https://www.middleeastmonitor.com Latest news from the Middle East and North Africa Tue, 08 Aug 2023 12:39:48 +0000 en-GB Middle East Monitor 30 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.2.2 https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/favicon.png?fit=32%2C32&quality=85&strip=all&zoom=1&ssl=1 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com 32 32 116394717 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230806-turkish-coast-guard-saves-130-migrants-pushed-back-by-greece/ Sun, 06 Aug 2023 10:47:43 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=658160 A total of 130 irregular migrants pushed back into Turkish territorial waters by Greek forces were rescued on Saturday by the Turkish Coast Guard off the coasts of western Izmir province's Menderes, Karaburun, Foca and Cesme districts, Anadolu reports. Meanwhile, 265 irregular migrants and a migrant smuggler were caught off the coasts of Karaburun and Dikili. Irregular migrants were handed to the Provincial Directorate of Migration Management after procedures. READ: Tunisia rescues 15,000 migrants in first half of 2023 And 170 irregular migrants in rubber boats were caught by the Coast Guard off the coast of western Canakkale province's Ayvacik district. Coast Guard Northern Aegean Group Command teams detected four rubber boats with irregular migrants off the coast of Ayvacik. During […]]]> 658160 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230803-iran-executes-11-from-baluch-within-48-hours-on-drug-charges/ Thu, 03 Aug 2023 11:55:32 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=657854 Iranian authorities executed 11 people from the Baluch minority on drug charges within 48 hours, according to a non-governmental organisation, raising concerns that this group has been disproportionately targeted in a wave of executions. The Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) said nine Iranian Baluchis and two Baluch citizens of neighbouring Afghanistan were executed between Sunday and Tuesday morning. The organisation added that it documented a total of 61 executions across Iran in July, at a time when Tehran is intensifying the issuance of this punishment, with 423 executions carried out this year. Activists accuse Iran of using the death penalty as a tool to spread fear among the population, in the wake of a protest movement that erupted last September […]]]> 657854 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230801-afghanistan-activists-sound-alarm-over-surge-in-suicide-among-women/ Tue, 01 Aug 2023 10:35:09 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=656955 A teenage girl ended her life last week by hanging herself at her home in Afghanistan's rugged central province of Bamyan, Anadolu has reported. Her family refrained from disclosing any details about her death, but a neighbour told local media that she was particularly distressed about not being able to go to school, a result of the Taliban administration's ban on education for women and girls. A day later, in another part of Afghanistan, a 23-year-old woman shot herself. According to local media reports, she took the step as an escape from an abusive household to which she was confined. Social media accounts of Afghan news outlets are teeming with such reports of women committing suicide. Activists say that there […]]]> 656955 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230731-taliban-call-for-return-of-bank-funds-ending-curbs-in-meeting-with-us-envoy/ Mon, 31 Jul 2023 19:54:57 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=656900 The Taliban-run Afghanistan administration said, on Monday, it had met US Special Representative, Tom West, in Qatar and discussed the lifting of travel and other restrictions on Taliban leaders and the return of Afghan Central Bank assets parked abroad, Reuters reports. The Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021 after foreign forces ended a 20-year presence in the country. But the government formed by the Islamist movement, which it calls the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), is yet to be recognised by any country and faces travel and financial sanctions. "IEA reiterated that it was crucial for confidence-building that blacklists & reward lists be removed, & bank reserves be unfrozen so that Afghans can establish an economy unreliant on […]]]> 656900 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230727-seeing-is-believing-in-afghanistan-and-dialogue-is-the-only-way-forward/ Thu, 27 Jul 2023 15:33:00 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=655610 The arrogance and ignorance of the Western media were highlighted a few days ago when a former British army officer-turned-politician was accused of making himself a "useful idiot" for the ruling Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Some of his fellow MPs have even tried to oust Tobias Ellwood, the Conservative chair of the House of Commons Defence Committee, for posting a video in which he praised aspects of the Taliban's rule. Disappointingly, Ellwood has since deleted the offending video clip in which he described Afghanistan as a "country transformed" since the Taliban returned to power two years ago. Tellingly, he questioned why such a transformation had not taken place during twenty years of NATO occupation. Like it or not, though, Ellwood […]]]> 655610 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230727-afghan-taliban-confirms-meeting-with-us-officials-in-doha-late-this-week/ Thu, 27 Jul 2023 12:42:19 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=655634 The interim Taliban administration in Afghanistan, on Thursday, confirmed a meeting between its top diplomat and US officials in Doha, Qatar late this week, Anadolu Agency reports. Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesman for the interim Afghan Foreign Ministry, said acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, along with a high-level delegation will visit to meet with US officials. "For Afghanistan, in these talks, ending sanctions and blacklists [of Taliban leaders], the release of Afghanistan's bank reserves and discussion on the violation of Afghanistan's airspace should be prioritised," Balkhi said in a Pashto language tweet. He added that the Afghan delegation will also meet Qatari officials. Earlier, the State Department said US officials will meet Taliban representatives and "technocratic professionals" from key Afghan […]]]> 655634 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230726-us-officials-to-meet-taliban-in-doha-to-discuss-economy-rights-issues/ Wed, 26 Jul 2023 18:00:50 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=655270 US officials will meet Taliban representatives and "technocratic professionals" from key Afghan ministries during a visit to Doha this week, the State Department said on Wednesday, adding they will discuss economic issues, security and women's rights, Reuters reports. Special Representative for Afghanistan, Thomas West, and Special Envoy for Afghan Women, Girls, and Human Rights, Rina Amiri, will travel to Astana, Kazakhstan, and Doha, Qatar, from 26 July to 31 July, the State Department said in a statement. In Astana, they will meet with officials from Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan to discuss Afghanistan, said the statement, which added the US officials will also meet civil society members focused on women's rights. The US officials will meet the […]]]> 655270 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230725-ihrc-launches-campaign-to-protect-mosques-from-charity-omission-harassment/ Tue, 25 Jul 2023 17:28:10 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=655038 The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) has launched a campaign to help protect mosques from being bullied by the charities' regulator in England and Wales into adopting policies that limit their ability to speak and preach aspects of Islam to their congregations. The move follows a rise in the number of mosques and Islamic institutions reporting being harassed by the Charity Commission after being reported for so-called extremism. The standard modus operandi is for the Commission to intervene after malicious complaints are levelled by secularists, Zionists or far right activists accusing mosques of extremism for promoting or sanctioning views that challenge the liberal secular orthodoxy. Many mosques operate under charitable status making them vulnerable to any abuse of power. Complaints […]]]> 655038 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230721-many-may-die-warns-un-after-end-of-black-sea-grain-deal/ Fri, 21 Jul 2023 19:44:05 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=654438 A spike in grain prices since Russia quit a deal allowing the safe Black Sea export of Ukraine grain "potentially threatens hunger and worse for millions of people," the United Nations' Aid chief told the Security Council on Friday, Reuters reports. "Some will go hungry, some will starve, many may die as a result of these decisions," Martin Griffiths told the 15-member Council, adding that some 362 million people in 69 countries were in need of humanitarian aid. Russia quit the Black Sea grain deal on Monday, saying that demands to improve its own food and fertiliser exports had not been met, and that not enough Ukrainian grain had reached the poorest countries. US wheat futures in Chicago rose over 6 per cent […]]]> 654438 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230721-uk-quran-burning-desecration-deeply-insulting-to-muslims/ Fri, 21 Jul 2023 16:31:31 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=654391 Britain has condemned the desecration and burning of the Quran, Islam's holy book, in the Swedish capital city of Stockholm, Anadolu Agency reports. In a written statement issued by a spokesperson of UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the British government said such actions are "deeply insulting to Muslims around the world and completely inappropriate". Saying the UK denounces hatred on the basis of religion or belief, the Foreign Office said: "We will defend freedom of religion or belief for all, and promote mutual respect. We recognise the deep suffering experienced by Muslims around the world caused by the burning of the Quran." READ: UN Human Rights Council condemns attacks on Quran despite Western states' rejection Arab and Islamic states […]]]> 654391 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230719-uk-tory-mp-praises-taliban-government-for-totally-transforming-afghanistan/ Wed, 19 Jul 2023 19:38:26 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=653849 British Conservative MP, Tobias Ellwood, has praised the Taliban government in Afghanistan for "totally transforming" the country, calling for the United Kingdom to establish relations with and recognise the new Afghan authorities. In an article published by The Telegraph newspaper, Ellwood – MP for Bournemouth East and current chair of the Defence Select Committee – stated that "Two years after the Taliban forced the West to scuttle from Kabul, I've just returned from an Afghanistan which is totally transformed," referring to his recent visit to the country which was sponsored by the mine-clearing charity, The Halo Trust. "Security has vastly improved, people are free to travel and the widespread corruption that impacted at every level of former President Ashraf Ghani's government has all […]]]> 653849 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230719-sweden-committee-for-afghanistan-suspends-some-operations-after-taliban-order/ Wed, 19 Jul 2023 14:46:49 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=653808 The Swedish Committee for Afghanistan, a major humanitarian organisation, has paused some of its operations, it said on Wednesday, after a Taliban order halting Swedish activities in the country, Reuters reports. The Taliban administration last week said all activities by Sweden in Afghanistan must stop in response to the burning of a Quran in Stockholm last month, but it was not clear which institutions the order would apply to. "Some activities of the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (SCA), have been paused," the aid group said in a statement, after seeking discussion with the Taliban administration. Thousands of Afghan staff work for the organisation throughout the country in health, education and rural development, and treated 2.5 million patients in its health clinics last […]]]> 653808 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230717-iran-un-officials-discuss-afghanistan-as-taliban-invited-to-moscow/ Mon, 17 Jul 2023 19:37:11 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=653210 Iran's Foreign Minister discussed the situation in Afghanistan with the UN's point man on the war-torn nation, as Russia has invited ruling Taliban officials to a meeting in Moscow, Anadolu Agency reports. Tehran's top diplomat, Hossein Amirabdollahian, met on Sunday with Feridun Sinirlioglu, the special coordinator of the US Secretary-General for the independent assessment of Afghanistan affairs, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday. Tehran is "ready" to advance regional initiatives on Afghanistan, Amirabdollahian told Sinirlioglu, emphasising the "central role" of the UN on the issue. The meeting came a day after Moscow invited Afghanistan's de facto Taliban rulers for a meeting on Afghanistan. Russian Ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, on Saturday extended an invitation to the […]]]> 653210 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230714-2-children-drown-daily-crossing-mediterranean-in-absence-of-safe-legal-routes-unicef/ Fri, 14 Jul 2023 12:27:38 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=652331 Two children drown, on average, per day while trying to cross Central Mediterranean due to the "absence of safe and legal routes", the UN Children's Agency, UNICEF, said on Friday, Anadolu Agency reports. The number of children that have lost their lives while attempting to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe has doubled compared to last year, Verena Knaus, the UNICEF's Global Chief on Migration and Displacement, told a UN press briefing in Geneva. These numbers, she said, are driven by conflicts in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, West Africa and even as far away as Afghanistan. In the first six months of 2023 alone, 289 children have died, Knaus said, equivalent to around 11 children dying every […]]]> 652331 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230711-taliban-halt-sweden-activities-in-afghanistan-after-quran-burning/ Tue, 11 Jul 2023 17:52:08 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=651567 The Taliban administration halted all activities by Sweden in Afghanistan on Tuesday in response to the burning of a Quran in Stockholm last month, and a major Swedish aid group said it was seeking clarification about the impact on its programmes, Reuters reports. "After the insulting of the holy Quran and granting of permission for insulting of Muslim beliefs …The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is ordering the stopping of all activities of Sweden in Afghanistan," said Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban administration, in a statement. An Iraqi immigrant to Sweden burned a Quran outside a Stockholm mosque last month, causing outrage in the Muslim world. Swedish officials have deplored the act but said they could not prevent it because of […]]]> 651567 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230709-iran-executes-two-men-over-shooting-attack-at-shrine/ Sun, 09 Jul 2023 08:15:26 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=650610 Iran has publicly executed two people over a Daesh attack on a Shia shrine in the city of Shiraz last year. According to Iran's judiciary, the two men – Mohammed Ramez Rashidi and Naeem Hashem Qatali – were publicly executed by hanging in the early hours of Saturday after their sentences were confirmed by the Supreme Court. The attack on the Shah Cheragh shrine in the province of Fars took place on 26 October 2022, in which footage from security cameras showed a lone gunman entering with an automatic rifle and opening fire while making his way to the main compound. He shot numerous pilgrims and staff, killing 13 people and injuring 40, before he was killed by Iranian security […]]]> 650610 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230708-from-icc-to-sportswashing-the-wests-self-serving-narratives-must-be-combated/ Sat, 08 Jul 2023 13:07:41 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=650592 In March, the South African Communist Party (SACP) denounced what it described as the "imperialist bias" of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The denunciation of the ICC as a "supranational institution at the service of imperialist states" came two days after the Hague-based court issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and another Russian official for alleged war crimes in Ukraine. The speed with which the case against Putin was lodged, discussed and followed by concrete action raised many questions about the integrity, balance and political agenda of the Western-inclined court. While Palestinians immediately, and rightly, protested the hypocrisy of the ICC as it continues to treat alleged Israeli war criminals with kid gloves, Iraqis, Afghans, but mostly […]]]> 650592 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230707-seeking-a-way-forward-british-diplomat-meets-taliban-officials-in-afghanistan/ Fri, 07 Jul 2023 17:07:41 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=650473 The UK's top diplomat to Afghanistan, on Thursday, said that he met the Taliban officials in the capital, Kabul, and discussed various issues, including the rights of women and girls, Anadolu Agency reports. Robert C Dickson, charge d'Affaires of the UK Mission in Afghanistan, said he visited Afghanistan's capital city and met with acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, and other senior officials. "I had a wide range of candid discussions with the Taliban leadership. They told me they had made progress with counter-narcotics, improving security and reducing corruption. I made clear our deep concern about edicts that erode the rights of women and girls," Dickson said in a series of tweets on Thursday. This was his first visit to Kabul after […]]]> 650473 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230705-number-of-asylum-applications-in-the-eu-reaches-highest-6-year-record/ Wed, 05 Jul 2023 14:44:29 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=649999 The number of asylum applications in the European Union reached 996,000 in 2022, the highest in six years, according to an annual report published by the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) on Tuesday. Most asylum seekers in Europe come from Syria, Afghanistan, Turkiye, Venezuela and Colombia. The number of Ukrainians who fled their country due to the Russian war was counted in a separate census. Around four million of them live in the European Union, with special temporary protection status. The Russian invasion of Ukraine caused forced displacement of unprecedented levels in recent decades in Europe, and added pressure on already-saturated reception systems. Many of the 27 member states of the European Union, including Italy, Poland and Sweden, are […]]]> 649999 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230704-taliban-administration-orders-beauty-salons-in-afghanistan-to-close/ Tue, 04 Jul 2023 19:46:33 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=649683 The Taliban administration in Afghanistan has ordered beauty salons to close within a month, the morality ministry said, in the latest shrinking of access to public places for Afghan women, Reuters reports. "The deadline for the closing of beauty parlours for women is one month," Mohammad Sadiq Akif, a spokesperson for the Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and Propagation of Virtue, said on Tuesday, referring to a ministry notice. Foreign governments and UN officials have condemned growing restrictions on women since the Taliban returned to power in 2021 after defeating a US-backed government as foreign forces withdrew. Last year, authorities closed most girls' high schools, barred women from university and stopped many female Afghan aid staff from working. Many public places, […]]]> 649683 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230704-russia-rejects-bank-compromise-as-black-sea-grain-expiry-looms/ Tue, 04 Jul 2023 18:01:52 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=649677 Russia, on Tuesday, restated a demand for its state agricultural bank to be reconnected to the global SWIFT payments system and said it would not accept a reported compromise proposal, Reuters reports. With 13 days remaining until expiry of the deal that has allowed Ukraine to export grain from its Black Sea ports despite Russia's invasion, Moscow said there had been no progress on any of its key demands, including the banking issue. The Financial Times reported on Monday that the European Union was considering a proposal to allow Russia's Rosselkhozbank to set up a subsidiary that could connect to SWIFT. But Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, dismissed the idea as "deliberately unworkable", saying it would take many months to set […]]]> 649677 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230704-muslims-body-in-us-shocked-over-fbis-secret-surveillance-since-9-11-attacks/ Tue, 04 Jul 2023 13:56:32 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=649630 The largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organisation in the US has expressed shock at the recent disclosure of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)'s secret surveillance and listing of Muslims in the country since the 9/11 attacks, Anadolu Agency reports. Gadeir Abbas, a senior lawyer at the Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), told Anadolu that the FBI monitoring report shows that Muslims have been listed and followed for years, from former President George Bush's administration to the current Joe Biden government, referring to the 2019 version of the FBI's watch list made public by a Swiss hacker on 13 June. "We've known for many years that Muslims are being watched," Abbas said, "but seeing this list first-hand is […]]]> 649630 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230703-pakistan-moves-to-charge-traffickers-with-money-laundering-over-greece-boat-tragedy/ Mon, 03 Jul 2023 16:14:26 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=649040 Pakistan has decided to charge the suspected human traffickers involved in last month's shipwreck off the coast of Greece under the country's anti-money laundering law, an official statement said on Monday, Anadolu Agency reports. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), which is investigating the gory incident in which some 350 Pakistanis were among over 800 onboard a fishing trawler that sank, said in a statement that the passports of the suspected traffickers will also be blacklisted, apart from blocking their national identity cards and bank accounts. The decisions were announced during a meeting held in the north-eastern city of Lahore to review the progress in the shipwreck investigation with Director General FIA, Mohsin Butt, in the chair. READ: European official: Recent […]]]> 649040 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230630-world-food-programme-set-to-run-out-of-money-for-food-assistance-to-afghans-in-october/ Fri, 30 Jun 2023 17:45:25 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=648384 Food assistance to Afghanistan will shrink to nothing by the end of October under current funding projections, the World Food Programme's (WFP) Country Director told Reuters on Friday, as United Nations officials continue to warn against funding reductions amid Taliban restrictions on women, Reuters reports. The WFP has already slashed rations and cash assistance from 8 million Afghans this year, underscoring the severity of financial challenges aid agencies face in Afghanistan, home to what the United Nations considers the world's worst humanitarian crisis. "It's five million people we are able to serve for another couple of months but then, beyond that, we don't have the resources," WFP Afghanistan Country Director, Hsiao-Wei Lee, told Reuters. "That I think conveys the urgency […]]]> 648384 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230630-survivors-of-greece-boat-disaster-say-coastguard-rope-toppled-boat/ Fri, 30 Jun 2023 15:05:18 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=648342 Survivors of a boat disaster that likely killed hundreds of migrants near Greece have given accounts of traffickers in North Africa cramming them into a clapped-out fishing trawler. They recounted hellish conditions above and below deck, with no food or water. Some also said the tragic end, when it came, was precipitated by the actions of the Greek coastguard. They have told judicial authorities of a doomed attempt to tow the overloaded trawler that caused the vessel to capsize in the early hours of 14 June. A disastrous coastguard towing attempt was recounted in six of the nine statements from survivors submitted to Greek judicial officials investigating the causes of the tragedy, according to evidence seen by Reuters. One Syrian […]]]> 648342 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230630-philippine-president-says-no-deal-reached-yet-with-us-on-hosting-afghan-refugees/ Fri, 30 Jun 2023 13:16:55 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=648313 Philippine President, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said Thursday that no final decision has been taken yet regarding a US request for his country to temporarily host up to 1,000 Afghan nationals while their special visas are processed, Anadolu Agency reports. "I was really surprised when I saw some of the news reports saying there's a deal between the US and the Philippines. We are still looking exactly at how to make it work, if we can. We will find a way to make it happen," the state-run Philippines News Agency quoted Marcos as saying, while speaking to reporters. The US government reportedly asked the Philippines to temporarily host a US immigrant visa processing centre. But Marcos said there are security concerns. "This is […]]]> 648313 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230628-peace-and-islamic-law-memo-in-conversation-with-kaleem-hussein/ Wed, 28 Jun 2023 15:00:23 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=647605 Join us for a conversation with Kaleem Hussein as we discuss his book 'Peace and Reconciliation in International and Islamic Law' and how the sources of international law and Islamic Law help or hinder the pathway towards peace and reconciliation in selected conflicts. Focusing on Afghanistan, Palestine-Israel and Kashmir, we will discuss how the depiction, interpretation and understanding of Islamic law is often misconstrued and mis-represented across many mainstream media platforms. While also looking at the role of religion and faith in the process of conflict resolution, de-escalation of violence, conflict transformation, as well as creative non-violent contributions that can be inculcated through the prism of interfaith and intra-faith dialogue in the peacebuilding process. Hussain is a British writer, multi-disciplinary change […]]]> 647605 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230624-weighing-expansion-brics-increasingly-draws-membership-requests/ Sat, 24 Jun 2023 15:36:09 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=646894 The BRICS group, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, continues to attract applications from numerous countries as it explores expansion opportunities, Anadolu Agency reports. Anadolu compiled the developments regarding the enlargement process of BRICS. Amid the search for a multipolar world, Brazil, Russia, India and China laid the foundations in 2009, with South Africa joining in 2010. BRICS, while criticising the unequal structures and resolutions of the Group of Seven (G-7) and the UN Security Council, calls for reforms in international structures and norms to establish a multipolar order. With a combined population representing nearly 42 per cent of the world's population, the BRICS countries control 18 per cent of global exports. The collective gross domestic product (GDP) of […]]]> 646894 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230623-taliban-official-letter-reinforces-bar-of-female-aid-staff-in-southern-kandahar/ Fri, 23 Jun 2023 14:22:53 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=646822 Taliban authorities in Afghanistan's Kandahar province ordered female aid workers, this week, to stop work on a refugee project, according to an official letter, reinforcing rules against women working despite exemptions sought by some organisations, Reuters reports. The letter between departments of the Ministry for Refugees in Kandahar, the Taliban's historical heartland, said aid agencies had been in violation of the orders in work related to refugees in Spin Boldak, a town near the border with Pakistan. The letter, seen by Reuters, was confirmed by a spokesman for the provincial governor. "All partner organisations that are working with the Department of Refugees and Repatriation of Spin Boldak … should ask their female colleagues not to come to their work and […]]]> 646822 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230623-afghan-child-with-terminal-illness-passes-away-in-us-federal-custody-report/ Fri, 23 Jun 2023 12:57:28 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=646807 An Afghan boy who was brought to the US after the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan in 2021 passed away while in the custody of the federal government, according to a report Thursday, Anadolu Agency reports. Citing anonymous US officials, CBS News reported that the child, 6, had a terminal illness and died on 13 June. The report said the boy was one of the hundreds of Afghan children who arrived without their parents following their evacuation from Afghanistan. The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) confirmed the child's passing in a statement to the American network on Thursday, attributing it to "severe encephalopathy," a medical condition relating to brain disease or disorder. The boy's death represents the […]]]> 646807 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230622-us-army-veteran-gets-55-years-for-islamophobic-murder/ Thu, 22 Jun 2023 13:35:04 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=646633 A US army veteran has been sentenced to 55 years in prison for the murder of an Afghan refugee after he shouted Islamophobic slurs at the victim, Anadolu Agency reports. After a three-day trial, Dustin Passarelli was convicted in the Mid-western US state of Indiana of the murder of Mustafa Ayoubi, 32, with additional time for using a firearm. Ayoubi was unarmed during the time of the killing, which took place in February 2019 on the west side of the city of Indianapolis. An autopsy showed Ayoubi had been shot eight times, including seven times in the back. READ: US warns Israel escalation in West Bank will harm normalisation efforts Following a "road rage" encounter between the two, Passarrelli followed Ayoubi […]]]> 646633 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230621-impossible-to-recognise-taliban-unless-it-reverses-decrees-on-womens-rights-un/ Wed, 21 Jun 2023 17:04:52 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=646474 The UN envoy for Afghanistan said, Wednesday, it is "nearly impossible" for the international community to recognise the Taliban unless the group's bans on women's rights are lifted, Anadolu Agency reports. The UN continues to face a complicated situation in Afghanistan due to restrictions against women working for the organisation, Roza Otunbayeva, told the Security Council. The Taliban banned Afghan women from working with NGOs last April. "I am blunt about the obstacles they have created for themselves by the decrees and restrictions they have enacted, in particular against women and girls," she said. "We have conveyed to them that, as long as these decrees are in place, it is nearly impossible that their government will be recognised by members […]]]> 646474 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230620-the-tragedy-of-being-a-refugee-on-earth/ Tue, 20 Jun 2023 15:45:35 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=646016 Today, 20 June, 2023, is "World Refugee Day". In 2001, on the 50th anniversary of the United Nation's (UN) adoption of the "Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees" in 1951, it was celebrated by the UN to raise awareness of the growing refugee crisis in the world. So, what has been the situation of refugees in the world, in the 22 years that have passed? What challenges await the asylum seekers and refugees we encounter daily in every corner of the world? The refugee phenomenon, which has become a global crisis, can be better understood by analyzing the data to grasp the gravity of the situation. Growing numbers of refugees in the world According to data released last […]]]> 646016 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230620-tribulations-to-trophies-refugee-athletes-inspire-in-world-of-sports/ Tue, 20 Jun 2023 12:41:22 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=645981 They say sport has the power to change lives. What might sound like a cliché to many, holds immense truth for people like Marzieh Hamidi and Ahmad Badreddin Wais. It was sport that gave Hamidi and Wais a refuge from the tribulations of a life defined by war and conflict, factors completely out of their control. However, what did give them a semblance of control over their destiny was sport, combined with sheer hard work, grit and a passion for their discipline of choice. Both Hamidi and Wais are refugees, among the tens of millions around the world driven out of their homes and homelands by the evils of men, or the forces of nature. OPINION: The irony of 'World […]]]> 645981 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230619-the-irony-of-world-refugee-day-celebrating-then-blaming-the-victims/ Mon, 19 Jun 2023 17:06:42 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=645576 Fadi, a Syrian teenager, with curly hair and an acne-covered face, has miraculously survived one of the greatest migrant boat disasters in the modern history of the Mediterranean. Only 104 people have been rescued from a boat that carried an estimated 750 refugees after it capsized on 13 June in the open sea near the coastal town of Pylos. Scores of lifeless bodies have been pulled out from the water, and many more have washed ashore. Hundreds are still missing, feared dead, many of whom are women and children, as they huddled on the lower deck of the 30-meter boat. Fadi survived. A heart-rending photo shows the young Syrian sobbing as he met his older brother, Mohammed, who rushed to […]]]> 645576 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230617-israel-us-arms-left-in-afghanistan-reach-gaza/ Sat, 17 Jun 2023 10:06:27 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=645274 US arms left in Afghanistan have been smuggled to the Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip, Sama News Agency reported on Friday. The local Palestinian news agency disclosed that Newsweek reported an unnamed senior Israeli military official confirming: "Some of the small weapons seized in Afghanistan had been spotted in the hands of Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip." The Israeli military official raised concerns about the "dangers" of sending advanced US and Western arms, sent to Ukraine, to: "Israel's enemies in the region, including in Iran." READ: UNRWA resumes services to Palestine refugees in West Bank According to Sama News Agency, Washington affirmed it would take "pre-emptive measures" to undermine moving arms to the Middle East. The Israeli military official […]]]> 645274 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230616-in-the-talibans-war-on-drugs-the-west-chooses-condemnation-instead-of-assistance/ Fri, 16 Jun 2023 10:30:29 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=645078 Governments and regimes throughout the world have been no strangers to using narcotics as a major revenue source. More recently, during this era of sanctions, that practice has been an effective tactic to circumvent such measures. Entities and figures in isolated states such as Venezuela and Iran represent key examples of this phenomenon, utilising some level of direct government or military connection to the narcotics trade from their territories. Syria has become the most recent addition, amid the Assad regime's mass production and trafficking of captagon throughout the Middle East region, effectively turning the country into the world's foremost narco-state. Rarely has a country and its government willingly and effectively – especially without pressure from Western nations, rights organisations, and NGOs – […]]]> 645078 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230615-un-in-talks-about-possibly-handing-over-afghan-teaching-projects-to-taliban/ Thu, 15 Jun 2023 18:29:07 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=645027 The UN children's agency said it was holding discussions with Afghanistan's ruling Taliban over "timelines and practicalities" for a possible required handover of its education programmes and that classes would continue in the meantime, Reuters reports. Aid officials say that the Taliban had signalled international organisations could no longer be involved in education projects, in a move criticised by the UN but not yet confirmed by Afghan authorities. UNICEF said it had received assurances from the Education Ministry that its community-based classes, which educate 500,000 students, would continue while they discussed the matter. "As the lead agency for the education cluster in Afghanistan, UNICEF is engaged in constructive discussions with the de facto Ministry of Education and appreciates the commitment from the de facto […]]]> 645027 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230608-taliban-bring-poppy-cultivation-to-near-zero-afghans-want-alternate-livelihood/ Thu, 08 Jun 2023 15:22:15 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=643483 The interim Taliban administration in Afghanistan said, Thursday, that poppy cultivation in the country has been "almost eradicated" and praised the recent UK-based organisation's report which acknowledged their efforts at the global level, Anadolu Agency reports. Hafiz Zia Ahmad, the deputy spokesman at Afghan Foreign Ministry, credited the Taliban Supreme Leader, Mullah Haibatullah, for the decrease in poppy cultivation after he issued a decree banning poppy cultivation in April last year. "Following the IEA (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) Supreme Leader's decree, poppy cultivation has been reduced to zero. According to recent media reports, 56.2 per cent of land in Helmand province was poppy cultivated in 2020, whereas it has reduced to 0.4 per cent by 2023 while, in reality, it […]]]> 643483 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230606-frontex-italy-aware-boat-was-in-distress-hours-before-94-died-report-finds/ Tue, 06 Jun 2023 14:03:07 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=642852 At 4am on 26 February 2023 at least 94 people died when the boat Summer Love crashed onto the rocks near the Italian village of Steccato di Cutro. The 25-metre wooden vessel had launched from Cesme in Turkiye and was carrying mainly Afghan refugees, many crammed below deck whilst the smugglers were up top. There was only one escape route: a narrow staircase for all 200 people on board. It became one of the worst migrant shipwreck disasters Italy has seen in decades. In the immediate aftermath, journalists, survivors and their families asked why the overcrowded boat wasn't rescued from the choppy waters. Could more have been done to save them? Now, a joint investigation by Lighthouse Reports and others […]]]> 642852 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230605-un-body-condemns-us-others-for-treatment-of-guantanamo-inmate/ Mon, 05 Jun 2023 16:21:32 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=642659 The United States and several other countries have committed human rights violations against a Saudi man held in the Guantanamo prison and accused of organising the bombing of the "USS Cole" in the port of Aden in 2000, a UN report said, Reuters reports. Abd Al Rahim Al Nashiri could face the death penalty, if convicted, for his alleged role in the attack. The United Nations working group on arbitrary detention said he had been arbitrarily detained for more than 20 years and it voiced concern about his physical and mental well-being. The United States has accused Nashiri of organising the attack on the "USS Cole" by two suicide bombers in a small boat as the warship was moored in […]]]> 642659 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230601-afghan-girls-turn-cave-into-school-raise-hope-for-children/ Thu, 01 Jun 2023 21:00:43 +0000 , Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=641935 Afghan girls who educate the children of poor families living in caves in a classroom in Bamyan, one of Afghanistan's most deprived provinces, instil hope for the future of the children. Ruya Serferaz (18) and her English class friend, Besbegum Havari (19), set off every day, regardless of adverse weather conditions, and teach Persian, English, mathematics, geography and painting to children in a cave that serves as their classroom, two hours from their home. The two friends, with the help of the children, cleaned the cave they have turned into a classroom, decorated the walls with various handcrafts made of painting, calligraphy and paper, making it a glimmer of hope for the future of helpless and poor families. Boys and […]]]> 641935 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230531-qatar-prime-minister-taliban-chief-hold-secret-afghan-talks-source/ Wed, 31 May 2023 18:03:48 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=641780 The Qatari Prime Minister held secret talks with the Supreme Leader of the Taliban this month on resolving tension with the international community, a source briefed on the meeting said, signalling a new willingness by Afghanistan's rulers to discuss ways to end their isolation, Reuters reports. The 12 May meeting in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar between Qatari Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani and Haibatullah Akhunzada is the first the reclusive Taliban chief is known to have held with a foreign leader. US President Joe Biden's administration was briefed on the talks and is "coordinating on all issues discussed" by the pair, including furthering dialogue with the Taliban, said the source. The source, who spoke on condition of […]]]> 641780 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230530-taliban-threatens-to-conquer-iran-amid-border-clashes-over-ongoing-water-dispute/ Tue, 30 May 2023 16:57:53 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=641078 Clashes erupted over the border between Afghanistan and Iran over the weekend, leading to a Taliban official threatening to conquer Iran amid increased tensions and an ongoing water dispute. Videos and pictures circulating on social media have shown Afghanistan's Taliban forces and Iranian border forces firing at each other near a border post, killing at least one Taliban officer and two Iranian border guards. There were also reports of Taliban fighters entering Iranian territory and attacking a military base. Although one video shows them approaching a fortification which flies the Iranian flag, this has not been verified. #Afghanistan / #Iran ????: #Taliban released a video of their attack on an #Iranian border post during the recent clashes. TB apparently operates […]]]> 641078 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230528-2-iranian-border-guards-killed-in-fresh-clashes-with-taliban/ Sun, 28 May 2023 09:45:29 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=640198 At least two Iranian border guards were killed and two others injured in fierce clashes with the Taliban at a border outpost in southeastern Iran on Saturday, reports Anadolu Agency. It was not immediately clear what triggered the clashes, which came amid fresh tensions between the two neighboring countries over a long-running water dispute. The incident, Iran's state media reported, happened around noon when Taliban soldiers opened fire at the Sasuli border outpost in Sistan-Baluchestan's Zabol county near the Afghan border. The border guards of the Zabol regiment, it said, retaliated to the Taliban fire, resulting in casualties on the Afghan side as well. The figure, however, is not yet known. The commander of the border outpost in Sasuli was […]]]> 640198 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230526-if-iran-exports-gas-to-europe-it-will-go-through-turkiye/ Fri, 26 May 2023 13:37:15 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=639972 The General Manager of the National Iranian Gas Company, Majid Jakini, said that if his country exports natural gas to Europe, it will be done through Turkiye. This came in statements to the Iranian Labour News Agency yesterday about Tehran's future approach regarding the country's natural gas exports. He added: "If we export natural gas to Europe, it will be through Turkiye." He pointed out that Pakistan, Afghanistan and Oman want Iranian natural gas and that negotiations are on their agenda, but the infrastructure needed to sign contracts with some of these countries is not yet ready. READ: Iran says it has successfully test-launched ballistic missile]]> 639972 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230524-palestine-action-pair-sent-to-prison-for-dismantling-weapons-factory/ Wed, 24 May 2023 09:30:57 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=639166 Two people who took direct action to dismantle and occupy a weapons factory were given prison sentences on Tuesday after pleading guilty to charges of criminal damage. A third person who took part in the action was acquitted at Chester Crown Court. Scientist Mike Lynch-White was sentenced to 27 months in prison. The other was sentenced to 16 months. Half of a custodial sentence is normally served in prison. Lynch-White was on remand for three months prior to the sentencing for taking direct action with the climate group Burning Pink, and may face a further custodial sentence for his involvement in the group Heathrow Pause. The three occupied the APPH site in June 2021 as part of a wider campaign […]]]> 639166 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230518-human-rights-group-concerned-over-rising-disappearance-of-unaccompanied-asylum-minors-in-europe/ Thu, 18 May 2023 19:17:15 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=637891 A new report by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor (Euro-Med Monitor) has revealed a significant disparity in the treatment of unaccompanied minors of asylum seekers compared to the accompanied ones in Europe. This included depriving the unaccompanied minors of legal protections, detaining them, and the insufficiency of services provided to them in several European countries. On Thursday, the Euro-Med Monitor released a comprehensive report titled "Happiness, Love and Understanding: The Protection of Unaccompanied Minors in the 27 EU Member States." A copy of this report was forwarded to the Arabi21 website, and it highlighted various shortcomings in reception procedures and protection offered to unaccompanied minor asylum seekers across the 27 member states of the European Union (EU). The report evaluates […]]]> 637891 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230518-top-afghan-iranian-diplomats-discuss-water-dispute/ Thu, 18 May 2023 13:32:30 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=637832 The top diplomats of Iran and Afghanistan, on Thursday, discussed over the phone the long-running water dispute, according to the Afghan Foreign Ministry, Anadolu News Agency reports. During the conversation between the Taliban administration's acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, and his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amirabdollahian, discussed various issues, the Ministry said. "During this phone call, the foreign ministers of the two countries discussed and exchanged views on issues of interest between the two countries and on the expansion of cooperation in various fields, especially trade, electric energy, railways," Hafiz Zia Ahmad, the deputy spokesman of the Afghan Foreign Ministry, tweeted. Ahmad added that Muttaqi described the problems of water scarcity and a decrease in rainfall in the western regions […]]]> 637832 https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230516-afghans-brought-to-the-uk-asked-to-evict-temporary-accommodations/ Tue, 16 May 2023 16:36:48 +0000 Middle East Monitor https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/?p=637382 Some Afghan families who were placed in hotels before being put into temporary accommodation across the UK are being sent letters of eviction by the Home Office, Anadolu News Agency reports. Speaking to Anadolu, Fahim Zazai, the founder of the Afghan Community and Welfare Centre in Walsall, said the government is telling people to accept the first offer or face eviction. "Almost half of the families brought to the UK are still in hotels or temporary accommodation and are waiting to be settled into a permanent home. Some of these people received letters saying they either accept the only offer given by the government or evict the place they're staying at," Zazai said. The "first offer" refers to a single housing […]]]> 637382