Home
China's campaign to redesign 'Arabic-style mosques' threatens Muslim identity
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 299
BEIJING - A recent attempt by authorities in China to remove "Arabic-style" dome and redesign the minarets in the southwest of the country.
Controversy surrounding the Najiaying Mosque was met with confrontation in Nagu - a small town in the mountains of southwestern China - following plans to revamp the Islamic designs.
The incident highlights the Chinese Communist Party's campaign to exert control over religion through the targeting of lesser-known groups like the Hui ethnic minority, a report by The New York Times said on Thursday.
While the Hui have historically assimilated well with the majority Han population, the party has closed, demolished, or redesigned mosques in Hui enclaves, considering Arabic architectural features as "unwanted" foreign influence.
The mosques in Nagu and the nearby town of Shadian hold cultural significance and are among the last major ones with traditional Arabic-style architecture in China.
The government's plans to remove the domes and reshape the minarets in a more "Chinese" style sparked resistance from the locals in Nagu.
They see the proposed changes as an infringement on their freedom and an attempt to erase their cultural identity.
"These mosques symbolize that the Chinese government accepted that they were wrong during the Cultural Revolution," Ruslan Yusupov, a scholar of China and Islam at Harvard University, told NYT.
The Shadian mosque in particular, he said, serves as a reminder "both about violence but also about state-sponsored recovery".
China's relationship with Islam has fluctuated between conflict and coexistence. Yunnan Province, where Nagu and Shadian are located, is ethnically diverse, and the Hui people have lived there for centuries.
However, the government has increasingly imposed restrictions on Islam, especially after a 2014 attack attributed to Uighur separatists.
Officials have promoted the Sinicization campaign to remove Arabic features, which has caused concerns among Hui residents that their way of life and religious practices are under threat.
"The first step is exterior renovations," a local woman in her 30s told NYT. "The second step will be telling you to erase the Arabic script that we have on every home."
Li Heng, an official from the local bureau of ethnic and religious affairs, "the Quran came from Saudi Arabia, but after arriving in China, it must adapt".
“When our imams give sermons, they must integrate the core socialist values the government is promoting,” he said. "Patriotism is the highest form of religious belief."
Climate of fear
Despite the recent clashes at the Najiaying Mosque and the residents' resistance, the authorities remain determined to proceed with the remodelling plans.
Islamophobic comments on Chinese social media platforms have surged and the authorities have issued notices denouncing the protest and promising a severe crackdown.
The tension and security measures created a climate of fear and surveillance, with plainclothes police officers monitoring and restricting access to the mosque.
The Hui residents of Nagu express concerns that compromising on the mosque's architecture could lead to further encroachments on their freedoms and cultural identity.
They fear that their rights to practice and pass on their religion to future generations may be undermined.
The clash in Nagu serves as a stark example of the challenges faced by religious minorities in China and the potential consequences of the government's campaign to control and reshape religious practices.
Imran Khan accuses Pakistan's military of seeking to destroy his party
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 316
ISLAMABAD - Former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan has accused the military and its intelligence branch, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), of openly attempting to crush his political party and throw him in jail to stop him from winning the upcoming elections.
Speaking in an interview on Saturday evening at his heavily fortified home in Lahore, Khan cited the government and military's push to arrest his supporters, looking to "destroy" his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party before a vote that must be held by mid-October.
"It is completely the establishment," the former cricket hero said when asked who was behind the crackdown. "Establishment obviously means the military establishment, because they are really now openly - I mean, it's not even hidden now - they're just out in the open."
Pakistan's authorities have announced that they want to hold accountable all the figures and politicians who were complicit in the attacks on military buildings following Khan's brief time in detention in May over corruption charges that led to deadly clashes.
The authorities launched the process of prosecuting dozens of figures, including senior members of Khan's PTI party, suspected of involvement in the protests in military court - usually reserved for service members or those categorized as enemies of the state.
The former prime minister, who is now way ahead of his rivals in popularity polls, denied the charges raised against his supporters and senior PTI members over the attacks.
He said the attacks were a "false flag operation" launched by the military and meant to target him. He accused the government of using the incident as a pretext to carry out an "unprecedented crackdown" on his supporters.
Khan, who had previously hinted that the military was behind the crackdown on his party, said in his latest interview that the military was to blame.
He bluntly accused Pakistan's powerful Army Chief Asim Munir of being "fixated" on sidelining him, saying he had no doubts that eventually he would be tried in a military court and thrown into prison by him.
"I think that maybe he has a grudge because I asked him to resign" as ISI chief in 2019, Khan said.
Munir was later promoted to the post of Army Chief by Khan's successor Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
"That's the only way they are going to get me into prison," Khan said. "I have absolutely no doubt that the military courts are meant for me," said Khan, who is out on bail.
Pakistan's military courts reportedly show disregard for due process and lack transparency, using coerced confessions to execute offenders after unfair trials.
Last April, Khan was ousted from office in a parliamentary vote. He claims his ouster was orchestrated by Pakistan's top generals. The year-long standoff between the popular cricketer-turned-politician and the country's powerful generals came to a head when military buildings and property were ransacked last month, allegedly by Khan's supporters.
He survived an assassination attempt last year when he was shot in the leg during a political rally.
Following his exit from power, Khan accused an unnamed "foreign power" -- in a clear reference to the United States -- of funding a "conspiracy" to topple his democratically elected government.
The ex-premier said the "foreign power" sent millions of dollars to opposition parties to launch a no-confidence vote against him in the parliament.
India train crash kills over 280, injures 900
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 315
By RAFIQ MAQBOOL, ASHOK SHARMA and KRUTIKA PATHI
BALASORE, India — Rescuers found no more survivors in the overturned and mangled wreckage of two passenger trains that derailed in eastern India, killing more than 280 people and injuring hundreds in one of the country’s deadliest rail crashes in decades, officials said Saturday.
Chaotic scenes erupted on Friday night as rescuers climbed atop the wrecked trains to break open doors and windows using cutting torches.
The death toll rose steadily throughout the night. Scores of bodies, covered by white sheets, lay on the ground near the tracks while locals and rescuers raced to free the hundreds of people trapped in the rail cars under the twisted metal and broken glass. Army soldiers and air force helicopters joined the effort in Odisha state.
An Associated Press photographer saw bodies still entangled in a badly mangled coach, as rescuers struggled to retrieve them working under the oppressive heat with temperatures reaching up to 35 degree Celsius (96 degrees Fahrenheit).
“By 10 p.m. (on Friday) we were able to rescue the survivors. After that it was about picking up dead bodies,” Sudhanshu Sarangi, director of Odisha state’s fire and emergency department, told The Associated Press. “This is very, very tragic. I have never seen anything like this in my career.”
At least 280 bodies were recovered overnight and into Saturday morning, he said. About 900 people were injured and the cause was under investigation.
The accident occurred at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is focussing on the modernization of the British colonial-era railroad network in India, which has become the world’s most populous country with 1.42 billion. Despite government efforts to improve rail safety, several hundred accidents occur every year on India’s railways, the largest train network under one management in the world.
Modi flew to the crash site and spent half an hour examining the relief effort and talking to rescue officials. He was seen giving instructions on the phone to officials in New Delhi.
He later visited a hospital where he walked around inquiring from doctors about the treatment being given to the injured, and spoke to some of them, moving from bed to bed in a ward.
Modi told reporters that it was a sad moment and he was feeling the pain of those who have suffered in the accident. He said the government would do its utmost to help them and strictly punish those found responsible.
Modi on Saturday was supposed to inaugurate a high-speed train connecting Goa and Mumbai that is equipped with a collision avoidance system. The event was canceled after Friday’s accident. The trains that derailed did not have that system.
Amitabh Sharma, a Railroad Ministry spokesperson, said the rescue work was near completion. Rail authorities will start removing the wreckage to repair the track and resume train operations, he said.
D.B. Shinde, a district administrator, said only five to six bodies remained trapped under a damaged coach and were difficult to recover.
“We have deployed a heavy crane. Once we take them out, the rescue work will be over,” Shinde said.
About 200 of the severely injured people were transferred to specialty hospitals in other cities in Odisha, said P.K. Jena, the state’s top administrative official. Another 200 were discharged after receiving medical care and the rest were being treated in local hospitals, he added. Scores of people also showed up to donate blood.
“The challenge now is identifying the bodies. Wherever the relatives are able to provide evidence, the bodies are handed over after autopsies. If not identified, maybe we have to go for a DNA test and other protocols,” he said.
Ten to 12 coaches of one train derailed, and debris from some of the mangled coaches fell onto a nearby track, according to Sharma. The debris was hit by another passenger train coming from the opposite direction, causing up to three coaches of the second train to also derail, he added.
A third train carrying freight was also involved, the Press Trust of India reported, but there was no immediate confirmation of that from railroad authorities. PTI said some of the derailed passenger coaches hit cars from the freight train.
The rescue operation was slowed because two train cars were pressed together by the impact of the accident, Jena said.
Officials said 1,200 rescuers worked with 115 ambulances, 50 buses and 45 mobile health units through the night. Saturday was declared as a day of mourning in Odisha.
Villagers said they rushed to the site to evacuate people after hearing a loud sound created by the train coaches going off the tracks.
“The local people really went out on a limb to help us. They not only helped in pulling out people, but retrieved our luggage and got us water,” PTI cited Rupam Banerjee, a survivor, as saying.
Passenger Vandana Kaleda said that people were falling on each other as her coach shook violently and veered off the tracks.
“As I stepped out of the washroom, suddenly the train tilted. I lost my balance. ... Everything went topsy turvy. People started falling on each other and I was shocked and could not understand what happened. My mind stopped working,” she said.
Another survivor who did not give his name said he was sleeping when the impact woke him up. He said he saw other passengers with broken limbs and disfigured faces.
The collision involved two trains, the Coromandel Express traveling from Howrah in West Bengal state to Chennai in Tamil Nadu state and the Howrah Superfast Express traveling from Bengaluru in Karnataka to Howrah, officials said. It was not immediately clear which derailed first.
Ashwini Vaishnaw, India’s railway minister, said a high-level probe would be carried out. The political opposition criticized the government and called for Vaishnaw to resign.
In August 1995, two trains collided near New Delhi, killing 358 people in one of the worst train accidents in India.
In 2016, a passenger train slid off the tracks between the cities of Indore and Patna, killing 146 people.
Most train accidents are blamed on human error or outdated signaling equipment.
More than 12 million people ride 14,000 trains across India every day, traveling on 64,000 kilometers (40,000 miles) of track.
Former Pakistani PM Imran Khan arrested by paramilitary troops
- Details
- Written by northsouth
- Category: Asia
- Hits: 321
ISLAMABAD - Former Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan was arrested by paramilitary troops in a major escalation of a political crisis.
The arrest intensified a showdown between the government and Mr. Khan, a populist former cricket star who was staging a comeback after he was ousted from office last year.
His arrest could raise the prospect of mass unrest.
Mr. Khan was at a court hearing in Islamabad when he was arrested by paramilitary troops, a day after the Pakistani military issued a strong statement against the former leader accusing him of making false accusations against a senior intelligence official.
Mr. Khan, who was removed from office in a parliamentary no-confidence vote in April last year, is facing dozens of court cases on charges that include terrorism and corruption.
The arrest instantly intensified a showdown between the government and Mr. Khan, a populist former cricket star, who has staged a political comeback in the months since his removal from office. His party has drawn tens of thousands to political rallies across the country, at which Mr. Khan and others have called for fresh elections and accused Pakistan’s powerful military establishment of orchestrating his ouster.
At the same time, the state has brought dozens of court cases against Mr. Khan. He and his supporters have characterized the accusations as a misuse of the justice system by the government of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and by the military to sideline him from politics. Pakistani political and military leaders have repeatedly denied those claims.
The political tensions surrounding Mr. Khan came to a head in November, when the former prime minister was wounded during a political rally after an unidentified man opened fire on his convoy, in what aides have called an assassination attempt. Since then, Mr. Khan has been mostly ensconced at his residence in Lahore, Pakistan’s second-largest city, and has refused to appear in court in Islamabad, the capital.
Fawad Chaudhry, a top aide to Mr. Khan, said that the threat to Mr. Khan’s life made court appearances much riskier, adding: “It is not humanly possible to make court appearances in such a vast number of cases.”
The drama surrounding Mr. Khan seems only to have buoyed his popularity, analysts say, underscoring his unique ability to outmanoeuver Pakistan’s typical playbook for sidelining political leaders who have fallen out of favour with the country’s powerful military.
Over the summer, his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or P.T.I., won sweeping victories in local elections in Punjab — a province that has often served as a bellwether for national politics — and in the port city of Karachi.
Those political victories were also seen as a response to worsening economic conditions that the new government has struggled to address, and as a repudiation of the military establishment, which has long wielded a heavy hand in Pakistani politics.
Main News
latest news
- Julian Assange wins bid to bring appeal against extradition
- ICC seeking arrest warrant against Israel PM Netanyahu over alleged Gaza war crimes
- Israeli raids and Fatah failures boost support for Hamas in West Bank
- Number of migrants crossing Channel up to 10,000 mark so far this year
- Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi dies in helicopter crash
- Sahel insurgents making inroads into Ghana’s northern regions
- Isabel dos Santos, once Africa’s richest woman, found Dubai safe base
- UK still dodging the restoration of funds to UNRWA
- Helicopter carrying Iran's President Raisi crashes in mountains
- The French international development disconnection
- Half Sub-Saharan Africans make global internally displaced people in 2023
- Rights expert condemns death of Palestinian doctor in Israeli custody
- Global economic growth improves but ‘downsides’ lurk
- Foreign doctors trapped by Israeli Assault on Gaza
- Morocco’s automotive industry flourishing, embracing electric vehicle era
- Gaza war: UN defends casualty tally amid Israeli anger
- Thousands join pro-Palestinian march in London
- Six students arrested among 19 pro-Palestinian protesters
- Putin ally says EU is hypocritical for ban on Russian media
- Vietnam forfeits billions in foreign aid amid anti-graft freeze, document shows
- Jeff Bezos by the numbers
- Senegal PM blasts French military presence, raises possibility of closing bases
- Why Google’s new AI will change the way we treat illness and disease
- Heatwave grips India’s north as mercury in Delhi touches 47C
- Israeli abuse of jailed Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti ‘amounts to torture’
Europe
Julian Assange wins bid to bring appeal against extradition
Number of migrants crossing Channel up to 10,000 mark so far this year
UK still dodging the restoration of funds to UNRWA
The French international development disconnection
Thousands join pro-Palestinian march in London
Putin ally says EU is hypocritical for ban on Russian media
Senegal PM blasts French military presence, raises possibility of closing bases
Harm caused by alcohol costs $40bn a year in England
Wealth of Rishi Sunak and wife Akshata Murty leaps to £651m
Spain and UK hail new 'breakthroughs' but fall short on Gibraltar deal
EU compels Microsoft to give information under the Digital Services Act
Recognition of state of Palestine 'lays bare failed EU diplomacy' in Middle East
Austria to resume aid to UNWRA but other nations hold out
Coca-Cola and Pepsi rival Palestine Drinks hits multimillion sales
Spain to recognise Palestinian state together with other countries
Spain to recognise Palestinian state together with other countries
Ed Sheehan the richest young musician in the UK
Sir Paul McCartney becomes first UK billionaire musician
Russia expels UK defence attache in tit-for-tat diplomatic row
Slovakia’s PM is expected to survive assassination attempt, deputy says
EU Projects Higher Growth in Eurozone
Germany: British-Palestinian Doctor Denied Schengen Entry
facial recognition cameras trial catches 100 alleged offenders
Zelensky cancels all foreign trips as Ukraine pulls back troops
Slovakia PM shooting - in life-threatening condition
Asia
Vietnam forfeits billions in foreign aid amid anti-graft freeze, document shows
Heatwave grips India’s north as mercury in Delhi touches 47C
Out on bail, firebrand Indian politician poses fresh challenge for Modi
China LNG imports could hit record levels in 2024
Putin heads to China with military ties front and center
Hundreds killed in flash floods in northern Afghanistan
Indian court grants temporary bail to opposition leader Kejriwal to campaign in elections
China's third aircraft carrier completes first sea trial
Asia is heating up faster than the global average
Scientist who gave world the Covid sequence is locked out of his lab by Chinese
Philippines accuses China of damaging its vessel in disputed South China Sea shoal
Indian Authorities Stop Australian Journalist from Covering Elections
China's Xi to visit France, Serbia and Hungary, aims to boost EU ties
Five killed as tornado strikes Guangzhou in southern China
China skips red-carpet welcome for Blinken
India's poll panel seeks responses to complaints against Modi, Rahul Gandhi
Amid China tensions, India delivers supersonic cruise missiles to Philippines
Asia is most climate disaster-impacted region, UN
India's Modi accused of anti-Muslim campaign hate speech
Nature-based solutions for flood management in Asia and the Pacific
Gunmen kill 7 customs officials in western Pakistan in two attacks
In Modi’s India, opponents and journalists squeezed ahead of election
Vietnamese billionaire sentenced to death for $44 billion fraud
People blown from apartments as typhoon-like winds ravage southern China
North Korea says it tested a new hypersonic intermediate-range missile
Africa
Sahel insurgents making inroads into Ghana’s northern regions
Isabel dos Santos, once Africa’s richest woman, found Dubai safe base
Half Sub-Saharan Africans make global internally displaced people in 2023
What did ICJ ruling mean in South Africa's genocide case against Israel?
South Sudan: 7 million may face high levels of food insecurity
Starlink internet shutdown in Sudan will punish millions, Elon Musk warned
Outdated laws stall progress on women’s rights in 20 countries across Africa – study
EU to extend Mozambique military mission despite setbacks
How to connect Africa’s universities to its tech ecosystems
Fighting in Eastern DR Congo has reached new heights
Africa CEO Forum in Kigali 16-17 May
First UN civil society forum held in Africa heralds ‘inclusive’ Summit of the Future
Unprecedented flooding displaces hundreds of thousands across East Africa
EU opens data pact talks with Kenya, in first for Africa
Niger joins Africa’s oil producer club
Mozambique’s ruling party picked Daniel Chapo as candidate for president
Mali: Armed Groups, Ethnic Militias Commit Atrocities
Chad to hold presidential election Monday
UN agencies warn of imminent starvation risk in Sudan’s Darfur region
Attacks on civilians in DR Congo
Niger: Russian military deployed at airbase housing American troops
The world needs Africa’s critical minerals
Kenya’s president is under pressure over flood response
East and Southern Africa: Journalists targeted amid ongoing crackdown on media
US losing influential edge to China in Africa, poll
Americas
Six students arrested among 19 pro-Palestinian protesters
Jeff Bezos by the numbers
US military says Gaza Strip pier project is completed while war rages on
Magician David Copperfield accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women
Biden sharply hikes US tariffs on an array of Chinese imports
US is still falling behind on electronic warfare, special operators warn
Wildfires rage in British Columbia
Blinken delivers strongest public criticism of Israel’s conduct of war in Gaza
UN expert raises alarm over unfair treatment of pro-Palestinian student protesters in US
Campus protesters are being silenced – where are the ‘free speech’ defenders now?
Israel may have broken International Law in Gaza, State Dept. Says
Another climate record: Extreme heat, hurricanes, droughts ravage Latin America and Caribbean
US paused bomb shipment to Israel over concerns of Rafah assault
Mexico is heading towards its most violent election ever
UNDP's Achim Steiner on why the G20 should care much more about debt
Democratic lawmakers tell Biden evidence shows Israel is restricting Gaza aid
Fresh chaos, arrests on US college campuses as police flatten camp at UCLA
Biden cancels $6.1 billion in debt for 317,000 students
Over 2,000 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested across US campuses
2024 US-Africa Business Summit in Dallas 6-9 May
Chinese-owned fintech sees valuation rise
Most Americans see TikTok as a Chinese influence tool, Reuters/Ipsos poll
Police arrest dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia University
Pro-Palestinian supporters and counter-protesters clash on UCLA campus over Gaza
Alarming rise in enforced disappearances ahead of Venezuela poll
Australia & Pacific
Hundreds more French police start deploying to secure New Caledonia
France declares state of emergency in New Caledonia as protests rage
Australia’s 2024 National Defence Strategy
Sydney rocked by second mass stabbing as knifeman attacks bishop
Three dead, 1,000 homes destroyed in Papua New Guinea quake
Australia and UK sign defense and security treaty
Australia tightens student visa rules as migration hits record high
Global food crisis and the effects of climate change need urgent action, IFAD
Indonesia, Australia to sign defence pact within months
Australia to ban doxxing after pro-Palestinians publish information about hundreds of Jews
Australia launches inquiry into why Cabinet documents relating to Iraq war remain secret
Australia says AI will help track Chinese submarines under new Aukus plan
China warns Australia to act prudently in naval operations in South China Sea
Christopher Luxon sworn in as new prime minister of New Zealand
Australian Intelligence Report Identifies China as Major Backer of Cyber Crime
Thousands in Australia join pro-Palestinian march over Gaza
Australia rejects Indigenous referendum in setback for reconciliation
Qatar Airways CEO says Australian decision to block flights ‘very unfair’
Moroccan Othmane El Goumri wins Sydney marathon
More than half of Australians oppose Indigenous panel in constitution, poll
Three US Marines die in 'tragic' Australia helicopter crash
Australian bus carrying wedding guests rolls over killing 10 and injuring 25
Guam, where America’s next war may begin
Women most victims of islamophobia in Australia
Time to step up investments in rural communities in the Pacific islands
MENA
ICC seeking arrest warrant against Israel PM Netanyahu over alleged Gaza war crimes
Israeli raids and Fatah failures boost support for Hamas in West Bank
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi dies in helicopter crash
Helicopter carrying Iran's President Raisi crashes in mountains
Rights expert condemns death of Palestinian doctor in Israeli custody
Foreign doctors trapped by Israeli Assault on Gaza
Morocco’s automotive industry flourishing, embracing electric vehicle era
Gaza war: UN defends casualty tally amid Israeli anger
Israeli abuse of jailed Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti ‘amounts to torture’
Israeli minister vows to quit war cabinet if PM fails to adopt new Gaza plan
Israel 'attacked known humanitarian aid workers in Gaza at least eight times', HRW
UN aid chief warns humanitarian efforts stuck due to Israeli operation in Rafah
At least 15 killed in Israeli air strike on Jabalia camp in northern Gaza
Israeli cabinet rifts over Gaza break out into the open
Israel moves into north Gaza Hamas stronghold, pounds Rafah
Israel troops continue posting abuse footage despite pledge to act
Five Israeli soldiers killed by their own tank
'Kidnapped' man found after 27 years hidden in neighbour's cellar
Fresh arson attempt was made on UNRWA HQ in East Jerusalem
Guterres deplores Rafah escalation
China’s Hailiang, Shinzoom to Build Auto Battery Plants in Morocco
Top UN court is holding hearings on the Israeli military’s incursion into Rafah
Netanyahu fends off criticism over his lack of a postwar plan for Gaza
Gaza: 600,000 displaced from Rafah
UN says it has no more food or tents for nearly 2m people in Gaza
Videos
-
Future of car-plane, see it to believe it
-
Mehdi Hasan: Islam is a peaceful religion
-
Python swallows antelope whole in under an hour
-
Sangoku dance
-
flying 3 kites wonder!
-
Korea has talent
-
Paul Potts sings Nessun Dorma
-
Susan Boyle - Britain's Got Talent
-
Twist and Pulse - Britain's Got Talent
-
Shaheen Jafargholi (HQ) Britain's Got Talent
High-Quality clip of 12-year-old singer Shaheen Jafargholi auditioning on Britain's Got Talent 2009. First he sings Valerie by The Zutons, as performed by Amy Winehouse, but, after Simon interrupts him and asks for a different song, he just blew everyone away. -
David Calvo juggles and solves Rubik's Cubes
-
Outdoor 'bubble pod' hotel unveiled