BBC accused of 'omitting facts' about Muslim culprit seen
in video of shocking anti-Semitic attack in London
23 Aug, 2021 12:41
The BBC has once-again drawn the ire of the British public after it reported a shocking assault that left a man in "Orthodox Jewish dress" unconscious, but failed to describe his attacker's Islamic clothing.
Over the weekend, reports emerged of a horrific and unprovoked attack on a 64-year-old Jewish man as he walked down a street in Stamford Hill, London, last Wednesday. Videos show the moment he was knocked unconscious by his attacker. He was also left with a broken ankle.
However, the BBC's reporting of the anti-Semitic assault hasn't been well received, as the national broadcaster strangely elected to describe the Jewish attire of the victim but not the Muslim dress of the perpetrator.
The BBC simply labelled the attacker, who wore a white kaftan under his jacket, a kufi, and sported a sizeable beard, as "another man" while they described the victim as "a man in Orthodox Jewish dress." The attacker's attire can be seen more clearly in other images shared online.
Author Douglas Murray was among those highlighting the unusual omission by the BBC. But while Murray stuck to the facts, many were keen to lay into the BBC, with some claiming they have a reputation for not fully reporting a story when Islam is concerned.
"The BBC always covers up for certain criminals," one Twitter user wrote, while another added "Criminal Muslims. There I said it. They do exist you know."
Others ask why Muslims are getting a free pass in the media, claiming the piece in question appears to blame the Jewish man for being attacked. "Imagine them describing the attire of a female assault victim - 'she wore a short skirt & high heels' - cue outrage & 'victim blaming' accusations," they added.
"One religion can do no wrong in the eyes of the BBC. Their actions are beyond reproach," another commenter wrote, while others claimed the BBC "owned the word hypocrisy."
One person claimed that by "omitting obvious facts and important information" the BBC was in fact creating fake news. "Referring to one in this case victims religion but not the perpetrators shows shocking bias," they added.
Others claimed the BBC won't change as reporting on crimes seemingly committed by people of the Muslim faith doesn't fit in with their narrative that Britain is racist. By leaving out the details about the Muslim attacker, they claimed people will assume the attacker was both "white" and "English."
No one was forthcoming to back up the BBC, although some jokingly suggested the attacker could have been Scottish, a jovial reference to the wearing of a kilt.
Earlier this year a BBC reporter found herself in hot water after it emerged that she'd once posted "Hitler was right" on Twitter. Having been fired by the BBC, Tala Halawa, a Palestinian journalist, blasted the corporation, accusing it of giving into the "pro-Israel mob."
Now, this is completely out of character for the EU and the UN to criticize the Palestinian Authority without even blaming Israel. But this has been happening in Gaza by Hamas for many years now, I believe.
EU condemns ‘politically motivated’ arrests of activists
by Palestinian Authority
24 Aug, 2021 15:11
FILE PHOTO. Palestinian demonstrators attend an anti-Palestinian Authority protest, forty days after the death of Nizar Banat, a critic of the Palestinian Authority, in Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank August 2, 2021. © Reuters / Mohamad Torokman
The UN and EU issued statements on Tuesday criticizing the Palestinian Authority for the “politically motivated” arrest of activists and “continued pressure” on people demonstrating in the territory.
Protests have been taking place in recent months, as activists demand justice for Nizar Banat, a critic of the Palestinian Authority, who died after security forces detained him earlier this year and subjected him to physical violence.
On August 21 and 22, dozens of activists who had been participating in these protests were detained by Palestinian Authority security forces in Ramallah, with several still in custody.
On Tuesday, the UN Office for Human Rights declared that it is “deeply concerned” by the Palestinian Authority’s actions and the “continued pressure on those seeking to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and assembly” in the area.
In a separate statement, the EU’s representative in the region expressed concern at “an increase in apparently politically motivated arrests by the Palestinian Authority,” firmly stating that “violence against peaceful human rights defenders, activists and protesters is unacceptable.”
While the remarks from the UN demanded the “immediate release without any charges” of the activists who were detained, the EU called on Palestinian officials to focus on “swiftly” concluding the investigation of Banat’s death and ensuring that “those responsible are held accountable.”
The Palestinian Authority has not yet publicly responded to the UN or EU statements but the detention of protesters comes after the President of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, indefinitely postponed elections amid low approval ratings.
Surely, Abbas has enough billions stashed away in Swiss banks to be able to retire.
Credible reports of Taliban executions in Afghanistan
– UN human rights chief
24 Aug, 2021 12:48
Taliban forces stand guard inside Kabul, Afghanistan (FILE PHOTO) © REUTERS/Stringer
The United Nations human rights boss has spoken of credible reports of serious rights abuses by the Taliban, including "summary executions" of civilians as well as those who served in the now-defunct Afghan security forces.
Speaking on Tuesday, UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet urged the Human Rights Council, a Geneva-based forum, to closely monitor the actions of Afghanistan's new rulers, the Taliban.
Bachelet was President of Chile for 8 years.
Bachelet said there had been credible reports that the group was committing human-rights violations, including the "summary execution" of civilians as well as those who served in the defense of the US-backed government.
The UN human rights chief did not give any details about the killings but noted that Afghanistan's ethnic minorities were at risk. She cited a series of targeted attacks and killings in recent months. Bachelet added that the maltreatment of women and girls was also "a fundamental red line."
A draft resolution, which calls for Bachelet to report back to the council in March 2022, will be considered by the Geneva-based forum. The resolution does not mention the Taliban by name and makes no provision for a probe into rights abuses in Afghanistan.
The text, which was submitted by Pakistan, also urges parties to respect human rights law including "the full and meaningful participation of women" and minority groups. A western diplomat told Reuters they were disappointed by the weak text.
Good grief. What's the point? There definitely seems to be no hurry. Wasn't there anyone but Pakistan who could have written the text?
Meanwhile, Chen Xu, China's ambassador to the UN in Geneva, said the US and its NATO allies should also be held accountable for alleged rights abuses in Afghanistan. The Chinese foreign ministry has repeatedly highlighted reported accounts of rights abuses by western troops.
We don't seem to get those on this side of the Atlantic.
There have been several concerning reports of Taliban abuses since the Islamist group took Kabul. Among other concerning footage, one video showed Taliban gunmen firing on protesters in Jalalabad. Another shows the militants arresting citizens while pointing a rocket-propelled grenade launcher in their direction.
No Afghans will be let into Kabul airport, only foreigners – Taliban
24 Aug, 2021 14:01 / Updated 5 hours ago
Crowds of people gather outside the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan (FILE PHOTO) © ASVAKA NEWS via REUTERS
The Taliban has said it will no longer permit Afghans to leave the country via Kabul airport, calling on the west not to encourage the educated elite to flee, as the new rulers reiterated foreigners must be evacuated by August 31.
Speaking on Tuesday afternoon, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid announced that the Islamist militant group would no longer allow Afghans to access Kabul airport in an attempt to flee the country.
Mujahid stated they were not in favor of allowing Afghans to leave, adding that foreigners could continue to use the airport until the August 31 deadline.
Taking aim at the west, the spokesman demanded that western powers refrain from evacuating Afghanistan's educated elite, such as doctors and engineers.
He also cited the chaotic situation at the airport as a reason for Afghans to avoid it. He said the crowds around the capital's airport should return to their homes, claiming that their safety would be guaranteed.
In the same press briefing, Mujahid claimed that people could remain in Afghanistan and promised that there would be no reprisals. He said the Taliban had forgotten conflict in the past and would let bygones be bygones.
He also confirmed that the Taliban had not agreed to extend the August 31 deadline set by the US to complete their evacuation of Afghanistan.
‘Urine, fecal matter, rats’: Leaked email describes
squalid conditions facing Afghan refugees in Qatar
24 Aug, 2021 14:11
Special Immigrants from Afghanistan walk through the in-processing building after their evacuation at
Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, August 20, 2021 © Reuters / US Army / Sgt. Jimmie Baker
The United States is flying thousands of refugees out of Afghanistan, but they face desperate and unsanitary conditions in the US’ processing center in Qatar, a leaked email has revealed.
Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, Qatar, is the first port of call for many Afghan refugees lucky enough to get a spot on an American flight out of Kabul. The base is one of several where these refugees will be processed and screened, before being flown on to the United States, Europe and Asia.
Conditions at the base, however, are “a living hell,” Colin Sullivan, an agent with US Central Command, told State Department and Pentagon officials in an email on Friday, reported by Axios on Tuesday.
“Trash, urine, fecal matter, spilled liquids and vomit cover the floors,” Sullivan wrote, describing the packed hangar housing the refugees. “I spent an hour in there picking up trash... almost suffocated.”
“We’re in the middle of humanitarian crises [sic] that compounds itself with every flight that lands in Doha,” he continued, before writing a grim update: “They now have a rat problem.”
According to Sullivan, the hangar lacks proper air conditioning, a serious problem when temperatures in Doha this week are expected to hit 107 degrees Fahrenheit (41.6 Census) this week. “There’s a reason they’re not holding the World Cup in the middle of the summer there,” an anonymous official told Axios, referring to the 2022 World Cup’s November kickoff. “It’s brutally hot.”
The precise number of refugees housed in the hangar at any one time is unknown, as is the total number the Biden administration plans on bringing to the US. “Roughly a few thousand” Americans remain on the ground in Kabul, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told NBC News on Sunday, and they are reportedly being prioritized for evacuation. However, Sullivan told reporters on Monday that “thousands, if not tens of thousands” of people are being flown out of Kabul every day. Presumably, the bulk of these are Afghans, bound for processing centers like Al Udeid Air Base.
Many of these refugees are traveling without passports, the Washington Post reported on Saturday. While this presents US officials with difficulty verifying that these people are who they say they are, officials at Al Udeid are facing more immediate risks to their safety. US embassy bosses pulled their staff out of the hangar in recent days, citing the risk of catching Covid-19 from incoming refugees. Less than 1% of Afghans are fully vaccinated against the disease.
The State Department says it’s alleviating the problem by speeding the Afghans on to the West. On Monday alone, “more than 3,700 individuals were transported to follow-on destinations in the United States, Germany and Italy,” a department spokesman told Axios.
A Pentagon spokesman added that the military has installed more than 100 toilets in the hangar and is now supplying 7,000 traditional Afghan meals, three times a day.
Against the wishes of the Taliban, which has controlled Afghanistan for more than a week, Biden has refused to rule out extending the August 31 deadline for a complete US withdrawal from Afghanistan. A decision on this deadline is expected later on Tuesday.
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