Pakistan
PPP
leaders term govt-TLP agreement ‘surrender by the state’
Amir
Wasim
November
2, 2021
ISLAMABAD:
Terming the agreement between the government and the proscribed
Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) a “surrender by the state”, the opposition
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Monday asked the ruling Pakistan
Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) to make the deal public and present it before parliament.
The
demand for making the government-TLP deal public came from three different PPP
senators through their separate statements a day after the members of the
negotiating team from the government side announced that they had reached an
‘agreement’ with the TLP in order to end the nearly two-week-long impasse, but
refused to divulge its details.
The
PPP leaders questioned the logic behind keeping the deal secret and stated that
the people of Pakistan and their elected representatives had every right to
know the details and the contents of the agreement that had been signed in the
darkness of night.
Call
for presenting the details of deal before parliament
The
announcement regarding the signing of the deal had been made by Mufti Munibur
Rehman during a press conference with the members of the government team
comprising Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, National Assembly Speaker
Asad Qaiser and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan
on Sunday.
Refusing
to share the contents of the deal, Mufti Munib had said that its details would
be made public at an ‘appropriate time’ and added that its ‘positive results’
would be visible to the nation during the next 10 days.
Besides
Mufti Munib, head of the Saylani Welfare Trust Bashir Farooq Qadri, leading
businessmen Aqeel Karim Dhedi and Haji Rafique Pardesi had reportedly been
named as “guarantors” in the agreement.
In
a statement, PPP Senator Raza Rabbani said it was a matter of concern that the
government or the state required individuals to act as guarantors of such an
agreement. “When an individual acts as a guarantor between the government and
citizens, it depicts that the government has lost the moral high grounds and
the confidence of the people,” said Mr Rabbani.
Source:
Dawn
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1655398/ppp-leaders-term-govt-tlp-agreement-surrender-by-the-state
--------
PM
wants PTI leaders to back Azam Swati, Fawad Chaudhry in row with ECP
Syed
Irfan Raza
November
2, 2021
ISLAMABAD:
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday expressed displeasure over ‘grilling’ of
two federal ministers by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and directed
other leaders of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) to stand by them on
the matter.
The
prime minister, however, barred PTI leaders from commenting on government’s
latest deal with the proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) as a source
claimed that PM Khan wanted to keep the TLP chief behind bars.
Besides,
Mr Khan claimed that the government would soon announce a comprehensive relief
package for inflation-hit people.
He
expressed these views while presiding over PTI’s core committee meeting, which
was held a day after the government signed a secret deal with the TLP to keep
protesters from marching on the federal capital.
Directs
party leaders not to divulge details of deal with TLP
Separately,
Aqeel Karim Dhedhi called on the prime minister and appreciated government
measures for economic reforms. Mr Dhedhi, who was also one of the guarantors of
the deal with the TLP, was leading a delegation of businessmen.
Talking
to Dawn, federal Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry quoted the prime
minister as telling the core committee that both the ministers — Fawad Chaudhry
and Azam Swati — had not spoken for electoral reforms in their own interests
but on behalf of the whole government and it was quite unfortunate that no
other PTI leader was standing by the two ministers on the issue.
Earlier
on Oct 27, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) gave 15 more days to the
two ministers to submit their replies to the show-cause notice issued to them
for their “caustic” remarks and serious allegations against the ECP and Chief
Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja. The two ministers had been summoned
by the ECP last week to explain their “slanderous” remarks a month after being
issued the notices.
In
September, the ECP as well as opposition parties had raised a number of
objections to the government’s unilateral decision for introduction of e-voting
machines. Just a couple of days after the objections were raised, Mr Swati
accused the ECP of taking “bribes and always rigging” polls and said such
institutions should be “set on fire”. A few hours after Mr Swati’s statement,
Mr Chaudhry addressing a presser called the CEC “a mouthpiece of the
opposition” and alleged that the commission had turned into the “opposition’s
headquarters”.
Economic
situation
While
chairing a meeting to review economy, PM Khan directed the authorities
concerned to take measures to bring down prices of essential commodities after
he was apprised of inflationary trend in the international commodity market and
petroleum prices.
Mr
Khan said: “Like our exemplary response to Covid-19 pandemic, we are working
hard to mitigate negative impacts of international inflation, especially in
petroleum products and food items.”
He
said stabilising macroeconomic indicators in the country was government’s top
priority to spur economic growth.
Earlier,
the prime minister was briefed about overall economic situation at the meeting.
Minister for Economic Affairs Omar Ayub Khan, Energy Minister Hammad Azhar,
Industries Minister Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Information Minister Fawad
Chaudhry, Minister for National Food Security Syed Fakhar Imam, Planning
Minister Asad Umar, Commerce Adviser Abdul Razak Dawood, Finance Adviser
Shaukat Tarin, Special Assistant to PM Dr Shehbaz Gill and State Bank Governor
Dr Reza Baqir attended the meeting.
Source:
Dawn
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Another
policeman injured in TLP attack dies
Asif
Chaudhry
November
2, 2021
LAHORE:
Another police official who was critically injured during the violent protest
by proscribed Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan at Sadhoke succumbed to his wounds in
hospital here on Monday, raising the death toll of the TLP march to five.
Identified
as assistant sub inspector (ASI) Mohammad Abubakar, the deceased hailed from
Jhang district and was under treatment at the critical care unit of the Lahore
General Hospital for critical head and chest injuries.
According
to police, Abubakar was serving as personal staff officer (PSO) to the Iqbal
Town (Lahore) SP and came under attack at Sadhoke, the most troubled point
where hundreds of police officials were injured in clashes with the TLP
activists during its march on Islamabad.
An
official said the police faced most violent attacks from the TLP workers at
Sadhoke near Gujranwala, where the latter were reorganised after leaving Lahore
on Oct 23 and attacked the policemen and the paramilitary personnel in groups,
firing teargas shells and some of them even shooting straight on the police.
Death
toll rises to five
Sharing
official figures, he said total 520 policemen were injured by the violent TLP
workers in Lahore and two other security points on the GT Road on their way to
Gujranwala.
Of
the injured policemen, 17 got critical head and chest injuries after they were
allegedly taken hostage by the marchers and subjected to brutal torture at Kala
Shah Kaku, Muridke and Sadhoke, he said, adding that later two of them
succumbed to their wounds in local hospitals. He said that two police official
had already lost their lives in a violent attack by the TLP activists reported
near Chauburji in Lahore.
The
record of various public hospitals confirmed that four of the 17 critically
injured policemen suffered bullet wounds, he said.
He
said that official inquiries confirmed that the TLP men fired bullets straight
on police using sub-machine guns (SMGs) and injured five of them. One of these
five personnel embraced martyrdom, he added. “The TLP workers clashed with
police on multiple occasions since Oct 22, when the latter announced their
march on Islamabad,” he said.
Meanwhile,
Punjab Chief Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal and Inspector General of Police Rao
Sardar Ali Khan visited the Mayo Hospital and Lahore General Hospital and
inquired after the injured policemen.
A
police spokesperson said the IGP also visited the families of martyred
Constable Ghulam Rasol and ASI Muhammad Akbar at Kasur and Chunian,
respectively, where he offered Fateha for them.
He
also lauded the patriotic spirit of the injured policemen and said the
department as well as the whole nation was proud of those who stood firm to
protect lives and properties of the citizens.
“The
sacrifices of martyred police personnel reflect the fact that supremacy of law
& order and writ of the state were the top priority for the police force,”
the IGP said.
In
Lahore, the funeral prayers for ASI Muhammad Abubakar were offered at the
District Police Lines, Qila Gujjar Singh.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1655360/another-policeman-injured-in-tlp-attack-dies
--------
Government
‘mulls’ release of Saad Rizvi
Mansoor
Malik
November
2, 2021
LAHORE:
As the federal government’s steering committee held its second consecutive
meeting here on Monday evening, it is learnt the government is considering
releasing Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Saad Rizvi.
“The
government is seriously considering to cool down the situation in a manner that
its efforts do not go waste and a long-term solution is reached in wake of
government-TLP agreement,” a source in the meeting told Dawn. The committee led
by state minister Ali Muhammad Khan comprises Punjab law minister Basharat
Raja, interior secretary and the Punjab home secretary. The committee reviewed
measures how the government could go ahead to implement the agreement with the
TLP, contents of which are being kept secret.
The
state minister tweeted that the second meeting of the steering committee for
the implementation of the agreement with TLP concluded in Lahore. “Major
decisions have been taken and implementation mechanism devised. Results will be
visible from tonight,” Mr Khan tweeted.
Source:
Dawn
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1655362/government-mulls-release-of-saad-rizvi
--------
Arab World
Daesh
terrorists arrested in Iraq's Anbar, Nineveh, as army pledges to ‘shake the
earth’ under their feet
02
November 2021
Iraqi
forces have detained more than 20 Daesh (ISIS) elements in the provinces of
al-Anbar and Nineveh bordering Syria, after the army warned that the security
of Iraq and Iraqis is a red line that cannot be compromised.
In
a statement issued on Monday, Nineveh police said they had captured a
terrorist, named Abu al-Baraa, after receiving intelligence and conducting an
extensive investigation.
Baraa
was arrested in Mosul’s al-Sukar neighborhood, the statement read, adding that
13 other Daesh militants were also taken into Iraqi police custody.
An
Iraqi security source said that another key terrorist, identified as Hazal
al-Jahishi, had been arrested in Nineveh’s Zummar subdistrict.
Separately
on Monday, Major General Yahya Rasoul, spokesman for the commander-in-chief of
the Iraqi armed forces, announced that a six-member Daesh cell had been
identified and detained in the cities of Ramadi and Fallujah in al-Anbar
Province.
He
also noted that another terrorist was arrested in Abu Ghraib district in
Baghdad Province.
The
fresh round of operations against Daesh come days after the Iraqi Army pledged
to “shake the earth under the feet of the wicked [Daesh] cowards,” following an
attack by the terrorist group in Diyala Province that left more than 30 people
dead or injured.
“Terrorists
will soon face a fair retribution and they will not be able to endanger the
security of Diyala,” the statement read. “The security of Iraq and Iraqis is a
red line that cannot be joked about.”
Hashd
al-Sha’abi, also known as the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), which has been
playing a key role in fighting terrorists in Iraq, has stated that Daesh
elements have been equipped with advanced weapons in recent months.
Source:
Press TV
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2021/11/02/669746/Iraq-arrest-Daesh-Anbar-Nineveh
--------
Saudi
Arabia executes young Shia man accused of alleged terror activities
01
November 2021
Saudi
authorities have executed a citizen from the Qatif region of the kingdom’s
oil-rich and Shia-populated Eastern Province over alleged involvement in
terrorist activities and weapons possession.
The
state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA), citing the Ministry of Interior, reported
that the death sentence was carried out against Makki bin Kazem Al Obaid in the
city of Dammam on Monday.
The
Saudi man who was executed “took part in two shooting operations against
security forces with intent to kill” and “in dealing and possessing weapons,”
the ministry alleged in a statement.
He
was “linked to people wanted for terrorism-related activities,” the statement
further claimed.
On
October 5, Saudi authorities executed a citizen from the Qatif region after
accusing him of alleged links to a "terrorist cell."
The
kingdom’s Ministry of Interior alleged at the time that the Saudi national,
identified as Muslim bin Muhammad al-Muhsin, participated in the murder of a
citizen, possessed and made a Molotov cocktail bomb in order to attack security
personnel.
The
SPA added that the terrorist cell had sought to destabilize the country’s
internal security.
Saudi
Arabia has stepped up politically-motivated arrests, prosecution and conviction
of peaceful dissident writers and human rights campaigners, in particular in
Eastern Province.
The
province has been the scene of peaceful demonstrations since February 2011.
Protesters have been demanding reforms, freedom of expression, the release of
political prisoners, and an end to economic and religious discrimination
against the region.
The
protests have been met with a heavy-handed crackdown, with regime forces
increasing security measures across the province.
Source:
Press TV
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--------
First
of 200 imams from Indonesia arrive to serve in UAE mosques
Nov
1, 2021
More
than a dozen imams from Indonesia have arrived in the UAE to serve in mosques
across the country.
The
15 religious leaders are the first of 28 selected in March by the UAE General
Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowments (Awqaf) to travel to the Emirates.
Eight more are expected to arrive in mid-November.
The
imams will serve in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Al Dhafra, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah,
among other locations.
The
'Imams from Indonesia' programme was agreed by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown
Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, and Joko
Widodo, the President of the Republic of Indonesia, when he visited Abu Dhabi
in January last year.
In
total, the scheme will send more than 200 religious leaders to serve in the UAE
by the end of next year.
Husin
Bagis, the Indonesian Ambassador to the UAE, said he was pleased the first
imams had arrived in Abu Dhabi.
"The
co-operation in sending Imams is another proof of the close relationship of the
two countries, which is not only focused on economic co-operation," said
Mr Bagis.
Understanding
moderate Islam
Abu
Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Indonesian
President Joko Widodo walk during a welcoming ceremony at the presidential
palace in Bogor, Indonesia, July 24, 2019. Dita Alangkara/Pool via Reuters
Sheikh
Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of
the Armed Forces, and Joko Widodo, the President of the Republic of Indonesia,
at a welcoming ceremony at the presidential palace in Bogor, Indonesia. Reuters
Organisers
hope the programme will encourage mutual learning for both countries, and
promote a moderate understanding of Islam.
“The
imams from Indonesia can learn how Islam is carried out in the UAE with full
tolerance and [how to] contribute to the creation of peace in society, without
causing any friction," said Mr Bagis.
"When
they return to Indonesia, they can implement and promote the same thing."
Another
set of interviews for new imams took place in October in Jakarta, with
representatives from Awqaf collaborating with the Indonesian Ministry of
Religious Affairs to handpick candidates.
Source:
The National News
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--------
Lebanon’s
PM looks to resolve Gulf crisis in meetings with Qatar’s Emir, Kuwait’s PM
01
November ,2021
Lebanon’s
Prime Minister Najib Mikati discussed his country’s diplomatic row with the
Gulf during meetings with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani and
Kuwait’s Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khalid al-Sabah on the sidelines of the
UN COP26 climate summit in Glasgow on Monday.
Sheikh
Tamim said he will send Qatar’s foreign minister to Beirut soon to “search for
ways to support Lebanon and discuss how to deal with the Lebanon-Gulf crisis,”
the Lebanese Prime Minister’s office said.
Mikati
also met with Kuwait’s PM Sheikh Sabah and Foreign Minister Ahmad Nasser
Al-Mohammad al-Sabah.
“During
the meeting, Mikati stressed Lebanon’s keenness to maintain a close
relationship with Gulf Cooperation Council countries and to work on addressing
any gaps in the spirit of brotherhood and cooperation.”
The
Lebanese PM’s office said Sheikh Sabah stressed Kuwait’s keenness to support
Lebanon in all aspects while maintaining the unity of GCC countries. He also
said: “Lebanon is capable, with its wisdom, to address any problem or loophole,
and it will find all the required support from Kuwait and other Arab
countries.”
Lebanon
is currently mired in a diplomatic crisis with Gulf countries over comments
made by Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi about Saudi Arabia and the
UAE’s involvement in the Yemen war.
Kordahi
said the Iran-backed Houthis were “defending themselves… against foreign
aggression [by the Arab Coalition]” during an interview aired on August 5.
Saudi
Arabia expelled Lebanon’s envoy from the country and banned all Lebanese
imports. Bahrain and Kuwait followed suit, and the UAE withdrew its diplomats
from Beirut and banned its citizens from traveling to Lebanon.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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--------
Iraqi
man sentenced to death for murder of two journalists
01
November ,2021
Iraq’s
supreme court on Monday sentenced a man to death by hanging for the murder of
two journalists covering anti-government protests in the southern city of Basra
last year.
Ahmad
Abdessamad, a 37-year-old correspondent for al-Dijla television station, and
his cameraman Safaa Ghali, 26, were driving in their hometown of Basra in
January 2020 when another vehicle pulled up, and gunmen opened fire, spraying
the car with bullets.
The
condemned man, identified only by the initials “H.K.”, had “confessed to all
the crimes”, the court in Basra said in a statement.
The
court said he had killed the two journalists “with the aim of destabilizing
security and stability and intimidating people for terrorist purposes.”
It
did not provide further details about any group he belonged to.
He
was arrested in early 2021 with four other members of a “network of 16 people
responsible for assassinations”, a security official said at the time.
The
decree authorizing his hanging must still be signed by Iraqi President Barham
Saleh, and he has 30 days to appeal.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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US
senators urge Biden to hit Lebanon’s politicians, Hezbollah with more sanctions
01
November ,2021
The
top-ranking lawmakers on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee called on the
Biden administration to develop a sanctions framework to “help Lebanon reform.”
In
a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet
Yellen, Senators Bob Menendez and Jim Risch urged the US to follow Europe’s
lead after they approved a sanctions regime meant to push Lebanese officials to
change their tactics.
Last
week, the US slapped sanctions on a Lebanese MP and two businessmen for
corruption. The two businessmen are allegedly backed by former Prime Minister
Saad Hariri and former Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil.
Menendez
and Risch hailed the latest sanctions but called for more to be done.
“The
United States has publicly supported international efforts to help Lebanon
reform and rebuild its economy in a way that is transparent and supports the
Lebanese people; not just entrenched leaders. However, that support requires
Lebanon’s political leaders to commit to meaningful structural reforms,” the
letter read.
They
also slammed Iran-backed Hezbollah for blocking government action and reforms
from being enacted.
“The
United States must make it clear that it continues to stand ready to help the
people of Lebanon, not only through the provision on desperately needed
assistance but also by ensuring that Lebanese leaders work on behalf of all
Lebanese and that they will face accountability if they do not,” the US
lawmakers wrote.
They
reiterated their support for sanctions against Hezbollah and its allies, but
they called for a “concerted internationalized effort” to counter the Iranian
proxy.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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--------
Saudi
Arabia hands down long prison sentence to Yemeni journalist
01
November 2021
A
court in Saudi Arabia has reportedly handed down a lengthy jail term against a
Yemeni journalist, as the Riyadh regime forges ahead with its brutal crackdown
led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman against political opponents and
opposition figures.
Yemen
Press Agency (YPA) reported that Najran Criminal Court has sentenced Ali Abu
Lahoum to 15 years in jail after charges of “apostasy” and “insulting Islamic
sanctities” were leveled against him.
An
informed source, requesting not to be named, said Abu Lahoum was arrested and
put on trial after he was embroiled in a bitter argument with a group of Saudi
businessmen.
Abu
Lahoum, who has been residing in Saudi Arabia since 2015, was reportedly
working in a commercial media organization in the country’s southwestern region
of Najran.
He
had earlier worked as an executive director for the Saudi Arabic-language
al-Wadi television station.
Saudi
Arabia shows little tolerance towards journalists, including independent ones,
and freedom of speech.
In
its 2020 Press Freedom Index, Paris-based Reporters Without Borders said the
kingdom ranked 170 out of 180 countries, where No. 1 is the most free.
Last
September, a human rights organization also expressed serious concern about the
deliberate medical negligence against political dissidents being kept in
detention centers across Saudi Arabia.
Sanad
human rights organization, which defends political and civil rights in Saudi
Arabia and monitors human rights violations and exposes them to public opinion
as well as international organizations, said that Saudi prison authorities
deliberately deprive inmates of medical treatment as part of their policy of
abusing and killing them silently.
While
all governments are obliged under the international law to protect human beings
against rights violations and ensure their freedom and dignity, the repressive
policy of Saudi officials against jailed activists has significantly undermined
such principles, Sanad noted.
Separately,
the opposition National Assembly party condemned the deliberate medical
negligence of prisoners inside Saudi prisons.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Mideast
Israel
demolishes Muslim cemetery near Al Aqsa Mosque to build park
Ahmad
Melhem
November
2, 2021
RAMALLAH,
West Bank — The Israeli police have tightened the siege on the Yusufiya
cemetery near Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, while the municipality and the
Israeli Nature and Parks Authority have been demolishing parts of the cemetery
and tombstones since Oct. 25.
On
Oct. 28, the Israeli authorities fenced the walls surrounding the cemetery and
installed surveillance cameras, and on Oct. 29, Israeli police fired tear gas to
prevent dozens of Jerusalemites from visiting their dead.
The
Jerusalem municipality has been working overtime to demolish more parts of the
cemetery since Oct. 17, when the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court rejected a
request submitted by the Committee for the Care of Islamic Cemeteries in
Jerusalem to suspend bulldozing the cemetery and exhuming graves.
The
Israeli authorities are seeking to turn this part of the cemetery, which
includes the Martyrs’ Monument where Palestinians and Jordanians who fought in
the 1967 war are buried, into a public biblical park, around the walls of the
Old City.
The
Yusufiya cemetery was established at the beginning of the Muslim conquest of
Jerusalem, but it was restored and expanded during the reign of Salah al-Din
al-Ayyubi and was named after him — Youssef bin Ayoub bin Shadi. It is an
extension of the Bab al-Rahma cemetery. After the city was occupied in 1967,
the Jerusalem municipality took possession of the part that includes the graves
of the martyrs.
The
total area of the Yusufiya cemetery is 25 dunums (about 6 acres), four dunums
(1 acre) of which Israel aims to build the park over. It is one of the four
Islamic cemeteries in Jerusalem and is located near the Jerusalem wall and the
Lions Gate, which is the most important entrance to the Old City.
Najeh
Bakirat, the deputy director-general of the Jerusalem Waqf, told Al-Monitor
that the bulldozing is part of a bigger Israeli project, which is building a
temple in the place of Al-Aqsa Mosque, so it is working to establish biblical
parks surrounding the Old City and the walls of Al-Aqsa, to overwhelm
Jerusalem’s public scene with Judaization.
That
work is proceeding on three levels, Bakirat said. The first is to erase the
Arab-Islamic scene, such as Islamic cemeteries and homes, and to replace them
with Israeli parks that include signs in Hebrew.
It
is also trying to displace Muslim Jerusalemites, so that many began burying
their dead outside the city. On the other hand, Israel is increasing the number
of Hebrew settlers and attracting them to the city, he explained.
The
third approach, Bakirat said, is replacing Arabic names with Hebrew ones, as
well as altering the general geographical scene. He expects that Israel will
not stop at targeting four dunums of the Yusufiya cemetery, but will continue
to nibble at the remaining areas until it takes control completely.
Bakirat
pointed out that Israel did the same in the Ma'man Allah cemetery, on which
Israel built the Museum of Tolerance, in addition to tourist facilities. Israel
took control of the site in 1948. The municipality built two streets in the
western part of it, and then the Independence Park, a huge parking lot, the
Leonardo Plaza Jerusalem Hotel, and several cafes. In the eastern part of the
cemetery, it began building the Museum of Tolerance.
The
Palestinian Authority warned against bulldozing the Yusufiya cemetery, as
President Mahmoud Abbas’ advisor for religious and Islamic affairs, Mahmoud
al-Habbash, spoke on Oct. 27 about “the ongoing crime committed by the occupation’s
bulldozers against the Yusufiya cemetery in occupied Jerusalem. …This could
lead to violent confrontations with the occupation forces in a way that no one
expects.”
Source:
Al Monitor
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Israelis
storm Al-Aqsa Mosque compound as military detain Palestinians in Bethlehem
01
November, 2021
Israelis
stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound on Monday, the holiest Muslim site in the
Palestinian territories, under the protection of Israeli police.
Dozens
of settlers stormed Al-Aqsa from the Magharba Gate and performed Talmudic
rituals in its courtyards, locals told The New Arab.
Groups
of extremist settlers periodically storm the Muslim holy place under the
pretext of performing prayers there, with the incursions often leading to
confrontations with Palestinian youths.
Old
Jerusalem has witnessed increased tensions after Israeli forces enacted new
strict security measures with worshippers visiting Al-Aqsa being searched by
soldiers.
Meanwhile,
the Israeli army detained 10 Palestinians across the West Bank and East
Jerusalem, according to Palestinian security sources.
Source:
The New Arab
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/news/israelis-storm-al-aqsa-mosque-military-detain-palestinians
--------
Iran:
Israel's Impudence Result of Human Rights Advocates' Silence
2021-November-2
Qaribabadi
made the remarks on his twitter page on Monday, referring to the recent
behavior shown by Israeli regime's UN ambassador by tearing up a copy of the
UNHRC's annual report while delivering a speech to the world body's General
Assembly.
“Silence
of so-called human rights protectors against gross violations by Israel, has
given this regime the audacity to ridicule the HRC by tearing up its President'
report to the UNGA,” Iran’s human rights official said.
Qaribabadi
added that the torn report reflected the results obtained by the HRC’s
Investigation Commission, a large part of which condemned and criticized
Israel.
“This
is the second time after the regime's ambassador did the same in 1975 after the
UN announced Zionism as a form of racism,” the Iranian judicial official noted.
He
emphasized that “this behavior proves that the work of the Commission should
continue”.
Gilad
Erdan took the move on Friday after issuing a tirade, in which he accused the
UNHRC of “obsessive anti-Israel bias” and called the report
"anti-Semitic", "distorted" and "one-sided”.
The
report’s only place was “in the dustbin of anti-Semitism”, he said, before
ripping up the copy and leaving the podium.]
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran:
Senator Cruz Admits "Rogue" Nature of US Regimes
2021-November-2
Cruz
had wrote on his twitter page that any future Republican president would again
"tear up" the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
"The
world is acutely aware of what Mr. Cruz confesses: that regimes in Washington
are rogue," Khatibzadeh tweeted on Monday.
He
added, despite the clear likelihood that any future Republican president could
again suspend Washington's commitment to the JCPOA, that "onus is on POTUS
(president of the United States) to convince international community, including
all JCPOA participants, that his signature means something".
"For
that, objective guarantees [are] needed. No one would accept anything
less," Khatibzadeh said.
Iran
said on Monday that the so-called nuclear crisis stated in the recent statement
of the US and the European states of Britain, France and Germany is the result
of the four countries' irresponsible behavior and defiance of the nuclear deal.
Khatibzadeh
made the remarks in reaction to the statement issued by the four countries on
the sidelines of the G20 Summit.
He
referred to Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali
Khamenei's fatwa (verdict) which prohibits production of nuclear weapons,
saying that nuclear weapons have no place in the Islamic Republic's defense
doctrine.
The
spokesman went on to say that as a responsible member of the Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran has been
cooperating with the technical body within the framework of the Safeguards
Agreements.
Iran
has proved its goodwill through full faithfulness to its commitments even a
year after the US May 2018 unilateral withdrawal from the international nuclear
deal, aka Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Further,
Khatibzadeh said Tehran welcomes the other sides' determination to fully return
to their commitments, adding, "Our criterion is the other side's action
[practical measure]."
He
added that Iran pursues peaceful goals by enrichment, as it has already been
declared, noting that uranium enrichment in Iran is for medical and
non-military use.
The
spokesman stated that such a stance which is against realities will not have
positive outcomes, adding what mentioned in the statement as a nuclear crisis
is false and just a propaganda campaign.
Ayatollah
Khamenei has on many occasions said the Islamic Republic considers the pursuit
and possession of nuclear weapons "a grave sin" from every logical,
religious and theoretical standpoint. On April 17, 2010 Ayatollah Khamenei
issued a fatwa declaring that the production, stockpiling, and use of nuclear
weapons are all haram (religiously banned).
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14000811000212/Iran-Senar-Crz-Admis-Rge-Nare-f-US-Regimes
--------
Israel
to seize more land in al-Quds’ Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood despite intl. outcry
against evictions
01
November 2021
Israeli
authorities have given the green light to seizure of thousands square meters of
Palestinian-owned land in the East al-Quds neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah, as
the Tel Aviv regime continues with its land grab policies in the occupied
territories despite international outcry against its land eviction policies.
Saleh
Diab, a Palestinian activist, told Palestine’s official Wafa news agency on
Monday that Israel’s High Court of Justice issued an order on Sunday for the
seizure of over 4,700 square meters of land belonging to four Palestinian
families from the neighborhood with the aim of turning it into a public park.
He
further noted that the Israeli municipality first presented the plan of
establishing a park in the area in 2016, but failed to seize the land at the
time.
Kamal
Obeidat, one of the landowners, said in a phone interview with WAFA that the
decision to seize the land located near a hotel aims at increasing its area for
construction from 18,000 to 36,000 square meters in favor of the Israeli
municipality.
He
went on to say that the issue has been deliberated in the courts for more than
20 years, explaining that the land was used as a parking lot for buses and
other vehicles and it was supposed to be turned it into a project for the
benefit of Palestinians in East al-Quds.
However,
he said, now the municipality will use it for the construction of illegal
settlements.
The
latest development came after Israel’s High Court of Justice rejected the appeal
submitted by Palestinian residents against the appropriation of their land on
Sunday.
The
Palestinian Information Center, citing a local committee in Sheikh Jarrah,
reported that the court also ordered the Palestinian families to pay a
financial penalty of 18,000 shekels.
Sheikh
Jarrah has been the scene of frequent crackdowns by Israeli police on
Palestinians protesting against the threatened expulsion of dozens of
Palestinian families from their homes in favor of hardline Israeli settler
groups.
Since
Israel seized East al-Quds in the 1967 war, Israeli settler organizations have
claimed ownership of land in Sheikh Jarrah and have filed multiple lawsuits to
evict Palestinians from the area.
The
threatened Sheikh Jarrah expulsions have also drawn international attention and
sparked global outrage.
The
land grab and evictions carried out by the Israeli authorities are seen as part
of efforts to forcibly displace the Palestinians and change the demographic
character of the occupied territories.
Israel
demolishes Palestinians' water reservoir in West Bank
Separately
on Monday, Wafa reported that Israeli forces demolished a water reservoir in
the town of Khader, located south of Bethlehem.
The
news agency, citing local activist Ahmad Salah, said Israeli troops escorted a
bulldozer into the Wadi al-Shami area of the town, where the heavy machinery
tore down the water reservoir purportedly for being built without a permit.
The
destruction of the water reservoir comes as Palestinians in the occupied
territories suffer from a water shortage and Israeli authorities damage any
projects that aim to solve the problem.
With
the scarcity of water available for Palestinians since Israel controls all
water resources in the occupied West Bank, residents build reservoirs to collect
rainwater for various irrigation purposes.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Supreme
council for Hamas captives holds Israel responsible for lives of hunger
strikers
01
November 2021
The
supreme command council for the captives of the Palestinian Hamas resistance
movement has voiced concern over the heath of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli
jails who have gone on hunger strike, declaring the start of “a struggle
program” in support of the hunger strikers.
In
a statement issued on Monday, the council announced that it has launched “a
struggle program” to support the administrative detainees who are on a hunger
strike starting from Monday.
According
to the statement, the program begins by closing the prisons’ sections for two
hours starting from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm.
The
council stated that Tuesday’s meal would also be rejected, noting that greater
measures would be declared in the upcoming days.
“The
[Israeli] occupation bears full responsibility for the lives of captives on
hunger strike,” the council said, describing the health condition of the hunger
strikers as “serious” and “can’t be tolerated”.
At
least seven Palestinian inmates have remained on an open-ended hunger strike to
protest the Israeli so-called administrative detention, which allows prisoners
to be held without charge or trial.
According
to a report by the Detainees Affairs Commission, the oldest hunger-striker,
Kayed Fasfous, who stopped eating food almost 110 days ago, and Muqdad
Qawasmeh, who began his hunger strike 102 days ago, are among the Palestinian
prisoners who insist on continuing their hunger strike despite their seriously
deteriorating condition.
More
than 7,000 Palestinians are reportedly held in Israeli jails. Hundreds have
been incarcerated under the practice of administrative detention.
Some
Palestinian prisoners have even been held in administrative detention for up to
eleven years.
Last
month, hundreds of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons went on a hunger strike
in protest against an intensified Israeli crackdown on Palestinian detainees
that took place following the escape of six inmates from a maximum-security
Israeli jail on September 6.
The
hunger strike, which began on October 13, was suspended nine days later after
the Palestinian Islamic Jihad resistance movement declared “victory” over the
Israel Prison Service.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Many
killed and wounded in Houthi missile strike on religious school in Marib
November
01, 2021
AL-MUKALLA:
Two ballistic missiles fired by the Iran-backed Houthis struck a religious
school and a mosque, killing and wounding 29 people, including women and
children, in Yemen’s central province of Marib, Yemen’s Information Minister,
Muammar Al-Eryani said.
The
missiles exploded inside Dar Al-Hadith School, which includes a mosque and an
adjoining accommodation for students, on Sunday night in Al-Amud in Juba
district, south of Marib. Residents said that the casualties included children
and women and the missiles also destroyed some houses in the same area.
The
school is managed by Yahiya Al- Hagouri, a Salafi leader, and is attended by
hundreds of students.
The
Salafis decamped to Juba in 2014 after the Houthis stormed their schools in
Dammaj, in Saada governate, and ordered them to leave the province.
Sunday’s
attack on Al-Amud brings the total number of civilians killed in Houthi missile
attacks in Juba to nearly three dozen in less than a week.
Last
week, a ballistic missile hit the house of Abdul Latif Al-Qibli Namran, a
tribal leader who had incited his tribe to fight off the Houthi attacks on
Marib. The attack killed 13 civilians, including two of Namran’s children, and
wounded many more.
Al-Eryani
accused the Houthis of deliberately targeting densely populated neighborhoods
and religious sites, calling upon the world to shame and name the Houthis for
their crimes.
On
Sunday, Al-Masdar Online, a Yemeni news site, reported that a ballistic missile
fired by the Houthis from a rural area in Sanaa province failed to reach its
target in Marib province and came down on a village in Khawlan district.
Residents
said that the large explosion that caused panic in the village, but there was
no information about human casualties.
On
Oct. 23, dozens of civilians were reportedly killed or wounded in the northern
province of Dhamar when a Houthi ballistic missile failed to reach its target
and ripped through a residential area.
Also
in Marib, fighting between government troops and the Houthis intensified on
Monday and Sunday as the militia pressed for new gains in the province.
The
fighting raged in Juba district as government forces repelled several Houthi
attacks and killed and wounded dozens of rebel fighters, Yemen’s Defense
Ministry said.
The
intensive fighting in Juba has forced hundreds of families to flee toward the
city of Marib.
The
government’s Executive Unit for IDP Camps, said that 54,502 people have been
displaced from homes in Juba, Rahabah and Hareb, Jabal Murad, Serwah and
Al-Abedia since earlier last month when the Houthis escalated their ground
attacks and missile and drone strikes on government-controlled areas south of
Marib.
The
unit said that thousands of families are trapped in areas near the battlefields
as the Houthis blocked roads and barred people from leaving homes.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1959211/middle-east
--------
Israeli
forces detain Palestinian university professor in overnight raids in West Bank
01
November 2021
Israeli
forces have detained 17 Palestinians, including a university lecturer, in a
series of overnight raids across the occupied West Bank.
The
Palestinian official news agency Wafa reported on Monday that the regime forces
abducted Huthayfa Jabari, a professor at al-Khalil University, in southern West
Bank.
Additionally,
a large number of Israeli troops rounded up five Palestinian residents,
including two former prisoners, after storming their houses in the town of
Ni'lin, which is located west of Ramallah. To the north of Ramallah, undercover
Israeli agents infiltrated into the Jalazone refugee camp and kidnapped four
others, including a father and his two sons. Two others were detained during
separate raids in Doha town and the Dheisheh refugee camp, west and south of
Bethlehem, respectively.
In
another incident, soldiers along with military vehicles forced their way into
the Balata refugee camp, east of the city of Nablus, where they detained two
more Palestinians. Separately, Israeli troops forcibly took away two residents
after storming East al-Quds’ Ras al-Amoud and Isawiyya neighborhoods. They also
stormed al-Tur neighborhood in west al- Quds, where they took another
Palestinian into custody.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Palestinians
rights group says Israel implements apartheid regime of discriminatory laws,
policies
01
November 2021
A
prominent Palestinian rights group, which has recently been outlawed by Israel,
says Tel Aviv has been progressively implementing an apartheid regime of
discriminatory laws for decades.
The
Al-Haq human rights organization, which monitors and documents rights
violations committed by the occupying entity, released a 15-page report on
Monday.
The
non-governmental Ramallah-based rights group said since the Nakba Day in 1948,
Israel has evidently “implemented an apartheid regime of discriminatory laws,
policies and practices aimed at institutionalizing and normalizing its
systematic subjugation, domination and exploitation of the Palestinian people
on both sides of the Green Line, as well as Palestinian refugees and exiles
abroad.”
Back
on May 15, 1948, Israel forcibly evicted hundreds of thousands of Palestinians
from their homeland and proclaimed its existence. Palestinians mark this day as
the ‘Nakba Day’ – or the ‘Day of Catastrophe.’
The
so-called Green Line was the demarcation line set out in the 1949 Armistice
Agreements between the Israeli regime and the Arab states of Egypt, Jordan,
Lebanon and Syria after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It served as the de facto
borders of the occupying entity from 1949 until 1967, when the Six-Day War
broke out.
“In
order to maintain its apartheid system, Israel has pursued a policy of
systematic persecution of Palestinian civil society organizations that confront
its apartheid laws, policies and practices. Such acts of persecution have
included various forms of intimidation and institutionalized harassment ranging
from death threats, arbitrary detention, torture and other ill-treatment,
collective punishment, travel bans, residency revocation, deportation, and
Government-led smear campaigns, in an effort to shrink Palestinian civil
society space,” Al-Haq further said in its report.
The
human rights organization is among the six rights and civil-society groups
Israel recently outlawed after calling them "terrorist"
organizations.
On
October 19, Israel’s Minister of Military Affairs Benny Gantz said the ministry
had designated the six civil society groups of Addameer, Al-Haq, Defense for
Children Palestine, the Union of Agricultural Work Committees, Bisan Center for
Research and Development, and the Union of Palestinian Women Committees as
“terrorist organizations.” The military order was only made public three days
later, on October 22.
The
decision will authorize the regime to effectively outlaw the activities of
these civil-society organizations, close their offices, seize their assets, and
also arrest and jail their staff members. Furthermore, Tel Aviv will also
prohibit funding or even publicly expressing support for the groups’
activities.
Israel’s
move has drawn criticism from several human rights watchdogs. The Palestinian
resistance movement Hamas, the Arab League, and several American legislators
have already denounced the decision.
“The
shrinking of the Palestinian civil-society space to altogether discredit their
image, efforts and initiatives, delegitimize and criminalize their actions, and
cut their sources of funding, on both regional and international stages, is
nothing new, but has been accelerating at a worrying pace over the last
decade,” said the report.
The
Israeli regime and its “affiliated entities have continued to orchestrate smear
campaigns, threats and harassment measures against Palestinian organizations
who promote a critical narrative, including of their own Palestinian
leadership, and are involved in issues spanning from the Israeli occupation,
annexation, apartheid and colonization of Palestinian lands, business and
settlement activities, environmental and natural resources, political
prisoners, asylum and refugees to accountability before the International Criminal
Court (ICC),” the Al-Haq report said.
In
July, more than 600 scholars, artists, and intellectuals from over 45 countries
across the world lambasted the Israeli practices against Palestinians, calling
for an immediate end to “Israel’s apartheid regime” in the occupied
territories.
Source:
Press TV
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2021/11/01/669704/Palestine-Israel-al-Haq-apartheid-regime
--------
Southeast Asia
Timah
Whisky Issue Shows Need To Respect Each Other, Says Amanah MP
Minderjeet
Kaur
November
1, 2021
KUALA
LUMPUR: An Amanah MP, discussing the controversy over Timah whisky, said today
that respect for one another was crucial in Malaysia.
Salahuddin
Ayub (PH-Pulai) gave an example of a Muslim not sacrificing a cow in front of
his Hindu neighbour, even though it was the Muslim’s right to sacrifice a cow
at Aidil Adha.
“I
can sacrifice it in front of my house but it would not be right to do so,” he
said, making a point about respect for his neighbour’s religious beliefs.
“It’s
the same with (the name) Timah. We live in a country with Malay Muslims. So, be
sensitive,” he said while debating the 2022 budget at the Dewan Rakyat.
Salahuddin
said there were no restrictions on non-Muslims manufacturing and drinking
liquor “but Malaysian Muslims are sensitive to the name of the whisky”.
During
the debate, domestic trade and consumer affairs minister Alexander Nanta Linggi
interjected, saying that the name was a small issue in Sabah and Sarawak. “The
fact is the name Timah is a reference to tin mining,” he said.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
No
ban yet on ‘sensitive’ brand names, says minister
Nora
Mahpar
November
1, 2021
SEPANG:
The Cabinet has only discussed a possible ban on products with brand names that
may offend sensitivities of certain parties, and the matter has not been
finalised, says Alexander Nanta Linggi.
The
domestic trade and consumer affairs minister said any announcement would be
made on the issue only after the next Cabinet meeting.
“Engagement
sessions are not just for one religion but for all. Some things may be
sensitive to the Dayaks, some things may be sensitive to the Chinese,” said
Linggi.
“If
we want to do it, let’s do it properly,” he said when commenting on the ongoing
controversy over Timah, a local whisky brand.
“We
have to be meticulous in the matter so the rules are fair. We are not in a
hurry,” he added after launching the sale of Covid-19 self-test kits below RM10
at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2.
He
was commenting on a recent statement by environment and water minister Tuan
Ibrahim Tuan Man that the Cabinet had agreed to bar the production of goods
with brand names that can offend the sensitivities of any race or religion.
Speaking
at the PAS Youth assembly last week, Tuan Ibrahim, who is PAS deputy president,
had said: “I have good news to share. The Cabinet has decided that no
manufacturer will be allowed to produce anything (with brand names) that can
cause unrest, especially in the context of race and religion.”
Whisky
makers Winepak subsequently held a meeting with several ministers and
government officials last week, asking for a week’s grace to discuss a change
of name and image with its board of directors and shareholders.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Named
in Pandora Papers, deputy finance minister says company linked to him now
dormant
02
Nov 2021
BY
RADZI RAZAK
KUALA
LUMPUR, Nov 2 — Deputy Finance Minister Yamani Hafez Musa today said the
company linked to him in the Pandora Papers exposé is dormant and he does not
receive any funds from it.
Answering
a question from Hassan Abdul Karim (Pasir Gudang-PH), he said any tax involved
with the British Virgin Island was also paid by him.
“I
am not sure with the numbers mentioned. I would like to take the opportunity to
explain the matter as I am one of those who were named in the Pandora Papers.
“The
company that was mentioned is inactive or dormant and has no funds injection.
All taxes are in the knowledge of [Inland Revenue Board] and had been paid,” he
told Dewan Rakyat during the Question Time today.
Hassan
originally asked about whether the government is considering implementing a
Capital Gains Tax as well as Inheritance Tax to increase the government’s
revenue. He also asked about the Pandora Papers exposé, which claimed that some
1,500 Malaysians brought about RM 1.8 trillion to offshore financial centres.
According
to the Pandora Papers report, Yamani was the director of Great Ocean
Consultants in the British Virgin Islands from 2013 to 2015, alongside his
siblings.
Documents
show that his father, former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman, took over
as sole director in 2015.
The
company held US$310,000 (RM1.2 million) in a Deutsche Bank account before it
was sold the following year to an individual named Mau Kam Wai, who was once an
executive director of investment holdings company Eastland Equity, alongside a
Sabah businessman reportedly close to Musa, Chu Jan Tow.
Source:
Malay Mail
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Africa
International
mediation underway to end Sudan crisis: UN envoy
02
November ,2021
Mediation
efforts in Sudan and abroad are underway to find a possible solution for the
country a week after the civilian government was ousted in a military coup, the
UN envoy to Khartoum said Monday.
“Many
of the interlocutors we are speaking with in Khartoum, but also internationally
and regionally, are expressing a strong desire that we move forward quickly to
get out of the crisis and return to the steps of normalcy,” Volker Perthes told
reporters at the United Nations headquarters in New York, during a video
conference from the Sudanese capital.
The
UN envoy to Sudan met Sunday with ousted Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, who is
under house arrest. Perthes said on Twitter they “discussed options for
mediation and the way forward for Sudan.”
Perthes
on Monday urged Sudan to return “to the steps of political transition, as we
viewed it before 25 October,” the date of the coup.
On
Monday, Hamdok said the reinstatement of his government could pave the way to a
solution in the country, according to a statement from the information
ministry.
Hamdok,
according to the statement, demanded that the situation in Sudan return to what
it was before the coup, refusing to negotiate with the military rulers.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Sudan
leaders' whereabouts unknown after coup: Lawyer
01
November ,2021
A
Sudanese lawyer representing civilian leaders detained in the country's
military coup last week said Monday their whereabouts is unknown and that they
are in a “dangerous legal situation”.
A
week ago, soldiers detained Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok, his ministers and
civilian leaders who had been heading Sudan's democratic transition following
the 2019 overthrow of autocrat Omar al-Bashir.
A
team of lawyers has since come forward to represent them with the backing of
their families.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
“We
went to the criminal investigation prosecution where they were believed to have
been held but we found that they were not there,” said Kamal al-Gizouli, the
lead defence lawyer.
Gizouli
expressed concern about the wellbeing of the detainees and called on those
holding them to reveal their location.
“These
detainees are in the most dangerous legal situation” since nothing was known
about their case nor who was heading the investigation, he added.
A
day after the October 25 coup, Sudan's top general Abdel Fattah al-Burhan
dissolved the cabinet as well as the ruling Sovereign Council of military and
civilian figures.
Hamdok
is currently under effective house arrest, but little is known about the rest
of his cabinet and the members of the council that had been tasked with paving
the way to full civilian rule.
Burhan
had since August 2019 chaired the council, working alongside Hamdok's
government under a power-sharing deal that outlined the post-Bashir transition.
The
arrangement came under strain, however, as splits deepened between the
civilians and the military amid factional infighting.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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10
civilians killed in armed attack in northern Burkina Faso
James
Tasamba
02.11.2021
KIGALI,
Rwanda
Unidentified
gunmen attacked civilians heading to a market in northern Burkina Faso early
Monday, leaving 10 dead and four others missing, a source said.
The
attack took place in the Markoye area of the Sahel reserve, the source from the
Security Ministry, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Anadolu Agency.
There
was no immediate official communication, but the area bordering Mali and Niger
regularly witnesses attacks by terrorists with links to the Daesh/ISIS terrorist
group.
At
least five police officers were killed Sunday in a similar attack in the north
of the country and around 15 “terrorists” were killed in the ensuing clash, the
Security Ministry said.
The
latest attack occurred as Burkina Faso marked the 61st anniversary of its army
with a ceremony focused on the fight against terrorism.
At
the function, President Roch Marc Kabore hinted that the national strategy to
fight terrorism will be rolled out in the coming days.
Noting
that the fight against terrorist will be long and difficult, he called on the
population to be resilient.
"If
we put ourselves in the position of those who spend their time whining, I think
we will not defeat terrorism,” he said.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/10-civilians-killed-in-armed-attack-in-northern-burkina-faso/2409347
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Suspected
militants kill around 10 civilians in Burkina Faso
November
02, 2021
OUAGADOUGOU:
Suspected militants killed around 10 civilians in northern Burkina Faso near
the border with Niger, military and other officials said Tuesday.
“Around
10 civilians were executed” after armed men, likely belonging to the region’s
Daesh branch, attacked residents of Dambam heading to market, a military
official said.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1959776/world
--------
Ethiopia
tried to limit rare UN report on Tigray war abuses
November
02, 2021
NAIROBI,
Kenya: The findings of the only human rights investigation allowed in
Ethiopia’s blockaded Tigray region will be released Wednesday, a year after war
began there. But people with knowledge of the probe say it has been limited by
authorities who recently expelled a UN staffer helping to lead it.
And
yet, with groups such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International barred
from Tigray, along with foreign media, the report may be the world’s only
official source of information on atrocities in the war, which began in
November 2020 after a political falling-out between the Tigray forces that long
dominated the national government and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s current
government. The conflict has been marked by gang rapes, mass expulsions,
deliberate starvation and thousands of deaths.
The
joint investigation by the UN human rights office and the government-created
Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, or EHRC, is a rare collaboration that
immediately raised concerns among ethnic Tigrayans, human rights groups and
other observers about impartiality and government influence.
In
response to questions from The Associated Press, the UN human rights office in
Geneva said it wouldn’t have been able to enter Tigray without the partnership
with the rights commission. Although past joint investigations occurred in
Afghanistan and Uganda, the UN said, “the current one is unique in terms of
magnitude and context.”
But
Ethiopia’s government has given no basis for expelling UN human rights officer
Sonny Onyegbula last month, the UN added, and without an explanation “we cannot
accept the allegation that our staff member ... was ‘meddling in the internal
affairs’ of Ethiopia.”
Because
of those circumstances, and the fact that the UN left the investigation to its
less experienced regional office in Ethiopia, the new report is “automatically
suspect,” said David Crane, founder of the Global Accountability Network and
founding chief prosecutor for the Special Court for Sierra Leone, an
international tribunal.
“What
you need when you go into an atrocity zone is a clean slate so outside
investigators can look into it neutrally, dispassionately,” Crane said. “You
want to do these things where you don’t build doubt, distrust from the
beginning,” including among people interviewed.
The
investigation might be the international community’s only chance to collect
facts on the ground, he said, but because of its setup, it may disappear “in
the sands of time.”
People
close to the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of
retaliation, asserted that the head of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission,
Daniel Bekele, underplayed some allegations that fighters from the country’s
Amhara region were responsible for abuses in Tigray and pressed instead to
highlight abuses by Tigray forces.
That’s
even though witnesses have said the perpetrators of most abuses were soldiers
from neighboring Eritrea, Ethiopian forces and Amhara regional forces.
In
response to AP’s questions, Bekele asserted his commission’s independence,
saying it is “primarily accountable to the people it is created to serve.”
Attempts to influence the investigation, he added, can come from ”many
directions” in such a polarized environment.
Bekele
said he and the commission have consistently cited “serious indications that
all parties involved in the conflict have committed atrocities.”
Observers
say a major shortcoming of the investigation is its failure to visit the scene
of many alleged massacres in Tigray, including the deadliest known one in the
city of Axum, where witnesses told the AP that several hundred people were
killed.
Bekele
said the investigation lacked the support of the Tigray authorities now
administering the region after Tigray forces retook much of the area in June,
about midway through the joint team’s work.
The
UN human rights office, however, said the government’s subsequent severing of
flights and communications from Tigray during the planned investigation period
made it difficult to access key locations, both “logistically and from a
security point of view.”
Even
the interim Tigray authorities hand-picked by Ethiopia’s government to run the
region earlier in the war rejected the joint investigation, its former chief of
staff, Gebremeskel Kassa, told the AP.
“We
informed the international community we wanted an investigation into human
rights but not with the EHRC because we believe this is a tool of the
government,” he said.
The
UN has said Ethiopia’s government had no say in the report’s publication,
though it was given the chance to read the report in advance and to point out
“anything it believes to be incorrect.”
Source:
Arab News
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1959761/world
--------
Europe
Bulgaria
sends soldiers to tackle migrant influx from Turkey
01
November ,2021
Bulgaria
on Monday deployed 350 soldiers to the border with Turkey to help police cope
with the growing influx of migrants, the defense minister announced.
“Soldiers
arrived at the Bulgarian-Turkish border since today to back up the border
police,” Georgi Panayotov told the private bTV channel.
The
350 troops deployed with 40 units of equipment, he added.
This
year has already seen more than 6,500 people cross illegally into Bulgaria,
three times the numbers for the first nine months of 2020, according to the
interior ministry.
The
east European country sits on one of the main routes migrants use to enter the
EU from the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Bulgaria
is an external border for the European Union. A partly damaged barbed-wire
fence runs the length of the 259-kilometre (161-mile) frontier with Turkey.
Parliament
agreed in August on the dispatch of 400-700 soldiers on the borders with Greece
and Turkey, mainly to help build fencing.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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--------
Germany
had turned blind eye to neo-Nazi terror: Interior minister
Ayhan
Şimşek
01.11.2021
BERLIN
Germany’s
interior minister on Monday admitted that authorities made serious mistakes
while investigating a killing spree that targeted eight Turkish immigrants
between 2000 and 2007.
“We
realized only too late that all these murders were carried out by a right-wing
terror cell,” Horst Seehofer said in an interview with German news agency DPA.
“We
were blind in the right eye for too long,” the conservative politician said,
adding that one should acknowledge this bitter fact, “even if it hurts” today.
The
far-right National Socialist Underground (NSU) terror group killed eight
Turkish immigrants, one Greek citizen, and a German policewoman during a crime
spree that lasted until 2011.
For
many years, Germany’s police and intelligence services ruled out any neo-Nazi
motive for the murders and instead treated immigrant families as suspects, questioning
them over alleged connections with mafia groups and drug traffickers.
The
German public first learned of the NSU’s existence and its role in the murders
on Nov. 4, 2011, when two members of the group reportedly committed suicide
after an unsuccessful bank robbery. The police found evidence in their
apartment, showing that they were behind the murders.
The
scandal sparked a debate in Germany about institutional racism and increased
pressure on the country's security and intelligence organizations, which have
long been criticized for underestimating the far-right threat.
Seehofer
said German authorities drew lessons from the failures of the past, carried out
administrative reforms, and strengthened the capacities of security agencies in
the fight against right-wing extremism.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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--------
UK
to sell naval ships to Egypt for first time in 30 years
30
October 2021
The
UK government has planned to conclude an agreement with Egypt for the sale of
two ex-Royal Fleet Auxiliary solid stores ships for the first time in more than
30 years, a deal criticized by human rights groups.
In
a statement on Friday, the UK Ministry of Defense (MoD) said it had signed a
“landmark deal” to sell two Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships (RFA) - Fort Austin and
Fort Rosalie - to Egypt, a move which they said could “support UK jobs,”
The
statement described the sale as the “first military vessel deal with Egypt in
more than three decades” and added that negotiations were underway for a
“refurbishment contract.”
Ex-RFA
Fort Rosalie and ex-RFA Fort Austin, both more than 40 years old, were released
from service earlier this year. Egypt has entered negotiations with ship repair
group Cammell Laird for the regeneration and refit of the two ships – both laid
up in Bidston docks, Birkenhead – prior to delivery.
Both
Royal Navy Solid Support ships have two flight decks, which means as well as
traditional replenishment at sea they are also able to use helicopters to
offload supplies, according to a statement published on the Defense Equipment
and Support website affiliated with UK Defense Ministry.
The
sale has been criticized by activists, who have voiced concerns about the
Egyptian government’s human rights record and criticized international powers
turning a blind eye to a major crackdown launched by President Abdel Fattah
el-Sisi.
Samuel
Perlo-Freeman, a research coordinator with Campaign Against the Arms Trade
(CAAT), said, “Supplying such major military equipment, treating the Egyptian
military as a valued partner, provides the regime a seal of approval and
legitimacy, while disheartening opposition. Once again the UK places industry
interests and geopolitics over human rights.”
The
Egyptian president has faced international condemnation for a crackdown on
civil society groups since he took power in June 2014, one year after he led
the military to oust President Mohamed Morsi in a coup. He served as the
defense minister in Morsi’s government before orchestrating the coup.
Human
rights groups and activists have constantly accused Sisi of violating public
freedoms and suppressing opponents. According to rights groups, an estimated
60,000 political prisoners are being held in Egyptian jails.
Source:
Press TV
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2021/10/30/669540/Egypt-buys-secondhand-ship-Uk
--------
France
shuts down Allonnes mosque, plans to close 7 more: Darmanin
OCT
27, 2021
France
announced on Tuesday its plans to close seven more mosques and associations
across the country by the end of 2021 on the pretext of "radicalism"
as part of its Islamophobic campaign against the country's Muslim population.
French
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said in a statement on Tuesday that the
mosque in the city of Allonnes in northwestern France has been shut down for
six months on grounds of harboring "radical Islam" leanings. He said
the bank accounts of the mosque's administrators were also seized.
"The
sermons propagated in this mosque cultivating hatred toward France,"
Darmanin wrote on Twitter, defending the closure. He added that seven
associations or religious buildings will be "disbanded by the end of the
year." The minister also bragged about the fact that some 13 associations
have been closed since President Emmanuel Macron took office in Elysee Palace.
Underlining
that 92 of the 2,500 mosques in the country were closed as a result of the
inspections, Darmanin also said that since September 2020, residence permits of
36,000 foreigners have been canceled due to the "threat to the
public."
In
the statement made by the Sarthe Governorate on Oct. 25, it was stated that the
mosque with a congregation of 300 people in Allonnes was closed for six months
on the grounds that it "defended radical Islam." The decision was
part of the anti-Muslim campaign that has been criticized worldwide by
international human rights organizations as well as global leaders,
particularly in Muslim-majority countries.
In
August, France's highest constitutional authority approved a controversial law
that was introduced by Macron's La Republique en Marche (LREM) party in
October. The bill was passed by the National Assembly despite opposition from
French lawmakers and French Muslims.
Anti-Muslim
hatred has significantly risen in Europe in recent years. Far-right extremism
and xenophobia have fueled Islamaphobia in Western countries, where terrorist
attacks by Daesh and al-Qaida as well as a migrant crisis are used as excuses
to legitimize those views. France with the largest Muslim minority in Europe,
estimated at 5 million or more out of a population of 67 million, took the helm
of Islamophobic efforts to silence members of the minority, who denounced
Macron for trying to galvanize far-right citizens to vote for him in 2022 April
presidential elections.
Macron's
anti-Muslim rhetoric sparked a wave of anti-Muslim feelings among far-right
groups. The number of Islamophobic incidents in France rose sharply last year.
According to the National Observatory of Islamophobia, there were 235 attacks
on Muslims in France in 2020, up from 154 the previous year, a 53% jump. Most
of the attacks took place in the Ile-de-France (greater Paris), Rhones-Alpes
and Paca regions of the country. Attacks on mosques jumped 35% in the same
year. A global coalition of 25 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) asked the
European Commission to investigate France for its state-sponsored support of
Islamophobia.
Source:
Daily Sabah
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