Youth Attacked Over Quran Row Ahead Of Belur Festival; It Is Long-Followed Tradition Of Reciting Quran Verses Ahead Of The Annual Chariot Festival Of Lord Channakeshava Temple
New Age Islam News Bureau
29 March 2023
Picture for representational purpose only.
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• ‘We Can Break Legs Too’: Cow Vigilantes, BJP Leaders
Shut Muslim Meat Shopsin Several LocalitiesOf Delhi
• Pak Govt Introduces Bill In Parliament To Curtail
Powers Of Chief Justice After Cabinet's Approval
• Pakistan Removed From EU’s High Risk Third Countries
List: Commerce Minister
• Blinken Praises Afghan Women’s Struggle for a Better
Future
India
• Police Deployed In Noida Society After Row Over Taraweeh
Namaz In The Under Constructed Space Provided By The Builder
• Early Ramazan Leave, An Hour Before The Completion
Of Duty Hours, For Muslim School Staff in Bengal
• Delhi Police Denies Permission for Ram Yatra,
Ramadan Prayers in Jahangirpuri
• Chennai: Communal Harmony on Display as Muslims,
Christians Take Part in Padavettamman Temple Consecration
• Supreme Court to hear plea to club Gyanvapi suits
• Dalit Christians, Muslims hold demonstration for SC
status at Jantar Mantar
• Hate Speeches: Muslim Intellectuals Who Met RSS Chief
Disappointed
--------
Pakistan
• No Talks WithImran Khan Unless He Apologises To
People: Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif
• Chief of PTI splinter group offers his platform to
Tareen’s bloc
• Wary Of China, Pakistan Opts Out Of Democracy Summit
In Washington
• Pakistan Takes Steps to Facilitate Border Crossing
with Afghanistan
• Balochistan lawmakers criticise delay in release of
Zakat funds
--------
Europe
• British business ministers announce working group on
Islamic finance
• Greece arrests 2 Pakistanis for planning
anti-Semitic attacks
• Time For British Remake Of Amar Akbar Anthony?
• At least 2 killed in knife attack at Islamic centre
in Lisbon
• UN human rights chief calls for ‘decisive steps’ to
clarify fate of missing Syrians
• Hosting PKK/YPG terrorists 'casts shadow over French
Senate's respectability': Türkiye
--------
North America
• Biden admin. should have informed Congress earlier
about Syria attack: Pentagon chief
• US designates individuals, including Assad's
cousins, in drug export
• Sunny Hostin Suggests Chinese Internment Of Muslims
Not As Bad As U.S. Mass Incarceration
--------
South Asia
• 237 People Killed In Afghanistan Without Trial After
Taliban Takeover
• UN Says Afghan Girls' Education Activist MatiullahWesaHeld
InKabul
• Afghan orphaned toddler Maryam finally reunited with
family
• Karzai Calls on Taliban to Release Education
Activist
• Indian Govt Gave Stranded Afghan Cadets A Lifeline
Last Year. Now They Fear Being ‘Handed ToTaliban’
--------
Southeast Asia
• Ideological Polarisation Is The Price Of Democratic
Representation In Indonesia
• RM5 meals at KL's Rahmah Ramadan bazaar pull in
sales as customers order pricier items on the side
• First 6,000 Rahmah Ramadan Bazaar visitors stand
chance to receive RM20 e-wallet incentive
--------
Arab World
• Saudi Arabia Condemns Jewish Settlers’ Blatant
Incursion IntoAl-Aqsa Mosque Courtyards
• Bin Salman Thanks China For Efforts To Restore
Saudi-Iran Ties
• Belgium probes refugee status of Syrian war crimes
suspect
• Presidency receives Grand Mosque visitors in more
than 50 international languages
• Egypt to allow Iranians visas on arrival in Sinai as
regional tensions ease
• Saudi Cabinet Condemns Qur’an Burnings, Calls For
Rejection Of Hate
• Saudi Arabia condemns Al-Aqsa Mosque storming by
Israeli settlers
• Saudi interior minister, UK Home Secretary sign raft
of agreements at meeting in London
• Lebanese politicians hurl insults at each other as
tensions boil over in parliament
--------
Mideast
• Labour Chiefs Probe Exploitation Of Palestinian
Workers In Israel
• Israeli Forces Tighten Security Measures Against
Palestinians
• Hamas warns Israel against storming al-Aqsa Mosque,
provoking Muslims during Ramadan
• Israeli forces detain more than a dozen Palestinians
in multiple raids across occupied territories
• Iran: Door to Negotiations Not to Remain Open
Forever
• Iran: Crises Consuming Israeli Regime Like Wildfire
• Iran, India Discuss Further Security Cooperation
• Iran, Saudi FMs Discuss Normalization of Ties
• Iran Calls for Broadening of Ties with Libya,
Malaysia
• Palestinian dies of injuries from Israeli fire in
West Bank
--------
Africa
• Spain Arrests Man For Rude Comments On Islam, Racist
Slurs Against Morocco Players
• Tunisia cuts off water supply at night amid severe drought
• Burkina Faso most affected African country by
terrorism: Report
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
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Youth Attacked Over Quran Row Ahead OfBelur Festival;
It Is Long-Followed Tradition Of Reciting Quran Verses Ahead Of The Annual Chariot
Festival Of Lord Channakeshava Temple
Mar 29, 2023
Picture for representational purpose only.
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HASSAN: A long-followed tradition of reciting Quran
verses ahead of the annual chariot festival of Lord Channakeshava temple here
took an ugly turn on Tuesday when some Hindutva activists opposed to the custom
allegedly manhandled a youth who they claimed chanted slogans in support of the
Islamic text.
Police officials whisked away the youth after he
reportedly screamed "Quran Zindabad" repeatedly. SP Hariram Shankar
said the youth was a "history-sheeter" and legal action will be
initiated against him.
The trouble broke out at Hassan's Belur town when over
100 Bajrang Dal and VHP activists had taken out a rally opposing the Quran
recitations.
Protest against tradition
According to sources, the recitations are a syncretic
tradition observed during the "car (chariot)" festival of the
Channakeshava temple. It falls on April 4 this time.
It's not clear exactly how old the tradition is,
though some accounts suggest that it is mentioned in a 1932 temple manual. A
week earlier, VHP and the other groups had approached the temple authorities to
press their demand to drop the recitations.
The Hindutva activists also approached the state's
Muzrai (temple) department with their demands. The issue may be discussed later
this week.
Source: Times Of India
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original story:
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‘We Can Break Legs Too’: Cow Vigilantes, BJP Leaders
Shut Muslim Meat Shops in Several Localities Of Delhi
28th March 2023
BJP leader force shuts meat shops in Muslim localities
(Screengrab: Twitter)
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Amid the ongoing Hindu festival of Chaitra Navratri,
cow vigilantes and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders have been on rounds
forcibly shutting down meat shops in several localities.
Videos of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ravindra
Singh on rounds in the Muslim locality MandawaliFazalpur in Vinod Nagar of West
Delhi have surfaced on social media.
Ravindra Singh also demanded that local meat traders
keep shops shut during all nine days of the Navratri which commenced on March
22 (PratipadaTithi) and will end on March 30 (Navami Tithi).
In a viral video, a BJP leader can be seen walking
alongside police personnel inspecting meat shops.
When Siasat.com enquired with the Delhi police over
the case, they said that no case regarding the closure of meat shops has been
registered so far.
“There is no authoritarian order on meat shop closure
during Navratri, he (Ravindra Singh) has visited the meat shops demanding their
closure on his own,” police said.
“We cannot barge into the matter without receiving the
complaint. There seems no force on shopkeepers they silently obey the order of
the BJP leader, where we can do nothing,” police added.
In another similar incident, Gaurakshaks (cow
vigilantes) alongside BJP councillor Ashok Chhabra can be seen raiding Muslim
meat shops and forcing them to shut shops in view of Navratri.
In a video which is making rounds on social media cow
vigilantes can be seen raiding every meat shop and pulling down shutters. They
threaten Muslim meat shop owners stating that are supposed to keep shut on
Tuesdays and for Navratri.
“We ask you politely otherwise we can break legs and
make you close the shop,” a man can be heard threatening shop keeper.
The Gauraksha Dal Krishanpura also reportedly filed a
complaint over meat shops remaining open during Navratri and hurting Hindu
sentiments.
However, Siasat.com was unable to reach out to Haryana
police on the matter.
Source: Siasat Daily
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original story:
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Pak govt introduces bill in Parliament to curtail
powers of Chief Justice after Cabinet's approval
Mar 28, 2023
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said "history would
not forgive us" if Parliament did not enact laws to curtail the powers of
the country's top judge. (File photo)
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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan government on Tuesday night
introduced a bill in Parliament to curtail the discretionary powers of the
chief justice, hours after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that
"history would not forgive us" if Parliament did not enact laws to
curtail the powers of the country's top judge.
Law minister Azam Nazeer Tarar presented 'The Supreme
Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023', which was approved by the Cabinet
earlier in the evening.
The development comes a day after two Supreme Court
judges questioned the suo motu powers of the country's top judge.
Tarar said that the bill prepared by the ministry of
law and justice was deliberated by the cabinet and after its approval, he was
presenting the bill before Parliament.
Giving the details, he said that the bill ensures that
"every cause, appeal or matter before the Supreme Court shall be heard and
disposed of by a bench constituted by the Committee comprising the Chief
Justice of Pakistan and two senior-most judges, in order of seniority" and
the decisions of such a committee shall be by majority.
Regarding suo motu powers, the draft states that any
matter invoking exercise of original jurisdiction under Article 184 (3) shall
be first placed before the committee of three senior-most judges.
"..If the Committee is of the view that a
question of public importance with reference to enforcement of any of the
fundamental rights conferred by Chapter I of Part II of the Constitution is
involved, it shall constitute a bench comprising not less than three judges of
the Supreme Court of Pakistan which may also include the members of the
Committee, for adjudication of the matter,” it adds.
The legislation also allows appeals within 30 days of
a verdict being issued on a suo motu case and enforces that a bench be
constituted to hear such an appeal within 14 days.
"An appeal shall lie within thirty days from a
final order of a bench of the Supreme Court who exercised jurisdiction under
clause (3) of Article 184 of the Constitution to a larger bench of the Supreme
Court and such appeal shall, for hearing, be fixed within a period not
exceeding fourteen days,” according to the proposed bill.
After the bill was presented various members demanded
that the bill should be sent to a committee to discuss it and report back
before voting. As the law minister did not oppose the demand, the speaker
announced to send the bill to a committee with hope that it would present its
report soon.
Later, the Speaker prorogued the proceedings till
Wednesday.
The bill as presented aimed to reduce the
discretionary powers of the chief justice to take suo motu action and also set
up benches for hearing of cases.
Addressing the joint session of parliament earlier,
Sharif talked at length about the dissenting judgement by Justice Mansoor Ali
Shah and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail of the apex court, who lashed out at the
unlimited authority of the chief justice to take a suo motu (on its own) action
on any issue and constitute benches of choice to hear different cases.
Their judgment was about the case of suo motu notice
taken by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial on February 22 about elections in
Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
Speaking passionately about the need for new laws to
limit the chief justice's power, Sharif said if the legislation were not
passed, "history would not forgive us".
The suo motu power is based on the original
jurisdiction of the court under Article 184 of the Constitution. However, its
usage over the years has created an impression of partiality on the Chief
Justices' part.
It was openly challenged for the first time by the two
judges who were part of a bench that, in its 3-2 majority decision of March 1,
directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to consult with President
Arif Alvi for polls in Punjab and Governor Ghulam Ali for elections in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa.
The five-member bench was reconstituted by Bandial,
who took a suo motu action against the delay in elections and initially formed
a nine-member bench to deal with the issue. However, two of the nine judges
differed with the decision to take suo motu notice, while two other judges
recused themselves, prompting the Chief Justice to form a new bench.
Justice Shah and Justice Mandokhail, in their detailed
28-page dissenting note, also rejected the 3-2 judgment in the suo motu case by
saying that it was a 4-3 judgment to reject the maintainability of the case and
lambasted the Chief Justice's power to form a bench for important cases.
The coalition government led by Prime Minister Sharif,
which is supporting the ECP's decision to delay the election in the two
provinces until October 8, is trying to use Parliament to curtail the powers of
the Chief Justice.
The premier also said that the courts were treating
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan favourably and were not ready
to hold Khan accountable.
Sharif said that “enough is enough” and the law would
take its course while the government would not allow “the favourite” to play
with Pakistan.
He added that the Constitution clearly defined the
division of powers between the legislature, judiciary and administration and
set a red line that no one should cross.
The powers of the legislature defined by the
Constitution and the powers of the judiciary were being flouted, the prime
minister said.
The joint session of parliament was summoned last week
to discuss the key issues confronting Pakistan and provide guidelines to deal with
those issues.
The development comes as the top court is hearing a
case about the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan to postpone the
provincial election till October 8, well beyond the 90 days deadline by the
constitution to hold elections after the dissolution of an assembly.
Source: Times Of India
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original story:
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Pakistan Removed From EU’s High Risk Third Countries
List: Commerce Minister
March 29, 2023
The European Commission has removed Pakistan from the
list of its “High Risk Third Countries” that pose significant threats to the
financial system of the European Union, according to Commerce Minister Syed
Naveed Qamar.
The EC had in Feb 2019 issued a list of 23 countries
including Pakistan having weak anti-money laundering and terror financing
regimes and asked them to remedy their deficiencies swiftly.
“EU has removed Pakistan from the List of High Risk
Third Countries,” the minister said announced via a tweet.
Qamar noted that Pakistani businesses and individuals
would no longer be subjected to ‘Enhanced Customer Due Diligence’ by European
legal and economic operators.
The countries that are currently on the EC list of
High Risk Third Countries.
The EU High Risk Third Countries list is a list of
countries that the union considers to have strategic deficiencies in their
anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing frameworks.
What does it mean to be on the list?
According to the EU website, the placement of
countries on the list is meant to identify jurisdictions which have strategic
deficiencies in their national AML/CFT regimes which pose significant threats
to the financial system of the Union and hence the proper functioning of the
internal market.
When a country is added to the list, it means that the
EU believes that there are significant weaknesses in that country’s legal and
regulatory systems for preventing financial crime and terrorist financing.
Once a country is added to the EU high-risk third
countries list, certain additional measures are applied to financial
transactions involving that country. These measures are designed to mitigate
the risks posed by the deficiencies in the country’s anti-money laundering and
counter-terrorism financing frameworks.
The specific measures that are applied may include
increased customer due diligence requirements, enhanced monitoring of
transactions, and restrictions or prohibitions on certain types of financial
transactions.
In November last year, the United Kingdom also removed
Pakistan from its ‘high-risk third countries’ list through a statutory
instrument, effectively meaning that the country recognised Pakistan’s efforts
to improve money laundering and terror financing curbs.
Source: Dawn
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original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1744806/pakistan-removed-from-eus-high-risk-third-countries-list-minister
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Blinken Praises Afghan Women’s Struggle for a Better
Future
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
March 29, 2023
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken on
Tuesday at the Summit for Democracy 2023 in Washington, once again criticized
the Taliban’s repressive policies against Afghan women.
While hosting the session, Blinken said despite the
Taliban’s efforts to completely erase women from public life, brave Afghan
women have not stopped protesting against the Taliban’s orders. He said these women are taking massive risks
to come to the streets and fight for a better future in Afghanistan.
Blinken further added that women and girls are at the
forefront of the struggle to achieve fundamental human rights and establish
democracy around the world.
He specifically mentioned “brave Iranian women” who
took to the streets despite serious threats and chanted the slogan “woman,
life, freedom” for months, some whom had been imprisoned, and possibly faced
heavy penalties for raising their voices.
Over the past two years, the Taliban regime has tried
to curb women’s dissatisfaction by arresting, harassing, and threatening Afghan
women activists time and again. However, these brave women have not succumbed
to the demands of Afghanistan’s de fact authorities and kept protesting for
their basic human rights.
On Sunday, March 26, the Taliban arrested a group of
women during a peaceful protest in western Kabul, a predominantly
Hazara-populated area. Fatima Mohammadi, MlalayeeHasheemi, and RoqiaSayee are
among the detainees.
Blinken said the United States is “committed to
supporting women and promoting gender equality around the world through
diplomacy.”
Since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, the
group has deepened restrictions on women and girls’ movement. The gender-based
restrictions barring women and girls from education, work, and other activities
are of major concern – the implementation of which has utterly erased Afghan
women and girls from public life.
Source: Khaama Press
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original story:
https://www.khaama.com/blinken-praises-afghan-womens-struggle-for-a-better-future/
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India
Police Deployed In Noida Society After Row Over
Taraweeh Namaz In The Under Constructed Space Provided By The Builder
Mar 29, 2023
NOIDA: A police team had to be deployed at Supertech
Ecovillage 2 in Greater Noida after a group of residents objected to a
gathering for Namaz on Monday evening.
The residents said they did not have any objection to
people offering prayers in the society's commercial compound, but alleged that
many of them were outsiders. This, they said, had put the society's security at
risk.
Around 8.30pm on Monday, a group of residents went to
the commercial complex of the society and raised objections when some 50 people
started gathering for prayers.
"Since it is the holy month of Ramzan, the
builder had provided space on the third floor of the commercial compound for
Namaz. Around 30-40 people had been offering prayers there every day. The
residents started objecting when they found that some outsiders had also
gathered," said Anil Rajput, the SHO of Bisrakh police station.
The residents said allowing outsiders would compromise
with the society at Ecovillage. "The entrance to the commercial space is
only through the main gate. Of the 30-40 people who have been offering prayers
here, only 10 are from the society. Look, we don't have any objection to people
offering prayers here, but they should be residents of the society," said
a resident.
Source: Times Of India
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Early Ramazan Leave, An Hour Before The Completion Of
Duty Hours, For Muslim School Staff in Bengal
Snehamoy Chakraborty
29.03.23
The West Bengal Board of Secondary Education on
Tuesday asked the heads of institutions under its jurisdiction to allow Muslim
staff to leave their workplaces at 3.30pm — an hour before the completion of
duty hours — during the month of Ramazan.
The instruction was issued a day after chief minister
Mamata Banerjee assumed charge of the minority affairs and madarsa education
department.
“This is to notify for all concerned that the Muslim
teaching and non-teaching staff members of the recognised schools of WBBSE of
West Bengal, may be permitted to leave school at 3.30pm during the month of
Ramzan following the Memorandum of Finance Dept, Audit Branch, Government of
West Bengal vide memo No. 7751-P(P), the 2nd August 2011,” read the
notification dated March 27.
Several sources said although the order was issued for
schoolteachers specifically, the heads of all state government offices had also
been instructed to allow Muslim staff to leave at 3.30pm.
A district magistrate in south Bengal confirmed the
directive. “Yes, we have been asked to allow Muslim employees to leave offices
at 3.30pm during Ramazan. However, we are yet to receive any specific order in
writing,” he said.
Although education department officials could not
confirm the number of Muslim teaching and non-teaching staff members under the
Board, they said the figure would not be negligible.
The instruction suggests that the ruling dispensation
wants to reconnect with the minority community after the Trinamul Congress’s
defeat in the Sagardighi Assembly bypoll. The Murshidabad constituency with
over 65 per cent Muslims elected the Congress candidate who was backed by the
Left Front.
Muslims form around 30 per cent of the population in
Bengal.
The government took a slew of other measures also to
woo the community in districts like Murshidabad and Malda with a major Muslim
population.
In Malda, greeting cards from the chief minister ahead
of Ramazan were handed to over 9,000 imams and muezzins by the officials and
the staff of the district minority affairs department. The clerics were
felicitated by the zilla parishad and district administrative officials
formally and gifts were handed over to them.
A special drive was taken to raise the number of Hajj
pilgrims. For it, awareness and information centres were organised at the
panchayat level by the minority affairs department.
Source: TelegraphIndia
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of the original story:
https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/early-ramazan-leave-for-muslim-school-staff/cid/1925812
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Delhi Police Denies Permission for Ram Yatra, Ramadan
Prayers in Jahangirpuri
MARCH 29, 2023
Delhi Police has denied permission to hold the ‘Shree
Ram Bhagwan Pratima Yatra’ on the occasion of Ramnavamiand for praying at a
park on Ramadan in the Jahangirpuri area, an official said on Tuesday.
On April 16, 2022, clashes broke out between two
groups from different communities during a procession taken out to mark Hanuman
Jayanti in the Jahangirpuri area. As many as eight police personnel and a
civilian sustained injuries in the clashes.
An official order signed by the Assistant Commissioner
of Police, HQ, Northwest district, issued on Monday, stated that the permission
was denied for the Shree Ram Bhagwan Pratima Yatra.
“I am directed to inform you that your request for
Shree Ram Bhagwan Pratima Yatra on the occasion of Ramnavami Mahotsav on
Thursday has been considered by the competent authority but could not be
acceded to from the law and order point of view," the order read.
“There was no previous permission as per police record
found from thegroup on this particular event. The permission was not
‘traditional’. Only this particular permission of the Jahangirpuri area has
been denied," said a senior police official.
Source:News18
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Chennai: Communal Harmony on Display as Muslims,
Christians Take Part in Padavettamman Temple Consecration
MARCH 28, 2023
As a celebration of religious harmony in Tamil Nadu,
members of the Islam and Christianity communities came together to participate
in a ritual of gifting and a procession towards the Sri Padavettamman temple,
where the temple’s consecration ceremony was held near Tiruvottiyur in Chennai.
The renowned Padavettamman temple is situated in the
KVK Kuppam fishing community, located near the TiruvottiyurEnnoor Expressway in
Chennai. The temple is dedicated to the goddess Sri Padavettamman, who is
revered as the guardian deity of the local fishermen.
In 2021, the construction work to expand and renovate
the temple began, led by Tiruvottiyur MLA KP Shankar. The renovation was
carried out in a contemporary and stunning style, and it was completed
successfully. The temple’s Maha Consecration celebration commenced on March 19,
after the conclusion of the Tirupani (service).
According to devotees, special pujas were performed in
the five yagashalas set up in the temple. Subsequently, on March 26, the temple
priests performed the Maha Consecration ceremony for Goddess Padavettamman,
Lord Vinayagar, Lord Murugan and Raja Gopuram, and poured holy water on the
gathering devotees.
Source:News18
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Supreme Court to hear plea to club Gyanvapi suits
29.03.23
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to list for
hearing on April 21 a plea seeking consolidation of all suits filed in a
Varanasi court pertaining to the Gyanvapi mosque complex row.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y.
Chandrachud during the morning mentioning time on Tuesday took note of the
submissions of lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, appearing for some Hindu claimants,
that the Varanasi district judge had failed to consolidate the suits for
hearing.
Jain told the bench, also including Justices P.S.
Narasimha and J.B. Pardiwala, that the Varanasi district judge who was
entrusted with the task of hearing the issue by the apex court had deferred the
verdict four times. Jain sought appropriate directions from the apex court to
the district judge following which the CJI said he would list the matter for
hearing on April 21.
Consolidation of suits refers to the court’s power to
consolidate/club multiple suits on a particular issue raised by different
parties to be heard together and disposed of expeditiously to avoid multiple
proceedings in different courts on the same issue.
On November 11, the bench headed by CJI Chandrachud
had indefinitely extended its May 17 interim orders directing the Varanasi
district magistrate to ensure the protection of the area within Gyanvapi mosque
where a shivling was purportedly discovered during a survey ordered by the
district court.
The apex court had directed that the purported
shivling on the mosque premises be protected but stayed all restrictions
imposed by a local court on Muslims offering namaz at the place.
Source:TelegraphIndia
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/supreme-court-to-hear-plea-to-club-gyanvapi-suits/cid/1925770
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Dalit Christians, Muslims hold demonstration for SC
status at Jantar Mantar
ABHINAY LAKSHMAN
March 28, 2023
The National Council for Dalit Christians and allied
Dalit Christian and Dalit Muslim bodies on March 28 held a demonstration at
Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, seeking the inclusion of Dalit Christians and
Muslims in the Scheduled Castes list.
As per the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order,
1950, currently only Dalits of Hindu, Buddhist or Sikh faiths can be
categorised as such. There is a batch of petitions, seeking the inclusion of Dalit
Christians and Muslims to the list, pending before the Supreme Court. The Union
Government has already opposed the inclusion but also formed a Commission of
Inquiry to look into the issue.
During the demonstration on Tuesday, the NCDC also
submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister’s Office, demanding that the
government resolve this long-standing issue as soon as possible.
In the memorandum, it was submitted that even a
Commission set up by the BJP-led NDA government in 2002 had favoured including
Dalit Christians in the ambit of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes
(Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Thus, the NCDC sought the government to change
its position in the Supreme Court, disband the Commission, and bring about a
Bill to amend the Constitution (SC) Order, 1950 accordingly.
When the Union Government had notified the formation
of the Justice K.G. Balakrishnan-led Commission of Inquiry, the NCDC and other
allied bodies condemned the move. They had argued that multiple commissions
since as far back as 1955 had recommended their inclusion to the SC list and
alleged that the Commission was formed only to delay proceedings.
A petitioner from Maharashtra had also approached the
Supreme Court challenging the formation of the Commission, but the top court had
said the government had all the right to form such commissions.
Now, NCDC officials have said the only way for the
movement to proceed is by focusing more on public demonstrations, rallies and
meetings.
“After Easter this April, we have planned to send
delegates to five regions of the country to gather support for our cause and
spread awareness about the conditions we live in,” E.D. Charles, national
adviser of the NCDC, told The Hindu.
Officials added that a total of 50 delegates will be
sent to east, west, north, south and central India for this work, during which
they will also be engaging with Hindu Dalit organisations to gather support for
their cause.
“In the northeast too, we intend to start campaigns
for our demands from Assam and then spread it to other States,” Mr. Charles
said.
S.S. Waghmare, national vice-president of the NCDC,
said that the organisation will soon have to engage with the Justice
Balakrishnan Commission as well to make its case before the panel.
A delegation comprising some members of the NCDC had
visited Justice Balakrishnan after the Commission was formed, Mr. Waghmare
said, adding that the work to prepare a representation for the panel is
underway.
Source:TheHindu
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Hate Speeches: Muslim Intellectuals Who Met RSS Chief
Disappointed
28th March 2023
New Delhi: Muslim intellectuals, who held a meeting
with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) supremo Mohan Bhagwat, are upset over
the affirmative action on hate speeches by the Hindu organisation.
“There is virtually no let up in Consistent Barrage of
hate speeches, calls for genocide and acts of violence against Muslims,” said
the Muslim intellectuals in a letter after the March 7 meeting.
The letter also draws attention towards the
“anti-Muslim” marches by Hindu bodies in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra against
the minority community which were “full of hatred” and included call for
boycott of Muslim businesses.
The Muslim leaders urged the RSS chief to speak on the
issue and ask the state government to take strictest action against
hate-mongers. The letter is written by SY Qureshi, Zu Shah, Najeeb Jung, Saeed
Sherwani and Shahid Siddiqui.
According to sources, the response comes after eminent
Muslim citizens and religious organisations met RSS leaders in March at the
residence of former Delhi L-G Najeeb Jung and discussed the issue of harmony
within the communities.
The Muslim side openly wanted an appeal from the RSS
and its affliates against the lynchings besides an end to the hate propaganda
on television channels daily.
Indresh Kumar, Krishna Gopal and Ram Lal represented
the RSS side.
During the meeting, the RSS had raised the issue of
cow slaughter and use of the word ‘kafir’ for the majority in India.
Source:Siasat Daily
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.siasat.com/hate-speeches-muslim-intellectuals-who-met-rss-chief-disappointed-2556847/
--------
Pakistan
No talks with Imran Khan unless he apologises to
people: Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif
Mar 28, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Talks between the central government and
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan will be possible only if the
former prime minister admits his wrongdoing and apologises to the people for
all the things he has done, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said, Geo
News reported.
While addressing the National Assembly on Tuesday, PM
Sharif said that he was of the opinion that talks between them will start after
Imran Khan says sorry to the public.
He also stated that PTI Chief had violated the
International Monetary Fund agreement. Pakistan's debt has surged by 70 per
cent during the tenure of his government, Pakistan PM claimed and added not a
single project was initiated, reported ARY News.
Talking about Khan, PM Shehbaz said that PTI Chief
first blamed the US for removing him from the post and then took a U-turn and
said that the conspiracy was not planted by America.
The premier observed that differences in the society
are increasing and one segment of society thinks that Imran Khan's government
was removed through 'US intervention', and the incumbent government is
'imported.'
Friendly countries got annoyed with Pakistan during
Imran Khan's regime, claimed the premier and added that they are trying to
repair ties with the friendly countries and the superpower US.
While addressing the assembly, Sharif came up with
another claim that Khan has hired firms for lobbying in the United States,
according to ARY News.
Imran Khan used to say they [opposition] members are
'thieves' and they should not meet with the foreign envoys but now he is
meeting with the foreign ambassadors in opposition.
Lobbying firms are giving statements against Pakistan,
which is not acceptable, the premier maintained.
No one is making him accountable for 'denting'
Pakistan's narrative. "Enough is enough ... now the law will take its
course."
The prime minister also criticised 'social trollers'
of Imran Khan for politicizing the Lasbela tragedy in which a sitting
Lieutenant General and other high-rank officers were killed while carrying out
relief and rescue operations in Lasbela, as per the report in ARY News.
In August, the six army personnel on board including
Lt Gen Sarfraz Ali died in a crash that was caused due to bad weather,
according to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Source: Times Of India
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
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Chief of PTI splinter group offers his platform to
Tareen’s bloc
Zulqernain Tahir
March 29, 2023
LAHORE: One day after a group of politicians — mostly
belonging to south Punjab and led by sugar baron Jahangir Khan Tareen — mulled
a proposition floated by the powers that be to set up a ‘parallel’ Pakistan
Tehreek-i-Insaf to contain ousted prime minister Imran Khan’s party ahead of
the next elections, the PTI-Nazriati (PTI-N) chairman offered them his
party’s platform on Tuesday.
“I invite Mr Tareen for talks if he and his group
members are interested in doing politics from the platform of PTI-N. My party’s
doors are open for Tareen and other ‘clean politicians’ to achieve what we
could not in Khan’s PTI which is a ‘one man’ show,” PTI-N chairman Akhtar Iqbal
Dar said.
Mr Dar said he got PTI-N registered with the Election
Commission before the 2018 elections after falling out with Imran Khan. “I
quit PTI and launched PTI-N after opportunists took over PTI.
“Imran Khan does not respect anyone and takes all
decisions on his own,” Mr Dar said. He was a classmate in college of the
PML-N’s Saad Rafique and PTI’s Riaz Fatayana.
Akhtar Iqbal Dar, who hails from Sheikhupura, further
said the PTI-N would become ‘relevant’ before the next elections.
The Tareen group held a huddle in Lahore on Monday in
which disgruntled MNAs and former Punjab MPAs, who were disqualified after
voting for the PML-N candidate in the chief minister’s election last year,
participated.
Counterweight to PTI
The Tareen group has been given a go-ahead to focus on
breaking the PTI, especially in the light of a possible disqualification of
Imran Khan in any of the cases pending against him.
A parallel platform would have all the support of the
establishment to dent the PTI.
Former Punjab minister Ajmal Cheema, who attended
Tareen’s huddle, told Dawn on Tuesday that the meeting discussed the political
situation in the country and agreed to make the group’s strategy in keeping
with the rapidly changing scenario.
Asked if the Tareen group was considering doing
politics from the PTI-N platform to counter the PTI in next elections, Cheema
said: “All options are open, but the final decision rests with Mr Tareen.”
He further said currently the group was an ally of the
PML-N and would make any other decision at an “appropriate time”.
Imran Khan’s disqualification in any of the cases he
is facing may make the Tareen group more relevant as a force to weaken the PTI,
members of the group believe. “Imran’s disqualification will give us immense
pleasure. It will be the happiest day for us,” Ajmal Cheema said. “The PTI
chief is himself responsible for what he and his party are facing today. His
ego and one-man show have landed him in a blind alley.”
Mr Tareen, who was once the most trusted lieutenant of
Imran Khan and helped the PTI form government in Punjab in 2018, fell out with
him after the latter allowed the Federal Investigation Agency to lay hands on
him (Tareen) in the sugar scam case in early 2021.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1744771/chief-of-pti-splinter-group-offers-his-platform-to-tareens-bloc
--------
Wary of China, Pakistan opts out of democracy summit
in Washington
Mar 29, 2023
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan, the closest ally of China, has
decided to skip the Democracy Summit that begins in Washington on Tuesday,
opting instead to engage with the US bilaterally to strengthen democratic
values, the Foreign Office here said. The virtual summit is co-sponsored by the
US Department of State and USAID on the theme of "Global Declaration of
Mayors for Democracy".
China and Turkiye have not been invited to the virtual
summit. Pakistan's participation in the summit has been a subject of intense
debate for some time now.
Islamabad chose to skip the event so that it does not
potentially upset its "all-weather ally" China, officials said.
"The Summit process is now at an advanced stage
and therefore, Pakistan would engage bilaterally with the US and co-hosts of
the Summit to promote and strengthen democratic principles and values and work
towards advancing human rights and the fight against corruption,"
Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson told the media.
However, the Foreign Office thanked the US for
inviting Pakistan to attend the Second Summit for Democracy.
"We value our friendship with the US. Under this
Biden Administration, this relationship has widened and expanded substantially.
We remain committed to further solidifying this relationship for peace,
stability, and prosperity in the region," the Foreign Office said.
The three-day event will showcase the role of cities
and sub-national governments in the affirmation of democratic values and the
renewal of democracy worldwide.
On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will
chair virtually a panel session on "A Just and Lasting Peace in
Ukraine" featuring Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Cash-strapped Pakistan is awaiting a much-needed USD
1.1 billion tranche of funding from the Washington-based global money lender,
which was originally due to be disbursed in November last year.
The funds are part of a USD 6.5 billion bailout
package the IMF approved in 2019, which analysts say is critical if Pakistan is
to avoid defaulting on external debt obligations.
Source: Times Of India
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of the original story:
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Pakistan Takes Steps to Facilitate Border Crossing
with Afghanistan
By Nizamuddin Rezahi
March 29, 2023
Pakistan is taking measures to facilitate the movement
of Afghan nationals across the border, a move which is highly appreciated by
the Afghan interim government.
Currently, Pakistan has five crossing points
operational with Afghanistan with an average daily movement of approximately
13,000 individuals, including pedestrians, traders, tourists, and transporters.
Despite the lack of resources and facilities, Pakistan
is managing around 100 counters at these crossing points to ensure smooth
processing of the heavy inflow of cross-border movement.
It is believed that Pakistan is the only neighboring
country that has hosted millions of Afghans over the past four decades and
still allows journalists, patients, and those who wish to visit their family
members without a visa or legal travel documents.
Furthermore, exclusive counters have been set for
women and patients to facilitate their entry at the crossing points.
It is also stated the Pakistani government allows
Afghan nationals to extend their visas and stay in Pakistan for longer, which
may not be offered in Afghanistan’s other neighboring countries.
Meanwhile, roughly 5-6 Afghan applicants are refused
entry due to insufficient or no documents or filling in the wrong application
type.
Since the return of the Taliban to power,
Afghanistan’s neighboring countries Iran and Pakistan in particular witnessed
new waves of Afghan migrants. Thousands of Afghan refugees entered Pakistan
mostly through illegal channels and without visas or legal stay documents.
The current dire economic and humanitarian crisis in
Afghanistan has forced many Afghans to flee the country and enter Pakistan
hoping for a livelihood and a safe place to live.
Source: Khaama Press
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of the original story:
https://www.khaama.com/pakistan-takes-steps-to-facilitate-border-crossing-with-afghanistan/
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Balochistan lawmakers criticise delay in release of
Zakat funds
Saleem Shahid
March 28, 2023
QUETTA: Balochistan Assembly members have criticised
the provincial government for not releasing Zakat funds even after the start of
Ramazan.
The lawmakers said the decision of the religious
affairs department has aggravated the suffering of the poor.
The issue was taken up by NasarullahZerey of the
opposition PkMAP party during Monday’s session presided over by Speaker Jan
Muhammad Khan Jamali.
Soon after the chair deferred the question hour due to
the absence of ministers concerned, Mr Zerey took the floor to draw the house’s
attention towards the matter. He added Balochistan has Rs2 billion in Zakat
funds but the religious affairs department secretary was reluctant to release
the funds to district and union zakat committees for distribution.
He said poor people were visiting zakat committees’
offices and asking for help in the holy month of Ramazan. “The chief minister
should take notice of the situation and ask the officials concerned to
immediately release the funds,” the PkMAP lawmaker demanded.
He also pointed out that the administration was
imposing fines on profiteers but they weren’t being issued any receipt to
deposit the fine. The officials are receiving fine payments on the spot, Mr
Zerey claimed.
He said that the commissioner should be summoned to
explain the situation.
Mir Ahmed Nawaz Baloch of BNP-Mengal also spoke on the
zakat fund and said the issue should be referred to the concerned standing
committee for a probe. The speaker summoned the religious affairs department
secretary in the standing committee to explain the reason for not releasing the
required funds.
Ziarat bill
Earlier, the House passed the Ziarat Valley
Development Authority Bill moved by Planning and Development Minister Noor
Muhammad Dummar.
Source: Dawn
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.dawn.com/news/1744596/balochistan-lawmakers-criticise-delay-in-release-of-zakat-funds
--------
Europe
British business ministers announce working group on
Islamic finance
March 28, 2023
LONDON: The British Secretary of State for Business
and Trade, Kemi Badenoch, and Minister of State in the Department for Business
and Trade Lord Johnson announced on Monday the launch of new working group on
Islamic Finance at a “Great British Iftar” at Lancaster House in London.
The working group will help realize the Secretary of
State’s priority of making the UK an undisputed investment destination by
ensuring the UK is a global hub for Islamic finance, a statement said.
Johnson will lead a series of roundtables with the
world’s leading Islamic banks to map out a path for the UK achieving its goal
of becoming a global hotspot of Islamic finance.
The inaugural Great British Iftar included ambassadors
from Morocco, Malaysia and several other Muslim majority countries.
Senior executives from investment firms, CEOs of major
British businesses, and founders and entrepreneurs of exciting British firms
were also in attendance, as were Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen and government
ministers.
Sheikh Hani Saad Mahmoud, Imam at the historic Al
Azhar Mosque in Cairo, travelled from Egypt to lead prayers at sunset.
Badenoch gave a speech at the Iftar celebrating the
flourishing trade and investment relationship with the Muslim world.
She made clear the amazing contribution business of
all sizes make to the UK economy and the support her department can provide to make
them the engines of British exports into new markets.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277251/world
--------
Greece arrests 2 Pakistanis for planning anti-Semitic
attacks
March 28, 2023
ATHENS: Two young Pakistanis of Iranian origin have
been arrested by Greek police over planned anti-Semitic attacks in central
Athens, as Israel accused Tehran of being behind the plot.
Israel said it was a fresh attempt by Iran “to promote
terror against Israeli and Jewish targets abroad.”
“After the investigation of the suspects in Greece,
Mossad helped untangle the intelligence of the network, it’s operational
methods and ties to Iran,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said
referring to Israel’s national intelligence agency.
“As part of the investigation, it emerged that the
infrastructure in Greece was part of a broad Iranian network, operated from
Iran toward many countries,” the statement said.
Greek police spokeswoman Konstantina Dimoglidou said
the “mastermind” of the cell is “a Pakistani who lives outside Europe.”
A police source, speaking on condition of anonymity,
said the person lived in Iran.
“After coordinated actions by the Greek police and the
National Intelligence Service, a terrorist network was dismantled which, from
abroad, was planning strikes against carefully selected targets on Greek
territory,” a police statement said.
Police said the network had “already chosen the target
of the attack” and were planning how to execute it.
Greece’s Jewish community numbers around 5,000. The
government has good relations with Israel, including a number of security and
military agreements.
The Greek police source said the two Pakistanis of
Iranian origin were aged 27 and 29 and were planning attacks on areas
frequented by Israelis in central Athens.
The source said the men were targeting a building
which houses a synagogue and a Jewish restaurant.
The mobile phones of the two arrested men had allowed
investigators to capture conversations, videos and sketches of the places
targeted, according to the same source.
The country has not been the target of any terrorist
attacks in recent years.
Greek police said the suspects were trying to
undermine state security and its “international relations.”
Earlier on Tuesday, Greece’s under-fire prime minister
announced elections would be held on May 21, as popular anger seethes over last
month’s train tragedy that killed 57 people.
PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, whose four-year term is to end
in July, is seeking re-election on pledges of safety improvements after the
nation’s worst rail disaster and strengthening the economy.
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277236/world
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Time For British Remake Of Amar Akbar Anthony?
Amit Roy
| London
29.03.23
Humza Yousaf, a Muslim born in Glasgow to Pakistani
immigrants, has received congratulations from Britain’s Hindu Prime Minister on
being elected leader of the Scottish National Party in succession to Nicola
Sturgeon, who caused shock by resigning from the post last month after eight years
in power.
Humza wants Scotland to secede from the United Kingdom
while Rishi Sunak wants to preserve the union, but the Prime Minister said the
two should focus instead on “issues that matter to people”, such as reducing
inflation.
Humza, the first head of a devolved government from an
ethnic minority background, was due to be confirmed as Scotland’s First
Minister in a vote in the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday. On Wednesday, he is
to be sworn in at a brief ceremony at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.
A joke has been doing the rounds that with a Christian
King, Charles III, in Buckingham Palace, a Hindu Prime Minister installed at 10
Downing Street, and Sadiq Khan, a Muslim, having been mayor of London since
2016, the time has come for a British remake of the 1977 Bollywood classic on
religious tolerance, Amar Akbar Anthony.
It is also worth mentioning that Anas Sarwar, who is
the son of Mohammed Sarwar, who was elected Britain’s first Muslim MP in 1997
when he won Glasgow Govan for Labour, was elected leader of the Scottish Labour
Party in 2021.
Anas, who went to Hutchesons’ Grammar private school
in Glasgow, where Humza was two years behind him, said that despite their
political differences, it was important to recognise this was a “significant
moment” for Scotland, and offered his “sincere congratulations” to Humza and
his family.
Humza’s victory was announced on Monday at the
Murrayfield stadium in Edinburgh. With a 70.1 per cent turnout of the SNP,
Humza, who was health and justice secretary under Sturgeon, secured 24,336
votes to 20,559 received by Kate Forbes, the finance secretary. Community
safety minister Ash Regan was eliminated after getting 5,599 votes.
When second preference votes were counted, Humza got
26,032 votes (52.1 per cent) to 20,559 polled by Forbes (47.9 per cent).
Humza’s mother, ShaaistaBhutta, and his wife Nadia
El-Nakla, an SNP councillor in Dundee who had come with her two daughters, both
wiped away tears as they witnessed history in the making.
Humza was born in Glasgow on April 7, 1985, and
studied politics at Glasgow University. His father, Mian Muzaffar Yousaf Arain,
was born in Mian Channu in Punjab, Pakistan, and emigrated from the city with
his family in the 1960s, eventually working as an accountant. His mother was born
in Nairobi to a family of Punjabi Arain descent. Humza’s paternal grandfather
worked in the Singer sewing machine factory in Clydebank in the 1960s.
Humza thanked his grandparents for making “the trip
from the Punjab to Scotland over 60 years ago”, and said: “We should all take
pride in the fact that today we have sent a clear message, that your colour of
skin, your faith, is not a barrier to leading the country we all call home.”
Commenting on Humza’s election, MonojitChatterji,
professor of economics at Cambridge University and an Edinburgh resident who
currently happens to be in Calcutta, said: “That this has happened in a country
with a small proportion of BME (Black Minority Ethnic) voters will set the tone
for the future — hopefully beyond Scotland, too.
“Scotland is a deeply divided nation. How will Humza
make the push for independence, especially with those who are not SNP
supporters? He can win an election but can he provide effective leadership of a
divided nation? The next elections for Holyrood are in 2026, so he has time to
build a winning platform. But following Sturgeon is a tough act. For Scotland’s
sake, one must wish him well.”
Mukulika Banerjee, associate professor of anthropology
at the London School of Economics, where she was inaugural director of its
South Asia Centre from 2015 to 2020, and author of Cultivating Democracy:
Politics and Citizenship in Agrarian India, said: “The election of Humza Yousuf
as the next leader of the SNP holds several lessons for democracies everywhere,
but especially India.
“While his Pakistani Muslim heritage was recognised,
this was never a significant issue in the contest. His record as a minister and
alignment with the outgoing leader Nicola Sturgeon’s position on issues were
discussed instead.
“He noted that his imminent appointment as First
Minister is one that his family could never have dreamed would happen, but that
it is a testament to how British politics works.
Source: TelegraphIndia
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.telegraphindia.com/world/time-for-british-remake-of-amar-akbar-anthony/cid/1925759
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At least 2 killed in knife attack at Islamic center in
Lisbon
Alyssa McMurtry
28.03.2023 -
OVIEDO, Spain
Two people were killed and more were injured in a
knife attack at the Muslim Ismaili Center in Lisbon on Tuesday.
Portuguese police say they shot the attacker, who was
wielding a large knife, after he disobeyed their orders to stop attacking.
The shot wounded the attacker, who was arrested and
hospitalized.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa expressed his
“solidarity and condolences to the Ismaili community and the families of the
victims.”
He said authorities are investigating the incident,
and it is still “premature” to jump to any conclusions about the motives of the
attack.
The two victims were women, according to Portuguese
broadcaster RTP. One, 49, was the manager of the Aga Khan Foundation that helps
refugees in Portugal. The other was a 24-year-old volunteer at the center.
RTP also reports that the attacker was from
Afghanistan and that three of his daughters attended Portuguese classes at the
center.
The Ismailli Center released a statement saying they
had no information about the causes of the attack and conveyed their
condolences to the families of the victims.
Ismaili, a sect belonging to the Shia branch of Islam,
emerged after the death of Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq in 765.
Source: Anadolu Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
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UN human rights chief calls for ‘decisive steps’ to
clarify fate of missing Syrians
EPHREM KOSSAIFY
March 29, 2023
NEW YORK: The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Volker Turk on Tuesday called on the international community to take “decisive
steps” to help clarify the fate and whereabouts of missing people in Syria,
seek the release of those still detained in the country’s prisons, and provide
their families with adequate support.
He urged UN member states to consider establishing a
new, dedicated entity that would help bring answers and support to the families
of the many thousands of disappeared, and to survivors — “bringing clarity
about what has happened to all the people of this wounded and exhausted
country.
“We owe the people of Syria no less,” Turk told an
informal meeting of the General Assembly to hear a briefing by UN
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on missing people in Syria, adding that the
pursuit of justice for missing persons is a prerequisite for lasting peace and
reconciliation in the country.
Syria’s permanent representative to the UN Bassam
Sabbagh had last week, during a security council meeting, attacked the pursuit
of such an international institution, describing it as a “hostile” campaign by
the West that is weaponizing the issue of missing people. And to “launch
another politicized international mechanism, whose sole aim is to distort facts
and increase pressure on a country that has been fighting terrorism on behalf
of all the peoples of the world.”
But Turk told Arab News after the meeting he still
hopes “the realization will set in with the Syrian government” that there can
be no future for the country without addressing the issue of the missing
people.
“We have heard from five countries (at the GA meeting)
that have gone through conflict, who have had the experience of missing people,
who all emphasize one point: You cannot go into any addressing of grievances of
your population if you don’t address the fate of missing people.
“I myself having worked for Syrian refugees for many
years, I know how important it is for them.”
More than 100,000 Syrians have gone missing or
forcibly disappeared at the hands of both the Syrian regime, opposition forces,
and terrorist groups since the war began 12 years ago.
A large number of nongovernmental, international,
humanitarian, and family organizations work on the Syria missing persons issue,
collecting information and following up on cases, including the International
Committee of the Red Cross, the International Commission on Missing Persons,
and the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab
Republic. But the lack of coordination leaves victims and survivors and their
families in a state of uncertainty, searching for any evidence of their loved
ones, and not knowing where to give data and information.
Families have been pushing for a dedicated,
independent international institution to clarify their loved ones’ fate that is
commensurate with the scale and complexity of the crisis.
Guided by their views and advice, the UN
secretary-general issued a report last year that concluded that such an
international institution – tasked with a robust mandate to clarify the fate of
the missing and provide support for their families — would be the cornerstone
of a comprehensive solution to the crisis.
Speaking at the meeting, Guterres urged member states
“to act” and work on resolving “this deeply painful situation with
determination and urgency,” and called on the Syrian government and all other
parties to the conflict to cooperate.
Describing the crisis of missing persons in Syria,
Turk painted for the gathering a picture of despair that is “crushing in its
enormity,” where children are growing with a “gaping absence where their father
should be,” where associating with the family of a missing person could bring
on more violence on the community. And where searching for loved ones exposes
families to risks of exploitation, physical threat and extortion, demands for payment
for information about their whereabouts that may later prove to be false.
He said survivors who have been released after
arbitrary detention in Syria have spoken of rampant torture and sexual
violence, where “death has been a close and constant neighbor.” After their
release, Turk added, many women and girls are shunned by their families on the
assumption that they have been raped and so are seen as bringing dishonor on
their relatives.
“This harrowing accumulation of trauma has led many
women survivors of disappearance to disappear again — by leaving the country —
or even to try to kill themselves.”
“The pain, the loss, and the injustice are simply too
great.”
Source: Arab News
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277471/world
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Hosting PKK/YPG terrorists 'casts shadow over French
Senate's respectability': Türkiye
Diyar Guldogan
28.03.2023
The French Senate besmirched its reputation after
hosting PKK/YPG terrorists and "awarding them with a medal of honor,"
the Turkish National Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.
"The hosting of the representatives of the bloody
PKK/YPG terrorist organization in the parliament of NATO member France casts a
shadow over its respectability," the ministry said.
The statement came a day after the Turkish Foreign
Ministry summoned French Ambassador Herve Magro to strongly condemn Saturday's
act.
The attacks of the PKK/PYD/YPG and the so-called SDF
against Türkiye and Syrians, and their separatist and destabilizing activities
in the region were brought to the attention of Magro, Turkish diplomatic
sources said.
"This move is against the spirit of alliance and
also hollows out NATO's fight against terrorism," the ministry said,
adding that the Turkish forces will continue their fight against all terrorist
organizations.
Ankara expects French authorities to not give credit
to the efforts that provide international legitimacy to the PKK terror group's
extensions in Syria.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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North America
Biden admin. should have informed Congress earlier
about Syria attack: Pentagon chief
28 March ,2023
A senior US cabinet official admitted Tuesday that the
Biden administration should have notified lawmakers earlier than it did about a
deadly drone attack on American forces in Syria last week.
“We should have notified you earlier,” Secretary of
Defense Lloyd Austin told a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol
Hill.
Austin vowed to “improve our performance” after
Republican lawmakers grilled him over an almost 13-hour delay between the time
of the attack and when US lawmakers were notified.
A series of tit-for-tat exchanges occurred between
Iran-backed militias and US forces last Thursday following the initial drone
strike, which killed an American contractor and wounded six other Americans.
While the administration knew about the attack, US
Central Command (CENTCOM) chief Gen. Erik Kurilla was testifying in front of
the House Armed Services Committee. No mention was made of the attack or the
ensuing retaliatory attack, which the US president ordered. In a room next
door, senators discussed repealing a 2002 war powers act, Authorization for Use
of Military Force (AUMF). Repealing the AUMF has been put up in a bipartisan
effort by Senators Tim Kaine and Todd Young, questioning the president’s
authority to bypass Congress and send troops into combat.
But there has been some pushback on repealing the law
with Republicans, so far, failing to get amendments passed.
The Constitution states that US Congress has the right
to declare war, not the president.
Austin, the Pentagon chief, rejected the notion that was
any connection between when lawmakers were notified about last week’s attack
and “your vote” on AUMF amendments.
Defending the administration’s efforts, National
Security Council (NSC) Spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement, “All on
the same day: we got hit, we planned and executed our response, and we notified
Congress.”
Iran undeterred
The Biden administration has come under increased
scrutiny since the attacks last week. Al Arabiya English was the first to
report that the US had only responded to three of 83 Iran-backed attacks on US
troops since January 2021.
Following the retaliatory US strike on facilities used
by Iran’s Quds Force in Syria, another barrage of rockets and drones targeted
different US bases in Syria. Washington did not respond to those, Austin told
lawmakers on Tuesday.
CENTCOM said three attacks targeted US and Coalition
forces in Syria on the evening March 24th and March 25th. A main Syrian war
monitoring group said US strikes killed at least 19 fighters.
President Joe Biden ordered the US military to hold
off on a second round of attacks against the Iran-backed militias late Friday,
the Wall Street Journal cited a senior US official as saying.
Source: Al Arabiya
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US designates individuals, including Assad's cousins,
in drug export
ServetGunerigok
28.03.2023
WASHINGTON
The US Treasury Department, in coordination with the
UK, designated six individuals Tuesday for supporting the Bashar al-Assad
regime and the production or export of Captagon, a dangerous amphetamine.
Among those designated are two cousins of Assad and
Lebanese individuals.
The agency said in a statement that the designations
also highlight the important role of Lebanese drug traffickers, some of whom it
said maintain ties to Hezbollah, in facilitating the export of Captagon.
"The trade in Captagon is estimated to have
become a billion-dollar illicit enterprise," it said.
Samer Kamal al-Assad, a cousin of Assad, oversees key
Captagon production facilities in regime-controlled Latakia. Wassim Badi
al-Assad, another cousin of Assad, is designated for supporting the Syrian army
in various roles, according to the statement.
Hassan Muhammad Daqqou, a Lebanese-Syrian dual
national, who is dubbed by the media as "The King of Captagon," has
been linked to drug trafficking operations carried out by the Syrian army's
Fourth Division.
"Syria has become a global leader in the
production of highly addictive Captagon, much of which is trafficked through
Lebanon," OFAC Director Andrea Gacki said in the statement.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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Sunny Hostin suggests Chinese internment of Muslims
not as bad as U.S. mass incarceration
March 28, 2023
"The View" co-host Sunny Hostin compared the
Chinese internment of Uyghur Muslims to the U.S. on Tuesday and said
"they're putting more Black people in jail here."
Hostin said she doesn't see American exceptionalism
due to the threats her children face as minorities.
"I don’t see that part of American
exceptionalism. I’m sorry. I think this country has a lot of problems. They
could be solved. Yes, maybe they are putting Muslims in jail in… China,"
she began, turning to co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin. "They're putting a lot
more Black people in jail here."
Farah Griffin said earlier in the segment that if
America is not the number-one global superpower, it was going to be China and
slammed it for its dreadful human rights record. The Chinese Communist Party
has long claimed its re-education camps are voluntary, but its forced labor,
sterilization and killing of the subjugated peoples has been deemed a genocide
internationally.
"It’s going to be communist China. A country that
the government is imprisoning Uyghur Muslims in concentration camps. It’s a
deeply racist government. It's a human rights-violating government, it is a
government where if they're the leaders of the free world, we're not the free
world the way that we are right now," Farah Griffin said.
Farah Griffin also asked Hostin what country she
believed would be "better" on the issue of race, and what country
she'd rather live in.
"Where I'm not a minority, I felt real good in
Ghana," Hostin responded, before co-host Whoopi Goldberg said the issue
was not about race.
"I don’t think this is about race," she
said. "This is really about all of the things that we believed we were
doing that we don’t do anymore. We don’t teach people that it is your right,
your birthright to vote in this country. It’s a gift. We don’t teach people
what their rights are as human beings."
The hosts were discussing a poll that found the
importance of traditional values has plummeted across the U.S.
A Wall Street Journal poll found that just 39% of
Americans say their religious faith is very important to them, and just 38% say
patriotism is very important.
The WSJ compared those numbers to the first time it
ran the poll in 1998 when 62% of Americans said religion was very important to
them, and 70% said patriotism was very important.
Hostin criticized American exceptionalism in February
and said it hasn't met the "dream" and "doesn't apply" to
everyone.
Source: FoxNews
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South Asia
237 People Killed In Afghanistan Without Trial After
Taliban Takeover
29 Mar, 2023
At least 237 people have been killed without any trial
in Afghanistan since the Taliban came back into power, Khaama Press reported
quoting Amnesty International.
UK-headquartered NGO Amnesty International filed a
416-page report discussing the situation in Afghanistan in the past two years
from 2021-2022 and the generic assessment of the international organization
indicates that the human rights situation is rapidly deteriorating in this
country.
The report contains that contains data from November
18 to December 16, showing that more than 100 people were flogged in public in
sports stadiums all over Afghanistan. In December, an alleged criminal was
publically executed in western Farah province for the first time. The
international community had described the execution as a “hateful act”.
The Amnesty International report also mentions that
restrictions were imposed on the lives of ordinary people, women and girl’s education,
along with restrictions on media in Afghanistan. The ways to improve the human
rights situation have come to a standstill, Khamma Press reported quoting
Amnesty International.
Moreover, incidents of arbitrary arrests, not allowing
peaceful protests, oppressing and killing protestors in Afghanistan are on the
rise and the de facto authorities are trying to implement these acts illegally.
Amnesty International further stated in the report
that the previous government employees, National Resistant Front (NRF) members,
and those who are not accepting the orders from the Taliban are the ones
targeted.
The report quotes UNAMA to indicate that more than
2,100 innocent civilians were killed and injured in terrorist attacks in
Afghanistan between August 2021 and June 2022.
It may be noted that the Taliban returned to power in
Afghanistan in 2021, at least 20 years after US troops had dethroned them. Ever
since they came to power, Women’s rights in the country have been one of the
worst hit.
The Taliban had intrusively disrupted a women’s press
conference in November last year which was held in the Dasht-e-Barchi area of
Afghanistan and also arrested several women journalists, according to Khaama
Press.
Source:PratidinTime
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UN says Afghan girls' education activist MatiullahWesa
held in Kabul
Mar 29, 2023
ISLAMABAD: An Afghan rights activist who has
campaigned for girls' education has been arrested in Kabul, the United Nations
said on Tuesday.
The UN mission in Afghanistan said MatiullahWesa,
founder and president of Pen Path - a local nongovernmental group that travels
across Afghanistan with a mobile school and library - was arrested in the
Afghan capital on Monday.
Local reports said Taliban security forces detained
Wesa after his return from a trip to Europe.
The UN urged authorities in Kabul to clarify Wesa's
whereabouts, reasons for his arrest and ensure his access to legal
representation and contact with family. There was no immediate word from the
Taliban on the arrest.
Since their takeover of Afghanistan, the Taliban have
imposed restrictions on women's and minority rights. Girls are barred from
school beyond the sixth grade and last year, the Taliban banned women from
going to university.
Wesa's brother, Attaullah Wesa, said the Taliban
forces surrounded their family's house on Tuesday. They beat up the Wesas'
other two brothers, insulted their mother and confiscated the arrested
activist's mobile phone.
Social media activists later created a hashtag to campaign
for Wesa's release. Many posts condemned his detention and demanded immediate
freedom for the activist.
Wesa has been outspoken in his demands for girls to
have the right to go to school and learn, and has repeatedly called on the
Taliban-led government to reverse its bans. His most recent tweets about female
education coincided with the start of the new academic year in Afghanistan,
with girls remaining shut out of classrooms and campuses.
Wesa and others from the Pen Path launched a
door-to-door campaign to promote girls' education.
"We have been volunteering for 14 years to reach
people and convey the message for girls education, Wesa had said in recent
posts. "During the past 18 months we campaigned house to house in order to
eliminate illiteracy and to end all our miseries," he added.
The U.N. special rapporteur for human rights in
Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, said he was alarmed by Wesa's detention.
"His safety is paramount & all his legal
rights must be respected," Bennett tweeted.
Also Tuesday, the Islamic State group claimed
responsibility for a suicide bombing near the foreign ministry in Kabul the
previous day, when six people were killed and about a dozen wounded. It was the
second time this year that IS staged an attack near the ministry. In
mid-January, the militant group killed five people there and wounded several
others.
Source: Times Of India
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Afghan orphaned toddler Maryam finally reunited with
family
Mar 29, 2023
DOHA: An Afghan toddler who was bundled onto an
evacuation flight from Kabul in 2021 after her parents died in a bomb blast has
been reunited with relatives at a Qatar orphanage.
The little girl, now believed to be about 21 months
old and given the name Maryam by the orphanage, saw her uncle Yaar Mohammad
Niazi and her brother and two sisters again for the first time.
"I did not know if we would ever find her again,
and now I am overcome" with emotion, said Niazi, aged about 40 and with
four children of his own. "When I held her, I just told myself 'she is
alive'."
The tearful reunion ended a desperate search for
Maryam since the chaotic days of August 2021 when the Taliban took control of
the Afghan capital, sparking a panicked mass flight.
Maryam's parents were among those trying to flee with
their four children when they were killed in a huge bomb blast and gun battle
at Kabul airport that claimed 183 lives on August 26.
The little girl, whose birth name was Aliza, was only
weeks old at the time her mother and father died in the attack that was claimed
by the local chapter of the Islamic State group.
Amid the carnage, a teenage boy grabbed her and
carried her onto a US military flight taking Afghans and stranded expatriates
to Doha, a Qatari official said.
She found a new home in Qatar's Dreama orphanage,
while her elder brother and two sisters stayed back in Afghanistan.
Maryam was the youngest of about 200 Afghan children
to be evacuated alone on the flights that carried tens of thousands out of
Afghanistan.
"We took them in and gave them specialised
care," said the Qatari official, speaking on condition of not being
identified.
"We worked with UNICEF to see if there were any
family members."
The UN children's agency was quickly besieged with
frantic requests from families back in Afghanistan looking for missing
relatives.
DNA tests
Niazi and the other three orphaned children were back
in Afghanistan, where the Taliban installed a government for what they named
the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
Six weeks after the massive Kabul bomb blast, UN
sleuths thought they had the baby's identity.
"They contacted us to carry out DNA tests,"
the Qatari official said.
Transporting the genetic test results between Doha and
Kabul to seek a match took more time, as Niazi waited for months to get a
passport from the new Taliban authorities so he could get his family to Qatar.
Now arrived in the Gulf state, Niazi said he would
start the process of moving to the United States, together with his wife and
the total of eight children now in their care.
"We just want to be somewhere safe," he told
AFP.
Social workers will give him and the siblings
gradually increased access to Maryam, so they can slowly get to know each
other.
Niazi said the little girl will keep her new name
because it is the one she answers to.
Other children at the Qatar orphanage have also been
reunited with family members.
A three-year-old boy there has joined his father in
Canada after a Qatari diplomat recognised him from a missing-child photo.
Most of the other children were aged at least eight,
and many have now either joined relatives or been adopted by families in the
United States, Canada or Europe.
At one stage thousands of Afghans were in temporary
shelters in Doha waiting for countries to take them. Now there are only about
15 left, the Qatari official said.
Source: Times Of India
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Karzai Calls on Taliban to Release Education Activist
By Fidel Rahmati
March 28, 2023
Former President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday called on the
acting government of the Taliban to release education activist MatiullahWesa.
Karzai, in a tweet, said he was disappointed about the
arrest of MatiuhullaWesa, an education activist and appreciated Pen path’s
activities in Afghanistan.
“I am disappointed about the arrest of education
activist MatiullahWesa by the Taliban” and added that “Wesa and Pen Path have
conducted appreciable activities for education in various parts of Afghanistan
since 2009, Karzai said in a tweet.
“I see Wesa and Pen Path’s activities in favour of
Afghanistan and calls on the Taliban to make utmost efforts to free the
activist and cooperate with him to expand his activities,” he added.
Meanwhile, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights
in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, also expressed his concern over the arrest of
Pen Path founder Wesa and called on Taliban authorities that “his safety is
paramount and all his legal rights must be respected,” said in a tweet on
Tuesday.
In addition, the UN Mission in Afghanistan also called
on the Taliban to release MatiullahWesa and asked to “clarify his whereabouts,
the reasons for his arrest and ensure his access to legal representation and
contact with family.”
Wesa, a famous education and human rights activist who
advocated for girls’ education and founder of Pen Path, was arrested by the
Taliban on Tuesday close to his house in Khoshal Khan in the west of Kabul.
Wesa has created educational opportunities for
thousands of girls across Afghanistan since 2009.
Source: Khaama Press
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Indian Govt Gave Stranded Afghan Cadets A Lifeline
Last Year. Now They Fear Being ‘Handed To Taliban’
PIA KRISHNANKUTTY
29 March, 2023
New Delhi: An Afghan flag and military uniforms hang
from a dusty window of a 2BHK apartment in Malviya Nagar. Six young Afghan
military cadets have been living in the cramped flat for the past two months as
illegal immigrants. They discuss whether to cook something fresh for iftar or
eat leftovers from the previous night. It’s likely to be the latter — they’re
living on savings and jobs are hard to come by with invalid visas.
It was quite a different story last year.
In February 2022, the Indian government offered a
one-year training programme in English and marketing for around 80 Afghan
cadets following the completion of their courses in various Indian military
academies.
The eligible cadets were already pursuing higher
military education in India, studying at prestigious institutions such as the
National Defence Academy (NDA), Indian Military Academy (IMA), and Officers
Training Academy (OTA) prior to the Taliban’s takeover in Afghanistan in 2021.
One of the beneficiaries of the programme was one
27-year-old, who is now living in the Malviya Nagar flat described earlier.
When the Taliban returned to power in August of 2021,
he was enrolled in the IMA in Dehradun. After completing his course in
December, he was relieved when the government of India offered him a one-year,
all-expenses-paid course in English and business marketing at Punjab’s Lovely
Professional University, starting 7 February, 2022.
“The Indian government offered us a lifeline last year
but now they have left us out to dry. The moment the course in Punjab ended in
February 2023, our applications for visa extension were rejected,” he told
ThePrint.
His story echoes that of many Afghan cadets whose
courses ended in February but who want to stay on in India since they fear they
may have a target on their backs at home. Some say their visa extension
applications have been rejected, while others claim that their existing visas
were cancelled by India’s Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO). They
now fear deportation.
“We are now living here as illegal immigrants. We are
scared that India will give us back to the Taliban as a ‘gift’,” he said.
However, sources in the Ministry of External Affairs
(MEA) told ThePrint that this was not the case.
“We have been regularly extending visas of all Afghan
nationals. Some have returned to Afghanistan voluntarily. Visas will be
extended and nobody will be forced to go back,” an MEA source said.
The Indian government has not had a diplomatic
presence in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, but last June a “technical”
team was sent to the mission in Kabul.
Earlier this month, foreign ministry officials of the
Taliban government were expected to take part in an online training course
organised under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) — the
leading capacity-building platform of the MEA.
There are also reports that the Taliban has begun
pushing India to allow it to station a representative in its embassy in New
Delhi. One of the proposed candidates is Abdul Qahar Balkhi, a controversial
spokesperson for the Taliban regime’s foreign ministry who has allegedly tried
to intimidate journalists with death threats.
Jobless, short-term delivery gigs
India had offered about 80 Afghan cadets training
courses in English and marketing training courses last year. Some were trained
at Lovely Professional University in Phagwara, Punjab, and others at Aptech
Training institute in Delhi.
About 30 went back to Afghanistan after their courses
ended in February due to financial constraints or family reasons, according to
cadets ThePrint spoke to. A few others ended up fleeing to Iran or Pakistan,
fearing for their safety in Afghanistan, they added.
Currently, 48 remain in India, all of whom say their
visas have been either cancelled or requests for extensions rejected.
The cadets range in age from 22 to 28 years old and
live across localities in Delhi, including Tilak Nagar, Malviya Nagar, and
Bhogal.
In order to afford rent, groups of five to seven
cadets usually share an apartment. For instance, seven Afghan cadets share a
2BHK in Bhogal and split the monthly rent of Rs 14,000.
“We are all paying out of our savings. Some of us
tried to get informal jobs which didn’t require Aadhaar and a valid visa,”
explained one of seven, who has completed three years of training at NDA and
one year at IMA.
According to him, two of his flatmates were working as
delivery boys for a packaged water company but had to quit due to constraints
during Ramadan.
“It was difficult for them to work eight hours a day
while fasting. So, they had to quit. Also, there’s a loss of dignity when, as a
military cadet, you have to stoop to doing such jobs,” he added.
Exit forms, fears of ‘revenge killing’
A few Afghan military cadets stuck in India have
received exit forms, which are government-issued documents granting permission
for an individual to leave the country. However, the language used in the form
has left some recipients confused.
For example, one such cadet, who was part of the
course at Punjab’s Lovely University, received an exit form on 9 February — two
days after his course ended. It mentioned that he must leave India by 22
February.
A copy of the exit form seen by ThePrint reads: “Visa
extension cannot be granted. Take exit within given time.”
“What do they mean by ‘take exit within given time’?
Does it mean we can stay here indefinitely, or will they deport me?” he asked.
He claimed to have reapplied for a visa extension
twice since receiving the form but received emails from the FRRO that his
applications were “closed”.
The cadets have been warned by their families in
Afghanistan against returning, as they are likely to have a target on their
backs, they said.
Source: ThePrint
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Southeast Asia
Ideological polarisation is the price of democratic
representation in Indonesia
29 March 2023
Diego Fossati
Democratic backsliding — understood as the decline of
democratic norms, institutions, and processes — is a well-documented
development that has concerned most world regions, and Indonesia offers an apt
illustration of how this unsettling phenomenon may unfold. After the breakdown
of authoritarianism in the late 1990s, it defied expectations by establishing
democratic institutions and implementing several waves of free and fair
national and local elections. But Indonesia’s democratic trajectory has since
taken a darker turn, marked by illiberalism, polarisation and the rise of
radical political Islam.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Vice President
Ma'ruf Amin, House Speaker Puan Maharani, Chairman of the People's Consultative
Assembly Bambang Soesatyo, and the Chairman of Regional Representative Council
La NyallaMattalitti, enter the parliament building for the annual State of the
Nation Address ahead of the country's Independence Day, at the parliament
building in Jakarta, Indonesia, 16 August 2021 (Photo: Pool via Reuters/Achmad
Ibrahim).
Given these trends it would be reasonable to assume
that ordinary Indonesians are increasingly disillusioned with the country’s
democratic institutions. Yet public opinion data presents a contrasting
picture, as the erosion of democracy has not been accompanied by a rise in
public dissatisfaction with democracy.
Rather, Indonesians have become more satisfied with
how democracy is practised in their country. Just before the emergence of the
COVID-19 pandemic in February 2020, satisfaction with democracy reached an
all-time high of about 76 per cent. This strong positive trend appears to have
started in the mid-2010s, at about the same time that observers of Indonesian
politics began to argue that the country’s democracy was deteriorating.
This puzzle can be understood by focusing on political
representation. Though democracy in Indonesia may be falling short of
expectations, the deep-rooted ideological division regarding the role of Islam
in politics has provided Indonesian citizens with meaningful political choices,
pitting pluralist understandings of society against more exclusionary Islamist
ideologies.
This cleavage underpins substantive debates about
issues such as religious equality, women’s rights, individual freedoms and
privacy. While they may be unhappy about some of Indonesia’s democratic
institutions and the slow pace of political reform, Indonesians still value
their democracy’s ability to provide meaningful representation and avenues for
participation. This view is supported by a wealth of empirical data, ranging
from electoral returns to surveys of public opinion and the diversity of
Indonesian politicians.
This perspective on democratic institutions reveals
the complexity of democratic erosion, both in Indonesia and beyond. Increasing
polarisation and Islamism may well be injurious to Indonesian democracy, but their
implications for political representation may help to explain why Indonesians
have become more satisfied with the country’s democracy.
In the minds of the Indonesian public, increasing
partisan polarisation may have clarified the ideological division over the role
of Islam in politics and consolidated perceptions that important political
alternatives exist. The increasing influence of radical Islam observed in the
second half of the 2010s may have also bolstered perceptions of fair
representation, especially among Islamist Indonesians — a substantial minority
in the electorate who have long been underrepresented in political
institutions.
Beyond Indonesia, studies of democratic backsliding
often see democratic development as a movement along a linear trajectory, where
a country becomes more or less democratic over time. Yet dividing opposing
partisan camps into either democratic or anti-democratic is problematic.
Rather, there is often a clash of values between two different understandings
of democracy. Pluralist-liberal camps emphasise the importance of constraints
on executive power while populist camps prioritise majoritarianism and
substantive representation. This conflict stems from a tension between equally
legitimate democratic demands and it typically entails a trade-off between
different democratic goals, such as liberalism, egalitarianism, participation
and representation.
The repression of radical Islamist groups such as
Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia or the Islamic Defenders Front (Front Pembela Islam)
illustrates these conflicting dynamics. Disbanding these organisations may have
reaffirmed Indonesia’s commitment to protecting religious minorities, but
repression may also cause negative long-term implications for democratic
representation.
Suppressing radical Islam has curbed the mobilising
capacity of illiberal actors, but to deprive Islamist groups of their ability
to mobilise is also to deprive a substantial number of Indonesian citizens of
their voice. When this happens, substantive debates about the most important
ideological dimension of political competition in this country become less
meaningful and democratic legitimacy may eventually be compromised.
Indonesia’s democracy also suffers from a lack of
genuine cohesive opposition that could function as a check on executive power.
Given the current landscape of Indonesian politics, a cohesive opposition could
only take the form of an assertive Islamist camp. A more prominent role for
radical political Islam is a necessary condition for the emergence of this
political bloc.
Indonesia is therefore facing a thorny trade-off
between consolidating liberal values — which requires a clearer separation
between religion and politics — and strengthening democratic representation and
accountability — which requires ideological alignment between citizens and
politicians and clearly identifiable opposing partisan camps. The future of
democracy in this country will hinge upon its ability to find a balanced
solution to this dilemma.
Source:EastAsiaForum
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RM5 meals at KL's Rahmah Ramadan bazaar pull in sales
as customers order pricier items on the side
By KeertanAyamany
29 Mar 2023
KUALA LUMPUR, March 29 — The cheap meals at one of the
several Ramadan bazaars nationwide offering the affordable Menu Rahmah items
attracted an abundance of visitors, many of whom end up spending more on other
dishes to the delight of vendors.
One staff for a fried rice food truck at the Rahmah
Ramadan Bazaar located in the backstreets near the Sogo shopping mall here said
that he noticed his shop’s RM5 Menu Rahmah item — Chinese fried rice — would
often get ordered alongside other items in his menu such as giant fried squid
or fried chicken, which cost RM15 and RM9 respectively.
"We sell around 10 to 15 of the Menu Rahmah items
a day, and between 50 to 100 other items in total a day,” the worker who wanted
to be known only as Junaidi told Malay Mail.
The Chinese fried rice would usually be sold at RM7,
while other fried rice items — such as chicken fried rice, or shrimp fried rice
with "petai" — cost between RM8 and RM15.
Similarly, 19-year-old Muhammad Putra Aiman who works
for the Lebai Pa King Kebab Station, said that their Menu Rahmah kebab meat
buns were a good gateway for other items on their menu, such as their popular
mini Roti John that is sold for RM7.
"Yes, our Menu Rahmah is selling well. And we do
make some profits for the Menu Rahmah, but I’m not sure how much,” he said.
Called Bazaar Ramadan Foodtruck Rahmah, it consisted
of some 20 to 30 food trucks parked along Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman and saw
heavy foot traffic from about 5.30pm until Muslims break their fast just before
7.30pm.
It is one of the 38 Rahmah Ramadan bazaars opened
nationwide as part of the government’s larger Rahmah initiative to encourage
businesses to sell affordable meals below RM5 each.
While the rental prices for vendors at these bazaars
vary based on the decision of local authorities, according to Deputy Minister
of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Fuziah Salleh who visited the site
yesterday, the rental price at the one visited by Malay Mail is RM10 a day,
which contributes towards clean-up costs.
Fuziah explained that while a Rahmah Ramadan Bazaar
requires at least 30 per cent of the stalls to offer Menu Rahmah items, all
traders in Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman's Rahmah bazaar offer the affordable
menu.
The initiative was also welcomed by customers of the
bazaar.
Balqis Florence Abdullah, 60, who owns a shop in the
vicinity, said she wanted to buy one of the Menu Rahmah items for her
"iftar" — the meal eaten by Muslims to break their ritual fasting
during Ramadan — after hearing a good review.
"This morning I heard from a friend of mine that
she ate a 'nasi goreng ayamkunyit' Menu Rahmah offer.
"She said it was great considering the portion
that they gave, so here I am,” said Balqis, holding a packet of fruit rojak
that she bought earlier.
Wan Azamuddin Wan Izham, 27, who works as a salesman
at the Pertama Complex located some 150m away from the bazaar, said that it was
a good way to save some money.
"When people told me there was a Bazaar Ramadhan
Rahmah, I automatically knew that some stalls would be offering a RM5 pack of
food or a cup of drink.
"I'm here to buy a drink in case I'm stuck in the
Ramadan traffic on my way back home in Kelana Jaya. I don't want to overspend
on a drink that I'll finish within 20 minutes," he said.
On Monday, Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister
Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub launched the Rahmah Ramadan Bazaar initiative in one
such bazaar in Putrajaya's Precinct 14.
Source:MalayMail
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First 6,000 Rahmah Ramadan Bazaar visitors stand
chance to receive RM20 e-wallet incentive
29-03- 2023
KUALA LUMPUR: The Domestic Trade and Cost of Living
Ministry (KPDN) is expanding the Retail Sector Digitisation Initiative (ReDI)
through the provision of RM20 e-wallet incentive to the first 6,000 consumers
or traders at the Rahmah Ramadan Bazaars in Kuala Lumpur throughout the month
of Ramadan.
Its deputy minister, Fuziah Salleh (pix) said they
have allocated RM2 million for the incentive as an approach to encourage
consumers and traders to conduct digital transactions at bazaars throughout the
country, including Kuala Lumpur.
“Visitors who wish to redeem the RM20 need only scan
the QR code at the prepared kiosks there. We want to encourage e-wallet use
here,” she said during a walkabout at a Rahmah Ramadan Bazaar at Lorong Tuanku
Abdul Rahman here today.
She added that there are two other bazaars in the
capital, at Lorong Tunku Abdul Rahman Parking Lot 4 and at Jalan Raja,
involving 41 traders.
“The criteria for a Rahmah Ramadan Bazaar is that 30
per cent of traders there are ready to sell Rahmah menus. But if we look at
things here (Kuala Lumpur), 100 per cent of food trucks are selling Rahmah
menus,” Fuziah said.
Bernama reported yesterday that Domestic Trade and
Cost of Living Minister Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub launched the Rahmah Ramadan
Bazaar in Putrajaya, the newest product under the Rahmah Umbrella, involving 38
locations in the country.
Meanwhile, Fuizah said that the ministry’s enforcement
unit has conducted price checks on 6,550 premises, including 983 Ramadan
bazaars under Op Pantau as of yesterday.
Source:TheSunDaily
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Arab World
Saudi Arabia condemns Jewish settlers’ blatant
incursion into Al-Aqsa Mosque courtyards
March 28, 2023
RIYADH — Saudi Arabia condemned on Tuesday the blatant
incursions by Israeli settlers into the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque, under the
protection of the Israeli occupation forces, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
said in a statement carried by Saudi Press Agency.
While rejecting roundly the move, the Ministry
emphasized that these practices undermine peace efforts and contradict
international principles and norms with regard to respecting religious
sanctities.
Source: Saudi Gazette
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Bin Salman thanks China for efforts to restore
Saudi-Iran ties
28 March 2023
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al
Saud has appreciated China’s efforts in brokering a rapprochement deal between
Riyadh and Tehran.
In a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi
Jinping on Tuesday, bin Salman “expressed Saudi Arabia’s appreciation for the
Chinese initiative to support the development of good neighborly relations
between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to resume their
diplomatic relations and reopen their embassies and diplomatic missions after
seven years of estrangement. The detente between the two Middle Eastern powers
followed several days of intensive negotiations hosted by China.
Top Saudi and Iranian diplomats have held two phone calls
over the past few days and are expected to meet during the ongoing Muslim holy
month of Ramadan.
According to an unnamed Saudi official, Xi had
expressed his desire for China to be a “bridge” between Saudi Arabia and Iran
during bilateral talks at a summit in Riyadh last December, and bin Salman
welcomed the bid.
The Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that
during Tuesday’s phone call, Xi expressed Beijing’s readiness to keep
supporting the follow-up process of the Riyadh-Tehran talks.
He also hoped that Saudi Arabia and Iran will “uphold
the spirit of good neighborliness and continue to improve their relations on
the basis of the results of their talks in Beijing.”
Also in his remarks, the Chinese president said his
country stands ready to expand practical cooperation and people-to-people
exchanges with Saudi Arabia, and push for greater development of a China-Saudi
Arabia comprehensive strategic partnership.
China, he added, is ready to work with Saudi Arabia to
make all-out efforts in building a China-Arab community with a shared future in
the new era and contribute more to peace, stability and development in the
Middle East.
Source: Press TV
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https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2023/03/28/700561/Saudi-bin-Salman-China-Iran
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Belgium probes refugee status of Syrian war crimes
suspect
28 March ,2023
Belgium on Tuesday launched an investigation into how
a Syrian man arrested last week on suspicion of carrying out war crimes for
ISIS was granted refugee status.
The 38-year-old, who left Syria in 2015, was detained
over the executions of civilians who refused to swear allegiance to the extremists
near the historic city of Palmyra, federal prosecutors told Belga news agency.
The role of the suspect within the extremist group and
whether he participated in the killings in central Syria remains to be
determined by an investigation led by Belgian state prosecutors.
“The asylum procedure serves to protect people
threatened with war or persecution, not those who are guilty of war crimes,”
Belgium’s Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration Nathalie de Moor said.
De Moor said that if the man was proven to be guilty
then he would be stripped of the refugee status granted to him eight years ago.
The civil war in Syria started in 2011 with a brutal
crackdown on demonstrators by the government of President Bashar al-Assad
before spiraling into a complex conflict involving extremist groups.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Presidency receives Grand Mosque visitors in more than
50 international languages
March 28, 2023
MAKKAH — The General Presidency for the Affairs of the
Two Holy Mosques represented by the Spatial Guidance Department of the General
Administration of Languages and Translation, continues to receive and welcome
visitors in various international languages under the “We Welcome You in Your
Language” initiative.
It is considered a contribution to the excellent
hospitality of visitors to perform their rituals and enrich their experience
with ease and comfort during the Holy Month of Ramadan.
The Deputy General President for Translation and
Technical Affairs, Ahmed Bin Abdulaziz Al-Hamidi said that the administration
is always keen to welcome the Grand Mosque guests with kindness and generosity
in the Grand Mosque corridors and yards.
The visitors are received in their various languages
with the kindest terms and are introduced to the primary services provided by
the presidency. In addition, they are helped to access and benefit from them in
more than 50 international languages.
250 scouts serve 60,000
voluntary hours in Makkah
The Ministry of Education Monday launched its seasonal
initiatives during the holy month of Ramadan to serve visitors to the Grand
Mosque; one such initiative entails having the Bader Scout Center perform
60,000 hours of voluntary work during Ramadan.
This work is done in cooperation with the General
Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques and security forces,
covering all field trails. More than 250 scouts will help visitors at the Grand
Mosque, in its various courtyards and on the roads leading to it.
The voluntary teams from the Bader Center start their
voluntary work after Al-Asr (afternoon) prayer and continue until midnight;
their program includes distributing dates and coffee to fasting people at the
tawaf area during iftar.
Source: Saudi Gazette
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Egypt to allow Iranians visas on arrival in Sinai as
regional tensions ease
28 March ,2023
Egypt will soon allow Iranians traveling with tour
groups to obtain visas on arrival in the south of its Sinai Peninsula with a
view to extending access to other parts of the country, Egyptian tourism
ministry officials said.
The decision is part of a series of measures announced
on Monday aimed at improving access to visas to boost tourism revenues at a
time when Egypt has been struggling economically with an acute foreign currency
shortage.
It also comes as some Middle Eastern countries
including Egypt are taking steps to ease regional tensions. Saudi Arabia and Iran
announced this month that they would restore diplomatic relations.
Cairo has mended a rift with Qatar and is
re-establishing ties with Turkey, another country to benefit from new visa
rules with Turkish nationals given expanded access to visas on arrival,
according to an Egyptian Tourism Ministry statement.
Among the other new visa rules announced were a $700,
five-year multiple-entry visa, which Tourism Minister Ahmed Issa told Reuters
was aimed at investors and property owners who are based outside Egypt.
On visas for Iranians arriving in South Sinai, home to
the highly secured resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Issa said, “We will evaluate the
experience of their arrival in South Sinai as a first step, and building on
that, we’ll determine if they will be admitted in other places.”
Relations between Egypt and Iran have generally been
fraught in recent decades although the two countries have maintained diplomatic
contacts.
Tourists from China, which Egypt regards as a market
with big potential, and Indians resident in Gulf countries will also be granted
visas on arrival.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Saudi Cabinet condemns Qur’an burnings, calls for
rejection of hate
March 29, 2023
RIYADH: The Cabinet condemned burning of copies of the
Holy Qur’an and called for tolerance and respect and a rejection of spreading
hatred and extremism, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The Kingdom on Sunday strongly denounced the burning
of the Qur’an by a Danish extremist group outside the Turkish embassy in
Copenhagen.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277346/saudi-arabia
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Saudi Arabia condemns Al-Aqsa Mosque storming by
Israeli settlers
March 29, 2023
RIYADH: The Kingdom condemns the storming of Al-Aqsa
Mosque by Israeli settlers, under the protection of occupation forces, a Saudi
foreign ministry source said.
The ministry emphasized that such actions undermine
peace efforts and violate international principles and norms regarding respect
for religious sanctities. The ministry also reiterated the Kingdom’s commitment
to supporting all efforts at ending the occupation and reaching a just and
comprehensive solution that enables Palestinians to establish an independent
state on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Source: Arab News
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Saudi interior minister, UK Home Secretary sign raft
of agreements at meeting in London
March 28, 2023
LONDON: Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud, the Saudi Minister
of the Interior, met with the UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman in London on
Tuesday.
Prince Abdulaziz thanked the British Home Secretary
for hosting the meeting, which reflected the common desire to boost the
strategic and historical ties between the two countries.
The prince stressed that the Saudi government valued
and appreciated the existing security cooperation, referring to the ongoing
security coordination between the two countries' ministries of interior.
During the session, the two sides discussed ways to
strengthen and develop the courses of joint security cooperation.
The session saw the signing of several agreements in
the security, development and training fields between the Ministry of the
Interior of Saudi Arabia and the UK Home Office.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277176/saudi-arabia
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Lebanese politicians hurl insults at each other as
tensions boil over in parliament
NAJIA HOUSSARI
March 29, 2023
BEIRUT: Politicians in Lebanon shouted and hurled
insults at each other during a meeting of a joint parliamentary committee on
Tuesday. It came as tensions continued to rise amid the ongoing failure to
choose a new president and growing concerns that it will be impossible to hold
municipal elections scheduled for May.
Amal Movement MP Ghazi Zeaiter, who has been accused
of involvement in the events leading up to the massive explosion at Beirut’s
port in August 2020, clashed with independent MP Melhem Khalaf, who has been
staging a sit-in at the parliament for more than two months over the failure of
MPs to elect a new president. As tensions rose, Zeaiter was accused of publicly
insulting Khalaf.
Another dispute, over the municipal elections, broke
out between Sami Gemayel, head of the Kataeb Party, and the Amal Movement’s Ali
Hassan Khalil, who is also accused of involvement in the port explosion. The
former accused the latter of using “immoral” insults.
As the rows continued, the meeting was ended. It took
place a day after caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati reversed his unpopular
decision, announced last week, to delay the start of daylight saving time for a
month “to allow those fasting during Ramadan to rest for an hour.”
“What happened during the session was shocking,” said
MP Hadi Abu Al-Hassan, a member of the Democratic Gathering bloc. “The
country’s situation will become too dangerous if we continue this way.”
Politicians need to heed the voice of reason and
consider carefully the best interests of the country and its people, he added.
“We need to elect a president, form a government and
start implementing reforms instead of carrying on with this tense drama.”
The presidency has been vacant since Michel Aoun’s
term concluded at the end of October last year. Politicians have been unable to
reach agreement on a successor.
Abu Al-Hassan said that Walid Jumblatt, the head of
the Progressive Socialist Party, has been talking with members of a number of
parties in an attempt to ensure the volatile political situation remains under
control but underlying tensions remain high.
After the ill-tempered parliamentary meeting, Gemayel
refused to go into the details of the dispute but said that he considers what
happened to be “a dangerous offense against sanctities and we cannot accept
this.”
He warned that if some officials persist with their
current approach to managing the country’s affairs, even bigger problems lie in
store.
“If I disclosed what happened, I would be contributing
to creating the strife that some want to drag the country into, and we do not
want that,” Gemayel added.
He called on Speaker of the Parliament Nabih Berri to
“address what happened” and added “if he does not want to deal with it, then he
can consider the message received and we will discuss with our allies how we
will take things from here.”
Warning of the potential dangers of failure to hold the
municipal elections, Gemayel stressed “the need for the state to cover the
cost” of the polls “as the required amount is $8 million.”
The Lebanese government has said it is unable to cover
the cost of the elections, according to a source in the Ministry of Interior,
as “there is no money or staff to hold them.”
The ministry has set the cost of the elections at $12
million. International donors, including the EU, the US Agency for
International Development, and the UN Development Program, have pledged $3
million, which would cover the cost of necessities such as printing, stationery
and logistics. The Lebanese state would need to provide the remaining money for
election workers, judges, security, the transportation of ballot boxes, and
electrical power, among other things.
Any decision to postpone the elections would require
the calling of a legislative session. Christian parliamentary blocs refuse to
agree to such sessions on the grounds that “Parliament is currently an
electorate body whose sole purpose is to elect a president.” Meanwhile, other
political forces do not want to be the ones responsible for passing a law that
extends the terms of the current municipal councils.
In other news, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on
Lebanese citizens Hassan Daqqou and NouhZeaiter, who are accused of being drug
lords.
Daqqou is a Lebanese-Syrian dual national from Tufail,
a town the straddles the border with Syria. He was arrested in Lebanon in 2021
and remains in detention. The Criminal Court in Beirut last year sentenced him
to seven years of hard labor for manufacturing Captagon and trafficking it to
other countries. The US Treasury accuses him and his drug-trafficking
operations of having direct links to Hezbollah.
Zeaiter is wanted by the Lebanese state on charges of
drug trafficking. He is said to surround himself with no fewer than 14 armed
guards and travels in four-wheel-drive vehicles with darkened windows. The US
Treasury also links him with Hezbollah.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277381/middle-east
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Mideast
Labour Chiefs Probe Exploitation Of Palestinian
Workers In Israel
MOHAMMED NAJIB
March 29, 2023
RAMALLAH: The powerful International Labor
Organization is investigating allegations of ill-treatment and exploitation of
Palestinian workers in Israel.
Palestinian leaders have handed a dossier to a
fact-finding committee from the organization showing that the Israeli army
killed 93 Palestinian workers in Israel in 2022, and a further 31 so far this
year.
The report also detailed abuse of Palestinian workers
at military checkpoints and barriers, the absence of occupational health and
safety standards, and illegal working hours.
The dossier was handed over by Shaher Saad,
secretary-general of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions. Saad also told investigators that brokers and
illegal middlemen were deducting about $34 million a month in fees taken from
workers’ salaries, which prevented the implementation of a working social
security system in Palestine.
About 170,000 Palestinians from the West Bank work in
Israel or in illegal Israeli settlements, and 17,000 from the Gaza Strip. Each
month they are required to pay about 2,500 shekels ($780) in fees for a work
permit, in a system that is riddled with corruption.
A report in 2021 by the Institute for National
Security Studies suggests that people illegally selling work permits had annual
revenue of 1 billion shekels from about 40,000 Palestinian workers.
Meanwhile Israeli armed forces’ assaults against
Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem have continued with increasing
frequency during Ramadan, Palestinian sources told to Arab News.
On Tuesday, the Israeli army arrested 13 citizens from
different parts of the West Bank. At the same time, and for the fourth
consecutive day, it continued to tighten its grip on the town of Huwara, south
of Nablus.
Kamal Odeh, Fatah secretary in Huwara, said that the
Israeli army had deployed intensively on the main street, setting up several
barriers and trying to divert citizens’ routes through secondary streets inside
the town.Soldiers turned several houses along the main street in the center of
Huwara into military barracks.
“The security situation around Nablus is frightening,”
Amer Hamdan, a rights activist from Nablus, told Arab News.
Israeli bulldozers also demolished three agricultural
facilities in the Al-Sawahra wilderness, east of Jerusalem, and a commercial
facility in Deir Ballut, west of Salfit.
Source: Arab News
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https://www.arabnews.com/node/2277421/middle-east
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Israeli Forces Tighten Security Measures Against
Palestinians
MOHAMMED NAJIB
March 29, 2023
RAMALLAH: Israeli armed forces’ assaults against
Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem have continued with increasing
frequency during Ramadan, Palestinian sources confirmed to Arab News.
On Tuesday, the Israeli army arrested 13 citizens from
different parts of the West Bank. At the same time, and for the fourth
consecutive day, it continued to tighten its grip on the town of Huwara, south
of Nablus.
Kamal Odeh, Fatah secretary in Huwara, said that the
Israeli army has deployed intensively on the main street, setting up several
barriers and trying to divert citizens’ routes through secondary streets inside
the town.
According to eyewitnesses, the Israeli army turned
several houses along the main street in the center of Huwara into military
barracks.
Amer Hamdan, a human rights activist from Nablus, told
Arab News that it usually takes him one hour to drive from Nablus to Ramallah. Today,
however, the trip took him two and a half hours due to Israeli military
checkpoints in Huwara.
“The security situation around Nablus is ad
frightening,” Hamdan told Arab News.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Israeli bulldozers demolished
three agricultural facilities in the Al-Sawahra wilderness, east of Jerusalem,
and a commercial facility in Deir Ballut, west of Salfit.
Maj. Gen. Abdullah Kamil, the governor of Salfit, said
that the policy of demolishing homes and facilities by the Israeli authorities
in Salfit is one of the most egregious and inhumane practices and that it
serves the occupation’s plans to uproot Palestinian citizens from their lands
in order to build more Israeli settlements.
During the past hours, settler militias have launched
a large-scale attack on Huwara, south of Nablus.
Sources said that the settlers attacked houses and
burned vehicles under the protection of Israeli army forces, who assaulted
citizens.
On Tuesday, settlers cut down 14 olive trees in the
lands of Husan village, west of Bethlehem, after they had also cut down 50
olive trees in that area about 10 days ago.
Separately, Secretary-General of the Palestinian
General Federation of Trade Unions Shaher Saad handed over to the Fact-Finding
Committee of the International Labor Organization an annual report on
violations against Palestinian workers inside Israel.
The paper included the number of Palestinian workers
killed by the Israeli army — 93 in the year 2022, and 31 in the first two and a
half months of 2023 — and the risks that workers are exposed to while passing
through barriers and openings, in addition to violations related to brokers who
deduct approximately $34 million from workers’ salaries per month.
Saad explained to the committee that the Israeli
government’s procedures for handing over workers’ money to the Israeli Otaim
company threaten their rights and prevent the implementation of social security
in Palestine.
The report also included the daily violations that
workers face, especially in the absence of occupational health and safety
standards, including working hours that extend beyond those legally
established.
Some 140,000 Palestinians from the West Bank are
working in Israel, 30,000 in Israeli settlements, and 17,000 from the Gaza
Strip.
Qadura Faris, the head of the Palestinian Prisoners
Club, told Arab News that since 2021, cases of cancer among Palestinian
security prisoners have been increasing, with 24 prisoners currently suffering
from the disease.
He confirmed that the prison administration has
deliberately pursued a policy of medical negligence toward prisoners, which has
led to the death of 75 prisoners out of the 236 who have died in prisons since
1967.
Source: Arab News
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Hamas warns Israel against storming al-Aqsa Mosque,
provoking Muslims during Ramadan
29 March 2023
The Palestinian Hamas resistance movement has warned
Israeli authorities against restrictions on the entry of Palestinians to
al-Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan and their forcible removal from
the sacred site.
“We warn the occupying regime about the repercussions
of attacks on pilgrims and worshipers at al-Aqsa Mosque,” senior Hamas official
Ismail Rizwan said in a statement on Tuesday night.
He added, “The resistance front is closely following
up the situation of [Muslim] worshipers at the Al-Aqsa compound – Islam’s
third-holiest site. We will defend them and our holy sites.”
On Saturday night, a large number of Israeli police
forces stormed the al-Qibli prayer building at al-Aqsa Mosque and forcibly
expelled Muslim worshipers from it.
Video from the scene showed Muslim men and women praying,
chanting “Allahu Akbar,” meaning “God is the greatest,” and shouting at police
officers as the officers removed worshipers from the building and the complex.
Palestinians were blocked from entering the gates of
the mosque, according to Palestinian reports. Footage from some of the gates
showed Palestinians scuffling with Israeli forces who blocked the gates. A
number of Palestinians were arrested at the scene.
Moreover, Hamas spokesman in the occupied al-Quds,
Mohammad Hamadeh, condemned Israeli settlers for provocative moves against
Palestinian worshipers, and their continual incursions into the al-Aqsa Mosque
compound in the occupied Old City of al-Quds under the protection of the
regime’s forces.
Hamadeh also denounced the agreement between Jewish
extremists and Israeli police to extend the hours of storming al-Aqsa Mosque,
stating that “Such vexatious plans developed by the occupying regime are meant
to Judaize al-Aqsa Mosque and assert control over it. These attempts can never
undermine its historical uniqueness or change its Islamic identity.”
He called upon Palestinians residing in the West Bank
and the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories to stay put at the mosque and recite
prayers so as to revive Muslim principles and values and stand up against
Zionists’ attempts to distort history.
Hardline Israeli legislators and settlers regularly
storm the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the occupied city, a provocative move that
infuriates Palestinians. Such mass settler break-ins almost always take place
at the behest of Tel Aviv-backed temple groups and under the auspices of the
Israeli police in al-Quds.
The al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which sits just above the
Western Wall plaza, houses both the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque.
Source: Press TV
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Israeli forces detain more than a dozen Palestinians
in multiple raids across occupied territories
28 March 2023
Israeli forces have detained at least 13 Palestinians
in multiple raids across the West Bank and al-Quds, as the Tel Aviv regime
continues its massive arrest campaign across the occupied territories.
Palestine’s Wafa news agency, citing local sources,
reported that Israeli troops raided the town of al-Yamoun in the north of the
West Bank on Tuesday, arresting four Palestinians.
Four other Palestinians were also detained in the West
Bank city of Bethlehem, while three others were rounded up in the city of
al-Khalil.
In East al-Quds, the regime’s forces arrested a
Palestinian at the al-Aqsa mosque compound, and another Palestinian was
detained at a checkpoint at the entrance of the city of Jericho.
Similar raids were also reported in the flashpoint
city of Jenin.
The raids in different parts of the occupied
territories were followed by clashes that broke out between Israeli forces and
Palestinian residents.
The Israeli military frequently carries out
wide-ranging arrest campaigns across the West Bank under the pretext of
searching for “wanted” Palestinians.
Thousands of Palestinians are held in Israeli jails.
Hundreds have been incarcerated under the practice of administrative detention,
which allows holding Palestinian inmates in Israeli prisons without trial or
charge.
Some Palestinian prisoners have even been held in
administrative detention for up to eleven years.
Meanwhile, at least six Palestinians were injured
after a group of Israeli settlers attacked the town of Huwara, near the West
Bank city of Nablus, on Monday night.
Palestinian media outlets said settlers physically
assaulted Palestinians during the attack, torching homes and cars, damaging
ambulances, and throwing stones at passing Palestinian-owned vehicles.
In a statement,
the Palestinian Health Ministry said one of the six wounded was hospitalized
after suffering a serious head injury, as it condemned the increasing attacks
on the health system.
“The persistence of the occupation [soldiers] and
settlers in attacking treatment centers and health workers, and obstructing the
movement of ambulances and paramedics, is increasing dramatically day by day,”
the ministry said, calling on international organizations to intervene.
Huwara was the site of a settler rampage last month
that killed one Palestinian and injured hundreds of others. The settlers were
reportedly angered by the killing of two Israeli settlers by a Palestinian
gunman in Huwara.
Following the aggression, the regime's finance
minister Bezalel Smotrich said the Palestinian village of Huwara should be
“wiped out.” His comments sparked
widespread condemnation from Muslim countries.
Monday’s attack took place a few hours after a young
Palestinian man—identified as OmairLoulah--succumbed to gunshot wounds he
sustained more than a month ago during an Israeli army raid in Nablus.
Over the past months, Israel has ramped up attacks on
Palestinian towns and cities throughout the occupied territories. As a result
of these attacks, dozens of Palestinians have lost their lives and many others
have been arrested.
Most of the raids have focused on Nablus and Jenin,
where Israeli forces have been trying to stifle a growing Palestinian
resistance in the occupied cities.
Source: Press TV
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Iran: Door to Negotiations Not to Remain Open Forever
2023-March-28
Amir Abdollahian made the remarks in an interview with
Aljazeera Satellite TV network on Monday night.
The top Iranian diplomat also touched upon a number of
other regional and Iran-related issues during the interview.
Referring to the recent agreement reached between
Tehran and Riyadh to resume their relations, Amir Abdollahian stated that the
Saudi King has invited the Iranian President to visit Riyadh, adding that
Tehran will send the king of Saudi Arabia a similar invitation as well.
Turning to the issue of Tehran's cooperation with the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Amir Abdollahian stressed that Iran
is adherent to cooperation with IAEA.
Elsewhere in his remarks, the top Iranian diplomat
hailed Qatar's positive role in the cases of JCPOA talks and the prisoner swap.
The JCPOA was signed in 2015 between Iran and the five
permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany. Former US President
Donald Trump illegally pulled out of the deal in 2018 while the current US
President, Joe Biden, has signaled that he is ready to resurrect the agreement.
Russia, the UK, Germany, China, the US, and France
have been in talks with Iran since April 2021 to reinstate the deal.
The talks to salvage the JCPOA kicked off in the
Austrian capital of Vienna in April 2021, with the intention of examining
Washington’s seriousness in rejoining the deal and removing anti-Iran
sanctions.
Source: Fars News Agency
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https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14020108000436/Iran-Dr-Negiains-N-Remain-Open-Frever
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Iran: Crises Consuming Israeli Regime Like Wildfire
2023-March-28
Kana'ani made the remarks in a Monday tweet after tens
of thousands of Zionists poured into the streets across the Occupied
territories for the third consecutive day this week in protest at Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposed judicial reforms.
"The attempt by the criminal prime minister of
the Israeli regime to boost his own power and survive has once again revealed
internal fault lines in the Zionist society by stoking the most unprecedented
street protests and clashes," he said.
“It is ridiculous that the United States and Europe,
especially Britain, continue to support a fake entity, which is based on
occupation and apartheid, and use democracy as justification for their
support," he added.
Monday's protests came after Netanyahu fired the
regime's minister for military affairs, Yoav Gallant, over his criticism of the
controversial plan.
Netanyahu’s proposed reforms seek to rob the Israeli
regime's Supreme Court of the power to overrule decisions made by the regime's
new extremist cabinet and the Knesset.
Source: Fars News Agency
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https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14020108000463/Iran-Crises-Cnsming-Israeli-Regime-Like-Wildfire
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Iran, India Discuss Further Security Cooperation
2023-March-28
During the phone talk, India's national security
adviser announced his country's readiness to help the comprehensive development
process of regional cooperation.
Doval also welcomed the recent agreement reached
between Tehran and Riyadh on the resumption of diplomatic ties, and deemed the
agreement as a decisive step in increasing stability and security in the region.
Shamkhani and his Indian counterpart also conferred on
several other international issues, including the Vienna negotiations on
lifting anti-Iran sanctions, removing obstacles in the way of mutual
cooperation in developing Chabahar Port, as well as India’s contribution to
finalizing the International North–South Transport Corridor.
Shamkhani, meantime, invited his Indian counterpart to
visit Iran to hold more consultations and pursue bilateral and regional
cooperation.
Earlier on March 23, Iranian and Saudi foreign
ministers held a phone call during which they agreed to hold a meeting soon to
prepare for the reopening of embassies.
The Iranian diplomat welcomed the developing return of
the countries' relations back to normal and expressed Tehran's readiness to
expand and reinforce its ties with Riyadh.
Pointing to the positive achievements of the Beijing
meeting, the Saudi official laid emphasis on the need for the ministers to meet
in the near future and the importance of re-inauguration of the countries'
respective embassies and consulates general.
The officials, therefore, agreed to meet at the
earliest opportunity and lay the groundwork for the reopening of the diplomatic
missions.
After several days of intensive negotiations hosted by
China, Iran and Saudi Arabia finally clinched a deal on Friday to restore
diplomatic relations and re-open embassies and missions within two months.
Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Iran in
January 2016 after Iranian protesters, enraged by the execution of prominent
Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr by the Saudi government, stormed its
embassy in Tehran.
Source: Fars News Agency
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of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14020108000427/Iran-India-Discss-Frher-Secriy-Cperain
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Iran, Saudi FMs Discuss Normalization of Ties
2023-March-27
During the phone talk on Sunday night, the Iranian and
Saudi foreign minister agreed on holding a joint meeting in the month of
Ramadan.
The constructive process of restoration of full
bilateral ties and diplomatic relations was the main topic of talks between the
two foreign ministers.
Earlier on March 23, Iranian and Saudi foreign
ministers held a phone call during which they agreed to hold a meeting soon to
prepare for the reopening of embassies.
The Iranian diplomat welcomed the developing return of
the countries' relations back to normal and expressed Tehran's readiness to
expand and reinforce its ties with Riyadh.
Pointing to the positive achievements of the Beijing
meeting, the Saudi official laid emphasis on the need for the ministers to meet
in the near future and the importance of re-inauguration of the countries'
respective embassies and consulates general.
The officials, therefore, agreed to meet at the
earliest opportunity and lay the groundwork for the reopening of the diplomatic
missions.
After several days of intensive negotiations hosted by
China, Iran and Saudi Arabia finally clinched a deal on Friday to restore
diplomatic relations and re-open embassies and missions within two months.
Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Iran in
January 2016 after Iranian protesters, enraged by the execution of prominent
Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr by the Saudi government, stormed its
embassy in Tehran.
Source: Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14020107000083/Iran-Sadi-FMs-Discss-Nrmalizain-f-Ties
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Iran Calls for Broadening of Ties with Libya, Malaysia
2023-March-28
In his phone talk with Lybian Foreign Minister Najla
Mohammed El Mangoush, Amir Abdollahian congratulated the blessed Ramadan month.
The top Iranian top diplomat also invited his Libyan
counterpart to pay a visit to Iran at her earliest convenience, which was
welcomed by her.
The reopening of the two countries' embassies in each
other's capital cities was another issue of their talks, which has been delayed
because of the special conditions in Libya after its former regime's downfall.
The top Iranian diplomat also held a phone conversation
with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia Zambry Abdul Kadir to discuss
mutual, regional and international affairs.
Amir Abdollahian congratulated his Malaysian
counterpart on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan, noting that both
Muslim countries enjoy abundant commonalities.
Iran's foreign minister expressed hope that the
relationship between Iran and Malaysia will expand in all sectors.
He also appreciated the Malaysian government for its
support for Palestine and recalled the coming international Quds Day on the
last Friday of Ramadan, underlining that the Islamic states should do effective
measures to assist the Palestinian people.
Abdul Kadir, for his part, felicitated the arrival of
the holy month of Ramadan.
The Malaysian FM described Iran as a main trade
partner, expressing hope that the bilateral ties expand more than before.
He also noted that the restoration of ties between
Saudi Arabia and Iran can end up in the improvement of peace and stability in
the West Asia region.
The two sides also discussed other developments such
as Afghanistan’s situation and the war in Ukraine.
Earlier on March 23, Iranian and Saudi foreign
ministers held a phone call during which they agreed to hold a meeting soon to
prepare for the reopening of embassies.
The Iranian diplomat welcomed the developing return of
the countries' relations back to normal and expressed Tehran's readiness to
expand and reinforce its ties with Riyadh.
Pointing to the positive achievements of the Beijing
meeting, the Saudi official laid emphasis on the need for the ministers to meet
in the near future and the importance of re-inauguration of the countries'
respective embassies and consulates general.
The officials, therefore, agreed to meet at the
earliest opportunity and lay the groundwork for the reopening of the diplomatic
missions.
After several days of intensive negotiations hosted by
China, Iran and Saudi Arabia finally clinched a deal on Friday to restore
diplomatic relations and re-open embassies and missions within two months.
Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Iran in
January 2016 after Iranian protesters, enraged by the execution of prominent
Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr by the Saudi government, stormed its
embassy in Tehran.
Source: Fars News Agency
Please click the following URL to read the full text
of the original story:
https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/14020107000473/Iran-Calls-fr-Bradening-f-Ties-wih-Libya-Malaysia
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Palestinian dies of injuries from Israeli fire in West
Bank
28.03.2023
By Qais Abu Samra
NABLUS, Palestine (AA) – A young Palestinian on
Tuesday succumbed to wounds he sustained from Israeli army fire in the occupied
West Bank last month, according to state news agency Wafa.
Amir Mohammad Loulah, 23, from the town of Zawata,
west of Nablus, was critically injured during an Israeli raid in the city on
Feb. 22.
At least 11 Palestinians were killed and over 20
others injured during the raid.
Tension has been running high across the occupied West
Bank in recent months amid repeated Israeli raids into Palestinian towns.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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Africa
Spain arrests man for rude comments on Islam, racist
slurs against Morocco players
28 March ,2023
A 27-year-old worker at a Madrid hotel hosting the
Morocco team was arrested for an alleged hate crime after posting derogatory
comments on Islam and racist slurs against the players on social media, Spanish
police and the hotel said on Tuesday.
Local police told Reuters the employee, a waiter at
the Spanish capital’s five-star Eurostars Hotel Tower, asked players to take
photographs with him. He then uploaded the images to Instagram with xenophobic
insults and tagged the Moroccan team’s account, with the post quickly receiving
over 70,000 views.
The man is due to appear before a judge shortly,
police said.
“We wish to offer our most sincere apologies in
relation to the unfortunate, reprehensible and unacceptable comments of a
racist and xenophobic nature,” Hotusa, the group that owns the hotel, said in a
statement.
The waiter was an external worker hired on an
occasional basis and not part of the hotel’s regular staff, the group said.
Asked about the incident, Morocco coach Walid Regragui
referred to the ongoing holy period of Ramadan, known in the Islamic world as
the month of forgiveness and tolerance.
“We do not accept racism, but we want to show that
Islam is a religion of tolerance,” Regragui told reporters. “We forgive this
person in accordance with the requirements of the Islamic religion and the
customs of Moroccan people.”
He added the worker “made a mistake” and invited him
to visit Morocco to “see the atmosphere between Muslims during Ramadan.”
Morocco beat Brazil 2-1 last weekend to achieve the
first ever victory for an Arab country over the five-times world champions who
are top of the FIFA world rankings.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Tunisia cuts off water supply at night amid severe
drought
28 March ,2023
Tunisian authorities have started cutting off drinking
water at night in areas of the capital and other cities, residents said, in
what appears to be a bid to reduce consumption amid a severe drought.
Cutting off water without prior announcement, in areas
of the capital Tunis, Hammamet, Sousse, Monastir and Sfax, threatens to fuel
social tension in a country whose people suffer from poor public services, high
inflation and a weak economy.
Officials of the water distribution company contacted
by Reuters declined to comment.
Tunisia is suffering a serious drought, prompting
officials to say the ministry may begin to cut off water supply at night over
the summer to reduce consumption due to the scarcity of reserves in the
country.
The continued lack of rain, however, appears to have
prompted authorities to start doing so early in some places.
Yassin Mami, a lawmaker in the new parliament, said
officials from the national water company informed him that the reason for the
frequent interruption of water supply in Hammamet city, was “because the
country is threatened by water scarcity.”
Tunisian dams recorded a decrease in capacity of
around of 1 billion cubic meters due to scarcity of rain from September 2022 to
mid-March 2023, Hamadi Habib, a senior official in the agriculture ministry,
said.
Source: Al Arabiya
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Burkina Faso most affected African country by
terrorism: Report
James Tasamba
28.03.2023
Burkina Faso is the most affected by terrorism on the
African continent and the second most-affected worldwide in 2022, according to
the latest global terrorism report that was released Tuesday.
The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2023, a report
published by the Australia-based global Institute for Economics and Peace,
showed that the Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa is now the epicenter of
terrorism, accounting for more deaths from terrorism in 2022 than South Asia,
the Middle East and North Africa combined.
Across the Sahel, 22,074 people died in 6,408 terror
attacks between 2007 and 2022, it said.
In Burkina Faso, 8,564 victims were registered, putting
the country in the second position in the world for the most-affected
countries, behind Afghanistan.
Terror attacks in the Sahel region increased by more
than 2,000% in the past 15 years, it said.
Somalia, Mali and Syria ranked third, fourth and fifth,
respectively. Others in the ranking are Pakistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Burma and
Niger.
“Of particular concern are two countries, Burkina Faso
and Mali, which accounted for 73% of terrorism deaths in the Sahel in 2022 and
52% of all deaths from terrorism in sub-Saharan Africa,” it said.
Most attacks are attributed to unknown insurgents
although Daesh and the Al-Qaeda and Daesh/ISIS affiliate -- Support Group for
Islam and Muslims (JNIM) operate in the two countries, according to the report.
The report, however, showed that terror attacks around
the world reduced in 2022 for the first time since 2019 -- from 5,463 to 3,955
compared to 2021. And with it, the number of fatalities fell by almost 9% --
from 7,328 to 6,701 deaths.
In Burkina Faso, 1,135 deaths were recorded,
representing a 50% increase with attacks targeting mainly civilians.
A large-scale attack in the Seytenga commune, a town
15 kilometers (27 miles) from the border with Niger where 116 civilians were
killed, was considered the fourth deadliest attack in the world in 2022.
Burkina Faso has been battling an insurgency that has
spread from neighboring Mali in the past decade.
The political situation in the Sahel compounds the
terrorism challenge, with six coup attempts since 2021, of which four were successful,
said the report.
Addressing the UN Security Council Tuesday, African
nations urged the world to pay attention to terrorism threats on the continent,
particularly in the Sahel region.
Source: Anadolu Agency
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of the original story:
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