ANWAR MAY CHALLENGE EMERGENCY DECLARATION IN MALAYSIA
Gerakan Pembela Ummah (Ummah), a coalition of 500 Muslim groups, said it will intervene to block Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s lawsuit if the Opposition leader takes the government to court over the nationwide proclamation of Emergency. Ummah chairman Mohd Zai Mustafa said that the King made the proclamation only after consultation with the ruling government and senior officials. Mohd Zai said that Ummah will then be prepared with their own legal team to face and challenge the appeal that will be filed by Anwar’s team. Anwar had said the decision to resort to a declaration of an Emergency was a reckless and desperate move by the administration, one devoid of a rational basis.
MALAYSIAN WHO DROWNED IN NEW ZEALAND LAID TO REST
Muhammad Ehsan Zakaria, who drowned during an outing with some friends in Pinders Pond, Roxburgh, New Zealand on January 15 was laid to rest at the Green Island cemetery, Dunedin. The High Commission of Malaysia in Wellington, in a statement, conveyed gratitude to the Malaysian and local Muslim community including the Otago Muslim Association, who provided support and aid, especially with the funeral arrangements and burial. Muhammad Ehsan, 24, was a former Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) scholar in Auckland.
IRAN’S ZARIF MEETS TALIBAN, CALLS FOR INCLUSIVE GOVT.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on January 31 called for the formation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan, during talks with a visiting Taliban delegation led by Mullah Ghani Baradar in Tehran. Speaking during the meeting, Zarif said the formation of an all-inclusive government in Afghanistan must see the participation of all ethnic and political groups in the war-ravaged country. “Political decisions cannot be made in a vacuum, and the formation of an all-inclusive government must take place in a participatory process and by taking into account fundamental structures, institutions and laws, such as the Constitution (of Afghanistan),” he said in a statement. The chief diplomat also expressed Iran’s readiness to facilitate dialogue between the Afghan government, Taliban, and other Afghan groups, saying that the people of Afghanistan “have been wronged”.
TURKISH MESSAGING APP GAINS ATTENTION IN INDONESIA
People from all walks of life in Indonesia have started to switch to Turkish communication and messaging app, BiP, amid concerns about privacy protection on WhatsApp. BiP allows group chats for up to 1,000 people and subscription of various channels. Surabaya-based journalist Muhammad Nashir reportedly said that the app is interesting as it has many features such as dark mode and invites users to chat with each other by providing random chat notifications to new users. BiP is Turkey’s initiative. After popular messaging app WhatsApp forced many users to agree to new privacy rules, a large number of people started to seek alternatives for their smartphones.
ISRAEL CONDEMNED FOR DEMOLISHING MOSQUE IN PALESTINE
Palestine’s acting minister of religious affairs condemned Israel’s demolition of a mosque in the Bedouin community of Azwadeen, east of Yatta city, south of Hebron, occupied West Bank. “This is a crime and a blatant attack on Muslims’ feelings,” Hussam Abu al-Rub said in a statement, according to the official Wafa news agency. Al-Rub also called on the Arab and Islamic world to intervene to stop Israel’s attacks. Using bulldozers, Israeli forces razed the mosque, which was under construction in the town of Umm Qusah south of Hebron, and several structures in the West Bank. Israeli forces also bulldozed a livestock structure in Khamis al-Jahalin east of Jerusalem, said an eyewitness. Two other livestock facilities were also demolished in the Bir al-Maskoub community in east Jerusalem.
CHRISTCHURCH-LIKE TERROR ATTACK THWARTED IN SINGAPORE
A major terror attack has been foiled in Singapore as a 16-year-boy planning to attack two mosques and kill worshippers was arrested. The secondary school student of Indian ethnicity, whose name was not revealed, had prepared a plan to carry out attacks like that done by Brenton Tarrant, an Australian white supremacist, that killed 51 Muslims preparing for Friday prayers in Christchurch, New Zealand, two years ago. Singapore’s Internal Security Department (ISD) said the boy was “influenced by” Tarrant and was preparing to attack Assyafaah and Yusof Ishak mosques.
COMMISSION IN FRANCE APPROVES BILL TARGETING MUSLIMS
A special commission in the French National Assembly approved the “charter of republican values” which was announced earlier by the nation’s president as the fight against Islamist separatism. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Twitter that the draft law, which advocates consolidating principles of the republic, was widely accepted by the special commission. Darmanin said that France is making a law for the future, not only to resist today’s difficulties but to defend the values of the republic. The bill is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly in February. The draft law is being criticised because it targets the Muslim community and imposes restrictions on almost every aspect of their lives.
GREEK ARCHBISHOP OF TURKEY INSULTING REMARKS ON ISLAM SLAMMED
The head of Diyanet, Turkey’s directorate of religious affairs slammed the Greek archbishop’s insulting remarks against Islam and Muslims, calling on Christians to oppose this “sick mentality.” Ali Erbas strongly condemned Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens and Greece, who, in a televised speech said Islam is not a religion but a political party and pursuit, and its followers are people of war. The Greek Orthodox Archbishop stated his views on Islam while speaking on the role of the Orthodox church during the 1821 revolution which saw Greece gain independence from the Islamic empire of the Ottoman Turks. Erbas said in a statement, “The Christian world must oppose this sick mentality. This kind of discourse aiming to marginalise Muslims feeds the racist perspective against them, and leads to attacks on their lives and places of worship.” He added that Islam is a religion of peace, and the Islamic civilization has always enabled people to live together for centuries, irrespective of their beliefs, religion and culture.
RUSSIA, TURKEY OPEN MONITORING CENTRE FOR NAGORNO-KARABAKH
Russia and Turkey on January 30 opened a joint centre to observe a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh that was agreed following a flare-up in the conflict in the region last year, Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said. The centre, which both countries agreed to set up in November, was officially opened in the Agdam region of Azerbaijan. It will be staffed by up to 60 servicemen each from Turkey and from Russia, the defence ministry said. After six weeks of fighting, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a Russia-brokered ceasefire for the enclave, which is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Turkey said on Friday that one Turkish general and 38 personnel will work at the centre. The Russian Defence Ministry, quoted by Interfax, said that “monitoring will be carried out through the use of unmanned aerial vehicles as well as the evaluation of data received from other sources”.
WHO RECOGNISES MADINAH AMONG WORLD’S HEALTHIEST CITIES
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has recognised the city of Madinah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, among the world’s healthiest cities, on January 25. The city is believed to be the first city with a population of more than 2 million to be recognised under the organisation’s healthy cities programme. The city’s integrated programme included a strategic partnership with Taibah University to record government requirements on an electronic platform for the organisation’s review. It gained the accreditation after a visiting WHO team said that it complies with the global standards required to be included in the list of the world’s healthiest cities. A total of 22 government, community, charity, and volunteer agencies helped prepare for the WHO accreditation.