Hasina Wajed is determined to push Bangladesh into civil war. The hasty manner in which Jamaat-e Islami leader Abdul Qauder Molla was executed by hanging within hours of the Supreme Court rejecting his appeal to review his death sentence shows the vindictiveness of the current prime minister. Violent protests erupted in many cities across the country. Bangladesh is heading for more turmoil as polarization deepens.
Without mincing words, the Saudi Grand Mufti, Sheikh Abdulaziz al-Sheikh has condemned suicide bombings as haraam. He has said that anyone who blows himself up with explosives is hastening his departure to hell. This is a very strong statement coming from the highest religious authority in the kingdom that specializes in producing suicide bombers, of course against people they consider to be their enemy.
Western hypocrisy was on full display in South Africa today as scores of leaders from around the world gathered to pay respects to Nelson Mandela, the father of South Africa's liberation struggle who died on December 5. He was 95. The same western rulers whose countries had aided and abetted the apartheid regime that had tormented Mandela and his fellow strugglers for decades were now singing his praises.
There appears no limit to the hatred of Bangaldeshi Prime Minister Hasina Wajed. She insists on seeking revenge from her political opponents that had opposed her father's quest to break Pakistan with Indian military help to create Bangladesh. Her government has announced it will hang Abdul Qauder Molla, a leader of the Jamaat-e Islami after midnight today. Observers believe it will lead to more chaos in the country.
Droning innocents to death in Pakistan is official US policy. This is implemented by US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel on behalf of Barack Obama who has escalated drone strikes alarmingly since becoming president. Hagel was in Islamabad today to insist the drone attacks would continue while the people of Pakistan are adamantly opposed to them. There have been protests for several weeks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to get such attacks stopped.
The Saudis have intensified their subversion of any chances of a negotiated settlement in Syria. The purchase of nearly 16,000 anti-tank missiles from the US at a price of $1.1 billion in meant for the Saudi-sponsored mercenaries in Syria. Will the latest move succeed or merely add to the misery of the people.
Nelson Mandela has exposed the hypocrisy of Western rulers that have made a beeline to join his funeral in South Africa. Kings, presidents, prime ministers and others will be there to proclaim Mandela’s greatness while they indulged and continue to indulge in the worst kinds of crimes against humanity imaginable.
Nelson Mandela, the first popularly elected president of post-apartheid South Africa died today at home in Johannesburg. He was 95. Surrounded by family, he breathed his last at around 8:50 pm local time. This was announced by a sombre Jacob Zuma, the current president of South Africa, on TV. He said a “light had gone out in the world.” Mandela would be given a state funeral. All flags were ordered to fly at half-mast.
Most Muslims do not subscribe to the divisive ideology of hate and killings among different schools of thought in Islam. This, however, needs serious effort to bring the majority together and to isolate the hate-propagating minority. In recent weeks, some tentative steps have been taken that are likely to yield positive results. Unity and harmony in the Ummah are desperately needed to overcome the myriad problems confronting Muslims.
he Americans find themselves at their wits end with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Even as lame duck president, he has put his spanner in the Bilateral Security Agreement that the Americans desperately want signed immediately. They have threatened to withdraw all their forces and leave Afghanistan to its fate unless it is signed immediately but Karzai remains unfazed. He seems to dare them to walk away.
Failure of the foreign conspiracy to topple the government of Bashar al-Asad has resulted in fighting spilling over into Lebanon. In addition to fightnig, such as in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, assassination of Hizbullah commanders and fighters has also intensified. Hassan al-Laqqis, a prominent Hizbullah commander was the latest victim, assassinated last night as he returned home. Two gunmen shot him at close range.
Within a few days of Iran signing the interim deal with the sextet (US, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany), there have been quick moves by Tehran to approach its Persian Gulf neighbors. These regimes have also realized that change is coming and it would be in their interest to mend fences with Tehran. The speed with which the moves are occurring is quite astonishing.
Shaykh el-Qaradawi continues to grab headlines. His latest announcement about resigning from the advisory Committee of Ulama at Al-Azhar has been welcomed by most sincere Muslims. He resigned because he accused Al-Azhar and its shaykh of failing to condemn the military coup and its massacres of the Egyptian people. Muslims, however, have questioned el-Qaradawi's sectarian outbursts and his acceptance of patronage of the Qatari amir.
The Saudi regime has become extremely jittery and, therefore, even more oppressive than before. Omar al-Saeed, a member of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA) was sentenced to 300 lashes and four years in jail for merely demanding a consitutional monarchy in the country. His trial was held in secret and he had no access to a defence lawyer.
Egyptians are beginning to realize that the military and the regime it backs are not there to serve the interests of the people. Hitherto, only supporters of the Ikhwan al-Muslimoon (Muslim Brotherhood) were concerned; now this has spread to the wider society. Students have also joined in large numbers.
Hamid Karzai is furious at the Americans. They have killed another innocent child and injured two women in a bombing raid in Afghanistan. Karzai has been demanding a halt to such attacks and total ban on night raids in people's homes before he signs the Bilateral Security Agreement that would allow American troops to stay in Afghanistan beyond the 2014 deadline.
Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaf (PTI), the party headed by cricket-star-turned politician Imran Khan, has named CIA director John Brennen and the CIA station chief in Islamabad, Craig Osth as the principal accused in the murder of six people in a drone strike on a madrassa in Tall, Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa district. PTI Information Secretary Dr Shireen Mazari made the announcement at a press conference in Islamabad on Monday.
While the people of Syria continue to suffer as a consequence of the foreign-inspired war in the country, the so-called poliitical opposition led by the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) as well as the mercenary rebel and takfiri forces refuse to participate in dialogue scheduled for Geneva on January 22, 2014 to resolve the crisis. They are, however, losing the battle inside Syria, both politically and militarily.
Details of the Iran-six powers interim nuclear deal have now been released. For limited sanctions relief (though the major sanctions would remain in place), Iran has agreed to cap its nuclear program at its present level. It has also agreed to provide access to IAEA inspectors. This allows a six-month time period for the parties to work on a comprehensive agreement. US allies Saudi Arabia and Israel are most upset over the deal.
Kashmir dispute is the longest unresolved issue facing the world. The rights of the Kashmiri people to self-determination have been denied since the problem arose in October 1947. Unfortunately, there is little information about the dispute outside a core of Kashmiri activists and the people of Pakistan. The Toronto seminar was meant to break this situation by bringing together a vast array of speakers to highlight the issue.
