Evening NEWS DIGEST
11 Sept. 2016: 08 Dzil Hajja 37: Vol:7, No:158
We are killing and raping
you because you eat cow: Victim Muslim Woman says cow vigilantes involved
Chandigarh: One of the
Mewat gangrape victims has alleged that their attackers were cow vigilantes but
the Haryana police on Friday said no evidence has so far come to fore
suggesting that the four accused arrested in the case were part of any cow
protection group. The family of the victims alleged that they had informed the
police personnel about the cow vigilantes but they chose to ignore it.“They
(attackers) asked us ‘you eat cow meat’. We said ‘no’. They then said ‘you eat
cow meat’. They said ‘we are killing you because you eat cow’.“We told this to
the police but they are not doing anything,” one of the two victims said.A
couple was murdered and two girls from the family allegedly gangraped after the
accused had barged into their house in the wee hours on Aug.25 in a village in
Mewat. “I need justice. They have killed by son and daughter-in-law. They have
gangraped my grand-daughters. The way police has behaved, we have no hope,”
said a relative of the victims. Police said that the investigation in the case
is still on and so far they have not found any link with cow vigilantes.PTI/siasat
We were gangraped for
'eating beef', says Mewat woman
Haryana: Mewat gangrape
victim claimed they were punished for eating ‘beef’
'They Raped Us, Called It
Punishment For Eating Beef,' Alleged Haryana Woman
Haryana beef biryani
"test finding" questioned
New Delhi: Amidst the
raging row over "raids" at biryani eateries in Mewat, the mandate and
authenticity of a university lab in Haryana where 7 meat samples were allegedly
tested to be positive for beef has been questioned by a civil group.Media
reports said seven meat samples received in the Lala Lajpat Rai University of
Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Hisar, from various places of Haryana have been
allegedly tested to be positive for beef."Whether the said laboratory has
been accredited by accreditation body or recognized by the state govt as provided in Section 12 (1) of The Haryana
Gauvansh Sanrakshan and Gausamvardhan Act 2015," asked ANHAD adding that
"It is a matter of fact that no laboratory in the said University has any
accreditation or recognition to carry out such tests."The group further
said that even the head of the department of the said laboratory had no
information about any such test.It also questioned the procedure of sampling of
meat.
"What procedure was followed while taking
of samples and their labeling? As a matter of fact, no authority in the
university has been designated to ensure that the sampling, labeling of samples
is done in a proper manner in matters involving species differentiation,"
said ANHAD. Group, which is headed by eminent social activist Shabnam Hashmi,
further alleged: "It should also be noted that some senior faculty members
of the university have been visiting Nagpur regularly and also conducting
training programmes for ABVP students of the university."Meanwhile, in
view of the upcoming Eid-Al Adha, which is popularly known as Bakr Eid, an eminent
Muslim organization has expressed concern on the alleged ‘beef biryani' circular
of the Haryana govt of BJP.Mohammad Salim Engineer, Secretary General of
Jamaat-e-Islami Hind said the circular "will harm the backward sections of
the Muslim community who earn livelihood through small businesses and will end
up as a tool in the hands of police to harass the poor." While terming the
order as oppressive and contrary to the constitutional right of economic
freedom, Jamaat leader demanded the state govt to immediately withdraw it.IndiaTomorrow
Stop 'biryani policing',
say Muslim leaders
Chandigarh:A group of
Muslim leaders and social organisations have asked the Haryana govt to withdraw
its move about sampling of biryani to check use of beef in Mewat district. In a
meeting of Mewat Vikas Sabha, social body, its head Umar Mohammad talked about
having called a panchayat of 36 communities on Sept.15 to discuss the 'biryani
policing.' "We will wait until Sept. 14. We will not only convene a
mahapanchayat, but also launch a countrywide stir against the govt's
move," he said. Meanwhile, in a meeting of Jamiat-e-Ulema Hind, clerics
from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal, and Chandigarh accused govt of hurting the
sentiments of Muslims in the state. Maulana Yahya said govt should immediately
withdraw its directions related to biryani sampling, especially ahead or after
Eid. "At the same time, we have also asked our people to strictly not
resort to cow slaughter during the festivities, as it would hurt the sentiments
of our Hindu brethren. We advise them to maintain peace," he said.TOI
Beef found in biryani
samples, we’re not against Muslims: Haryana minister Anil Vij
Haryana’s ‘Mission Biryani’
snatches bread of poor street vendors
Eid in Mewat: Terrified
Muslims shut shop as police turn cow vigilantes
Haryana: Mob sets truck
ablaze in Palwal on suspicion it was carrying animal skin
Gurgaon: Amid raging controversy
over the Haryana govt’s direction to check biryani samples in Mewat for beef, a
mob in neighbouring Palwal district set a truck ablaze on suspicion that it was
carrying cow skin.The police claimed that no one was injured and the truck
driver and helper were safe in their custody. IGP (South Range) Mamta Singh
told The Hindu that a mob set the truck on fire in Mandkola village around 9 pm
on Saturday on suspicion of carrying something “related to the sentiments of
the people”.It was learned that the truck was coming from Hapur in UP carrying
parts of animals, such as bones and tails, and was on its way to a factory in
Mewat that makes dog food.“It seems that someone spread a rumour that the truck
contained something related to the sentiments of the people. And it was set
afire. Some drunkards were also found involved in it,” said Ms. Singh, adding
that Palwal was a communally sensitive area. Thehindu
Haryana: Truck carrying
animal waste set on fire over ‘cow skin’ rumours
Cow vigilantes burn down
truck in Palwal on suspicion that it was carrying beef
Cow vigilantes terrorising
Dalits, minorities: Yechury demands complete ban on gauraksha samitis
Jaipur: CPI(M) general
secretary Sitaram Yechury demanded a complete ban on gauraksha samitis, or cow
protection committees, saying they were terrorising Dalits and minority communities
on the pretext of cow protection. He said NDA govt was permitting these
vigilante groups to promote communalism and polarisation. This was deliberately
being done with an eye on UP Assembly polls, he said. thehindu
Gujarat riots: HC set to
deliver verdict on Sardarpura massacre case appeals
Ahmedabad: Gujarat high
court is set to deliver its judgment on appeals in the Sardarpura massacre case
of the 2002 riots. A total of 33 women and children were burned alive by
rioters after they locked themselves in a room to escape a violent mob in a
small village of Mehsana district in north Gujarat. A bench of Justice Harsha
Devani and Justice Biren Vaishnav will start dictating the judgment on Monday.
Hearing of arguments on appeals filed by the state govt, the Supreme
Court-appointed SIT, 31 convicts as well as the riots survivors, has been
completed. On Nov. 9, 2011, special judge, SC Srivastava, in Mehsana had
convicted 31 accused to life imprisonment and acquitted 42 others in connection
with Sardarpura massacre that occurred on March 1, 2002. Out of the 42 people
acquitted, 11 were acquitted because the court did not find any evidence
against them. Timesofindia
4 militants killed in
J&K as Army foils infiltration bid
Srinagar: Army, on Sunday,
killed 4 militants who were trying to infiltrate along the LoC. Srinagar-based
Army spokesman Colonel Manish Kumar told The Hindu that four militants were
killed near LoC in Kupwara’s Nowgam Sector in the morning. “It was an
infiltration bid, which was foiled. Four AK-47 rifles and war-like stores have
been recovered so far. The operation is on,” said Col. Kumar.In Pir Panjal
valley’s Poonch district, militants opened fire near the Army's 93 Brigade HQRS.
The militants are believed to be holed up in a residential house and an
under-construction mini-secretariat. Thehindu
Kashmir unrest: Youth
succumbs to injuries; over 100 injured in fresh clashes
A 23-year-old youth died on
Sunday of bullet injuries he received in previous clashes with security forces
in Kashmir, taking the death toll in an
ongoing unrest to 78 even as more than 100 people were injured in renewed
violence. Youngster, identified as Javaid Ahmad Dar of Wadwan village of Budgam
district, died of bullet wounds he suffered in clashes in the neighbouring
village, Narbal, on Aug.5. tribuneindia
Kashmir: Rajnath chairs
high-level meet as toll rises to 80
Valley smoulders ahead of
Eid
Fresh clashes in south
Kashmir, dozens injured
Kashmir Jamaat to sue
Indian news channels for defaming Islam, religious organisations
Srinagar: Jama’at-e-Islami J&K
has said it has taken strong exception to the “malicious” attempts of certain
New Delhi based media outlets which, instead of discharging their professional
duties by dispassionately reporting the ground realities of Kashmir, are
playing in the hands of anti-Islam and anti-Kashmir forces in defaming
religious organizations and institutions of the State. A statement issued by
Jama’at said that news Channels such as “Zee News, Aaj Tak and IBN 7 have
started a vicious propaganda campaign against the religious organizations
particularly Jama’at-e-Islami and Jamiat-e-Ahle Hadith and are trying to defame
them in every possible manner.”“These news channels are defaming Islam and
religious organizations of Kashmir at the behest of anti-Islam and anti-Kashmir
forces,” it said. kashmirreader
Salahuddin, Geelani
masterminding Kashmir violence: BJP leader Ram Madhav
New Delhi: BJPs national
general secretary and its Kashmir point person Ram Madhav on Saturday said
Pakistan-based militant commander Syed Salahuddin was masterminding the ongoing
unrest in the valley through Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani.Madhav said
the 2-month long unrest - deadliest the valley has suffered in 6 years - had
posed no threat to the PDP and the BJP coalition govt in the state.He said govt was committed to "bring back
normalcy" in the valley before Eid - a Muslim festival that is being
celebrated on Tuesday."Stone-pelting needs to be stopped," he said
and blamed United Jehad Council commander Syed Salahuddin, who is based in
Muzaffarabad - the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir - for sponsoring
the agitation in Kashmir."It is led by Syed Salahuddin and certain
sections get influenced by him. Geelani is leading the campaign in the valley.
There is no doubt about that. But the real masterminds are from across the
border," Madhav said. The former RSS leader, credited to have cobbled
together PDP-BJP alliance in J&K, denied there were any differences between
the ruling partners.IANS
Kashmir Separatist men who
won’t talk: Muzamil Jaleel’s write-up
One afternoon, a few days
ahead of the visit of an all-party delegation to Srinagar, the policemen around
Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s residence in Srinagar’s uptown Hyderpora neighbourhood
had taken an unusual break. Though the Hurriyat leader is under an almost
permanent house arrest, the siege around his home has been further tightened
ever since the July 8 killing of Kashmiri militant commander Burhan Wani
triggered an uprising across Kashmir. That day, however, the door was left open
because the city was under curfew and the police didn’t expect any visitors.The
main entrance of the house opens into a small double-storey annexe, which houses
Geelani’s office. In a small room upstairs, 3 men sat on a sofa, reading old
newspapers. A word was sent inside and soon, Geelani’s elder son Nayeem
entered. “Geelani sahib isn’t giving any interviews these days but you can meet
him,’’ he said. Inside a small room sat Geelani. He looked old, holding himself
together with an effort.At 87, New Delhi considers Geelani the biggest hurdle
in its efforts to resolve the Kashmir issue and find a solution within the
ambit of the Indian Constitution. In fact, Geelani’s stance has been
unwavering: the solution for Kashmir lies in plebiscite, a vote to determine
whether Kashmir will go to India or Pakistan, a promise made by India’s first PM
. While he wants Kashmir to become part of Pakistan, he has repeatedly said
that he would accept the results of such a plebiscite. “If people vote for India,
we won’t question that,’’ he has repeatedly said.During the brief conversation
at his house that afternoon, Geelani didn’t say anything different. But this
time, his defiance to New Delhi holds a much greater political weight in
Kashmir.The trigger for the latest uprising, unlike previously, isn’t a human
rights violation by forces, but the killing of Burhan Wani, a 22-year-old
Kashmiri militant commander. Though the separatists aren’t in control of streets
and are only reacting to azadi groundswell that had filled villages and towns
across Kashmir, the Hurriyat’s protest calendar is the reference point for the
protesters. Geelani realises that this is no ordinary protest. It is a public
endorsement of Wani’s call for “Kashmir’s freedom from India”. And this is
exactly what Geelani has been saying even before Wani was born.The most
important development, however, is the unity of the separatists. After more
than a decade, even as the two Hurriyats exist separately, the recent protests
have brought Geelani and Mirwaiz on the same platform.Indianexpress
AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan
quits as Delhi Waqf Board chairman, says he is being 'framed'
New Delhi: 2-days after the
Anti-Corruption Branch raided the Delhi Waqf Board office, AAP MLA Amanatullah
Khan on Saturday resigned as its chairman claiming that he was being
"framed in false cases".The Okhla legislator, who was also a member
of the State Haj Committee, sent his resignation letter to CM Arvind Kejriwal.His resignation came two days
after the Anti-Corruption Branch of the Delhi govt raided the Delhi Waqf Board office here in
connection with an alleged recruitment scam involving Khan.In his letter, Khan
stated that he has "run out of patience" of issuing clarifications to
the public pleading innocence over a number of allegations levelled against him
and his family members."Some people dislike my honesty and service and
false allegations are being levelled against me and my family to frame us. I
want to be free from all the responsibilities given to me by the govt and therefore I tender my resignation from all
the posts," Khan said.Speaking in the Delhi Assembly on Friday, Khan
defended himself saying he had made the "contractual" recruitments
following due procedures. Waqf Board was reeling under shortage of staff which
necessitated the appointments, he said.PTI
AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan
writes to Delhi CM Kejriwal, resigns from all govt posts
MLA Amanatullah booked on
female relative's complaint
Amanatullah Khan booked
again on ‘molestation’ charge, this time on kin complaint
AAP refuses to accept Amanatullah
resignation,backs him
AAP on Sunday refused to
accept the resignation of its legislator Amanatullah Khan, who has been charged
by the police after his sister-in-law accused him of molesting her.“We refused
to accept his (Khan’s) resignation. It’s 6-year-old family matter and his
in-laws are dragging him into it,” Delhi deputy CM Manish Sisodia said.“We have
found out in our investigation that he is being dragged into it,” he added.IANS
Muzaffarnagar riots: NHRC
accepts UP govt’s explanation and closes all cases
New Delhi: 3 years after
western districts of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli in UP witnessed serious communal violence, NHRC
accepted clarification of UP govt on various complaints and closed down all the
cases.This has been revealed in a recent reply of NHRC to a two and half years
old complaint letter of Insaan Foundation. In a reply the NHRC said that it
analysed and monitored various reports received from UP and have closed all the
cases after being contended with its explanation. Muzaffarnagar had witnessed
communal violence in the first week of Sept.2013 resulting into the deaths of
62, injuries to 93 and displacing 50,000 people. The affected included mostly
the people from minority community.Like many other NGOs, Insaan Foundation had
sent a letter to NHRC on January 2014 bringing to its notice the atrocities
committed against people in the aftermath of Muzaffarnagar and Shamli riots and
had requested the commission to take steps to stop human right violations of
the victims and to specifically investigate cases of mass rapes during the
riots.TCN
In western UP, Jats turning
against BJP
New Delhi: Jats of western UP,
who can influence the election outcome in at least 50 Assembly seats, had
played a key role in the BJP winning 71 Lok Sabha seats — out of a possible 80
— in 2014. But two years on, with its demand for a slice in the Central quota
still hanging fire and the continuing neglect of agriculture, the community
does not appear to be in a forgiving mood.Jat Aarakshan Mahasabha will organise
a meeting of community members in Mathura on Sunday to urge them to “boycott”
the BJP in next year’s Assembly elections, its president Pushpinder Choudhury
told The Hindu, as the party used the Army against the agitating Jats in
neighbouring Haryana and ignored their demand for inclusion in the Central OBC
list. Who will his outfit ask community members to vote for? “We haven’t
decided yet,” he says. “We are an apolitical body. Let us see.But we have
already held eight such meetings in other districts and we are receiving good
response.”Jat leaders from mainstream parties such as the BJP, the Congress and
RLD of Ajit Singh describe Choudhury as a “marginal player”, but all
acknowledge — to varying degrees — that the Jats are no longer as favourably
inclined to the BJP as they were in 2014 when they rode the crest of Hindu
consolidation after the Muzaffarnagar riots. thehindu
Rahul Gandhi eats lunch
with Muslim leaders in UP
Guraini (Jaunpur): In a bid
to woo Muslim voters, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi met Muslim leaders
at Arabia Riyazul Uloom Guraini Madarsa, in Jaunpur, on Saturday. He also had
his lunch there. During his 50-minute stay at the madrasa, Gandhi held a
closed-door meeting with prominent Muslim personalities, including Hashim
Ferozabadi, Prof Javed Khan, Siraj Mehandi, Mohammad Ashad Rashid and Mohammad
Abu Bakar.Gandhi was given a rousing welcome by the residents on his way to the
madrasa. hindustantimes
Day after Ayodhya temple
visit, Rahul Gandhi takes lunch at madrasa
‘Muslims helped me win,
will also help Akhilesh’
Lucknow:Launching his
party’s campaign for 2017 Assembly polls, Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh
Yadav said Muslims had helped him gain power after the Babri Masjid was
demolished in Ayodhya and claimed that the minority community will help his
son, CM Akhilesh Yadav, retain power in UP
.“BJP was in power when Babri Masjid was demolished in 1992. Musalman bhaiyon
ne gussa hokar Samajwadi Party ki sarkar bana di. Kam se kam 70% Musalmano ne
vote diya (Angry Muslims helped SP form the govt . At least 70% of the Muslims
voted for us),” Mulayam said. Indianexpress
Section 144 of CrPC in
force for 27 years in parts of Kota: residents
Kota: For the last 27
years, over one lakh residents of parts of Kota city have been living under the
shadow of prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC, which has prevented
them from hosting any public functions and processions, except during marriages
and funerals. Places like Bajaj Khana, Ghanta Ghar, Makbara Patan Pole and
Tipta, stretching over an area of two kilometer in Kota city where a large
section of residents belong to the minority community, had been placed under
the section which prohibits the assembly of four or more persons after outbreak
of communal violence in 1989.But residents claim that the restrictions were
continuing till day though no law and order problem has been reported and it
was a “stigma” for them. Locals allege that banks refuse to grant them loans
and officials ignore their grievances.Section 144 was imposed following the
lifting of curfew after communal riots took place in September 1989. However, then
district collector of Kota (SN Thanwi) in September 1990 issued a circular
extending the imposition of the Section “till the next order”, which never
came.“The locals in the area are forced to lead an inferior life as they have
not been to carry any cultural, social religious programmes or procession for
last 27 years,” state secretary of Centre of Indian Trade Unions RK Swami
said.PTI
8,856 ‘enemies of state’:
An entire village in Tamil Nadu lives under shadow of sedition
Last week, the Supreme
Court laid down what sedition wasn’t. But for five years now, as officials let
cases drag, almost the entire population of a village in Tamil Nadu, protesting
against the nuclear plant, has lived under the shadow of Section 124 A. Arun
Janardhanan and Amirtharaj Stephen report.On September 5 the same day as the SC
said criticism of the govt isn’t
sedition, a figure on a white board in a village on the distant southern tip of
the country was changed — to Day 1,846.The Supreme Court ruling was on just one
case, won by SP Udayakumar of Idinthakarai, but there are 140 more such cases
against people in the village. In India’s sedition map, Idinthakarai is ground
zero. In the protests against Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant that have been on in this village and adjacent
Kudankulam village since 2011, led by Udayakumar, 8,956 people have been
slapped with 21 cases of sedition —maximum such number charged in the country.indianexpress
UP: Father begs for money
to carry daughter’s body home
Lakhimpur Kheri: A
distressed father in the Mitauli area of UP chose to beg in order to arrange a
vehicle to carry his daughter’s dead body back home on Friday. According to
reports, Suatali area’s Ramesh sat beside his daughter’s body on the road,
begging money from pedestrians.Incident came to light after a photograph,
wherein Ramesh could be seen begging, went viral on social media.Despite his
pleas for a vehicle to carry his dead daughter back to their home in Suatali,
no one came to his rescue. Subsequently, Ramesh put the body on a footpath
outside the hospital and started begging from passers-by. indianexpress
Naidu asks if Zakir Naik is
boss of Indian Muslims
Hyderabad: Terming as
"totally absurd" the allegations levelled by Zakir Naik against govt,
Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu accused him of taking shelter under religion
and wondered if he is the "boss" of all Indian Muslims. "Is
Zakir Naik the boss of all Indian Muslims? What nonsense he is talking. He has
to answer the criticism about himself. What is that Muslims have got to do with
him," the I&B Minister said here.PTI
Zakir Naik NGO deal: JD (U)
demands transparency
New Delhi:JDU has said
called for transparency on NGO run by the IRF of Zakir Naik and urged all
political parties to stay away from such people."There must be
transparency if a party receives fund by any organisation. There must be
transparency for all parties...not for any one party. There must be a proper
scrutiny of the funds given to like-minded people for a special reason,"
JD (U) leader Ali Anwar said. Resonating similar sentiments, another JD (U)
leader KC Tyagi said, "The political parties should keep themselves away
from people like Zakir Naik and his organisation. If the Congress returns the
amount, then this matter should be considered as closed." Newkerala
Zakir donation to Rajiv
Gandhi Foundation was bribe: BJP
Zakir Naik donation row:
MHA finds no fault, Congress smells conspiracy to 'slander' party
Modi govt conspiring to
"slander, malign'' party: Cong on Naik NGO's donation to RGF
Action against me will mean
action against 20 crore Muslims: Zakir Naik 's open letter
'Dr Terror, Why Now?' Zakir
Naik Asks Govt
What have I done to earn
'Dr Terror' tag, asks controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik
Congress leader K Rahman
Khan clarifies allegations of being a Zakir Naik supporter
US court upholds divorce by
'khula'
Mumbai: A US family law
court has upheld divorce by 'khula' granted by a qazi in Mumbai to a Muslim
woman and re-opened her case for divorce against her second husband there. The
judge of the circuit court of Cook County, Chicago, allowed her plea to
reconsider his earlier order dismissing her petition for a divorce saying he
"had entered an error in the appreciation of the law in India". Judge
John Carr relied on the expert opinion of Mumbai-based advocate Neelofar Akhtar
to conclude that the woman's first marriage was validly dissolved. "The
verdict is significant. Khula is not well known among Muslim women as a means
to get out of a troubled marriage," Akhtar told TOI. timesofindia
Seminar on ‘Triple Talaq
and its solution in Muslim Personal Law’
Zakia, Noorjehan founders
of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan:Duo lead movement for reforms in Muslim
personal laws: HT report
Bombay HC grants bail to
man accused of killing wife
Aurangabad: Aurangabad
bench of the Bombay high court has granted bail to a 50-year-old man who, in
February this year, was arrested by the Jinsi police on the charges of
murdering his 57-year-old wife.The accused approached the high court after
after the lower court rejected the bail application moved by the accused,
following which the bench headed by Justice AM Badar on Friday granted him
bail.Justice Badar ruled that the case is based on circumstantial evidence. The
prosecution has failed to explain as to how the intravenous mark existed on her
body after claiming that she was well at the time of the incident.The deceased
woman has been identified as Kazi Shamim Begum (57) and was a senior teacher in
an Urdu school in the city while her accused husband has been identified as
Mohammad Azimuddin. timesofindia
BJP leader’s son beats
Muslim vegetable vendor
Ahmedabad: A Muslim
vegetable vendor has been brutally hacked to death by BJP leader’s son and his
friends purportedly beating up two youths in Chhattisgarh’s Kanker district has
gone viral on social media. The video, said to be shot on a mobile by a
passer-by shows a group of youths, including the son of the ruling party leader
Manturam Pawar, brutally kicking and thrashing two men.Victims were riding a
motorbike and allegedly refused to allow the SUV in which the youths were
travelling to overtake. Incident allegedly took place on Kherkhetta dam road in
the Pakhanjore area of the district. However police have so far not received
any complaint. siasat
Left alliance sweeps JNU
polls, ABVP loses ‘referendum’
New Delhi: ‘Left Unity’
alliance swept JNU Students’ Union polls, winning all 4 central panel seats
with comfortable margins. It was the first poll held to the students’ union
after its leaders were arrested on Feb.9. Mohit Pandey of AIS was elected
president, while Amal PP and Satarupa Chakraborty of the SFI were elected
vice-president and secretary respectively. Tabrez Hasan, also of AISA, was
elected joint secretary.After the results, the Left panel carried out a mock
funeral procession of the ABVP, which had portrayed the elections as a
referendum on the Feb.9 event. indianexpress
WORLD
Hajj 2016: Pilgrims gather
at Mount Arafat for key rite
Nearly 2 million Muslims
have gathered in the vast Saudi plain of Mount Arafat for the most important ritual
of the Hajj, an annual pilgrimage that re-enacts the actions of the Prophet
Muhammad from more than 1,400 years ago.Worshippers from more than 150
countries converged at the 70-metre hill at sunrise on Sunday, some 15km from
Mecca, for "wukuf," a high point of the Hajj which all pilgrims must
attend in the mid-afternoon.Wearing 2 white, unstitched pieces of cloth for men
known as the "ihram", and any loose-fitting clothing for women, the
pilgrims climbed steps built into the hill where the Prophet Muhammad gave his
final sermon.In what looked like an unbroken sea of white the pilgrims marched
to the top, reciting prayers and supplications.Al Jazeera's Jamal ElShayyal,
reporting from Mecca, said there was an extremely somber mood at the plain with
many spending their time in prayer and introspection.At sunset on Sunday, the
pilgrims will head to Muzdalifah, about 9km away. There, they will spend the
night under the open sky until just before sunrise and begin collecting pebbles
for the next day's rites.On Monday, as Muslims around the world celebrate Eid
al-Adha, pilgrims performing the Hajj will cast pebbles at a pillar on the
Jamaraat Bridge in Mina, in a symbolic renunciation of the devil.As part of its
intensified crowd control measures, nearly a thousand new surveillance cameras
have been installed at Mecca's Grand Mosque, and the Jamarat stoning will be
more tightly controlled than in previous years.Also for the first time,
pilgrims will be given electronic bracelets storing personal and medical
information that will help authorities provide care and identify people.This
year, though, Iranian pilgrims are notably absent after Tehran and Riyadh
failed to reach a deal on arrangements for Iranian citizens.In a separate
development, kingdom said it was launching a 24-hour Farsi-language channel
that would broadcast this year's Hajj. aljazeera
Nearly 2 mn pilgrims mark
Day of Arafat as part of Haj
Muslim Ummah passing
through a difficult time:Imam-e-Kaaba
After 35 years Grand Mufti
Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin retires from
delivering Haj sermon
Makkah: After 35 years of
delivering sermons and leading prayers in Namirah Mosque in Saudi Arabia, Grand
Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Abdullah Al-Asheikh stepped down citing health
reasons. Al-Asheikh used to deliver the sermon and lead the prayers at Namirah
Mosque, which is also known as the-one-day-mosque, on the day of the grand
stand in Arafat -- a granite hill also known as the Mount of Mercy.Mufti has
been doing this since 1981 but has decided to step down this year because his
health was no longer permitting him to carry on, the Saudi Gazette
reported.Quoting reliable sources, it said the Mufti might probably be replaced
by Sheikh Salih bin Humaid, member of the Senior Scholars' Commission and Ifta
Council and imam of the Grand Mosque.IANS
Hopes fade for peaceful Eid
in Syria as over 100 killed
Ruinous violence has raged
in several parts of Syria, shortly after the US and Russia sealed an ambitious
agreement aimed at breathing life back into a stuttering peace process.More
than 100 people were reported killed in a series of bombing raids on rebel-held
parts of Aleppo province in the north of the country, and in Idlib in the
north-west.The worst strikes were in Idlib city, the capital of the province of
the same name, where they hit a market, killing 55 civilians."A Russian
fighter jet targeted a residential area and a market in Idlib," said Al
Jazeera's Adham Abu al-Husam, reporting from the city as civil defence forces,
firefighters and paramedics worked to pull survivors from the rubble. "The
marketplace was full of civilians shopping for the upcoming Eid holiday."In
Aleppo, at least 46 civilians, including nine children, were killed in a
bombardment of opposition-held areas, an Al Jazeera correspondent in the city
said.The raids on Idlib and Aleppo were believed to have been carried out by
Syrian army fighter jets, or those of its main ally Russia.The accord included
a truce to start across Syria at sunset Monday, the first day of the Muslim Eid
al-Adha festival. The agreement also paved the way for joint US-Russian raids
against armed groups in Syria, including the IS group. aljazeera
Regime airstrikes kill 24
in Aleppo
Russian colonel: ‘Syrian
Army has known no military victories’
In a scathing analytical
piece published yesterday, a Russian military expert has written that he
believes that the Syrian regime lacks the morale and expertise to defeat the
armed opposition to President Bashar Al-Assad’s rule.Writing for the popular
Russian language media outlet, Gazeta.ru, retired Colonel Mikhail Khodarenok
blasted the Syrian armed forces for shirking their combat duties in order to
extort and extract “bribes at checkpoints”.“The actual fighting against
opposition groups is mostly done by Syrian militias, the Lebanese Hezbollah
Shia units [and] Iranian and Iraqi volunteers”, Khodarenok said, adding that
the Assad regime still does not control “a majority of [Syrian] towns and
villages”. middleeastmonitor
Turkish air strikes kill 20
IS fighters in Syria: CNN Turk
Turkish air strikes killed
20 Islamic State militants in northern Syria on Saturday, broadcaster CNN Turk
cited Turkish military as saying on Sunday.The strikes targeted three
buildings, one vehicle and one motorbike around the Syrian town of Tel el-Hawa,
CNN Turk said.Separately, head of the military said in message to mark a public
holiday that "Operation Euphrates Shield", a Turkish incursion into
Syria against IS and Kurdish militia fighters launched two and half weeks ago,
would "continue decisively", according to NTV. reuters
Arab League welcomes Syria
truce deal
Arab League
Secretary-General Ahmed Abul-Gheit on Saturday welcomed a U.S.-Russian
announcement of a truce deal in war-torn Syria.World Bulletin
Turkey satisfied with
US-Russia truce deal on Syria
Turkish Foreign Minister
Mevlut Cavusoglu said Saturday that he was content with the recent deal between
the U.S. and Russia on Syria. World Bulletin
Iran, Hezbollah announce
support for Syria ceasefire
Iran and Lebanon-based Hezbollah
over weekend welcomed the Russia and US-brokered ceasefire in Syria due to take
effect Monday.“Iran welcomes any establishment of a ceasefire in Syria and
facilitating of access of all people of this country to humanitarian aid,” said
foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi on Sunday, adding that a monitoring
system was needed to stop it being exploited by “terrorists.” timesofisrael
Palestinian girl killed,
‘run over by Jewish settler’
A Palestinian girl was
killed Saturday when a Jewish settler ran her over with his vehicle in the
southern occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.“A
Palestinian was killed after she was run over by a Jewish settler’s car near
al-Khader village located near Bethlehem city in northern West Bank,” the
Palestinian Ministry of Health said in a statement. Eyewitnesses said the
driver fled the scene. The ministry identified the dead Palestinian girl as
6-year-old Lama Musa. Later in the evening, Israeli police issued a statement
saying he had turned himself in and that he claimed he did not run the girl
over on purpose.Tensions have been especially high since an uptick in
Israeli-Palestinian violence began last October. middleeastmonitor
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