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Headline News 01/12/2017
Headlines:
Trump’s Video Retweets Spark Calls for UK to Un-invite Him
On Visit to Middle East British PM Warns on Iran’s Destabilizing Influence
Pope Urges World to Act on Rohingya Refugee Crisis
Details:
Trump’s Video Retweets Spark Calls for UK to Un-invite Him
Pressure was growing in Britain on Thursday to withdraw President Trump’s invitation for a state visit, as trans-Atlantic tensions increased over his decision to share far-right videos, and then to rebuke Prime Minister Theresa May after she criticized his actions. The dispute has become an acute embarrassment for the British government, which Thursday insisted it still enjoys a “special relationship” with the United States, and for May, who has worked hard to cultivate close ties with Trump, only to be drawn into a public argument with him. Speaking from Jordan, where she is on an official visit, May sought to thread the needle on the issue, criticizing Trump but maintaining that his visit would go ahead. “I am very clear that retweeting from Britain First was the wrong thing to do,” she said at a news conference, adding: “The invitation for a state visit has been extended and has been accepted. We have yet to set a date.” Across the political spectrum, British politicians have reacted with incredulity to Trump’s decision to retweet three inflammatory videos posted online by the far-right group Britain First, and they held an urgent debate on the matter in Parliament Thursday. Opposition politicians demanded that the idea of a state visit should be dropped, with some critics arguing that it would place Queen Elizabeth II, as host, in an invidious position. One opposition Labour lawmaker, Stephen Doughty, argued that by sharing the videos, Trump showed himself to be “racist, incompetent or unthinking — or all three,” while another, Dennis Skinner, referred to “this fascist president.” The mayor of London, Sadiq Khan — who was involved in a separate dispute with Trump after a terrorist attack in London — suggested on Twitter that the president should not be invited on any official visit to Britain, not just one with full pomp and ceremony. Nor was the anger confined to opposition lawmakers. Sajid Javid, a Muslim member of May’s Conservative Cabinet, tweeted a strong condemnation Wednesday of Trump’s decision to share the videos: “So POTUS has endorsed the views of a vile, hate-filled racist organisation that hates me and people like me. He is wrong and I refuse to let it go and say nothing.” On Thursday the home secretary, Amber Rudd, appeared to agree with one Conservative lawmaker, Peter Bone, who suggested that Trump delete his Twitter account, saying “many will share his view.” But while condemning the president’s actions, Rudd sought to calm the dispute. “President Donald Trump was wrong to retweet videos posted by the far-right group Britain First,” Rudd said in Parliament, while appealing to lawmakers to remember the “wider picture,” and in particular Britain’s close security and intelligence cooperation with the United States. Pressed for a reaction to the Britain First retweets, May’s spokesman said Wednesday that it was “wrong for the president to have done this,” only for Trump to respond by addressing May directly on Twitter, telling her, “don’t focus on me, focus on the destructive Radical Islamic Terrorism that is taking place within the United Kingdom. We are doing just fine!” The president initially used an incorrect Twitter handle for May, later correcting his mistake. [Source: Boston Globe]
Despite the outpouring of criticism from all quarters of British society, Prime Minister May is keen to maintain the so-called “special relationship” with the US. Britain faces troubling times with both the EU as well as the US, and this will invariably damage UK’s prospects to play a greater role on the international stage.
On Visit to Middle East British PM Warns on Iran’s Destabilizing Influence
British Prime Minister Theresa May slammed on Thursday Iran’s “destabilizing” regional influence and called for a stronger response to Tehran’s ballistic missile program. She was speaking in Amman where she visited on Thursday on the return leg of a visit that also took in Iraq and Saudi Arabia, where she met with King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. In a speech in the Jordanian capital on Thursday, the British prime minister said that it was not just Daesh and the Assad regime that posed a threat to the stability of neighboring Syria. “Iran is showing that it is more interested in bolstering its role in the region, and that of its proxy Hezbollah, than finding a lasting peace in Syria,” she said. “And Iran’s destabilizing activity goes beyond Syria. Their previous attempts to acquire a nuclear weapon posed a threat to the international non-proliferation system on which wider international security depends.” The prime minister reiterated the UK’s support of a nuclear deal struck in 2015 that allowed for the lifting of economic sanctions against Iran in return for Tehran’s commitment to reduce much of its nuclear program. “This deal was the culmination of 13 years of diplomacy and a major step toward ensuring that Iran’s nuclear program is not diverted for military purposes. It is vitally important for our shared security,” said May. But the prime minister said that the nuclear deal only addressed one aspect of Iran’s threat to the region – a reference to the country’s development of ballistic missiles. “This includes in Yemen, where it is unacceptable for the Houthis to fire missiles at Riyadh,” she said. “In my meeting in Riyadh last night with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman I agreed that we would increase our work with Saudi Arabia to address this. I welcome the ongoing UN investigation into the source of the missiles and the international community must be resolute in its response to the findings.” A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Iranian-backed Houthi militias in Yemen since March 2015. The war has created what the UN describes as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The coalition closed air, land and sea access to Yemen on Nov. 6, two days after Houthi rebels fired a missile toward Riyadh that was intercepted. They have since been partially re-opened. May’s visit to Jordan coincided with an emergency debate on Yemen in the UK Parliament. Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee, said that Britain must help its Middle East allies defend the region against Iranian aggression. “It would be wrong to point solely at Riyadh, because the truth is that decisions being made in Tehran today are having an effect that are being felt throughout the region.” Opening the debate, MP Andrew Mitchell described the “dire humanitarian situation” in the country and said a visit to Yemen earlier this year had left him “deeply concerned.” [Source: Arab News]
Britain anxious about its declining influence in the Middle East, especially in countries like Lebanon, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Yemen is still unable to provide comfort to its surrogates in the region. The US under Trump continues to peruse UK agents and making life difficult for Britain.
Pope Urges World to Act on Rohingya Refugee Crisis
Pope Francis called on Thursday for “decisive” international action on the Rohingya refugee crisis as he began a visit to Bangladesh, where more than 620,000 of the Muslim minority have sought sanctuary after fleeing violence in Myanmar. The pope made the comments in a speech shortly after arriving from Myanmar, where he walked a diplomatic tightrope, staying away from allegations that the army is waging an ethnic cleansing campaign against Rohingya Muslims, despite pressure to publicly confront the incendiary issue. “None of us can fail to be aware of the gravity of the situation, the immense toll of human suffering involved, and the precarious living conditions of so many of our brothers and sisters, a majority of whom are women and children, crowded in the refugee camps,” he said. “It is imperative that the international community take decisive measures to address this grave crisis, not only by working to resolve the political issues that have led to the mass displacement of people, but also by offering immediate material assistance to Bangladesh in its effort to respond effectively to urgent human needs,” the pope told Bangladeshi dignitaries and diplomats. He praised Bangladesh for taking in the mass exodus across the border into overcrowded makeshift camps since a fresh outbreak of violence in Rakhine state in late August. But as in Myanmar, he refrained from using the word “Rohingya”, instead referring to “refugees from Rakhine state”. Pope Francis had been urged not to use the name in Myanmar to avoid provoking hardline Buddhists and making the country's Catholics a target. Francis — the first pope to visit Bangladesh in 31 years — will spend three days in the mainly-Muslim country. [Source: The Dawn]
It is a great shame on the Muslim world that Western leaders including the Pope are lining up to portray themselves as protectors of Rohingya Muslims. There is only one solution to the Rohingya crisis and that is for Muslims in the Islamic world to redouble their efforts to re-establish the rightly guarded Khilafah (Caliphate) on the method of the Prophethood. Under the Khilafah Rashidah all the armies of the Islamic world will be under a single leadership, more than enough to deter any state from persecuting Muslim minorities.