Americas, Analysis, Europe, Side Feature, South Asia, The Khilafah

Headline News 07/08/2019

  • India Revoked Kashmir Autonomy
  • Counter-Terror Chief says Policing Alone Cannot Beat Extremism
  • US Imposes More Sanctions on Venezuela 

India Revoked Kashmir Autonomy

India’s government has revoked part of the constitution that gives Indian-occupied Kashmir special status. The Indian President Ram Nath Kovind issued a presidential decree supplanting the Indian Constitution’s Article 370, which grants Jammu and Kashmir autonomy in managing its internal affairs with the exception of defence, foreign affairs and communications. Over the weekend, Indian authorities placed former Kashmiri chief ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah under house arrest as part of a massive security crackdown that has included the deployment of 38,000 paramilitary forces, the severing of internet and mobile connections, and a ban on public gatherings. For decades and especially since Musharraf’s reign Kashmir has bene neglected by Pakistan’s army and rulers despite there rhetoric to the contrary. This has given India the confidence to carry out numerous violations against the Muslims of Kashmir and now its assimilation to mainland India.

Counter-Terror Chief says Policing Alone Cannot Beat Extremism

Britain’s most senior counter-terrorism officer has said the police and security services are no longer enough to win the fight against violent extremism, and the UK must instead improve community cohesion, social mobility and education. In his first major interview since taking up his post, the Metropolitan police assistant commissioner Neil Basu told the Guardian that up to 80% of those who wanted to attack the UK were British-born or raised, which strongly indicated domestic social issues were among the root causes. Basu said Prevent, which he sees as the most important plank of Britain’s counter-terrorism strategy, had been “badly handled”, but its work was vital and had to become more transparent and community led. Giving a personal view on the best ways to reduce terrorism, Basu said: “Policies that go towards more social inclusion, more social mobility and more education are much more likely to drive down violence … than all the policing and state security apparatus put together. It is much more likely to have a positive effect on society.” The problem with Britain’s counter terrorism strategy is it’s not designed to fight terrorism but assimilate Muslims, it is solely a political strategy rather them a security strategy and no amount of reform of this failed strategy will ever work.

US Imposes More Sanctions on Venezuela

US national security adviser, John Bolton, has insisted Venezuela’s “tired dictator” was at “the end of his rope”, as he opened another front in the White House’s economic blitz on Nicolás Maduro by freezing all Venezuelan government assets in the United States. Addressing a summit on Venezuela’s crisis in Peru’s capital, Lima, Bolton pronounced Maduro’s “dying regime” doomed – even though a seven-month US-backed campaign has so far failed to topple Hugo Chávez’s authoritarian successor. “The time for dialogue is over. Now is the time for action,” Bolton declared. But experts questioned the impact and wisdom of the measures, which Maduro’s administration and its Russian backers branded “economic terrorism”. Some fear the latest sanctions will further aggravate an already dire humanitarian situation which has already forced millions to flee Venezuela, while others believe they will alienate Guaidó’s European backers who believe a negotiated solution is possible. The US is no longer the power it used to be, in its back yard it’s unable to remove a ruler which previously would have been done with finesse and speed.