MALAYSIA’S PM ANWAR THWARTS OPPOSITION THREAT IN STATE POLLS
Anwar Ibrahim was appointed as prime minister following inconclusive elections last year. His coalition has now retained control of three states, but a conservative opposition gained in popularity. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s ruling coalition has held back a challenge by an opposition alliance in the country’s state elections, official results showed on August 13. The six-state vote, held a day earlier, was widely viewed as an early referendum on Anwar.
Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition retained three states: Selangor and Penang – two of the country’s richest states – alongside Negeri Sembilan, results released by the Election Commission showed. The ruling coalition, however, lost its two-thirds majority in Selangor, as the opposition made strong inroads.
DOZENS KILLED IN SUDAN TRIBAL CLASHES
Dozens of people were killed on August 12 in tribal clashes in the Darfur region in western Sudan, Anadolu reports. Eyewitnesses reported that dozens of people lost their lives in the conflict between the Arab Beni Halba and African Masalit tribes in West Darfur province, bordering Chad. Ethnic violence escalated in the region with the civil war that broke out in mid-April between the Sudanese army and the RSF.
Sudan has seen several bouts of tribal violence in Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile regions in recent months since the military dismissed Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok’s transitional government, a move decried by political forces as a “military coup.”
BANK OFFERS FIRST ISLAMIC MORTGAGES BASED IN MAINE
An American bank in the state of Maine has introduced Islamic mortgages to comply with Shari’ah law. Androscoggin Bank took more than a year to develop the Islamic mortgage programme in collaboration with community organisations and an expert in Shari’ah-compliant lending. The bank also hired Ayesha Baye, an Ethiopian immigrant with extensive experience in Maine banking, to serve Muslim customers.
The introduction of Islamic mortgages has enabled Muslim families in Maine to fulfil their dream of homeownership and provide a sense of belonging and stability to the community. The first clients to benefit from this service are Sophie Mutamuliza and Adam Abeza, immigrants from Rwanda who have lived in Portland for ten years and are saving to buy a home for their growing family. However, their Islamic faith prohibited them from accepting conventional mortgages with interest. But in February, they were able to purchase their dream home with the help of Androscoggin Bank’s Halal Mortgage Programme.
AUSTRALIA REVIVES TERM ‘OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES’
The Australian government is affirming its position on illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and has decided to revert to referring to the area as “occupied Palestinian territories”, calling settlements a breach of international law. “The Australian government is strengthening its opposition to settlements by affirming they are illegal under international law and a significant obstacle to peace,” Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said on August 8.
“In adopting the term, we are clarifying that the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and Gaza, were occupied by Israel following the 1967 war and that the occupation continues and reaffirms our commitment to negotiate a two-state solution in which Israel and a future Palestinian state coexist.”
IRISH SINGER SINEAD O’CONNOR LAID TO REST IN MUSLIM BURIAL
An Islamic funeral was conducted on August 8 in Ireland for Sinead O’Connor who died last month in London. Thousands, including Irish singers Bono and Bob Geldof, took part in the ceremony as her cortege passed through her former hometown of Bray, 20 kilometres (12 miles) south of the nation’s capital of Dublin. Her coffin was cheered by fans as it navigated the streets of Bray where she lived for 15 years. It stopped outside her former home to allow mourners to pay their respects.
Umar Al-Qadri, the Islamic scholar and chief imam at the Islamic Centre of Ireland, led the service. “Gifted with a voice that moved a generation of young people, she could reduce listeners to tears by her otherworldly resonance,” he said. O’Connor converted to Islam in 2018 and changed her name to Shuhada Sadaqat but continued to perform under Sinead O’Connor. Irish President Michael Higgins, wife Sabina and Prime Minister Leo Varadkar also attended the service.