Tehrik-e-Labaik Islamist Party in Pakistan Lionises the Murderer of Glasgow Shopkeeper, Asad Shah

October 30, 2017 Article

The murder of Asad Shah, the Glasgow based shopkeeper was a brutal affair. We know this, partly because the spiritual leader of the Islamist group Tehrik-e-Labaik, Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi, described in detail the actions that the convicted murderer, Tanveer Ahmed, undertook on the defenceless Shah.

The description of the murder of Asad Shah was not made in dusgust by Hussain Rizvi, the spiritual leader of the Islamist group in Pakistan. Yet, it was made in a manner which lionised the murderer, calling him a ‘Ghazi’ or warrior for the defence of Islam.

In September of this year, the Islamist party won over 7,000 votes in a local election and the Party was born from lionising another convicted murderer, Mumtaz Qadri. Qadri was the bodyguard of Salman Taseer, the Governor of Punjab, who subsequently went onto murder him at an Islamabad market in January 2011. Taseer was an outspoken critic of the country’s Blasphemy Laws and he had defended the rights of Christian minorities and individuals like Asia Bibi. Out of this brutal murder was born the Tehrik-e-Labaik Islamist party which has also acquired recorded phone conversations with Tanveer Ahmed, from Barlinnie prison in Scotland. Ahmed’s ‘messages’ to people in Pakistan have been played to Tehrik-e-Labaik audiences in the country who sit around their spiritual leader Hussain Rizvi. Rizvi has used the audio-tapes to whip up his audiences into frenzies, using deeply emotive language around the defence of Prophet Muhammad, whilst urging listeners to defend their faith. This has been code for the use of threats and violence.

The recorded phone conversations are used to whip up audiences into a frenzy around Hussain Rizvi who regularly has made a point of lionising Tanveer Ahmed,  now in Barlinnie prison. The main theme for Tehrik-e-Labaik has been the ‘defence’ of Islam and the vilification of those who ‘blaspheme’ against Islam, yet it is so easy to forget the brutal actions of people like Ahmed in this extremist charade which is being played out in Pakistan. It is important to reflect on the comments of Judge Lady Rae who presided over the murder trial of Tanveer Ahmed.

Summing up after the guilty verdict of Ahmed, Judge Lady Rae told him:

“This was a barbaric, premeditated and wholly unjustified killing of a much loved man who was a pillar of the local community.”

“He, (Asad Shah), was described as a peaceful and peace-loving man and family man who went out of his way to show respect for those of any faith.”

The Judge went onto describe the actions of Ahmed as being,

“an appalling display of merciless violence”.

Campaigning Using the Imagery of Murderers and Extremists

The use of imagery depicting Qadri and Ahmed demonstrates a chilling new twist in Pakistani politics with mobs of young men openly stating that blasphemers against Islam should be targeted for violence. Tehrik-e-Labaik’s footsoldiers are mainly young men brought up in their madrassas and whose only access to basic shelter, food and welfare comes from their networks on the ground. Yet, the link to the United Kingdom and the lionising of an extremist murderer who drove from Bradford to Glasgow to brutally murder a man just because he disagreed with his religious views, shows how such groups in Pakistan are trying to promote their extremism to British born young men of Pakistani heritage. Tehrik-e-Labaik’s You Tube videos are still available on the channel and their Facebook page regularly pumps out sermons from Hussain Rizvi which support violence against ‘blasphemers’. The promotion of such extremist material, aimed at Pakistani and British audiences of Pakistani heritage is deeply worrying. This international arc supporting the promotion of extremism needs to be countered and electronic disruption action taken to stop this group from pumping out such material.

Finally, the picture associated with this article is a good indicator of the extremism link to this group. Reuters recently interviewed Muhammad Shafiq Ameeni, a candidate and member of the Tehrik-e-Labaik party in Pakistan. The interview took place in Peshawar and behind Ameeni, were the images of two murderers, namely Mumtaz Qadri and Tanveer Ahmed. So the point is this. Would you consider supporting a party that lionises and campaigns using the imagery of convicted murderers? The answer should be no, but for 7,000 local individuals in Pakistan who voted for this Islamist group, they clearly thought to the contrary. It seems that the lionising of convicted murderers pays dividends in Pakistan.

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Categories: Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi, Asad Shah, Glasgow, Mumtaz Qadri, News, Opinions, Pakistan, Salman Taseer, Tanveer Ahmed, Tehrik-e-Labaik

Anti-terrorism police hold five over wired explosives found in posh Paris neighbourhood

October 3, 2017 Article

French counter-terrorism investigators questioned five people on Tuesday after police over the weekend found what appeared to be a ready-to-detonate bomb at an apartment building in one of Paris’s poshest neighbourhoods.

Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said one of those arrested was on an intelligence services list of “radicalised” persons – a list that includes the names of potential Islamist militants.

“We are still in a state of war,” Collomb, speaking after a Sunday attack in which a knifeman killed two women in Marseille, told France Inter radio.

Judicial sources said the explosive device included two gas canisters inside the building in the affluent 16th district of western Paris and two outside, some of them doused with petrol and wired to connect to a mobile phone.

It was unclear why the device was planted at the location where it was found as there was no obvious target living there, the judicial sources said.

More than 230 people have been killed in France in attacks by Islamist militants over the past three years. The Islamic State militant group, whose bases in Syria and Iraq are being bombed by French war planes, has urged followers to attack France.

Most of those killed died in attacks by Islamist gunmen and suicide bombers in Paris in 2015 and when a man drove a large truck into crowds in the Riviera resort of Nice in 2016.

Since then, there has been a string of attacks perpetrated by lone assailants, often targeting police or soldiers.

“The threat is changing form,” said Collomb.

A counter-terrorism investigation is also under way after the attack on Sunday, where a knifeman slit the throat of one of his victims and killed her cousin before being shot dead by soldiers at a train station in the southern port city.

A separate inquiry has been opened to establish why the man, who had been briefly detained by police the day before in the city of Lyon had been released.

France declared a state of emergency in late 2015 after the Paris attack by gunmen and suicide bombers, giving police special search and arrest powers to combat would-be terrorists.

New legislation was due to be put to a vote in parliament on Tuesday to make many of those emergency measures permanent.

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Categories: Anti-terror, France, Islamist, Jihadi, Marseille, News, Paris, radicalised

Pakistan ministry seeks ban on new party backed by prominent Islamist

October 1, 2017 Article

Pakistan’s interior ministry has called for the electoral commission to bar from politics a new party backed by an Islamist with a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head, a government document seen by Reuters showed on Thursday.

In a letter dated Sept. 22, the ministry recommended that the Election Commission of Pakistan reject the newly formed Milli Muslim League’s (MML) application to become an official party as it is “affiliated” with Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT), a militant group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

“The registration of MML is not supported,” the ministry said in the two-page document.

Spokesmen for the election commission and the interior ministry acknowledged the correspondence and confirmed that the letter was authentic.

The United States has designated LeT founder Hafiz Saeed, who currently heads the Jamaat-ud-Dawa Islamic charity, a terrorist. It views him as the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks and has offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his imprisonment.

Saeed is currently under house arrest. Pakistan’s reluctance to press charges against him has been a sore point in relations with Washington and India over the past decade.

The ministry said MML is “ideologically of the same hue” as LeT and its affiliated charities Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and the Falah-e-Insanyat Foundation (FIF).

Tabish Qayyum, a spokesman for the MML, said in a statement that the ministry’s letter was unlawful.

“MML isn’t a bus or truck which needs registration,” he said, denying that MML had links with any banned militant group.

The ministry’s stance appears at odds with what political sources and a retired army general have said is a plan proposed by the military’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) to ‘mainstream’ some Pakistan-based anti-Indian militant groups as part of deradicalisation efforts by bringing them into politics.

The interior ministry’s letter was written a week after MML caused a stir by winning 5 percent of votes in a parliamentary by-election in Lahore on Sept. 17.

The document said foreign countries have raised diplomatic objections to MML’s existence and the interior ministry has sought the opinions of intelligence agencies on the group.

One of the agencies, the ministry said, has warned against letting proscribed and monitored organizations enter politics with a view to gaining legitimacy.

The interior ministry said the security agency has informed it that “given the clamour, philosophy, outreach and modus operandi to operate, it is difficult to believe that MML will tread its own path completely at variance with its mother organisation.”

“Therefore, they have recommended that since the registration of such groups would breed violence and extremism in politics, as such registration of such groups be avoided.”

In the Lahore by-election, Yaqoob Sheikh, who swears loyalty to Saeed, stood as an independent candidate but was backed by MML and had Saeed’s colleagues running his campaign.

Saeed’s portraits adorned posters promoting Sheikh, who the United States has also designated a terrorist and a senior LeT commander.

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Categories: amaat-ud-Dawa Islamic charity, elections, Hafis Saeed, Jamaat-ud-Dawa, Lashkar-e-Tayyeba (LeT), LeT, Milli Muslim League's (MML), News, Pakistan

This Year Sees Alignment of the Jewish & Muslim Calendars

September 21, 2017 Article

This year sees the alignment of main holy days in the Jewish and Islamic calendars – Rosh Hashanah, which translates as the ‘beginning of the year’ in Hebrew, began at sundown on September 20, marking the start of 5778 on the Jewish lunar calendar, lasting for two days.

The Islamic New Year of Al-Hijra marks the first day of the month of Muharram, which marks the Hijrah, when in 622 CE, the Prophet Muhammad and his companions migrated to Mecca moved from Medina, begins on September 21, which in the Islamic calendar year is Muharram 1,1439 Hijri.

Both Abrahamic faiths use the lunar calendar, which falls short of the solar calendar, to remedy this shortfall, both the Islamic and Jewish calendars have, when needed, inserted an extra day or month in their respective calendars to align closer to the solar cycle.

For Muslims, this low-key affair puts focus on what the Hijrah means, to understand how the spiritual and earthly life are bound together in devotion and obedience to God, in the first Islamic community, where the strength of this bond was proven by the actions of the Prophet Muhammad, who, by turning away from the norms of his own tribe, gave an example to his companions that the bonds of Islam were stronger.

Rosh Hashanah celebrates the creation of the world, and a day of judgement, where Jews believe that God weighs up the good and bad deeds of a person from the previous year, and decides what the year ahead will bring them.

The Jewish New Year also offers time to reflect on the bonds between God and humans, to consider optimism when faced with adversity, to seek forgiveness, and ponder more existential questions about achievements over the year, and what a person holds most dear.

Rosh Hashanah begins with the blowing of the ritual ram’s horn (Shofar), in Hebrew, the term derives from the verb שפר, which means to enhance, improve and succeed.

Muslim and Jewish communities welcome in the new year with sweet dishes in the hope of a sweet and prosperous year ahead.

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Categories: Hijrah, Islamic, Jewish Calendar, Muharram, News, Rosh Hashanah, Shofar

Pakistan army pushed political role for militant-linked groups

September 21, 2017 Article

A new Pakistani political party controlled by an Islamist with a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head is backing a candidate in a by-election on Sunday, in what a former senior army officer says is a key step in a military-proposed plan to mainstream militant groups.

The Milli Muslim League party loyal to Hafiz Saeed – who the United States and India accuse of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people – has little chance of seeing its favoured candidate win the seat vacated when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was removed from office by the Supreme Court in July.

But the foray into politics by Saeed’s Islamist charity is following a blueprint that Sharif himself rejected when the military proposed it last year, retired Lieutenant General Amjad Shuaib told Reuters.

Three close Sharif confidants with knowledge of the discussions confirmed that Sharif had opposed the “mainstreaming” plan, which senior military figures and some analysts see as a way of steering ultra-religious groups away from violent jihad.

“We have to separate those elements who are peaceful from the elements who are picking up weapons,” Shuaib said.

Pakistan’s powerful military has long been accused of fostering militant groups as proxy fighters opposing neighbouring arch-enemy India, a charge the army denies.

“PATRIOTIC PEOPLE”

Saeed’s religious charity launched the Milli Muslim League party within two weeks after the court ousted Sharif over corruption allegations.

Yaqoob Sheikh, the Lahore candidate for Milli Muslim League, is standing as an independent after the Electoral Commission said the party was not yet legally registered.

But Saeed’s lieutenants, JUD workers and Milli Muslim League officials are running his campaign and portraits of Saeed adorn every poster promoting Sheikh.

Another Islamist designated a terrorist by the United States, Fazlur Rehman Khalil, has told Reuters he too plans to soon form his own party to advocate strict Islamic law.

“God willing, we will come into the mainstream – our country right now needs patriotic people,” Khalil said, vowing to turn Pakistan into a state government by strict Islamic law.

Saeed’s charity and Khalil’s Ansar ul-Umma organisation are both seen by the United States as fronts for militant groups the army has been accused of sponsoring. The military denies any policy of encouraging radical groups.

Both Islamist groups deny their political ambitions were engineered by the military. The official army spokesman was not available for comment after queries were sent to the press wing.

Still, hundreds of MML supporters, waving posters of Saeed and demanding his release from house arrest, chanted “Long live Hafiz Saeed! Long live the Pakistan army!” at political rallies during the past week.

“Anyone who is India’s friend is a traitor, a traitor,” went another campaign slogan, a reference to Sharif’s attempts to improve relations with long-time foe India that was a source of tension with the military.

‘DERADICALISATION’ PLAN

Both Saeed and Khalil are proponents of a strict interpretation of Islam and have a history of supporting violence – each man was reportedly a signatory to al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden’s 1998 fatwa declaring war on the United States.

They have since established religious groups that they say are unconnected to violence, though the United States maintains those groups are fronts for funnelling money and fighters to militants targeting India.

Analyst Khaled Ahmed, who has researched Saeed’s Jamaat-ud-Dawa charity and its connections to the military, says the new political party is clearly an attempt by the generals to pursue an alternative to dismantling its militant proxies.

“One thing is the army wants these guys to survive,” Ahmed said. “The other thing is that they want to also balance the politicians who are more and more inclined to normalise relations with India.”

The military’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency first began pushing the political mainstreaming plan in April 2016, according to retired general Shuaib, a former director of the army’s military intelligence wing that is separate from the ISI.

He said the proposal was shared with him in writing by the then-ISI chief, adding that he himself had spoken with Khalil as well as Saeed in an unofficial capacity about the plan.

“Fazlur Rehman Khalil was very positive. Hafiz Saeed was very positive,” Shuaib said. “My conversation with them was just to confirm those things which I had been told by the ISI and other people.”

Saeed has been under house arrest since January at his house in the eastern city of Lahore. The United States has offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his conviction over the Mumbai attacks.

Then-Prime Minister Sharif, however, was strongly against the military’s mainstreaming plan, according to Shuaib and three members of Sharif’s inner circle, including one who was in some of the tense meetings over the issue.

Sharif wanted to completely dismantle groups like JuD. Disagreement on what to do about anti-India proxy fighters was a major source of rancour with the military, according to one of the close Sharif confidants.

In recent weeks several senior figures from the ruling PML-N party have publicly implied that elements of the military – which has run Pakistan for almost half its modern history and previously ousted Sharif in a 1999 coup – had a hand in the court ouster of Sharif, a charge both the army and the court reject.

A representative of the PML-N, which last month replaced him as prime minister with close ally Shahid Khaqi Abbasi, said the party was “not aware” of any mainstreaming plan being brought to the table.

RELIGION AND POLITICS

Some analysts worry that mainstreaming such controversial groups would be a risky strategy for Pakistan.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has threatened sanctions against members of Pakistan’s military and even raised the spectre of declaring Pakistan a state sponsor of terrorism.

“It will send a wrong message,” said analyst Zahid Hussain, who nevertheless thought that Saeed’s new party would have a “negligible” effect on Pakistani elections because religious parties have never won more than a few seats in parliament.

Others are not so sure.

Sheikh, the MML candidate in Sunday’s by-election who says he was handpicked by Hafiz Saeed, vowed to establish strict Islamic rule and “break” liberalism and secularism.

Analyst Ahmed warned that few existing religious parties have a charismatic leader like Saeed, and Pakistan may find itself unable to control a rising tide of Islamist sentiment.

“If Hafiz Saeed comes into the mainstream, it’s not that he is going to be politicised,” he added. “It’s that he is going to make politics more religious.”

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Categories: Ansar ul-Umma, Fazlur Rehman Khalil, Milli Muslim League, Mumbai attack, Nawaz Sharif, News, United States

Rohingya Muslims drown while escaping fighting in Myanmar

September 2, 2017 Article

 

The bodies of at least 17 Muslim women and children were found on Thursday (August 31) in Teknaf, Bangladesh, as tens of thousands tried to flee the fighting in northern Myanmar.

The victims were believed to have drown after their boat capsized while crossing the border through the Bay of Bengal.

Around 38,000 Rohingya have crossed into Bangladesh from Myanmar, United Nations sources said, a week after Rohingya insurgents attacked police posts and an army base in Rakhine state, prompting clashes and a military counteroffensive.

The army said it was conducting clearance operations against “extremist terrorists” and security forces had been told to protect civilians. But Rohingya fleeing to Bangladesh said it was a campaign of arson and killings aimed to force them out.

On Friday (September 1), Bangladesh border guards found the bodies of another 15 Rohingya Muslims, area commander Lt. Col. Ariful Islam told Reuters. About 20,000 more Rohingya trying to flee are stuck in no man’s land at the border, the U.N. sources said, as aid workers in Bangladesh struggle to alleviate the sufferings of a sudden influx of thousands of hungry and traumatized people.

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Categories: Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma, hatred, Killings, News, Persecution, Rakhine, Rohingya

Hope Not Hate’s Poll Shows a Deepening Mistrust of Muslims

August 30, 2017 Article

Hope Not Hate have just released their survey of 4,000 people entitled, ‘Fear and Hope – 2017’. The poll was conducted by Populus and looked at the impact of four terrorist attacks in three months in 2017 and the Brexit negotiations and the Grenfell Fire. Key social points of focus included race, faith and belonging.

The results provide for optimism and reassurance as the poll suggests that the public are being more open and receptive to others and there is a British sense of optimism that is very much part of the country, even though on bleak grey days, we as Brits certainly know how to complain.

However, there is also a worrying thread which runs through the poll in relation to how the public perceive Islam and Muslims. The poll indicates that attitudes have become more hostile to both and with just 10% of the public feeling that Muslims are similar to themselves. This is a stark and deeply worrying statistic.

Worst still, the poll shows that 52% of those who answered the 140 questions agree that Islam poses a threat to the West and 42% highlight a growing suspicion of Muslims, after the recent terrorist attacks. Going on, nearly 1 in 4 of the respondents believe that Islam is a dangerous religion which incites violence and older subsets of respondents demonstrated a receptiveness to Islamophobic views and discourse.

These are stark responses and show a divide that is clearly opening up between wider communities and British Muslim communities.

Communities Coming Together After Terrorist Attacks

As suggested earlier, there were some points for optimism. The results were heartening with 4 in 5 respondents responding positively to communities standing together and being seen to be visibly responsive immediately after terrorist attacks. A similar figure also could distinguish the actions of terrorists from all Muslims and more positively still, 1 in 2 of the respondents had noted that they had come across material where Muslims were seen to speak out against terrorist attacks. The latter makes a change from the narrative which seemed to be circulating for many years, which suggested that Muslims were not seen to be speaking out against extremism and terrorism and thereby passively accepting extremist rhetoric.

The report, however, raises some red flags. Members of the public seem to be tiring of post terrorist scenarios where communities come together and 2 in 3 respondents wanted to see Muslims hold demonstrations and marches against terrorism. In other words, they wanted to see a more forward-facing posture from Muslims against terrorism, rather than the passive cohesive style approach now taken after such major national incidents.

Furthermore, the poll also showed a hardening attitude to Muslims which should be a major wake-up call for them. Whilst we know that many British Muslims have gone out of their way to speak up against extremism and terrorism and to reach out to others, this work needs to be ramped up, better organised and much more vocal in many ways.

Knowing Muslims

The Populus poll for Hope Not Hate also highlights the fact that 1 in 2 white respondents did not have deeper links and associations with Muslims signifying deeper community divides, whilst they over-estimated the population of Muslims in the UK.

There has also been a hardening of attitudes around human rights with calls by respondents for a relaxation in the human rights protections of those suspected of terrorism. The majority of respondents also preferred stronger laws and more authoritarian solutions which clamped down on issues such as extremism and terrorism, possibly showing that the patience of the public is being stretched by terrorist attacks. Also, 3 in 4 respondents believed that integration was best assisted by Muslims speaking English and with closer monitoring and Muslim faith schools in particular.

These results are therefore, both heartening but also worrying. They show a growing divide between the wider public and British Muslim communities and with the divides becoming stark, as highlighted through this report. If we are to ensure that community tensions, extremism and marginalisation are to be tackled in our country, we have to find ways which address the concerns of the wider public, whilst also ensuring that British Muslims feel that they have a future and a space in the United Kingdom. We firmly believe that this country provides the best opportunities in Europe to British Muslims and that Muslims have the freedom to practice and be who they are in the UK. However, it is also clear that more needs to be done to bridge divides, challenge extremism and be seen to stand up for the safety, security and rights of each other. Last but not least, there is one clear result from this poll. If we don’t collectively make a change, there is a slippery slope ahead which does not bode well.

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Categories: 2017, English, Far Right groups, Fear and Hope, Hope not Hate, integration, News, Populus, report, terrorism

Launch of Guide on Hate Crimes Demonstrating Strong Partnership Working

August 23, 2017 Article

The following guide which has been published by the Community Security Trust and co-authored by the Crown Prosecution Service, Tell MAMA and the Department of Communities and Local Government, provides guidance and advice for victims and witnesses of hate crimes. It highlights the processes and procedures for reporting in hate crimes and outlines the routes by which statutory bodies such as the police and Crown Prosecution Service work with victims. It is a guide which ensures that the rights of victims are protected and maintained.

Though the guide has a focus on anti-Muslim hatred and antisemitism, its advice can, and should, be used by anybody who has suffered any kind of hate crime, which can occur due to race, religion, sexuality, age, disability, gender or any other characteristic.

Tell MAMA, the CST and many other agencies have repeatedly stated, that as levels of reported hate crime continues to grow in the UK, collaborative efforts to educate and inform those affected by it are increasingly important.

Introductory statements within the guide include:

Iman Atta OBE, Director Tell MAMA

We have seen a rise over the last five years in the reporting of anti-Muslim hatred. Tell MAMA has been at the vanguard of supporting victims of anti-Muslim hatred, whilst collecting evidence and mapping, monitoring and measuring incidents across the United Kingdom. Through partnership work in the production of materials such as this guide, we hope that we can collectively make it easier for people to report, take charge and feel confident when they report hate incidents. We stand together with other communities in working to counter hatred, intolerance and bigotry.

David S Delew, Chief Executive, CST

Despite our best efforts to combat all forms of hate crime and hate incidents, levels of antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred in the UK are unfortunately on the rise. CST works hard to protect, support and inform victims of antisemitism. This collaborative guide will be an important tool for all those affected by hate crime in understanding their rights, and how to navigate the complicated criminal justice system.

Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, Communities Secretary:

Hate crime against any community is entirely unacceptable. Everyone in this country has a right to live without fear of abuse or attack and we must, as a nation, firmly condemn hate crimes and all other forms of bigotry. It is vital that victims have the confidence to report crimes to the Police. This Government is committed to making sure that those who perpetuate hate are subject to the full force of the law – but we cannot do this alone. This guide is an example of how we can work together to stamp out hate crime and support victims in bringing their cases forward so that justice can be served.

Alison Saunders CB, Director of Public Prosecutions, Crown Prosecution Service:

We want communities and individuals to have the confidence to come forward and report these offences, no matter how minor they may appear. This guide is an important way of ensuring that victims can make informed decisions about the most appropriate course of action, taking account of their particular personal circumstances. Hate crime divides communities and the CPS has an absolute commitment to bring perpetrators to justice and support victims and witnessed through the criminal justice system.

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Categories: anti-Semitism, Antisemitism, Community Cohesion, CPS, CST, disability hate, Far Right groups, guide, hate crime, homophobia, Jews, LGBT hate, News, reports, victims

Hezbollah uses drones against IS in Syria – Hezbollah-run media

August 22, 2017 Article

Lebanon’s Hezbollah used drones to strike Islamic State in Syria close to the border with Lebanon, a military media unit it runs said on Monday, their first public declaration that they had used such a weapon.

Hezbollah deployed the drones to hit Islamic State positions, bunkers and fortifications in the Western Qalamoun area near the border with Lebanon, achieving direct hits, the military media unit said.

An official in the military alliance fighting in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told Reuters it was the first time Hezbollah had declared its use of the weapons.

Footage released by the media unit seemingly taken from a drone, showed two types of munition, one of them with a tail fin, dropping towards the ground and explosions as they hit.

Early on Saturday Hezbollah and the Syrian army began an operation against an Islamic State enclave straddling the border with Lebanon in Syria’s Western Qalamoun.

The Lebanese army began a separate but simultaneous operation against the same jihadist pocket from inside Lebanon.

Any joint operation between the Lebanese army on the one hand and the Syrian army on the other would be politically sensitive in Lebanon and could jeopardise the U.S. military aid the country receives.

Islamic State holds the last militant pocket on the border after a Hezbollah offensive last month that forced Nusra Front militants to leave for rebel-held Idlib province in Syria.

Northeastern Lebanon was the scene of one of the worst spillovers from Syria’s civil war in 2014 when Islamic State and Nusra Front militants attacked the town of Arsal.

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Categories: Arsal, drones, Hezbollah, Islamic State, Lebanon, News, Nusra, Shia, Sunni

For Mostar bridge-diving champion, success takes more than gravity

July 31, 2017 Article

Lorens Listo’s name may not headline the world’s sports pages, but on the streets of his native Mostar he is hailed as a champion among champions in a sport that is central to the Bosnian city’s identity: high diving.

Mostar is home to the Stari Most, a 16th-century Ottoman peaked bridge that spans the river Neretva and, at its highest point, stands 79 feet (24 m) above the water.

The picturesque town has become famous for the diving competition from the white bridge, rebuilt in 2004 and a symbol of reconciliation after it was destroyed by Bosnian Croat artillery in 1993 during the Bosnian war.

Listo won the competition’s head-first diving category for the eleventh time on Sunday with his trade-mark swan dive, before a crowd of about 5,000 people. It was the 451st contest held since the first in 1556.

“Jumps are the identity of Mostar,” he said. The plunge from the bridge is a ritual for local youths to signal their transition into manhood. It is also a major tourist attraction, and a unifying force in a divided city.

Croats and Muslims, known as Bosniaks, live on opposite sides of the river and tensions linger from Bosnia’s 1990s war that saw fierce fighting between the two communities. But post-war, Croats and Bosniaks come together for the diving contest.

“Jumps connect both sides because we are together, looking forward to see who is winning. Boundaries are just in people’s mind, they actually don’t exist,” he said.

Approaching 40, Listo has a muscular physique, adorned with tattoos on his arms and thigh, and a buzz-cut hairstyle.

“I could say that everything that I do, my business, my life, my family, everything is dedicated to jumping off the bridge for at least 18 years”, he said, adding that he saw diving as a second full-time job, rather than a hobby.

Listo, who works as the local director of a fuel company, says the threat of injury hangs over the sport. “We fly, we don’t just jump,” Listo said, adding he had broken a finger and injured his back over the years diving from the bridge.

Others have not been so lucky. Listo said a handful of people have died jumping from the bridge over the years, though never during the competition. Listo’s friend Andrej Beuc also died last year diving in a different competition in Bosnia.

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Categories: Bosnia, Bosnian Croat artiller, Christian, Croats, Mostar, Muslim, News, Stari