New York - Asharq Al-Awsat
The signing ceremony between Muslim World League and Columbia University (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Muslim World League (MWL) partnered with Columbia University to launch the International Interfaith Lab. MWL Sec-Gen Mohammed al-Issa witnessed the signing of the agreement along with Cardinal of the Great Cathedral in New York Timothy Dolan, Chief Rabbi Arthur Schneier, university leaders, and members of the US Congress. The International Interfaith Lab aims to build capabilities against hatred, violence, and civilizational clash. It will be a global platform for research and training in protecting societies from all forms of hate and a center for research, leadership, and training to protect against all forms of hatred based on religion or race. Issa expressed happiness at Columbia University hosting the project to address forms of hatred, racism, and violence worldwide, through multiple options. He indicated that the project would be developed through research and training, meaning that the world's problems can be summed up without agreed common values, which leads to a lack of logic, justice, and reason. The Sec-Gen warned that the world is threatened by the spread of hatred and racism, reiterating the importance of creating a more understanding, peaceful world and societies that are more coexistent and harmonious. The laboratory will develop reliable training programs for teachers to deter the dangers of extremism, strengthen protection against global hate and discrimination, promote joint efforts, and support initiatives and research to improve coexistence and cooperation in creating a more peaceful and cooperative world. On the side of the inauguration, the university held an international symposium led by the MWL Sec-Gen, during which he discussed the shared values and methods of confronting the challenges and dangers of hate.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4018076/mwl-launch-international-interfaith-lab
China Signals Zero-Covid Relaxation after Nationwide Protests
World
Asharq A-Awsat
Epidemic-prevention workers in protective suits line up to get swab tested as outbreaks of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue in Beijing, China November 28, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Peter
China's top Covid official has softened his tone on the severity of the coronavirus and signaled a possible relaxing of the country's strict zero-tolerance approach to the virus, after nationwide protests calling for an end to lockdowns and greater political freedom. Anger over China's zero-Covid policy -- which involves mass lockdowns, constant testing and quarantines even for people who are not infected -- has sparked protests in major cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. But while authorities have called for a "crackdown" in the wake of the demonstrations, they have also begun hinting that a relaxation of the hardline virus strategy could be in the works. Speaking at the National Health Commission Wednesday, Vice Premier Sun Chunlan said the Omicron variant was weakening and vaccination rates were improving, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. Sun said this "new situation" required "new tasks". She made no mention of the zero-Covid policy in her latest remarks, suggesting an approach that has disrupted the economy and daily life might soon be relaxed. The comments came as the southern manufacturing-hub Guangzhou -- the site of dramatic Tuesday night clashes between police and protesters -- said it had partially lifted a weeks-long lockdown, despite seeing record virus cases. Officials on Wednesday eased restrictions to varying degrees in all of the city's 11 districts, including Haizhu, where recent protests took place. With the exception of a number of designated "high-risk" neighborhoods, the Guangzhou health commission said, "the rest will be managed as low-risk areas." The central city of Chongqing also said Wednesday close contacts of Covid cases who met certain conditions would be allowed to quarantine at home -- a departure from rules that required them to be sent to central isolation facilities. Sun's remarks -- as well as relaxations of rules by local authorities -- "could signal that China is beginning to consider the end of its stringent zero-Covid policy," analysts said. "We believe that Chinese authorities are shifting to a 'living with Covid' stance, as reflected in new rules that allow people to do 'home isolation' instead of being ferried away to quarantine facilities," ANZ Research analysts said in a note. Expectations have grown around the world that China, while still trying to contain infections, could look to re-open at some point next year once it achieves better vaccination rates among its elderly. China's health authority said on Wednesday that it would aim to improve accessibility and launch targeted programs in nursing homes and leisure facilities as part of a new vaccination drive among the over-60s. It also pledged to make renewed efforts to publicize the benefits of vaccination, and persuading the old and vulnerable that it is both safe and effective could be the most challenging part of the campaign.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4018056/china-signals-zero-covid-relaxation-after-nationwide-protests
Asharq A-Awsat
Saleh Al-Shehri (C) of Saudi Arabia in action against Jorge Sanchez (R) of Mexico during the FIFA World Cup 2022 group C soccer match between Saudi Arabia and Mexico at Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, 30 November 2022. EPA/Abedin Taherkenareh
Saudi Arabia’s Salem Aldawsari scored on Wednesday in second-half stoppage time against Mexico. But Saudi Arabia was eliminated along with Mexico despite beating Argentina in its opening match. Mexico beat Saudi Arabia 2-1. Saudi Arabia had one of the tournament’s biggest ever upsets ever when it beat Argentina 2-1. But the Green Falcons couldn’t pull off another surprise in its second match, a 2-0 loss to Poland. “Tonight it was difficult to breathe with the intensity Mexico put into the match," Saudi Arabia coach Herve Renard said Wednesday. Also Wednesday, Tunisia stunned France when captain Wahbi Khazri stretched to poke the ball past French goalkeeper Steve Mandanda in the 58th minute at the Education City Stadium. A second-string France side -- already virtually assured of top spot -- suffered a 1-0 loss to Tunisia. The north Africans' supporters counted down the final seconds to a famous victory over France that eased the pain of elimination. "They still had top-class players out there but we were superb and I think the result is down to us," Tunisia goalscorer Khazri said. "Unfortunately in football it is better not to have to rely on others for results, but we can go out with our heads held high."
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4017976/saudi-arabia-tunisia-leave-world-cup
Saudi Arabia Allows Citizens to Invite Friends to Visit, Perform Umrah
Gulf
Asharq Al-Awsat
Saudis can invite their friends to visit and perform Umrah through an easy e-process. SPA
Saudi Arabia announced a new mechanism for Saudi citizens to obtain personal visit visas to invite their friends to tour around the Kingdom and perform Umrah. This step comes within the framework of efforts to increase the number of foreign visitors in line with the objectives of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said visa holders will be allowed to travel in the regions and cities across the Kingdom as well as to perform Umrah, visit the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, in addition to visiting religious, and historical sites, and take part in cultural events. The ministry stated that the visa application process is made much easier and simpler through the eVisa platform of the ministry’s website. The personal visit visa request can be submitted through the Individual Service section of the eVisa platform and logging in through the Nafadh unified national platform, and filling out the data for those to be invited by requesting a personal visit, and approving the necessary undertakings. The ministry added that the person who is invited to visit would complete the process of paying fees and medical insurance after filling out the entry visa application form on the visa platform and then submit the application and passport to the embassy or consulate of Saudi Arabia in the guest country or through the centers or offices accredited to the embassy or consulate. They can come to the Kingdom through all the air, land, and sea ports after obtaining the entry visa stamped passport.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4017971/saudi-arabia-allows-citizens-invite-friends-visit-perform-umrah
Seven US Betrayals of Kurds within a Century… Will It Fail Them Again in Syria?
Features
London – Ibrahim Hamidi
A US patrol monitors a position between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Syrian opposition factions supported by Türkiye in the countryside of Hasakah, east of the Euphrates, in December 2021. (AFP)
If the reaction to Turkish incursions or continued aerial bombardment against Kurdish targets in northern Syria does not meet Kurdish expectations and demands, it wouldn’t be the first time Kurds are betrayed by the US or the West. In the past century, the global and regional balance of power has changed. The Ottoman Empire collapsed, France and Britain retreated in the world and the Arab region, and US influence grew. However, four issues remained “fixed,” namely: First, 40 million Kurds continue to dream of establishing landlocked independent entities or administrations in the four countries in which they live: Türkiye, Syria, Iraq and Iran. Second, these four countries, despite the many differences between them, have found consensus on coordinating against the Kurds. Third, major or regional powers have long used Kurds as a tool in their struggles against each other, and to achieve certain goals. For example, the US-led International Coalition has used the Kurds as an essential component in the war against ISIS. Fourth, US administrations changed, but the betrayals were repeated. Kurdish leaderships changed in different geographical areas, and the wounds of those betrayals remained. Disappointments and stings Here is a reminder of seven Kurdish disappointments and Western-American stings over a hundred years: 1 - After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and its defeat in World War I, the Treaty of Sevres in 1920 allocated space for the Kurds in Türkiye to establish autonomy over a region outside Syria, Iraq and Iran. After Ankara's opposition, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s rise to power and with Washington’s support, the Kurds got a first taste of the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, which opened the door for Paris and London to share the Fertile Crescent in Syria and Iraq, and the promises of the Treaty of Sevres went unheeded. The region promised to Kurds by the great powers in eastern Anatolia, had finally gone to the fledgling Republic of Türkiye. As is the case with the US, Britain flirted with Ataturk by saying that it preferred the relationship with Ankara at the expense of supporting the Kurdish “Republic of Ararat.” This led to a large exodus of Kurds from southern Türkiye to neighboring countries, especially northeastern Syria. Later, Baathist Damascus often used the issue of immigration in its rhetoric against the Kurds and repeatedly said: “They are not Syrians.” 2 - After decades of Kurdish revolution and immigration in Türkiye, the US supported Iraqi Kurds against the regime of Abd al-Karim Qasim after he came to power in 1958, and then supported the coup that overthrew him in February 1963. The new Baathist regime in Iraq took a tough stance on the Kurds. When Iraqi Baathists grew closer to the Soviet Union, Washington cooperated with Tehran, which was ruled at that time by the Shah, in arming and supporting the Kurds with the aim of destabilizing the situation in Iraq. The support to the Kurds was repeated in the 70’s, not with the aim of establishing a Kurdish state, but rather to create unrest inside Iraq to impede any Syrian-Iraqi rapprochement after the signing of the Camp David Accords and Egypt’s exit from the Arab equation. According to former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, military support for the Kurds was never aimed at championing the Kurds as much as it aimed at weakening Baghdad’s rule. The Pike Committee’s report to the US Congress included details like Kissinger’s statement and an assertion that “this policy was not transferred to our clients (the Kurds), whom we encouraged to continue fighting.” Later, the US sponsored an agreement between Saddam Hussein, who represented President Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, and the Shah of Iran in December 1975. Tehran then abandoned its support for the Iraqi Kurds, with the blessing of the administration of the new US President Gerald Ford. 3 - Iraqi Kurds were subjected to more than one blow by the US in the 1980s and 90s. The administration of President Roland Reagan was silent on Baghdad's use of chemical weapons in Iraqi Kurdistan. Blows of the 1990s As for the George H. W. Bush administration, it encouraged the Iraqis to move against Baghdad after the Gulf War in 1991, and then abandoned them. Bush himself called on the Iraqi army and the Iraqi people to take matters into their own hands, to force the Saddam Hussein to step down, but he did not do much when the Shiites in southern Iraq and the Kurds near the borders of Syria rose up. However, the US imposed an air embargo that allowed the Kurds to flourish in the second half of the 90s. This rise of Kurds was met with Syrian-Turkish-Iranian coordination to prevent its transformation into a Kurdish “microstate” on the borders that would inspire fellow Kurdish countrymen in Syria, Türkiye and Iran. 4 - After the events of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush ordered the invasion of Iraq. There was coordination with the Kurds and their political leaders, and they became among the main winners from the change of the Iraqi regime. Their gains were further reinforced when the US relied on them in the war against ISIS. In 2017, the former president of the Kurdistan region, Masoud Barzani, wanted to benefit from the support of the US-led International Coalition by taking a step in establishing a Kurdish entity, so he wanted to organize a referendum for self-determination and independence for the region. The shock or betrayal came when the US clearly declared its reservations about this step. 5 - After the change in Iraq in 2003 and the emergence of the Kurds, the aspirations of the Syrian Kurds revived and they rose up in March 2004, but their movement did not receive any Western backing. Years earlier, when Türkiye mobilized its army on the borders of Syria in 1998 and demanded the expulsion of the leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Abdullah Ocalan, from Damascus. Washington and its allies supported Ankara’s position, knowing that the PKK is on Western terrorist lists. Ocalan left Syria, and the PKK were subjected to strikes by security coordination between Damascus and Ankara. This was until the eruption of protests in Syria in 2011, when Damascus decided to facilitate the emergence of the role of the Kurds against other Syrian opposition. Plan backfires 6 - Damascus’ plan to use the Kurds backfired. The Kurds became strong and Damascus weakened. The US joined the Kurds in the fight against ISIS, which expanded after 2014, and provided them with military support and air cover. The US relied mainly on the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), which Ankara considers an extension of the PKK. After ISIS was defeated by the Kurds and the International Coalition, an umbrella was formed that allowed the Kurds to establish a self-administration and a military force that would soon control a quarter of Syria and most of strategic resources found in the country’s northeast. The emergence of this entity called “Rojava” worried Ankara, Damascus and Tehran. Türkiye shifted its priorities in Syria, from “toppling the regime” to expanding in Syrian territory. It concluded settlements with Russia in 2016, 2018 and 2019 that focused on taking apart the Kurdish entity in northern Syria and preventing its access to Mediterranean waters. This happened with Russian support and under US silence. But the new betrayal happened later. 7 - At the end of 2019, former US President Donald Trump suddenly decided to withdraw his forces from the borders of Syria and Türkiye. The Kurds considered this decision a betrayal by the US as it allowed a rapid Turkish incursion and shook the pillars of the Rojava, its forces, and its war against ISIS. After marathon negotiations, US-Turkish and Russian-Turkish agreements were concluded. Ankara obtained commitments from the two major powers to have the YPG withdraw 30 km from borders. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is currently saying that Washington and Moscow did not abide by the 2019 agreements. Consequently, he escalated drone strikes against “Kurdish targets.” Erdogan is currently betting on the strength of his position due to the Ukraine war and Washington and Moscow’s need for him. This will help him launch a new operation against Syrian Kurds. Features of a new US “betrayal” are looming on the horizon. The US did not stop Türkiye from launching drone strikes, nor did it stop the heavy aerial bombardment. The Kurds are betting on ISIS, or on the West’s interest in preventing the terror organization’s resurgence. The Kurds say that a war against them will make them give up fighting ISIS. There are those who are threatening to open up the Al-Hol camp, which is often referred to as ISIS’ mini-state, to push the US to move in favor of the Kurds. As for the Russians, they are conveying demands from Ankara to the Kurds in Qamishli. These demands include the withdrawal of the YPG from the main cities and border areas in northern Syria and welcoming the deployment of Syrian state institutions and border guards. Damascus, for its part, is relieved by the US betrayals, Russian stabs, and the Turkish strikes. Although Damascus cannot openly welcome all this and is most likely to issue a statement condemning “Turkish aggression,” the Syrian capital is pleased at heart with what the Kurds are facing. The least that could happen from these aggressions and betrayals is that Kurds will be forced to the “bitter” negotiating table from a weak position. The Kurds’ road to Damascus is paved with disappointments and setbacks.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4016486/seven-us-betrayals-kurds-within-century%E2%80%A6-will-it-fail-them-again-syria
Frappart to Make World Cup History as First Woman Referee
Sports
Asharq Al-Awsat
Football - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Group H - Portugal v Ghana - Stadium 974, Doha, Qatar - November 24, 2022 Fourth official Stéphanie Frappart before the match. (Reuters)
French referee Stéphanie Frappart will become the first woman to take charge of a men’s World Cup game when she handles Germany vs. Costa Rica on Thursday in Qatar. FIFA also picked two women as assistants to Frappart — Neuza Back of Brazil and Mexico’s Karen Diaz Medina — to complete an all-female refereeing team on the field. The fourth woman match official FIFA picked for this World Cup, Kathryn Nesbitt of the United States, will also be working at the Al Bayt Stadium as the offside specialist in the video review team. FIFA made the historic appointments for the 44th of the 64 games being played in Qatar. Frappart previously was picked for fourth official duties. The 38-year-old Frenchwoman has been promoted in the men’s game by European soccer body UEFA and in her home country. She was refereed men’s games in World Cup qualifying and the Champions League, and this year’s men’s French Cup final. She also took charge of the 2019 Women’s World Cup final for FIFA.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4016371/frappart-make-world-cup-history-first-woman-referee
Bomber Hits Pakistan Police Protecting Polio Teams, 3 Dead
World
Asharq A-Awsat
People shift a victim, who was injured in a bomb blast, to get medical treatment in a local hospital in Quetta, the provincial capital of Baluchistan, Pakistan, 30 November 2022.EPA/JAMAL TARAQAI
A suicide bomber blew himself up near a truck carrying police officers on their way to protect polio workers near Quetta Wednesday, killing a police officer and two civilians. The bombing also wounded 23 others, mostly policemen, officials said. Ghulam Azfer Mehser, a senior police officer, said the attack happened as the policemen were heading to the polio workers, part of a nationwide vaccination drive launched Monday. The blast was so powerful that it toppled the truck carrying police officers into a ravine, he said, adding that the bombing also damaged a nearby car carrying members of a family. He said that the anti-polio campaign will continue even after the bombing. Pakistani President Arif Alvi, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and other officials in separate statements condemned the attack.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4016366/bomber-hits-pakistan-police-protecting-polio-teams-3-dead
