Headlines:

• Qandeel Baloch’s Murder a Symptom of Secularism
• Britain to Renew Nukes
• Erdogan Survives Coup

Qandeel Baloch’s Murder a Symptom of Secularism

The murder of Pakistani social media sensation, Qandeel Baloch, by her own brother has angered millions of Pakistanis, while others have celebrated her death on account of her rebellious, provocative, and “un-Islamic” antics. Her brother expressed no regrets and stated that he had killed her to preserve the family honour. Many condemned the killing outright, others said she had it coming, and some said while she should not have been killed, they could understand the brother’s motive. This confusion on what should and should not have happened to her has arisen from a clash between the Islamic sentiments of the people and the secular system imposed on the Pakistani people. Pakistan is Muslim majority country with cherished Islamic sentiments, this sentiment however is channelled through a non-Islamic system, as a result a clear contradiction exists between what the people want, i.e. state discipline on matters deemed unacceptable to their values and what the state achieves.

Britain to Renew Nukes

In a parliamentary vote the British parliament agreed to spend upward of $40 billion modernizing their nuclear weapons arsenal. Many analysts have suggested that the $40 billion is a gross underestimate, and the nukes will end up costing far more. Britain’s nuclear weapons have been a contention of national debate as Britain’s declining role in the world is leading to many question the exuberant cost of maintaining them. The British politicians who still view Britain as a global power view the giving up nukes as a disaster which would prove Britain was no longer a global power, as all the global powers have nuclear weapons. In one of the first high profile parliamentary debates since she took over the premiership last week, British Prime Minister Theresa May insisted she would have no hesitation in ordering nuclear strikes abroad that would kill hundreds of thousands of civilians. Britain lost its economic strength after WW2, its military has been in decline ever since and nuclear weapons will not reverse this fact.

Erdogan Survives Coup

Erdogan survived a coup against his government on Sat 16, after a faction from within the army took control of Ankara and were in the process of seizing Istanbul. Erdogan was at his home in the tourist resort of Marmaris when he received a telephone call telling him he his life was in peril as well as the future of Turkey. A military commander informed him three Blackhawk helicopters carrying rebel soldiers were on their way to kill or capture him. In a panic the 62-year-old Turkish president was whisked under armed guard to a private jet waiting at a nearby airfield as the three choppers swooped on the resort where he had been staying. “At least two F-16s harassed Erdogan’s plane while it was in the air and en route to Istanbul. They locked their radars on his plane and on two other F-16s protecting him,” a former military officer with knowledge of the events told Reuters. “Why they didn’t fire is a mystery,” he said. Erdogan landed safely in Istanbul and rallied those loyal to him put down the coup and by Saturday morning the coup was over.