• Home
  • About Us
  • Events
  • Submissions
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • NewsVoir
  • Newswire
  • Nasheman Urdu ePaper

Nasheman

India's largest selling Urdu weekly, now also in English

  • News & Politics
    • India
    • Indian Muslims
    • Muslim World
  • Culture & Society
  • Opinion
  • In Focus
  • Human Rights
  • Photo Essays
  • Multimedia
    • Infographics
    • Podcasts
You are here: Home / Archives for Jordan

Jordan shuts down Muslim Brotherhood headquarters

April 13, 2016 by Nasheman

The movement has had strained relations with the authorities in recent years. AP

The movement has had strained relations with the authorities in recent years. AP

by BBC

Police in Jordan have shut the headquarters of the main opposition movement, the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood (MB), group officials say.

The building in the capital, Amman, was sealed on the city governor’s orders, an MB leader told Reuters news agency.

No reason was given for the closure, the official added.

The MB has a strong support base in urban areas and its political wing, the Islamic Action Front (IAF), is Jordan’s largest opposition party.

The group split in 2014 into the old movement and a new, more moderate, officially licensed branch. The headquarters of the original movement were targeted in Wednesday’s raid.

“We were surprised by this move from the Public Security Department,” spokesman Badi al Rafaiah told Reuters.

“Many policemen and gendarmes came… broke the door down and threw out all the staff with an order to close down the main centre, which they sealed off without giving any explanation.”

The rise in militant Islam in the region has increasingly strained relations between the Brotherhood and the authorities.

The IAF has boycotted parliamentary elections, alleging the system marginalises the party, while authorities have sporadically cracked down on the group.

Last year, a Muslim Brotherhood leader was jailed for criticising Jordan’s ally the UAE, in the first such case involving a top opposition figure in Jordan for years.

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: Jordan, Muslim Brotherhood

Jordan to pursue legal actions for Muslim control over Al-Aqsa

October 23, 2015 by Nasheman

Jordan's foreign minister said Jordan is examining legal options for dealing with Israeli violations in the al-Aqsa Mosque compound. (AFP/File)

Jordan’s foreign minister said Jordan is examining legal options for dealing with Israeli violations in the al-Aqsa Mosque compound. (AFP/File)

by The Jordan Times

Jordan has carefully examined the legal option for dealing with Israeli violations and will forge ahead with it to protect al-Haram al-Sharif/al-Aqsa Mosque, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh said Thursday.

Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian issue, Judeh said the past two months saw another extremely dangerous escalation in attacks by the Israeli occupation forces in the West Bank.

There have been acts of aggression and attacks against al-Haram al-Sharif/al-Aqsa Mosque by the Israeli occupation forces or under their protection, he noted, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported from New York.

The minister said all measures by the Israeli occupation in East Jerusalem are in violation of the UN Security Council’s decisions stipulating that East Jerusalem, in its entirety, including al-Haram al-Sharif/al-Aqsa Mosque are within the territories that have fallen under the Israeli military occupation in 1967. 

Judeh added that these Israeli acts of aggression have exacerbated the situation in the region, in a way that could lead to a religious war that will be beyond control; especially since al-Haram al-Sharif is a place for Muslim worshippers, exclusively. 

This is not to mention the devastating impact of these acts of aggression on chances to resume negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis, he added. 

Judeh reaffirmed Jordan’s position in support of the two-state solution, ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a Palestinian state within the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. 

He also reiterated calls to resolve all key issues — such as Jerusalem, refugees, security, borders and water — in a manner that safeguards Jordan’s higher interests. 

Judeh warned that the Israeli violations have sparked tensions in the occupied Palestinian territories that could lead to a volatile situation that could explode beyond the control of any party and extend beyond the Palestinian territories, threatening international peace and security. 

He stressed Jordan’s constant position in denouncing the targeting of civilians, regardless of the motives or reasons for it.

The deputy premier said Israel should free itself of the shackles of internal coalition tactics and pretexts, which can no longer be taken for granted.

The Israeli acts contradict Tel Aviv’s commitments, in accordance with Article 9 of the Jordanian-Israeli peace treaty, and are not in line with Israeli’s legal obligations, as the occupying power, in accordance with international law, he stressed. 

Judeh urged the UN Security Council to shoulder its responsibilities in this regard to record these attacks and prevent their recurrence, after the historic status quo is restored and not the status quo that Israel creates every day at Islamic and Christian sites. 

He highlighted Jordan’s efforts to safeguard Islamic and Christian sites in Jerusalem, which are under Hashemite custodianship.

Refugee crisis and anti-extremism

The impact of the crisis in Syria has extended beyond its borders and neighbours into the international community, Judeh said, citing the increasing influx of refugees. 

Criminal and gangs are controlling large swathes of Syria, he added, threatening its people.

A comprehensive political solution, on the basis of the Geneva I conference, is the sole solution for the crisis, the minister stressed. 

Judeh reaffirmed Jordan’s support for anti-extremism operations in Iraq, stressing the importance of unified efforts and coordination to combat extremism in the entire region.

With regards to the conditions in Yemen, he said Jordan is part of the Arab coalition that is working to restore the legitimate authority in the unrest-ridden state, in the response to the call made by its legitimate government.

Judeh also stressed Jordan’s support for the efforts exerted in Libya to restore stability, urging the different Libyan parties to sign the recently reached UN-brokered peace agreement to safeguard their country. 

This story has been edited from the source material.

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: Al Aqsa, Al Aqsa Mosque, Israel, Jordan, Palestine

India will support Palestine cause, engage with Israel: Pranab Mukherjee

October 12, 2015 by Nasheman

India Palestine Israel

Amman: India will continue to extend unwavering support for separate statehood for Palestine while also engaging with Israel to forge an independent and long-standing bilateral relationship, President Pranab Mukherjee said here on Sunday.

The president also lauded Jordan’s humanitarian support in sheltering 1.4 million Syrians, called for a concerted global action for a peaceful resolution of conflict in the troubled country, while also pushing its own case in forging a UN treaty on countering terrorism.

These were the gist of the visiting president’s messages during his meetings with the Jordanian leadership on the second day of his visit here, and at a speech he delivered at the University of Jordan, which conferred a doctorate on him in political science.

“India supports a negotiated solution resulting in a sovereign, independent, viable and united State of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital, living within secure and recognized borders,” the president said at the university.

“Our bilateral relations with Israel are independent of our relations with Palestine,” he said.

“India has played a proactive role in garnering support for this cause in all multilateral fora. We have called upon both sides to exercise restraint and work towards a comprehensive resolution of the Palestinian issue.”

Jordan is the only country in the Arab world, besides Egypt, which has a peace agreement with Israel.

The president also quoted Mahatma Gandhi, as drawn from a book written by Queen Noor: “‘Palestine belongs to the Arabs in the same sense that England belongs to the English and France to the French’.”

The Jordanian side was equally candid and said it saw Israel resorting to “state terrorism” against the people of Palestine, as clashes between the two sides continued unabated. This was also the text of a resolution that was passed by the Jordanian Parliament on Saturday, accusing Israelis of “sapping the rights” of Palestinians.

President Mukherjee, who earlier in the day opened a street, named after Mahatma Gandhi here, continued his engagements with the Jordanian leadership, during which he also took up the issue of ending conflict in Syria, while supporting Amman’s endeavours.

Jordan has a population of 6.5 million and another 1.5 million — or 25 percent — have taken shelter in the country.

The Indian side said it strongly endorsed the June 2012 resolution of the Action Group for Syria that met at the UN office in Switzerland — called the Geneva-I Communique — that not only wanted an end to further military conflict, but also rapid steps for a credible political agreement, involving the people.

About the increasing Russian involvement in Syria, Anil Wadhwa, secretary, east in India’s foreign ministry said there was major distinction and Moscow was primarily seeking to curtail the advancement of the extremist group Islamic State in Syria.

Since September 30, Russia has been carrying out airstrikes against certain positions of Islamic State which has been criticised by the US as being directed at anti-government rebels.

The talks between the Jordanian and Indian sides also veered around terrorism — of which the South Asian country has been a victim.

India pushed for a total compliance of United Nations Security Council Resolution number 1,353 of 2011 and the UN Global Counter Terrorism Strategy adopted in 2006, as also for the early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, that has been pending for over a decade.

President Mukherjee himself pushed for this convention strongly and said it will serve to put a curb against state-sponsored terrorism in the most effective manner, by getting countries to take steps that will not only suppress such acts, but also punish its perpetrators, abettors, financiers, facilitators and collaborators.

During his engagements here, the Indian side and the Jordanian sides signed a number of pacts, ranging from cooperation in maritime transport to information technology, besides some 10 in the field of education between the Jawaharlal University, Jamia Millia Islamiyya, University of Delhi and IIT-Kharagpur, with their Jordanian counterparts.

(IANS)

Filed Under: India Tagged With: Israel, Jordan, Palestine, Pranab Mukherjee

UN: Turkey hosts largest number of refugees in the world

February 27, 2015 by Nasheman

A Group of Syrian Kurds, who were sheltering in Turkey as a result of ongoing clashes between ISIS and Kurdish armed groups, return to their hometown Kobane from Sanliurfa, Turkey on February 25, 2015. Anadolu/Halil Fidan

A Group of Syrian Kurds, who were sheltering in Turkey as a result of ongoing clashes between ISIS and Kurdish armed groups, return to their hometown Kobane from Sanliurfa, Turkey on February 25, 2015. Anadolu/Halil Fidan

Turkey hosts the largest number of refugees in the world amid a “staggering” growth in displacement from Syria, the UN high commissioner for refugees said Thursday.

In a briefing to the United Nations Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Syria, the high commissioner, Antonio Guterres, said the Syrian refugee crisis overwhelmed existing response capacities, with 3.8 million refugees registered in neighboring countries.

“Lebanon and Jordan have seen their populations grow, in the space of a few years, to a point they were prepared to reach only in several decades,” said Guterres. “Meanwhile, Turkey has now become the biggest refugee-hosting country in the world.”

According to the UN refugee agency, Turkey is hosting over 1.6 million Syrian refugees, who have fled a war that has paved the way for extremist groups such as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to gain a foothold in the region.

Syria has been gripped by almost constant fighting since peaceful protests against the government of President Bashar al-Assad in March 2011 turned into an armed insurgency.

Urging the international community to share the burden, Guterres said the refugee influx had severely damaged the economies of Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.

“The nature of the refugee crisis is changing” and called for “massive international support” for countries that have opened their borders to fleeing civilians,” he explained.

“As the level of despair rises, and the available protection space shrinks, we are approaching a dangerous turning point,” he added.

Lebanon’s population has grown by nearly 25 percent since the war in Syria began in 2011, with over 1.5 million Syrian refugees sheltered in a country with a population of 4 million, making it the highest per capita concentration of refugees in the world.

The refugee influx has put huge pressure on the country’s already scarce resources and poor infrastructure, education and health systems, and has also contributed to rising tensions in a nation vulnerable to security breaches and instability.

Meanwhile, Guterres warned that almost two million Syrian refugees under the age of 18, many without access to education or jobs, “risk becoming a lost generation” and over 100,000 children born in exile could become stateless.

“If this is not addressed properly, this crisis-in-making will have huge consequences not only for the future of Syria but for the whole region,” he said.

Moreover, Guterres commended a temporary protection decree issued by Turkey last year to provide Syrians with access to the country’s labor market, as well as free education and health care.

“But despite this positive development in Turkey, it is no surprise that growing desperation is forcing more and more Syrian refugees to move further afield,” he said.

He said Syrians accounted for a third of the nearly 220,000 migrants who arrived in boats to European shores last year.

“Since the start of 2015, over 370 people have died trying to cross the Mediterranean — that’s one person drowning for every twenty who made it,” he said.

He warned that thousands more could face death unless Europe decides to “step up its capacity to save lives, with a robust search and rescue operation in the Central Mediterranean.”

According to a December report by Amnesty International, wealthy nations have only taken in a “pitiful” 1.7 percent of the millions of refugees uprooted by Syria’s conflict, placing the burden on the country’s ill-equipped neighbors.

At the time, the London-based rights group blasted as shocking the failure of rich nations to host more refugees.

Amnesty said it was calling for the resettlement of five percent of Syria’s refugees by the end of 2015, and another five percent the following year.

In addition to those who fled the war-ravaged country to become refugees, the UN says more than seven million Syrians are internally displaced.

The refugees face poverty, illness and growing tensions with host communities in their already-impoverished temporary homes.

As the conflict rages, there is little prospect that the more than three million Syrians who have fled to neighboring countries and beyond will be able to return home any time soon.

(Anadolu, AFP, Al-Akhbar)

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: Jordan, Lebanon, Refugees, Syria, Syrian refugees, Turkey

The international media is failing to report the Syrian war properly

February 12, 2015 by Nasheman

Civilians in Aleppo: not in the news. EPA/Ali Mustafa

Civilians in Aleppo: not in the news. EPA/Ali Mustafa

by Scott Lucas, The Conversation

February 2015 has already seen some major developments in Syria’s four-year conflict. At the start of February, rebels launched more than 100 rockets into Damascus and the Assad regime fired mortars on areas of its own capital, hoping to discredit the insurgents. At least six people were killed in the attacks.

Then came almost 50 regime air strikes on opposition-held areas near Damascus, which killed at least 82 people. Another 25 were killed in Aleppo when a barrel bomb hit a bus on a roundabout.

Meanwhile, rebels also claimed to have blown up 30 men fighting for the Assad regime – Hezbollah troops, Iranians, and Iraqis among them – at a militia headquarters west of Damascus.

All this while US-led coalition air strikes were carried out in eastern Syria against the Islamic State (IS), with Jordan in particular vowing to “wipe them from the face of the Earth” after the group murdered a captured pilot.

Take a look at the world’s media coverage, though, and you might be forgiven for thinking things were rather more quiet.

Silence

If you read The New York Times, you are unlikely to learn about much of this; the newspaper has no reporting from correspondents, only a Reuters report. The same is true of the Washington Post, CNN, and al-Jazeera English. And the BBC? As the attacks and the deaths mounted on February 5, its lead story was on the conviction of former pop star Gary Glitter on sexual assault charges; the corporation later made partial amends on its website with a story headlined Syria Conflict: Dozens Killed in Heavy Damascus Fighting.

However, both the BBC and Reuters articles relied heavily on the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which often passes off rumour and chatter gleaned from social media as a news “network” inside Syria.

There are obvious practical reasons why gathering and circulating important news from Syria is such a fraught business. The world’s media has had to withdraw journalists because of threats to their security, drastically elevated by the rise of Islamic State, and most local stringers have had to flee the country for the same reasons. The fog of war and the attempts by all sides to “spin” events makes independent verification a nightmare.

This is what Aleppo looks like. EPA/Ali Mustafa

But it’s still possible to provide in-depth day-to-day coverage of the conflict, with careful analysis of the political, economic, humanitarian, and military dimensions. Even a small news organisation can work with local activists, citizen journalists, and official sources from all sides to keep readers informed and ask challenging questions.

The real problem is not the impossibility of “seeing” what is happening in Syria. The problem is that instead of dealing with the complexity of the crisis, it’s much easier to cling to simple and often misleading narratives to explain what’s going on.

Towards the end of 2014, the favourite narrative (which never quite played out) could be summed up as “Assad is winning”. This year, the theme is “jihadists versus extremists versus jihadists”: this refers to both the Islamic State, which is fighting against Syria’s rebels, and to the “al-Qaeda-linked” Jabhat al-Nusra, which often fights alongside those rebels (but not always).

The international attention given to IS is of course understandable. However, overlooking the travails of Syria’s insurgents and the opposition to “Jabhat al-Nusra” is a serious distortion of the situation.

Main attraction

While its paramilitaries have proved effective enough on the battlefield, Jabhat al-Nusra provides only a fraction of the forces fighting against the Assad regime. It is small compared to the largest insurgent factions, the Islamic Front and the Free Syrian Army. These are part of blocs with the vast majority of Syria’s rebels, such as the Sham Front and Southern Front, which go almost unnoticed in Western media.

In recent months, these assorted anti-Assad groups have not only turned the tide on the Damascus regime’s forces, but have made notable advances throughout Syria. Sometimes working with Jabhat al-Nusra, they have moved into towns and villages and captured Syrian military bases.

They now control most of north-west and south-west Syria, and, in January 2015, they advanced from the south towards Damascus. They have also been battling the Islamic State throughout Syria, from Aleppo Province in the northwest to Hama and Homs Provinces in the centre, to the greater Damascus area.

But without any “jihadists” or “extremists” for the headline, it seems this real news hardly registers outside Syria itself.

This just in

Many analysts have effectively given up on thorough evaluation, since it’s far easier and more dramatic to post the latest social-media flutter about a foreign fighter. An entire website is dedicated to “Jihadology”, and a leading news agency creates “Under the Black Flag” on the Islamic State, with critiques such as “‘Watch Out For Satanic Earrings!’ IS Publishes Women’s Manifesto”.

Syrian refugees at the Turkish border. EPA/Ulas Yunus Tosun

In contrast, relatively little journalistic time is being spent monitoring the state of the Syrian opposition and the Assad regime, or indeed the situation of the many Syrian people who do not align with one of the competing sides.

The outcome is that there are two very different Syrian conflicts. On the one hand there’s the byzantine soap opera rendered in the international media, a saga of slaughter in which the villainous Islamic State outshines Assad and extremist factions upstage his other opponents. The current episode is “Jordan Unleashes Wrath on Islamic State”, in which the extent, location and impact of Jordan’s claimed air strikes are starting to become clear.

Meanwhile, the more substantial Syrian conflict – the one with another 200 deaths daily, and 300,000 since 2011, with 4m refugees worldwide and 7m people displaced inside the country – has all but disappeared from view.

Filed Under: Opinion Tagged With: IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Jordan, Media, Middle East, Syria

Fears in Jordan over attacks on ISIL

February 5, 2015 by Nasheman

Some analysts warn of dire repercussions of Jordan’s role in fighting ISIL.

Jordan's King Abdullah said his country was committed to participating in the war against ISIL.

Jordan’s King Abdullah said his country was committed to participating in the war against ISIL.

by Areej Abuqudairi, Al Jazeera

Amman: Jordan has confirmed it took part in air strikes launched against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) inside Syrian territory in the early hours of September 23.

Mohammad al-Momani, the Jordanian information minister and government spokesperson, said that his country was among four other Arab countries that participated in the air strikes.

“We aimed at attacking terrorists in their home to protect our stability, peace, and the independence of our land. Our country faces real threats by extremism,” he told Al Jazeera Arabic. He added that the operation will continue during the coming hours.

A statement issued by the Jordanian armed forces said the operation was aimed at putting an end to the infiltration and the shooting at military bases on the eastern and northern borders with Syria.

The Jordanian Armed Forces confirmed that air force participated in the attacks.

“Jordanian air force planes destroyed some selected targets of terrorist groups which had been sending their members to carry out destructive activities in Jordan,” said the statement.

“Unfortunately, attempts to penetrate the border increased in the past two months,” the statement said.

Al Jazeera contacted the armed forces to clarify who the “terrorist groups” were and the exact number of the targets and locations, but they refused to comment.

“There are no more details to add to the report,” said a senior official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Although Jordan had previously announced that it joined the US-led alliance against ISIL, overt participation in the military air strikes came as a surprise to most Jordanians.

The attacks come only one day after statements by the Jordanian Interior Minister Hussein al-Majali about “sleeping cells” in Jordan that aim to “target the kingdom”.

Majali confirmed the kingdom’s full commitment to the international alliance against ISIL.

Last week, Momani told Al Jazeera that Jordan was still examining how it would participate in fighting ISIL: “We will announce at the right time what Jordan’s role [in fighting ISIL] will be.”

Political analyst Hassan Abu Hanieh told Al Jazeera that he attributes this to “possible dramatic developments such as the advances made in northern Syria, which pushed thousands of Kurds into Turkey”.

“Jordan probably feared an attack on its land by ISIL,” Abu Hanieh added.

Other analysts said the government has been working for days to prepare the Jordanian public to accept this type of military intervention against ISIL.

“Jordanian officials repeatedly talked about the threat of terrorist groups which the country is coming under in the past weeks in order to sway public opinion to support any Jordanian role against ISIL,” a Jordanian politician told Al Jazeera.

In response to the attacks, Mohammed al-Shalbi, a leading figure of Jordan’s Salafist movement, told Al Jazeera that: “ISIL has been advised not to target Jordan but now it is a different story as the group will be in self defence mode and will seek revenge.”

Other commentators harshly criticised the move.

“Assisting foreigners in any military activities is condemned by all popular forces and it goes against Jordan’s real interests,” said Zaki Beni Arsheed, deputy head of the Muslim Brotherhood movement. “There is no interest for Jordan to transfer the Syrian conflict into the country.”

Two days ago, Jordan announced the arrest of 11 ISIL supporters and that it foiled their “attempt to carry out terrorist attacks in the country”.

In recent weeks, Jordan intensified arrests of ISIL supporters. According to Musa Abdullat, a lawyer advocating for political prisoners, in the past month, “Jordan has arrested more than 70 men accused of using the internet to promote terrorist ideas or rallying in support of the Islamic State.”

This move has been viewed by analyst Mohammed Abu Rumman as “a pre-emptive strike” against the pro-ISIL elements in Jordan. The Jordanian participation in targeting ISIL, he added, is rather symbolic.

“The most crucial role played by Amman is on the logistical and intelligence fronts,” Abu Rumman told Al Jazeera.

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: Abdullah II, Iraq, IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Jordan, Muath al-Kaseasbeh, Syria

Jordan executes prisoners after ISIL murder of pilot

February 4, 2015 by Nasheman

Two prisoners hanged after Jordan vows “earth-shattering” response to avenge burning alive of captive fighter pilot.

Kassasbeh

by Al Jazeera

Jordan executed two death-row prisoners at dawn after vowing an “earth-shattering” response to avenge the burning alive of one of its fighter pilots by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group.

Would-be Iraqi female suicide bomber Sajida al-Rishawi and Iraqi al-Qaeda member Ziad al-Karboli were hanged at dawn, government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani said.

A security source said the executions were carried out at Swaqa prison south of the capital Amman in the presence of an Islamic legal official.

Jordan had promised to begin executing the prisoners on death row at daybreak in response to the murder of Moaz al-Kassasbeh, who was captured by ISIL when his plane went down in Syria in December.

Rishawi, 44, was condemned to death for her participation in deadly attacks in Amman in 2005 and ISIL had offered to spare Kassasbeh’s life and free a Japanese hostage – who was later beheaded – if she were released.

Al Jazeera’s Nisreen El-Shamayleh, reporting from Amman, said that the executions took place at 5am local time (3:00 GMT).

“Usually, it is a long and highly bureaucratic process to carry out executions in Jordan. Several ministries and the king should approve them,” she said.

“However, a security source told Al Jazeera last week that Jordan would speed up the process if the pilot was harmed.”

Karboli was sentenced to death in 2007 on terrorism charges, including the killing of a Jordanian in Iraq.

Jordan had on Tuesday vowed to avenge the killing of Kassasbeh, hours after a harrowing video emerged online purporting to show the caged 26-year-old F-16 fighter pilot engulfed in flames.

The video – the most brutal yet in a series of gruesome recorded killings of hostages by ISIL – prompted global revulsion and vows of continued international efforts to combat the Sunni group.

Jordan, a crucial ally of Washington in the Middle East, is one of five Arab countries that has joined a US-led coalition of countries carrying out air strikes against ISIL in Syria and Iraq.

‘Vile murder’

Jordan’s King Abdullah II, who was visiting Washington as the video came to light, recorded a televised address to his shocked and outraged nation.

The king, once in the military himself, described Kassasbeh as a hero and vowed to take the battle to ISIL.

The army and government vowed to avenge the pilot’s murder, with Momani saying: “Jordan’s response will be earth-shattering.

“Whoever doubted the unity of the Jordanian people, we will prove them wrong,” he said.

US President Barack Obama, who hosted Abdullah in a hastily organised Oval Office meeting, led international condemnation of the murder, decrying the “cowardice and depravity” of ISIL.

“The president and King Abdullah reaffirmed that the vile murder of this brave Jordanian will only serve to steel the international community’s resolve to destroy ISIL,” a National Security Council spokesman said after the pair met.

The Obama administration had earlier reaffirmed its intention to give Jordan $3bn in security aid over the next three years.

Kassasbeh was captured in December when his jet crashed over northern Syria on a mission that was part of the coalition air campaign against the group.

Jordanian state television suggested he was killed on January 3, before ISIL offered to spare his life and free Japanese journalist Kenji Goto in return for Rishawi’s release.

Highly choreographed

British Prime Minister David Cameron called the murder “sickening” while UN chief Ban Ki-moon labelled it an “appalling act”.

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe condemned it as “unforgivable”.

The highly choreographed 22-minute video shows Kassasbeh at a table recounting coalition operations against ISIL, with flags from the various Western and Arab countries in the alliance projected in the background.

It then shows Kassasbeh dressed in an orange jumpsuit and surrounded by armed and masked IS fighters in camouflage.

It cuts to him standing inside a cage and apparently soaked in petrol before a masked man uses a torch to light a trail of flame that runs to the cage and burns him alive.

The video also offered rewards for the killing of other “crusader” pilots.

ISIL had previously beheaded two US journalists, an American aid worker and two British aid workers in similar highly choreographed videos.

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: Iraq, IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Jordan, Muath al-Kaseasbeh, Sajida al-Rishawi, Syria

ISIS claims to have burned alive captive Jordanian pilot

February 4, 2015 by Nasheman

Muath al-Kaseasbeh

Supporters of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) jihadist group circulated images on social media on Tuesday which they claimed showed a Jordanian hostage being burned alive.

Shortly afterwards, a member of Jordanian pilot Maaz al-Kassasbeh’s family told Reuters the head of the Jordanian armed forces had informed them he had been killed.

The highly produced 22-minute video released online showed images of a man purported to be Kassasbeh, who was captured by ISIS in December, engulfed in flames inside a metal cage.

The authenticity of the images could not be confirmed at this time.

Jordanian state television reported the Jordanian government had confirmed that the pilot had been killed on January 3. The Jordanian government hasn’t yet publicly stated if it knew how Kassasbeh had been killed.

Kassasbeh, a 26-year-old first lieutenant in the Jordanian air force, was captured on December 24 after his F-16 jet crashed while on a mission over northern Syria as part of a US-led coalition against the jihadists.

The video released on Tuesday shows footage of Kassasbeh sitting at a table discussing coalition operations against ISIS, with flags from the various Western and Arab countries in the alliance projected in the background.

It then shows Kassasbeh dressed in an orange jumpsuit and surrounded by armed and masked ISIS fighters in camouflage.

It cuts to footage allegedly showing Kassasbeh standing inside the cage and apparently soaked in petrol before a masked jihadist uses a torch to light a trail of flame that runs to the cage and burns him alive.

Fighters then pour debris, including broken masonry, over the cage which a bulldozer then flattens, with the body still inside.

The news comes two days after ISIS announced it had beheaded Japanese hostage, journalist Kenji Goto, after previously murdering another Japanese hostage, Haruna Yukawa.

An audio message that appeared to be from Goto last week said Kassasbeh would be killed if Jordan did not release Iraqi Sajida al-Rishawi, even though Kassasbeh had been killed before ISIS asked for the swap to take place. Jordan had offered to free Rishawi, who was convicted for her part in triple-hotel bombings in Amman in 2005 that killed 60 people, if ISIS released Kassasbeh. Amman insisted on proof that the pilot was alive before any exchange.

Jordan will execute Rishawi on Wednesday, an official said.

“The sentence of death pending on… Iraqi Sajida al-Rishawi will be carried out at dawn,” the security official said on Tuesday, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Jordan, along with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain are taking part in US-led coalition airstrikes against ISIS in Syria. Australia, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, France and the Netherlands are participating in Iraq.

Jordan vowed a “strong, earth-shaking and decisive” response, the government spokesman said a statement.

The Jordanian military also pledged to avenge Kassasbeh’s death.

“The blood of the martyr will not have been shed in vain and… vengeance will be proportional to this catastrophe that has struck all Jordanians,” said army spokesman General Mamdouh al-Amiri.

Meanwhile, Jordan’s King Abdullah cut a visit to the United States short after news of Kassasbeh’s death emerged.

US President Barack Obama immediately denounced the purported killing.

“Should in fact this video be authentic, it’s just one more indication of the viciousness (and) barbarity of this organization,” Obama said.

“Whatever ideology they’re operating off of, it’s bankrupt,” Obama told reporters.

He said it would “redouble the vigilance and determination on the part of the global coalition to make sure” ISIS is “ultimately defeated.”

ISIS, which has declared a “caliphate” in territories in seized in Syria and Iraq, has killed thousands of citizens and soldiers in both countries. It has particularly targeted ethnic and religious minorities, as well as foreign hostages, some of them in highly-choreographed videotaped sequences in which the victims are beheaded.

(AFP, Reuters, Al-Akhbar)

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: Iraq, IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Jordan, Muath al-Kaseasbeh, Syria

ISIL sets sunset deadline for hostage swap

January 29, 2015 by Nasheman

ISIL threatens to kill a Jordanian pilot if al-Qaeda-linked female prisoner is not released by sunset on Thursday.

ISIL threatened to killed pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh if death row prisoner Sajida al-Rishawi was not released by sunset on Thursday [EPA]

ISIL threatened to killed pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh if death row prisoner Sajida al-Rishawi was not released by sunset on Thursday [EPA]

by Al Jazeera

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group set a deadline for Jordan to release an al-Qaeda-linked female prisoner, saying the group would kill a Jordanian pilot it holds “immediately” if the women is not freed by sunset on Thursday.

In a new audio recording a voice identifying itself as Japanese freelancer Kenji Goto said his captors would kill pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh if Iraqi death row prisoner Sajida al-Rishawi is not handed over by the end of the day.

“If Sajida al-Rishawi is not ready for exchange for my life at the Turkish border by Thursday sunset, 29th of January, Mosul time, the Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh will be killed immediately,” Goto said, in an unverified audio message distributed by ISIL-linked Twitter accounts.

It was not clear from the message if either Goto or Kasasbeh would be freed.

The recording was reported by monitoring group SITE Intelligence.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told parliament: “We are aware of the new message…(and) are verifying (its authenticity).”

The apparent communication breaks an anxious silence from the group since their previous 24-hour deadline for Rishawi expired, around 14:00 GMT Wednesday.

Amman had offered to free the Iraqi woman, who was convicted for her part in 2005 triple-hotel bombings in the Jordanian capital that killed 60 people, if the ISIL released their airman.

“Jordan is ready to release the prisoner Sajida al-Rishawi if the Jordanian pilot is freed unharmed,” state television quoted a government spokesman as saying on Wednesday.

“From the start, the position of Jordan was to ensure the safety of our son, the pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh,” it added. The government spokesman made no mention of Japanese hostage Goto.

‘Save my son’

Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh wrote on Twitter shortly before 15:00 GMT that his country was still awaiting confirmation that the pilot was safe.

Wednesday passed in a maelstrom of conflicting reports on the fate of the three key players, complicated by linguistic and cultural misunderstandings, and by the high stakes on all sides.

The atmosphere was tense in Jordan, where the country’s involvement in the US-led air raids against ISIL positions is contentious.

The downing on December 24 of Kasasbeh’s F-16 fighter jet over northern Syria and his subsequent capture and humiliation by ISIL exacerbated the situation.

This week the pilot’s father begged the government to save his son “at any price”.

Japan, which plays no military part in the fight against ISIL, was thrust onto the front line last week when a video appeared in which Goto and Haruna Yukawa, a self-described contractor, were seen kneeling in the desert.

A masked knifeman said Tokyo had 72 hours to pay a $200m ransom if it wanted to spare their lives.

When that deadline expired, new pictures appeared to show Yukawa had been beheaded, and a voice identifying itself as Goto demanded the release of Rishawi.

That twist left Japan pleading with Jordan, whose trump card-high-value al-Qaeda operative Rishawi – in the battle to get back its own captured airman had now been compromised.

In their next communication, on Tuesday, ISIL demanded Rishawi be handed over in exchange for Goto within 24 hours or both he and Kasasbeh would be killed.

Japan, a large donor to Jordan, has thrown itself on Amman’s mercy, aware that they hold the key to Goto’s safety, but also knowing that intense domestic pressure means the Jordanians must prioritise Kasasbeh.

The Japanese public has rallied round Goto, a respected war reporter and humanitarian, and though they are largely supportive of Abe’s handling of the crisis thus far, may take a dim view if he does not come home alive.

Goto’s mother, Junko Ishido, was at Japan’s parliament on Wednesday in a failed bid to meet Abe. After being refused an appointment, she issued a plea for her son’s life through assembled media.

“Prime Minister Shinzo Abe,” Ishido said. “Please continue your utmost efforts in negotiating with the Jordanian government until the last minute. There is not much time left.”

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Japan, Jordan, Muath al-Kaseasbeh, Sajida al-Rishawi

Japan seeks help from Jordan on ISIL hostage

January 28, 2015 by Nasheman

Efforts to free Japanese journalist and Jordanian pilot comes after ISIL threatens to kill the two within 24 hours.

About 200 relatives of captured Jordanian pilot protested outside the prime minister's office in Amman [AP]

About 200 relatives of captured Jordanian pilot protested outside the prime minister’s office in Amman [AP]

by Al Jazeera

Japan is seeking help from the Jordanian government after the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIL) group released a new video threatening to kill Japanese journalist Kenji Goto and Jordanian pilot Muath al-Kaseasbeh held hostage within 24 hours.

Japanese and Jordanian officials were reportedly holding talks over ISIL’s demand for the release of Sajida al-Rishawi, an Iraqi woman convicted for her part in multiple bombings in Amman in 2005 that killed 60 people, in exchange for Goto and al-Kaseasbeh.

An angry Japanese prime minister on Wednesday slammed as “utterly despicable” the threat to kill both hostages.

“The government, in this extremely severe situation, has been asking for the Jordanian government’s cooperation towards the early release of Mr Goto, and this policy remains unchanged,” Shinzo Abe said.

After initially demanding a $200 million ransom for the release of the two Japanese men, the group said it wanted Jordan to free Sajida al-Rishawi, a would-be suicide bomber who has been on death row since 2006.

Goto was abducted by fighters in October last year after venturing into Syria on a mission to free his friend Haruna Yukawa.

Yukawa was apparently executed last week after Japan failed to meet an initial $270m ransom demand by Friday.

Parents of hostages plea

Goto’s mother Junko Ishido read to reporters a plea to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday to “Please save Kenji,” which she said she had sent earlier in the day.

She begged Abe to work with the Jordanian government to try to save Goto, saying “Kenji has only a little time left.”

Safi al-Kaseasbeh, the father of the Jordanian hostage, made a last-ditch appeal for Jordan “to meet the demands” of ISIL to secure his release.

Several hundred people, including relatives of the Jordanian pilot, gathered in front of the office of Jordan’s prime minister late on Tuesday, urging the authorities to meet the ISIL demands and release al-Rishawi to save the young pilot’s life.

A member of Jordan’s parliament said the country was in indirect talks with the fighters to secure the hostages’ release.

Bassam Al-Manasseer, chairman of the foreign affairs committee, told Bloomberg News that the negotiations are taking place through religious and tribal leaders in Iraq, adding that Jordan and Japan will not negotiate directly with ISIL and will not free al-Rishawi in exchange for Goto only.

Manaseer’s comments were the strongest suggestion yet that authorities in Jordan and Japan may be open to a prisoner exchange, something that would go against the policy of the kingdom’s main ally, the US, which opposes negotiating with armed groups.

Japan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Yasuhide Nakayama was in Amman to coordinate hostage-release efforts with Jordan, but refused comment on details of the talks early on Wednesday.

Filed Under: Muslim World Tagged With: IS, ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Japan, Jordan, Muath al-Kaseasbeh

  • 1
  • 2
  • Next Page »

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

KNOW US

  • About Us
  • Corporate News
  • FAQs
  • NewsVoir
  • Newswire
  • Realtor arrested for NRI businessman’s murder in Andhra Pradesh

GET INVOLVED

  • Corporate News
  • Letters to Editor
  • NewsVoir
  • Newswire
  • Realtor arrested for NRI businessman’s murder in Andhra Pradesh
  • Submissions

PROMOTE

  • Advertise
  • Corporate News
  • Events
  • NewsVoir
  • Newswire
  • Realtor arrested for NRI businessman’s murder in Andhra Pradesh

Archives

  • May 2025 (9)
  • April 2025 (50)
  • March 2025 (35)
  • February 2025 (34)
  • January 2025 (43)
  • December 2024 (83)
  • November 2024 (82)
  • October 2024 (156)
  • September 2024 (202)
  • August 2024 (165)
  • July 2024 (169)
  • June 2024 (161)
  • May 2024 (107)
  • April 2024 (104)
  • March 2024 (222)
  • February 2024 (229)
  • January 2024 (102)
  • December 2023 (142)
  • November 2023 (69)
  • October 2023 (74)
  • September 2023 (93)
  • August 2023 (118)
  • July 2023 (139)
  • June 2023 (52)
  • May 2023 (38)
  • April 2023 (48)
  • March 2023 (166)
  • February 2023 (207)
  • January 2023 (183)
  • December 2022 (165)
  • November 2022 (229)
  • October 2022 (224)
  • September 2022 (177)
  • August 2022 (155)
  • July 2022 (123)
  • June 2022 (190)
  • May 2022 (204)
  • April 2022 (310)
  • March 2022 (273)
  • February 2022 (311)
  • January 2022 (329)
  • December 2021 (296)
  • November 2021 (277)
  • October 2021 (237)
  • September 2021 (234)
  • August 2021 (221)
  • July 2021 (237)
  • June 2021 (364)
  • May 2021 (282)
  • April 2021 (278)
  • March 2021 (293)
  • February 2021 (192)
  • January 2021 (222)
  • December 2020 (170)
  • November 2020 (172)
  • October 2020 (187)
  • September 2020 (194)
  • August 2020 (61)
  • July 2020 (58)
  • June 2020 (56)
  • May 2020 (36)
  • March 2020 (48)
  • February 2020 (109)
  • January 2020 (162)
  • December 2019 (174)
  • November 2019 (120)
  • October 2019 (104)
  • September 2019 (88)
  • August 2019 (159)
  • July 2019 (122)
  • June 2019 (66)
  • May 2019 (276)
  • April 2019 (393)
  • March 2019 (477)
  • February 2019 (448)
  • January 2019 (693)
  • December 2018 (736)
  • November 2018 (572)
  • October 2018 (611)
  • September 2018 (692)
  • August 2018 (667)
  • July 2018 (469)
  • June 2018 (440)
  • May 2018 (616)
  • April 2018 (774)
  • March 2018 (338)
  • February 2018 (159)
  • January 2018 (189)
  • December 2017 (142)
  • November 2017 (122)
  • October 2017 (146)
  • September 2017 (178)
  • August 2017 (201)
  • July 2017 (222)
  • June 2017 (155)
  • May 2017 (205)
  • April 2017 (156)
  • March 2017 (178)
  • February 2017 (195)
  • January 2017 (149)
  • December 2016 (143)
  • November 2016 (169)
  • October 2016 (167)
  • September 2016 (137)
  • August 2016 (115)
  • July 2016 (117)
  • June 2016 (125)
  • May 2016 (171)
  • April 2016 (152)
  • March 2016 (201)
  • February 2016 (202)
  • January 2016 (217)
  • December 2015 (210)
  • November 2015 (177)
  • October 2015 (284)
  • September 2015 (243)
  • August 2015 (250)
  • July 2015 (188)
  • June 2015 (216)
  • May 2015 (281)
  • April 2015 (306)
  • March 2015 (297)
  • February 2015 (280)
  • January 2015 (245)
  • December 2014 (287)
  • November 2014 (254)
  • October 2014 (185)
  • September 2014 (98)
  • August 2014 (8)

Copyright © 2025 · News Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in