Category World News

One nation won’t have any representatives as the Palestinian people prepare to meet in New York for the UN General Assembly’s (UNGA) 80th session in September. The United States Department of State has chosen to refuse visas to Palestinian officials who want to attend the UNGA session.

The US has generally adhered to its “headquarters agreement” with the UN, which allows officials from all over the world to obtain visas, though their applications are limited. However, there have been instances where the US has refused to grant visas to foreign diplomats from nations like Russia, Iran, Venezuela, and others because of its status as a UNGA host.

This is not the first time Palestinian leaders have been denied a visa, especially in the case of Palestine. The US government defended its decision by citing “security threats,” and Yasser Arafat, the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), was also prohibited from visiting the UN in 1988.

The Trump administration is now praising the Palestinian Authority (PA) for “not meeting their commitments and… undermining the prospects for peace,” making the claim that the decision reflects US “national security interests.”

The official US justification for the PA’s failure to denounce “terrorism,” including the attacks of October 7, 2023, is illogical. The Palestinian leadership has consistently condemned “terrorism,” including the attacks, under President Mahmoud Abbas, and has gone even further by backing the French-Saudi statement calling for Hamas’s disarmament.

The 1993 Oslo Accords, signed by Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin, with US President Bill Clinton as the guest of honor, established the PA in accordance with the agreement. The PA continued to support any US-led peace initiative in the years that followed, including a sizable sum of money.

It is absurd to accuse the PA of “undermining the prospects for peace” in this regard. It is obvious that the visa applications were denied elsewhere.

Leaders of several Western nations have declared their intentions to recognize Palestine at the UNGA this month, which coincides with the Trump administration’s decision. By the end of September, France, Canada, the UK, Australia, Portugal, and Malta are expected to join the 147 UN member states that have already granted Palestinian statehood.

These nations have been under constant pressure from the Trump administration to abandon their plans. Washington is likely trying to prevent the Palestinians from having a chance to celebrate this moment and have a platform to voice their opposition to the ongoing atrocities committed by Israel in Gaza and the occupied West Bank because that may not work.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, will be welcomed warmly in the US, in contrast. Netanyahu has been the most frequently a guest at the White House since Trump’s inauguration, and he will also be present at the UNGA, despite the International Criminal Court (ICC) is issuing a warrant for his arrest. Omar al-Bashir, the president of Sudan, was reportedly denied a visa by the US government in 2013 because of his ICC arrest warrant.

The US has participated in Israeli efforts to silence Palestinian journalists, but it has also denied them a platform at the UN.

Five days after Israel bombed Gaza’s Naser Hospital, killing 22 people, including five Palestinian journalists, the US made the decision to refuse visas to Palestinian diplomats. Since the start of the war, Israel has killed 24 journalists. The attack was not condemned by the Trump administration. The State Department reportedly supported the Israeli army’s claim that four Al Jazeera journalists were “part of Hamas” two weeks prior to the attack and the killing of four of their targets.

This is in response to the US government’s inaction in a number of other Israeli-related journalists killings, including those committed by senior American-Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh in May of that year and my friend and colleague Nazeh Darwazeh, who was killed in 2003 while working for The Associated Press.

The US is unwaveringly committed to supporting Israel in denying Palestinians a platform and voice in front of the world to speak out and support their claim to statehood.

The visa denial is “a perfect expression of decades of US policy toward the Palestinians: we’ll punish you for violence, but we’ll punish you for non-violence,” according to Matt Duss, executive vice president of the Center for International Policy in Washington, DC.

Who is it if even a resolute Palestinian body that has abandoned armed struggle is not permitted to speak? Who is authorized to represent Palestine?

The Israeli occupiers’ attempts to eject Palestinians from their homeland and void Palestinian sovereignty appear to be supported by the US at this time. Even if you are the only superpower on Earth, you can’t wish away an entire population from its surface.

Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan has been struck by a magnitude 6 earthquake.

More than 800 people have died as a result of the disaster on Sunday night, according to the government. Rescue efforts have been hampered by debris and flooding.

What happened and why Afghanistan is prone to earthquakes are explained more here:

What transpired?

The earthquake shook eastern Afghanistan’s Nangarhar and Kunar provinces on Sunday at 11:47 PM (19:47 GMT). It trembled softly because it was 8 kilometers (5 miles) deep.

Because the earthquake’s epicenter and seismic waves are closer to Earth’s surface, smaller earthquakes typically cause more damage. Because they must travel farther to the surface, seismic waves from deep earthquakes lose energy.

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck Nangarhar province just 20 minutes after the first earthquake, striking north of Basawul. Numerous tremors have fallen since then, ranging in size from 4.3 to 5.2, near the provincial capitals of Jalalabad and Basawul.

Where did the earthquake strike Afghanistan?

The initial earthquake was located 27 kilometers (17 miles) east of Jalalabad, near Kunar province, which is located just north of Nangarhar, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

East of Kabul, Jalalabad is 150 kilometers (93 miles). Because it is close to Pakistan, it is a significant trading hub. The municipality estimates that the city has about 300,000 residents.

The majority of the city’s buildings are low-rise, mostly made of concrete and brick, while the suburbs have mud brick and wood-built homes.

Jalalabad also produces agricultural products. Citrus trees and rice are grown there because the Kabul River passes through the city.

How many people have been injured and died?

According to Afghan government spokesman Mawlawi Zabihullah Mujahid, the death toll is currently 812 and more than 3, 000 people have been injured.

As rescue efforts continue in the mountainous area, Zabihullah predicted that the casualties would increase.

What does an earthquake of magnitude 6 mean?

The Richter scale, which ranges from 1 to 10, is used to determine the intensity of earthquakes.

A magnitude 6 earthquake is regarded as powerful. Houses may suffer damage and objects may fall.

What do rescue efforts resemble?

According to Sharafat Zaman, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Health, rescue operations are underway and several villages have been destroyed.

According to an Afghan television network’s TOLOnews on Monday, “335 injured individuals were transported by helicopter to Nangarhar Regional Hospital.”

According to the state-run Bakhtar news agency, Kunar has received 30 doctors and 800 kg (1, 764lb) of medicine to assist hospitals that are overflowing with patients.

In a post on X&nbsp on Monday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his “full solidarity with the Afghan people.”

Guterres continued, “The @UN team in Afghanistan is mobilized and will make no mistake about helping those in the affected areas.”

After the devastating earthquake that hit Afghanistan earlier today, I stand in full solidarity with its citizens.

I extend my heartfelt condolences to the victims’ families and wish them a quick recovery.

The @UN team has mobilized in Afghanistan…

Iran has also provided aid in the world.

The Islamic Republic of Iran announces its full readiness to send relief, medical, and humanitarian aid in these challenging circumstances and great tragedy, according to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who spoke to the country’s Tasnim news agency.

What is preventing rescue efforts?

On Saturday, flash floods flooded Nangarhar province, destroying farms and roads.

According to Zakeria Shnizai, an earthquake geologist with the University of Oxford, “in Afghanistan, flooding has severely hampered rescue operations by blocking roads, destroying bridges, and isolating communities in the earthquake-affected area.”

“These difficulties have made it very difficult for emergency personnel to reach people who have been hurt or trapped under debris.” According to Shnizai, the use of heavy equipment has been restricted, and there is now a greater risk of landslides or rock avalanches.

He added that the delivery of essential supplies like food, water, and medical supplies has also become more difficult, leading to longer response times.

According to research, seasonal rains and weather conditions can increase earthquake-induced vulnerabilities by causing landslides, causing damage to access points, and causing communication disruptions, according to Abdullah Ansari, a research professor at Sultan Qaboos University in Muscat, Oman.

“In the present case, floodwaters have obstructed important transportation corridors, stifling the flow of aid and putting down rescue teams. The interaction of seismic and hydrological hazards underscores Afghanistan’s need for multihazard preparedness measures to improve resilience.

Rescue efforts have been hampered by rocky terrain and debris from the earthquakes, in addition to the flash floods. The roads are not paved, they say. It’s very challenging to go there right now because of the earthquake, according to Al Jazeera’s Mohsin Momand from Kabul.

Evacuations and risk mitigation are impeded by limited resources, poor infrastructure, and a lack of comprehensive early warning systems, Ansari continued.

Are earthquakes common in Afghanistan?

The collision of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates, which causes frequent moderate to strong earthquakes, makes Afghanistan one of Central Asia’s most seismically active regions.

In Pakistan and Afghanistan recently, there has been seismic activity.

On August 27 and 19, respectively, magnitude 5. 6 and magnitude 5. 2 tremors struck Afghanistan’s Hindu Kush region. On June 29, a magnitude 5. 5 earthquake in Central Pakistan was recorded, and on May 10 a magnitude 5. 7 quake was also recorded.

More than 2, 000 people were killed when an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 6.3 hit Afghanistan’s western province of Herat in 2023. Eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika, Paktia, Khost, and Nangarhar provinces were struck by a magnitude 6 earthquake in June 2022.

According to Shnizai, “the country and its surrounding regions are frequently characterized by significant crustal stress, which causes numerous faults and frequent seismic activity,” as a result of the plates’ ongoing convergence.

The Hindu Kush region’s Chaman, Herat, Kunar, Panjshir, Sarobi, and Spin Ghar faults are among the major fault systems that traverse the nation.

What is the most recent tidbit of information?

According to the Ministry of Public Works, the highway connecting Jalalabad to Kunar, which is at the center of the deadly earthquake, has been reopened for traffic.

According to ministry spokesman Mohammad Ashraf Haqshenas, many Kunar roads are still inaccessible as first responders work to clear rubble.

Names marked with an asterisk have been changed to protect identities.

When Akmal’s* mosque was vandalised last week in Basildon, a town in the English county of Essex, he felt shaken.

“I was so hurt,” said the 33-year-old electrical engineer, who requested Al Jazeera use a pseudonym. “It was so close to home. My local masjid [mosque]. It felt like a real kick in the teeth.”

The South Essex Islamic Centre in Basildon was defaced shortly before midnight on Thursday. Red crosses were daubed across its walls alongside the words “Christ is King” and “This is England”.

The timing, the night before Friday prayers, appeared to many as calculated – an attempt to intimidate a flurry of worshippers in the southeastern English county.

“My wife and baby are growing up here,” Akmal told Al Jazeera. “I want to move out of the area. I just cannot stay here.”

Community leaders condemned the attack.

Gavin Callaghan, the leader of Basildon Council, described it as “pathetic criminal cowardice”.

“Don’t dress it up. Don’t excuse it. It’s scum behaviour, and it shames our town … The cowards who did this will be caught,” he said. “To do this right before Friday prayers is no coincidence. That’s targeted. That’s intimidation. And it’s criminal.”

Wajid Akhter, head of the Muslim Council of Britain, said, “The St George flag is a symbol of England we should all be proud of. For it to be used in this way, [which] echoes how Nazis targeted Jewish homes, is a disgrace to our flag and our nation. Silence has allowed hate to grow.”

Essex police are investigating the incident.

Council staff and volunteers worked in the early hours of the morning to remove the graffiti before worshippers arrived, but a sense of fear is still lingering.

“I was shocked,” said Sajid Fani, 43, who lives in the area. “I didn’t expect something like that to happen here.”

Local bishops decried the misuse of Christian imagery in the attack. They issued a joint statement calling the vandalism “scandalous and profoundly misguided”, saying that invoking Christianity to justify racism is “theologically false and morally dangerous”.

Racism amid flag-raising campaign

The vandalism took place amid a tense atmosphere in the United Kingdom, amid protests against asylum seekers and a social media campaign dubbed #OperationRaisetheColours.

In recent weeks, those heeding the call have pinned the flag of England bearing Saint George’s Cross and Union Jacks to motorway bridges, lampposts, roundabouts and some shops across the UK. Red crosses have been spray-painted on the white stripes of zebra crossings.

According to the anti-far-right HOPE not hate group, the campaign is led by Andrew Currien, a former member of the Islamophobic English Defence League and now a security figure for the political party Britain First, also an anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant group.

While some supporters frame the project as patriotic, it has been tied to racist incidents.

Racist graffiti has appeared in several other locations. Some 300 miles (about 500km) north of Basildon, for example, xenophobic slurs have been sprayed on buildings in County Durham and Houghton-le-Spring in northern England.

Some have blamed the media’s focus on the issue of asylum.

In recent months, British television networks and newspapers have dedicated significant coverage to asylum seekers, as some social media sites allow hateful content to proliferate.

Shabna Begum, head of Runnymede Trust, a race equality think tank, said the spate of vandalism is part of a “frightening intensification of Islamophobia” driven by political and media narratives scapegoating Muslim communities.

“The violence being played out on our streets and the vandalism of mosques is the product of a political and media soundtrack that has relentlessly demonised Muslim communities,” she said. “Whether it is policy or narratives, we have been fed a monotonous diet that tells us that our economic problems are caused by Muslims, migrants and people seeking asylum.”

She warned that history shows governments that fail to confront economic grievances while scapegoating minorities ultimately collapse.

“The question is how much will this betrayal cost for the Muslim communities that are served as political fodder,” she said.

Fani in Basildon said, “It’s the fear factor. They [media channels] put terror in the hearts of people when it comes to Muslims. I want to show people we are just like them. We’re just human.”

Days before the mosque was vandalised, a roundabout opposite was painted with a red cross.

“I wasn’t offended by England flags being flown,” said Fani. “But this is different. It crossed a line.”

In the wake of the vandalism, mosque leaders encouraged worshippers to attend Friday prayers in greater numbers as a show of resilience.

Fani said the turnout was larger than usual: “Alhumdulillah [Thank God], it resulted in more people coming to the mosque, so the outcome was positive.”

‘A line between being patriotic and being outright racist’

Maryam*, a Muslim woman who lives in Basildon, lamented the “attack on the Muslim community” as she emphasised that it reflects a dark climate.

“There’s a line between being patriotic and being outright racist or Islamophobic – and some people here are crossing that line.”

In her view, a wave of protests against housing asylum seekers at hotels earlier this summer has coincided with Islamophobic abuse – particularly in Epping, a nearby town where The Bell Hotel has been the focus of violent agitation.

Police data is yet to confirm a link or rise in racist attacks, but locally reported incidents tell a troubling story.

Last week, a man in Basildon was arrested after a hijab-wearing woman and her child were allegedly racially abused, while vandals sprayed St George’s crosses on nearby homes.

At the end of July, residents reported glass projectiles being hurled from the upper floors of a building near Basildon station, apparently targeting Muslim women and families of colour.

Beyond the headline incidents, Maryam reeled off a list of other recent examples of racism she has witnessed – a woman of East African origin called a racial slur, a driver mocking a Muslim woman in hijab as a “post box”.

“Unfortunately, I’ve [also] been subjected to a lot of Islamophobia in Basildon – often in front of my child,” she added. “It has affected my mental health … it’s created a lot of trauma and barriers to simply living a normal life.”

While the mosque attack prompted swift attention from councillors and police, isolated incidents against individuals often go unreported.