ISLAMABAD: Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah has confirmed to Arab News that the Punjab Government has seized all assets belonging to Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD), including seminaries and medical centers.
JuD is widely regarded as a front for the militant Islamist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba, recognized as a terrorist group by a number of countries.
“JuD is a banned organization and the Punjab government has taken over all its assets,” Sanaullah told Arab News on Thursday.
“We have implemented the law,” he said. “JuD is no longer a legal entity in our province.”
Pakistan had initiated a seize-freeze-and-control operation against JuD and its charity wing, the Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation (FIF), after the Interior Ministry issued a notification against them on Wednesday.
The notification was circulated just two days after President Mamnoon Hussain announced an amended Anti-Terrorism Ordinance, 2018, to include individuals and organizations on the UN Security Council (UNSC) terror list.
Both JuD and FIF are linked to Hafiz Saeed, whom India accuses of masterminding the November 2008 attacks in Mumbai. Saeed has a $10 million bounty on his head.
While Saeed has been put under house arrest several times in the past, his legal team has thus far always managed to clear him due to insufficient evidence.
Pakistan’s decision to seize JuD’s assets comes just ahead of next week’s Paris meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Foreign Ministry spokesman Dr. Mohammed Faisal expressed concerns on Thursday regarding FATF’s motion to place Pakistan on a watch list.
“Such motions are aimed at hampering the economic growth of Pakistan,” he claimed.
Zahid Hussain, a senior analyst, said Pakistan has no choice but to act against such groups before the FATF convenes its meeting next week.
“Pakistan’s reluctance to take action against Saeed was largely due to its fear that his organization could side with other militant factions,” Zahid said.
JuD spokesperson, Yahya Mujahid, said in a written statement that this is a very difficult time, but urged JuD members to be “peaceful and patient.”
“We have already fought a legal battle against the government’s unconstitutional and illegal decisions, and we will claim our right through Islamic law,” he said.
In December last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a notification to all corporate entities, urging them to stop funding individuals and organizations banned by the UNSC.
The proscribed groups include Al-Qaeda, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Tehreek-e-Taliban, Lashkar-e-Taiba, JuD and FIF.
Staff working for Saeed’s religious and charity organizations will be investigated by a government task force, which will also conduct financial audits to get more information on the funding and expenses of these organizations.
Retired army officer and analyst Brig. Harris Nawaz told Arab News that he believes the government will struggle to uncover financial irregularities in the accounts of JuD and FIF.
He also suggested the government had taken on a heavy burden, since Saeed’s religious and charity organizations operate across Pakistan.
“The government will need a good team to take over Muridke Markaz (the organization’s headquarters) and later run its charity wing, which currently employs 50,000 volunteers and salaried staff,” said Nawaz.
Pakistan seizes assets of terror group Jamaat-ud-Dawa
Pakistan seizes assets of terror group Jamaat-ud-Dawa
Ukrainian attack damaged 10 percent of Russia’s strategic bombers, Germany says
US estimates that Ukraine’s audacious drone attack hit as many as 20 Russian warplanes
BERLIN: A Ukrainian drone attack last weekend likely damaged around 10 percent of Russia’s strategic bomber fleet and hit some of the aircraft as they were being prepared for strikes on Ukraine, a senior German military official said.
“According to our assessment, more than a dozen aircraft were damaged, TU-95 and TU-22 strategic bombers as well as A-50 surveillance planes,” German Major General Christian Freuding said in a YouTube podcast reviewed by Reuters ahead of its publication later on Saturday.
The affected A-50s, which function similarly to NATO’s AWACS planes by providing aerial situational awareness, were likely non-operational when they were hit, said the general who coordinates Berlin’s military aid to Kyiv and is in close touch with the Ukrainian defense ministry.
“We believe that they can no longer be used for spare parts. This is a loss, as only a handful of these aircraft exist,” he said. “As for the long-range bomber fleet, 10 percent of it has been damaged in the attack according to our assessment.”
The United States estimates that Ukraine’s audacious drone attack hit as many as 20 Russian warplanes, destroying around 10 of them, two US officials told Reuters, and experts say Moscow will take years to replace the affected planes.
Despite the losses, Freuding does not see any immediate reduction of Russian strikes against Ukraine, noting that Moscow still retains 90 percent of its strategic bombers which can launch ballistic and cruise missiles in addition to dropping bombs.
“But there is, of course, an indirect effect as the remaining planes will need to fly more sorties, meaning they will be worn out faster, and, most importantly, there is a huge psychological impact.”
Freuding said Russia had felt safe in its vast territory, which also explained why there was little protection for the aircraft.
“After this successful operation, this no longer holds true. Russia will need to ramp up the security measures.”
According to Freuding, Ukraine attacked two air fields around 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Moscow, as well as the Olenya air field in the Murmansk region and the Belaya air field, with drones trained with the help of artificial intelligence.
A fifth attack on the Ukrainka air field near the Chinese border failed, he said.
The bombers that were hit were part of Russia’s so-called nuclear triad which enables nuclear weapons deployment by air, sea and ground, he added.
For Rohingya mothers, Eid marks rare chance to serve meat for family
- Around 1.3 million Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh are dependent on food aid
- Their meals normally lack proper nutrition, as assistance consists mostly of rice, lentils, oil
DHAKA: As she prepared for Eid Al-Adha celebrations on Saturday, Nikash Tara could not recall the last time she served a proper meal for her family.
In the cramped camps of Cox’s Bazar, a nutritious meal was a near-impossible treat available only during special occasions and solely dependent on charitable contributions.
Most days, Rohingya refugee mothers like Tara could only rely on food rations, which have been slashed in recent years due to insufficient funding.
“It was probably during Eid Al-Fitr when we last had a truly nutritious meal … We survive on the food rations, which are not enough now. Sometimes, I skip meals so that my children can eat,” Tara told Arab News.
“We get rice, lentils, and oil, but no vegetables, no milk. It’s hard to call it a ‘meal,’ let alone nutritious.”
Eid Al-Adha, known as the “Feast of Sacrifice” and one of the two most important holidays for Muslims, is the first time this year that the mother of three gets to serve meat for her family.
Eid Al-Adha commemorates the Prophet Ibrahim’s test of faith when he was commanded by God to sacrifice his son. To reflect his readiness to do so, Muslims around the world slaughter an animal, usually a goat, sheep or cow, and distribute the meat among relatives and the poor.
“On the occasion of Eid, we received a small portion of meat … I prepared a curry with potato and the meat I received. Although it’s not much in quantity, it made the children happy, as it is a chance to have a meal with beef for the first time this year,” Tara said.
“It hurts me as a mother. My heart breaks when my children get excited over a single good meal. It reminds me how little they get on normal days. Eid should be joyful, but I cry inside, knowing my children are being deprived every other day of the year. I feel helpless.”
Mizanur Rahman, refugee relief and repatriation commissioner in Cox’s Bazar, said this year the camps received 1,800 cattle and 350 goats for Eid sacrifice, donated by various Muslim and local nongovernmental organizations.
“In addition to that, different organizations and philanthropists promised to deliver 50,000 kg of fresh meat to be distributed on the day of Eid Al-Adha,” Rahman told Arab News.
The donations will help Bangladeshi authorities to “reach many of the Rohingya families … (and) offer them a feast on the occasion of Eid,” he added.
Bangladesh hosts about 1.3 million Rohingya Muslims, who, for decades, have fled neighboring Myanmar to escape persecution, especially during a military crackdown in 2017 that the UN has been referring to as a “textbook case” of ethnic cleansing.
The majority of them now live in Cox’s Bazar in eastern Bangladesh, which has become the world’s largest refugee settlement. Over the years, humanitarian conditions in the squalid camps have been deteriorating, with aid continuously declining since the COVID-19 pandemic. The Rohingya also have limited access to job opportunities and education.
With nobody able to earn a living, Mariam Khatun’s family was among those entirely dependent on food aid.
“With little food aid and in a life with no earning opportunity, for my children, a decent meal is something unimaginable,” Khatun told Arab News.
Though Eid was a joyful occasion, she said it was “painful that joy comes only once or twice a year.
“It breaks my heart when the children look at the meat and ask: ‘Will we eat this again tomorrow?’ I have no answer.”
Before fleeing her village in Myanmar, the 29-year-old mother of two used to prepare spicy beef curry, her children’s favorite, frying the meat until it was crispy.
“But here, I barely have them. We rely fully on the food rations, but the amount has been cut so much. It’s not enough for a full month,” she said.
“Maybe only on this Eid, we got a little meat. That’s the only time this year my children got something with some nutrition. We’re not living; we’re just trying not to starve.”
Fire on cargo ship off Alaska carrying EVs left burning
- Alaskan coast guard received a distress call on Tuesday reporting a fire onboard the Morning Midas
- The 22 crew members evacuated on a lifeboat before being rescued by another private vessel
WASHINGTON: A fire on a cargo ship carrying electric vehicles off the coast of Alaska was left burning with salvage teams expected to intervene on Monday, according to media reports.
The Alaskan coast guard received a distress call on Tuesday reporting a fire onboard the Morning Midas, a British-managed cargo ship with 22 crew members and carrying thousands of vehicles.
The crew evacuated on a lifeboat before being rescued by another private vessel.
An overflight of the cargo ship, currently located around 547 kilometers southwest of Adak, confirmed the ship was still burning on Wednesday, the coast guard said in a statement.
“Currently, there are no visual indications that the ship is taking on water or listing, and the extent of the damage is unknown,” it said.
Dustin Eno, a spokesman for the ship’s management company Zodiac Maritime, said there were no firefighting vessels nearby to help extinguish the blaze, the New York Times reported.
A salvage team was expected to arrive on Monday, the outlet and the Los Angeles Times said.
Video footage released by the coast guard shows smoke rising from the 183-meter vessel, which is reported to be carrying more than 3,000 vehicles, around 750 of which are electric or hybrid.
Electric vehicles contain lithium-ion batteries, which are generally safe but can overheat and ignite if damaged.
The ship is also estimated to be carrying hundreds of metric tons of gas fuel, according to the coast guard.
Russia accuses Ukraine of ‘postponing’ POW swap
MOSCOW: Russia on Saturday accused Ukraine of postponing a large-scale prisoner swap and the repatriation of the bodies of dead soldiers they had agreed on during peace talks in Istanbul.
“The Ukrainian side has unexpectedly postponed for an indefinite period, both the acceptance of the bodies and the exchange of prisoners of war,” Russia’s top negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said on social media.
Delegations from Moscow and Kyiv agreed on Monday to swap all wounded soldiers and those under the age of 25 who were still held as POWs.
It was the only concrete outcome from the talks, at which Russia has repeatedly rejected Ukrainian calls for an immediate ceasefire.
Medinsky said Russia had brought the bodies of 1,212 killed Ukrainian soldiers to the “exchange area” — the first of 6,000 to be handed over.
Moscow had also handed over a list to Kyiv with the names of 640 POWs to be swapped in the first stage.
More than 1,000 prisoners from each side are set to be released in the largest exchange of the three-year conflict.
“We urge Kyiv to strictly adhere to the timetable and all agreements reached, and begin the exchange immediately,” Medinsky said.
Kyiv did not immediately respond to the accusation.
After the Istanbul talks, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the exchange would take place this weekend, while Russia said it was ready for Saturday, Sunday or Monday.
A top Taliban official offers amnesty to Afghans who fled the country and urges them to return
- Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund made the amnesty offer in his message for the Islamic holiday of Eid Al Adha
A top Taliban official said on Saturday that all Afghans who fled the country after the collapse of the former Western-backed government are free to return home, promising they would not be harmed if they come back.
Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund made the amnesty offer in his message for the Islamic holiday of Eid Al-Adha, also known as the “Feast of Sacrifice.”
The offer comes days after US President Donald Trump announced a sweeping travel ban on 12 countries, including Afghanistan. The measure largely bars Afghans hoping to resettle in the United States permanently as well as those hoping to go to the US temporarily, such as for university study.
Trump also suspended a core refugee program in January, all but ending support for Afghans who had allied with the US and leaving tens of thousands of them stranded.
Afghans in neighboring Pakistan who are awaiting resettlement are also dealing with a deportation drive by the Islamabad government to get them out of the country. Almost a million have left Pakistan since October 2023 to avoid arrest and expulsion.
Akhund’s holiday message was posted on the social platform X.
“Afghans who have left the country should return to their homeland,” he said. “Nobody will harm them.”
“Come back to your ancestral land and live in an atmosphere of peace,” he added, and instructed officials to properly manage services for returning refugees and to ensure they were given shelter and support.
He also used the occasion to criticize the media for making what he said were “false judgments” about Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers and their policies.
“We must not allow the torch of the Islamic system to be extinguished,” he said. “The media should avoid false judgments and should not minimize the accomplishments of the system. While challenges exist, we must remain vigilant.”
The Taliban swept into the capital Kabul and seized most of Afghanistan in a blitz in mid-August 2021 as the US and NATO forces were in the last weeks of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war.
The offensive prompted a mass exodus, with tens of thousands of Afghans thronging the airport in chaotic scenes, hoping for a flight out on the US military airlift. People also fled across the border, to neighboring Iran and Pakistan.
Among those escaping the new Taliban rulers were also former government officials, journalists, activists, those who had helped the US during its campaign against the Taliban.
