Islam - Current Day > Islamists Kill 4 Cops, Injure 100s in Pakistan; Car-burning Starts Again in France; Hackers Close All Gas Stations in Iran

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Pakistan will treat banned Islamist party as militant group,

govt says as 4 police officers killed, hundreds injured in clashes

27 Oct, 2021 17:26

FILE PHOTO: Supporters of the banned Islamist political TLP party run during a protest in Lahore, Pakistan,

on October 23, 2021. ©  Reuters / Mohsin Raza

At least four police officers have been killed and hundreds more injured in massive clashes that erupted in Pakistan's north-eastern Punjab province, as law enforcement sought to stop an Islamist protest march on Islamabad.

Punjab's Chief Minister Usman Buzdar confirmed casualties on Twitter on Wednesday, saying at least four officers had been killed and over 250 people injured. There, law enforcement faced fierce resistance from the members and supporters of the banned Islamist Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party as the police sought to disperse their march on the capital.

The TLP orchestrated the protests, demanding the release of one of its leaders, Hafiz Saad Hussain Rizvi, who has been in custody since April. On Wednesday, it also accused the government of "lying" about an agreement supposedly reached with the party to end the demonstrations.

Other demands included "respect for the Holy Prophet" Mohammed and the expulsion of France's ambassador to Pakistan over the publication of "blasphemous" cartoons of the prophet by French satirical outlet, Charlie Hebdo.

TLP members and their supporters used submachine guns, AK-47 assault rifles and pistols against the police, a Punjab police spokesman told Reuters.

Pakistan's Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed confirmed at a press conference that at least three officers were killed and 70 injured in the clashes, adding that eight are now in critical condition. He also said that he was sending the Rangers – a federal paramilitary force – to Punjab, adding that the local government may use the unit "wherever it wants."

Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Wednesday that the government would from now on treat the party, banned in April, as a militant group and not a political force. "There is a limit to the state's patience," he said, adding that, although everyone has a right to express their ideas, no one can take up arms if these ideas are not heard.

"No one should make the mistake of thinking that the state is weak. Those who made this mistake later realized they were wrong," Chaudry said, adding that Islamabad "will not tolerate those who challenge the writ of the state."

The information minister also said that the government does not want "blood to be spilled," and blamed the violence on the TLP.

Party members, meanwhile, told Reuters that some of their activists had also been killed and injured by the police. The group also accused Rashid Ahmed of "lying" about settling all the matters with the party, adding that no government officials had contacted them.

On Tuesday, Rashid said the government was willing to consider all the party's demands, bar the French diplomat's expulsion.

Authorities blocked roads leading to Islamabad on Tuesday night in a bid to prevent the marchers from entering the city. According to some Pakistani media, additional police could be deployed to the city and roads might be barricaded with containers and barbed wire.

Founded in 2015, the TLP is known for its hardline stance on Islam. It fiercely opposed any changes to Pakistan's blasphemy law and demanded the nation adopt Sharia as its fundamental law. In 2018, it did not get into the Pakistani parliament but still received the support of more than two million people.

The TLP found itself on a collision course with the government in April 2021 when it organized protests to pressure Islamabad into expelling the French envoy. At that time, one of the party's leaders – Rizvi – was arrested by the Punjab government to maintain "public order." Several people, including police officers, were killed during the April unrest, though tensions eased after the government reportedly agreed to take the issue of the ambassador's expulsion to the national assembly.

Though banned in April, the TLP was still allowed to contest elections. The government has engaged in talks with the party, which continues to demand the release of its leader and of another 1,400 activists. It also demanded the party ban be lifted and that the French envoy deported.

Of course, French media would not indicate that this was a Muslim-led riot, but no other demographic would start a riot because a drug dealer got arrested.

15 vehicles torched in night of violence in Alencon, France

after teen's arrest for allegedly dealing drugs

27 Oct, 2021 15:56

© Twitter / @NicolasBay_

Over a dozen vehicles were left burnt out on Tuesday night in France's Alençon and police and firefighters came under fire from incendiaries and other projectiles, after a 16-year-old was arrested on suspicion of selling drugs.

A group of some 20 young people took to the streets in the town of Alençon in Normandy, torching cars and attacking emergency-services personnel with an array of projectiles and fireworks.  

"We deplore this night of urban violence in Perseigne, in Alençon, in which there were a dozen vehicles set on fire," Françoise Tahéri, prefect of the Orne district, told BFMTV. Tahéri added that the police intervened quickly to stabilize the situation and were reinforced by gendarmes. 

Firefighters and police officers intervened around midnight, after being notified that several private vehicles had been set on fire. Upon arriving at the scene, they came under fire from around 20 youths positioned in different places around the neighborhood, according to BFMTV. Thirteen gendarmes were sent in as reinforcements, and the clashes concluded around 3:30am.

Tahéri said she was delighted that nobody was injured and praised the intervention of law enforcement. Town major Joaquim Pueyo described the events as "extremely serious." In footage shared online, passing cars can be seen coming under attack from mortars. 

Images posted on social media on Wednesday morning show the extent of the devastation, with numerous burnt-out cars being transported for scrapping. 

The unrest was apparently prompted by the arrest of a 16-year-old boy who was allegedly caught selling drugs to a woman in the area. During a press conference on Wednesday, Tahéri stated the authorities believed the violence was related to Tuesday's arrest of a suspected drug dealer.

Iran’s president claims cyberattackers crippled every gas station

in the country to create ‘disorder’ but fails to assign blame

27 Oct, 2021 14:25

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has said a cyberattack targeted every gas station in the country in an attempt to spark anger and create “disorder and disruption,” but he failed to say who the government believes was behind it.

The comments, which were broadcast on Iranian state television, saw the country’s president announce that a cyberattack had crippled every gas station in the republic, making the government-issued cards used by citizens to buy fuel useless.

“There should be serious readiness in the field of cyberwar, and related bodies should not allow the enemy to follow their ominous aims to make problem in the trend of people's life,” Raisi stated, adding that the attack had been aimed at making “people angry by creating disorder and disruption.”

Despite announcing the vast cyberattack on the Islamic Republic, Raisi did not blame a country or group for the incident, though he did indicate that anti-Iranian forces were trying to inflame tensions. A group of hackers did claim responsibility for the attack on the gas stations late on Tuesday, but they have yet to provide any evidence that they were behind it.

Digital systems used for purchasing fuel showed a message reading “cyberattack 64411,” according to reports, bearing similarities to another incident which hit the country’s rail system back in July. The July attack was blamed by Israeli cybersecurity firm Check Point on a group of hackers known as Indra.

Iran has been subjected to multiple cyberattacks in recent times, with an August incident exposing a video that reportedly showed abusive behavior at the country’s Evin prison. Another attack, which saw the Stuxnet computer virus infect devices, forced the government to disconnect infrastructure from the internet while it sought to contain the spread of that cyberattack.

Car Set Alight in Paris Suburb During Anti-Police Protest

A complex situation in Paris was made much worse by the government's absurd attempt to 'downplay' an horrific event

Parisiens have endured a long state of emergency that exists in France because of the threat of terrorism, a threat made very current by the arrests yesterday of four conspirators. On Feb. 2nd, during an ID check, a young black man was hit with a baton on the buttocks, his pants were dropped and he was, apparently, raped by the baton of a policeman. 

This was bad enough but then the police said that his pants fell down on their own, and the government backed the police claiming that the rape was 'unintentional'. How absurd! Did they actually think Parisiens were stupid enough to fall for that?

Thanks to social media, a protest against police violence was quickly organized. Except for the car-burning, the protest was kept under control. Nevertheless, this makes a statement that when people, even police officers, do something heinous, it has to be admitted openly and honestly. 

Covering up assaults, whether by police or asylum seekers, will turn people against those who are stupid enough to hide the truth. Media, police, governments will not be trusted.

Protesters against police violence have set a car on fire during a rally in the Paris suburb of Bobigny, which followed a police officer’s assault on a 22-year-old man.

Dozens of young people have occupied an empty lot in Bobigny in the prefecture of Seine-Saint-Denis department. Some of the protesters have been carrying banners saying “Justice for Theo,” the name of the young man who was sexually assaulted by a police officer with a truncheon.

Hundreds of people gathered in Bobigny not far from the courthouse earlier today to protest police violence, Le Parisien reported. The demonstration began peacefully, but turned violent at around 3pm local time.

“We decided to organize this gathering. The announcement has been running on Twitter, Facebook and Snapchat… it made some noise, it shows how much people can’t stand this situation anymore,” one of the organizers said, according to France Bleu Paris.

The 22 year-old man, identified only as Theo, was attacked with a baton during what police later said was an ID check in Aulnay-sous-Bois (another Paris suburb), on February 2.

A CCTV camera footage shows a police officer “applying a truncheon blow horizontally across the buttocks with a truncheon” and after that Theo’s pants “slipped down on their own," a police source cited by AFP said.

Judging by eyewitness accounts and the video, “there are insufficient elements to show that this was a rape,” the source added.

One of the police officers was charged with rape and three others with aggravated assault. The case is currently under investigation.

Theo believes that the police officer used the baton “on purpose,” television station BFM quoted him as saying.

After a search, Theo was handcuffed and taken to a police car, where officers again insulted him, spat at him and gave him beatings.

At the police station, another officer saw his injuries and he was sent to the hospital where he was treated for an anal tear.

video 2:36

Swedish Police Face Looming Crisis as Cops Quit While No-Go Zones Increase

Swedish police lose control amid refugee crisis

as number of 'no-go zones' rises to 55

A firefighter attempts to extinguish a fire which had damaged cars after the vehicles had been set alight, in Malmo, Sweden, August 15, 2016. 

The inflow of asylum seekers in Sweden, a country with one of the most liberal laws towards refugees, is putting an increasing strain on the country's police. There are now reportedly 55 areas in the country, where the law is not fully upheld.

Dubbed “no-go zones” in some media reports, there are now 55 areas in Swedish cities, where the police have significant problems in tackling crime. They are divided into three categories depending on how significant the risk to officers working there is.

The number has risen from 50 in February, when the police last gave a comprehensive report on the issue, and last week, when the law enforcement agency gave an update. According to media reports, the service is facing a major crisis of self-confidence, with as many as three officers on average asking to resign on a daily basis. Internal polls say four officers out of five have been considering a change of profession lately.

“We have a major crisis. Many colleagues are choosing to quit,” police officer Peter Larsson told the Norwegian broadcaster NRK. “A drastically worsened working environment means many colleagues are now looking for other work.”

If officers go into a no-go zone, they risk being verbally attacked or pelted with stones. Patrol cars may be set ablaze or stolen.

Crime rates in the blacklisted areas are on the rise, the police report said. The offenses range from vandalism to drug crimes to sex assaults and gun violence. One particular example is Malmo, Sweden's third-largest city, where more than 70 cars were set on fire by arsonists over several days. The police managed to arrest only one suspect while investigating those attacks.

Ironically, after the Hungarian government used the existence of no-go zones in Europe to promote its cause for an upcoming referendum on EU quotas, the Swedish embassy rebuked it saying that no such areas existed in their country.

"It is important to us that accurate information about Sweden is given to the citizens of Hungary. The embassy has therefore had reason to object sharply to a map of Europe with red markings in a handful of member states, including Sweden, in which the Hungarian government claims that so-called 'no-go zones' exist, where police and the state have no control over citizens' safety," Anna Boda, the Deputy Head of the Swedish diplomatic mission in Budapest told The Local.

'No-Go' zones may be overstating some of the 55 areas mentioned by the Swedish police, but there is a reason why police are abandoning their trade. Sweden's government had better listen to their police and do something, or there will be absolute chaos in the streets.

“No-go zone” is a loaded term with no clear definition and caused division earlier amid the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe. Last year Paris wanted to sue Fox New for a report, which said no-go zones existed in the French capital.

France has already deployed its military to patrol the streets of Paris. So far, however, there has been more unrest from labour protesters than from Muslim enclaves. The government certainly would play down any 'no-go zone' revelations because tourism is vital to the French economy.

One thing seems clear - neither the Swedish, nor the French governments, are willing to deal with the truth.