Israel vows to evacuate Palestinians from parts of West Bank as it continues bloody raids

Mangaluru, Mar 1: Muslim religious and community leaders have strongly opposed the Wakf Amendment Bill 2024, calling it a threat to religious freedom. They have urged the government to uphold constitutional values and withdraw the bill immediately.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, March 1, they stated that the bill, introduced in August last year, has faced widespread resistance. Critics argue that it undermines the rights of Muslims and disregards constitutional protections. The bill was referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee, but reports suggest that the committee rejected opposition-proposed changes and introduced even more controversial provisions, deepening concerns.

Leaders emphasized that Wakf properties are sacred donations meant for religious and social welfare purposes within the community. The Wakf Act, first established in 1913 and amended multiple times, safeguards these properties. The Indian Constitution guarantees religious freedom under Articles 25-28, and Article 26 specifically grants religious communities the right to manage their institutions and properties.

The BJP-led government has proposed a new bill titled United Wakf - Management, Empowerment, Efficiency, Development (UMEED) Act. Community leaders fear that the amendments will reduce Muslim control over Wakf assets. One of the most contentious changes requires all Wakf properties to have documented proof within six months, failing which they will lose their Wakf status. Previously, an independent Islamic law expert surveyed Wakf properties, but the amendment shifts this responsibility to district collectors, raising concerns about impartiality. Additionally, the bill removes the requirement for only Muslim officials to be appointed to the Wakf Tribunal and mandates at least two non-Muslim members in the Wakf Board. Critics question why such changes apply only to Wakf institutions while other religious trusts remain self-governed.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee received 9.8 million public objections, the majority opposing the amendments. However, reports suggest that the government ignored these concerns and proceeded with the bill in both Houses of Parliament.

Opponents argue that this amendment aims to bring Wakf assets under government control, eroding the religious and cultural identity of the Muslim community. They view it as a divisive political move that threatens the rights of India’s largest minority.

Religious leaders have urged all citizens who support constitutional values and secularism to voice their opposition to the bill.

Prominent scholars and community leaders at the press conference included Khazi Ahmad Musliyar Takha Ustad, Khazi Zainul Ulama Mani Ustad, Sayyid Ismail Thangal Ujire, Usmanul Faizi Thodaru, U K Muhammad Sadi Valavoor, U K Abdul Aziz Darimi Chokkabetu, S P Hamza Sakhafi Bantwal, N K M Shafi Sadi Bengaluru, Abdul Hameed Darimi Sampya, P P Ahmad Sakhafi Kashipatna, K I Abdul Khader Darimi Kukkil, P M Usman Sadi Pattori, K L Umar Darimi Pattori, T M Muhiyuddin Kamil Sakhafi Toke, Dr M S M Zaini Kamil, Anees Kausari, Umar Darimi Salmar, Qasim Darimi Savanoor, M Y Abdul Hafeez Sadi Kodagu, Abu Bakr Siddiq Darimi Kadaba, K K M Kamil Sakhafi Suribail, Rafiq Hudavi Kolar, K M Abu Bakr Siddiq Montugoli, Hussain Darimi Renjaladi, M P M Ashraf Sadi Malluru, Abu Saleh Faizi Tumbe, Muhammad Ali Turkalike, and Muhammad Musliyar Mundol.

The meeting was led by B A Abdul Nasir Lakki Star, president of the Dakshina Kannada Wakf Advisory Committee, and Ashraf Kinar, vice president of the committee.

A group of nearly 300 migrants, including Indians deported from the United States under President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration, are currently held in a hotel in Panama's Darien jungle region. These migrants hail primarily from Asian countries such as India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and China.

The migrants are not permitted to leave the hotel as the Panamanian government awaits international authorities to arrange their return to their home countries. According to a report, Panama's Security Minister Frank Abrego stated that the migrants are receiving medical attention and food as per an agreement between the United States and Panama.

However, a report from The New York Times quoted Artemis Ghasemzadeh, 27, an Iranian deportee, who said, "It looks like a zoo; there are fenced cages. They gave us a stale piece of bread. We are sitting on the floor."

Deputy Foreign Minister of Panama, Carlos Ruiz-Hernandez, confirmed that 97 people were transferred to the camp. He emphasized that the migrants were not "detainees" but rather in a migrant camp where they will be taken care of, not a detention camp.

Migrants in the hotel rooms displayed messages on the windows reading "Help" and "We are not safe in our country." According to the report, 40% of the migrants are refusing to return to their home countries voluntarily.

Panama serves as a transit country due to the challenges the US faces in deporting individuals directly to some countries. While Panama acts as a "bridge," the US government bears the cost of these arrangements. This agreement between the two countries was announced following the visit of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Panama. The threat of retaking control of the Panama Canal by Trump is mounting pressure on Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino.

Costa Rica is also expected to receive a group of deportees on Wednesday.

Abrego stated that 171 of the 299 deportees had agreed to return to their home countries with the assistance of the UN Refugee Agency and the International Organization for Migration. The remaining 128 migrants are still being processed, with efforts being made to find alternative locations for them. While individuals who refuse to return to their home countries will be detained in a facility in the remote province of Darien for a while, one deported Irish individual has already returned home.

The Trump administration has given the go-ahead for a nearly $3 billion arms sale to Israel, sidestepping the standard congressional review process to expedite the delivery of 2,000-pound bombs widely used by the Israeli military in its ongoing onslaught in the Gaza Strip.

In a series of notifications sent to Congress on Friday, the State Department has reported it has approved the sale of more than 35,500 MK 84 and BLU-117 bombs and 4,000 Predator warheads worth $2.04 billion to Israel.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio “has determined and provided detailed justification that an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the Government of Israel of the above defense articles and defense services in the national security interests of the United States, thereby waiving the Congressional review requirements,” the department said.

Deliveries are set to begin next year, it said.

According to the same statement, Rubio has also approved another munitions sale to Israel worth $675.7 million to be delivered starting in 2028.

The Israeli regime has extensively used the MK 84, also known as the 2,000-pound bomb, in its genocidal wars against the people of Lebanon and Palestine, including the assassination of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders.

Last May, the previous US administration attempted to curb Israel’s military aggression in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, by imposing a temporary ban on the sale of 2,000-pound bombs.

This effort, however, proved futile in halting the invasion, as the US continued to supply other weapons to the Israeli regime.

On February 25, Trump’s National Security Adviser, Michael Waltz, rescinded the ban to allow the State Department to resume the sale of the bombs to the regime.

The State Department has also approved the sale of Caterpillar D9 Bulldozers and related equipment for an estimated cost of $295 million to Israel.

The Israeli regime has used D9 bulldozers to demolish thousands of Palestinian homes in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights has advised Caterpillar Inc. that by supplying the bulldozers to the regime, it is complicit in human rights violations.

D9 has been involved in several incidents of civilian deaths, including in 2023 when it was used against the refugees sheltering outside the Kamal Adwan Hospital.