Category: World

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia will suspend Umrah trips to Saudi Arabia from Jan 8 as part of efforts to curb the spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, health minister of Malaysia Khairy Jamaluddin announced on Saturday (Jan 1).

The decision was made as authorities are concerned about people breaching home quarantine after returning from the pilgrimage.

“Most pilgrims who returned from performing the umrah applied to undergo their seven-day quarantine at home. However, when there was non-compliance with the stipulated standard operating procedure, positive COVID-19 cases among umrah pilgrims caused the infection to spread among family members,” said Mr Khairy at a press conference.

“Due to non-compliance with the home quarantine procedures, family members living in the same house or neighbours and relatives who come visiting are exposed to COVID-19 infection.”

Bookings for new umrah flight tickets were suspended on Saturday, he said.

The health minister added that pilgrims returning to Malaysia from Jan 3 will have to quarantine at designated facilities.

“Pilgrims leaving for the Holy Land (Mecca) between Jan 1 and 7 will be allowed to proceed with their journey. However, they need to undergo quarantine at quarantine stations or hotels identified by NADMA (national disaster management agency) on their return to Malaysia,” he told reporters.

Originally Published by CNA

Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that rising corruption and sex crimes were the two main evils confronting the Muslim world.

He said this during an interactive dialogue on ‘Riyasat-i-Madina: Islam, Society and Ethical Revival’ with top Muslim scholars from the world on Sunday, which was organised by the recently set up National Rehmatul-lil-Aalameen Authority (NRAA).

Khan in October formed the NRAA for researching how best to disseminate lessons from the life of the Prophet to the masses.

The scholars presented their views on how the youth could be protected from the invasion of social media on their faith and religious and ethical values.

“There are two sorts of crimes in the society, one is corruption and the other is sex crime. Sex crime has risen sharply in our society, i.e. rape and child abuse and only one per cent of this is reported,” Khan said.

“The other 99 per cent, I believe, society has to fight it. The same is the case with corruption… Society has to make corruption unacceptable. Unfor¬tunately, when you have leadership which is corrupt over time, they make corruption acceptable,” the prime minister said, apparently taking a dig at his predecessor Nawaz Sharif, head of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Sharif, 72, is in London since November 2019 after the Lahore High Court granted him permission to go abroad for four weeks for treatment. The three-time premier, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Muhammad Safdar were convicted in the Avenfield properties case on July 6, 2018.

Sharif was also sentenced to seven years in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills case in December 2018. But, he was bailed out in both cases and also allowed to go to London for medical treatment.

The Dawn newspaper reported that while seeking viewpoints of the international scholars, Khan hinted that he would be holding similar dialogues with renowned scholars in the future as well.

He stressed the need to save the Muslim youth from being inundated with obscenity and pornographic material available on the internet.

The scholars suggested certain collective efforts by the Muslim countries to counter the negative effects of modernity.

Dr Seyyed Hossein Nasr, University Professor of Islamic Studies at the George Washington University, said: “Today, the world is a more precarious and dangerous place for the youth”.

He denounced western elements that talked about Islam in a negative tone, which he said was tantamount to attacking the religion.

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, an American scholar, likened the issue of corruption to a rotten apple which could decay a society.

He said that the Holy Quran had explained the issue of corruption and its impact upon individuals and society.

He was of the opinion that Islam had tasked men to take care of women and children in society.

He stressed that young people should be taught to honour women.

“Not going to places that you shouldn’t be, that onus is first and foremost on the men and we can’t blame the victims. At the same time women need to understand there are wolves out there and those wolves are real,” he said.

Dr Abdal Hakim Murad, dean of the Cambridge Muslim College, said information on mobile phones for the young generations was a real challenge for most of societies across the globe.

“Everybody knows the key trigger has been the availability, even to young children, of high-resolution images of things that should be private and not made part of public entertainment.

“If the adolescent mind grows up recurrently addicted to these images, neuroscientists have pointed out that this results in permanent damage,” he said, as he regretted that the internet was not something that could be regulated by individual nation states.

Dr Osman Bakar from the University of Malaysia emphasised the need for interfaith and intercultural dialogue, which he said would bring stability.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Bayyah, chairman of the UAE’s Fatwa Council, said: “We are living in the age of globalisation and the advent of social media, internet and other modern concepts has a huge impact upon the youth.”

He suggested the idea of seeking ‘Sakinah’ by the youth, which means peacefulness of mind.

According to him, it is the quality of soul that helps remove agitation from a person’s mind.

He underlined the need for the establishment of a university for Muslim youth that could focus on teaching morals and ethics. PTI

Geneva: The World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that he is optimistic that the COVID-19 pandemic will be defeated in 2022, provided countries work together to contain its spread.
Ghebreyesus warned against “narrow nationalism and vaccine hoarding” in a new year statement, reports the BBC.
His comments come two years since the WHO was first notified of cases of an unknown pneumonia strain in China.
He warned that continuing inequity in vaccine distribution was increasing the risk of the virus evolving.
“Narrow nationalism and vaccine hoarding by some countries have undermined equity and created the ideal conditions for the emergence of the Omicron variant, and the longer inequity continues, the higher the risks of the virus evolving in ways we can’t prevent or predict,” he said.
“If we end inequity, we end the pandemic,” he added.
India has registered a substantial spike in daily COVID cases at 22,775 in a span of 24 hours. Also, 406 deaths were reported in the same time span pushing the toll to 4,81,486.
However, the active caseload jumped to 1,04,781 which constitute 0.30 per cent of the country’s total positive cases.
Meanwhile, the Omicron infection tally has increased to 1,431 across the nation. However, of the total cases, 488 have been discharged from hospitals. So far, 23 states have reported Omicron infections.

Re-imposing Physical Distancing in the Two Holy Mosques from Thursday, 26 Jumada Al Ula 1443 as per the directive issued by the Ministry of Interior due to increasing COVID-19 cases

Former actor Sana Khan’s video of people offering prayers in Masjid-e-Nabawi (SAW) has melted millions of hearts.

“Masjid e nabawi (SAW) aur Roze Akhdas (SAW) ki ziyarat️ Socha aap sab ko andar ka manzar dikha doon. #sanakhan #anassaiyad #sanaanas #umrah #madina #makkah,” she wrote on Instagram.

The video has notched around one lakh likes in just 10 hours. Nearly 1100 people have commented on the video. “Please pray for me,” requested a user.

Last week, Sana Khan shared a video of her stitching Kiswah (Gilaf-e-Kaba) the cloth that drapes the Kaaba. The cloth is woven from silk and cotton and adorned with gold calligraphy.

“Never in my dream, I knew that Allah had such an amazing moment planned for me. Allah has been very kind. Never in my life, I thought I would be able to do some stitching on KiswaThank you Saudi government for this experience. And my husband @anas_saiyad20 .” she wrote on Instagram

Sana Khan and Anas are currently in Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah. Sana Khan shared her pictures on social media with her husband Anas Saiyed. “UMRAH ️Kya hasi sama hoga, Kya hasi ghadi hogi, Jab khana E khuda main hamari hazari hogi Nikah ke baad hamari zindagi ka sabse khubsurat safar,” she wrote on her instagram page.

Wearing Hijab, she posted her pictures near Khane Kaba along with her husband. “Alhamdullilah Alhamdullilah Alhamdullilah Thank you so much @alkhalidtours for planning this umrah with so much ease & comfort,” she said.

Sana also shared a video of her arrival at Makkah. “And the beautiful journey begins ️
The most popular hotel in Makkah @fairmontmakkah Will share my experience about stay, food, and everything else in coming days so u all know what u should be looking out for if u staying here,” she said.

Last month, Sana Khan and Gujarat-based businessman Anas Saiyad celebrated their first wedding anniversary.

Sana took to social media to share pictures of her life partner. The former actress also penned a love-filled note for her partner.

“I pray for your Deen and Akhirah and everything in between just like I pray for mine. I pray for you just like I’m praying for myself, because what I want for myself I want for you You lead me closer to Allah & not the sin you were worth the wait Shaadi ki pehli salgira khoob mubarak ho @anas_saiyad20 Can’t wait for the photo background to turn into real one for us soon In Sha Allah…#sanakhan #anassaiyad #alhamdulillah #blessed #unitedforevertilljannah #inshaallah,” Sana wrote.

After quitting showbiz, former actor Sana Khan was recently seen promoting Halal beauty products and makeup for girls.

Unlike conventional makeup, Halal makeup adheres to Islamic standards i.e. they are free from pig-derived and other forbidden ingredients. They are also wudu–friendly (permeable to water) as required by Islamic standards. Halal beauty products can range from eye shadows, foundations, nail polishes, and even fragrances.

Insulting Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) does not count as freedom of expression: Russian President Vladimir Putin, says insults to the prophet are a “violation of religious freedom and the violation of the sacred feelings of people who profess Islam”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said insulting Prophet Muhammad does not count as freedom of expression.

Insults to the prophet are a “violation of religious freedom and the violation of the sacred feelings of people who profess Islam,”, Putin said on Thursday during his annual news conference, Russian News Agency TASS reported.

Putin also criticised posting photos of Nazis on websites such as the one titled the Immortal Regiment dedicated to Russians that died in World War Two.

Putin said these acts give rise to extremist reprisals, citing as an example the attack on the editorial office of Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris after its publication of cartoons of the prophet.

While praising artistic freedom in general, Putin said it has its limits and it should not infringe on other freedoms.

Russia has evolved as a multi-ethnic and multi-confessional state, so Russians, he said, are used to respecting each other’s traditions.

In some other countries, this respect comes in short supply, Putin said.

Islamabad: Pakistan, Turkey, and Malaysia will set up a joint television channel to promote media links among them, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry has said.
Chaudhry said that focal persons for media sharing have been designated and a joint media network will be developed, Radio Pakistan reported on Monday.
“Issues of extremism need to be tackled in Pakistan, Malaysia and other Muslim countries,” Chaudhry was quoted as saying.
In September 2019, Prime Minister Imran Khan had first announced that Pakistan, Turkey, Malaysia will jointly launch an English language television channel to correct misperceptions and confront the challenges posed by Islamophobia.
The three-nation channel would offer Muslims a dedicated media presence to help in “setting the record straight” on Islam and fighting the phenomenon of Islamophobia internationally, he had said.
Earlier this year, Pakistan and Turkey had announced that they are collectively bringing a period drama on the life of Salahuddin Ayyubi, a Muslim warrior and founder of the Ayyubid Dynasty in West Asia.
He also suggested that under the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) platform, a unit of scholars should be named to provide guidance on religious issues.
— PTI

103 more days to go before Ramadan starts, astronomers say

Abu Dhabi: Ramadan is expected to begin on April 2, 2022, according to Egypt’s National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics.

The crescent moon of Ramadan will be visible on Friday, April 1, which is corresponding to the 29th of the Islamic month of Shaban. Accordingly, April 2, will be the first day of Ramadan, astronomers said.

The moon is expected to be visible to the naked eye at sunset on April 1, with fasting set to begin the following day, Saturday.

Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, is a time when Muslims across the world fast from sunrise to sunset.

The end of Ramadan, when the new moon is sighted, marks Eid Al Fitr, which is the start of the Shawwal month.

In the UAE, the moon-sighting committee will confirm the official starting dates for Ramadan and Eid Al Fitr.

KABUL: Afghanistan’s finance ministry under the new Taliban government has prepared a draft national budget that, for the first time in two decades, is funded without foreign aid, a spokesman said.
It comes as the country is mired in economic crisis and faces a looming humanitarian catastrophe the United Nations has called an “avalanche of hunger”.
Finance ministry spokesman Ahmad Wali Haqmal did not disclose the size of the draft budget which runs until December 2022 but told AFP it would go to the cabinet for approval before being published.
“We are trying to finance it from our domestic revenues — and we believe we can,” he earlier told state television in an interview shared on Twitter.
Global donors suspended financial aid when the Taliban seized power in August and Western powers also froze access to billions of dollars in assets held abroad.
The 2021 budget, put together by the previous administration under IMF guidance, projected a deficit despite 219 billion Afghanis in aid and grants and 217 billion from domestic revenue.
At that time the exchange rate was around 80 Afghanis to the dollar, but the local currency has been hammered since the Taliban’s return, particularly in the past week, slumping to 130 on Monday before recovering Friday to around 100.
Haqmal accepted that public servants are still owed several months of wages, saying “we are trying our best” to make good on overdue pay by year-end. He warned, however, a new pay scale had also been prepared.
—PTI