Former Vice-President Hamid Ansari Under Fire For 'Division Through Cultural Nationalism' Remark At Overseas Forum
New
Age Islam News Bureau
28
January 2022
India's
Former Vice-President Hamid Ansari/ Photo:TOI
----
• Jewish,
Muslim And Christian Global Leaders Mark Holocaust Remembrance Day, Vow To
Fight Anti-Semitism
• Global
Imam Council, NGO Of Muslims Fooled By Anti-China World Uyghur Congress To Call
For 'Boycott' Of Beijing Games
• Israeli
Rabbi Takes Shelter, Prays Along Muslims In Mosque During Istanbul Snowstorm
• Mali’s
Junta Urges French Defence Minister To Keep Silent
India
• Kerala
HC Acquits Two Alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba Operative, Convicted By The NIA Court In
2011 In Kozhikode Twin Blasts Case
• No
Hijab With Student Police Cadets Uniform: Kerala Government
• Soon
Pilgrims Can Relish Organic Langar At Kartarpur Sahib, Can Take Home Produce
From Baba Nanak’s Fields
• Hindus,
Sikhs Pray For Departed Muslim Woman In Mohali Temple
• Foreign
Hand In Hijab Row: Karnataka Minister
• MVA,
BJP Spar Over Bid To Name Mumbai Garden After Tipu Sultan
• Vote
Hamara, Raj Tumhara Will Not Work, Declares Dalit-Muslim, SC, ST Forum
--------
North America
• Five
Years After Quebec Mosque Shooting, Everyday Islamophobia Continues To Have
Long-Term Impact On Muslims
• US,
Europe urge Taliban to do more to gain acceptance
• US
calls on Ethiopia to release all those detained under state of emergency
• US
must urge wary banks to help save Afghan lives: aid group
--------
Southeast Asia
• China
Agrees To Xinjiang Visit By UN Rights Chief In Early 2022: Report
• Indonesian
regulator takes cue from Islamic NGOs, bars crypto sales for institutions
--------
Mideast
• UN
urged to open inquiry into Iran’s 1988 killings and Raisi role
• Iranian
President Calls for New Chapter in Relations with India
• Iran
Blasts Canada, West for Politicizing Human Rights
• Envoy:
Iran Losing Ability to Support Afghan Refugees due to US Sanctions
• Iran
Raps British FM's "Irresponsible" Remarks
• Five
killed, 34 injured in Iran-backed Houthi missile strike in Marib: State media
• Iran’s
state broadcaster says it was hacked for 10 seconds
• Israel
bars entry of warm clothes into unheated cells of Palestinian detainees
--------
Africa
• More
than 15,000 people displaced in new Darfur violence, UN says
• ISIS
attack in Libya kills three security personnel: Interior ministry
• 15
million people face displacement, violence in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso: UN
• Tunisian
speaker flays president for freezing parliament, offers inclusive national
dialogue
--------
Arab World
• UAE
Vows Not To Let Houthi Threat Be A ‘New Normal’
• Dozens
Of Islamic State Fighters Remain Holed Up In Corner Of Syrian Prison
• Dar
al-Fatwa: No One Can Claim Guardianship over Any Community
• Fighting
resumes at Islamic State prison in Syria
• Qatar
diplomat visits Iran as Tehran and Washington consider direct nuclear talks
• Arab
Coalition strikes kill 190 Houthi ‘terrorists’ in 44 targeted attacks
• UAE,
Bahrain, Egypt leaders’ summit discusses regional, international developments
• Two
years of stalemate show a military solution in Syria is an illusion, says UN
envoy
--------
Pakistan
• Pakistan
‘Not Completely Optimistic’ Of Taliban Govt In Kabul: NSA
• Pakistan
Rangers, India’s BSF Exchange Sweets At Wagah Border
• 10
soldiers martyred in terrorist attack on checkpost in Balochistan's Kech: ISPR
• Fighting
TTP and mistrust, Pakistan marks one year polio-free
• Terrorists
kill guard, abduct company official in oil well attack in Hangu
• Altaf
Hussain to stand trial for three weeks in hate speech case
--------
South Asia
• Intl
Community Yet to Define 'Inclusive Govt': Islamic Emirate
• Afghanistan
Tops 2021 Global Survey of Islamic State Casualties
• In
freezing Afghanistan, aid workers rush to save millions
• Books
about Ottoman Empire enthral Bangladeshi readers
• Haunted
By Holocaust, Israeli Group Helps Afghans Fleeing Taliban
• Taliban
govt ‘frustrates ‘Pakistan
• Afghanistan
tops agenda of India’s first Central Asia summit
--------
Europe
• Russia
Revises Expectations On Clinching Iran Nuclear Deal
• Muslim
man who ended London knifeman’s fatal attack on ex-wife appeals for release
• Kyrgyz-Tajik
border guards clash again as ceasefire flops
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
--------
Former
Vice-President Hamid Ansari Under Fire For 'Division Through Cultural
Nationalism' Remark At Overseas Forum
India's
Former Vice-President Hamid Ansari/ Photo:TOI
----
Jan
27, 2022
NEW
DELHI: Former Vice-President Hamid Ansari's remark on the "emergence of
cultural nationalism in India" has evoked strong rebuttal from several
parties including the ruling BJP.
Participating
in a virtual panel discussion organised by Indian American Muslim Council,
Ansari had said: "In recent years, we have experienced the emergence of
trends and practices that dispute the well-established principle of civic
nationalism and interpose a new and imaginary practice of cultural nationalism
... it wants to distinguish citizens on the basis of their faith, give vent to
intolerance, insinuate otherness, and promote disquiet and insecurity."
BJP
leader and Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi strongly condemned the remarks
made by the former vice-president.
"It
is unfortunate that when the country was celebrating Republic Day, a person who
once occupied important constitutional position was on a platform that works
against India and leaves no attempt to defame the country," Naqvi said.
"It
would have been better if instead of sharing knowledge about the plight of
minorities in India, he would have spoken about the kind of abuse the
minorities face in the country which sponsors the IAMC," he said referring
to Pakistan without naming it.
"It
is for this reason that the people of the country have stopped taking people
like him seriously," he added.
BJP
leader Shahnawaz Hussain also reacted strongly to Ansari's veiled criticism of
the Centre.
Hussain
asserted that for Muslims of the country, "there could be no better nation
than India, no better leader than Narendra Modi and no better friend than the
Hindus".
The
BJP leader was of the view that Ansari should not have agreed to join the
online event organised by Indian American Muslim Council "which is known
for anti-India propaganda."
"Even
as vice-president, Ansari had stirred controversies for which people of the
country have not forgiven him," he added without elaborating.
The
Bahujan Samaj Party expressed disagreement with Hamid Ansari's statement. Party
spokesperson Sudhindra Bhadoria said people of India believe in 'Sarvadharma
Sambhav'.
"Some
individuals or groups do not represent the whole country; Hamid Ansari should
clarify what he wants to say by saying such a thing near crucial assembly
elections," he said.
The
BSP spokesperson further said that "for a person who has held such an
important Constitutional post as the country's Vice-President, Ansari should
also read the history of the nation and see that the people here believe in the
idea of 'Sarvadharma Sambhav' since thousands of years."
Vishwa
Hindu Parishad (VHP) joint general secretary Surendra Jain also hit out at
Hamid Ansari saying his statement that there is an atmosphere of intolerance
and insecurity for Muslims in the country is extremely "unfortunate"
and "condemnable".
"I
want to ask him that is there a Muslim majority country where Muslims are
living in peace? Are Shias, Ahmadiya Muslims living in peace in Pakistan? What
is the situation inside Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq? Do they have a model where
Muslim society is able to live in peace? " the VHP leader asked.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Jewish,
Muslim And Christian Global Leaders Mark Holocaust Remembrance Day, Vow To
Fight Anti-Semitism
President
Reuven Rivlin of Israel, centre, with heads of state during a dinner reception
at his official residence in Jerusalem on Wednesday.Credit...Pool photo by
Heidi Levine
-----
January 27, 2022
A
webinar with leaders from the Gulf region, Indonesia, Israel and the United
States commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day and highlighted the
need to take global action against anti-Semitism.
The
webinar was hosted by the Simon Wiesenthal Center in partnership with The King
Hamad Global Centre for Peaceful Coexistence, located in Manama, Bahrain.
Those
who participated in the webinar included Israel’s President Isaac Herzog;
former Israeli Chief Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau, who is also a child Holocaust
survivor; and Reverend Johnnie Moore, leading American Evangelical pastor and
former member of the U.S. Commission for Religious Freedom.
During
his remarks, former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo emphasized that “there
are too many leaders around the world, even in Europe, who are more than happy
to honor the memory of dead Jews without working diligently to protect, respect
and honor those Jews who are alive today.”
“From
the ovens of Auschwitz and the rubble of two world wars, there emerged a
broad-based aspiration to establish a new world order, founded upon the highest
civilizational and humanitarian ideals,” said Kyai Haji Yahya Cholil Staquf,
general chairman of Indonesia’s 90 million-member Nahdlatul Ulama, the largest
Islamic organization in the world.
He
added, “We do not have time to wait for anger, hatred and a collective yearning
for revenge to subside. Our actions will determine what kind of world our
children and grandchildren inherit.”
Rev.
Moore said the only way to combat anti-Semitism is “through real deliberate
action” while Betsy Mathieson, deputy director of the King Hamad Global Centre
for Peaceful Coexistence, discussed how anti-Semitism “is an attack on
religious freedom for every faith in the world.”
She
said, “We join the world today in asking everyone to fight this horror, this
evil, by sharing educational programs, by teaching the lessons of the Holocaust
so that this is never repeated.”
Source:
JNS
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.jns.org/world-leaders-discuss-holocaust-remembrance-anti-semitism-in-webinar/
--------
Global
Imam Council, NGO Of Muslims Fooled By Anti-China World Uyghur Congress To Call
For 'Boycott' Of Beijing Games
Beijing
Games 2022
----
By
Zhou Zhou
Jan
28, 2022
The
Global Imam Council, which claims to be the world's first and largest
transitional nongovernmental body of Muslim religious leaders, was fooled by
the World Uyghur Congress (WUC), a US-backed separatist group which seeks the
fall of the Chinese government, to issue a statement calling for a boycott of
the Beijing Winter Olympics under the instigation of the WUC's head,
arabiaanews.com.iq reported on Thursday.
The
Global Imam Council in December released a statement calling on Muslims to
refrain from participating in the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, citing such
fallacious reasons as China's "human rights violations" on Uygur
population. In the last sentence of the statement, it extended "gratitude
to many faith leaders" and religious organizations that "have
expressed their support to Muslims during their calamities," and, with the
abbreviation "Cc" ahead, the statement listed a number of Islamic
religious leaders from Russia, Egypt and other countries.
A
journalist from arabiaanews.com.iq recently headed to the Global Imam Council's
office, which is located in Najaf, Iraq, where the journalist interviewed the
organization's president, Imam Baqir al-Budairi, to learn about the reasons for
issuing such a statement, according to a report from arabiaanews.com.iq
released Thursday.
The
president said the council did not want to boycott Beijing Olympics in the
first place, but it came at the instigation of president of WUC Dolkun Issa,
who claimed that the issuance of the boycott statement was to support minority
Uygurs and Chinese Muslims who "suffer from abuse." Dolkun also
claimed that this statement was supported by the imams listed in the statement,
including Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed Mohamed Ahmed El-Tayeb and Grand Mufti
of Russia Sheikh Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad.
The
WUC is an anti-China separatist organization that has spread disinformation
about China's Xinjiang, advocated for religious extremism, and incited
terrorist and separatist activities. Dolkun Isa, head of the WUC, is a
terrorist identified by the Chinese government and is suspected of committing a
series of violent, terrorist and criminal acts.
After
the Council released the "boycott" statement, many bodies listed in
the statement issued declarations denying their relation with the document. For
example, Russia Muftis Council released a statement saying that the document of
the Global Imam Council, which states that it was signed by Mufti Sheikh and
the Grand Muftis of a number of other countries, "is a blatant lie and
does not correspond to reality."
After
being questioned by Islamic leaders, the Council later released a statement on
January 4, claiming that it "Cc's esteemed Imams and Grand Muftis for
their attention" and Cc - which means "Carbon Copy" - had been
misinterpreted as an "official signature of these imams," which the
Council needs to clarify.
The
president of Global Imam Council told the journalist of arabiaanews.com.iq that
he believes that sports should be peaceful and not be mixed with politics. He
personally loves sports very much and hopes to have the opportunity to attend
the Beijing Olympics. Regarding the false statement to boycott it, al-Budairi
told the reporter that he is ready to issue another statement to make clear his
support for the Beijing Olympics.
A
statement posted by the Global Imam Council on January 24 with the signature of
its president says that, "The Global Imams Council affirms Islam's
position in support of sports, and that Islamic jurisprudence and the history
of the Prophet's life, peace be upon him and his progeny, do not oppose sports
activities. This Council stresses the importance of sports and good health, as
they may contribute to the process of achieving peace and coexistence."
Al-Budairi
was also cited by the news portal as saying that the council was established in
Baghdad, Iraq, and it rented an office with an area of 25 square meters
opposite the Najaf Hotel in the city of Najaf, Iraq, and the website was
registered in 2020 in the state of Massachusetts, in the US. The council is
still at the beginning of its development and has not received any financial
support except the support from Dolkun Issa.
"The
Council's recent series of actions is nothing but a farce managed and
represented by the World Uyghur Congress and Dolkun Issa behind the scenes…
Using the World Uyghur Congress, the World Islamic Council of Religious
Scholars, to boycott it as an opportunity to raise the issue of Xinjiang in
China, will be very unpopular. The issue regarding Xinjiang in China is not
related to issues of ethnicity, religion or human rights, but rather to issues
of anti-terror, separatism and de-radicalization," said the report by
arabiaanews.com.iq.
Source:
Global Time
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202201/1250145.shtml
--------
Israeli
Rabbi Takes Shelter, Prays Along Muslims In Mosque During Istanbul Snowstorm
Rabbi
Israel Elbaum speaking to Turkish media at Istanbul Airport before his THY
fight back to Tel Aviv, Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 27, 2022. (AA Photo)
----
Mehmet
Kara
27.01.2022
ISTANBUL
Turkiye's
largest city was hit by a heavy snowstorm earlier this week, and among the
hundreds stranded was an Israeli rabbi who took shelter at a mosque.
Rabbi
Israel Elbaum was in Istanbul as part of his job as a controller for kosher
food, checking if companies abide by the requirements of Jewish law, similar to
Muslim halal standards.
The
62-year-old rabbi set out to catch his plane after finishing his work on
Tuesday, but was stranded on the road as heavy snowfall caused traffic
disruptions and the city's mega-airport was closed.
Elbaum,
who had to wait in the car from 3 p.m. local time (1200 GMT) till 2 a.m. (2300
GMT) the next day, was first taken to a police station and later to the Ali
Kuscu Mosque near Istanbul Airport by Turkish troops.
Speaking
to Anadolu Agency in Istanbul, Elbaum recalled his overnight experience in the
mosque, where he, along with many others, arrived at 4 a.m. (0100 GMT).
“It
was so cold ... I had to take out my shoes as other people do,” he said. “The
carpet was warm ... people gazed a bit because I look different, but did not
say anything and were smiling. It was very nice.”
When
he saw other people sleeping, he also took a nap. He later offered the
Shacharit morning prayers along with Muslim worshipers.
“We
are praying to the same God, so, I think it is not a problem,” he said. “We are
praying for the same God, we are children of the God. And (It is) nice ...
being together, praying together, dancing and smiling together.”
The
story was also shared by Istanbul-based Rabbi Mendy Chitrik, chairman of the
Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States.
“My
friend Rabbi Elbaum was also at the E-5 traffic pile-up in #Istanbul - he took
it in good spirits,” he tweeted. “Hundreds of travelers are stranded all over
the country - due to the heavy snow storm. I keep on getting calls to supply
Kosher food from Antalya and Ankara to Trabzon,” he added, sharing a video of
Elbaum on the back seat of the car he was traveling in.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
Mali’s
Junta Urges French Defence Minister To Keep Silent
A
video grab of junta spokesman Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, Bamako, Mali, January
27, 2022. (AFP)
-----
27
January ,2022
Mali’s
junta has advised French Defense Minister Florence Parly to observe the
“greatness of silence” after she accused the army leadership in the Sahel state
of provocations.
In an
interview broadcast on state TV on Wednesday night, junta spokesman Colonel
Abdoulaye Maiga also accused France of “colonial reflexes” and of using
regional organizations to divide Malians.
Relations
between Mali’s ruling military and France, the former colonial power, have
frayed since the army seized power in a coup in August 2020.
But
tensions have risen further since December, when the West Africa bloc ECOWAS
imposed sanctions, including a trade embargo and border closures, on the
conflict-torn nation.
The
measures from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) were a
response to a junta proposal to stay in power for up to five years before
staging elections – despite an earlier commitment to hold the vote in February.
On
Tuesday, Parly accused Mali’s junta of multiplying “provocations” after it
asked Danish special forces operating in the country to withdraw.
Maiga
responded the following day by saying that Parly should heed the 19th-century
French poet Alfred de Vigny’s verses on the “greatness of silence.”
The
spokesman was making an apparent reference to Vigny’s poem “La Mort du Loup”
(The Death of the Wolf), which contains the line: “Only silence is great; all
the rest is weakness.”
“When
people desperately try to isolate Mali by manipulating sub-regional
organizations, one ends up asking who is doing the provoking,” Maiga continued,
referring to the ECOWAS sanctions.
The
junta spokesman also repeated a demand that Denmark withdraw its troops, which
have arrived in Mali to join the French-led Takuba force of European special
forces.
The
Danish contingent arrived in Mali earlier this month, but the junta has said it
had never signed off on their joining Takuba.
Mali
has been struggling to quell a brutal jihadist conflict that first emerged in
2012, before spreading to neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger.
France
has thousands of troops in Mali and neighboring Sahel countries as part of an
anti-jihadist force.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the text of the original story:
--------
India
Kerala
HC Acquits Two Alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba Operative, Convicted By The NIA Court In
2011 In Kozhikode Twin Blasts Case
27th
January 2022
Kochi:
In a setback to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the Kerala High Court
on Thursday acquitted alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative Thadiyantevida
Nazeer and Shafas, convicted by the NIA court here in 2011 in connection with
the 2006 Kozhikode twin blasts case.
The
court allowed the appeal filed by first accused Nazeer and fourth accused
Shafas against the life imprisonment sentence awarded by the NIA special court.
A
Division Bench, comprising Justices K Vinod Chandran and Ziyad Rahman, also
declined the appeal filed by the NIA challenging the NIA court’s order
acquitting two other accused in the case–Abdul Halim and Abubacker Yusuf.
Nazeer
and the other accused were charged with conspiring, planning and executing the
bomb blasts in Kozhikode KSRTC and mofussil bus stands on March 3, 2006.
The
Special Court for NIA Cases had found both Nazeer and Shafas guilty of the
offences under various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967
(UAPA) and they were sentenced to imprisonment for life.
In
its order, the high court said there is no reliable evidence on the preparation
or commission of the crime that would incriminate the accused beyond reasonable
doubt.
“We
do understand the inherent difficulty of an investigation, in a case taken over
by the NIA, almost four years after the incident. The Investigating Officers
were groping in the dark for almost four years, till the arrest of third
accused (A3) in another blast case,” the Court observed.
The
court said it has dealt with each of the evidence tendered including the
approver’s deposition as also the disclosure statements and the evidence of
other witnesses to find that the case against A1 to A4 was not proved beyond
reasonable doubt.
“The
Investigators, we cannot but say, did not make a concerted effort to ‘go out in
the sun’ to collect independent evidence of whatever version the accused told
them….”
“In
their anxiety to wrap up the case; we say anxiety since we do not think the
Officers of the NIA would be ignorant of the law on the subject, they even
recorded the confessions made by the accused, clearly inadmissible under
Section 25 & 26 of the Evidence Act,” the court ruled.
Source:
Siasat Daily
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/kerala-hc-acquits-two-muslim-men-in-kozhikode-twin-blasts-case-2265520/
--------
No
Hijab With Student Police Cadets Uniform: Kerala Government
Jan
28, 2022
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
The state government has dismissed the demand of a Muslim girl student that she
be allowed to wear hijab (head scarf) along with the uniform of student police
cadets (SPC), a volunteer force operated by the state police among the
schoolchildren.
While
dismissing the petition based on a directive from the high court, the
government has cited that uniforms should ensure the dignity of dress code of
police force and is envisioned so that children can work towards gender justice
and non-racial and non-religious discrimination among children. "Combining
religious matters with uniforms in the present situation would raise the same
demands in other similarly functioning forces, which would question the
discipline and secular survival of the forces," the order issued by the
joint secretary of the home department said.
The
petitioner, Riza Nahan, a Class VIII student of GHSS, Kuttiyadi, contended that
the existing dress code relating to the SPC project is not in accordance with
the religious beliefs of the Muslim community and therefore, should be allowed
to wear cadet uniforms in accordance with their community customs. The
petitioner also argued that according to their beliefs, it is a religious
obligation to wear hijab and full sleeve dress and is also her fundamental
right, provided as per article 25 (1) of the Constitution. The petitioner
stated that it is a denial of justice if she is prohibited from wearing the
uniform with full sleeves and a hijab in a manner that does not infringe on the
discipline of the SPC project or the rights of others.
However,
the police argued that the SPC project was launched with an aim to train high
school students to evolve as future leaders of a democratic society by
inculcating within them respect for the law, discipline, civic sense, empathy
for vulnerable sections of society and resistance to social evils. "It
also aims to create a society which respects and strongly believes in rule of
law, to create a generation which places nation above all differences to become
a constructive platform between police and students and act as a feeder
organization for Kerala Police. As such, it was decided to have a similar
training programme and uniform of the police for the SPC project. In Kerala
Police, all police personnel are wearing the same uniform and no religious
symbols are permitted in the uniform. The same system is being followed for SPC
also," the police said.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Soon
pilgrims can relish organic langar at Kartarpur Sahib, can take home produce
from Baba Nanak’s fields
Yudhvir
Rana
Jan
28, 2022
AMRITSAR:
Soon the visitors to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Kartarpur Sahib, will have langars
prepared with organic farm produces. Not just this, they can also bring home
some of the produces grown in the “fields of Baba Nanak” with them as prasad.
This
as the Project Management Unit (PMU) of Kartarpur Corridor on Thursday began
organic cultivation of vegetables and other crops in the “fields of Guru Nanak”
for the langar service of Gurdwara Darbar Sahib.
A
total of 64 acres of land, which Sikh’s first master Guru Nanak Dev used to
till, will be used for growing organic and chemical-free vegetables and other
farm produces. The farming process began on Thursday with the chanting of
ardas, said the chief executive officer (CEO), PMU, Muhammad Latif.
“For
now we have planted vegetables, which will be followed by sunflower, paddy and
wheat. Seasonal vegetables will be a permanent feature for the langar of
Gurdwara Darbar Sahib. The Sangat would also be allowed to take the produce of
Baba Nanak’s fields with them as prashad,” he said.
The
CEO also said that a dedicated fruit tree garden was also being planned, for
which the PMU had begun preparations like levelling of fields.
Latif
further said that they had also begun preparations for the Jashan-e-Baharan,
first spring festival since the opening of the Kartapur Corridor.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Hindus,
Sikhs pray for departed Muslim woman in Mohali temple
Shariq
Majeed
Jan
26, 2022
LUDHIANA:
Not only Fateh Khwani (memorial service) of a Muslim woman was held in a Satya
Narayan Temple at a Mohali village on Tuesday but also members of all faiths
attended her Dua-e-Magfirat (prayers for salvation) in the spirit of communal
harmony.
Appreciating
the Hindu community's gesture, Muslim Maha Sabha Punjab joint secretary Dilbar
Khan said: "My mother, Bibi Naseebo, died in her eighties on January 18
and was buried in the graveyard of Mohali's Mataur village. We held Quran
Khawani (recitation of Quran) at the local mosque but the weather turned foul.
Thankfully, we could move Dua-e-Magfirat to the temple."
"Not
only Muslims but also Sikh and Hindu brothers joined us in praying for peace to
the departed soul. This is a great example of communal harmony. We have good
relations with Sikhs and Hindus," said Dilbar Khan, a contractor. He lost
his father in 1999. Those who attended Fateh Khwani said it was a human duty to
pray for the departed. Muslim Maha Sabha Punjab president Sitar Muhammad Libra
of Ludhiana's Libra village said: "The gathering was kept small because of
Covid protocol."
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Foreign
hand in hijab row: Karnataka minister
Jan
28, 2022
UDIPI/BENGALURU:
Muslim students at Government PU College for Girls in Karnataka’s Udupi have
said a proposal to hold online classes for those who want to wear the hijab is
not acceptable to them.
MLA K
Raghupati Bhat had said on Wednesday that students not wanting to give up hijab
during class hours at the college can opt for online classes. The MLA,
president of the college betterment committee, had promised that the college
will hold online classes for such students. However, the students said they
wanted to attend offline classes wearing the hijab.
An
agency report said that education minister B C Nagesh and Bhat on Thursday
termed the incident an “international conspiracy”.
The
minister questioned as to why “such problems arise only in a few pockets of the
country? The forces against the nation are behind this”.
Students,
who were not allowed to attend classes wearing the hijab for nearly a month,
told reporters that the “hijab is our constitutional right. We will go to
college wearing the hijab. We do not want online classes. If we are denied our
rights in a government college, how can we expect it in other colleges? Science
students among us will not be able to attend lab hours if we are allowed to do
only online classes”. When told that there were other Muslim students attending
classes without the hijab, girls said they were doing so as they were afraid.
“They have expressed their moral support to us. The hijab is as important as
education for us,” a student said.
Source:
Times Of India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
MVA,
BJP spar over bid to name Mumbai garden after Tipu Sultan
Jan
28, 2022
MUMBAI:
Amid BJP’s opposition to the alleged move of “naming” a renovated garden here
after Tipu Sultan, Maharashtra Congress on Thursday claimed that even President
Ram Nath Kovind had praised the 18th century Mysore ruler in the Karnataka
Assembly in 2017.
The
BJP had on Wednesday held protests, alleging that the renovated garden has been
named after Tipu Sultan. It objected to the name, claiming that Sultan had
persecuted Hindus and hence his name was unacceptable for a public facility.
However, Maharashtra minister Aslam Shaikh who inaugurated new facilities at
the garden in suburban Malvani, had said that it always bore the name of Tipu
Sultan, and that there was no fresh nomenclature.
Countering
BJP’s allegations, Maharashtra Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant
said,“...It is BJP’s deformed politics to bring religion to portray historical
figures and to spew venom of hatred and polarisation.” “Netaji Subhas Chandra
Bose, whose hologram was inaugurated by PM, had called Tipu as a martyr and his
Mysore tiger was made part of his Azad Hind Sena's flag as well as figured on
its uniform,” Sawant said.
NCP
chief spokesperson and state cabinet minister Nawab Malik said, “Tipu Sultan
never surrendered before the British and he martyred in the battle against the
invaders...”
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Vote
Hamara, Raj Tumhara Will Not Work, Declares Dalit-Muslim, SC, ST Forum
27th
January 2022
Hyderabad:
The 73rd Republic Day anniversary saw Dalits, Muslims, SCs and STs demanding
their share in the fruits of democracy. They asked for socio-economic and
political justice declaring ‘Vote Hamara Aur Raj Tumhara’ will not work any
longer.
Under
the banner of the All India Dalit Muslim Adivasi Progressive Front (AIDMAPF),
marginalised sections from different parts of the State gathered here on
Wednesday to demand proportional representation in the legislative bodies and
other government institutions. They appealed to members of these communities to
come together on a common platform to realise their dream of justice and
equality.
Former
IPS officer, R.S. Praveen, was supposed to be the chief guest at the programme.
But he didn’t turn up as he got delayed at another function in Sangareddy.
Nonetheless, other leaders explained the way Praveen had sacrificed his plump
post to steer the Dalit-Bahujan struggle for justice and fair play.
They
condemned the BJP government’s move to convert India into a Hindu Rashtra and
demanded the idea to be dropped immediately as any such decision would result
in disintegration of the country. They criticised the TRS government for not
delivering on the promise of social justice and equality to the Dalits,
Muslims, SCs and STs who constituted 40 percent of the population.
A.M.
Shoeb, founder AIDMAPF, said the organisation was apolitical in nature. Its
main purpose was to create awareness among Dalits, Muslims, SCs and STs so that
they come together to realise their dream of attaining socio-economic and
political power. The most backward among the BCs were also being roped in to
make it a strong force. “Our fight is not against any party. We want our due
share in power in proportion to our population,” Shoeb said.
Amidst
slogans of ‘Jai Bheem-Jai Meem’, the meeting condemned attempts to change the
Constitution and to privatise public sector units in the country. Through a
resolution the meeting demanded a halt to the persecution of the minorities,
SCs and STs.
Kumar
of Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation (BAMCEF) said no
single caste could rule the country in a democracy. But in India the Brahmins,
who were mere 3 percent, dominated Parliament, judiciary, bureaucracy and
media. This ought to change and people of different communities should be given
representation in proportion to their population in all walks of life. This was
the only way the society could be reshaped. He demanded banning of EVMs in the
elections as there was a possibility of misusing them. In fact the Supreme
Court itself had expressed apprehensions about the EVMs, Kumar said.
Source:
Siasat Daily
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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North America
Five
years after Quebec mosque shooting, everyday Islamophobia continues to have
long-term impact on Muslims
By
Reyhana Patel
Jan.
27, 2022
Every
year on the anniversary of the Quebec City mosque shooting, I am reminded of my
visits with the families of the six victims who continue to endure the
consequences of deeply rooted hatred for Muslims. It’s important as we approach
Jan. 29 — the National Day of Remembrance and Action Against Islamophobia —
their stories continue to be heard, and that, as a society, we work together to
make this form of racism as unacceptable as any other.
The
need continues to be urgent, with last year’s violent attack in London, Ont.
that killed four family members and left a 9-year-old survivor.
That’s
why our team here at Islamic Relief Canada has been talking to Muslims about
their experiences with hatred and ignorance, and compiled them in our new
report, “In Their Words: Untold Stories of Islamophobia in Canada.”
Our
research reveals that hate is present in all spheres of Muslims’ lives. We
heard from women who had their head scarves ripped off at school or experienced
Islamophobic comments in the workplace; a man who faced discrimination within
sports; a woman whose non-Muslim in-laws openly insult her religion at family
dinners; and from a Quebec shooting survivor who was targeted at the mosque.
Often,
when we talk about Islamophobia, we read and hear about the political
implications. While that is important — you cannot combat Islamophobia without
adequate legislation — the consequences of hate for ordinary people are often
overlooked.
They
can include emotional and mental trauma, stress in personal and professional
relationships, and even long-term physical injury. For some research
participants, negative experiences have led to switching schools or ceasing
participation in sports. In one instance, it has meant deliberations on leaving
Canada.
Sanaa
(not her real name), a teacher in Quebec, says last year she was told by her
school to remove her hijab to comply with Bill 21 regulations (the bill
prevents those working in the public sector from wearing religious symbols).
She was suspended for months, but was able to return to work on a contract technicality.
Disheartened, she is taking foreign teaching exams and contemplating leaving
the country she grew up in.
Along
with Sanaa, others also told us Bill 21 was a pressing issue and felt strongly
that the federal government needs to address it. As a country that prides
itself on multiculturalism and tolerance, it is unacceptable to have
legislation that discriminates against Muslims and other minority groups.
In
addition to being systemic, Islamophobia is gendered and normalized. I was not
surprised to see the majority of interviewees for our report dismiss their
experiences, believing they were minor and would not be taken seriously if
reported.
I can
relate to those sentiments. I remember after 9/11, I asked my schoolteacher
what everyone was talking about, and her answer was that surely I had to know —
as if somehow I was involved in the actions of every Muslim around the world. I
have also been called “Paki” on Twitter, and most recently someone crossed out
the image of my face on an op-ed I wrote for the Toronto Star and mailed it to
my office.
Source:
The Star
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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US,
Europe urge Taliban to do more to gain acceptance
January
28, 2022
WASHINGTON:
The United States, Norway and other key European governments urged
Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers on Thursday to do more to gain international
acceptance.
Special
Representatives and Special Envoys of the European Union, France, Germany,
Italy, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States met in Oslo on Jan 24
to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. The meeting included sessions with
representatives of the Taliban and Afghan civil society actors.
In a
joint statement released in Washington and Oslo, the participants urged the
Taliban to do more to stop the alarming increase of human rights violations,
including arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, media crackdowns,
extra-judicial killings, and torture.
The
statement specifically mentioned Taliban-imposed prohibitions on women and
girls’ education, employment and freedom to travel without a male escort and
recent detentions of women’s rights activists.
The
statement said that the Oslo meeting focused on the urgency in addressing the
humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and highlighted necessary steps to help
alleviate the suffering of Afghans across the country.
Participants
recognised steps taken to ease access for humanitarian workers, male and
female, while also expressing concern that there were still certain impediments
in place. The participants also reiterated the importance of swiftly removing
all conditions and obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Raised
the importance of respect for human rights and the strong need for an inclusive
and representative political system to ensure stability and a peaceful future
for Afghanistan.
They
noted, “with grave concern”, the absence from, and limitations on access to,
secondary schools for girls in many parts of the country and underscored the
importance of higher education for women as well as job opportunities for women
in all fields.
They
welcomed the Taliban’s public pledges that all women and girls can access
schools at all levels when schools across the country reopen in March but
emphasised the need for practical, budgetary and technical preparations to
“ensure this becomes a reality.”
The
participants reaffirmed their expectation that the Taliban will uphold their
commitments on counterterrorism and drug trafficking.
They
noted that their governments were expanding relief operations, helping prevent
the collapse of social services and supporting the revival of Afghanistan’s
economy.
The
participants noted the importance of increasing cash liquidity and support to
the banking sector in order to help stabilise the Afghan economy. They further
pressed for the development of a transparent, sound strategy to restore
confidence in the financial sector.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1671883/us-europe-urge-taliban-to-do-more-to-gain-acceptance
--------
US
calls on Ethiopia to release all those detained under state of emergency
28
January ,2022
The
US on Thursday said it welcomed the decision by Ethiopia's Cabinet to approve
the lifting of a six-month state of emergency and called on the government to
release all those detained under the state of emergency.
State
Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters that Washington hopes the
House of Peoples' Representatives approves the decision to lift the state of
emergency soon, after the Cabinet on Wednesday approved its lifting ahead of
its expiration in light of changing security conditions in the country.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Ethiopia
declared the state of emergency in November after forces from the northern
region of Tigray said they had gained territory and were considering marching
on the capital Addis Ababa.
The
Horn of Africa country has been gripped by war for more than a year, with the
federal military and its allies battling forces loyal to the Tigray People's
Liberation Front (TPLF), the political party that controls Tigray.
For
months there has been an uneasy stalemate between the two sides, punctuated by
sporadic fighting. TPLF forces control most of Tigray but are surrounded by hostile
forces from neighbouring regions of Afar and Amhara which are allied with the
federal military.
The
conflict, which broke out in November 2020, has displaced millions and caused
widespread hunger.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
US
must urge wary banks to help save Afghan lives: aid group
January
28, 2022
UNITED
NATIONS: The United States needs to give written encouragement to banks to
transfer money to Afghanistan for the United Nations and aid groups as they
race to save millions of lives, the head of a top international aid group told
Reuters on Thursday.
Norwegian
Refugee Council Secretary General Jan Egeland, who was UN aid chief from
2003-06, was blunt in his assessment: “It is now, paradoxically, the Western
sanctions that is our main problem in saving lives in Afghanistan.”
The
Taliban, which has long been blacklisted by the United States as a terrorist
group, seized power from Afghanistan’s internationally-backed government in
August. Billions of dollars in Afghan central bank reserves and international
development aid were frozen to prevent it from falling into Taliban hands.
The
United Nations and aid groups are struggling to get enough money into Afghanistan
to fund operations in a country where millions are suffering extreme hunger and
the economy, education and social services are on the brink of collapse.
In a
briefing to the UN Security Council on Wednesday, Secretary-General Antonio
Guterres said Afghanistan was “hanging by a thread” and that a lack of
liquidity in the country was limiting capacity to reach people in need.
Washington
issued sanctions exemptions — known as general licenses — last month related to
humanitarian work. But Egeland said that was not enough to convince
international banks they could avoid the “wrath” of Washington if they
transferred funds to Afghanistan for aid groups, and he urged the Treasury to
issue something specific in writing.
“The
US Treasury needs to be proactive here,” said Egeland, who was part of a
meeting of aid groups with US Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo
last week.
Egeland
urged the Treasury to give banks “a comfort letter saying that you are hereby
encouraged... to help save lives in Afghanistan by providing whatever services
are needed for the aid organizations.”
Guterres
on Wednesday also called for “general licenses covering transactions necessary
to all humanitarian activities.”
The
US Treasury said in a statement after last week’s meeting with aid groups that
Adeyemo acknowledged the wariness of the banks and said the Treasury would
“continue to provide clarity on the scope of US sanctions” to banks and
financial institutions.
He
also “offered to increase communication with financial institutions engaging in
or interested in doing business in Afghanistan to help get resources into the
country as quickly as possible,” it said.
Egeland
also appealed for billions of dollars to be released to help Afghan civilians.
Since
August, some $9.5 billion in Afghan central bank reserves has been frozen
abroad and $1.2 billion in development aid — administered by the World Bank —
put on hold as donors seek to use it as leverage over the Taliban on issues
including human rights.
“Grown
men need to speak to each other because, really, I’m frustrated,” Egeland said.
“The World Bank refers to the (World Bank) board and the donors — like the US —
and the donors — like the US — refer to the World Bank. Can they please
proactively fix it?“
“We’re
losing in the race against death, and winter, and starvation,” he said.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2013666/world
--------
Southeast Asia
China
agrees to Xinjiang visit by UN rights chief in early 2022: Report
Jan
28, 2022
BEIJING:
China has agreed to let the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
visit Xinjiang in the first half of 2022 after the Beijing Winter Olympics,
according to a report in the South China Morning Post which cited unnamed
sources.
Rights
groups have accused China of perpetrating widescale abuses against Uyghurs and
other minority groups in its western region of Xinjiang, including mass detention,
torture and forced labour. The United States has accused China of genocide.
Beijing
denies all allegations of abuse of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims and has
described its policies as necessary to combat religious extremism.
UN
human rights commissioner Michelle Bachelet has been pursuing negotiations with
China on a visit since September 2018.
China's
foreign ministry, China's mission to the United Nations in New York, and the
United Nations did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The
South China Morning Post report on Thursday cited sources saying that the
approval for a visit after the conclusion of the Beijing Winter Games, which
run Feb. 4-20, was granted on the condition the trip should be
"friendly" and not framed as an investigation.
As in
2008, the Olympics have again cast a spotlight on China's human rights record,
which critics say has worsened since then, leading Washington to call Beijing's
treatment of Uyghur Muslims genocide and prompting a diplomatic boycott from
the United States and other countries.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Indonesian
regulator takes cue from Islamic NGOs, bars crypto sales for institutions
January
28, 2022
Indonesia’s
financial watchdog the Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (OJK) warned financial
institutions in the country against offering or facilitating crypto-asset
sales. The official Instagram account for OJK posted a warning against the
growing number of crypto Ponzi schemes and risks of crypto investments owing to
the market’s volatility. The official post also quoted the chairman Wimboh
Santoso who said financial institutions are strictly prohibited from offering
crypto sale services in any form. The official post read:
“OJK
has strictly prohibited financial service institutions from using, marketing,
and/or facilitating crypto asset trading.”
The
current warning against crypto investments and prohibition of crypto trading
services for financial institutions comes on the heels of several calls for a
ban on crypto use from the country’s leading Islamic non-government
organizations (NGOs). As Cointelegraph reported earlier, a total of three
Islamic organizations have issued a fatwa against crypto use by Muslims,
deeming it haram.
Source:
Pak Observer
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--------
Mideast
UN
urged to open inquiry into Iran’s 1988 killings and Raisi role
27
January ,2022
Prominent
former UN judges and investigators have called on UN human rights boss Michelle
Bachelet to investigate the 1988 “massacre” of political prisoners in Iran,
including the alleged role of its current president, Ebrahim Raisi, at that
time.
The
open letter released on Thursday, seen by Reuters, was signed by some 460
people, including a former president of the International Criminal Court (ICC),
Sang-Hyun Song, and Stephen Rapp, a former US ambassador for global criminal
justice.
Raisi,
who took office in August, is under US sanctions over a past that includes what
the United States and activists say was his involvement as one of four judges
who oversaw the 1988 killings. His office in Tehran had no comment on Thursday.
Iran
has never acknowledged that mass executions took place under Ayatollah Ruhollah
Khomeini, the revolutionary leader who died in 1989.
Amnesty
International has put the number executed at some 5,000, predicting in a 2018
report that “the real number could be higher”.
“The
perpetrators continue to enjoy impunity. They include the current Iranian
President Ebrahim Raisi and judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejei,” read
the open letter. Ejei succeeded Raisi as head of Iran’s judiciary.
Raisi,
when asked about activists’ allegations that he was involved in the killings,
told a news conference in June 2021: “If a judge, a prosecutor has defended the
security of the people, he should be praised.” He added: “I am proud to have
defended human rights in every position I have held so far.”
The
letter, organized by the British-based group Justice for Victims of the 1988
Massacre in Iran, was also sent to the UN Human Rights Council, whose 47 member
states open a five-week session on Feb. 28.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iranian
President Calls for New Chapter in Relations with India
2022-January-27
In
separate messages to the president and prime minister of India on Wednesday,
Rayeesi congratulated the Indian Government and people on the National Day of
the Republic of India.
"As
two countries with rich culture and ancient civilizations in Asia, the Islamic
Republic of Iran and the Republic of India have always had excellent relations
and will undoubtedly create a new page of relations in the present era with
their past reserves," Rayeesi wrote in his message to Indian President Ram
Nath Kovind.
The
Islamic Republic of Iran has the necessary will and readiness to expand and
deepen relations with the Republic of India in all fields, he added.
Offering
his sincerest congratulations to Prime Minister of the Republic of India
Narendra Modi on the National Day of the Republic of India, Rayeesi in a
separate message wrote, "I hope that in the light of the rich cultural and
civilizational commonalities and the long-standing relations between the two
countries, the cooperation between the two countries will expand and strengthen
with the efforts of the high-ranking officials of the two countries in all
fields and in the interests of the two nations."
"I
wish Your Excellency health and success and the people of the Republic of India
prosperity and felicity," he concluded.
Indian
media reported on Wednesday that Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir
Abdollahian is set to visit India next week for discussions that are expected
to focus on the situation in West Asia and Afghanistan and regional
connectivity.
Source:
Fars News Agency
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
Blasts Canada, West for Politicizing Human Rights
2022-January-27
"Beneath
the ground we step on (in Iran) are the bodies of people who sacrificed their
invaluable lives during an imposed war sponsored by the West," Qaribabadi
wrote on his twitter page in an apparent reference to the Iraqi imposed war on
Iran in 1980s.
During
the Iraqi imposed war on Iran, Saddam regime was given unconventional arms by
the western countries to use it against the Iranian people.
"But
in Canada, when you dig the ground, you find the remains of indigenous innocent
children! The biggest threat to human rights comes from hypocrisy,
politicization and double standards," Qaribabadi added.
His
comments came after an Indigenous community in Canada’s western province of
British Columbia recently found dozens of potential unmarked graves on the
grounds of a former residential school, the latest such discovery over the past
year.
Williams
Lake First Nation announced on Monday that preliminary results of the first
phase of a geophysical search at St Joseph Mission Residential School uncovered
93 “reflections” – believed to be unmarked gravesites.
“Ninety-three
is our number,” Chief Willie Sellars told reporters.
Hundreds
of unmarked graves have been discovered at former residential school sites
across Canada since May, when Tk’emlups te Secwepemc First Nation announced it
had uncovered 215 unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential
School.
That
discovery fuelled widespread calls for justice and accountability for the
victims and survivors of the forced-assimilation institutions, as well as demands
that the Canadian government release all records pertaining to the facilities.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14001107000276/Iran-Blass-Canada-Wes-fr-Pliicizing-Hman-Righs
--------
Envoy:
Iran Losing Ability to Support Afghan Refugees due to US Sanctions
2022-January-27
The
Islamic Republic has been providing various instances of assistance to the
Afghan refugees—thousands of whom enter the Iranian territory every day—amid
the United States’ inhumane sanctions that “have created tremendous
difficulties for our government and people”, Takht Ravanchi said on Wednesday,
addressing a UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Afghanistan.
“Due
to the imposition of US sanctions, our financial resources are restrained.
Obviously, if the international community fails to provide sufficient assistance
to the Afghan people living in Iran in a timely manner, we will be unable, on
our own, to continue our support to Afghan refugees,” he added.
“We,
once again, call on the international community and in particular donor
countries to live up to their responsibilities and extend new and additional
financial resources to Afghanistan’s neighbors to help refugees and displaced
persons,” Takht Ravanchi stated.
The
US reimposed sanctions against Iran in 2018 after unilaterally and illegally
leaving a 2015 agreement with the Islamic Republic and other countries.
Source:
Fars News Agency
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran
Raps British FM's "Irresponsible" Remarks
2022-January-27
Truss
alleged on Tuesday that the Islamic Republic was the party that was leading the
talks into a "dangerous impasse,” adding that if the 2015 deal collapsed
"all options are on the table”.
In
response, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh called the top
British diplomat's remarks "irresponsible" and "unfounded".
He
added that the remarks amounted to the latest version of Britain and some other
Western countries' "empty game that is aimed at incriminating Iran and
covering up their years of inaction and alignment with the US illegal and
inhumane sanctions".
Truss'
comments, Khatibzadeh added, "do not take away from the UK's
responsibility for violating the agreement".
Nor
do such "threadbare" accusations and "hollow threats" can
cause the Islamic Republic to falter in its resolve to reach a "quality,
sustainable, and reliable deal that would guarantee the Iranian nation's
interests", the spokesman noted.
It
has been Iran's "strategic patience" that has sustained the talks, he
said, warning that "it is clear this window will not stay open
forever", Khatibzadeh said.
"It
is necessary [then] that the other parties drop their repetitive blame game and
dull discourse...and rather expend all their potential and diligence to
preserve this last chance" for conclusion of a good agreement at the
negotiation table, he cautioned.
Also
on Wednesday, Iran and the P4+1's delegations gathered for the purpose of
hammering out the text of a "final agreement", reports, meanwhile,
said.
The
US left the nuclear deal in 2018 and returned the sanctions that the deal had
lifted. Washington's allies in the deal--Britain France, and Germany--have ever
since been complying with the coercive economic measures.
Source:
Fars News Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14001107000235/Iran-Raps-Briish-FM's-Irrespnsible-Remarks
--------
Five
killed, 34 injured in Iran-backed Houthi missile strike in Marib: State media
28
January ,2022
At
least five people were killed and 34 injured in what Yemeni-government media
said was an Iran-backed Houthi missile strike on Marib city on Wednesday night,
state news agency SABA said on Friday.
A
resident and a medical source said a missile on Wednesday had fallen next to a
military building in the al-Matar area.
Marib
city is the Yemeni government’s last northern stronghold. It sits in an
energy-producing region which has been the focus of fighting over the past
year, during which Houthi forces advanced towards the city.
The
fighting for Marib has dashed UN-led ceasefire efforts as both sides ramped up
military operations.
In
the past few weeks Iran-backed Houthis have launched a number of missile and
drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, which has led to Arab Coalition attacks against
the Houthis.
It
follows two unprecedented attacks on the United Arab Emirates.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Iran’s
state broadcaster says it was hacked for 10 seconds
27
January ,2022
Iran’s
state broadcaster IRIB was hacked for 10 seconds on Thursday, state media
reported, as the country prepares to mark the anniversary of its 1979 Islamic
Revolution.
“During
a period of 10 seconds, the faces and voices of hypocrites appeared on (our)
Channel One,” IRIB said, a phrase Iran’s clerical rulers use to refer to exiled
opposition group People’s Mujahideen Organization of Iran (PMOI).
The
PMOI - also known as the Mujahideen Khalq Organization (MKO) - presents itself
as an alternative to Iran’s theocracy and is the main faction within the exiled
opposition umbrella organization, the National Council of Resistance of Iran
(NCRI).
During
the hack, pictures of MKO leaders Maryam and Masoud Rajavi appeared on state TV
and a man’s voice could be heard chanting “Salute to Rajavi, death to (Iranian
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali) Khamenei!,” according to videos posted on social
media.
Deputy
IRIB chief Ali Dadi said the case was under investigation.
“Our
colleagues are investigating the incident. This is an extremely complex attack
and only the owners of this technology could exploit and damage the backdoors
and features that are installed on the systems,” Dadi told state TV channel
IRINN.
“Similar
disruptions happened to the Koran Channel, Radio Javan and Radio Payam,” he
added, referring to other state-affiliated broadcast channels.
In
the past, the Islamic Republic has been targeted by a series of cyberattacks such
as one last year in October that disrupted the sale of heavily subsidized
gasoline.
Iran
has said it is on high alert for online assaults, which it has blamed on
arch-foes United States and Israel. The United States and other Western powers
meanwhile have accused Iran of trying to disrupt and break into their online
networks.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Israel
bars entry of warm clothes into unheated cells of Palestinian detainees
Awad
al-Rujoub
27.01.2022
RAMALLAH,
Palestine
Palestinian
detainees in Israeli jails are suffering from the cold due to a lack of heating
along with authorities' blocking of donations of winter clothes, a Palestinian
official body said Thursday.
"All
detainees suffer from shortages of clothes and blankets and the lack of heating
means that could protect them from the cold weather," the Palestine
Liberation Organization (PLO)-run Commission for Detainees and Ex-Detainees'
Affairs said in a statement.
The
statement added that Israeli authorities also hindered and restricted the entry
of cold-weather clothing and blankets to the inmates.
It
added that Israel's inhumane policy is part of a systematic effort to erode
Palestinian detainees' determination and resilience.
The
statement demanded that international human rights groups intervene to help the
Palestinian detainees.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Africa
More
than 15,000 people displaced in new Darfur violence, UN says
27
January ,2022
Renewed
tribal violence near the western Sudanese city of El Geneina over the past week
has displaced more than 15,000 people, the United Nations said.
The
war-weary Darfur region has seen an increase in violence recently, humanitarian
groups say, which analysts link to a peace deal signed in October 2020 that has
led to some groups to jostle for power while not adequately addressing security
concerns.
According
to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, a personal
dispute in the village of Adikong between two men from the Masalit tribe and an
unspecified Arab nomadic group sparked the conflict.
Armed
nomads attacked the local market, set fire to part of the village, and killed
nine people including two children, it said.
The
fighting, which spilled over into other villages, caused 11,100 people to be
displaced within the El Geneina locality, and an estimated 4,500 others to flee
across the border to Chad.
A
joint security force was dispatched to the area, the UN statement said.
El
Geneina and the surrounding area saw several incidents of violence in 2021, and
more than half of residents are in need of humanitarian aid according to UN
estimates.
The
early-2000s conflict in Darfur between rebel groups on one side and government
forces and allied militias on the other caused an estimated 300,000 deaths.
About 2.5 million people live in displacement camps across Darfur, according to
UN refugee agency UNHCR.
Darfur
residents complain that the militias continue to carry out attacks on villages
and camps.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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ISIS
attack in Libya kills three security personnel: Interior ministry
27
January ,2022
Fighters
linked to ISIS terrorist group have killed three Libyan security personnel in
the country’s southwest, the interior ministry said Thursday.
The
attack on Wednesday, in the desert some 700 kilometers (430 miles) south of
Tripoli, “targeted a patrol of the Umm al-Aranib Martyrs’ Brigade, killing
three of its members,” the ministry said in a statement.
It
added that government forces had “killed four members of Daesh (an Arabic term
for ISIS) and destroyed their vehicle.”
It
said a search was underway for other “terrorists” who had fled.
It
said the terrorists were attempting to “undermine stability and terrorize
civilians.”
ISIS
had on Monday claimed it had attacked the same brigade in the same area a week
earlier, killing two members.
The
Umm al-Aranib Martyrs’ Brigade is largely made up of members of the
long-marginalized Tubu ethnic group.
Libya
has been roiled by lawlessness since the 2011 fall of former ruler Muammar
Gaddafi, with an array of armed groups vying for control.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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15
million people face displacement, violence in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso: UN
Mohammed
Dhaysane
28.01.2022
MOGADISHU,
Somalia
UN
relief agency chief Martin Griffiths said Thursday the people of Niger, Mali
and Burkina Faso face violence, repeated displacement and difficulties finding
sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their families.
Nearly
15 million in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso face the same struggles which is 4
million more who are in need since last January, according to the UN Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs that described it as an
"extraordinary increase in only one year."
Griffiths
said in 2022, the UN will need close to $2 billion for its humanitarian
response in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.
"The
confluence of conflict, climate change, increasing political instability, lack
of sustainable development opportunities, and poverty are driving millions into
increasingly desperate conditions. COVID-19 and its economic impact has only
made it all much worse," he told senior officials meeting on the
humanitarian situation in the Central Sahel.
He
said violent attacks went up eight-fold in the Central Sahel between 2015 and
202, with the number of fatalities increasing more than ten-fold.
"The
result is more than two million people displaced including half a million
internally displaced last year alone," he said.
More
than 5,000 schools are closed or non-operational, jeopardizing the future of
hundreds of thousands of children as many health centers are out of service.
The
number of people facing severe food insecurity has tripled in Mali and doubled
in Niger compared to November 2020 as more than 8 million are expected to be
affected during the lean season, according to the UN.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Tunisian
speaker flays president for freezing parliament, offers inclusive national
dialogue
Amna
al-Yaferni
28.01.2022
TUNIS,
Tunisia
The
speaker of Tunisia’s frozen parliament on Thursday said that all power has been
concentrated in the hands of Tunisian President Kais Saied after he dismissed
the government in July last year.
Rached
Ghannouchi made the remarks during a video conference of members of parliament
to celebrate the eighth anniversary of the 2014 constitution, which was
approved three years after President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in a
popular uprising.
"On
July 25, the constitution, the revolution’s national gain, was overthrown and
the unity of Tunisians was ripped apart, institutions were disrupted, and
powers were concentrated in the hands of one person," said Ghannouchi, who
is also head of Ennahda Movement party.
On
July 25, 2021, Saied dismissed the government of Prime Minister Hichem
Mechichi, suspended parliament, and assumed executive authority amid mounting
public anger over economic stagnation and political paralysis.
While
Saied claimed that his "exceptional measures" were meant to
"save" the country, critics have been accusing him of orchestrating a
coup.
"The
country is experiencing a suffocating financial crisis and unprecedented
international isolation, with a social situation on the verge of explosion and
division fanned by the country's highest authority," Ghannouchi warned.
Source:
Anadolu Agency
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Arab World
UAE
vows not to let Houthi threat be a ‘new normal’
January
28, 2022
ABU
DHABI: Yemen rebel attacks will not become a “new normal” for the United Arab
Emirates, a senior Emirati official said on Thursday, vowing a robust defence.
The
Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched two missile attacks on the UAE this month,
with three oil workers killed in the first assault on January 17 and the second
intercepted by its defence forces.
“This
is not going to be the new normal for the UAE,” the official said on condition
of anonymity.
“We
refuse to acquiesce to the threat of Houthi terror that targets our people and
way of life,” the official added.
The
United States, a staunch UAE ally, had asked its citizens Wednesday to
reconsider travel to the Emirates “due to the threat of missile or drone attacks”.
But
the UAE official stood firm on Thursday that the Gulf country was “ready to
defend itself”.
“We
remain one of the most secure countries in the world, and the recent attacks
have only strengthened our commitment to safeguarding the welfare of our residents,”
the official said.
While
the UAE’s main economic mainstay comes from exporting oil, it also relies on
tourism and foreign investments.
Foreigners
make up 90 per cent of its 10-million population.
Yemen’s
rebels have frequently targeted Saudi Arabia, killing and injuring civilians,
and damaging infrastructure, including oil facilities and airports.
‘Terrorist
designation’
The
Emirates has had a major role in the Saudi-led military coalition backing
Yemen’s internationally recognised government against the Houthis.
In
2019, the UAE withdrew its troops from Yemen but remains an influential player.
The
attacks, in response to a series of rebel defeats by a UAE-trained militia, pit
the Houthis’ home-grown weaponry against the Emirates’ multi-billion-dollar
missile defence capabilities.
The
rebels have warned of further attacks on the UAE, which hosts American troops
and is one of the world’s biggest arms buyers.
“The
UAE has world class defence capabilities and is constantly seeking to update
them,” said the official. “In addition to annual upgrades, the UAE works with
its international partners to obtain advanced systems and technology to deter
and counter threats to our national security.”
The
official also said that the Houthi rebels “must be” designated as a terrorist
organisation.
“We
are in talks with our US allies to secure this terrorist designation in
reflection of the group’s relentless brutality against civilians inside and
beyond Yemen,” said the official.
Source:
Dawn
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1671886/uae-vows-not-to-let-houthi-threat-be-a-new-normal
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Dozens
of Islamic State fighters remain holed up in corner of Syrian prison
27
January 2022
BEIRUT
— Dozens of armed Islamic State fighters remained holed up in the last occupied
section of a Syrian prison, United States-backed Kurdish-led forces said
Thursday. The two sides clashed a day after the Syrian Democratic Forces
announced they had regained full control of the facility.
Fighting
between the armed extremists and SDF troops left at least two Islamic
extremists dead on Thursday, the SDF said in a statement. It said between 60
and 90 jihadists were hiding out in the northern section of the prison in the
northeastern city of Hassakeh.
The
SDF claimed Wednesday it had regained full control of the prison — a week after
scores of jihadists overran the facility. The attackers allowed some to escape,
took hostages, including child detainees, and clashed with SDF fighters in
violence that killed dozens.
The
weeklong assault on one of the largest detention facilities in Syria has turned
Hassakeh into a conflict zone. The Kurdish-led administration declared a curfew
and sealed off the city, barring movement in and out.
Thousands
have been displaced because of the violence that began with a bold attack on
the prison last Thursday. There were overnight celebrations in the city,
including fireworks, after news that the prison had been recaptured.
It
was the biggest military operation by IS since the fall of the group’s
“caliphate” in 2019 and came as the jihadists staged a number of deadly attacks
in both Syria and Iraq that stoked fears they may be staging a comeback.
The
SDF said about 3,000 inmates have surrendered since its operation to retake the
prison’s northern wing began three days ago.
The
fighters had used child detainees as human shields slowing down the effort. There
are over 600 child detainees in the facility that houses more than 3,000
inmates. The Kurdish officials have not provided specific numbers of the
facility’s population.
Kurdish
officials said a large number of children were freed Wednesday but their fate
remained unclear. Rights groups and at least one child detainee from inside the
prison say many children were killed and injured in the clashes. Rights groups
have criticized the SDF for keeping the children in adult facilities or holding
them without trials in the first place.
In a
statement, SDF said the children had been kept in separate dormitories from the
adults, and were detained as an “interim measure” for their safety and the
safety of the community until a solution for them is found.
The
Kurdish-led SDF appealed to the United Nations and member states to “search for
genuine solutions by repatriating non-Syrian children, rehabilitating them.”
At
least 300 foreign child detainees are believed to be held in the Gweiran
facility. Thousands more, mostly under the age of 12, are held with their
mothers in locked camps in other parts of northeastern Syria on suspicion of
being families of IS members. Most countries have refused to repatriate them,
with only 25 out of 60 countries taking back their children, some without their
mothers.
In
the week of fighting, dozens of fighters from both sides have been killed, the
US-led coalition has carried out nearly a dozen airstrikes and thousands of
civilians living nearby have been displaced.
Siamand
Ali, a spokesman for SDF, said the IS fighters were hiding in the basement of
the northern section.
A
coalition official said Thursday that detainees of the prison known as Gweiran
or al-Sinaa are being secured in a “new, hardened facility” nearby where
biometrics will be used by the SDF to enroll them. The official, speaking on
condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said the coalition continues
to advise and assist the SDF in the operation. The jihadists had also targeted
the new facility in their initial assault but failed.
The
Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll from the
struggle at over 200, including over 150 jihadists and more than 50 fighters
from the Kurdish-led force. At least seven civilians were killed in the
fighting, the Observatory said. The SDF said preliminary information put the
force’s death toll at 35.
The
SDF, backed by US-led coalition Bradley Fighting Vehicles and air support, had
been closing in on the prison wing still controlled by the jihadists for a few
days. Fighters from the SDF and other security teams used loudspeakers to call
on the jihadists to surrender.
Source:
Times Of Israel
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Dar
al-Fatwa: No One Can Claim Guardianship over Any Community
27
January 2022
Kataeb
Party leader Sami Gemayel held talks Thursday at Dar al-Fatwa with Grand Mufti
Sheikh Abdul Latif Daryan.
The
Grand Mufti is “a Lebanese authority who enjoys a patriotic conscience and
deals with all the sensitive issues with a lot of moderation and openness,”
Gemayel said after the meeting.
“In
this critical situation, we are interested in hearing the mufti’s viewpoint and
exploring Dar al-Fatwa’s orientations after ex-PM Saad Hariri’s step. Everyone
knows that there was an essential disagreement with him (Hariri) over the
political approach and the settlements that happened in the last period, and in
his last speech, he admitted that they were wrong,” Gemayel added.
“Despite
all the disagreements with Hariri over the past years… the moderation that has
been embodied by al-Mustaqbal Movement is an essential need for the country,”
Gemayel went on to say.
Source:
Nahar Net
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Fighting
resumes at Islamic State prison in Syria
Jared
Szuba
January
27, 2022
Syria’s
Kurdish-led militia alliance prematurely declared the region’s largest prison
holding Islamic State detainees secure on Wednesday following a major prison
break and ensuing battle over the past week.
Fighting
continued Thursday as the Syrian Democratic Forces said its members discovered
additional IS adherents who had not surrendered in one wing of the prison
complex.
“After
regaining control of the al-Sinaa prison and imposing surrender on about 3,500
detainees involved in the insurrection, our focus began sweeping operations …
in the prison dormitories where the terrorists were barricaded,” the SDF said
in a statement. “During these operations, our forces uncovered hidden terrorist
holdouts in the prison’s northern dormitories."
It
went on, “Our forces have called for the safe surrender of these terrorists,
and if they do not respond, we will deal with them firmly.”
Over
the past week Sinaa, also known as Gherwan prison, in the northeast Syrian city
of Hasakah has been the scene of the region’s bloodiest IS violence since the
jihadist group was defeated on the battlefield nearly three years ago.
Initial
SDF assessments said the battle has left some 200 people dead, mostly thought
to be IS fighters and escapees, and at least 30 members of the local
multi-ethnic security forces. It remains unclear how many IS prisoners have
escaped.
Backed
by US airstrikes, surveillance and armor, the SDF formed a perimeter around the
prison and then entered the facility on Monday night.
The
fate of several hundred boys detained in the northern section of prison, some
reportedly as young as 12, remains unclear.
The
SDF responded today to UNICEF and rights groups' statements of serious concern
for the boys’ welfare and calls for them to be evacuated, reiterating its
commitment to international conventions on protecting children.
Backed
by a US-led multinational coalition, the Kurdish-led alliance seized nearly all
Syrian territory east of the Euphrates River from IS between 2015-2019 in a
blistering ground war.
The
majority of the 4-5,000 prisoners held in Sinaa were captured on the
battlefield at Baghouz, a riverside hamlet on Syria’s eastern border with Iraq,
where the jihadist group made its final stand in March 2019.
At least
some 50-60,000 IS family members and captured fighters remain in makeshift
prisons and detention camps under SDF control across northeast Syria to this
day.
Northeast
Syrian officials have repeatedly called on the international community to
repatriate their detained citizens and for greater support in funding and
securing the sites.
Source:
Al Monitor
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Qatar
diplomat visits Iran as Tehran and Washington consider direct nuclear talks
27
January ,2022
Qatar’s
top diplomat visited Iran on Thursday, state media in the two countries
reported, days before Qatar’s ruling emir holds talks in Washington at a
crucial time for efforts by Tehran and major powers to revive a 2015 nuclear
pact.
The
visit by Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani
comes after his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian on Monday said
Tehran is ready to consider direct talks with Washington if it feels it can get
a “good nuclear deal.”
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
Iran’s
state news agency IRNA showed footage of the two men as they met in Tehran.
However, IRNA said the visit was not intended to facilitate direct talks with
Washington.
“Although
Doha and Tehran are experiencing good and close relations, this visit... has
fueled some misconceptions. Some are fabricating it to facilitate direct talks
with the United States,” IRNA said.
The
United States and Iran have held eight rounds of indirect talks in Vienna since
April aimed at reinstating the pact that lifted sanctions against Tehran in
exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program.
After
then-US President Donald Trump quit the nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed
harsh sanctions, Iran gradually started violating the pact’s nuclear curbs.
Significant
gaps remain about the speed and scope of returning to the deal, including
Iran’s demand for a US guarantee of no further punitive steps, and how and when
to restore curbs on Iran’s atomic work.
Qatar’s
ruling emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani will hold talks with US President
Joe Biden on January 31, including about the efforts to salvage the pact. The
minister, Sheikh Mohammed, is expected in Washington on Friday in advance of
the emir’s visit.
Prisoner
release
Amir
Abdollahian previously met Sheikh Tamim and Sheikh Mohammed in Doha on January
11. During that visit, he asked Qatar to broker the release of dual-national
Iranian-Americans and Iranian-Europeans jailed in Iran, a person with knowledge
of the discussions told Reuters this week.
Reuters
could not establish if Qatar agreed to the request, but the Gulf Arab state has
actively helped release foreign prisoners in other countries in the past.
The
lead US nuclear negotiator told Reuters on Sunday that securing the nuclear
deal is unlikely unless Tehran releases four US citizens Washington says it is
holding hostage.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Arab
Coalition strikes kill 190 Houthi ‘terrorists’ in 44 targeted attacks
27
January ,2022
The
Arab Coalition has conducted a combined 44 targeted strikes in Marib, al-Bayda,
and Taiz to combat the Iran-backed Houthi militia, according to the official
Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
The
strikes killed 190 “terrorists” and 29 “military vehicles,” SPA reported on
Thursday.
The
operation comes during a time when tensions are rising with Yemen’s Iran-backed
Houthis.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
Houthi militia attack on the UAE and the continued attempts on Saudi Arabia
have attracted global outcry.
The
UAE attack was reportedly a first of its kind, leading to condemnations of the
Houthi group’s actions from all major world leaders.
UAE’s
Dr. Anwar Gargash, the diplomatic adviser to the country’s president, is among
many of the local officials who are in conversation with global representatives
to find a solution to the Iran-backed issue.
Gargash
said that the UAE has a “legal and moral right” to defend itself against
terrorist acts by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militia during a call with Hans
Grundberg, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to
Yemen.
The
UAE official also met with the US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking where
he reiterated the need for “appropriate international pressure” which may help
reach a ceasefire agreement and aid in finding a political solution to the
Yemeni crisis.
Yemen’s
Iran-backed Houthis have launched dozens of cross-border attacks on Saudi
Arabia throughout 2021.
In
September 2021, the Houthis intensified their efforts to take Marib, a
provincial capital which is the government’s last northern stronghold.
However,
on January 26, forces of Yemen’s internationally recognized government swept
through a strategic central province, forcing Houthi fighters out of its second
largest district, reported The Associated Press.
The
Iran-backed militia frequently target civilian areas and energy facilities in
the Kingdom with explosive-laden drones and ballistic missiles.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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UAE,
Bahrain, Egypt leaders’ summit discusses regional, international developments
27
January ,2022
A
summit that brought together UAE leaders, the Bahraini king and Egypt’s
president was held on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi to discuss joint cooperation and
recent regional and international developments, Emirates News Agency (WAM) has
reported.
The
summit, which included Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab
Emirates and Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, Abu Dhabi Crown
Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa and
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, was held in Abu Dhabi’s presidential
palace Qasr al-Watan.
For
the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.
The
leaders discussed current regional and international developments including the
recent Houthi attacks on civilian sites and facilities in Abu Dhabi and the
UAE’s interception of a missile attack launched by the Iran-backed Houthis
targeting Abu Dhabi.
According
to WAM, the leaders asserted that the continuation of these attacks is a
serious threat to the region’s security and stability, and noted that such
hostile practices violate international laws and norms and harm international
security and peace.
They
also called on the international community to take a unified and strict stance
against the Houthis and other “terrorist” groups and their supporters.
Al-Sisi
and al-Khalifa voiced their countries’ solidarity with the UAE and their
support of all the measures it takes to preserve its security.
Source:
Al Arabiya
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Two
years of stalemate show a military solution in Syria is an illusion, says UN
envoy
January
27, 2022
NEW
YORK: The strategic stalemate in Syria makes it clear that no warring faction
has the ability to decisively affect the outcome of the decade-long conflict,
and so the idea that there can be a military solution is “an illusion,” the
UN’s special envoy to Syria told the Security Council on Thursday.
“Despite
the continued violence and suffering, (there have) been no shifts in the front
lines for nearly two years,” Geir Pedersen said.
“It
is clear that no existing actor or group of actors can determine the trajectory
or outcome of this conflict, and indeed that the military solution remains an
illusion.”
The
envoy highlighted the precarious security situation that exists in several
parts in the country, where “Syrians continue to suffer deeply.”
He
said the violence continues unabated, including airstrikes on Idlib that kill
civilians and damage infrastructure, mutual shelling across the front lines,
hostilities in the northeast, improvised explosive device attacks in the north,
and the Israeli shelling of the main commercial port of Latakiah. There have
also been security incidents involving drug smuggling and Daesh attacks in the
northeastern and central Syria, he added.
On a
humanitarian level, Pedersen said the tragedy of the Syrian people is “only
deepening,” exacerbated by the freezing winter conditions.
“14
million civilians now need humanitarian assistance,” he said. “More than 12
million remain displaced. Tens of thousands are detained, abducted or missing.
The economy of Syria has collapsed. Criminality and smuggling are flourishing.
And there are reports of young people seeking any opportunity to leave the
country, sometimes falling prey to traffickers and warlords.
“Education
is fragmented and severely degraded, as indeed are institutions and
infrastructure across the board. The country remains de facto divided and
society is deeply fractured. Syrians see no concrete progress toward a
political solution.”
Having
established this backdrop, the Norwegian envoy briefed the 15 members of the
Security Council on his most recent efforts to advance the diplomatic process.
He updated them on his meetings in recent weeks with officials from Germany,
Iran, Russia, Turkey, Qatar and the UK to discuss the status of Syria’s
Constitutional Committee, the most recent meeting of which took place in
October last year.
In
December, Perdersen’s deputy, Khawla Mattar from Bahrain, attended an
Astana-format meeting in Kazakhstan where she met senior officials from Russia,
Turkey, Iran, and the Syrian government and opposition.
She
also met with representatives of the Working Group on the Release of Detainees
and Abductees and the Handover of Bodies and the Identification of Missing
Persons. Pedersen said good proposals emerged from that meeting “but what is
absolutely needed is for these ideas now to be followed up on, as we are urging
all stakeholders to do.”
Pedersen
said he has also held a series of bilateral meetings with officials from
Russia, the EU, Turkey, Qatar, the Arab League, Germany, France, Italy, the UK
and the US. He described these consultations as a “rolling process where it
will be necessary to revert to interlocutors repeatedly over time.”
He
added: “My question to all interlocutors is the same: Can you identify not only
what you demand, but also what you are prepared to put on the table in exchange
for steps from the other side?”
The
envoy said he seeks “fresh ideas from any quarter that could bring about
action” on issues such as detainees and missing persons; the safe and
“voluntary” return of refugees; restoring an economy that has “collapsed after
more than a decade of war, corruption, mismanagement;” establishing calm
throughout Syria; cooperation in fighting terrorism; and thoughts on the
financial crisis in neighboring Lebanon.
Pedersen
also highlighted the plight of civilians at Al-Ghuwayran prison in Al-Hasakah,
northeastern Syria, which was the scene of an attempted jailbreak by hundreds
of Daesh insurgents last week that left at least 300 detainees dead.
According
to the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than
45,000 civilians have been displaced by the clashes that followed and
retaliatory airstrikes from the US-led global coalition in support of the
Syrian Democratic Forces on the ground.
Fionnula
Ni Aolain, a UN human rights expert, expressed serious concern for the
well-being of more than 700 children locked up the prison.
She
said boys as young as 12 are living “in fear for their lives amid the chaos and
carnage in the jail (and) are tragically being neglected by their own countries
through no fault of their own except they were born to individuals allegedly
linked or associated with designated terrorist groups.”
Pedersen
said: “UNICEF drew attention to reports of (Daesh) members being holed up in
dormitories for minors, putting hundreds of children in detention at risk.
“This
episode brings back terrible memories of the prison breaks that fueled the
original rise of (Daesh) in 2014 and 2015.
“I
see this as a clear message to us all of the importance of uniting to combat
the threat of internationally-proscribed terrorist groups — and to resolve the
broader conflict in which terrorism inevitably thrives.”
Linda
Thomas-Greenfield, the permanent representative of the US to the UN, said that
the ongoing situation in Al-Hasakah “a stark reminder” that Daesh “remains a
real threat.”
She
also reiterated her country’s support for the diplomatic process in Syria and
lamented the “less than constructive comments” by some states about Pedersen’s
effort to advance the dialogue.
She
singled out Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad, quoting his public statement
that Pedersen’s “steps-for-steps model as a way to resolve the crisis in Syria
is unacceptable for us.”
Thomas-Greenfield
said her country shares Pedersen’s frustration with the lack of progress by the
Syrian Constitutional Committee, and expressed disappointment “with the Assad
regime participants’ unwillingness to make progress toward this end.”
Ambassador
Mohammed Abushabab, the UAE’s deputy permanent representative to the UN,
expressed support for Pedersen’s efforts and told the council that his
country’s vision of a peaceful solution in Syria involves “opening channels of
communication and building bridges, creating opportunities to support and
reinvigorate the Constitutional Committee and ending foreign interference.”
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2013426/middle-east
--------
Pakistan
Pakistan
‘not completely optimistic’ of Taliban govt in Kabul: NSA
SAJJAD
HUSSAIN
27
January, 2022
Islamabad,
Jan 27 (PTI) Pakistan’s frustration with the Afghan Taliban became evident on
Thursday when its top security official said that Islamabad was “not completely
optimistic” of the Taliban government in Kabul as organised terrorist networks
are still operating in the war-torn nation and the Afghan soil is still being
used against his country.
Briefing
the National Assembly Standing Committee for Foreign Affairs, National Security
Adviser Moeed Yusuf spoke about the threat posed to Pakistan by the presence of
the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan.
“Organised
terrorist networks are still operating in Afghanistan and the Afghan soil is
still being used against Pakistan,” he said.
He
said Pakistan was “not completely optimistic” of the Taliban government in
Afghanistan and a complete solution to all problems should not be expected with
the Taliban coming into power.
His
remarks came in the wake of spike in terrorist attacks in Pakistan since August
after the Taliban came to power, belying Islamabad’s expectations that they
would take harsh measures against their former comrades-in-arms and expel them.
But
the Taliban instead of taking any action against the TTP, persuaded Pakistan to
enter into talks with them, which Islamabad did with the vain hope that the
Afghan Taliban would use their influence to tame the TTP.
The
TTP announced a month-long ceasefire on November 9 and presented tough
conditions, including implementation of their brand of Shariah and release of
all detained rebels. The government faced a backlash and refused to accept the
demands and the TTP refused to extend the ceasefire once it ended.
Yusuf
said that the TTP had unilaterally terminated the ceasefire agreement and
warned that whoever imposes war on the country will be dealt with strongly.
The
TTP, known as the Pakistan Taliban, was set up as an umbrella group of several
militant outfits in 2007. Its main aim is to impose its strict brand of Islam
across Pakistan.
The
group, which is believed to be close to al-Qaeda, has been blamed for several
deadly attacks across Pakistan, including an attack on the Army headquarters in
2009, assaults on military bases and the 2008 bombing of the Marriott Hotel in
Islamabad.
Talking
about the recently announced first-ever National Security Policy, Yusuf said
that the government was ready to present it before the Joint Parliamentary
National Security Committee.
Source:
The Print
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://theprint.in/world/pakistan-not-completely-optimistic-of-taliban-govt-in-kabul-nsa/814374/
--------
Pakistan
Rangers, India’s BSF exchange sweets at Wagah border
January
26, 2022
In a
goodwill gesture, Pakistan Rangers exchanged sweets with India’s Border
Security Force (BSF) on the occasion of 73rd Indian Republic Day.
It is
a tradition of the Indian and Pakistani forces to exchange sweets on days of
national importance for the two countries.
According
to reports, exchange of sweets is also undertaken by the two sides during
festivals like Diwali and Eid, Republic Day, Independence Day, BSF Raising Day
on December 1 and Pakistan’s Independence Day on August 14.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
10
soldiers martyred in terrorist attack on checkpost in Balochistan's Kech: ISPR
Naveed
Siddiqui | Tahir Khan
January
27, 2022
Ten
soldiers were martyred after terrorists attacked a security forces' checkpost
in Balochistan's Kech district, the military's media affairs wing said on
Thursday.
According
to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the
"fire raid" by terrorists occurred on the night of Jan 25-26.
"During
intense exchange of fire, one terrorist was killed and several injured. While
repulsing terrorists' fire raid, 10 soldiers embraced martyrdom," the
statement said.
It
added that three terrorists had been apprehended in the follow-up clearance
operation, which it said was still in progress to hunt down the perpetrators of
the incident.
"The
armed forces are determined to eliminate terrorists from our soil no matter
what the cost," the ISPR statement said.
Earlier
this month, a Pakistan Army soldier was martyred after terrorists attacked a
military post in Bannu's Janikhel.
On
January 5, two soldiers were martyred and as many terrorists killed in two
separate intelligence-based operations (IBOs) conducted by security forces in
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Source:
Dawn
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Fighting
TTP and mistrust, Pakistan marks one year polio-free
January
27, 2022
PESHAWAR:
Bathed in the crisp morning light, Sidra Hussain grips a cooler stacked with
glistening vials of polio vaccine in Mardan city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Watching
over Hussain and her partner, a policeman unslings his rifle and eyes the
horizon.
In
concert they begin their task — going door-to-door on the outskirts of the
city, dripping bitter doses of rose-coloured medicine into infants’ mouths on
the eve of a major milestone for the nation’s anti-polio drive.
The
last infection of the wild poliovirus was recorded on January 27, 2021,
according to officials, and Friday marks the first time in the nation’s history
that a year has passed with no new cases.
To
formally eradicate the disease, a nation must be polio-free for three
consecutive years — but even 12 months is a long time in a country where
vaccination teams are in the crosshairs of a simmering insurgency.
Since
the Taliban takeover of neighbouring Afghanistan, the Tehreek-i-Taliban
Pakistan (TTP) has become emboldened and its fighters frequently target polio
teams.
“Life
or death is in God’s hands,” Hussain told AFP this week, amid a patchwork of
high-walled compounds in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
“We have
to come,” she said defiantly. “We can’t just turn back because it’s difficult.”
THRIVING
IN UNCERTAINTY
Nigeria
officially eradicated wild polio in 2020, leaving Pakistan and Afghanistan as
the only countries where the disease — which causes crippling paralysis — is
still endemic.
Spread
through faeces and saliva, the virus has historically thrived in the blurred
borderlands between the South Asian nations, where state infrastructure is weak
and the TTP have carved out a home.
A
separate group sharing a common heritage with the Afghan Taliban, the TTP was
founded in 2007 and once held sway over large swathes of the restive tribal
tracts.
In
2014, it was ousted by an army offensive, its fighters retreating across the
porous border with Afghanistan.
But
last year overall militant attacks surged by 56 percent according to the
Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), reversing a
six-year downward trend.
The
largest number of assaults came in August, coinciding with the Taliban takeover
of Kabul.
The
newspapers are regularly peppered with stories of police slain as they guard
polio teams — and just this week a constable was gunned down in Kohat — 80
kilometres (50 miles) southwest of Mardan.
The
media has reported as many as 70 polio workers killed in militant attacks since
2012 — mostly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Still,
a TTP spokesman told AFP it “never attacked any polio workers”, and that
security forces were their target. “They will be targeted wherever they perform
their duties,” he said
Mardan
Deputy Commissioner Habib Ullah Arif admits polio teams are “a very soft
target”, but says the fight to eradicate the disease is entwined with the
security threat.
“There
is only one concept: we are going to defeat polio, we are going to defeat militancy,”
he pledged.
VACCINE
SCEPTICISM
The
anti-polio drives have been running since 1994, with up to 260,000 vaccinators
staging regular waves of regional inoculation campaigns. But on the fringes of
the country, the teams often face scepticism.
“In
certain areas of Pakistan, it was considered as a Western conspiracy,”
explained Shahzad Baig — head of the national polio eradication programme.
The
theories ranged wildly: polio teams are spies, the vaccines cause infertility,
or contain pig fat forbidden by Islam.
The
spy theory gained currency with the killing of Osama bin Laden in 2011, whose
purported hideaway in Abbottabad was revealed to the United States —
unwittingly or otherwise — by a vaccine programme run by a local doctor.
“It’s
a complex situation,” said Baig. “It’s socio-economical, it’s political.”
The
porous border with Afghanistan — a strategic crutch for the TTP — can also keep
polio circulating.
Source:
Pakistan Today
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Terrorists
kill guard, abduct company official in oil well attack in Hangu
January
27, 2022
HANGU:
A security guard was killed and an oil company employee abducted in terrorists’
attack on an oil well site here, police on Thursday.
The
terrorists attacked the oil installation of a private company in Adam Banda
area. “They killed a security guard at the site and abducted the company’s work
supervisor,” police sources said.
“The
bushes and dry grass at the site found to set on fire, however, the wellhead
has been safe,” according to police.
The
terrorists have also damaged solar plates with gunfire,” police further said.
It is
to be mentioned here that the oil and gas has also been discovered at the Hangu
Formation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Altaf
Hussain to stand trial for three weeks in hate speech case
January
27, 2022
LONDON:
The leader and founder of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Altaf Hussain is
set to go on trial at the Kingston Crown Court from Monday, January 31, for
approximately three weeks in the hate speech case brought by the Crown
Prosecution Service (CPS).
Scotland
Yard had charged Hussain in October 2019 with a terrorism offence in a case
related to his controversial speech relayed live from the United Kingdom to his
followers in Pakistan on August 22, 2016.
The
MQM founder, 68, was investigated by detectives from the Met Police’s
Counter-Terrorism Command over his speech that caused riots in Karachi and
attacks on news channels. He was arrested on June 11, 2019, on suspicion of
intentionally encouraging or assisting offences contrary to Section 44 of the
Serious Crime Act 2007. He was released on bail and subsequently charged.
Hussain
will be defended by his lawyers at Corker Binning against the Crown’s lawyers.
Hussain has denied the charge and says he will defend himself at the trial and
during the cross-examination.
“Altaf
Hussain […], of Abbey View, Mill Hill, NW7, was charged under section 1(2) of the
Terrorism Act (TACT) 2006 with encouraging terrorism,” the Met Police had said.
According
to the Metropolitan Police, Altaf Hussain on August 22, 2016, published a
speech to crowds gathered in Karachi, Pakistan which were likely to be
understood by some or all of the members of the public to whom they were
published as a direct or indirect encouragement to them to the commission,
preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism and at the time he published
them, intended them to be so encouraged, or was reckless as to whether they
would be so encouraged.
According
to section 1(2) of the Terrorism Act 2006, a person commits an offence if he
(a) he publishes a statement to which this section applies or causes another to
publish such a statement; and (b) at the time he publishes it or causes it to
be published, he (i) intends members of the public to be directly or indirectly
encouraged or otherwise induced by the statement to commit, prepare or
instigate acts of terrorism or Convention offences; or (ii) is reckless as to
whether members of the public will be directly or indirectly encouraged or
otherwise induced by the statement to commit, prepare or instigate such acts or
offences.
Under
section 1(7) of the same act, a person found guilty of an offence under this
section shall be liable (a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a
term not exceeding [15 years] or to a fine, or to both; (b) on summary
conviction in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both; (c) on
summary conviction in Scotland or Northern Ireland, to imprisonment for a term
not exceeding 6 months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to
both.
Ahead
of the trial, Hussain had written to the CPS stating that his trial should not
go ahead because he is “physically and mentally unfit to stand terrorism trial
in January 2022” but his application was rejected.
Source:
Pakistan Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
South Asia
Intl
Community Yet to Define 'Inclusive Govt': Islamic Emirate
Jan
28, 2022
The
international community has yet to define ‘"inclusive government,"
the Foreign Ministry said, saying that efforts are underway to form a
government which is acceptable for the nation.
The
acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amir Khan Muttaqi, after the three-day
visit to Oslo told TOLOnews’s reporter in a gathering in Kabul on Thursday that
the international community’s call for the formation of an inclusive government
is a political “excuse."
Muttaqi
insisted that the current government represents all Afghan ethnic groups, and
he said that the government’s cabinet has yet to be completed.
“(The
international community) doesn't have a definition for an inclusive government,
nor is there an example ... these are just excuses,” he said.
“As
we do not have the officials of the former government in our cabinet, this is
the (rule) of the world. After (US President Joe) Biden won the election, did
he appoint any officials from the Trump administration?" Muttaqi
asked.
The
Islamic Emirate came to power in mid-August following the rapid collapse of the
western-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani.
“It
is not an inclusive government and neither is the cabinet technically
prepared,” said Sayed Zakir Shah Sadat, a political analyst.
Source:
Tolo News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://tolonews.com/index.php/afghanistan-176481
--------
Afghanistan
Tops 2021 Global Survey of Islamic State Casualties
January
27, 2022
A
survey of the Islamic State group’s attacks around the world in 2021 indicates
the group killed and injured more people in Afghanistan last year than it did
anywhere else, and experts warn the terror group is on the rise following the
U.S. military withdrawal from the country.
Widely
known as ISIS, the group conducted its most deadly attack in 2021 last August
at the Kabul International Airport when a suicide bomber killed 170 Afghan
civilians and 13 U.S. military personnel.
During
2021, Islamic State carried out 365 terrorist attacks in Afghanistan that
caused 2,210 casualties, a significant increase compared with 2020 when 82 IS
attacks that caused 835 casualties were reported, according to an Israeli think
tank, the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center.
Globally,
IS operatives carried out 2,705 attacks resulting in 8,147 casualties. Iraq
stood second to Afghanistan in casualties with 2,083. The Meir Amit group uses
Islamic State’s claims of responsibility, as published in public sources, to
attribute responsibility for attacks.
“The
increase in ISIS activity in Afghanistan (especially in the second half of the
year) came in the wake of the pullout of U.S. forces from the country, the
disintegration of the old regime and the takeover of the country by the Taliban
movement,” the center, which has tracked Islamic State attacks around the world
for more than a decade, said in a report published this week.
The
United Nations, which tracks civilian casualties in Afghanistan, has not yet
released its final report for 2021. During the first half of 2021, the United
Nations reported at least 1,659 Afghan civilians were killed and 3,524 were
injured. Of those, the U.N. blamed 39 percent on Taliban insurgents and less
than 10 percent on Islamic State fighters.
The
rise in the number of civilians killed in IS attacks came as Afghanistan was
expecting an end to war-related casualties after almost two decades of fighting
between the U.S. and Taliban forces.
Thousands
of Afghans were killed and wounded during the Taliban’s brutal insurgency,
which started immediately after the U.S. military invaded Afghanistan in late
2001 and lasted until the last U.S. soldier left the country in August 20
The
victims
Even
before the U.S. military withdrawal, the United Nations reported rising
civilian casualties caused by Islamic State’s offshoot in Afghanistan, the
Khorasan Province, which is also known as IS-K.
In
the first half of 2021, more than 124 Afghan civilians were killed and 315 were
wounded in Islamic State attacks – a 45 percent increase compared with the same
period in 2020, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported.
Even while
the Taliban claim they have ended the war and restored peace in Afghanistan, IS
fighters have continued attacking civilians in different parts of the troubled
country.
Last
week, the group claimed responsibility for an attack in Herat city, west of Afghanistan,
which killed at least six and wounded several other civilians.
Since
its emergence in 2015 in eastern Afghanistan, bordering Pakistan, the IS Afghan
affiliate has caused more than 7,000 civilian casualties (including over 2,200
deaths) in the country, according to a tally of U.N. totals and other reports.
IS-Khorasan
primarily targets Shia communities — mosques, schools and residential areas —
in Afghanistan. Shias account for about 12 percent of the country’s estimated
35 million population.
The
group has also attacked journalists, civil society activists and health
workers.
IS-Khorasan
attacks, human rights groups say, amount to crimes against humanity.
There
are growing concerns now that in the absence of strong counterterrorism
operations in Afghanistan, IS has found a conducive environment in the country
to regenerate force and launch even more deadly attacks.
Source:
VOA News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
In
freezing Afghanistan, aid workers rush to save millions
Jan
27, 2022
Pul-E-Alam
(AFGHANISTAN): A flickering flame of paper, rags and random twigs is the only
heat Gulnaz has to keep her 18-month-old son warm, barely visible beneath his
icy blanket as she begs on a bitterly cold highway on the road to Kabul.
The
70-kilometer (45-mile) stretch of highway is flanked by snow-swept hills.
Occasionally a driver slows his car and shoves an Afghani note into the
28-year-old woman's bare, dirt-caked hand. She sits for hours on the highway
medium, positioned just beyond a bump in the road that slows traffic.
Her
16-year-old sister, Khalida, sits nearby. Both are hidden behind encompassing
blue burqas. By the end of the day, Gulnaz, who gave just the one name, says
they might make 300 Afghanis ($2.85). But most days it is less.
The
Taliban's sweep to power in Afghanistan in August drove billions of dollars in
international assistance out of the country and sent an already dirt-poor
nation, ravaged by war, drought and floods, spiraling toward a humanitarian
catastrophe.
But
in recent weeks it is the bitter winter cold that is devastating the most
vulnerable and has international aid organizations scrambling to save millions
from starving or freezing because they have neither food nor fuel. For the
poorest the only heat or means of cooking is with the coal or wood they can
scrounge from the snowy streets or that they receive from aid groups.
“The
extent of the problem now in Afghanistan for people is dire,” said Shelley
Thakral, spokeswoman for the World Food Program in Afghanistan. "We're
calling this a race against time. We need to get to families in very difficult,
hard to reach areas. It's winter, it's cold, the snow."
The
cost of the humanitarian effort is staggering. Thakral said the WFP alone will
need $2.6 billion this year.
“Break
that number down. That's $220 million a month, that's 30 cents per person per
day, and that's what we're asking for. . . . We need the money because we need
to reach people as quickly as we can," she said.
Earlier
this month the United Nations launched its largest single country appeal for
more than $5 billion to help a devastated Afghanistan.
It's
estimated that roughly 90 percent of Afghanistan's 38 million people are
dependent on aid and the U.N. says nearly 3 million are displaced in their own
country, driven from their homes by drought, war and famine.
In
2020 alone, 700,000 Afghans became displaced, many living in desperate
conditions on the outskirts of cities, in parks and open spaces, wherever they
could erect a makeshift shelter.
Gulnaz
migrated to central Logar province from the northern province of Kunduz, where
her husband had been a shoemaker. But his work dried up with war and the coming
of the Taliban and “we have come here," she said as she sat with her
sister on the side of the highway linking Logar's capital, Pul-e-Alam, with
Kabul.
"We
have no heat at home and every day whether it is raining or snowing we come and
sit here," she said.
In
Pul-e-Alam, where temperatures in January and February can drop to lows of
minus-16 degrees Celsius (3 degrees Fahrenheit), thousands of men and women
line up in the bitter cold to collect a World Food Program ration of flour,
oil, salt and lentils.
The
WFP surveyed the city for the neediest, giving each a voucher to collect their
rations, but word spread quickly through the snow- and mud-covered streets that
food was being distributed and soon scores of men and women pushed and pleaded
for rations. Fights broke out among some in the crowd and security forces tried
to cordon those without vouchers off to one side.
Each
day for a week this month the WFP distributed rations to as many as 500 families
a day, said Hussain Andisha, who manages the distribution. Most people in Logar
province are desperate, he said.
As he
spoke, four women in burqas slipped past the men at the gate taking vouchers.
None had a ration card, but they pleaded for food. One woman, who gave her name
only as Sadarat, said her husband was a drug addict — a devastating problem
that has mushroomed in the past two decades, with as many as 1 million people,
or 8% of Afghanistan's population, counted as addicts, according to the U.N.
Afghanistan produces over 4,000 tons annually of opium. the raw material used
to make heroin.
“I
don't know where he is. I have no food for my children. Please I need
something,” she said.
Source:
Times Of India
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Books
about Ottoman Empire enthral Bangladeshi readers
JAN
27, 2022
With
a growing interest in Islamic culture and history, Bangladeshi readers have
been enjoying reading books about the Ottoman Empire lately, according to
booksellers and publishers in the country.
In
its heyday, the Ottoman Empire spread from Budapest in the north to Mecca in
the south, and Algiers in the west to Baghdad in the east.
To
mark the day the Ottoman Empire was founded, on Jan. 27 booksellers in the
capital Dhaka shared the bestselling titles.
One
of the most popular books is "The Ottoman Empire" written by Ali
Muhammad Sallabi, they said.
A
translated copy of the book was first published in 2019 and within a span of
two years, the seventh edition is now being circulated in bookstores across
Bangladesh.
"This
is a large volume and we normally don't publish such books unless there is a
serious demand due to the financial risks involved. But our experience with
this title has been very good," Abdullah Khan, founder and director of
Muhammad Publications, told Anadolu Agency (AA).
Some
other bestselling books are "Muhammad Al-Fatih" by Sallabi,
"Unknown Chapter of Ottoman Empire" by Mustafa Armağan, "Sultan
Abdülhamid" by Sallabi, "Sanjak-e Usman" by Prince Mohammad
Sajal and "Sultan Suleiman" by Kazi Abul Kalam Siddik.
Many
other books on Turkey are also popular, including "Erdoğan: The Change
Maker" by Hafizur Rahman, "Davam" by former Turkish Prime
Minister Necmeddin Erbakan, "From Atatürk to Erdoğan: 100 Years of
Changing Turkey" by Mostafa Faisal Parvez, and "Al-lam’at" by
Turkish Islamic scholar Said Nursi.
Speaking
to AA, Abu Jafor, a professor of Islamic Studies at the Islamic University in
Bangladesh, said the golden era of the Ottoman Empire inspires Muslims across
the world to serve humanity and uphold the true spirit of Islam.
"It
is a very positive aspect that a good number of people, especially the youth in
Bangladesh, are studying the Ottoman history to learn how the religion of Islam
was placed before the whole world to establish justice," Jafor said.
Mahdi
Hasan, who translated "The Ottoman Empire" in Bengali, said that
reading about the conquest of Istanbul by Sultan Mehmed II inspired him to
delve deeper into Ottoman history.
"I
came to know from a saying of the Prophet Muhammad that a blessed person would
conquer Constantinople and it prompted me to read up on Sultan Mehmed II. I
felt I had the responsibility to share the lessons I had learned to millions of
Bangla-speaking people," he said.
Turkish
series and Erdoğan
The
charismatic personality of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has
emerged as a strong voice for oppressed Muslims worldwide, has also piqued the
interest of many Bangladeshis in learning about the history of Turkey.
Moreover,
Turkish historical fiction series such as "Diriliş Ertuğrul"
("Resurrection Ertuğrul") and "Kuruluş Osman" ("The
Ottoman") have also introduced the Turkish culture to thousands of
Bangladeshis.
"It
is very interesting that many university students and teachers are buying books
related to Ottoman Empire in the last couple of years,” said Belaet Hossain,
the owner of a private library and bookstore in Dhaka.
Mushfika
Naorin, a student of Dhaka University, said reading about the Ottoman Empire
had rejuvenated pride in her Muslim identity.
Source:
Daily Sabah
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.dailysabah.com/arts/books-about-ottoman-empire-enthrall-bangladeshi-readers/news
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Haunted
By Holocaust, Israeli Group Helps Afghans Fleeing Taliban
January
27, 2022
Tel
Aviv: When Israeli lawyer Inbar Nacht saw pictures last year of Afghans desperately
trying to escape their homeland, she thought of her relatives who were murdered
in the Holocaust and knew she had to act.
She
and her husband Marius had founded a charity in 2020 that has worked on a range
of initiatives, from assisting the elderly and disabled to supporting
out-of-work artists during the Covid pandemic.
Evacuating
people from Afghanistan -- a war-battered country which has never recognised
Israel and which is now ruled by Islamist hardliners the Taliban -- was not
within the area of expertise of the group, Nacht Philanthropic Ventures.
In an
interview at her Tel Aviv home ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day
on Thursday, she told news agency AFP that she "couldn't remain
indifferent to the images of people trying to escape with their children and
babies".
"It
touched my most fundamental Jewish feelings," she said about the dramatic
events of last August.
Many
Afghans feared a return to the Taliban's hardline rule of the 1990s or possible
retribution for working with the US-backed government or foreign forces.
"I
tried to imagine my forefathers in such a situation, if someone in a different
country had contributed to save them," said Nacht.
"This
weighs on us, given our history as Jews. It doesn't matter if the people are from
Afghanistan or somewhere else, they're innocent civilians who found themselves
in an impossible situation. We tried to see how we could help."
Nacht
was not the only Israeli to reach out to Afghans in need.
Aided
by Canadian-Israeli philanthropist Sylvan Adams, the Israeli non-government
group IsraAID utilised its experience and connections to help nearly 200
at-risk Afghans reach safe shores.
Quick
'Pivot'
Kabul's
only airport was trashed when tens of thousands scrambled to evacuate on any
available flight, as the United States wrapped up their withdrawal from
Afghanistan after 20 years of war.
Amid
the race to evacuate people, the director of Nacht Philanthropic Ventures,
Nachman Rosenberg, made contact with a US army veteran who had served in Afghanistan
and Stacia George, a former USAID worker there.
George's
group, Transit Initiatives, had a list of over 300 at-risk people who wanted to
be flown out of Afghanistan, including rights workers, scientists, members of
ethnic minorities, interpreters and others whose could face threats from the
Taliban.
But
on August 26, the day the group was set to be taken to the Kabul airport, a
suicide bombing claimed by the ISIS group tore through the crowd outside the
airport, killing nearly 200 people.
With
air travel impossible, and fearing the Taliban would close the roads from
Kabul, George's team decided to use the buses meant to reach the airport to
instead drive to Mazar-i-Sharif, a city northwest of Kabul.
Nacht's
charity helped pay for the transit, accommodation, food and security for the
nearly 300 people staying in Mazar-i-Sharif.
"The
foundation was incredible in terms of being able to pivot so quickly and
provide resources quickly, in a substantial way that really allowed us to make
that decision and have the capability to save people's lives," George told
AFP.
'Extreme
Gratitude'
It
took four nerve-racking months, but by January the 278 people who had been
evacuated to Mazar-i-Sharif found safe locations around the world.
Nacht's
identity was initially not shared with the Afghans.
Hamid,
a 33-year-old civil engineer who had been working on US-army funded projects in
Afghanistan, knew he would be at risk if he stayed in his homeland once the
Taliban took over.
"Anyone
working for the US was the enemy," he told AFP.
He
had managed to get to the Kabul airport with his wife and three children in
hopes of reaching Rwanda, which had agreed to accept them, but was turned back
amid the chaos a day before the August 26 attack.
Source:
ND TV
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click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
--------
Taliban
govt ‘frustrates ‘Pakistan
28.01.22
Pakistan’s
frustration with the Afghan Taliban became evident on Thursday when its top
security official said that Islamabad was “not completely optimistic” of the
Taliban government in Kabul as organised terrorist networks are still operating
in the war-torn nation.
Briefing
the National Assembly Standing Committee for Foreign Affairs, National Security
Adviser Moeed Yusuf spoke about the threat posed to Pakistan by the presence of
the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan in Afghanistan.
Source:
Telegraph India
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.telegraphindia.com/world/taliban-govt-frustratespakistan/cid/1849479
--------
Afghanistan
tops agenda of India’s first Central Asia summit
January
27, 2022
NEW
DELHI`: India held its first summit with five Central Asian states on Thursday
to address joint concerns over Afghanistan, and to develop regional security
cooperation.
Held
virtually, Thursday’s summit, hosted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi,was
also attended by the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
“Our
aim and concerns for regional security are the same,” Modi said in his opening
remarks. “We are all worried about the happenings in Afghanistan. In this
context our cooperation for regional security and peace are all the more
important.”
Like
India, three of the Central Asian republics — Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and
Tajikistan — also border Afghanistan.
Modi,
the first Indian leader to visit all five Central Asian countries, said they
are key to New Delhi’s vision of “an integrated and stable” extended
neighborhood.
“We
have to prepare an ambitious roadmap for our cooperation, through which, in the
next three years, regional connectivity cooperation will be able to adopt an
integrated approach,” he said.
As
other global powers look to cement their grip on the region following the
Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, the Indian government has been largely
sidelined, while other players such as Pakistan and China have been
increasingly involved in Afghan politics on both domestic and international
fronts.
Foreign
policy experts see the summit as “significant” in view of the situation in
Kabul.
“The
Central Asian countries’ importance has increased very significantly as a
result of what has happened in Afghanistan,” India’s former ambassador to Kazakhstan,
Ashok Sajjanhar, told Arab News.
“After
the departure of the NATO and American troops, it’s the regional countries’
responsibility to maintain peace and security in Afghanistan,” he said, adding
that India and the Central Asian republics are “on the same page and want an
inclusive government in Afghanistan, respect for rights of minorities, and
women and children.”
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2013446/world
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Europe
Russia
revises expectations on clinching Iran nuclear deal
27
January ,2022
Russia’s
chief negotiator at the Iran nuclear talks said it could take weeks longer than
he previously thought to reach an agreement, revising expectations as European
and US diplomats warn that the window to save the accord is closing.
“If
the talks continue at the pace they’re currently going, in principle it’s quite
realistic to reach agreement by the end of February, Mikhail Ulyanov told
Rossiya-24 on Wednesday night, adding that a deal could be implemented by
April. Last month, he said it would be possible to conclude talks to reactivate
the 2015 pact by early February.
The
Russian envoy said in a Twitter statement on Thursday, however, that he doesn’t
rule out the possibility “that the negotiations can be expedited to meet the
original forecast. “The talks are already at an advanced stage, he wrote.
The
comments come as diplomats remain locked in an eighth round of negotiations in
Vienna, with US officials showing increasing signs of frustration at the pace
of talks to revive the accord that lifted sanctions on the Islamic Republic in
return for strict limits on its nuclear program.
Iran
has gradually rolled back its compliance since the Trump administration
abandoned the accord in 2018 and reimposed tight sanctions.
Iran
and world powers have been struggling to resolve some key differences over how
to restore the accord, whose disintegration provoked Tehran to significantly
advance its atomic activities. If they manage to resurrect the agreement, the
US would be expected to lift its sanctions on Iran, making it easier for it to
sell oil on global markets, a key source of income.
US
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week that negotiations cannot be
allowed to drag on too much longer.
In an
apparent effort to keep the talks alive, Iran’s foreign minister and a top
security official dangled the prospect earlier this week of direct talks with
the US if Tehran senses that a “good deal is within reach. Negotiations have so
far taken place through the Europeans, Russians and Chinese, who remain party
to agreement.
Ulyanov
said Iran may start direct talks with the US “rather soon and that a restored
deal would lift Washington’s sanctions on the Islamic Republic’s oil exports.
He didn’t specify whether that meant a new accord would restore sanctions
waivers for Iranian oil, or lift the penalties altogether.
Source:
Al Arabiya
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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Muslim
man who ended London knifeman’s fatal attack on ex-wife appeals for release
January
27, 2022
LONDON:
A Muslim man who ran over and killed a knifeman who was stabbing his ex-wife to
death has urged police to abandon the case against him after he was charged on
suspicion of murder.
The
26-year-old Chechen, named Abraham, intervened in the stabbing in West London,
and has been labeled a hero for his actions, the Mail Online reported.
On
Monday, Leon McCaskie, a 41-year-old who was known to police over abusive and
angry behavior, attacked his former wife, Yasmin Wafah Chkaifi, 43, with a
knife.
Abraham,
who was driving nearby, saw the attack and rammed into McCaskie with his car.
But
despite his efforts to save the defenseless woman, Abraham was charged and
bailed until next month on a murder charge. It has left him “living in a
nightmare,” according to his friends.
Abraham
said: “I do not see why I, as the person who tried to assist in the defense of
other human beings, remain arrested and on bail under suspicion of murder.”
Anger
over his treatment has grown, with more than 20,000 people signing a petition
demanding the case against him be dropped.
His
lawyer, Mohammed Akunjee, issued a statement on behalf of Abraham. “I witnessed
a man repeatedly stabbing a defenseless woman on the pavement a short distance
in front of my car,” it said.
“I
drove my vehicle toward the attacker in order to get him away from the woman he
was attacking. I did not intend to harm the attacker. I only intended to
protect those being attacked.
“My
vehicle struck the attacker and he was taken under my car, causing it to stall.
I could not reverse my car to free him. I and the other passersby attempted to
lift the car away from the attacker so we could provide the man with first aid.
“Unfortunately
we were unsuccessful with this and I have since learned that both the young
lady and her attacker have died. I am deeply sorry that the man I tried to stop
from attacking other people has died.
“It
was never my intention to harm him, I just wanted to stop him from hurting
anybody further. My only regret is that God did not allow me to be present at
the scene sooner so that my intervention may have saved the life of the young
woman concerned.
“I
have asked my solicitor to contact the Metropolitan Police to request that they
consider de-arresting me and begin treating me as a witness to a tragic event
rather than as a criminal as they currently are.”
Abraham’s
friends said he was in shock over the incident.
One
said: “If he ever sees anyone in trouble he will always try to help. He’s a
good Muslim man and couldn’t bear to see the woman being attacked.
“He
was on his way to a job and stopped to do the right thing. He’s in shock about
what happened. It’s been a nightmare for him.”
Another
said: “This guy is a family man with children and was just doing the right
thing. It was instinct and an act of human kindness.
“He
is one of the most peaceful and good people I’ve ever met. He would never walk
away when somebody needs help.
“He
risked his life to save this poor woman. Police should praise him and let him
go to his little children and wife.”
London’s
Metropolitan Police said Abraham had been “fully cooperative” after being
arrested following the incident.
The
force is also facing criticism after it was revealed that it had been warned
over McCaskie’s potential for violent behavior.
Chkaifi
was increasingly concerned that McCaskie would try to kill her after learning
that he had planted secret cameras in her home.
“He’s
had cameras in my house recording me for months. He’s stolen my mail, my phone
and has access to all my personal data. I think he will kill me.”
Chkaifi
had filed a police report over the stalking allegations.
McCaskie
was also convicted of obstructing a police officer and driving without
insurance in 2017.
Source:
Arab News
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2013256/world
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Kyrgyz-Tajik
border guards clash again as ceasefire flops
January
28, 2022
BISHKEK:
Kyrgyz and Tajik border guards exchanged fire yesterday amid a standoff over a
blocked road, in the latest clash between the former Soviet neighbours following
a similar violent incident last year that killed dozens.
The
border between the two countries, both of which host Russian military bases and
are closely allied with Moscow, is poorly demarcated.
The
secretary-general of Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO),
Stanislav Zas, called for an immediate ceasefire at the border, RIA news agency
reported.
It
said Zas has held phone talks with senior security officials from Kyrgyzstan
and Tajikistan.
“The
armed confrontation at the Tajik-Kyrgyz border should be immediately stopped,”
he was quoted as saying by the news agency.
He
also said that the CSTO, of which both countries are members, stood ready to
help resolve the conflict.
Kyrgyz
authorities said Tajik citizens had blocked a road between the provincial
centre Batken and the Kyrgyz village of Isfana.
Border
guards on both sides managed to get the road unblocked, but then fighting broke
out.
The
Kyrgyz authorities said later in a separate statement that the two sides agreed
a ceasefire around midnight but fighting resumed 10 minutes later.
Tajikistan’s
border guard service said its servicemen defended Tajik civilians and it was
the Kyrgyz side that opened fire first.
The
Batken provincial government in Kyrgyzstan said four servicemen have been
wounded, according to local news website 24kg.
Tajikistan
said there were casualties among its civilians and border guards, but provided
no figures.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
Please
click the following URL to read the full text of the original story:
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