ATTACKS ON QUR’ĀN ‘EXTREMIST ACTS,’ SAY BRITISH ACADEMICS
Academics known for their work on religion, faith and society in the UK have said that attacks on the Qur’ān in Scandinavian countries are “extremist acts that must be prevented”. Alison Scott-Baumann, a Professor of Society and Faith at the Centre for Islamic Studies at SOAS University, and David Thomas, a Professor of Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, spoke to Anadolu about the increasing Islamophobic attacks in Scandinavian countries, especially Sweden and Denmark.
Scott-Baumann stated that the acts of burning the Qur’ān in Scandinavian countries are a result of the effect caused by the discourses of politicians and emphasized that these discourses are fed by the idea of “creating enemies in society” by Nazi philosopher, Carl Schmidt. “A democratic government should be able to tell the difference between free speech and deliberate provocation. This is an act of provocation,” she said. She recalled the EU’s decision that “acts that incite violence are not freedom of expression but illegal acts.” Meanwhile, Denmark is studying several measures and legislation to prevent the recurrence of Qur’ān burning incidents.
REJECTION OF SHIPMENT PLAN STALLING PEACE EFFORTS IN KARABAKH
A senior Azerbaijani official has expressed concern over the rejection by the self-proclaimed Armenian leaders in Karabakh of Baku’s proposed path for shipments. Ali Huseynli, chairman of the Azerbaijani National Assembly Law Commission, said this refusal presents “a significant risk to achieving a peaceful resolution of disputes between Azerbaijan and Armenia and hampers the efforts to establish lasting peace in the region.” Huseynli reportedly said that Armenia was trying to carry cargo to Karabakh using the Lachin-Khankendi road under the guise of “humanitarian aid.” He stressed that the Lachin corridor lies in Azerbaijan’s territory and so Baku proposed using the Aghdam-Khankendi road for shipments.
NIGERIA CUTS OFF ELECTRICITY SUPPLY TO NIGER FOLLOWING COUP
Nigeria cut off electricity supply to its northern neighbour Niger on Wednesday after the military coup in the country. The move was in line with sanctions decided by Niger’s West African neighbours. Niger used to get 70% of its electricity from Nigeria. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), of which Nigeria is a member, decided to impose sanctions on Niger following the coup. Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum was detained by members of the Presidential Guard on July 26, and that evening, the military announced that it had seized power. Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani, the leader of the mutinous soldiers, assumed the leadership of the group called the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Country on July 28. Algerian newspaper Le Soird’Algerie reported that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) may have played a role in the attempted coup against Niger’s President Mohamed Bazoum.
591 SETTLEMENTS-RELATED INCIDENTS IN PALESTINE IN 2023: UN
The number of settler-related incidents in the Occupied Palestinian Territory reached 591 in the first six months of 2023, the UN said on August 4. “That’s an average of 99 incidents every month and a 39 per cent increase compared with the monthly average of the whole of 2022, which is 71,” Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said at a UN briefing in Geneva. The number of such incidents, which are resulting in Palestinian casualties, property damage, or both, in 2022 was already the highest since OCHA started recording them in 2006, Laerke said. He highlighted that Palestinian communities who rely on herding are particularly vulnerable, saying that, in the last two years, at least 399 people were forcibly displaced due to settler violence targeting seven communities engaged in herding across the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Three of these communities – Al Baqa’a, Khirbet Bir al’Idd, and Wedadiye – have been completely depopulated due to the violence, while the rest of the communities only have a few families remaining, he added.
HAMAS, LEBANON DISCUSS STABILISING AIN AL-HILWEH CEASEFIRE
The head of Hamas’ political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, has made a series of contacts with senior Lebanese officials and discussed the latest developments in the Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp, a report said on August 4. Haniyeh reportedly spoke on the phone with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and Palestinian Ambassador to Lebanon Ashraf Dabour and reviewed the situation in Ain Al-Hilweh camp, in light of the clashes that claimed the lives of a number of the refugees and injured dozens of others. He stressed the need to maintain a ceasefire and return people to their homes. During the calls, Haniyeh has also stressed Hamas’ keenness on maintaining “security and stability” in the camp and nearby neighbourhoods, adding that the camps remain symbols for the Palestinian right of return and Palestinian weapons remain directed only against the Israeli enemy.
HUNGER, DISPLACEMENT ‘SPIRALLING OUT OF CONTROL’ IN SUDAN
The UN has warned that hunger and displacement in Sudan are “spiralling out of control” amid ongoing fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group. More than 6 million people in Sudan, about 13 per cent of the population, are now one step from famine, according to the UN aid agency, OCHA. Over 20 million people are facing high levels of acute food insecurity due to the conflict, economic decline and mass displacement, OCHA said in a statement. The war-torn nation has been ravaged again by fighting two decades after a conflict broke out. The recent fighting since April has killed 3,000 civilians and injured thousands, according to local medics. Several cease-fire agreements brokered by Saudi and US mediators have failed to end the violence. More than 334,000 people have been internally displaced in just one week, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). IOM estimates that nearly 3 million people have been displaced by the conflict.
TUNISIA PREZ SACKS PM BOUDEN, APPOINTS AHMED HACHANI
Tunisian President Kais Saied on August 1 sacked Prime Minister Najla Bouden and appointed a former official in the Central Bank, Ahmed Hachani, as her successor. No reason was given for Saied’s decision, but local media highlighted Saied’s dissatisfaction with shortages in commodities in local markets, particularly the lack of bread in state-subsidised bakeries. Najla Bouden Ramadan was the first woman to lead a government in Tunisia. Hachani worked for the Central Bank of Tunisia and studied at the Faculty of Law at Tunis University, where Saied taught, according to a post by the new prime minister on his Facebook page. In recent months, the president has dismissed several ministers, including the foreign minister, without giving a reason. Since February, about 20 opposition, media and business figures have been imprisoned, accused of “plotting against state security”, in a wave of arrests that includes the leader of Tunisia’s main opposition party, Rached Ghannouchi.
MARKING 697TH ANNIVERSARY SINCE PASSING OF OSMAN GHAZI
August 1 marked the 697th anniversary of the death of Osman Ghazi, the founder and first ruler of the Ottoman Empire, which would eventually grow into a vast and influential world power. Osman I, also known as Osman Ghazi, was the leader of the Kayi tribe. He founded the Ottoman dynasty at the end of the 13th century in Sogut, an area in present-day north-western Türkiye, from which it would expand and rise to become the Ottoman Empire. Founded in 1299 by Muslim Oghuz Turks in the present-day Sogut district of Türkiye’s western Bilecik province led by Osman Ghazi (the warrior), the Ottoman Empire gradually became a world power spanning Africa, Asia and Europe, lasting over 600 years, and wielded influence over the Middle East, Balkans and the world.